Chapter 2

• ~ July 14th - 7:53 PM ~
• She had spent the last two weeks endlessly working on the art piece. She knew it as well as Sophia; Zoe was in need of a break from her overworking. Stepping out of her room and into society for an hour or so would refresh her mind and rejuvenate her energy level.
• Zoe surveyed the inside of the Tim Hortons coffee shop. Her gaze scanned the patrons lined up along the side of the counter. The fragrance of brewed coffee tickled her nose. With the scent of coffee, freshly baked muffins mingled with the smell. This created a welcoming atmosphere. The place was packed! Several separate conversations were happening. Though the customers spoke in a hushed tone, it was enough to irritate the inside of Zoe's ear. Rattling around her eardrum was the clattering of ceramic mugs hitting each other. Zoe felt an urge to scratch her ears until the irritation subsided.
• Zoe had always struggled with noise pollution. Her mother said she was hypersensitive to any form of ruckus. Her mother often explained to friends and family that when Zoe would have to leave the location, the sounds overwhelmed her. When this happened, Zoe simply needed to step out to calm down.
• Grabbing the earbuds from her pocket, she placed them in her ears. Giving her a reprieve from the noise that was going on inside of the building. Observing the area. Zoe couldn’t spot Sophia or Lance among the crowd. In her search for her friends, she picked up on the energy that was filtering off a woman at the back of the line. The customer was becoming increasingly impatient. Seconds after Zoe sensed this energy, the woman began tapping her foot on the floor, huffing and puffing in frustration at the slow-moving line.
• 'Most likely in a hurry to get nowhere!' A smile slowly grew on her face as Zoe rolled her eyes dramatically. She motioned her head lightly, side to side. Taking her attention off the line, Zoe searched the sitting area. One table at a time, she was hunting for her friends.
• "Babe!" Sophia stood up from her spot, waving her arm in the air. "We're over here!"
• Zoe shook her head with a smile, thinking, 'I could already see you before you yelled!' She walked past the tables toward them. Some of the patrons turned their heads as she passed them, so she could not ignore them. Pushing the air out of her nose, Zoe continued to move forward.
• As Zoe pulled out a chair and sat down, Sophia exclaimed, "Large double-double, just the way you like it!" She had a warm smile as she slid the cup to her.
• The warmth of the cup was inviting, accompanied by the fragrance of freshly brewed beans. Zoe studied her friends. Lance glanced at Sophia and then back at her. Sophia sat across from her, propping her head up with her hands. 'Here it comes!' Zoe thought, knowing the duo was about to pressure her into going on the trip. She was sure she should avoid it. The trip to Sophia's parents' cabin in the middle of nowhere.
• As Sophia waited to take a sip of Zoe's coffee, she leaned into the table, barely able to contain her excitement. “So,” she began, “Lance and I were talking!” She held on to the syllables ‘ing’ as she fluttered her eyelashes several times.
• "Sophia has done most of the talking!" Lance chuckled as he kissed the side of her head. "We both really want you to come on the trip."
• 'There it is!' Zoe kept smiling over the rim of the coffee cup, knowing any second they would pitch their plans. A means and a way to get a definite 'yes' out of her.
• Lance continued speaking, "It won't be the same if you stay here while we have a blast at the cabin. So, we are going to establish a few ground rules." He squeezed Sophia's hand lightly, and his smile grew wider. "We know how much you like your rules and planning!" he added.
• Sophia had cut in, "Actually Daddy had laid out a few ground rules. Anyone who can't follow the rules are not permitted to come on this little vacation. If at any point the invited choose to disregard the rules that have been stated, will be asked to immedeatly leave the property!"
• Grinning from ear to ear, Lance says, "I believe you will like these rules!" He glances briefly at Sophia and then back at Zoe, sharing the same excitement Sophia is displaying.
• In her mind, she growled like a dog. Blowing on the hot liquid, she said, "Okay, so what are the rules?" Zoe was inquisitive.
• Sophia cleared her throat, and with a steady tone, she began to speak of the rules her father had stated were a must. "When the sun is no longer touching the cabin. No one is to go into the woods. Daddy wouldn't go into detail, but I think it is kind of self explanitory. Wild animals! The uneven terrain and just the plain fact we could get lost ... you know ... safety and all!" she shrugged her shoulders dramatically. "Daddy doesn't want anyone to get hurt."
• Lance raised two fingers in the air, "Rule number two ... A no brainer!" he chuckled as if it were ridiculous that he had to say it. "We clean up after ourselves. The way things are is the way we leave things." He snorted as he looked at Sophia. "I can't believe your dad stressed this above everything else he said. Like we don't know how to tidy up things after ourselves."
• Sophia smiled, turning her head to Lance. "Rule number three, we are at no time allowed to go into the northren part of the woods. Apperently we are to look for markers. They are etched into the bark or something like that. Again Daddy would not say why." she paused for a moment. "When I asked why we were not allowed to go in the northren woods, he got really scared and told me to not do it. Something about traps! I figure he had a bad experience with a hunters trap and it has stuck with him to this day." Sophia giggled. "Any.who! I told daddy we will look for the markers and make sure we stick away from where hunters like to kill the bears ... deers ... and rabbits!"
• Lance chuckled as he remembered the conversation. "Don't forget that your father mumbled something about it not being safe! People always go missing when they go into the northern section of the woods."
• "Hunters go missing because the get off the trails. Losing their scense of direction. Daddy is just being paranoid!" Sophia waved her hand up and down dismissively. "AND! this brings me to the next thing ..."
• Lance had cut Sophia off from what she was going to say, "I think your dad is scared of the cabin!" Lance snorted, "I believe your dad is paranoiac, if you ask me!" He nuzzled his head into the crook of Sophia's neck. "Tell Zoe what your father said!"
• Sophia playfully pushed Lance's head away. Laughing, "Stop it!" She couldn't help but smile. With this action, Lance pressed a kiss on the palm of her hand. "You won't believe what Daddy said!" Sophia exclaimed. "He claims," she dramatically paused. "The land is haunted! Can you imagine that?" Sophia laughed more as she shook her head back and forth with disbelief.
• Zoe's eyes widened. Glancing at each of them rapidly, "What!?"
• Chuckling, Lance said, "I told you this would get Miss Zoe's attention." Lance picked up his cup and began to drink his coffee. "Logan said that if the land has been disrespected, bad things happen!" He wiggled his fingers in the air. "Wooooow!" He imitated the sound of a cartoon ghost as he laughed. Spooky, isn't it?" He wiggled his eyebrows up and down rapidly.
• She didn't want to dampen, but there was still that nagging feeling that she should try to stop them from going to this particular cabin. It was the looks Lance and Sophia gave her, and they showed so much enthusiasm for the upcoming trip. 'Can I really ruin this for them?' she thought before she began to speak. "I don't know!" Zoe lowered her cup to the table. The sound of the cup tapping on the table could be heard. Glaring at the duo, she lowered her gaze as she battled her inner emotions and thoughts.
• With a playful laugh, "Come on, Zo!" Lance raised a brow, "Seriously you of all people ... believing in this hokus pokus! You are a logical thinker. Not someone who believes in an invisible man in the sky looking over ous." Lance chuckled and sighed at the same time. "You can't truely believe in that shit, do you?" Lance was skeptical of all and any paranormal claims.
• Twiddling her fingers, Zoe glanced at Sophia and then Lance, diverting her sight back to her coffee cup. "There are just some things that can't be explained by science and logic," she mumbled, only for Lance and Sophia to hear.
• Lance snorted, "How about a fragment of your imagination?" He leaned into the table, disbelief crossing his face as he observed his friend Zoe's reluctance to speak on the topic. Of all the people he knew, he always saw her as level-headed and critical of everything that came her way.
• Zoe had breathed in and out, pushing a strain of hair behind her ear. She continued to stare at her coffee. Unsure if she should continue with this conversation or drop it entirely. "You shouldn't just dismiss a warning so easily!" Zoe raised her head. She had decided that she would speak her mind and leave it at that. It was not her job to convince anyone of the unseen. They would believe or leave to scrutinize things until they had their own experience. Something that broke all the rules that they had formed. "You are correct; with logical thinking, many things can be explained away as irrational beliefs brought on by fear of the unknown. But," she whispered, "Something can not!" Zoe glanced up and looked at Sophia, sadness in her eyes, "I have never liked the feeling that I get from the photo album. I know that they are just photos taken of a joyous occasion. But it isn't the happy faces that have me feeling uneasy. It is like the land doesn't like it when anyone is there. It isn't a good idea to go on a long weekend trip to 'that' cabin. We could rent a different place.
• She wasn't going to change her plans because of a few spooky stories. Sophia was not a full believer in the unseen. "Come on, Zo!" Sophia reached across the table to place her hand on Zoe's, giving it a light squeeze. "I already told Daddy that only responsible young adults will be going to the cabin."
• Dismissing Zoe's notion entirely, "Exactly, I haven't even mentioned this to Don. I will make sure I keep him out of the loop." Lance tried to sweeten the deal. He would not allow a few stories of the imagination to damper the thought of getting away from the city. Even if it were only for the weekend.
• Forcing a smile on her face. Zoe was doing everything she could not to allow her eyes to fill up with tears. Breathing in deeply, "I am not getting a good feeling about this Sophia. I mean a 'realy' bad feeling. Like something will happen if I go there."
• Patting her hand, she said, "You have gotten these feelings before. And most of them ... nothing happened! You 'always' had a great time!" Sophia cooed.
• Zoe bobbed her head. It was true. That was because Lance and Sophia made sure that 'who' Zoe 'really' didn't like never had the chance to see nor speak to her. There were not many she disliked. Those like Don, she would either leave or Lance and Sophia kept them as far away as possible. Allowing all of them to have a good time.
• Lifting the cup to her mouth, she thought, 'This is a horrible idea!' Her inner thoughts had warned her. Swallowing the liquid warmed her throat. "I still have to finish the commission."
• "Besides," Sophia wrinkled her forehead, giving Zoe an unsure expression. "The last thing I had mentioned ... Daddy said we can't go..." She pointed at Zoe. "Unless you go! Daddy's last rule. He said he wanted a mature young adult there to ensure that the rules are followed."
• Her eyes widened like saucers. 'FUCK!' Zoe hissed in her mind. She screamed 'no' rapidly in her mind.
• Sophia gave Zoe her award-winning puppy-dog look, trying to win her over.
• 'Fuck! Fuckity ... fuck .. FUCK!' Zoe screamed internally, ‘This is such a VERY bad idea!’ Sighing, she replied, “As I said, I need to finish the commission before I can commit to such an adventure!” she said with a calm tone and straight face.
• Sophia squealed with joy, “We're getting closer to a fun, long, EPIC weekend!”
• Zoe said, “I didn't say yes!” as she mentally banged her head against the table and cursed every foul word she could think of in German, English and French.
• “Maybe is better than no!” Sophia clapped her hands together like a little schoolgirl. “Finish up, and we will head for the trails. You need exercise after sitting at your desk for so long.” She wrapped her hands on the table as if she were playing the drums.