The Woods | Harvey #1

Chapter 4

Ashton was waiting by the tree line for her the next morning at ten, like he said he would be. She left Hailey to wander around town, and her parents to do whatever it was they did all day, while she went to his cabin with him. She had no idea what he wanted to talk about, but she knew what she needed to tell him.

Once they had taken a few steps into the forest, she took the plastic oval out of her pocket and handed it to Ashton. He looked at it for a long moment. "What is this?" he asked, turning it over.

She smiled at him. "A nail."

His eyes grew rounder. "Someone lost their whole nail?"

She laughed at his shock. "No. Well, kind of. There are two other types of nails it can be. When you get your nails done at a salon, they put fake nails on the tip of your finger, but those are pretty securely attached and don't pop off much right after they're done. The other option is a store-bought nail. Those pop off easily, but it's hard to tell which it is."

He studied it a little more. "Why did you want to show me this?" He handed it back.

She stuffed it in her pocket. "I found this at the crime scene." She quickly told him about finding the vomit – which he said was Taylor's and he told her what she'd eaten – and about going to the scene and finding the nail next to the blood. "Oh, and I met Mason Spurlock."

Ashton frowned. "Stay away from him. He likes younger girls."

She glanced at him. Maybe Hailey was right. "I figured as much. But, hey, I don't plan on going back any time soon. I got a pretty good lead."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, sometimes, when those nails pop off, we get them replaced – especially if we don't want it to be noticed."

Ashton thought it over. They walked up the steps to his front door and stopped with his hand on the knob. "We have a salon in town. This girl – Lynn – should know whose nail that is, if she replaced it." Nicole nodded and watched him take a deep breath. For the first time she noticed the sweat on his forehead and the nervous way he was bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet.

"What are you up to, Ash?"

He glanced away. "Well, um, I thought it was about time I tell you more about me and show you a few things I've kept over the years."

She studied him carefully, relieved they seemed to be on the same page. She smiled at him. "I'd love that."

He gave her a small smile that seemed genuine. With a second deep breath, he opened the door and walked inside, followed by Nicole. The cool air washed over her skin, bringing goose-bumps for a few moments. She looked around. A trunk sat in the middle of the room near the sofa. "I want to show you a few pictures first," Ashton said, a hand on her shoulder guiding her towards the picture Nicole didn't remember seeing. It was sitting on the floor and Ashton picked it up. It was an 11"x14" photo of what she assumed was Ashton's family. A smiling woman stood next to a smiling man in a police uniform. A young boy that looked to be about fifteen stood between them. The woman held a baby wrapped in a pink blanket.

Nicole touched the boy. "That's you?"

"Yep. That's my family right after Ella was born." He got a faraway look in his eyes as he sat it back on the floor. "I love her." He stared at it a moment longer before moving on to a few more pictures. He showed her a picture of his favorite dog, Buddy. A picture of his childhood friend that had since moved on to a bigger place downstate. He showed her a picture from a couple of years ago of him and Trisha, hugging. He swallowed as he showed it to Nicole.

Nicole stared at it, feeling a little jealous, but she kept reminding herself that he had told her that he liked her, not Trisha. "You're good friends, then?"