The Grove by John Rector Read Free Book Online Page A

for a moment my vision darkened. I thought I heard someone’s footsteps coming down the path in the corn behind me. I turned. There was a shadow, and for a moment I thought I saw—
    Nothing.
    I closed my eyes and focused on my breathing and the beat of my heart. When I opened them again, everything was back to normal.
    I scanned the path and the rows of corn around me. Then, when I was sure I was alone, I turned and kept walking toward home.

CHAPTER 12
     
    “ Hello, you’ve reached the Rowe residence. Please leave a message and I’ll call you back .”
    I waited for the beep.
    “Liz, call me as soon as you get this. We need to talk about a few things.” I spoke slow and tried to sound casual. “Nothing big, just some things I’ve been thinking about.”
    I paused, then said, “Mostly I wanted to tell you I’m sorry for the other night. Everything came to the surface and I wasn’t myself. You know that’s not me, Liz. You know I’d never hurt you, I was just confused and angry, I didn’t know what—”
    The machine beeped and cut me off.
    I held the phone against my ear for a moment then redialed Liz’s mother’s house. It rang five times before the machine picked up.
    “Me again,” I said after the beep. “I can tell you all this when you call me back, but if you don’t plan on doing that, I need to say one more thing.”
    I looked up at the kitchen window and saw the afternoon sun reflecting in from the outside world. I heard Jessica’s voice tell me there were other options, that I didn’t have to say anything.
    I ignored her.
    “I’m going to start my medication again.”
    Jessica’s voice faded, and I felt completely alone.
    “I know I should start the pills and then tell you, but I wanted you to know right away. Tomorrow I’m going into town to fill my prescription. It’s been a while, but I shouldn’t have any problems. If I do, I’ll have them call Dr. Conner up at Archway. He’ll take care of it over the phone.”
    I crossed to the refrigerator and grabbed a beer. Something moved outside the window, but I didn’t look up, didn’t want to. Instead, I set the bottle on the table and paced the room while I spoke.
    “I want you to know you don’t have to be scared of me and you don’t have to leave.” I paused. “I mean, I’m not saying you should come home tonight or anything, I just—”
    The machine beeped and clicked off.
    “Shit.”
    I hung up and redialed and waited for the beep again, then said, “Tell Ellen I’m sorry. I shouldn’t leave all of this on her machine, so I’ll make this one short. I’d like you to come home when you feel better about us, OK? We can work through this together, and I’m willing to do whatever it takes because I love you.”
    Jessica’s voice came again, stronger this time, bouncing through my mind in a little girl’s singsong tone.
    “But she doesn’t love you.”
    I sat at the table and picked at the label on the bottle, then took a drink. Jessica’s voice was getting louder, closer, repeating over and over.
    “But she doesn’t love you. She doesn’t love you.”
    I closed my eyes and bit the insides of my cheeks and whispered, “Stop it.”
    I didn’t think I’d said it loud enough for it to come through on the message, but just in case I thought it might be a good idea to hang up. The last thing I wanted was to sound crazy.
    “Call me please, Liz,” I said. “I lov—”
    The machine clicked off.
    I let the phone drop. It bounced off my lap, hit the floor, and slid toward the wall, pulled by the cord.
    I sat for a while, breathing slow, trying to silence Jessica’s voice in my head.
    Eventually it faded.
    I finished my beer, then took a bottle of Johnny Walker from the cabinet and went outside. I sat on the porch steps and stared out at the field.
    I wondered if Liz would return my call.
    Part of me didn’t think she would.
    I sat and drank for a long time. After a while, I eased back on the porch, closed my eyes, and