The Beta's Daughter

Not So Smart

Chapter 48
Ambers pov

On my way out the front door, I grab my zip-up hoodie.

The brown one. I'm glad I thought of this before getting in my car. I'm gonna need it to blend in to my surroundings.

The drive takes twenty-one minutes, and that's going the speed limit. After I turned onto Weston side road, the dirt road I was looking for was less than thirty seconds up. This road is hardly big enough for one car to get down, but I manage it.

My phone dings, and tells me I've reached my destination. I look for a clearing that will allow me to pull my car in so it's off the road and out of sight. I'm careful not to run over anything that could cause damage to the tires. How bad would it suck if I got what I was looking for, only to be thwarted by a flat.

I shut the car off, get out, and put on my hoodie. I put the hood up so it's covering my hair, then turn on the compass app on my phone. The other thing that would really suck would be to go in circles for the next two hours, never reaching my real destination.

And I'm off.

Usually, I love going for walks in the woods. For our kind, it's relaxing and helps connect us to nature. Normally, I would stop every so often, close my eyes, and take in all the scents. One of my favorites is the way tree bark smells as winter is turning to spring.

Today, I don't stop, and I really don't love being out here, especially alone. I focus solely on why I'm here and what I need to do. I quicken my pace and can't help but notice how loud the leaves and twigs are crunching under my feet. Or maybe it's just my imagination. And right now, my imagination is running wild.

It's telling me I'm already being followed, that they know I'm coming and what I'm going to do. My mind has turned on me in just a few short minutes.

Why did I think this was a good idea again? I stop and put my back against a tree and take a few deep breaths. My brain is my most useful tool, and I'll be damned if I let it turn on me.

There's nobody out here. Nobody is following me. I'm smarter than they are, and the evidence I collect will help us stop them. These thoughts help calm me, and I'm able to rid myself of the imaginary threats.

I get moving again, so I'm not stuck out here when it gets dark. I check my phone, still going in the right direction, and if my calculations were right, I should come to the barn in the next three to five minutes. I increased my pace to a slow jog to cut that time down. I want out of here as fast as possible.

The barn is in a small clearing, with no driveways or paths leading to it. It's obvious it was abandoned long ago. I'm thinking that the other building was probably part of the same farm that this barn belonged to back in the day. Time and neglect are responsible for its current condition.

There's not much in the way of paint left on the outside. Most of it has peeled off long ago. The wood is severely weathered, and I find it amazing that it's still standing at all. The roof is actually sunken in at certain spots, and where the windows once used to be, there's newer looking plywood.

Staying behind the cover of the trees, I scope the area out from here. I walk through the woods, circling the barn as best as I can, trying to get a look from all sides. When I'm fairly confident that nobody is here, I run quickly to the back of it and stand there listening for a minute as well.