Aspen Creek

    As the dodge rounded the last curve, a figure emerged from the side of the road.  Slamming on the brakes, the teenager who was driving,  jerked the wheel...spinning the truck into a embankment.  The fog lights aimed upward, spotlighting the trees, and as Jesse raised his head, he could see the pines swaying back and forth where he had brushed them with the side of his truck.  Glancing in his rearview mirror, he did not see the figure that had emerged from the woods.  Opening his door, he slowly stepped out, his hiking boots sinking into the fresh mud he had drove his truck into.  "Damn, "  cursing under his breath he stared at the red clay.  It was so hard to get red clay out of anything.
    "Hello?"  he yelled out, his voice cracking a little, wishing it was still light.  Just past dark, and these woods were not very welcoming.  Even though he had been raised here, he still was cautious, never know what to expect. 
    Brushing his long sandy blonde hair back from his face, his sky blue eyes tried to focus in the dim light.  Nobody came down this road, only his family members.  Even if he had been on time, the last one up the road was him.  He knew everyone was at home warm and full from supper he had just missed.  He was not having a good evening.  Stomping his feet off, he headed up the embankment and walked slowly to the place where he had seen the figure.  He saw the fresh foot prints.  Small feet, he thought.
    No sooner had that come across his mind a figure came at him from the side.  Slamming into him,  he felt himself being thrown across the road.  As the air left his lungs, he vaguely remembered a small face and bright green eyes staring into his...

    The call came in late that night.  At four a.m. Alyssa rolled over to grab her cell phone.  The voice breaking through all the static was rugged and low, and sounded very desperate...Eyes opening wide Alyssa sat up..."Daddy, is that you?"
    "Yeah, hun, how are you?"
    Something was wrong.  She had been tossing all night...had been having a funny feeling all day....Now, this...
    "You need to come home, its Jesse, I don't know what is going on, he never came home last night...We found his truck up by the gates..."  Alyssa's heart seemed to stop, as the color left her face she whispered..."I'll be there shortly."

    Stephen's features were a blur.  All Alyssa could do was think about all the terrible things that Jesse may be going through.  Even when Stephen handed her last bag to be packed in the trunk of her jeep, she still didn't stop to focus.  Stephen grabbed her arm and stopped her.
    "Hey, Lyssa, snap out of it!" 
    The dark brown eyes studied the pale features.  Alyssa's normal curly vibrant red hair looked dull,  her hazel blue/green eyes not focusing.  With hardly any makeup, she looked as pale as a ghost.
    "Do you want me to go?  I can postpone a few things and drive you down there..."  Stephen had always been a good friend.  He had known her since her son Jesse was about two years-old.  Even after going in different directions years ago, they had found their friendship again, just here recently.  She had always held a soft spot in his heart.  What had happened years ago with them both, the question of a relationship outside of friends was not in the picture now.
    "Do you really think your boss will let you?  Besides, I dont know how long I will be.  Autumn is with her dad, so I dont have to worry about her, "  Over the holidays the visitations were open and usually she would let her thirteen year old stay with her ex husband.  It gave her a break, and Autumn time with her dad. 
    "Yeah, he will.  I need time off anyway..."  Stephen's brown eyes were serious, "I am going to drive you there, I still remember the way.  We'll stop by my place and I will grab a few things...come on, get in.."
 
    As the snow fell harder, Stephen kept a good eye on the road ahead.  Leaving the  small city of Aspenwall, they came down out of the mountains, leveling out to see old farmhouses and little dairy farms along the way.  As they got nearer to Aspen Creek, after about an hour, Alyssa started smoking heavier.  She hated this town.  She walked away a year after her son had been born.  Went into the military and stayed gone for years.  Her son had been born out of wedlock, so it was more custom and common for the grandparents to raise the children.  She had wanted Jesse safe and away from the city life, she had hoped the country upbringing would mold her son into a young gentle man. 
    "You really do hate it here, don't ya?"  Stephen fired a marlboro up, the light lit his eyes up.  He was doing that funny thing with his wrist, always flexing it especially with his watch loose.  That irritated her, but she had never said anything.
    "Hate, that is not a word I would use for my feelings..."  Alyssa leaned back and looked at her driver.  Her eyes twinkling she said simply, "Well you told me you were coming...cant back out now!"
    Stephen smiled, that was his girl.  He was glad the spark was coming back.  She had a tendency to rebound quicker than anyone he knew.  Her passion and fire for certain things kept him hopping.  Taking a vow of no relationships or romance until her daughter was old enough to survive the world alone, Alyssa had put a halt on any type of feelings that would remotely come down to love.  At thirty-five she was a gordeous redhead with bright laughing eyes, and a personality that stunned everyone she met. Her intellectual being was very open, never hesitateing to voice her opinion. 
    In the fifteen years he had known her, he could never understand the reason she always ended up with the wrong dudes.  That was still a mystery. 


    When her jeep pulled onto Aspen Creek Rd., a two-mile dirt road that cut across the heavy woods and creek that surrounded her families farm, Stephen stopped at the gate that was being patroled by police.  Before he could say two words, Alyssa was jumping out and running to stand beside her father.  Pulling over to the side, he watched her standing beneath the snow falling, her head tilted up to stare shocked at her dad's grim expression.  He knew it wasn't a good.
    As the grey haired man turned and raised a hand to acknowledge Stephen in her jeep, a policeman of about their age, walked slowly up to Alyssa and placed a hand on her arm.  He saw Alyssa stiffen and look away.  Frowning, Stephen unbuckled his seatbelt.  Grabbing his hat he stepped out, the heavy snow swirling faster around them.  Being an ex-marine, he knew certain weather conditions could hamper an investigation. 
    When he got closer,  he heard the man speaking in low gentle tones..."We have to end the search, Lyssa, it's getting too hard to see." 
    Alyssa's eyes filled with grief met the officers dark brooding gaze.  "What are we suppose to do, Jake, leave him out here in this?"
    Jake Tucker felt like a knife had hit him in the gut when he saw her pain.  It had been almost thirteen years since he had seen Alyssa Berrings beautiful eyes.  And that red hair, never would he forget those curls.  A picture of her beneath the waterfalls on a hot summer day back when they had been teenagers crossed his mind, glancing away, he noticed Stephen standing idly by, watching them talk. 
    Stephen raised his hand and they introduced themselves, each one watching the queit woman.  "So, what are we doing, Lyssa?"  Jake glanced at the six foot seven man towering just a hair over them.  Noticing the softness of Ayssa's features, Jake realized that this Mr. McClennen was with Alyssa.  Glancing down, Jake looked at the snow piling up around them.  The thought of all this unnerved him.  It wasn't only a teenager missing, but it was Alyssa's son.  He had known this woman since she was around four years old.  They had played in these woods, traveling across the acres of plow land and creeks that ran on the edges of the Aspen Creek township.  Everyone knew everyone, as so it did in these small towns.
    As Stephen went to wrap an arm around Alyssa, the radio blared loud for all to hear, "...come in Sheriff Tucker, come in, this is Deputy Taylor, we have found the boys coat..come in..."  Slipping sideways, Jake moved quickly, grabbing the cb.
    "Over, whats your statis?"  As the deputy described the location, Alyssa whirled around facing the direction.  She knew the place, and not thinking, she made to go that way.  It was just cross the small creek that ran beside them.  Not but a few feet down off the dirt road to their left facing town.  She could see the deputys just a little ways off through the thickness of pines and fallen trees.
    Stephen reached her just as she was heading down the embankment. 
    "What are you doing? WAIT!"  She slipped through his fingers, slipping half way down. 

    Alyssa got up and brushed herself off.  Fear gripped her heart.  Never had she felt this way before.  Almost crying she made her way through the thicket, heading off the three deputys who were crouching over something laying in the snow.  When the burly man with dark straight hair speckled with gray raised his head, and spotted Alyssa Berring coming his way, he froze.  The wide eyes of Thomas Tucker met hers.  Alyssa slowed down. 
    Jake's father had been the county sheriff for more than twenty-five years when he retired a few years ago.  Now, on occasion, he road along and helped out with cases.  This one in particular was really to close to home for comfort.  As he stared at Alyssa, he noticed the once chubby freckled face little girl had become a young becoming woman.  He vaguely remembered the fuss and gossip over this one having a child out of wedlock, but had not taken to heart any bad things that had been voiced. He had watched her grow from a toddler to a mother of two.
    Giving her a welcome warm hug, he patted her on the back and pointed to the coat.  "John said he was wearing this last night when he left."

    Stephen caught up with the group with Jake right behind.  As they neared the area he could hear Alyssa talking calmly to an older man, "So the snow has covered the tracks, but where could he go?  It was night time, Thomas, hard to see."
    As the time crept slowly along, Alyssa finally noticed how cold it had become.  Jesus, she thought, how would he survive?  Looking up and down, studying the trees she began to think.  Time was not on their side. 

    She had to use her gift.  No one was watching her, breathing slowly, she slowed her heart beats to a minimum, trying to focus her mind,  little by little she began to see it clearly.  A sandy brown head tucked beneath a parka, and a pair of green eyes staring back at her... As the picture rushed at her from a speed she wasn't used to, she lost her balance.  Catching her, Stephen's warm arms steadied the small woman.  Noticing her eyes in that weird out of this world thing she did, he knew she was using her gift. As the blue hue to her hazel eyes seem to glow a little, he stepped a little to the side so no one could see. 
    He could almost feel the eyes of Sheriff Tucker's boring into his back.  What was the deal, he thought?  Did these two have some kind of connection he wasn't aware of?  It didn't matter, he thought, it just made him uneasy.  Shrugging it off, he rubbed Alyssa's arms to keep her warm. 
    "Did you see anything?"  His warm breath caressed her cheeks as her breathing became normal again.  Not realizing how close she was to his cheek she turned her head slightly, her lips only inches from his firm mouth.  Raising her eyes, she stared blankly into his cool brown gaze..."he is not far from here."
    "So..which way?"  The tone was 'get it together' or get caught.  Clearing her throat, she snapped out of it.  Turning to duck under a pines heavy lidden branch, she murmured, "at the rocks."


    None of them knew where she was leading them.  As familiar things jumped out at Jake, he realized they were headed towards the rocks which overlooked the waterfall.  The waterfall was a good ten feet up from the swimming hole below it.  The last time he had been here was with his boys the summer before.  With the small blizzard swirling around them, the pace had better picked up or they would be swallowed up by it. 
    As Alyssa came into the opening where a few feet of rock jutted out of the small cliff.  Stepping forward she could look down toward the little beach where she had slept many days away.  Seeing her son standing there, his skin white and his lips almost blue from the cold she almost lost her footing.  Yelling out, she raised her arms.
    "Jesse, stay there, we are coming down..."


                                                Part II


    Autumn stepped lightly on the twigs surrounding her.  The snow left her steps soft, no one even saw her hiding in the thicket.  She wasn't cold, heck, she was far from it.  After the last week, no cold could affect her.  At thirteen, she had finally received her gift.  But no one knew, no one but Jesse...