Chapter 4
Jane Lloyd stumbled into her house that lay on the outskirts of Blackwater at 9pm, dripping wet, one of her legs bleeding and her dress severely torn. She pushed the door open and her mother and father ran to her and scooped her up in a large embrace.
'Oh Jane, I was so worried!' Her mother's eyes began to fill with tears as her father stood up and spoke briefly to both the deputies, who put their hats on and left.
'Where've you been Jane? We were so scared that you… Well, that you…' The usually stoic policeman before her began to tremble slightly, before regaining control and continuing. 'I thought you'd been killed.' Jane tried to act nonchalant by letting out a fake laugh, followed by a lie.
'I was staying at Eli's, Pastor Mayne tried to stop me going out in the storm so Eli helped me climb through the window, that's why I'm all…' She gestured to herself. 'Well I'm just glad you're home safe, I sent Miguel to the Mayne's and Matthew to the Marston's.' Jane's stomach lurched at the mention of that name. Her mind shot back to the night before, to what they had done, where they had been. How it had felt… She was stupid for doing it she knew, not only would she be shunned if her father found out but this had almost certainly ruined her friendship with Jack. Her upsetting yet somehow blissful reverie was harshly interrupted by her mother's shrill tones.
'Jane! Your father is speaking to you!'
'Sorry daddy, what?'
'I said go to bed, it's getting late, and you need to get some rest, you look more haggard than a whore on Monday mornin'.' Jane nodded and walked slowly up the stairs into her room, where she sat on the bed and cried into her pillow, until she heard someone coming, heavy-footed, up the stairs. She rubbed her eyes and tried to put on a smile, it was Matthew, he looked guilty.
'Good evening Deputy.' She said politely, her eyes darting around the room trying to avoid eye contact with him.
'Miss, I have something for you.' He took a look behind him and brought out of his pocket a neatly folded piece of paper. 'It's from the Marston boy. Please don't tell your pappy, I need a new horse!' Jane didn't really know what he meant but she shrugged it off and opened the note.
'Eli! I can't believe you, staying out like that, where the hell were you?' Eli had feigned sleep when his father got home, which seemed to just have let his anger boil up a little more. The pastor was leaned over his son, pointing at him angrily.
'Father, I was staying with Jack, we went to Blackwater because Jane wanted a new Bible, but the store was closed, and you were doing your sermon, so I went to Jack's house, the it got too dark for me to walk so I just stayed there, honestly Papa.' Eli lied to his father regularly, so rarely felt any guilt about doing it.
'Alright son.' The oblivious father ruffled the boy's hair and walked across the landing to bed. Eli waited until he'd heard the light switch off and the rhythmic snoring and whistling of a sleeping man before heaving open his window and jumping out.