Under the Boardwalk

by Barbara Cool Lee

"What happened to him?"

  "I imagine it was a closed-casket funeral. Here we are." He stopped in front of a large gray building with a gabled roof. It looked like one of the colorful Victorian houses she'd glimpsed in the town, but dressed all in gray. Hallie saw cobwebs—ughh, and giant fuzzy spiders—hanging under the eaves. A small track with two-seater cars on it made a half-circle in front of the house, entering through one cobweb-covered opening and exiting on the far side.

  Hallie stopped in front of a sign that read "Beware of Ghosts." She raised her eyebrows at Kyle.

  Kyle shrugged. "Okay, so it's pretty cheesy." He smiled guilelessly. "I'm sure you could switch to the roller coaster if you'd rather." He handed her the vest and sun visor.

  While she put them on, he waved to the employee working there, a young woman with hair an unbelievable burgundy color. She sat filing her nails on a stool at the entrance to the ride. He walked up to her and put out his hand. "Hi there, I'm Kyle Madrigal."

  The woman jumped up. "Oh, Mr. Madrigal, oh." The nail file disappeared into a pocket, and she brushed off her vest.

  "It's okay," he said. "It's not a surprise inspection. I'm just showing a friend around. This is Hallie Reed, a friend of Windy's—do you know my kid sister Windy?"

  "I don't think so. I haven't been here that long." The woman rubbed her hands against her uniform. "I'm really not sure, Mr. Madrigal."

  "It's okay. It's not a job requirement." Kyle flashed that trademark smile at the woman, and Hallie could see her visibly relax. "So, Ms.—?"

  "Greer. Charlie—I mean Charlotte—Greer."

  "Well, Charlie, do you mind if I show Hallie around the ride? She's going to be working with you today."

  "Whatever you want, Mr. Madrigal—"

  "—Kyle." He flashed the smile again, and Charlie smiled back tentatively.

  "Okay, Kyle," Charlie said, sinking back onto her stool.

  He sure knew how to turn on the charm. Hallie reminded herself that the charm he showed toward her wasn't any different, and that she needed to stop taking it personally. He was the richest guy in town, and used to the effect he had on people, she was sure.

  Kyle put out his hand to Hallie. She put her hands in her pockets and followed him to one of the cars. "This is one of the original rides, so it's kind of lame," he explained. "It's mostly for kids." He put his lips close to her ear. "And for people who like to kiss in the dark...." he murmured.

  "Come on. I'll show you," he said loudly.

  He sat down in the car.

  She stood outside the car with her arms folded.

  "Okay, no more jokes," he said when he saw her expression.

  She got in and sat next to him.

  "Shall I start the ride, Mr. Madrigal—Kyle?" Charlie asked, grinning away at him.

  "Sure," he said.

  Charlie pushed a couple of buttons on a panel next to her stool. They could hear a faint buzz from somewhere inside. "You always buzz when you start the ride, to let the person working in the back know that a car is coming," Charlie explained.

  "Is there somebody in there now?" Hallie asked.

  "Oh, no," she said. "It'll just be you and me today. I'm just showing you how it works. Next you press the button to start the ride." Hallie felt the car move.

  "Remember seeing King Kong in Tom's office?" Kyle asked as the doorway arched overhead and they were plunged into darkness. "His big brother's coming up, so don't be scared."

  "Very funny, Mister Madrigal," Hallie said. "Jeez, I'm not a little girl."

  She heard him chuckle next to her. "No, you're definitely a grown woman. I'm convinced of that."

  King Kong made his grand entrance with a roar, bending the bars of his cage to "almost" reach into the car and grab them, and after that the displays went by rapidly: a medieval dungeon, a creepy axe murderer, aliens exiting a flying saucer and shooting green laser beams at them.

  "The best seat in the house is behind that guy," Kyle shouted in her ear over the sound of the space battle. "Behind the little green alien on the left there's a good spot where you can see the whole back half of the ride."

  "See? I can't see anything," Hallie yelled back.

  "Your eyes adjust to the dark in a few minutes," he explained when they exited the ride and found themselves blinking at the morning light outside. "Then you can see everything. You can actually walk around in there without tripping on anything once you get used to it."

  He hopped out as the car came to a stop, and Hallie followed. "I warned you it was really lame," he said. "This is one of the rides we really need to update. Once you spend a shift sitting back there you'll have every scream and axe murder memorized."

  "Why does somebody have to sit back there?"

  "You just need to make sure the kids stay in their seats and don't get out and start wrecking stuff. The little darlings spray painted the axe murderer with pink hearts last summer. They had to replace the original mannequin with a surfer from another exhibit. He's still wearing his board shorts under that suit they put on him."

  She shook her head. "Too weird."

  "Just buzz twice from the back and the person out front stops the ride and turns on the lights."

  She leaned in close to him. "What do I do about the couples kissing in the dark?" she asked innocently.

  He laughed out loud. "If you see anything interesting, take notes. I'll quiz you later."

  Had he cast a spell on her? she wondered. If she had any intention of keeping her life on a safe, even keel, what was she doing flirting with him? She'd better get herself under control before she got emotionally involved. (Who're you kidding, 'before you get emotionally involved'? her little voice scolded.)

  "Excuse me?" she said, realizing he'd been talking to her.

  "I was just thinking out loud," he said. "It's a bad habit of mine—talking to myself."

  She grinned sheepishly. "Really?"

  "Anyway, I said I'm gonna swing by and see if Zac and Brandon need a ride to work, then I've gotta get the Little Guy out of that field, and figure out what parts I'm gonna need to fix him. That should take all morning. I'll see you when I pick you up after work."

  "See you then," she said. She walked over to the stool where Charlie sat. David Cooper had always said she was too emotional. Kyle didn't seem to be getting all worked up about one little kiss—which was a good thing, because she wasn't about to get involved with Windy's big brother. She heard his footsteps coming back, and turned around.

  "The chart said your lunch hour's at one," he said. "Could we, maybe, do lunch . . . ?"

  "Yeah," she said casually. "We could."

  He grinned. "See you at one, then." He strode away and Hallie watched until he disappeared around a corner.

  Charlie sighed. "He's your boyfriend, huh?"

  Hallie shook her head. "He's just a friend of a friend. He's kinda nice though."

  "What a cutie," Charlie said wistfully.

  "They all are. It's a Madrigal thing, I think."

  The nail file came out again, and Charlie started popping her gum again. "Sorry about the gum. I know it's annoying, but I can't smoke on the job, see, and it's driving me nuts. Want a piece?"

  Hallie nodded. Charlie handed her one, and Hallie saw her trying not to react when Hallie's scarred hand took the gum from her.

  "Anyway," the woman continued. "Somebody burned the whole place down a long time ago and they're super paranoid about fires." She raised her hands, busily filing. "It's a nasty habit, but I can't seem to break it. I need to chew on some gum, or file my nails, or I go nuts for a cigarette."

  She looked up from her hands. "Oh. Here's our first customer. You can work the front. It's real easy. You take the tickets and push the button to start the car on the track out here." Charlie pointed to the panel next to the stool.

  Hallie sat down on the stool Charlie vacated.

  "I'll be in the back," Charlie said. "Just ring the buzzer three times if you need me to come out and help you. I'm sure you won't h
ave any problem. It's not exactly brain surgery."

  Hallie laughed.

  ~*~

  The morning went quickly. Like Charlie said, it wasn't exactly brain surgery. Even when the sun came out and the crowd started to pick up Hallie found that she only had to use half her mind to do her job. The other half of her mind was thoroughly occupied with thoughts of a certain green-eyed rancher.

  ~*~

  Where was Kyle? Hallie looked at her watch again: 1:35 p.m., one minute later than it had been the last time she'd looked.

  Jeez, what was the matter with her? She was a grown-up. Hovering around with sweaty palms like a schoolgirl on a blind date was ridiculous. He probably got held up somewhere. It was no big deal.

  She had only 25 minutes of her lunch hour left. It was time to stop hovering around and go get something to eat. After all, she could buy herself lunch without his help.

  There were refreshment stands all along the promenade, so she made her way through the crowd toward the nearest one.

  A souvenir booth next to the refreshment stand caught her eye, and she stopped to leaf through a rack of postcards. She smiled at one: a solid gray card, the color of fog, with the caption Summer In Pajaro Bay.

  She finally chose a card with a picture of a lighthouse on it. "Oh, that's a nice one," the freckle-faced girl behind the counter said when she rang it up on the cash register. "They're gonna have tours of the lighthouse next summer after they get it remodeled. You want a brochure?"

  Hallie shook her head. "Thanks," she said, taking the change for her postcard. The picture was pretty. She didn't have anyone to send it to, but she could prop it up on the shelf in her room. She didn't like to have too many possessions, but a postcard wouldn't weigh her down too much.

  She looked back toward the haunted house. Still no sign of Kyle. Guess it's lunch for one.

  A guy in a purple tie-dyed jumpsuit manned the counter at the refreshment booth.

  "'Mama Thu's All-Natural Veggie Hot dogs'?" Hallie read aloud from the sign behind him.

  "A real taste of California," the guy said. "You want one? We've also got a good Banh Mi Trung today—a sausage and egg sandwich."

  She thought about comparing the Vietnamese version of an egg sandwich to the Spanish version she'd eaten for breakfast, but decided her stomach probably wouldn't appreciate it.

  She looked up to see the guy watching her with an intense interest. He smiled at her. "New here?" he asked. "I'm JJ. I could show you around..."

  She shook her head, saying no to the obvious flirtation in his smile. "The veggie hot dog sounds good," she said firmly. "I'll take one."

  She sat on a bench to eat. When she was almost finished, something made her glance up once more at the crowd, and she felt a ridiculous lump in her throat when she recognized the lanky figure striding toward her.

  She smiled and waved, and he quickly made his way to the bench where she sat.

  "Hey, I thought you weren't going to make it," she said casually when he was within earshot. She looked down at what was left of her lunch. "I thought this hot dog would taste like boiled cardboard, but it's not too bad. And the hot chili sauce has my eyes watering." She motioned to the bench next to her. "Have a seat."

  He didn't move. Finally, she looked up.

  Kyle looked like someone had just slugged him in the stomach. All the color had washed out of his normally ruddy complexion, and his ever-present grin was gone, replaced by a look of grim self-control.

  "What's the matter? Are you hurt?" She jumped to her feet. "My God, what is it? What's wrong?" She gripped his arm. "Kyle, please tell me what's the matter."

  He appeared, with some great effort, to get control of whatever powerful emotion had gripped him. He cleared his throat and straightened up, shrugging off her hand.

  "Windy and Zac are both missing."

  ~*~

  CHAPTER FOUR

  "I'm really sorry, Zac," Windy said.

  "I know," he mumbled.

  "Does your shoulder hurt a lot?"

  "Not too much. But remind me never to get on your bad side."

  "I didn't mean to hit you with the chair. I was trying to get that guy."

  "I know. Forget it."

  They were tied up again, this time on the floor with the zip-ties wrapped around some heavy pipe coming out of the wall. No chance of breaking free now. The man had learned not to underestimate them after her last stunt.

  Her little brother was right next to her, his injured shoulder resting against hers. She felt the warmth of him, and a surge of anger washed through her. She was the big sister. She should be able to save them. She wished Kyle was here. He would know what to do.

  "Did you get a good look at the guy, Zac?"

  "Sure. I think I've seen him somewhere before. Don't know who he is, though."

  Windy leaned back, resting her head against the cold pipe. There had to be a reason for all this, but she couldn't figure it out. And she was pretty sure their lives depended on figuring it out, and soon. "But why did he bring us to this place?"

  "This place?" Zac said. "Don't you know where we are, sis?"

  "You mean you know? You know what's going on?"

  "Of course, Windy. We're under the boardwalk."

  ~*~

  "What do you mean, disappeared?"

  Kyle paced back and forth in front of her, clenching and unclenching his fists. "Vanished, vamoosed, disappeared. I mean Zac's gone." He stopped pacing and faced her for the first time. "Lord, Hallie, anything could have happened. He's been missing since yesterday, I figure. Since that phone call or maybe even earlier."

  He was all coiled energy, restless and wild. She took him by the hand and led him to the bench. He sat down.

  "Slow down a minute," she said. "I don't understand. How do you know he's missing?"

  "He didn't show up for work today."

  Hallie sighed. "Is that all? Relax, Kyle. So he's off goofing around—kids do that kind of thing. It doesn't mean anything's wrong." Still, that tension in him scared her.

  Kyle stood up and began to pace back and forth in front of her again, talking half to himself. "No, see, he left a message on the answering machine at home yesterday. He said he was spending the night at his friend, Brandon's."

  "So—they got to goofing around and he forgot about work. I still don't see why you're so upset. You're not making any sense."

  Kyle stopped and took a deep breath. "Okay. Look. This is the deal. I went to Brandon's house to pick Zac up this morning. No one's there. Turns out Brandon's family left for a vacation back East a week ago. Then I came back here and talked to Sandy—the office manager—and she said Zac left work around noon yesterday and never came back. Yesterday afternoon he called and left a message on my answering machine saying he was with Brandon, who's in Vermont. Zac went to a lot of trouble to lie to everybody, and I've got to figure out why." He fell silent, staring at the ground.

  "And Windy? What does she have to do with this?"

  "She hasn't been seen by anybody in San Juan Bautista. It was a lie, too."

  Hallie sat down on the bench. "I knew it. I just felt it in my gut. Something was off yesterday."

  "I know. And I didn't listen to you."

  Around them the afternoon crowd swirled. The sun was out, and the air was filled with sounds of music and laughter.

  Hallie felt a chill run through her. "It wasn't your fault. You had no way of knowing."

  "No," Kyle said firmly. "I should have known something was squirrelly here. I should have taken you more seriously."

  That chill in Hallie's spine told her he was right, although it still made no sense. But Kyle, usually so calm and cheerful, was a restless cat pacing in front of her again.

  "I've gotta go see Joe—Deputy Serrano. He said he wanted to hear the answering machine message. I just stopped here to tell you what's up." He ran a hand through his hair and looked at her, as if seeing her for the first time. He tried out that sheepish grin, which looked so out of pla
ce in his tense face. "Listen, I'm sorry I stood you up for lunch."

  She smiled and squeezed his hand. "Geez, Kyle, that doesn't matter. Lunch is the least of our problems right now." She glanced at her watch. "I guess I should be going back to work now, anyway."

  She started to walk away, but he grabbed her arm. "Wait, please."

  "What?" She pulled away from him, and he let go of her arm.

  "Come along with me to see Joe," he added.

  "I'm not holding anything back. I really don't remember."

  "I know. But—I want you there. Maybe you can help."

  "Then let's go," she said. She pulled off her staff vest and headed for the office to sign out.

  ~*~

  The sheriff's office was in a storefront on Calle Principal. Inside, Deputy Joe Serrano leaned back in his chair and looked from Hallie to Kyle.

  "Well?" Kyle asked.

  Joe smoothed down his hair. "Well, I think you have a point. Rule number one of investigation: if it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, maybe it's a duck."

  Hallie started to interrupt, but Joe raised a hand. "This isn't San Francisco. Two mysteries in one day is a mighty odd thing in a town this size."

  "Three," Hallie said.

  The deputy nodded. "Yeah. Three. Your car accident, Windy not in San Juan Bautista, and Zac lying."

  Kyle went over to a bulletin board and began studiously reading the flyers posted there. Hallie sat glumly in the corner and stared at her feet.

  The sheriff picked up a file from the corner of his desk. "I'd really like to have a word with that hit-and-run driver before we rule anything out. Now that we suspect Windy has been missing since the accident, it all looks like it could be connected."

  "You don't suppose—?"

  "—That she was thrown from the car or something like that? I've got the search and rescue team dispatched to search the hillside."

  "But Windy sent a text message after the accident."

  "Exactly. That's why I'm not combing that hillside myself. We'll look, but just to be sure. I can't see how Zac and Windy sending false messages after your car accident could be connected to an accident."