Mated To My Stepbrother-Chapter 29

Aria’s POV*

And Timothy I left the camp field, bearing flashlights and torches, and set out on the journey to find Jaxon. Mary and Calum asked where we were going but because I didn’t want to raise suspicion about Jaxon’s whereabouts and because some part of me was still angry over the snide remarks she made earlier in the day I decided to keep the issue to myself.

The forest actually turned out to be wider than I imagined and as we journeyed deeper into it without seeing traces of Jaxon my heart began to palpitate with fear and my mind began to conjure up dreadful images of all sorts.

"What if he’d actually gone home?" Timothy as we jumped as we jumped over a shallow river, "I meant what if I had returned to town? He could have returned home since he never wanted to come here"

"Jaxon cannot leave without me and his belongings are still here"

"Where then can he be?" Timothy asked frantically, throwing his hands in the air "We’ve searched the whole forest and he can’t possibly be hiding from you or can he?" 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

I reasoned logically with the question Timothy asked but the fear in my heart only increased. If Jaxon hadn’t returned home and isn’t hiding somewhere in the forest, where then could he be?

Shadows of trepidation danced around me, playing tricks on my mind as we continued searching hopelessly for Jaxon in the dark. The eerie silence of the forest was punctuated only by the pounding of my heart, each beat a reminder of the fear that threatened to destabilise my mental health. With each passing moment, the forest closed in around me, its vast expanse becoming a labyrinth of uncertainty where my worst nightmares lurked in the shadows.

"We can’t go past this place Aria," Tim said after a while, "we have to go now, we have to return to the camp"

"But..."

"I’m sorry Aria but we’re putting ourselves at risk by being in this part of the forest at this time"

He pulled me closer and wrapped his arms around me, wiping the tears from my face

"I’m sorry Aria but he’ll come around and if he doesn’t, you’ll find someone even better"

"But why is Jaxon treating me this way, it was just an argument, I didn’t even mean the words I said"

"There, there Aria. Don’t cry", He tilted my face and wiped the tears from it with his palm "You know how stubborn Jaxon can be. He’s probably in some nearby motel chilling and he would have called you or sent but because there isn’t a network here you wouldn’t receive it"

"Ohh"

"Yeah"

He grabbed my wrist and started leading me in the direction we came from, through the tiny paths and the silvery streams. Jaxon could actually be in a motel and we would return home the moment he arrived tomorrow.

"We were actually supposed to visit the animal reserves today," Tim said in an attempt to break the silence that had built a dome of the atmosphere " but Stevie texted me that she and her dad had to be somewhere important"

"You mean your quiet friend"

"Yeah" he answered slowly, "but Stevie isn’t quiet, she is a mute. She can’t speak"

"Ohh"

I stopped short in my tracks as an emphatic feeling descended on my soul. It isn’t easy to be dumb and I pictured myself in Stevie’s deplorable condition, unable to speak, unable to express my feelings.

"Stevie transferred to the high school next to ours recently. Her classmates in her former school were bullying her and were taking advantage of her handicap. She’s been through a awful lot you see"

"I understand and I feel really sorry for her maybe we can hang some sometime after school since we’re close now"

Timothy nodded affirmatively, "It’s a good idea, at least she’ll have some company"

We were approaching the camping field now and I saw that Mary and Calum had retired into their tent, only a few people were outside, roasting marshmallows over a small campfire under an oak tree.

"The bonfire and game night would take place tomorrow The program had to be rescheduled because of the change in Mr Crockett’s plans"

"It’s all good Timmy, you should have a great night"

I hugged him one last time and turned in the direction of our family tent when he suddenly said,

"Why don’t you share my rent tonight Margaret. I don’t think it’s a good idea for you to sleep alone. The environment is strange and there’s already a lot on your mind"

He gestured to his tent which one a few steps away from Mary and Calum’s own, "It will be fine Aria, it’s just one of those irregular nights" he stretched his hand towards me and I reflexively placed mine into his. He curved the corners of his lips into a smile as he began to lead me to his tent in what seemed like an irregular walk and an irregular point in time.

*Jaxon’s POV*

All my pleas to get Stevie’s father from involving the police fell on deaf ears as he insisted that I deliberately chose to assault his daughter. "You are an unrepentant criminal," he said as the police bundled me into the vehicle, "and defenceless girls like my daughter need to be protected from you"

I opened my mouth to protest but the policeman who bundled into the vehicle silenced me with a slap to the back of my head.

"You and your daughter should come along to the station with us Mr Crockett," he said, "we’ll need to take your reports and to interview your daughter"

"It’s all good officer" he replied and the journey to the police station downtown progressed without a hitch. It all happened very fast, the interviewing, the note taking, the medical tests and so, here I was, lying on the cold floor in the dark and dirty cell. No mother to reach out to, no father to seek help from, no relatives, no nothing!

The medical tests indeed showed that Stevie couldn’t speak and somehow, the police discovered that I was the first person to make the attack. They tagged it attempted rape and assault. Nothing could save me now, I would spend the rest of my youth in jail.