Impossible Depths (Silver Lake series Book 2)

by McCallum, Coral

  “You’re not thinking of going out to JJL, are you?”

  “No,” he said, shaking his head. “Not for a few days. Jim said Todd had turned up out there. Sounds as though he was in a bit of a state. Jim’s showing him the mysteries of mixing.”

  “So what do you feel up to doing today?” asked Lori, almost dreading the answer in case it was an activity that she would be forced to veto.

  “As little as possible. We could maybe go out and see Rich later. I’ll call him first though,” replied Jake, much to Lori’s relief.

  “I need to do some work this morning,” began Lori. “But we could take a run out to Beebe this afternoon if Rich wants us to.”

  “Sounds like a plan,” he sighed resignedly. “I think I’ll head down into the basement for a while.”

  An air of calm descended on the beach house over the next two days. The July heat wave continued unchecked. As the hours ticked by, Lori tried to give Jake the space he needed to grieve and to begin to heal. There were moments when he was irrationally angry and frustrated; there were others when he was emotional and quiet. He disappeared down to the basement for hours at a time, emerging tired and in search of pain medication. Lori worked on her Silver Lake project but, struggling to remain focussed, she made little in the way of progress. Their phones rang red hot throughout the first day and eventually Jake switched his off, leaving it lying silent in the bedroom. News from the hospital brightened up Tuesday as Rich called Lori to say he was being discharged the following day. Via Maddy, Lori learned that Gary’s family had arrived safely and that Scott was back in town. Reluctant to return to the apartment, he was staying out at the farmhouse with Maddy and Paul for a few days.

  As they sat out on the deck after dinner on Tuesday evening, Lori’s phone rang again. Before its ringtone aggravated Jake, she answered the call. It was Jason. They exchanged pleasantries and she updated him on Jake’s condition.

  “Do you think you could make lunch tomorrow?” asked the Englishman hopefully. “If you can’t, I’ll understand, but Alice and Tom are keen to meet you both.”

  Deducing that Alice and Tom were Gary’s brother and sister, Lori glanced over at Jake before replying, “Where did you want to meet? And when?”

  “I thought we could have a private lunch at the hotel around one,” he replied calmly.

  “Are the rest of the band coming?”

  “Just your good selves,” said Jason before adding. “They met Paul and Grey earlier on for dinner and Scott’s here just now.”

  “Ok. We’ll be there. If anything changes, I’ll let you know,” promised Lori, unsure if it was too soon to expose Jake to fresh grief.

  “Thanks, Lori. I appreciate this.”

  “What have you committed us to?” asked Jake as she set her phone down on the table.

  “Just lunch tomorrow,” she answered. “Is that ok?”

  Slowly Jake nodded, then asked, “With Jason and Gary’s family I assume?”

  “Yes. They had dinner with Grey and Paul. Scott’s there too. It’ll just be us tomorrow.”

  “Guess I’ve no choice,” he conceded with a sigh.

  Next morning, dark storm clouds were brewing and an oppressive heat hung over the Delaware beaches. With Lori’s help, Jake had dressed in a pair of smart, black jeans and a white shirt. His shoulder was feeling stronger, but he knew he still had to keep the sling on. He flinched as Lori helped to secure the fastening. As they drove out to the hotel on the outskirts of town where the band had launched their last album, he hid his emotions behind his sunglasses. Having parked as close to the front door as she could, Lori checked if he was ok.

  “Not really,” he commented, unfastening the seat belt.

  “We can go home, Jake,” she said softly. “No one expects you to be a hero here.”

  “It’s fine. I need to see them sooner or later,” he said with a sigh as he opened the door. “Show time, Mz Hyde.”

  The air conditioning felt beautifully cool as they entered the foyer. Jason was sitting near the entrance, waiting for them. His face paled visibly when he saw Jake. The usually calm and collected businessman looked emotional and more than a little flustered. Gone was his English stiff upper lip persona. He hugged Lori tightly and thanked her for driving all the way out to the hotel.

  “Jake,” he began, reaching out to embrace the musician then pausing.

  “No offence, Jason, but no hugs,” said Jake, forcing a smile.

  “How are you?” asked the Englishman, a genuine warmth in his usually cool voice.

  “Sore, but I’m getting there,” replied Jake. “I’ve bruises to rival Lori’s art work.”

  “I’m so sorry,” sighed Jason sadly. “I hate to see you like this, Jake. It’s all so unfair.”

  “Have you seen Rich yet?” asked Jake. “He’s a bigger mess. Or at least he was when I saw him on Sunday.”

  “I haven’t seen him yet,” confessed Jason. “But I spoke to him on Monday and again earlier this morning. I’m hoping to see him tomorrow or Friday.”

  “How long are you staying here for?” asked Lori, taking Jake’s hand and squeezing it gently as if to say “it’s ok, I’m still here.”

  “For as long as I need to,” said Jason. “Now, are you sure you feel up to this?”

  Jake nodded, then added,” There’s never going to be a good time or a right time, is there?”

  “I guess not,” agreed Jason with a smile. “We’re in the small dining room through here. Tom and Alice are really anxious to meet you. Seems you both made quite an impression on Gary.”

  The small dining room seemed vast with only one of its dozen tables laid. A young woman and a teenage boy sat holding hands, watching as Jason escorted Jake and Lori through from the foyer. The young woman bore a striking resemblance to Gary. She bit her lower lip nervously as she stood up to greet them.

  “Alice?” said Lori warmly, before Jason began to fluster his way through an awkward introduction.

  The woman nodded and reached out to hug Lori, “You must be Mz Hyde.”

  “Only when I’m working,” replied Lori, hugging her tight. “Today it’s Lori.”

  “You’re exactly as Gary described you,” commented Alice, unshed tears glistening in her eyes.

  “Thank you,” said Lori, taking the woman’s hand. “And this is Jake. Please don’t hug him.”

  Tears spilled down Alice’s cheeks as she took a step towards Jake. Disregarding the pain, he put his good arm around her and held her as she wept.

  “I’m so sorry, Alice. So very sorry,” he whispered hoarsely, his voice thick with emotion.

  “Thank you,” she said with a shy, sad smile. “You’re taller than I imagined.”

  “Six three the last time I looked,” joked Jake awkwardly. “Maybe six four on a good day.”

  “And every bit as charming as Gary said,” added Alice before blushing. “Let me introduce you to Tom.”

  The teenage boy barely glanced up at the mention of his name. He looked pale, his eyes bloodshot and tear filled.

  “Tom!” said Alice sharply. “At least say hello!”

  “Leave him be,” said Lori softly.

  “He’s really struggling with all of this,” Alice explained, wiping away a stray tear. “He’s only seventeen. He idolised Gary. It’s probably hit him the hardest.”

  “It’s hit us all pretty hard,” acknowledged Jake, taking a seat at the table beside the boy.

  Following his lead, the two girls sat down while Jason went off in search of a waitress to take their lunch order. There were a few moments of awkward silence before Alice asked Jake how he was feeling.

  “Tender,” he replied. “Nothing broken, but it all hurts like hell.”

  “And your poor face,” sympathised Alice, indicating the neat line of stitches.

  “Doesn’t matter,” said Jake, suddenly self-conscious. Taking as deep a breath as he dared, he asked “Is there anything you want to ask me about the crash?”

  �
��I don’t know. Grey and Paul told us all about it. We’ve spoken to the police too this morning. Apparently the tanker driver had some kind of seizure at the wheel. He seized again in the ER, triggering a major heart attack.”

  “I hadn’t heard that,” sighed Jake, running his hand through his hair nervously. “Explains his speed through the intersection.”

  “They’ve released Gary’s body,” added Alice, her voice barely above a whisper. “Jason’s helping to arrange the funeral. We want it to be a cremation. I think we’ll take him home after.”

  “I think that’s a nice idea,” said Lori hesitantly. “He missed England.”

  “I know,” sighed Alice wistfully. “But he loved America and he loved the beach here. We’ll need to get to see it.”

  “That’s not a problem,” replied Lori warmly. “Come over to visit us anytime. We live right on the beach.”

  “Oh, he loved your house!” enthused Alice. “Told me all about the BBQs out on your sun deck.”

  “And did he tell you about sleeping off his hangover on it too?” asked Jake was a smile. “We shared some good times together.”

  “Thank you for all that you both did for him,” said Alice as her inner strength crumbled and her grief flooded through. “I’m glad he was with such good people when he was taken.”

  “SHUT UP!” screamed Tom, leaping violently to his feet, sending his chair crashing to the floor. “Just shut up!”

  Before Alice could stop him, the boy had stormed off out of the dining room. Emotion and grief got the better of her and Alice slumped over the table, sobbing helplessly. Reaching out to comfort her, Lori mouthed silently to Jake, “Go after him.”

  Jake found the boy outside in the hotel’s private garden, beside the small swimming pool. He was sitting on the edge of the pool with his feet dangling in the water. Awkwardly, Jake pulled off his own shoes and socks, then rolled his jeans up as far as he could. He placed his shoes beside a sun bed, then walked over to sit at the poolside beside the angry, grief-stricken teenager.

  “Mind if I sit with you?” he asked quietly.

  “If you must,” muttered Tom sourly.

  Thunder clouds rolled overhead as they sat in silence. At the first flash of lightning, Tom flinched beside him.

  “It might be an idea to go back indoors before the storm hits,” said Jake, glancing up at the blackening sky.

  “I want to see where he died,” stated Tom bluntly. “Then I don’t want to talk about his death again.”

  “Ok,” agreed Jake, trying to keep his tone soft and even. “We can go there after lunch. It’s not far.”

  “You’ll take me?” asked the boy, staring at him with piercing blue eyes.

  “If that’s what you want. Lori can drive us out there.”

  Large drops of rain began to fall, casting circular patterns on the otherwise calm pool.

  “Why Gary and not you?” demanded Tom sharply. “He was going to bring me over here. He was going to take me on the festival tour with you. He was going to spend time with me.”

  Tom’s tears fell as hard and as fast as the rain pouring down on them. Gently, Jake reached out and put an arm around the grieving teenager. The boy’s head was heavy on his shoulder as his tears soaked into the white cotton of Jake’s shirt.

  “I don’t know why, Tom,” he said, tears running down his own pale cheeks. “A few seconds later and the truck would’ve missed altogether. If we’d driven faster. If we’d driven slower. If we’d been in the other lane on the highway. I’ve asked myself a million times.”

  “I never said goodbye,” sobbed the boy, trembling in Jake’s embrace.

  “None of us did,” Jake sighed sadly. “He told us to waken him when we got to the beach. We never got him there.”

  In the dining room, Alice had regained her composure and both she and Lori were waiting anxiously for Jake and Tom to return. They had sent Jason in search of them and he had returned saying they were sitting by the pool in the storm. At the Englishman’s request, the staff had delayed lunch and a waitress now stood discretely by the door, waiting for the signal to bring their meal out. Both the girls had ordered on behalf of the boys in their absence, Lori conscious of the fact that Jake only had the use of one hand. Polite conversation was drying up as the time ticked by.

  Eventually the door creaked open and a sodden Jake led Tom towards the table. Alice rose to begin to make a fuss of her young brother, but with one dark look and a shake of the head from Jake, she quickly sat back down.

  “Sorry about that, folks,” apologised Jake as he sat down.

  Jason nodded over to the waitress.

  “Wet out there?” asked Lori, passing Jake a napkin to dry his face.

  “Just a bit,” he replied with a smile. “Storm’s cleared the air, though. Should be clear by the time we’ve eaten.”

  As the waitress served their coffees at the end of their meal, Jake said, “I’ve agreed we’ll take Tom out to the intersection when we’re done here.”

  A silence descended on the table. Tears welled up in Alice’s eyes.

  Taking a deep breath, Lori spoke first, “Ok. I can park at Lowe’s and you can walk across, I guess.”

  “I’m not going,” stated Alice sharply. “I can’t face it.”

  “I’ll stay here with you,” said Jason smoothly. “There’s a few things we need to go over.”

  “Jake,” began Lori, trying to mask the concern she was feeling. “Are you ready to go back out there?”

  “Only one way to find out,” he answered, keeping his gaze lowered towards the table.

  Lowe’s parking lot was quiet when Lori pulled in. Slowly she drove to the far end and parked the Mercedes in one of the boundary spaces facing the Coastal Highway. In the passenger seat beside her, she could see Jake begin to tremble and then take a breath in an attempt to compose himself; in the back seat, Tom sat staring out at the traffic. Trying and failing to ignore his physical pain, Jake climbed slowly out of the car, then stood back while Tom unfolded himself from the rear seat.

  “Come on, sunshine,” he said warmly. “Time to say our goodbyes to your brother.”

  Lori too had stepped out of the car. She stood watching silently as Jake and the young boy walked across the damp but burnt grass boundary of the parking lot. There was a small pile of flowers laid at the edge of the sidewalk. Traffic flowed through the intersection and down the highway; a steady rhythm of commuter life. The asphalt where the tanker had tipped over was still discoloured slightly, but apart from that, there was no other sign that anything untoward had happened there. Closing his eyes for a moment, Jake could see the whole tragic scene replay in front of him. Memories of Grey bringing him over to sit in front of where he now stood flooded back. A wave of nausea washed over him. Oblivious to the world around him, Jake turned away from Tom, retching, then vomiting onto the grass. The pain from being so violently sick dropped him to his knees. In an instant, Lori was at his side.

  “You ok?” she asked, crouching down beside him.

  His stomach heaved again and the last remnants of lunch were deposited onto the grass.

  “Sorry, li’l lady,” he apologised, his voice strained. “Check Tom’s ok. I’ll be fine in a minute.”

  Lori glanced over at Tom, who was standing staring out blankly across the intersection. Turning her attention back to Jake, she said, “He’s ok. Come on, let’s get you back into the car.”

  “No!” snapped Jake sharply. He paused, then added, “Sorry. I didn’t mean that, Lori. Can you help me up?”

  Putting a steadying arm around him, she helped her fiancé to his feet. Once he was sure he wasn’t going to be sick again, Jake walked over to Tom.

  “You seen enough?” he asked, holding his bruised ribs. Being sick had caused him more pain than he would have believed possible. His rib cage was screaming in agony.

  “There’s only cars,” said the boy vacantly. “It’s as though he never was. As though there was no accident. Gone. Driven
over. Forgotten.”

  “Never forgotten, Tom,” assured Jake sincerely. “We’ll never forget this. Never.”

  “Some dying flowers,” continued the boy morbidly. “That’s all?”

  “More than I thought there would be,” admitted Jake, as another wave of nausea swept through him. His legs were shaking and he was feeling light headed. “I’m going back to the car. Come back when you’re ready.”

  With his legs trembling beneath him, Jake walked unsteadily back to the car and, without complaint, allowed Lori to help him back into the passenger seat.

  “Want a mint?” she asked, offering him a strong mint from the small tin she carried in her purse.

  “Thanks,” replied Jake, taking two of the small round sweets. “I’m sorry, Lori.”

  “What are you sorry for?” she asked, placing her hand on his thigh. “I’m so proud of you, Jake. It can’t have been easy coming out here so soon.”

  “Harder than I thought,” he admitted with a weak smile. “Do you have any painkillers? I’m in agony.”

  Quickly she rummaged in her bag and found a small bottle with some Vicodin in it. Without hesitation, she opened it and passed him two pills. “Sorry, I’ve no water or juice.”

  “Doesn’t matter,” he muttered as he swallowed the pills with ease. “I’m not even asking why you’re still carrying those pills.”

  “They’ve been in my bag for months. I’ve not touched them for at least four months,” replied Lori defensively.

  “I’m just glad you had them, li’l lady,” sighed Jake, leaning back against the head rest. “I feel like shit.”

  “I’ll be back in a minute,” stated Lori evenly. “I need to get you home.”

  Before Jake could utter a word of protest, she had left the car to walk back over to where Tom was still standing, gazing out at the flow of traffic.

  “Tom,” began Lori quietly, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I don’t mean to rush you, but I need to get Jake home. He’s in real pain. Are you ready to leave?”

  Nodding, the boy said, “Sorry, I didn’t mean to make him throw up.”