Chapter 4
The Briarwood
A little white. A little blue. There. How’s that? I tilted my head, studying the painting in front of me. It was just supposed to be a random sky, from my imagination.
It had been several hours since my semi-anxiety attack at the bar. The moment I got through my front door, I headed straight for my paint supplies. I dragged everything to the living room so I’d have more room to work. Art had always been my go-to way of calming myself down. It had been that way since I was about thirteen, when my emotions— and my anxiety— had started becoming too much to handle. In some ways, it was better and worse than when I was in school. My general anxiety was easier to manage since I got medicated for it, but my social anxiety had gotten a little worse.
I’d spent too much time with my nose in a book during school, including college, and not enough time socializing. I didn’t have many friends, and Mai was the only one I’d stayed truly close to. The Raw friends I still heard from occasionally mostly stuck to the usual surface-level conversations. ‘How are you? What’s new?’ And the old: ‘I miss you. We need to hang out’, that never went anywhere.
I put my palette down, pleased with how the painting was turning out, and went to my bedroom to sit down while I left it to dry. I didn’t have much furniture yet other than the old once white couch that had seen better days, my bed, desk, tiny kitchen table and two sturdy-ish chairs. I would have to get cheap stuff for now. I’d have to drag Mai out with me to a flea market sometime. I’ll call her later and ask. Or I’ll ask tomorrow when I see her. Oh! We never worked out a time to meet up tomorrow! I fished my cell out of my pocket and called her. She answered on the first ring.
“Pearl, hi! How are you feeling?” She sounded relieved to hear from me, making me smile.
“Better,” I answered honestly. “after I painted for a while.”
“Oh yes, your tried and true relaxation method." I could hear a giggle she tried to hide.
“Hey! Don’t make fun of me!” I yelled, laughing too. “If it works, it works.”
“If it works, it works.” She repeated back to me seriously. I could almost hear her shrugging her shoulders.
“Anyway, I called to see what time we were gonna meet tomorrow to go to the Briarwood?”
“Oh! Um,” her voice got a little further away as she yelled, “what do you think, babe? Noon, tomorrow, for the Briarwood trip!?” There was a pause, a muffled reply, and then Mai was back. “Noon good for you? We can grab lunch at the bar and then head out.”
“Noon is perfect. See ya then.”
“Alrighty,” Mai replied, chipper as ever, “love ya, girl!”
I chuckled. “I love you too, Mai. Tell Cobalt hi for me.”
“Will do! He says hi too, by the way.”
“I didn’t hear him say that.”
“You didn’t have to. I know him.” She stated matter of factly. “Byeeee, see ya tomorrow!” I heard the sound of the call being ended and placed my phone down beside me on the bed.
Sitting down at my desk, I checked the weather in the bottom right corner of the laptop screen. Sunshine most of the day, with a few cloudy sections. Perfect! I opened up a browser and searched ‘the Briarwood’. A website for the town was the first result. Clicking the link and letting the page load, my phone dinged with my text tone. Mai had sent a link. I’d check it after this.
The town's website was clumsily made and not very well organized, a beige background with black, blocky text, with ‘Hearthglen’ in a script font across the top. After searching for a minute, I managed to find a page about the Briarwood. Oh wow! It’s gorgeous! Mai wasn’t kidding about painting inspiration! I could see myself out there a ton, finding different things to paint.
I unlocked my phone to check Mai’s message. It was a cute video clip about a pet rabbit trying a new fruit. I smiled, watching the bunny nibble on the watermelon. I sent Mai back a quick “cute!” and scrolled to the next video mindlessly. Once I opened this app, it was a little hard to close it. The next couple videos were not interesting, so I clicked ‘not interested’ a few times, until—
“There is an art thief in the community of Hearthglen.”
My fingers froze against the screen. A pink Shade stared into the camera, her expression serious. She had dark pink skin and light pink hair and eyes. She wore a police uniform. “An expensive painting was taken from the local gallery last night. Everyone needs to remain vigilant.”
I watched the video again. An art thief? Here? In Hearthglen? My eyes drifted toward the living room where my painting was drying on my easel. For the first time since arriving, I looked around at my grandmother’s cottage and wondered if I wasn’t as hidden away as I thought. I pulled out my journal from the desk drawer. It needed an update.
June 21st
Dear Journal,
I completely embarrassed myself today. In front of the most handsome Berry I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen some handsome Berries. His name is Urchin Byzantine. He’s a Shade from HuckleBerry Harbor, and apparently he’s only been here about a month. He’s also the first Berry I’ve met in a long time who didn’t seem to care that I’m a Frost.
I can’t believe I’m writing this. He’s a Shade. Mother would never approve. She tried to arrange so many matches for me before I left for college. “Settle down and marry a nice Raw boy that we approve of and carry on the Frost legacy. What do you need college for?” Eye roll.
Mother never understood me. None of my family did. Not my mother, not my sister, not my brother. Only my father understood, and even then he couldn’t outwardly support me because of our family’s status.
But anyway, like he said, it’s a small town. I’m sure I’ll see him around again. Hopefully this time I will remember how to be a functioning person.
Love,
Pearl
P.S. There’s apparently an art thief around here? I hope I’m okay here. I’m not far from town, and I’m not sure if that’s a blessing or a curse now.
“There she is!” Mai’s voice carried across the room before I’d even stepped fully inside the bar. Every head turned. I froze. Mai waved enthusiastically from a booth near a window.
“So much for making a quiet entrance,” I muttered.
Cobalt chuckled as I approached. “I told her to at least wait until you actually got inside.”
“I did!” Mai defended herself.
“You yelled before the door shut.” Cobalt chortled.
“I was excited. Sue me.”
Sliding into the booth across from them, I smiled despite myself. “I think the entire town knows I’m here now.”
“They already did,” Cobalt said.
Mai nodded matter-of-factly. “That’s how Hearthglen works.”
“Nothing to do with you talking me up to everyone who would listen.”
“Nope.” Mai agreed, popping the P at the end.
Cypress looked up from behind the bar. “Morning, Pearl.”
“Morning, Cypress.”
“Settling in alright?”
“So far.”
“Good.” She disappeared into the kitchen before I could say anything else.
Mai leaned across the table. “See?”
“What?”
“You’re becoming a local already.”
“I’ve been here for a day.”
“This is day two, technically."
“I don’t think that’s how that works.”
“It absolutely is.” When Mai thought something, she couldn’t be told any different.
Lunch arrived a few minutes later. Three baskets filled with sandwiches, fresh vegetables, and thick-cut fries were placed in front of us.
“I swear,” Mai said around a bite of sandwich, “Lazuli makes the best fries in town.”
“The only fries in town,” Cobalt corrected.
“Still counts.”
I laughed. “Who’s Lazuli?”
“Cypress’s brother. I’m sure you’ll meet him at some point.” Cobalt said it quietly, almost reluctantly, like there was some kind of history there.
I just looked around quietly for a moment. Just taking everything in. The bar wasn’t busy today. A few older Berries sat talking over coffee. Someone quietly read a newspaper in the corner. Two farmers debated whose tomatoes were bigger. It felt comfortable, even more so than the day before. I liked that; it was very different from Frost Haven.
“So,” Mai said after swallowing a mouthful of food. “How’s the cottage?”
“Still standing.”
“High praise.” Cobalt added dryly.
I smiled. He was quietly funny.
“I’ve even started painting again.”
Mai grinned. “I knew it wouldn’t be long.”
“Already finished one.”
Her eyes lit up. “You did?”
“It isn’t anything special.”
“I don’t believe you.”
“I’ll show you later.”
“I expect nothing less.” Mai took a bite of her fries. “Mmm. So good!”
Cobalt and I laughed. Mai was a goofball.
As Cypress cleared away the empty baskets, an older Berry sitting at the bar caught her attention. “Any news about the gallery robbery?”
My ears perked up.
Cypress sighed. “No.”
“Shame.” The older man shook his head. “Never thought we’d see something like that around here.”
“Neither did I.”
The conversation moved on. Mine didn’t. “Was that… about the art thief?”
“Yeah,” Mai said.
“So it really happened?
“It did.”
I frowned. “I hoped the video online was exaggerating or something.”
“Nope.”
Cobalt leaned back against the old leather booth. “This wasn’t the first robbery around here either. They still haven’t caught whoever did it.”
“That’s awful.” I looked around the cozy little bar. It didn’t seem like the kind of town where something like that should happen.
“Ready?” Mai asked suddenly.
“As I’ll ever be.” I said, standing and gathering my things I had brought with me. I tucked my easel under an arm and slung my canvas bag with a canvas and a few paints inside over my back. My hair had somehow found its way into my mouth again. I pulled it out with a grimace. I swear, having this much hair was a full-time job.
“Give me one of those.” Cobalt said sternly, looking at me with a look that left no room for argument.
“Okay, gosh. Don’t look at me like that.” I handed him the bag to carry. “It’s really not that heavy.”
“Don’t care. I’m helping.”
I liked him so far. He seemed like a good person.
We waved Cypress goodbye and stepped back into the sunshine. Instead of heading through town, Mai led us down a narrow dirt path that curved between open fields. After a few minutes, the trees began to appear. Then more. Then so many that they formed a green wall stretching in every direction.
“We’re here.”
A weathered wooden sign stood beside the path. THE BRIARWOOD. Just before the trail began sat a tiny playground. It wasn’t much. A swing set. A little climbing frame. A weathered slide. But someone had obviously taken care of it. Yellow and white flowers grew around the edges, neatly manicured. Someone had even painted little red mushrooms on the wooden fence surrounding it.
“That’s cute,” I said.
Mai’s usual bounce slowed to a sudden, rare stillness. She looked at the little painted mushrooms, a soft, uncharacteristically quiet smile taking over her face.
“Yeah,” she said, her voice dropping to a gentle murmur. “A lot of families stop here before hiking.”
Before I could ask about the sudden shift, the trail opened into one of the prettiest places I’d ever seen. The lake looked almost unreal. The water was so clear it reflected every cloud drifting overhead. Wildflowers of just about every color covered the shoreline. The breeze barely disturbed the glass-like surface. I stood there, speechless.
“This is Moonwater Lake. I told you it was beautiful out here.” Mai whispered.
“You weren’t kidding.” I whispered back, immediately setting my easel down. I had seen it online, but that was nothing compared to seeing it in person. “I have to paint this.”
While I painted, Mai and Cobalt wandered along the shoreline, skipping stones and talking quietly, laughing every now and then. Every so often they’d point out a bird or a flower for me to look at.
As my brush moved across the canvas, I realized something. For the first time in a long time, I wasn’t painting to escape anything. Not my family, not my own anxiety. I was painting because I was happy. I looked out across Moonwater Lake. The quiet water. The trees. Mai and Cobalt laughing somewhere behind me. I picked up my brush again.
When I finally leaned back from my canvas, I couldn’t stop smiling. “I love it here.” Hours had slipped by without me noticing. The sun was much lower than when we first arrived at the lake.
“I knew you would,” Mai said.
I looked toward the trail disappearing deeper into the woods. “How far does it go?”
Cobalt followed my gaze. “A long way.”
“Have you been all the way through?”
He hesitated. “No. Most people haven’t.”
“Why not?”
He shrugged. “It gets… strange.”
“Strange how?”
Cobalt glanced toward the trees. “Oh, right. You wouldn’t have heard the stories.”
“What stories?” I asked, starting to pack up my art supplies.
Mai sighed dramatically. “Oh no.”
“What?”
“Now you’ve done it.”
Cobalt smiled at his girlfriend’s antics. “There’s supposedly a hermit living somewhere deep in the Briarwood.”
“A hermit?”
“That’s the nice version.” Cobalt muttered cryptically.
Mai rolled her eyes. “People have been telling that story forever.”
“They have.” He agreed.
“So he’s probably not real. They just like to make things mysterious.”
Cobalt shrugged. “Maybe.”
I crossed my arms. “You don’t sound convinced.”
“I’ve never seen him.”
“I feel like there was a but there.”
“But people swear they have. Most are called crazy.”
“And those who aren’t called crazy?”
Cobalt shrugged. “Not many of those.”
I looked toward the dense forest again. The trail disappeared into the shadows beneath the trees. It seemed peaceful. Beautiful. Almost inviting. I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was watching us, though.
A branch snapped somewhere deep in the woods. I jumped, searching. Nothing. Just trees swaying gently in the wind. Probably a deer. Or a rabbit. My imagination was getting the better of me.
As we packed up to leave, I glanced back toward the trail one last time. For just a second, I could have sworn I saw a figure standing between the trees. Gone the instant I blinked.
“Pearl?” Mai called.
“Hm?”
“You comin’?”
I tore my eyes away from the forest. “Yeah.”
I took one last glance as we started walking away. Nothing. Just trees. I smiled to myself and hurried after my friends.