Suddenly Psychic: Glimmer Lake Book One

by Hunter, Elizabeth

  “Hello?”

  “Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you,” Robin sang. “Happy birthday, dear wonderful-woman-who-is-like-a-sister-to-me.” She took a breath. “Happy birthday to you!”

  Monica was laughing by the time she finished. “Thank you. You must have had your coffee.”

  “Drinking it right now, my friend.”

  “How’s your knee?”

  “Eh.” Robin flexed it. “It’s fine. The same.”

  “Are you taking the apple cider vinegar?”

  “I don’t think it really does anything, Monica.”

  “No, you just have to keep taking it.” She heard her friend moving through her kitchen. “I’m telling you, it helps.”

  “I’ll keep taking it.” Robin nearly asked what Monica was wearing to go out that night until she remembered it was a surprise. “So, I hear Jake is making a special dinner for you tonight.”

  “That boy is so sweet,” Monica said. “I know he’s between apartments right now—”

  You mean between girlfriends who let him freeload.

  “—but he is so helpful around the house. He cooks. He changed the oil in my car yesterday. He’s such a good boy.”

  He’s a spoiled boy. “He loves his mama. He better.” Jake did love his mama. He also probably felt guilty that he’d been freeloading, but working at the marina didn’t pay that much, and Jake seemed incapable of moving more than a few miles from his childhood home.

  “Well, I hope you enjoy your dinner.” Robin needed to change the subject or she was going to end up spilling about their girls’ night out. “I’m going to give you that dresser for your birthday, by the way.”

  “It’s a nine-hundred-dollar dresser, Robin. Don’t even think about it.”

  “It’s been sitting in that corner for over two years. It’s practically taken root. I don’t want it anymore, and you love it.” She heard the bell ring over the door and the creak of old hinges. “I’ll call Jake to come pick it up. Bye-gotta-go.” She blew a kiss into the phone and ended the call.

  “Hello?” She walked out from behind the counter. “Can I help you?”

  She walked to the door of the shop, but there was no one there. Maybe whoever it was had peeked in and left? Robin looked out to the parking lot and saw no new cars. No pedestrians.

  She frowned. “Weird.”

  Robin shrugged and walked back to the counter. It was hardly the first time the door had blown open and hit the bell. It happened pretty regularly.

  “Because old houses, that’s why.” She logged on to her computer and checked her online sales page and her retailer accounts. She sold as much via the internet these days as she did in the store, but since her family already owned the building and the furniture needed to be kept somewhere, it made sense to keep the shop even with the extra overhead. After all, if the shop wasn’t open, what would Robin do to pass the time?

  She responded to an email from Emma’s guidance counselor.

  She texted her mom about visiting her grandma Helen that afternoon.

  At noon she forgot to eat lunch while she was helping a couple from Marin County choose between two dining tables for their vacation home. She grabbed a granola bar after they left.

  By two, she locked up the shop so she could go visit Grandma Helen.

  This is my life.

  Robin climbed in her trusty Subaru to drive the five miles to Russell House, the enormous family home that overlooked Glimmer Lake.

  This.

  This is my life.

  * * *

  “Whoo!” Val was cackling in the back seat. “I knew we were going to surprise you!”

  Monica was beaming. “I wondered why Jake was so insistent that I dress up for dinner. I was actually a little irritated with him. I’d already taken off my bra.”

  “Truth,” Val said. “I’m glad you decided to put your knockers back in the boulder holder, because we are taking you out. There will be wine. There will be dancing. I’m going to make Robin sing karaoke at the lodge.”

  “Uh…” Robin navigated a sharp turn leading up to the dam. “I don’t think that will be happening, but I’ll be sure to gather video evidence of you two. Emma can post it on YouTube for me.”

  Big Creek Lodge was mostly for tourists, but they did have Thursday-night karaoke and half-price drinks, perfect for both the vacationer and the celebrating local. The only downside was the road leading up to the lodge, which was narrow, twisted, and had almost zero lights. Robin absolutely hated driving it at night.

  As long as there are no drunk tourists coming down the hill, we’ll be fine.

  Robin listened with a smile on her face while Val and Monica chatted about their day. Val had recently shaved one side of her short hair and dyed it green. Her makeup was ruthlessly cool, and her fitted halter top showed off numerous tattoos. Monica, on the other hand, was in a dress. Monica loved wearing dresses. And lace. And ruffles. Anything soft and feminine. Her short, curvy figure looked amazing in wrap dresses, and she had a closet that took up half her bedroom.

  Robin… well, she’d thrown on a pair of black pants and a leopard-print top that Val had forced on her last spring. She also had a pair of sensible shoes and a large purse. She didn’t need to carry a large purse anymore; she just couldn’t seem to break the habit.

  Why am I always the uncoolest friend?

  Val and Monica were approaching their midforties with style and attitude and way better wardrobes. They had plans and adventures mapped out. Monica was taking her daughter to Spain for the summer. Val had been approached by an investor to expand her café.

  And Robin sold antique dining sets to rich couples from the Bay Area.

  She had slipped out of the house without anyone even noticing. Mark and Emma had cooked dinner without her and were engrossed in a new TV series they were bingeing. They hadn’t even noticed Robin saying goodbye.

  A squirrel ran in front of the road and Robin tapped the brakes, certain it was too late to miss the little creature. Luckily, she didn’t feel a thunk. She was a careful driver, but this road freaked her out.

  Val and Monica had started singing. The lyrics to “Always Be My Baby” filled the car, and Robin glanced in the rearview mirror when Val hit a particularly painful high note.

  “Robin!” Monica yelled next to her.

  She glanced back at the road to see a massive white deer frozen in the middle of the road.

  Her heart stopped.

  Robin swerved in the darkness, letting out a single hard breath when she realized she’d avoided the deer. Then her stomach dropped when she realized there was nothing.

  No deer.

  No road.

  Nothing but the darkness and the moon over the water.

  Val screamed a second before the car nosedived into the dark water of Glimmer Lake and everything went black.

  Chapter 2

  She woke to the feeling of cold all around her. Crying and a low thunk like the sound of Mark chopping wood in the backyard.

  “Robin!”

  “She’s not waking up.”

  Why was she wet? When her eyes finally blinked open, she thought she’d fallen in snow. It was white and wet.

  “Robin, wake up!”

  She looked to the side and nothing made sense. Val was next to Monica, but she had her feet in the air.

  “Did I fall?”

  Monica’s face was red and wet.

  Wet. Everything was wet.

  It came back in a horrid rush. The deer. The road. Flying into the darkness and the crash of water around her. The white was the air bag that had exploded in her face. The wet was the car, filling quickly with water.

  “Oh my God. Oh my God.”

  Val had crawled from the back to the front seat, bracing herself in the middle as she thrust her legs up toward the windshield, trying to break it open.

  “The doors won’t open.” Val kicked at the window. “I tried the windows, and they don’t work either.”

&nbs
p; “Are you sure?”

  “Of course I’m sure!”

  The car was sealed shut. Robin tried opening the door, but the pressure of the water was too great. The window lever did nothing. They were completely immersed. She could feel them moving downhill as Val kept kicking. They’d hit the bottom of the lake and were slowly but surely rolling toward the deepest part where Grimmer Canyon had once cut through the mountains.

  A scream had worked its way up from her chest and stopped in her throat as Val slapped her. “Robin!”

  “Why did you slap me?”

  “We cannot panic. You have to help me. What do you have in your car? We need to break the window.”

  Monica was crumpled against the far door, weeping and holding her arm. Her head was bleeding. “I can’t feel my arm.”

  “The windshield scraper,” Robin yelled. “Monica, get the scraper in the glove compartment. It has a pointy thing that will break the glass.”

  Monica moaned, “I can’t feel my arm.”

  Val stopped kicking the windshield and reached for the glove compartment as Robin unclipped her safety belt. She needed to be able to move. As Val opened the glove box, more water poured in, making all the napkins, papers, and various receipts Robin had stuffed in there float by them and into the back seat.

  The water was up to her waist.

  “There’s no scraper,” Val said.

  “It’s in there.”

  “There’s no scraper, Robin!”

  “It has to be in there!”

  “Maybe Mark took it out!”

  “Why would he do that? It’s my scraper!”

  “Fuck if I know, but it’s not there! Stop yelling at me!”

  Monica started pounding on the car window, screaming and crying. Her hand was bloody, but none of the glass was cracked. It was all perfectly, securely sealed.

  That was her Subaru. Not one single leak in the snow or rain. Ever.

  Focus, Robin!

  Focus.

  “Okay.” Robin fought back the nausea that threatened her. “Okay. We can do this. When the water fills the car, the pressure will be equalized and we’ll be able to open the doors. We can swim out. We’re all good swimmers.”

  Val started to breathe faster. “We’re going deeper.”

  “How deep is the lake?” Monica asked, wiping her eyes. “How deep does it go?”

  “I don’t know,” Robin said. “I can’t remember. But we’re all good swimmers.”

  She should know this. Her family had lived in Grimmer before the dam was built. She should know these things. The water pouring in was cold. So very cold. Robin knew she had to keep calm, but it might have been the hardest thing she’d ever done.

  I need to live.

  I need to be there for Emma and Austin.

  I need to live.

  Something hit the bottom of the car, making water pour in faster.

  “We’re stopped!” Val said. “I think we’re stopped.”

  “It’s getting higher,” Monica said. “Oh my God, we’re going to die.”

  “We’re not going to die!” Robin said. “We’re going to stay calm, take deep breaths while the air is in here.” She started pulling at her clothes. “Take your clothes off. It’ll be colder, but we don’t want them to weigh us down. Monica, take off that dress.”

  Val didn’t return to the back seat, but they all managed to remove most of their clothing. It was freezing cold, and they were sitting in their bras and panties while the car slowly filled up with water.

  At least we’re not moving anymore.

  Robin’s teeth started to chatter as the water reached her neck.

  “I wanted to kill myself.” Monica’s voice was shaking. “I thought about taking sleeping pills after Gil died because I couldn’t imagine my life without him. I thought about the future, and there was just… nothing. There was nothing without him.” Her voice caught. “But I don’t want to die. My kids need me.”

  “We need you,” Robin said. “And we’re not going to die.” She grabbed shaky breaths and coughed out some water. “Monica, try your door.”

  Monica tried, but she couldn’t budge it. “Nothing yet.”

  A feeling of dread began to overtake Robin. It was cold. Really cold. Her knee began to ache. She could talk a big game, but none of them swam regularly anymore. Monica did Zumba at the community center twice a week, and Val was a biking nut. Robin couldn’t even run anymore. How were they supposed to swim to the top of the lake and all the way to shore?

  She looked into the black water that surrounded them and imagined them driving into the ghost town that lay at the bed of the lake. Her old Subaru drifting to the bottom and rolling silently down Main Street while the fish picked at their bones.

  “I love you guys so much,” Val blurted. She started to sniff. “Don’t tell my kids, but I think I love you two more than anyone. I really hate most people. I kind of wish Monica and I were lesbians so we could marry each other, but I really don’t know if I’d like lesbian sex, and also I think I’m still kind of in love with my ex, even though I hate him. But the sex was really good and I miss that. And I think I’m turning into my mother because I am so judgmental now, and I really hate that.”

  “You’re not your mom, Val.”

  Monica laughed, sniffling at the same time. “I’d marry you if I was a lesbian.” She wiped her eyes. “Actually, I wouldn’t because I cannot handle how much you let laundry pile up on your sofa. That would drive me crazy.”

  “Oh shit.” Val’s shoulders convulsed. “My boys.”

  “Stop crying.” Robin blinked back tears. “We need to be calm.” The water was at her chin. “We need to be calm and focus on breathing. As soon as the water gets high enough, we’re getting out of here.”

  “We are not going to die,” Val said. “Fuck this lake. We are not going to die.”

  “We’re not going to die.” Monica tilted her chin up. “We’re not going to die.”

  Robin stared into the black depths of Glimmer Lake. “I don’t think anyone would even notice if I died.”

  “What?”

  “Robin, don’t be ridiculous.”

  “I hate my life,” she whispered. “I’m a zombie. I do the same thing every day. And I hate all of it. I’m nothing. Mark doesn’t look at me anymore. The kids don’t care. No one looks at me other than you two.” The press of water against her chest forced the words out. “I hate my life, but I’m too scared to do anything to change it. That’s the saddest part of all.”

  They were pressed against the top of the car, and if they were going to make it out, the door needed to open now.

  “I’m going to try it now,” she said. “As soon as I get it open, the water is going to rush in. We ready?”

  Val and Monica were both crying, but they nodded.

  “I love you guys.” Robin nodded. “Really. I love you both so much.”

  She ducked under the water and reached for the handle. She tugged at it and pushed three times before she realized it was still locked. She grabbed the tip of the lock and yanked, but nothing happened. She yanked again.

  Nothing. The smooth plastic only slid between her fingers.

  No. She pounded on the window. NO!

  She pushed up and grabbed more air before she went under again.

  There. She managed to get the lock up, but when she went to open the door, it still wouldn’t budge.

  A quiet tapping on the window.

  Robin looked up and her eyes went wide.

  There was a man by the car, a dark-haired man with pale skin. He lifted a rock and pointed it at the window.

  Robin didn’t even think, she nodded and pushed away from the glass.

  With a muffled crack, the car window broke into pieces. She and the man cleared the glass and he reached for her hand.

  Robin shook her head, her lungs burning as she grabbed Val and tugged.

  The man pulled hard and they were rising.

  She could see the full moon rip
pling above the surface of the water.

  Her lungs were burning.

  No.

  No!

  She choked and the water rushed in. The taste of the lake weeds was the last thing she remembered before bright lights flashed behind her eyes.

  * * *

  Her throat burned, but she was breathing.

  Robin opened her eyes and coughed water from her lungs. She rolled onto her side, and hands held her back, dragged the hair from her mouth and eyes.

  “She’s breathing! This one is breathing!”

  She heard Val crying somewhere. She was crying and yelling.

  “Monica?” she rasped. Where was Monica?

  “Don’t try to sit up.” Someone shoved her back down. “Stay on your side. Keep coughing. They’re bringing oxygen for your friend.”

  “My friend?”

  In the glaring white lights, she saw the silhouette of someone doing CPR over a body lying on the lake bank.

  “Monica?”

  “Just keep still.”

  “Where is he?” Robin looked around, but she didn’t recognize anyone. No, wait, she did. The woman talking to her was Jackie Parker, who worked at the hospital. No, not the hospital. EMT.

  Someone started coughing, and Robin heard someone throw up. A cheer went up from the person doing CPR.

  “She’s breathing! She’s breathing! Where’s that oxygen?”

  Someone shoved a mask in her face, and Robin tried to push it away but she couldn’t. Someone else was wrapping what looked like tin foil around her. No, not tin foil. An emergency blanket.

  “Where’s Val?” She lifted the mask. “Where’s Val and Monica?”

  “You’re all safe now.” Jackie was grinning. “Holy shit, Robin, I cannot believe you guys survived that. Your car must be fifty feet underwater.”

  Fifty feet? Who’d managed to swim down fifty feet? Had they seen the lights? Did they see the crash?

  She pushed the mask away again. “There was a man. He broke the window.”

  Jackie frowned. “What?”

  “There was a man who was by the car. He broke the window.”

  “Sweetie, you’re imagining things. A tourist from the lodge saw your car go in. Thank God. He waded out and helped you guys to shore.”