Page 160 of Demo
“Huh?” he turns and looks. “That’s weird.”
Chapter 44
KNOX
Lizziefollowsmeoutthe front door and off the porch, and stops beside me on the walkway as the back passenger door of the car opens. I can see an Uber logo in the back window.
The door is pushed open further and one skinny-jean-clad leg is awkwardly hoisted out. It obviously belongs to a female, seeing as the small foot at the end of the sleek leg is wearing a flat dress shoe. I see a flash of red hair swing around just inside the opening, as the other leg is hoisted over, joining the other. One small hand grasps the top of the door, while this person drags something out of the car. Even from here, I can see her fingers tighten around the top of the door as she appears to half-push, half-drag herself to a standing position.
And my heart stops.
Her other hand passes one metal crutch with a round forearm cuff over to the other, and she awkwardly settles into it before she pulls another one out and gets it in place.
She takes two shaky steps away from the open door, looking very much like Bambi fresh out of the womb, then Lizzie and I hear a low “Shit!” come from the woman’s mouth as she leans against the back side of the car, the rear passenger door still open.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Lizzie look at me. “Uh, you know her?” she asks, pointing at the young woman.
But I can’t speak. I can’t nod. I can’t even blink.
“Hi!” She yells over to us, cheerily. “I’m kinda new at this,” leaning on her crutches she waves her hands downward toward her legs, “this whole walking on crutches thing. Do you think you could come over here for a sec?”
“Knox?” Lizzie presses from beside me.
I swallow as I take in the light red hair hanging over the woman’s shoulder, blowing in the slight breeze, and the deep blue blouse with little shoulder cap sleeves that also flutter around. And the bright, innocent eyes that look kind.
This young lady is nothing like the one that has been haunting my nightmares.
I take a step and again Lizzie asks, “Knox?” I simply extend my hand back toward her, fingers spread wide, and wait a beat until I feel her hand slip into mine. It fits like a glove. The way it always has. The way I hope it always will. Together we cross the front lawn and approach the woman, stopping just a few feet from her.
“Thanks for meeting me, well, I know the saying is ‘meet me halfway’ but, clearly you came the whole way, so, thanks … for that,” she says, then gives a nervous laugh.
I feel Lizzie give my hand a squeeze, and I give her one in return. It’s the only thing I can do to comfort her right now.
“Um, anyway. Sorry, this is awkward. Uh, my name is Ariel.” She lets that sit for a second as she blushes. “Yeah, I know. Ridiculous, right? My mom had a thing forThe Little Mermaidand with the red hair she just couldn’t help herself, apparently. The sea legs, though, that’s just coincidence. But my friends call me Ari.”
When neither Lizzie nor I respond, Ari shakes her head and starts again. “Right, sorry. Anyway …” Dipping her head, she bites on her bottom lip, then her eyes rise to meet mine. “You don’t know me, but—”
“I know you,” I blurt out, and I hear Lizzie gasp beside me, so I squeeze her hand again. “I mean, I know who you are.” I look her up and down. “I thought … Well, I don’t know what I thought, exactly, but I certainly didn’t expect this. Don’t get me wrong,” I rub my free hand over the back of my neck, “you look … well.”
“I’m sorry, but could someone please tag me into the conversation?” Lizzie asks. I open my mouth, but Ari cuts me off.
“Let me, please,” she says, and I simply nod. She looks over at Lizzie. “About a year and a half ago something changed my life …” as Ari trails off, I prepare for the blow. I’ve been readying for this in some way or another ever since that night. I’ve been waiting for the universe to make me atone for my actions. Waiting for the other shoe to drop. Waiting to face the life I ruined.
I don’t take my eyes off Ari’s. I owe her this much.
Looking straight into me, she says, with no uncertainty, “It saved me.”
My intake of air is audible.
Ari tucks a piece of hair behind her ear and lets out a breath. “You see, I had been running—literally and metaphorically—for a long time. I had been trying to outrun demons, some my own and some that belong to the real world, but to no avail. And that night, I decided I was done running. I was just … I was done. So, as I ran away for the last time, I decided to just run right toward the first thing that would take me away from it all. And that, Knox, was you.”
I feel Lizzie’s hand shake as Ari uses my name. Or maybe it’s my hand shaking.
Ari continues, “And, while I thought the only thing that would take me away from that life was eternal darkness. You know, ‘the permanent sleep,’ or whatever the hell they say in poems … Well, it wasn’t. Long story short, I was reborn.”
I feel a hand on my cheek and bristle, then turn my gaze away from Ari for the first time since she arrived, and face Lizzie as she brushes tears off my face.
Ari clears her throat, and we both look back at her. “Anyway, I got your name from the police report, and I’ve wanted to reach out ever since I started my recovery but, well, I was kinda scared. And then I finally stopped at the address they had on file, and no one answered so I had to do some Googling.” Ari makes wide eyes and starts stammering, reminding me a lot of Lizzie. “Not that I was, like, stalking you! I swear. I just … Damn, this is not how I rehearsed it.” She blows out another breath, shifts on her crutches, then squares her shoulders and looks between me and Lizzie.
