If you're loved by someone, you're never rejected, decide what to be and GO BE IT
-The Avett brothers
Recommend Reading Introduction to Unproven
DEFINITELY READ Prologue
Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three
Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six
Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty One
Chapter Twenty Two Chapter Twenty Three Chapter Twenty Four
Chapter Twenty Five Chapter Twenty Six Chapter Twenty Seven
Chapter Twenty Eight Chapter Twenty Nine Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty One Chapter Thirty Two Chapter Thirty Three
Chapter Thirty Four Chapter Thirty Five Chapter Thirty Six
Chapter Thirty Seven Chapter Thirty EightChapter Thirty Nine
Chapter Forty Chapter Forty One Chapter Forty Two
Chapter Forty Three Chapter Forty Four Chapter Forty Five
Chapter Forty Six Chapter Forty Seven Chapter Forty Eight
Chapter Forty Nine Chapter Fifty Chapter Fifty One
Chapter Fifty Two Chapter Fifty Three Chapter Fifty Four
Chapter Fifty Five Chapter Fifty Six Chapter Fifty Seven
Chapter Fifty Eight Chapter Fifty Nine Chapter Sixty
Chapter Sixty One Chapter Sixty Two Chapter Sixty Three
Chapter Sixty Four Chapter Sixty Five Chapter Sixty Six
Chapter Sixty Seven Chapter Sixty Eight Chapter Sixty Nine
Chapter Seventy Chapter Seventy Chapter Seventy Two
Chapter Seventy Three Chapter Seventy Four Chapter Seventy Five
Chapter Seventy SixChapter Seventy Seven Chapter Seventy Eight
Chapter Seventy Nine Chapter Eighty Chapter Eighty One
Chapter Eighty Two Chapter Eighty Three Chapter Eighty Four
Chapter Eighty Five Chapter Eighty Six Chapter Eighty Seven
Chapter Eighty Eight Chapter Eighty Nine Chapter Ninety
Chapter Ninety One Chapter Ninety Two Chapter Ninety Three
Chapter Ninety Four Chapter Ninety Five
Chapter Ninety Six
At nine o'clock on Tuesday night Ary sat on her bed counting down the minutes before she was supposed to meet him. They had so little time together lately that though she was sure to see him the next night, she was glad his impatience meant a few extra stolen hours.
She could scarcely believe that in one month's time they would be stealing every hour of every day. The thought never failed to fill her with excitement.
She kept checking the time and by ten she was a little concerned that she hadn't heard from him. Usually if they were planning to meet she would get frequent updates from him letting her know that he was watching the clock as much as she was. She shook it off, deciding that he was probably involved in a conversation that he couldn't escape.
At ten-fifteen she decided she'd get ready and walk to the park to give her something to do.
Grayson's paranoia about them being caught by getting sloppy had become so ingrained that she opted to go out her bedroom window. Besides it was kind of fun to sneak out, it added to the sense of adventure. She did so, quietly, as if her grandma were at home, sliding the window shut slowly then sneaking across the neighbor's backyard and into another like a cat-burglar.
She reached the park at ten-thirty and sat on the swing, hoping he would show up at eleven despite his lack of texts. Maybe he'd forgotten his phone, or forgotten to charge it.
At five after eleven she finally got a text. Jay is watching me like a hawk, he's been glued to my ass all night--I thought he was going to follow me into the john, seriously. There might be some suspicion, though I can't see where I slipped up. Sorry baby, I'll see what I can find out and if it's nothing I'll be climbing through your window...love you
Ary sighed. Oh well, she'd see him tomorrow, unless there really was suspicion. She shook off a momentary chill and thought about heading home, then decided against it. She was too wired to sleep and besides it was a beautiful night and the park was the perfect place to enjoy it. She swung lazily, imagining what life would be like once they left. She got lost in her daydreams, of watching live bands and drinking lots of beer and snuggling in a sleeping bag. He'd had seventy grand to escape with three weeks ago, and even if he hadn't managed to grab another dollar it was plenty to fall back on. They would be fine.
More than fine. When they got tired of the festival lifestyle they could buy a piece of land-she'd looked into it and found acres for sale all over the country. Then they could get a camper, maybe build a cabin… She continued down this track, with slightly varying scenarios and when she glanced at the time on her phone again it was almost one am. She doubted Gray would make it tonight but giggled at the thought of him pouncing on her bed and finding it empty if he did.
She looked up from her musings, dragging her feet on the ground to stop the swing at the sound of sirens. After a moment she caught her feet and pushed off again. Sirens were not an uncommon thing to hear at night, but they had a quality to them that instilled fear. She wondered if whoever devised that sound had tested what would most chill a human to the bone. If so, she sent them kudos for a job well done.
She had just settled back into her fantasy when more sirens lit the night, growing closer. They stopped their progress forward but continued to sound, and she thought that whatever was on fire it wasn't far away.
The sounds went on and on preventing her from going back to lala land, and she sighed. It was way past her normal bedtime anyway, might as well go home and get some sleep. Especially since tomorrow was Wednesday and she generally didn’t get much sleep when Grayson was around.
She took the same path she'd chosen on the way to the park, sneaking through backyards, and all the while the sounds of the sirens were growing closer.
But it wasn't until she was in the yard of the house directly behind hers that she realized where they were coming from. She stared unblinkingly at the sight of her home in flames, vaguely noting the shouts of firemen as they tried to put out the blaze. She was completely mesmerized, glued to the dark spot in which she stood, until an explosion jolted her out of her frozen state.
The furnace, she thought numbly as the window to her bedroom burst outward and the entire backside of the house went up. Her feet began to move, but not toward it, away from it, back the way she'd come, faster and faster until she was sprinting.
When she reached the park she bent over and put her hands on her knees trying to catch her breath while her heart beat wildly. If not for her plans to meet Grayson, she would have been in that house. She probably would have been sleeping, died of smoke inhalation before the fire even got going. She wasn't sure why she'd run but there was a nagging feeling in the pit of her stomach; maybe it was tied to instinct- after all animals fled from fire... Jay has been glued to my ass all night, there might be some suspicion…as the words blazed through her mind she lost the feeling in her legs and dropped to her knees on the grass.
Oh God. Oh God, oh shit, she thought. Oh shit, shit, fuck. Her breathing became erratic as she recalled that day last fall when Grayson had looked at his phone as if it were a snake- when she'd realized he'd feared for her life...Then his words when they'd begun seeing each other in secret-I don't know how far he would go. Oh God.
She pulled her phone from her pocket and stared at it, her stomach doing somersaults. No. She couldn't call him, not yet. She dialed Dori instead.
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