Greykin Mountain

| 33 | Disappearances in Farrydare

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Jackson hurried up the street, heading towards the bridge which would take him back into the woods.

          He glanced over his shoulder, his heart racing and his hands shaking. The moment he saw the suit-wearing man step out of the Emporium, and caught his desperate gaze, angst shot through, making his limbs feel like spaghetti. He picked up the pace, panting, rushing—he almost slipped on the icy path when he crossed the road—and when he looked back, he saw the man was gaining on him.

          With a panicked grimace, Jackson started running. The bridge was right in front of him—just a few more seconds.

          He swerved out of the way of a passing car, rushed across the bridge, and when he got to the other side, he glanced over his shoulder again. He couldn't see the man, but he wasn't going to stop and risk letting him catch up.

          Jackson raced into the woods; he didn't stop, moving deeper into the trees, and further away from the town. And when he was confident that he was far away enough, he darted behind a large, dead tree and stood with his back against it.

          He waited....

          And waited....

          He couldn't hear footsteps crunching through the snow, nor did he feel that unsettling sensation of eyes on him. Had he managed to lose his stalker?

          Jackson took a deep breath and peeked around the tree.

          Nothing. No one.

          He was alone.

          With a relieved sigh, he stepped away from the tree. For a moment, he tried to work out where he was, but he was sure Tokala and Elias would find him soon enough. Which reminded him—he reached into the bag and stuffed the files and phone under the medicine and items he'd managed to get from Elias' list. The last thing he needed was for Elias to discover it all.

          Then, he started walking, leaving the town behind.

          For what felt like at least thirty minutes, Jackson trekked through the silent woods. A part of him missed the sound of civilization, but he was glad to be away from a place that didn't welcome Caeleste, something he hadn't long come to learn he was now categorized as. And even gladder to be away from whoever that guy was.

          Why was he following him? Chasing him? Jackson wasn't sure, nor did he have anything to try and come up with a connection, but could that guy have known he was Caeleste? Or suspected, at least. Either way, Jackson was confident that getting caught would have probably been his end.

          Despite the interruption, he'd found more than he'd thought he would in the evidence room. Wilson had been to that town and so had at least one of the other people he was looking for. Something was going on, and he strongly suspected that if he found out what or who was responsible for the town's disappearances, then he'd find Wilson, Thomas, and maybe the others.

          He had everything he needed to make a start, too—he had exactly what he needed to not only begin working out that mystery, but also that which surrounded his dreams, past, and Eric's business.

          A rustle in the bushes snapped him out of his head. He stopped in his tracks and sharply turned his head to stare in the sound's direction. He'd been too busy pondering that he had forgotten he was walking through a zombie wolf-infested forest.