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This town wove between an endless view of nature, its growth halted by the lack of buildable landscape. It sat along a river where the water flowed from a semi-round lake dug deep in the center. The mass of oak, pine, and birch trees covering the area like guards protecting a castle drew Dray Dinley in.

She could take a staggering amount of photos from her doorstep alone and her blog would be rich of various posts, each exploring a different side of the same place. Unlike her last residence, a cramped studio apartment a few blocks from the beach, she didn't see repetition being a problem. The warmth from the sun on her skin and the soft sand between her toes had been her favorite part of any day, but only so many shots could come from such a short stretch of sand.

Dray was glad to move on. She had spent too much time in a big city and her blog desperately needed a change. Perhaps she needed a change in life, too, or maybe just a change in rent. The several thousand resident town of Hero proved to have the most affordable rent in the area—for a photography blogger's salary—while still being located near the necessities of food, gas, and entertainment.

Dray fiddled with the corner of a pamphlet she picked up earlier at the local gas station south of downtown. She learned Hero's name originated from a self-absorbed, money-scheming maniac named Alexander Hero. Not quite the man to look up to, but as far as she could tell, the town strayed from his footsteps.

The waxy paper stuck between her fingertips and didn't crumple in her grasp, so she folded it in half and flung it over by a stack of empty boxes that got ruined during the move. More stacks of untouched cardboard boxes leaned slightly to the side next to the garbage pile. The items she needed to live found new homes and she only had to dig through boxes maybe once a day, but as it stood, Dray should have cleaned up the mess a week ago when she moved in.

She decided to ignore the piles a little longer.

Like most of the town, her cozy two bedroom house lived in the trees. Twisting trails sprung west and north from her front door. She imagined she could see miles of the forest from the wall of windows in the living area. It did little for her motivation to unpack.

Pushing the stool back from the kitchen counter—a lovely breakfast bar—Dray stood up and grabbed her camera. The itch to explore tingled through her fingertips.

The sun shined bright and peeked through the fluttering leaves. Dray inhaled the fresh air and it flowed through her body. A small smile rose to her face. The pecking crow on her lawn joined the other monotonous noises and disappeared in her relief. With her head up to the sky, she bounced down her front steps.

Today, she went straight. Going south into town on Main would take her right along side the lake and while excited to spend time by water, she managed an impromptu shoot there the first day she arrived in town. Plus, after the lake the paths stretched into downtown. Main ran through the entirety of Hero, at least the entertaining part of Hero, so she knew there would be plenty of chances to take that route.

Instead, she crossed the street and went north, finding a trail a little less traveled to start the journey. It zigzagged back and forth throughout the forest, but in time found itself parallel to a river.

Dray took photos every couple of steps as soon as her feet found the dirt path, getting low to the ground or stretching high on her toes to frame the perfect shot. It went on like this for a while. She held both peace and passion for the art. Dray could get completely lost with photography. She enjoyed making ordinary things come to life in various ways and she challenged herself to create as many of those variations as possible.

After a beauty of a yellow flower became the centerpiece for far too many shots, Dray noticed something at the end of the fence-like row of trees. It towered over the row with wide bumpy branches that twisted in and around each other. The odd tree stood one of a kind and it took Dray's breath away.

She grinned and inched towards it, ideas whirling in her mind of ways she could frame this bad boy. The clicks from the shutter started just a few feet from the tree on full blast. Dray wasted mp time and moved gracefully around the front side of the tree, using the sunlight to add that extra depth.

A few steps closer to the river, making sure not to fall down the steep bank, she discovered a sparkling view of the water. The sun glistened off the river, contrasting with the odd tree's worn and washed out bark. Dray needed to freeze it in time.

She pressed the camera against her face and the shutter clicked through the air before a resounding crack hit her ears. The camera fell from her fingers. Mist from the splash of water grazed her skin. The strap around her neck rubbed back and forth as the camera bounced against her chest.

The tree looked looked no different from before. Dray pushed her hair back with a furrowed brow and moved to the strip of grass between the trunk and the riverbank. She skimmed against the bark, careful to keep as much distance between her and the water as possible. A more practical way to see behind may have existed, but the trees lined far too close together to get around on foot any other way.

She gripped on a thin branch just above her head and peeked around to the back side of the tree. Remains of a wider, sturdier branch almost parallel to the river stuck out a few feet above her. She imagined it stretched far enough to eventually stick out over the water, but the splintered shards and slivers dangling in blunt angles erased her certainty.

Dray shrugged. Storms had that effect. There must have been a rough one before she moved in and gravity finally caught up. She hugged the trunk of the tree and swiveled her way back around.

In all reality, she had enough pictures. Sneaky indecisiveness always lay rooted in how many she actually took—the more saved to her camera, the harder to choose final edits, but she couldn't not take as many as she wanted. Purpose fueled passion.

Though the photography part came to an end, Dray decided to mosey a little farther out beyond the odd tree. She held off on going too far because there was little doubt in her mind she'd start shooting again and hundreds of photos were already waiting patiently for her approval.

After a few minutes of mindless steps, Dray's patience wore thin. She picked up the camera and began browsing through. The sun shined too bright to see all the details, but she wanted to get the gist of them. Her pace slowed as her attention focused on the small screen inches from her face.

She scrolled through, at first too fast to really notice anything, and then a little slower, smiling at the photos she knew would be gold. Pride swelled in the pit of her stomach from the success found on her short trip, specifically the stunning shots of that odd tree.

Dray marveled at how strange it looked framed on the small screen. A sudden thought of how mysterious and beautiful the photos would look in black and white flooded her mind and her heartbeat picked up. A giddiness sprinkled in her steps as she neared the last shot of the sun glinting off the water.

Her feet glued to the dirt path.

The camera dropped from her still hands and thumped against her chest, not unlike before.

Her heart pounded in her ears.

The final picture she took had filled the screen. The tree sat just off center. The river filled in the right side. It was everything she envisioned, but a whole lot more. Dray managed to freeze in time the exact moment the branch broke off. It pushed to the back and top left portion of the screen. The branch wrapped with knotted rope held a body by its neck with bright blonde hair.

Dray stutter stepped into the middle of the narrow path. Her mind exploded, speeding down roads it had never been down before. A fleeting thought of checking the river for a body kept popping up because how could it be an actual body?

A force hit her shoulder and she stumbled backwards, waving her arms in the air to keep her balance.

"Oh no!" A tall man, who appeared similar age to Dray, held out his hands to help steady her, though they stay too far away to actually do anything. He dressed in white and red athletic shorts with a matching t-shirt. Sweat dripped down his forehead despite having a fuzzy blue band pushed over his brown hair, which caused it to point up at odd angles. "I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

Dray blinked a few times, nodding. "Yeah, I'm sorry. I walked right into you." She forewent her usual reassuring smile.

The man straightened up with his feet somewhat apart and placed his hands on his hips. His mouth turned in a bright white smile. "Well then," he said and started to—what Dray assumed to be—stretch by pushing his hips slightly forward, "I'm Porter Middleton. You must be new to town because I don't recognize you."

Dray drew into his eyes, not because they were anything special, but because they drilled into her own. It twisted her stomach in knots, and suddenly, she fell right back into high school, where her awkward handling of eye contact hit its peak.

"Yes," she said slowly. "Moved in earlier this week. I'm Dray Dinley." She pulled her blonde hair over her shoulder, fidgeting with the ends.

Porter nodded and kept looking at her. It had been a long time since she'd seen him blink. "I see." He pursed his lips and pointed to her camera. "Get any good ones?"

"Lots," Dray said. "Nature is a wonderful place to shoot." Her heart grew a little louder in her ears.

"I suppose it is, isn't it?" He grinned and his eyebrows lifted close to his hairline. Finally getting out of the middle school gym teacher pose, he shuffled a bit closer to her and crossed his arms. "Bet you find some pretty weird stuff, too."

Dray took a small step back. That wasn't a question and she didn't like where this conversation was going.

"All depends on how you look at it." She tossed her hair behind her back and stepped farther away from him. "It was great meeting you, Porter, but I should really get back home." She smiled with her mouth closed, but it felt like more of a wince.

Porter's arms fell to his sides, but his face stayed bright. "Sure thing! See you around, Dray Dinley." The pep in his voice translated into his steps. He ran right by Dray and waved over his shoulder as he passed.

That may have been the strangest few hours Dray endured since moving to Hero.

Dray shook her head and turned around. She needed to be home and working on her photos, but mostly she needed to get out of the woods. Her head stayed down and this time, so did the camera. She focused on putting one foot in front of the other and before she knew it, the odd tree reappeared in her sights.

Her gaze lifted for one last look, but once again, she found herself in the way of someone else. "I'm sorry," she said at impact.

Another man had knocked her back a few steps. He stood taller and darker than the last with deep bags protruding under his eyes and dark hair tumbling across his forehead. He glowered at Dray over his shoulder and walked to the odd tree, ignoring her apology.

Dray's mouth dropped slightly open. The man had strikingly green eyes.

She scrunched up his face. Pretty eyes did not mask rude behavior and suspicious lurking.

Air filled her chest and Dray exhaled through her nose, though it failed to be as steady as she had planned. The man stared at her from across the path and an overwhelming feeling of running away hit her in the gut, so for once she listened.

Dray dug her heel into the dirt and spun around. She awkwardly shuffled between running and walking the entire trip to her house. A jump over the few front steps and she shoved her key in the lock. She opened the door just enough to squeeze through before slamming the it shut and clicking the lock back into place. Dray stared wide-eyed at the dark wood floors, a few more than a lot of swear words drifting through her head.

..


[EDITED OCTOBER 9, 2021]



New story, new questions, new lies.

Feel free to critique and thank you for reading.

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