The Lodge

by Shaun Kitching

  “It’s not what it looks like,” Zoe said in a rushed voice. “Those daisies, they were a gift.”

  “By whom?” I asked.

  “I-I-I can’t say,” Zoe murmured, before she rushed down the corridor, her tiny feet dragging on the concrete floor as she jogged away.

  *****

  “And that’s why we’re in a whole lotta trouble,” Chad said, informing the group at lunch about the knife from the lodge. I took a quick glance at Zoe, who for a second met my eyes and roused nervously in her chair. As expected, the gasps and questions started revolving around the lunch table like a game of roulette.

  “But it couldn’t be one of us; we were together when Seth was killed, right?” Hank asked the group.

  “Yeah, well, I think so,” Reed replied. Immediately everyone cast their mind back to the fateful afternoon of Seth’s murder. Were we all together? I remember all of us had visited the toilet during that time. Plus I’m sure some of us had gone into the kitchen or out on the deck. Why were these thoughts even going through my mind? It surely couldn’t be one of us, right? I cast another look at Zoe. She was still twitching tensely on the seat. She was so petite and quiet. No, it couldn’t be Zoe I decided. Than who? All eyes suddenly started inspecting the group with an element of distrust. Suddenly it hit me.

  “You!” I murmured.

  “What is it Koby?” someone said. My brain was thinking too much for me to recognise who was speaking.

  “Koby?” said someone else.

  With all eyes on me, I raised my index finger and pointed across the table.

  I was pointing at Reed.

  Chapter 16: Reed

  Koby’s finger continued to point in my direction, his eyes squinting with conjecture.

  “Koby, what are you doing?” I asked, as I sensed the tension building around the table.

  “Bro, that’s not cool!” Hank directed to Koby.

  Koby finally dropped his finger and then spoke again, “It was you, wasn’t it?”

  “Me? What are you talking about?” I asked, a burst of irritation appearing in my voice.

  “Veronica. Seth. You killed them?” Koby responded loudly.

  “Koby, lower your voice!” Amber said, her eyes nervously darting across the cafeteria.

  “Listen, Kobes, I know we’re all upset but it’s not really helping the situation with accusations,” Chad said, trying to calm the moment.

  “Situation?” Koby asked. “The only situation we have here is a killer amongst our midst.”

  “Koby!” Amber yelled with hostility.

  “I’m sure there’s an explanation about the knife. Let’s just all calm down ok - we’re on the same side here,” Hank addressed to everyone, although his eyes remained firmly on Koby.

  “Ok,” I muttered, still unsure on where Koby’s statement had come from.

  Koby ignored Hank’s call for peace. “Think about it guys! How many years have we been going to the lodge?”

  No response.

  “Chad, come on man - how many years?” Koby persisted.

  “I dunno Koby,” Chad replied uncomfortably. “Since the start of high school I guess.”

  “And how many years is that?” Koby continued.

  “About four years,” Chad responded.

  “Exactly. Four years. We have been going to the lodge for four years and how many murders has there been before this year?”

  Once again, no one replied to his question. I could tell exactly where Koby was going with this.

  “Anyone?” Koby asked, not taking their silence as an answer.

  “Zero,” Zoe muttered, flashing Koby a nervous look.

  “That’s right. Zero. A big, fat zero! And then what happens?” Koby said, surveying his friends with his steely eyes. I had never seen Koby this intense before. Where was this all coming from? Did this have something to do with Amber? Was he that infuriated with me for asking her out that he was trying to turn the group against me?

  This time Koby didn’t wait for an answer. “Then Reed showed up. The athletic, good looking hotshot from the city.”

  “Koby, this isn’t fair,” Amber said.

  Koby either ignored Amber or was too engrossed with his theory that he didn’t appear to hear. “The next thing we know, our friends start to die.” His voice wavered as the words escaped his lips.

  “Koby-“, Hank began.

  “Let me finish Hank,” Koby said, raising his hands. “Before Reed, pre-Reed I will call it; there were no murders. No victims. No police. And then presto, out of the blue this new guy shows up, we invite him to the lodge and before we know it we have a serial killer on our hands!”

  I gritted my teeth and was about to say something when Amber suddenly rose from her seat. She flashed Koby an angry look and then stormed out of the cafeteria. “Amber, wait!” I yelled, jumping from my seat and following her out of the eatery. As I left the room I caught Koby shrugging his shoulders to the remaining group. How dare he accuse me in front of everyone, I thought. If he really wanted to blame me than I had no problems with that, but at least do it like a man to my face and not in front of our friends.

  “Hey Amber!” I called again, as I stepped outside into a courtyard. She turned around and I realised she’d been crying. “It’s ok,” I said in my best soothing voice.

  “It’s not ok,” she said. “He shouldn’t have accused you like that, I’m so sorry!”

  “It’s fine,” I lied. I was still angry at Koby but I didn’t want to make Amber more upset.

  “He’s not usually like that,” Amber stated.

  “Well, he’s stressed and he’s just trying to make sense of how these deaths occurred,” I consoled her.

  “But to blame you?” Amber asked.

  “Hey, he made a pretty good case,” I said with a chuckle, as I rubbed my chin. “Koby was totally correct in what he said. I mean, the murders didn’t start to occur until I got here.”

  Amber sighed as she rubbed her eyes with the back of her hand.

  “Obviously it’s just bad timing with my arrival,” I said, giving a sigh myself. Had I made a mistake moving to Hollow Point? Maybe I should speak with my parents about a possible return to the city?

  “Don’t blame Koby,” I continued to comfort Amber. “This is tough for all of us, especially you guys. I hardly had enough time to well and truly get to know Veronica and Seth. I could tell they were great people but you and Koby have known them for so long. Koby was just releasing all that built up frustration. Am I talking too much?” I said with a laugh.

  Amber let out a short giggle. It was good to see her smiling again. “Thanks for being so understanding,” Amber said, giving me a rub on the arm.

  “Forget about it,” I replied. “It’s in the past now. I’ll pretend that it never happened and I’m sure Koby and I will remain friends.”

  “He should apologise,” Amber said with a small frown.

  “He’s a bloke, we find it extremely difficult to apologise,” I said, making Amber laugh again. “As I said, forget about it. As far as I’m concerned Koby never accused me.”

  Unexpectedly, Amber leaned up and gave me a quick peck on the cheek. “Thanks Reed.” The bell sounded for the end of lunch and I remembered I was meeting Hank in the library. We both had a free period that was to be used for studying and catching up on subjects we were struggling with. Hank and I usually used our free period to discuss stories from our last rugby game or tactics for our next match.

  “Well, uh, I better go,” I said, flashing Amber a smile.

  “Sure. We’ll talk later ok,” she said sweetly and gave me a wave goodbye.

  Amber was a great person. Smart, attractive, friendly; the complete package really. It didn’t take a genius to work out that Koby was mad about her. In fact, I think deep down she also cared for Koby and that’s why she got so upset with his outburst today. I had never had much trouble getting girls’ attention and I say that in a completely modest way. Somehow, Amber was different t
o other girls. She was more down-to-earth and had a natural beauty about her. A free spirit. I’m sure Koby and I could work out our differences and the whole Amber situation wouldn’t cause too many problems. The library was on the opposite side of the school to the cafeteria. I bristly walked on the concrete pathways which had been constructed between all the buildings. All of the structure in Hollow Point High had been erected with the same mustard coloured brick. It was probably quite flash when it was first built, but over time the brick had begun to fade and weeds had started to grow down the side of the building. Although not as flash as the schools in the city, I liked Hollow Point High. It was quite unique and had a very personable feel about it. I finally made my way to the library and slid open the sliding door. There weren’t too many students who had a free period the same time as Hank and I, so generally we had the entire library to ourselves. That is where I first met Hank actually. He encouraged me to play for the Hollow Point Tigers after hearing of my rugby scholarship I received at my former school.

  “Yo Hank,” I whispered. Even though the library was deserted I kept my voice down. An old habit, I guess. No reply. He mustn’t be here yet. I sat down on our usual table towards the back of the room. I pulled out a text book from my backpack and placed it on the table. Even though we had no intention of studying it was always good practice to have some sort of learning resource in view just in case a teacher came in and checked on us. A noise to my left suddenly caught my attention. It was coming from behind one of the bookshelves. There it was again. What was that? It was a slight rustling sound, a mouse perhaps? I got up from the table and listened for the sound. The noise continued. Too loud to be a mouse. I walked towards the noise, passing rows of books as I progressed towards the unknown clatter. It was coming from behind the last row. I listened once more. Yes, definitely the last row. Reaching the last strip of paperbacks, I peered around the corner.

  “Hank!?” I yelled in surprise. Hank was lying on the ground with a body beside him. It was Zoe. Hank had his hands wrapped tightly around her throat.

  Chapter 17: Reed

  “Zoe, you dirty little monkey!” Chad said with a big grin on his face.

  “This is so embarrassing,” she responded, her pale features now a crimson red. School had finished and we were all eating hot dogs at Billy Beef. I had received the fright of my life when I had caught Hank strangling Zoe in the library a few hours earlier. As it turned out, he wasn’t strangling her. He wasn’t hurting her at all. I had walked in on Hank and Zoe making out. Hank had his large hands around her neck as they kissed on the library floor.

  “Hank! I can’t believe you didn’t tell us about you and Zoe!” Koby said astounded.

  “You know me, never kiss and tell,” Hank replied with a big grin.

  “What about you missy?” asked Amber. “What’s your excuse for not telling me?”

  “I don’t know. Hank and I started seeing each other out of the blue. We ran into each other at the mall one day and randomly decided to see a movie together. Before you know it…” Zoe said, not finishing her sentence.

  “Before you know it, she was all over me!” Hank joked!

  “Shut up Hank!” Zoe responded curtly, to which we all laughed.

  “It still doesn’t explain why you didn’t tell me,” Amber continued, flashing Zoe one of her genuine smiles.

  “I was going to. But then-then Veronica was killed. It didn’t really seem that important to bring up my love life,” Zoe explained with a shrug of the shoulders.

  “Yeah, plus we weren’t sure how you would all take it,” said Hank, this time in a serious voice. “I mean we weren’t sure how you’d react if you suddenly found out there was a couple amongst the group?”

  “I think it’s great!” said Amber, yet again flashing another smile.

  “Yeah, I’m stoked for you guys,” replied Koby.

  “You scared me half to death,” I said laughing. “But as Koby said, I’m really happy for you both.” Koby and I quickly caught each others eye as I pronounced his name. We still hadn’t properly talked since the cafeteria incident but there didn’t appear to be ill grudges between us.

  “I just can’t get over the size difference between you!” Chad joked, sloping his right arm so his fingers were in line with Zoe’s head and his elbow aligned to Hank’s head. Chad was right. They were an unusual looking couple. Hank looked like a gorilla in the bright red booth next to the diminutive figure of Zoe. They had just finished explaining how they had started dating in the summer break. After I had caught them making out they decided that they would tell the rest of the group.

  “Wait a minute,” said Koby. “Those daisies-”

  “Yep, they were from Hank. He gave them to me before school one morning. It must have been the first week back, a day or two before Veronica was murdered. I hadn’t had a proper chance to remove them from my locker. And after Veronica got killed I didn’t want to bring them out in public, being daisies and all. So I waited until after the rugby game when no one was around. Well at least thought no one was around!” said Zoe, giving Amber and Koby a smile.

  “Daisies?” I replied. “What are you’s talking about?”

  “Yeah, you’ve lost me,” said Chad.

  Zoe explained how Amber and Koby had caught her getting the flowers out of her locker and how they closely resembled the daisies which had been a big talking point in the two murders.

  “A few of the flowers died from being kept in a locker too long, but most of them survived to my surprise,” Zoe continued, flashing Hank a smile.

  “Yep, romantic is my middle name,” Hank said, placing one of his burly arms over Zoe’s slim shoulders.

  “Hahaha,” Chad suddenly started laughing.

  “What? You’re just jealous because I have a sexy chicky babe,” Hank said, planting a swift kiss on Zoe’s cheek.

  “Firstly, this whole lovey dovey business, it’s kinda makin’ me sick,” Chad said, causing everyone to laugh. “Secondly, Romeo, I wasn’t laughing about your romantic side. I was just recalling the cheerleader question I asked you the other day before your rugby game.”

  I cast my mind back to Chad’s question. Something along the lines of Hank appreciating the looks of Werner Town’s cheer squad.

  “Well, what can I say? Hank is a one man girl,” Hank replied. I pretended to stick my fingers down my throat which got a laugh from the group, even Koby.

  “All I need is for one of you bozo’s to get a girlfriend so we can go on a double date,” Hank shouted, laughing at his own words. I pretended to stretch my arms and didn’t dare make eye contact with Amber or Koby.

  “Well I have every girl at school lining up. I just have to make the tough decision of picking which one,” Chad joked.

  “Haha, nice joke,” Amber said cheekily.

  “Joke?” Chad said, putting on a serious face which caused everyone to crack up even more. Life was finally starting to return to normal. The serial killer was still at large but nothing had happened since we had stopped going to the lodge.

  “Have you heard anything more on the murder case?” Zoe asked Chad, as if reading my thoughts.

  “Not really,” Chad replied. “My dad spoke with the police again the other night. The hidden cameras are still setup but no one has been captured on camera yet. And apparently besides the knife, they have no leads.”

  “Maybe the killer saw us enter the woods?” Amber said to everyone. I shifted anxiously in my seat and waited for Koby to throw my name in the ring.

  “Maybe,” Koby simply said.

  “My parents are seriously thinking about selling the lodge,” Chad said. “I mean, not immediately. I don’t think anyone in their right mind would purchase it right now. But after everything settles down and the killer is caught…” his voice trailed off.

  We all slumped back into the leather booth.

  “At least we’ll always have Billy Beef,” said Hank.

  “Maybe you two can get married here,” Koby jo
ked, gesturing to Hank and Zoe.

  Hank gave Koby a scowl which quickly broke into a smile.

  “Woah settle down! I still haven’t decided if I’ll keep him yet,” Zoe joked, reaching up and patting Hank’s head like a dog.

  “Hey Reed, you still on for the gym tomorrow morning?” asked Hank, ignoring Zoe’s arm. I’m glad he mentioned it to me as I had completely forgotten.

  “Around seven o’clock, before school alright?” he continued.

  “Sounds good,” I replied. Hollow Point High had just invested in a new gym as part of the school improvement program. Well, I guess you could call it a gym. It was actually an old classroom with a few free weights, a treadmill and a bench press thrown into it. Saying that, it was more than enough for our needs.

  “Well, I’ve got to cruise,” said Chad suddenly, chomping down on the last bite of his hot dog.

  “Yeah me too,” said Koby.

  “Catch ya later Reed. Amber. Lovers,” Chad said, purring out the last word in a passionate voice. I chuckled as Chad slapped his arm around Koby’s shoulders.

  “Hey maybe you two can come on a double date!” Hank quickly yelled to the boys, as they disappeared out of Billy Beef. Shortly after, we all said our goodbyes and made our way home. I gave everyone a wave as I began for my short walk home. Hank and Zoe, I thought. They really did make a bizarre couple.

  *****

  Adjusting my backpack, I entered the school gate. I shivered even though I made a brisk walk. I wasn’t used to arriving at school this early and probably should have worn a jumper. Oh well, I thought. In a few minutes I’d be sweating it up in the gym with the Hankster. Looking down at my blue digital sports watch I saw that it was twenty past seven. I had slightly overslept and Hank was probably already on the free weights. I gave a quick nod of my head to one of the early working janitors before making my way to the right-wing block. The gym was the last room in this block, which was part of the Physical Education department. I approached the gym door, which had a few workout programs flimsily stuck to the glass panels with a few pieces of sticky tape. I pushed open the door and threw my backpack to the nearest corner of the room.

  “Sorry I’m late man,” I said to Hank, who was lying on his back on the bench press. “I know you’re strong and all big fella, but you really shouldn’t bench press without a spotter,” I continued, my safety values escaping my lips.