The Bone House - Brian Freeman [149]
Even so, he had somewhere to go, and he was anxious to get there.
Hilary broke through the trees on to Schoolhouse Beach behind their house. Mark was waiting for her. So was Tresa, sitting on a bench beside him, her red hair tied in a ponytail. Sunshine spilled across the expanse of the horseshoe bay and left it flecked with gold. The season was still too early for tourists, and they had the rocky stretch of shoreline all to themselves.
When the two of them saw her at the crest of the slope, Tresa ran. Mark lingered on the bench by himself, letting the girl go first. Tresa greeted Hilary with a huge smile and threw her arms around her in a hug that seemed impossibly strong for her skinny arms.
'I'm so glad you're safe,' Tresa whispered.
'Me, too.'
'Mark told me you were coming home today. I really wanted to stay and see you.'
'I'm glad you did.'
Tresa leaned in, hugging her as fiercely as before. When she let go, she ducked her head into her neck. 'I'm so sorry about Jen. I mean Katie. I should have done something. I should have told someone about the fire.'
'You were a kid back then, Tresa,' Hilary said.
'I still feel like a kid.'
'You're not.'
'Mark thinks I am.'
Hilary didn't answer, and Tresa bit her lip and shoved her thumbs in the pockets of her jeans. 'Well, I'll leave you guys alone.'
The teenager brushed past her, but Hilary stopped her with a hand on her shoulder. 'Tresa, wait. There's something else.'
'What is it?'
'You did a brave thing by coming here that night like you did. You risked your own life. Thank you.'
'I couldn't let anything happen to Mark,' she said.
'I know that, and I'm grateful,' Hilary went on, 'but I also have to tell you something. Woman to woman.'
Tresa hesitated. 'OK.'
'You can't spend any more time alone with my husband,' Hilary said.
Tresa's eyes widened. 'What?' I mean, yeah, I - I understand. I'm sorry. He told you what happened, huh?'
'Of course he did.'
'I'm really sorry.'
'Girl crushes don't bother me, Tresa, but you're not a girl anymore.'
She nodded. 'Sure. You're right.'
'It doesn't mean we never want to see you again.'
'No, I get it.' Tresa took a long look over her shoulder at Mark. 'Thanks,' she told Hilary.
'For what?'
'For saying I could actually be a threat. That's cool.'
Hilary smiled. 'Take care of yourself, Tresa.'
'You too. You're lucky, you know?'
'I know.'
She watched Tresa disappear into the trees, and then she turned with a strange sense of anxiety and relief toward Mark, trying not to run. He climbed off the bench as she drew near. Their faces told the story. They didn't need to speak. His arms enfolded her, and she grabbed him hard, and they kissed with an outpouring of love and longing that left her fighting back tears. It was as if everything in her life had come within a breath of slipping away, and then, suddenly, miraculously, she had it all back in her grasp. They stood there in silence for long minutes, clinging to each other, still somehow afraid that they would be torn apart. When they finally let go, they walked back to the bench hand in hand and sat, still not speaking, listening to the steady beat of the water on the rocks.
'I thought I'd never—' Mark began, but she stopped him firmly with a hand over his lips.
'Don't. Don't say it.'
He nodded and let it go. She didn't want to talk about fears or nightmares. She didn't want to talk about what might have happened or how close they'd both come to the edge of the precipice. The only thing that mattered to her was that they were still here and still together.
'I got a call from the principal at the high school,' Hilary told him. 'Oh?'
'It sounds like the last few days have made a lot of people rethink what happened last year. Or maybe they got nervous