The Pacer

Issue date: 2/20/07 Section: Arts & Entertainment

Outten

Anna had believed she'd be seeing James shortly after his near-arrest. Unfortunately for Anna, she was right about her intuition - she had very little, if any at all.

Her days blended together as summer morphed into autumn. Filing cases and answering phones and watching as her former classmates progressively packed and left for college comprised her waking life; when she slept, her dreams comprised the rest.

In fact, Anna's latest dreams centered on an advertisement she had recently seen on TV. Chic Models was sponsoring a national talent search; for $25, two Polaroid shots, and access to the Internet, any woman between the ages of 14 and 22 could put their pretty heads on the proverbial chopping block, all from the anonymity of her bedroom. After a depressing evening spent with classic movies, Anna figured she had nothing to lose. A few clicks, two picture uploads, a confirmation email - Anna Monroe was an official entrant.

The next morning, she wished that there were a refund policy. Surely some pageant queen would win; what chance did a girl like Anna have? She deleted the email and forgot about it. In a few weeks, the rest of Myron's college hopefuls would be gone, leaving Anna to staple and fax papers dealing with unemployment check disputes.

By lunch, Anna wanted to go home. The morning had been particularly busy, and for most of it she had been manning the ship alone. Her mother had finally come back a few minutes ago, leaving Anna free to take a break. A break wasn't in the plan, though. Police car lights flooded the parking lot again.

There was only one officer this time. He walked in and said, "Is Anna Monroe here?"

"She's in the office," her mother said.

"What's the matter?"

"Let me speak to her please."

Anna knew she had thrown out the rest of her stash. What could this possibly be about?

The door opened. "Ms. Monroe, will you come with me please?"

"What's this about?"

"We need you for questioning about the boy who was arrested here a few weeks ago."

"Oh, he wasn't arrested," Anna said, hoping to avoid going "downtown."

"Just come with me please."

Anna followed him out and got into the car. He turned the sirens back on and peeled out of the parking lot, kicking up a cloud of dust. "Are the sirens necessary?" she asked the officer.

He remained silent.

After a few minutes, Anna realized that they weren't going towards town. Her stomach began churning. What was going on?

The paved road turned into a dirt road as they drove further out into the country. Up ahead, a grove of trees thrived in the midst of an expansive field. The police officer drove right up to the edge and hit the brakes. "Here you go, ma'am."

"I'm supposed to get out here?"

The officer nodded.

She hesitated.

"Ma'am," the officer reiterated.

Confused, Anna slowly got out of the car.

As soon as she shut the door, the car pulled around and left her there.
Stranded and alone, Anna started walking back towards the road.

"You're going the wrong way," a deep voice behind her said.

Anna jumped around, and her heart leapt.

It was James, holding a picnic basket and a blanket. "I thought we might be seeing each other again," he said smiling.

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