Chapter 1: Autumn

The alarm clock that sat on the bedside table shook violently as Autumn Banks’s room filled with an annoying buzz.

She wasn't ready to wake up. It was 6 am and her late night of studying last minute kept her awake until after 2am.

It was an important day for her at Danville Academy. Today she was to present to 250 other students her reason behind why she was going into child psychology. She put a lot of time and effort into this paper and her grade would go towards over half of her final grade. She needed at least a 90% in order to make graduation.

She struggled to keep herself from throwing up but the more she thought about her presentation, the worse her nerves got. Her professor was unusually hard on her. Constantly pushing for her very best. Only because Professor Pyke knew that Autumn had what it took to be an incredible psychiatrist, she just didn't have enough confidence and failed at really applying herself.

……..

After emptying the barely any contents of her stomach into the bathroom sink, Autumn brushed her teeth for a second time, combed through her waist length blonde locks, and splashed some cold water over her flushed cheeks.

She took a deep breath before darting down the stairs from her room and nearly crashing into her brother, Alex “watch it” he yelled as his cup of coffee nearly slipped out of his hand.

“Sorry. I’m in a hurry. I have only 10 minutes to get to school before I miss my big presentation” her words came out shaky due to her anxiety.

“C’mon I’ll drive you. Your car won’t make it in time” they both went out the front door and piled into his 2021 Volkswagen Jetta. His car was loud. But somehow the sound of fast, loud cars, instantly calmed her down.

“Thanks. I’ll see you back home later this evening. I may walk if the weather stays nice.” She waved him off and inhaled as she looked at the time on her phone. She had 3 minutes until she needed to be in the auditorium where she would be presenting her speech.

……….

“And that is why I want to go into the field of child psychology” she prayed her voice didn’t come off as nervous.

There was dead silence before the entire class began clapping. She heard a couple “that was deep” “beautifully written” from some peers and instantly she felt more at ease. Professor Pyke gave her a smile and nod of approval before she exited stage to take her seat.

…….

Three hours dragged and she fought to stay awake while sitting through several presentations. She was ready to get out of there and just dive into bed. She hadn’t eaten since lunch time the day before but her exhaustion was preventing her from feeling hungry. All she cared about was falling into a deep sleep and being able to sleep in during her 3 day weekend.

……..

Finally. Half of the presentations were finished and the second half would be presumed on Tuesday when class was back in session. She peeled herself off of the hard plastic bench she had been sitting on for the last several hours and stretched; cracking several of her bones.

“See you all Tuesday morning, 7am sharp. The first half of the presentations will be graded and sat face down at your assigned desks. The second half will receive their grades Wednesday morning. Have a safe three day weekend” professor pyke waved off her class as they all eventually left the auditorium to enjoy their weekend.

……

The air was cold, crisp, and uninviting. Autumn made her way outside of Danville Academy where she instantly regretted telling Alex she wanted to walk home. She was exhausted. The walk was going to take at least forty minutes. The chill of the fall afternoon was adding to her utter exhaustion. All she wanted was to go home and dive under the covers of her warm bed.

She decided on taking the shorter route which would mean she cross through a wooded area leading through a meadow and her house would be on the other side.

She sucked in a breath and started heading towards the woods behind her school. She turned the volume up on her phone and looked at the time. It was exactly noon and she was hoping she would be home within the next thirty minutes if not less.

…….

The sun was hiding behind the trees making the air seem chillier. She wrapped her arms around her tiny frame and trudged through the tall grass. Luckily for her the meadow was just beyond the lake and she knew it was coming up once she passed the tree she had carved AB in when she was only twelve years old. “It should be right about…” she looked up from and there it was, an old oak with rather large initials carved in the lower center. “That means the lake is…” she looked a little past the tree and sure enough there was the lake her and her twin brother and their best friend had swam in as kids.

She took a look at it. It was smaller than she remembered. The rope that had been tied to the tree was frayed. Moss covered the once clear water. There were soda cans and wrappers littered around the edge of the water. Off in the distance, past the now dirty lake was a tent. An eerie feeling washed over her.

“Sh*t sh*t sh*t” she muttered, realizing she most likely was not alone. Her phones battery was going dead and the air was starting to get cooler. She was nervous to keep moving forward as she had no idea what waited for her as she neared this tent.

“Is it abandoned? Does someone have a camp set up?” Thoughts were taking over her mind and nearly all of them were negative.

“Grow up Autumn. You’re 23 years old. Stop being such a baby” she inhaled sharply and made her way directly towards the tent.

She made it exactly fifteen steps before she felt a very sharp pain in the back of her head and she fell to the ground.

……

She opened her eyes very slowly. Everything was dark. Her vision was blurred and her head was aching. “Where am i?” She started shouting. She had no idea if she was alone. She tried to stand up and could not. She kicked her legs but she could barely move. “Am i tied up?” She thought to herself. Before she knew it a light began to flicker and a man appeared in front of her.

He was handsome. Deep blue eyes that glowed underneath the light that was now on in the small room they were both in. He was shirtless and sporting a fine six pack. He had a chiseled jaw and full lips. His chestnut colored hair fell just above his beautiful eyes. He was very pleasing to look at but something in his eyes made her feel like this man was not one to be bargained with.

By now she was shaking like a leaf. He reached out to brush a strand of hair from in front of her olive green eyes. Her bottom lip quivered. She was terrified to say the least. “Who was this mysterious man? Has she seen him before?” Her thoughts were scrambled in her brain and all she wanted was to get home. Her head was aching and she was wondering just what time it was or if anyone was wondering why she wasn’t home yet.

She looked up at this tall man with fearful eyes and before she knew it he had a fistful of her hair dragging her to another room. She had no idea where she was and if she screamed would anyone even hear her? Those were just a few of her ongoing thoughts.

He tossed her into a corner of a dark room. Her head hit the wall and tears threatened to spill from her eyes. “Who are you?” She stuttered while playing with her fingers. The man stayed silent while studying her. His face seemed to grow angrier, if that were even possible. “You don’t remember?” He sounded offended but it was masked behind anger.

FLASHBACK (8 years ago)

“Auti bug wait up” Asher was chasing after the prettiest young girl. Her long blonde curls bounced as she ran through the meadow away from the boy she had met there years ago.

“You can’t catch me Ash!” She giggled as she tried running faster as he was getting closer. They both began laughing and collapsed in the grass. Asher picked a few dandelions that were to the left of him.

“I never want this summer to end” she looked at him with tears pooling in her eyes.

“Promise me, that when me and mama move at the end of this month that you’ll call me every day? You won’t forget me will you, Autumn?” His voice cracked when saying her name.

She reached to the right of her and squeezed his hand tight while rubbing circles against his thumb with hers. “I could never forget you”

PRESENT DAY

“A…a..asher?” She could barely choke out his name.

His hand met with her face “A…a..asher?” He mocked. “You never called. You f***ing promised you wouldn’t forget. I waited every day for your call for 3 years before giving up and realizing you never would.” His voice sounded pained. He was deeply hurt over the fact his girlfriend, the girl he spent every day with for years; forgot about him so easily. His hurt turned into anger. And anger made him want revenge for how deeply she had hurt him.

“Let me explain. Please just hear me out” her words came out rushed and as if she was making an excuse for herself. He didn’t want to hear it. He didn’t care. He waited for her. He loved her so much that he waited for her. Every day for years he hoped she’d call and he would hear her voice again. But it never happened. He never dated. He never loved again. She was all he had ever wanted and she destroyed him.

“Ash please” she was begging him to just listen.

“You don’t have the right to call me that anymore” his words felt like daggers. She had always called him that. He was her Ash and she was his Auti bug. They loved each other. That’s how it’s always been.

She put her head down to keep him from seeing the tears pour from her eyes. “I swear i tried for you” she was sobbing.

Seeing her cry had always been his weakness. He wanted so badly to console her and hold her in his arms like he used to. But she wasn’t the same Autumn and he was not the same Asher. He was hurt and he couldn’t let her know that. He would not give her any kind of upper hand.

“Please just let me explain” she choked out in between her cries. He wasn’t trying to hear it but he figured he would entertain whatever excuse she came up with.

“Go on” he rolled his eyes.

“I truly missed you” she started

“Cut to the point” His voice was sharp.

“I tried desperately to call you. Every time I called your mother said you were busy. Six months had passed since you moved and your mother said you were making new friends and had a new girlfriend. I was crushed. I gave up. What else was I do to?”

For a moment he wanted to scream at her. Punch her. Kick her. How could she come up with such lies. His mother would never do that to him. They were all each other had. Dad passed away when Ashe was a boy. He was an only child. His mother and father were also the only children born to his grandparents who all were now deceased. His mother knew how much he loved Autumn. She held him many nights he was a basket case over her not answering his calls. She couldn’t have been the culprit behind why they lost contact, right? His mind was racing. He felt betrayed, angry, hurt. He needed to get to the bottom of this. He wanted answers. The truth. And he was going to get it no matter what that meant.

He had already decided that if what Autumn was saying was true, that his own mother was the reason behind why he hadn’t heard from her in years, that his mother would pay the price. He hadn’t fully decided on just what he was going to do to seek out his revenge but he was certainly going to do something.

He had already made up his mind that if what Autumn said about his mother was true, that she was the reason behind why him and Autumn lost contact, he would seek revenge on his own mother.

In a moment of weakness he smiled at Autumn when he knew she wasn’t looking. He was going to head out to the small house him and his mother moved back to when his mother’s plans in a new city failed.