The remote woodland trail stretched out and wound through groves of lush vines. Birds overhead dove down to pluck the grape-like berries from fruity tendrils. Under better circumstances John might have been grateful to be in God's country. As it was, he was on a sad sort of mission. He felt the weight of the urn in his backpack. Thoughts of Ted came rushing back and the emotional toll of the memories in combination with the stifling Virginia humidity enticed him for a moment to abort the mission. He did not understand why Ted insisted he make this trek to a part of the country he'd only passed through briefly. Confusing that Ted wanted some of his ashes scattered here considering he had never set foot in Virginia.
He had a sense of being watched as he continued through to where the path met a forked creek. The babbling of the water a salve to his sore soul. He sat down on a rock to contemplate whether he wanted to continue forth.
Wiping the sweat from his brow he rose from the rock and crossed the creek. Looking at the map he followed due west past some jutting rock formations and then back to the east for a few paces. There in the clearing in the gold light of the sun stood a woman.
A naked woman.
The sight of her stopped John in his tracks. He held his breath to avoid discovery. He'd never been the type to spy on any girls. Here he stood, looking at the most voluptuous back side he'd ever seen. The swells of her bottom jiggled only slightly as she plucked large, ripe cucumbers from long, healthy vines. She turned to the side and her breasts sat a little lower making him believe she must be in her 40's. Her long, amber hair almost sparkled in the sunlight and provided sharp contrast to her alabaster complexion. He felt both captivated and scared watching her freely move her exposed body through the rows of cucumbers. She stopped and threw her head back and closed her eyes. Her nostrils flared as she drank in the fresh, lilac-scented mountain air. When she opened her eyes, she turned to him and her mystical blue eyes seemed to stare straight through him.
John woke to her face hung above him like a harvest moon. Blurry. Out of focus at first, and then more in focus. She was mouthing words he couldn't understand. Disoriented and frightened, he stood quickly and ran back up the path. Unsure of what had happened he ran toward his cabin now visible at the end of the long woodland trail. Was that a hallucination? Had he passed out? Was he dangerously dehydrated? He didn't realize he dropped the urn until he reached the cabin.
*****
A mixture of grief and frustration washed over him. Then the guilt of liking the sight of the naked woman in the secret garden washed over him. If it was a dream, it was the best one he'd ever had. No cell service here. He put the phone down and threw himself onto the creaky old bed.
He recalled his last sexual encounter and time extended backward several years since he knew what it felt like to make love to a woman. Shortly before the accident he shared this predicament with Ted who insisted that he call a phone sex line or do something to satisfy his own needs. John already used phone sex lines and they did not fill the void. They got him off. That's not what John wanted. He never got to share this secret with Ted. John, in a facade of false piousness, laughed at the suggestion. When Ted pressed him to "Just fuckin' try it, Man." John told Ted, "To shut the fuck up."
And now part of Ted lay somewhere in the Virginia outback and John felt guilty for using such harsh language with his friend. Palpable regret at not sharing more with Ted mixed with an emptiness and longing fell over him and he cried silent tears on the bed. John never wanted to give the appearance of needing any help, but with this he would have given anything to have Ted's help now. His arousal at the sight of the woman pounded his groin and tugged at his heart, for her face held a tender kindness that John had not seen on a woman in years.
A knock on the cabin door soon disrupted him. He leaned a little and could see the flashes of amber and auburn. He wanted to avoid her, but thinking that she might have the urn he reluctantly answered the door wiping his tears on his forearm before doing so.
"Hello."
"Yeah, uh, hi. Sorry, I uh." He stammered.
"No, no, it's ok." She beamed at him with perfectly straight teeth. Her lopsided smiled nestled beneath a rather dainty nose sat upon her perfectly symmetrical face.
"Well, I just wanted to make sure you were ok. You took rather a nasty fall back there."
"Name's Virginia."
"Oh, hey. Yeah well I'm sorry," He said.
"What on earth for? You didn't do anything wrong." Her voice was laced with the south in a very subtle way and her demeanor bore an air of education.
"Well, here we invite people in so as to avoid heat stroke." Virginia said.
"Oh, yeah, well come in." He said it as a course of politeness although her presence unsettled him and he did not want her to stay long.
"Virginia. I seem to have lost something out there." He shook his head quizzically.
Virginia cocked her head to the side clearly unaware. He didn't want to have to tell his story to this strange woman living in the mountains of bum fuck Virginia. He remembered he'd seen her nude body and looked down at the floor.
"May I sit?" She asked.
"Sure." He moved some of his dirty clothes from the one chair in the room.
Her yellow sundress tied at her sun-kissed, freckled shoulders. She shrugged a little, revealing a toned musculature and a strong posture. She crossed her legs revealing milky white smooth skin. Her breasts looked better in the dress and he wished he'd seen her this way first. Beautiful and austere she waited patiently for him to speak.
"Well, you see I'm here to scatter some ashes—my best friend." He said. Her brows knitted into an expression of concern and empathy.
"When I saw you in your garden ummm-- I didn't expect to meet anyone up here."
"Oh, I suppose my naked state did nothing to help you, but honestly I didn't know I was so frightening to look at." She giggled in her sarcasm and the sound of her giggle and sight of her smile made his internal struggle worse.
"Well. I dropped his ashes somewhere out there and I have no idea."
"It'll be getting dark soon," She looked over John's shoulder out the lonely window over the kitchen sink. Virginia stood and smoothed the dress. "I'll come back tomorrow and I will help you look for your friend." Her smile spread widely across her beautiful face.
She turned and walked to the door. Looking over her shoulder she smiled. "I'm sorry for spooking you, John. 'Night."
And she exited the cabin.
Had he told her his name? He didn't recall.
That night he masturbated thinking of her smile, her perfect body, and that intoxicating sarcastic giggle.
