Checkmate ⚢

Chapter 15 Trekking

Liezel and Fallon left the table to help Hildegard find Mikebot's spare parts inside the trailer, leaving Hana some space.

"Hana?"

"Althea," Hana gazed up from her plate to get a glimpse of the blonde. "Did something happen again?"

"No, not at all," Althea flushed for a moment at her earlier spicy episode then offered a hand. "When I was a little girl, my mother used to bring me to this beautiful private garden not far from here. May I ask you to accompany me to a pleasurable endeavor?"

"What?" Hana can't help but wonder where that request came from.

"We could kill two birds with one stone. Roaming around in nature could help you in your creativity boost for later."

"Oh! That's a great idea!" Hana glanced at Althea from head to toe. "You sure you don't want to get changed to more comfortable clothes?"

Althea regarded the long sleeves and shorts she was wearing on the shoot before the break. "It's as comfortable as my casual wear."

"Then off we go! Hold on; let me get my camera..." she bounced towards the table where she left it, arming herself and ready for an adventure. "Let's go!"

Althea smiled at her, and then looked at the others who were still preoccupied with their break. Joshua caught their glances and gave them a secretive smile and a slow nod as they sneaked out from the group.

Hana trustingly followed Althea in the expanse of the forest park in foothills of pine trees. No one travels into the interior of the forest unless they are hikers or wildlife enthusiasts.

The sky got darker than it had been and Hana hoped the bad weather would go away before it rained or the rain would only come and go.

"Where are we headed to, by the way?"

"I think we're headed to an enchanted path where faeries live." Althea teased, feeding Hana's imagination.

There was a small path at the edge of the clearing, and scarcely three steps into the woods, the wild rabbits flee from them. Their footprints pushed aside the deep brown of fallen leaves and red chokecherries to reveal the moist green grasses. She soon came to a clearly marked trail dotted with the hoof prints of deer; it took her to the tree line and they walked across the open space, her feet crunching through the leaves into the dry grass below.

The path had narrowed; it was no longer the wide highway used by hunting parties. Instead, tree roots crossed the path, half-hidden by the mossy undergrowth. They passed young saplings clustering around the bases of the tallest trees like children surrounding their mother.

She thought that if they continue to walk along the border of the woods, Hana and Althea would eventually come to another landscape.

"You told me this used to be the place where your mother brings you to?"