Rogue's Hollow by Jan Tilley

tossed the clothes into the fire. He stood close and warmed his body by the fire. Lost in thought, he watched the flames dance as they assisted him in destroying the evidence. He stared at the barrel until the flames had simmered down to nothing but hot embers.
    The evening chill caught hold of his flesh as soon as he stepped away from the fire. He hurried into the mill and stopped at his bedroom to put on some fresh clothes. Grabbing a thick flannel to warm his body, he made his way to the kitchen where he found Travis in the exact same position as he’d left him. Staring off into the distance, he appeared to be in a deep trance. Washing his hands thoroughly in the sink, he watched Travis and broke the silence. “You okay, son?”
    Travis sat down his mug, looked over at him, and replied, “Grand and dandy.”
    His chipper words with the gloom and doom face made Malachi snicker. “Travis, let’s talk for a moment.” Pulling up a chair next to him, he began to question him. “Did anyone else know that you were coming out here with Junior tonight?”
    Travis shook his head. “No, I don’t think so. Jeremy’s the only other one that really hangs out with Junior. He’s gone this weekend, visiting his dad in prison.”
    “What about your mom?”
    “Nope, working all weekend.”
    “Okay, now think… did anyone see you guys together? Did you stop anywhere before you came here?”
    Travis thought for a moment, then shook his head. “No. I don’t remember seeing anyone, and we didn’t stop anywhere.”
    Malachi nodded. “Good. That’s good. Now, this entire plan will fall into the crapper if you say anything to anyone, okay? You can’t even act like you know that it happened. Be surprised when someone tells you about poor Junior, got it?”
    “Yeah, I understand. Do you think that this is really gonna work?”
    “I don’t see why not. As long as we play dumb about it. All the evidence is gone.” He placed a firm hand on Travis’s shoulder and looked him in the eye. “Look, son. It was a bad thing that happened. Sometimes anger creeps up on you, especially with someone like Junior Barnett. But, there is no reason why you should be made to suffer for the rest of your days. I think Junior made you suffer for long enough. In an odd way, maybe he did get what was coming to him.”
    Shaking the boy’s shoulder, he reaffirmed his words, “Do you understand me? Mum’s the word.”
    Travis took a deep breath and nodded. He looked into Malachi’s eyes and said, “Thank you. This means a lot to me. No one’s ever looked out for me like this before.”
    Malachi sat back in his chair and sighed. The memories of his own torment flooded back to him and he knew how the kid felt. “Travis, can I tell you something?”
    “Sure.”
    His eyes grew somber as he searched for the right words. “A long time ago, I had a son. He, and my beautiful wife Mera were killed back in 1980. They were hit head on, at almost the same spot where Junior died tonight.”
    Travis looked at him with wide eyes. “I’m sorry.” He nervously began to play with his tongue piercing.
    “Me too. A tourist was driving too fast for the curve in the road and smashed right into them.” Malachi’s face became an ashen gray color as he spoke. “I was working out front when I heard the crash.” He shook his head as the memories rushed over him. “Horrible sound. To this day, it wakes me up some nights in terror.”
    Still shaking his head, he continued, “They both died almost instantly, as did the driver of the other car. Lukas, my son, was only six years old.” Breathing deeply, and wringing his hands, he stared at the floor with pain overflowing in his eyes. “He was my baby boy. It just about broke me, Travis. Thank goodness that my mama was still here then or honestly, I swear I’d be with them right now.”
    He wiped a tear from his cheek with the stub of his index finger and looked at Travis, trying to make sense of it all. “Moral