Camisa Lang took a deep breath.
The air was so clean out here. She loved the woods in the springtime, the way the sunlight dappled the mossy ground and the beautiful color of green from the canopy of new leaves unfurling overhead. The sounds of chirping birds and the pitter-patter of scampering feet always made her feel alive and at one with Mother Earth. She was glad that she had changed her mind about taking the hike. Her best friend, Nick, had begged her not to walk alone but she was determined to spend some time communing with nature and his presence would only prove to be a distraction, especially since all he did was talk about Lynda.
Lynda Williams. Soon to be his fiancée if she got her wish. The thought of their relationship seemed to dim the brightness of the sun as she trudged up the broken path. She had always thought that she and Nick would be a couple and marry. They had remained close friends from when they'd met playing dodgeball in third grade through college graduation and neither had really made an effort to seek out a partner. They'd experimented on each other and had been each other's first but evidently that wasn't enough to seal the deal.
Nick had gone to Portland for a new job and when he returned for a visit, six months later, Lynda was on his arm, beaming like the cat that swallowed the canary. She did everything she could to end their relationship but nothing worked. They stuck together like glue, much to Lynda's despair. She had accompanied them back to Portland because Nick wanted to show his best friend the town and was trying to convince her to move there and the picnic at the park today was their last day together.
It had started out with just the two of them but somehow, Lynda found out and invited herself and a bunch of her relatives. She wasn't going to let Nick spend too much private time with her, Camisa saw that right away. Still, she remained silent, nursing her broken heart with quiet tears and being the steadfast friend that Nick knew and needed. She bumped into something and fell backward, looking up at the tallest man she'd ever seen.
"You should watch where you're going, young lady."
"I-I'm sorry." She stood, brushing off the back of her shorts and turned to leave, suddenly spooked by the encounter. Another man blocked her path, shorter and stockier than his counterpart but no less menacing. "Excuse me. I have to get back to my friends."
