Expired Regrets

by Megan C. Smith

  “I like you in the blue. Wear that.” Katie had an auburn tint to her chestnut brown hair, and the color made her hazel eyes and creamy complexion glow. I couldn’t believe that our time hanging out together was coming to an end.

  Before I could express the sentimental thoughts swirling in my brain, my younger sister Sammy materialized in the doorway of my room wearing modest blue jean shorts and a green halter top. “I’m riding with the twins and Travis when he gets here,” she said. Although similar in coloring, Sammy’s blonde hair lacked my length and natural curl and her cheeks sported roses instead of freckles. She favored Mamma more than Daddy both in disposition and looks.

  “Are you going to drive them home?” I said. “You only have your permit.”

  “If Paris and Preston overindulge tonight it’s better for me to drive.” She put her hands on her hips, reminding me even more of my mother.

  “If?” Katie giggled. “Your little brothers knocked out a six-pack each since I got here this afternoon.” She slipped into the blue tank top. “Guess they’re celebrating being seniors.”

  “Then I’ll drive them there, too.”

  “Don’t get a ticket,” I said. “Mamma and Daddy are still fighting about the one he got last week. We can’t afford another.”

  “I won’t.” She rolled her eyes. “We’re out the door. You two better hurry, or all the barbeque will be gone.” Sammy disappeared down the hall.

  “I can’t believe how hot it is in your house.” Katie picked up a notebook from my desk and fanned herself. “I just took a shower, and I’m already sweating.”

  “I know—the make-up is melting off my face. I wish Daddy’d get the air fixed, but since he got laid off last month, he doesn’t have the extra money. Mamma’s waiting tables so maybe before the end of the summer.” I sighed.

  “I’ll drive,” said Katie. “Flying down Pigeon Gap Road will cool us off.”

  “If we have to ride with the windows down, then I’m wearing my hair up.” I twisted my curls to the top of my head and secured them with a black ribbon.

  “Hurry.” Katie picked up her purse and keys from the nightstand.

  The showers had lingered since mid-week. Storms thundered across the mountain ridges. We sped along the back roads in Katie’s yellow sports car.

  The long arms of the trees stretched across the road and created an alternating pattern of light and dark. The reflection in the side mirror of the setting sun as it emerged from behind gray clouds blinded me. I shaded my eyes and turned toward my friend. The heavy air seeped into the core of my being and buoyed my confidence.

  “Do you think he’ll be there? Janet said at graduation that he’s home on leave. He stopped to see her brother this week.”

  “Could be.” Katie shrugged. “This is the biggest party of the summer. Everyone will be there, from the ancient seventies grads to those unfortunate to still be at KHS.”

  “You’re right. I can’t wait.” I tapped my foot on the floorboard. “Drive faster.”

  Katie accelerated.

  We chased the silver moon into the night.

  Flames

  “Andie, if I can do it, surely you can.” The younger sister of a friend challenged. We’d been at the party for about twenty minutes and had yet to eat any barbeque.

  Standing at the back of a spanking new white car, the party goers indulged. The girl held a beer in one hand and a hose in the other. I watched her put the rubber to her lips while a boy held the tube over her head. Then the boy poured beer into the funnel at the end of the cylinder. When the underclassman finished her long drink, she wiped her mouth.

  “Next?” The boy turned to me.

  My mind raced. I’d never funneled before, but since I didn’t love the taste of cheap beer, I thought it might be a better alternative than nursing on a bottle all night long. I wanted to celebrate graduation—the first step into the wide world of adulthood. Drinking would give me the courage to speak to Stone if I saw him. And when did a Drown shy away from a challenge?

  “Absolutely,” I nodded. “Bring it on.”

  The boy repeated the earlier performance.

  I shook off the after taste. Cheap beer reminded me of Daddy. I staggered into the night in search of adventure.

  I discovered Katie near the bonfire in the vacant lakeside lot. Older boys stood closer to the fire. Like the goddess Diana on a hunt, I scoured the group until I spied him.

  My heart forgot to beat.

  Like Apollo, he stood tall and confident surrounded by the light of the blaze. His black t-shirt clung to his chiseled body. Flames danced behind his silhouette while shadows leapt with every movement of his hands. He commanded the attention of the group as he mimicked firing a gun at the ground. The boys’ laughter echoed in the air.

  Several girls gossiped on the other side of the fire. “Come on, Katie.” I grabbed her arm. “I see Janet and her friends over near the fire. Let’s say hey.”

  “I know what you’re up too.” Even in the shadows, I saw Katie roll her eyes. “I see him too. He’s four years older than us.” She put her hands on her hips. “He won’t pay us any attention.”

  My grip on her arm tightened. “Don’t burst my bubble.” I continued to tug in the same direction. “You never know. Let’s go.” Maneuvering our way through the crowded area toward the fire, we greeted the girls.

  “Are your brothers here?” Janet’s brunette bangs, heavily hair-sprayed and standing straight, bounced as she shifted her weight from one chunky ankle to the other.

  “Yes, somewhere,” I said, shading my eyes from the blaze. I was grateful for the excuse to look past her to the boys on the other side.

  “We haven’t seen them yet,” Katie said.

  “I see your brother Jon,” I said. “Maybe I’ll say hey.”

  “I’m sure he’d like that. When you find Paris tell him—”

  I rounded the fire without hearing the end of the message meant for my brother.

  The beer bottle in Stone’s hand glittered like the embers in the fire. His clipped, raven hair glistened in the light of the flames.

  I struggled to breathe.

  His eyes glowed as they met mine, his smile that of a wolf when it spots its prey. My knees melted like butter in an iron skillet.

  All this happened in an instant and yet lasted a lifetime. Electricity sizzled, and my body awakened. My soul danced, thunder clapped, the world stood still. In that instant I knew my destiny. Stone was the one.

  Then Joey Porter spoiled the moment and hollered out to the crowd. “Let’s go swimming!” The idea spread. Everyone scattered, and chaos ensued. I lost sight of Stone.

  Katie and I scrambled to her car, changed into our bikinis, and grabbed our towels. We sashayed down the boardwalk.

  “You were pretty obvious back there,” Katie said.

  “I didn’t think so.” I brushed a loose curl from my forehead.

  We sat on the edge of the dock and dangled our toes in the inky water. Joey and some of the other boys splashed water toward the line of girls who postured near the dock ladder to our left. I scanned the area but didn’t see him.

  “Don’t worry about Stone. Enjoy the night for what it is instead of trying to make it something else.” A light grin played across Katie’s lips as she dove into the water.

  My friend knew me well. “You’re right. No worries.” I lowered myself into the lake. With the recent rain, the water was up, and I found that I couldn’t touch the bottom.

  I eased away from Katie and swam with long, lazy strokes. Muted by the humidity and the alcohol, the voices coming from the shallow area drifted away like the memories of childhood. After a time, I flipped over on my back and gazed at the sky. Clouds suddenly obscured the silver glow of the moon; the water and air merged. I lost my sense of direction and fear seized my body. I treaded water in a circle, unsure.

  Finally a voice carried out to me. “Over here. Swim this way. You’re out too far.”

  With renewed str
ength and direction, I swam toward the voice. At last I touched the muddy ground. After I waded out of the water, I collapsed on the shore.

  “Are you all right?” He climbed out of the shallow water and lit the cigarette he had tucked behind his ear. “You were in the middle of the lake.”

  “I’m a little winded.” I put my hand to my chest.

  “And you call yourself an athlete.”

  I opened my mouth.

  “You’re Andie Drown, right?” His gaze raked over my body.

  I nodded.

  “I’m Stone.” He offered his hand and lifted me to my feet. “Stone Harrison.”

  I swayed from dizziness and gripped his hand to steady myself. “Yes, I know.”

  His smile bespoke the arrogance of reputation. The pinpoint of light from the tip of his cigarette sizzled.

  “My friend Janet, her brother is Jon.” I sounded like an idiot.

  His grin widened. “Aren’t you going to that liberal girls’ school to play volleyball?”

  I dropped his hand and squared my shoulders. “Yes, I am. Then I’m going to law school.” He looked more impressed with my breasts than with my career aspirations. Despite an acute awareness of the cool air against my wet skin, I wasn’t anxious to join the others at the fire. “I leave for school in mid-August.”

  “I’ll be home through the fourth of July. Let’s get—”

  “Stone.” A shrill voice interrupted. “There you are.”

  “Dry,” he said, as a petite brunette in a green bikini shimmied between us. “Let’s get dry.”

  “I’m Andie.” I held out my hand. “You’re Trish, right? I think we had US History together year before last.” Uninterested, she swung around to face Stone. “Let’s you and me go get warm.” She rubbed up against him like a horny feline.

  “Okay.” He strutted away without even a backwards glance.

  I stood alone in the dark, shivering.

  Vultures

  “There you are.” Katie grabbed my arm moments later. “Come on. Your brothers are about to fight.”

  “Are they fighting each other or someone else?” I shook my disappointment away and focused on the crisis at hand.

  “They’re after Joey’s little brother James.”

  “Does this have anything to do with Sandra?” I rolled my eyes. My brothers both liked to play with girls’ hearts.

  “Of course.” Katie cocked her head and gave me a quizzical stare. “But I thought they weren’t dating anymore?”

  “They’re off and on. Paris doesn’t want to be serious, but when she tries to date someone else, he throws a fit.” We paced toward the fire where a crowd circled like vultures around a dead carcass.

  “Seems James made a move on Sandra tonight, and it pissed Paris off. Just like a man.” Katie huffed.

  The sandy-haired girl in question stood at the edge of the pine grove opposite the lake. Tears streamed down her pretty face. Her friends surrounded her as the events continued to unfold.

  “Andie.” She grabbed my arm as I passed. “I don’t know what to do. Paris said—”

  “Don’t listen to him when he’s been drinking. Dry it up and go home.” I continued to move toward the chaos.

  “I told you to stay away from her.” Paris shook with anger as he shifted from one foot to the other.

  “You don’t own her.” Although a year younger and a head shorter than Joey and the twins, James topped out at over two hundred and twenty pounds. Judging from the redness of his eyes, he had been drinking quite a bit this evening too.

  Preston brushed his shaggy dark brown hair from his eyes. He clenched his hand into a fist and stood close to his identical twin. The brothers resembled Daddy—tall, athletic, and prone to fits of rage, especially when drinking. All the Drowns, with the exception of Sammy, had a short fuse.

  “I may not own her, but she’s not going to be with an ox like you.” Paris stepped forward. His nostrils flared.

  I turned to my baby sister. “Drive them home, Sammy. We don’t need the sheriff to ride out here. Daddy’d be sure to find out, and I don’t want to be grounded for the summer.”

  Sammy stared at me. “Do something.”

  I shuffled through the line of boys and cast aside the secondary figures to face the primary players. “Stop it.” I pushed my wet hair from my forehead and squared my shoulders.

  “Get out of my way.” James started to push me away. “Your brother has a beating coming to him. I’m tired of his attitude.”

  “Give it up.” I pushed his hand from my arm. “Everyone knows Paris would beat you to a pulp.” I spun around to my brother and poked him in the sternum with my index finger. “You go home with Sammy.” I narrowed my eyes. “Now.”

  “Andie’s right.” Travis put his arm around his friend’s shoulder. “Let’s go back to your house, Paris.”

  “Keep your hands off her, dirt bag.” Paris spat as he strutted away.

  Joey contained his brother as the Drowns exited the party.

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  Hourglass

  Hourglass Squared

  Hourglass Cubed

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  Whispered Music

  The Wolf’s Pursuit

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  Table of Contents

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  DROWN

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  mith, Expired Regrets