Summit Lake

by Charlie Donlea

  “What’s that?” Becca asked.

  “We’ve got to figure out how to get married, and very quickly.”

  CHAPTER 28

  Kelsey Castle

  Summit Lake

  March 15, 2012

  Day 11

  The sun was an orange ball just above the horizon, its edges sharp and visible at such a young hour, and its reflection spread like marmalade across Summit Lake. The light peeked through the curtains of Peter’s living room window and fell softly on Kelsey’s face. She tried to open her eyes, but the sunlight was too intense. Her neck ached from the awkward position she was in, and when she sat up she realized where she was. Peter was asleep next to her, his arm draped behind her neck and his leg propped up on the coffee table.

  They came back to Peter’s house the night before, after finding Becca’s journal in Millie’s recipe book. Together they read it, cover to cover, learning the names of Becca’s friends and the dynamics of her relationships. Becca was in love with Jack, and Kelsey suspected there was a problem with her relationship with Jack’s best friend, Brad. Kelsey read the neat cursive writing for three hours, taking notes along the way, details coming together in her mind, until her eyes drooped and the journal fell softly onto her chest. Peter sat next to her and soon they were both asleep.

  Now, with the sun bright in her eyes, Kelsey sat up. She had been sleeping with her head on Peter’s chest while they both slouched on the living room couch. Denying the pain in her neck, she surveyed her surroundings. “Sorry.” She rubbed her face. “I fell asleep.”

  “Me too,” Peter said in a groggy, morning voice. “Ouch.” He pulled his stiff leg off the coffee table.

  Kelsey stood up and ran a hand through her hair. “What time is it?”

  Peter checked his watch. “Just after six.”

  “I must’ve crashed.”

  “Me too. It happens after an adrenaline rush like we had.”

  “Can I . . . use the bathroom?”

  “Of course,” Peter said. He pointed to the door down the hall. “There’s a package of toothbrushes in the top drawer, so help yourself.”

  “Thank you.” Kelsey headed to the bathroom and shut the door. “Dear God!” she said when she saw her image in the mirror. The left side of her head was a bird’s nest of tangled hair, and her cheek was covered in a red road map of wrinkles with a prominent depression from the button on Peter’s breast pocket.

  She washed her face, brushed her teeth, and ran a comb through her hair. Her mind played tug-of-war, one part wanting to reminisce about the almost-kiss she shared with Peter; the other, more analytical part, wanting to get back to Becca’s journal and sift through the cast of characters who were in it.

  She finally emerged from the bathroom a few minutes later, looking more put together. Her hair was pulled into a ponytail and her teeth minty with fluoride. They switched places, smiling awkwardly at each other as they passed. Peter closed the door; then she shook her head. “What the hell am I doing?” she asked herself.

  Peter popped his head out of the bathroom door. “What’s that?”

  She waved him back in. “Nothing.”

  She went to the couch and paged through Becca’s journal. A few minutes later, Peter walked out of the bathroom, also looking more presentable.

  “Wanna get breakfast?” he asked her.

  “Sure.” Kelsey smiled.

  Outside, the sky sponged up the colors of the rising sun. Buds on the trees looked to have blossomed into leaves overnight. The air was crisp and fresh, and the temperature rising with the sun. The smell from wood-burning fireplaces mixed with the pine of the forest. It was spring in Summit Lake.

  They walked down Maple Street and turned on Nokomis Avenue, where they found a breakfast place. They ordered pancakes and eggs. Sipping coffee, the awkwardness of waking next to each other quickly faded as they recalled the previous night’s journey.

  “So I fell asleep right about when Becca headed home for Christmas with Jack.”

  “I finished it,” Kelsey said.

  “And?”

  “Becca was an interesting girl, for sure. She was clearly in love with Jack and we know she married him after she found out she was pregnant. But there were other men in her life.”

  “Brad, right. One of her college friends?”

  “Yes, and if I read between the lines, I can imagine Brad maybe believing his relationship with Becca was more than platonic. But that’s not all. There were other men Becca wrote about. A professor she had a somewhat secretive relationship with.”

  “She was sleeping with him?”

  “No, at least Becca didn’t come out and say as much in her journal. But he’s mentioned enough to make him a worthwhile candidate to track down. And there was also an ex-boyfriend in the picture. A guy from high school who made frequent trips to the GWU campus from Harvard. Also someone I’d like to talk to.”

  “How about the husband? Jack? Shouldn’t you talk to him first?”

  “Talk to him, for sure. But not first. I want to find out who these other guys are, see if they can provide any insight into Becca and their relationships with her. Then see what they know about Jack. Once I’ve got all that, I’ll pay him a visit.”

  “You don’t think the police have already found these guys?”

  “I’m not sure what the police have found. According to Commander Ferguson, the state investigators are stuck on the theory of a simple burglary turned ugly.”

  “But that theory has to be based on something. Some evidence they found.”

  “Becca’s purse was missing. That’s it. At least that’s all Commander Ferguson knows about why they’re running so hard with the burglary angle.”

  “And you’re not buying that theory?”

  “Not even close. With some help from Commander Ferguson, it looks like the person who killed Becca not only knew her well, but quite possibly was close to her.”

  “Like someone who loved her?”

  “Maybe. But my first move is to track these guys down and talk to them. And I’ve got to do it quickly.”

  “So where do we start? I want to help.”

  “You sure about that?”

  “Absolutely. Whatever you need.”

  “I get the feeling from Detective Madison’s visit the other night that we don’t have a lot of time. The first thing we have to do is identify the people in Becca’s journal. I went back through it last night and couldn’t find a single last name attached to any of her friends. So let’s start there.” Kelsey pulled out her notes. “Jack lives in Green Bay, Brad in Maryland. At least that’s where they’re from. Who knows where they are now. It sounds like the roommate, Gail, lives in Florida but goes to school at Stanford.”

  Kelsey wrote block letters on a napkin: JACK AND GAIL. She slid the napkin across the table. “If you want to help,” she said, looking Peter in the eye. “And you’re not worried about the trouble we might be headed for from the county building, then I’d ask you to find out who Gail is and track her down. Talk to her. Find out what she knows about Becca and Jack. Get me Jack’s last name and any information Gail is willing to provide. If you’re feeling it with her, if you have a good rapport, tell her my theory of what might have transpired between Becca and Jack and get her reaction.”

  Peter put his hand on the napkin and began to pull it toward him. Kelsey put her hand over his and stopped the napkin’s progress. “If you’re worried, Peter, about getting in trouble for any of this, then you should back out now. I’m sure you can hide behind some sort of physician immunity about looking at that autopsy and using that card to get into the building. Currently, as we sit here, you’re likely in less trouble than I am. I’m okay with it if you want to keep it that way.”

  Peter maintained eye contact and pulled his hand, and the napkin, from her grip. “I’ll find Becca’s roommate and talk to her. I’ll let you know what I find out.”

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. And wha
t’s your plan. Track down the other guys in her life?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “Let’s get going,” Peter said. “We’ve got work to do.”

  CHAPTER 29

  Becca Eckersley

  George Washington University

  December 21, 2011

  Two months before her death

  The plan was to wait until the second trimester to tell their parents, under the ruse of making sure the pregnancy was without complication and the baby was healthy. In reality, it gave them a little breathing room. They had nearly two months to figure things out and lay some groundwork that might help them look less crazy. If all went according to their flimsy strategy, Jack and Becca would sit down in Greensboro for Thanksgiving dinner and tell the Eckersleys they were going to be grandparents.

  Jack worked hard to hold it together, but Becca wasn’t buying his eternal optimism that all would work out or that her parents, after the dust settled, would be thrilled. Becca played the scenario in her mind of the moment she dropped the bomb, and no matter how hard she tried, she could not realistically see her father being excited about his twenty-two-year-old daughter being pregnant and unmarried. Her father was a powerful man in North Carolina. He carried influence and a persona. He was getting ready to hand over his firm to her brother and the other partners as he transitioned to being a judge. And Becca knew such a move required a clean background. Not only for her father, but for his family. A pregnant, unmarried daughter who dropped out of law school was not the family portrait with which her father could win the bench.

  That thought was what brought them to the courthouse in DC.

  Becca understood the logistics of a formal wedding, and the impossibility of it occurring in her current situation. Instead, a justice of the peace married them in a very informal ceremony. It was not how they planned things or how the narrative of their lives was meant to go. But if she and Jack learned anything over the last year it was that the road of life has detours, and the long-way-around can sometimes be a shortcut.

  After the justice pronounced them married, they kissed and then sat behind a desk in the processor’s office and filled out forms. They were told they needed to get their marriage certificate finalized, and took a copy of instructions on how to do so.

  They spent a single night at the Four Seasons in downtown DC, where they celebrated with an expensive dinner and a nice bottle of wine from which Becca sneaked two or three sips. Saturday was a quiet day shared at Becca’s apartment before Jack flew to New York on Sunday and Becca hit the books for an exam. They started the weekend as boyfriend and girlfriend and ended it as husband and wife.

  For the next few weeks, they settled into a routine of being a secretly married couple with a baby on the way whom no one knew about. And when Thanksgiving finally rolled around, the time they originally agreed to tell Becca’s parents, they choked. Neither could settle on the right approach, and so the two nights spent at the Eckersleys’ house in Greensboro were filled with anxiety and whispered conversations. They headed back to DC on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Jack had a busy schedule until Christmas, then a week off that coincided with part of Becca’s break. They planned to head to Green Bay for Becca to meet Jack’s parents. That Jack would be introducing his wife, and explaining that his mom and dad would soon be grandparents, was sure to make this Christmas one to remember.

  Becca finished her final exam week with back-to-back exams of Civil Procedure and Contracts and never felt more relief. She sent a text to Jack when she was done.

  Just finished! Celebrating by myself at O’Reilly’s. I’ll have one for you.

  It was midafternoon and O’Reilly’s was moderately crowded with law students and business people at the end of their week and the end of their semester. Jack was traveling with Senator Ward and not due back until the day before Christmas Eve—two days from now.

  The doctor completed the calculations and it was determined that they conceived at the beginning of the school year, when they shared time together at the end of summer and forgot about the world. The due date was officially stamped as May 18, which was two weeks after final exams. The timing was not perfect, but she knew it could be worse—and still could be if the baby came early and caused her to miss finals. But Becca was staying optimistic for delivering in a narrow window of time that would allow her not only to finish her first year, but also get things together enough to possibly return on schedule the following fall. They discussed the other options of either taking a year off and then returning full-time, or switching to part-time and graduating later than planned. Either way, after four months of pregnancy, Becca had options.

  Under close scrutiny in the bathroom mirror, her belly had not yet betrayed that a baby was growing there, even from a profile view. For now, she kept her secret to herself. Besides a few study buddies, Becca made no close friends during her first semester of law school and with Gail on the other side of the country, she wasn’t concerned with anyone discovering her secret before she decided to reveal it.

  At O’Reilly’s she ordered a salad and a Sprite and felt the weight of her first semester rise from her shoulders. She had two weeks to relax. She pulled her iPhone from her purse and scrolled through her e-mails, hoping to see one from Gail. They promised to let each other know when they finished their finals. She just opened her in-box when the stool on the other side of the table dragged across the ground and someone sat down with her.

  Becca looked up, shocked at first and then happy to see her old friend, Thom Jorgensen, her old logic professor who left GWU for a position at Cornell.

  “Thom! What are you doing here?”

  “Hello, Becca Eckersley,” he said.

  “Look at you.” Becca ran a hand over her face. “You’ve grown an Ivy Leaguer. I’m surprised Cornell allows facial hair on professors. I thought they were only for students.”

  Thom Jorgensen smiled. “They’re encouraged, actually. What do you think?”

  Becca puckered her lips. “Very handsome. How’s the new gig?”

  “Good. Could be better.”

  “Better? You don’t like being at the top of the food chain?”

  “No, no. The job’s great, university is top-notch and I’ve never been part of a better institution.”

  Becca squinted her eyes. “So what’s wrong?”

  Thom shrugged. “I guess I don’t understand why you turned Cornell down.”

  Becca sat silent for a few seconds. “How did you know I turned them down?”

  “Becca, I pulled a lot of strings to get you accepted to their law program. Stuck my neck out like I’ve never done before, in a position where I haven’t yet fully found my footing. I told all the people with decision-making abilities what a great asset you’d be. And you returned the favor by saying no.”

  “Thom, I didn’t know you did any of that for me. I heard from GW first, and it’s my dad’s alma mater. I never really considered going anywhere else unless GW was a no.”

  “What happened to the discussion we had about finally being able to spend time with each other?”

  “Well,” Becca said. “I think becoming a student at the university in which you work would put us in the same situation.”

  “So why haven’t I heard from you?”

  “I’ve been busy with law school and we live hundreds of miles from each other.”

  “Okay. So I’m just an idiot who misread our friendship.”

  “No, you didn’t misread anything. But logistically, it’s hard to get together for coffee when we live in different states.”

  “I just wish you’d have considered Cornell more closely. It’s a great opportunity and we’d be closer.”

  Becca stared at her old professor, feeling confused and sad for him. Before she could respond, a woman walked through the door and directly over to their table.

  “You are a son of a bitch!”

  Thom Jorgensen looked up, then closed his eyes. “Jesus Christ, what are you doing, Elai
ne?”

  “What am I doing? You don’t have the right to ask me questions, not anymore.” She looked at Becca. “How old are you?”

  Becca opened her palms. “Who are you?”

  “Oh, I’m sorry. I’m Elaine Jorgensen. Thom’s wife.”

  Becca looked at Thom. “What the hell?”

  “Elaine,” Thom said. “Let’s go outside.”

  “Of course, now that I caught you, you finally want to talk to me.”

  “Listen,” Becca said. “He never told me he was married, and nothing’s going on between us. I haven’t seen him for a year, since he was at George Washington.”

  “But now you’re conveniently having lunch with my husband.”

  “No, I was having lunch by myself and he interrupted me.”

  “Thom,” she said. “Stand up. We’re leaving.”

  Professor Jorgensen stood like a dog following a command.

  Elaine looked at Becca and pointed a finger at her face. “Stay away from my husband.”

  She grabbed Thom by the arm and pushed him out the door.

  Becca swallowed hard and, without moving her head, glanced around the bar and absorbed the stares. Slowly, people got back to the business of eating and drinking.

  “Damn, Eckersley. You sure know how to make a scene.”

  Becca looked over her shoulder. Richard Walker, her high school boyfriend, stood next to her.

  “First a cheesehead and now some slimy dude cheating on his lady?”

  Still rattled, her hands shook. Becca quickly stood and hugged Richard. The last time she saw him was a year before when she and Jack spent Christmas in Summit Lake.

  “Good to see you, too,” Richard said, holding her tight. “What’s wrong?”

  Becca shook her head and released her grip around his shoulders. “Oh, just a little disturbed. That’s all.”

  “By Professor Numbnuts?” Richard pointed to the door. “What’s his story? Do I need to kick someone’s ass?”

  “He’s an old professor of mine who was a little needy. I never knew he was married and now—” Becca shook her head. “His wife actually thinks we’re involved.”