by Ink Blood
“There’s something else you should know about the men that went missing.” Yvonne said with a smile, teasing him.
“What, do I have to drag it out of you?”
“They had equipment mounted on the boat, cameras and stuff.” Yvonne informed lifting her eyebrows.
Andrew sighed deeply. “Ghost hunters? This might be just what I need. Before I forget, get the sketch artist to the hospital. I need him to do a sketch of whom or what attacked Dillon Adams, his claims its Janet. Can you believe it?”
“Helen James-Leigh wants to see you if you have time, she said it's important and urgent. For years nothing happens, then one day suddenly everything happens at once. Don’t you just hate it when that happens?” Yvonne said smiling, and chowed discreetly on gum.
“Helen, I don’t recall someone with that name.” Andrew scratched his head confused.
“It's the new people in Sheriff Parker’s house.” Yvonne informed.
“Great, I’ll make a turn there when I can, but first I need to find someone around here with a detonator.”
“I don’t follow.” Yvonne admitted confused.
“I need to stop these bombs from exploding, so I can take care of one thing at a time.”
Yvonne laughed out loud.
Andrew left the office filled with hope. He silently hoped a recording might proof that something mysterious happened on the lake.
“Did Martin go to meet his wife and son? Who phoned him if Janet’s murdered? What’s he trying to hide? Time off couldn’t be so bad, I can find Martin and ring the truth out of him.” Andrew though out loud as he left the office.
Andrew got into his vehicle and headed to the lake.
*~*~*
*III*
The sun hadn’t been this bright in days. The soft breeze blew in from the east.
A large panel van parked close to the coffee shop. The side windows were metal. Small extractor fans spun on the roof and the rear door window covered with small curtains. The van was white with wavy colored lines across the side and the words “Paranormal Investigator” appeared above a cell phone number.
Andrew approached the pier as Mr. Craft walked from the edge towards him. He was tall, dark hair with gray lines just above the ears. His face long and sharpened at the chin. His sunglasses were dark and he’s well-dressed.
“You are the Sheriff? May I please have a word?” He started as he reached Andrew.
“Good day Sir, what’s this about? Can’t it wait? I need to start a search for two missing men.”
The man looked at Andrew hard and urgent. His eyes filled with a deep sadness. He swallowed hard and his voice was hoarse.
“Sheriff, I’m just as concerned about finding the boys, but I fear it’s already too late for them.” He paused. “I promise if you need to get the search under way I’ll help you any way I can. It seems like there’s some time before you’ve got enough searchers gathered. Tom will spread the word while we talk.”
Tom nodded and started back to his office. He only greeted politely by lifting his cap, he was clearly upset and bothered by this disappearance that he would rather not speak.
“If I may ask who are you exactly?” Andrew asked confused.
“Let’s go into the coffee shop. I’m a little tired. I’ve been here the whole morning. I can do with coffee.” The man offered and headed to the coffee shop.
Andrew followed. The tall man entered the coffee shop first and sat at a table at the window overlooking the lake. The air-conditioner hummed from the back and music played softly. Eight tables each with three chairs stood spaced in the center of the room. A wooden counter with stone tops cordoned off the service area from the kitchen. Bar stools offered seating at the counter.
A waiter appeared from the kitchen with freshly brewed coffee and a tray with cups, sugar and creamer. She greeted friendly left the tray and walked back to the counter.
Andrew poured creamer into his coffee. “What can I do for you Mr...?”
“Mr. Craft, just a short conversation I believe would help.” He added creamer and sugar to his own coffee.
“What’s on your mind? Clearly you’re not a reporter. What’s so important that you drag me from a search to find two missing men to have a chat? Why couldn’t this wait and why’s it too late for the missing men?” Andrew asked sipping his coffee.
Mr. Craft looked out of the window for a moment. He searched for something, or expecting something to happen shortly. Andrew was weary of him. He didn’t know whether to trust the man or to arrest him for wasting his time. Somehow he felt like a hamster in a wheel. He needed to start the search, but something was holding him back. He decided to wait and hear the man out.
“You don’t have to worry, I won’t waste too much of your time. I’m aware that you need to be out there, but I thought it would be worthwhile if we should talk first.” Mr. Craft said and it made Andrew felt like his reading his mind. This put Andrew more on edge and he has started to suspect the man of foul play.
“What’ll be worthwhile, Mr. Craft?”
“I’ve stumbled on something that’ll be worthwhile for us both. You’ll have an answer in your case, and I’ll have the proof that there’s truth to the supernatural.”
“How do you figure that and what do you know about my case?” Andrew asked suspicious.
“Sheriff Foster, I drove all the way from the city to speak to you. I’d like to speak to my sons, but they missing. They’re supposed to call me at the crack of dawn so I could meet with them. When they didn’t call I contacted Tom.”
“You know Tom?” Andrew asked not surprised.
“I was a teacher in his school.” Mr. Craft admitted.
Mr. Craft sat silently for a moment looking out the window at the group of people who had started to gather outside. His hands trembled slightly as he poured creamer and sugar into his second cup of coffee.
“Why were you supposed to meet them here?”
“I couldn’t get here last night, so they left ahead of me. They were going to call me to let me know if they found anything. When they didn’t call I called their room at the bed and breakfast but they weren’t there. I called Tom and he checked and about twenty minutes later he called back saying he found the empty boat.”
Mr. Craft’s hands shook even more. His voice faded, he has a difficult time to utter the words.
“Found what? Do you know what they were looking for?”
Andrew signaled the waiter, he needed to give the man a moment to gather his thoughts. He could also rid himself of the burning sensation in his stomach. Hunger or fear of what’s uncovered, he couldn’t decide. Mr. Craft sipped his coffee nervously and stared out the window again. The Waiter brought menus and took Andrews order of bacon and eggs on toast. Mr. Craft didn’t order food. He was clearly too concerned to eat. He only sips his coffee.
The waiter left.
“What were they looking for, I think you know exactly way they were out there on the lake, don’t you?” Andrew repeated, bringing Mr. Craft back to the conversation.
Mr. Craft shifted in his seat.
“My sons believes in the paranormal, a quality I’m afraid they inherited from me. They’ve made it their life’s ambitions to proof that entities exists.” Mr. Craft explained in a soft gentle voice.
“Ghost hunters? What made them believe there are ghosts here?” Andrew asked between sips of coffee.
“We prefer the term paranormal investigators. They heard the rumor back home so I placed a call to Tom which was enough to spike their curiosity. They couldn’t wait to come here and look for themselves.”
“I apologize. I’m aware of how fast news travels around here, but to the city, I believe it's a new record.”
Mr. Craft looked straight at Andrew. “So what do you think about my offer of help?”
“What exactly are you offering help with? This conversation’s not going anywhere. I have more important business to attend too as this conversation, so if you don’t min
d I need to get going.” Andrew said getting annoyed with the slow progress.
Mr. Craft was hiding something and he was looking for the right moment to bring it up.
“Sheriff, perhaps I should be straight with you. I’ve looked at the video footage from the mounted cameras on the boat.”
‘Finally there it is a confession.’ Andrew though.
“So, you’re admitting to tampering with the evidence. You can’t just walk in here and do as you please, who do you think you are? You know of course that I need to confiscate all the footage.” Andrew said angrily.
“I’ve got the right equipment to analyze the data. The chance the data can damage if it's handled wrongly is too great. This I can’t, under any circumstances allow to happen.”
Andrew met with the man’s urgent, concerned eyes. There was more to it than just a man searching for his missing sons. He pushed grief aside to deal with a matter he felt was more important.
“It's a possibility, I can’t speak for everyone that might handle it, but for my office we take care of all evidence.” Andrew insured sympathetically.
“Everyone can lose something or damage it by accident, Sheriff. I can analyze the footage under your supervision.”
“What’s on the footage, kids playing a prank?”
Mr. Craft snapped angrily. “No.”
“They had another boat which they used to get off the lake.”
“That might’ve been the smartest move, and then they’d be here right now having breakfast with me rather me having this conversation. I’m afraid that it's not what happened. They had this strange addiction to the thrill of the find. They’d never walk away from that.” He sighed and handed photos to Andrew. “Take a look at the photos then you’ll know what happened.”
Andrew didn’t take the photos instead he tried to read Mr. Craft’s facial expressions.
“Tom did me a favor. It's not his fault. I asked him not to report anything until I had a chance to see what happened. He’s only to try to find the boys. I believe he had help looking for them, just in case they made it out injured. I knew going up against an entity filled with rage and bent on revenge wasn’t an easy task.” He sipped nervously at his coffee again. “You must understand. I’d never allow my sons to go on the lake had I know it's dangerous to this extent. Besides, there’s no stopping or talking them out of it. They assured me that they’d taken every precaution and that they know what could happen. They’re my only children. The last thing I want is to have everything seized and held up with red tape before I knew what happened. I needed to know.”
“I can understand that, I don’t have children so it's difficult for me to put myself in your shoes. Knowing what happened is closure, but you’re tampering with evidence.” Andrew felt sorry for him.
Mr. Craft spoke softly, he felt guilty and scolded like a child. “I apologize for that. It takes special equipment to analyze the evidence as you put it. The evidence is pure, nothing’s tampered with. I simply extracted a photo or two of what attacked my sons, is that so wrong?”
“Because only you can analyze the footage, you know we do have sophisticated labs that can analyze anything.”
“It's a risk I’m not willing to take. This equipment belongs to me so the footage does too. If I need to I’ll hold this data up in a court until I run out of every penny I have, and believe me it will take longer than you might think.”
“This is evidence in a crime, therefore I can seize it anytime I want and send it to anywhere I feel fit.” Andrew got up ready to leave. He was too angry to sit one more moment in his company. ‘What gives him the right, who does he think he is?’
Andrew walked past the table heading for the door when Mr. Craft took his arm gently and held him back. His voice was as calm and gentle as a grieving father.
“Sheriff I’m not trying to withhold evidence, but I’d like to analyze it myself rather than sending it away. Whatever’s on the footage, you’re welcome to it. I just don’t want it out of my sight. I’m sure there’s more information to analyze, but it would waste too much time sending it away when I can do it right here.” He pleaded.
Andrew sat down again. “Yes sure.”
The waiter brought his order and placed the plate on the table with as much charm as she could master. She left the table with a smile and walked away. Andrew started to eat.
“Hungry?” Mr. Craft asked trying to change the mood.
Andrew swallowed a large bite of toast and egg. “Forgive me, I missed dinner and breakfast.”
Mr. Craft smiled for the first time. “Anyway I believe you’ll be glad to find that your suspect wouldn’t waste taxpayer’s money sitting in jail. I don’t know if you have answers to all your questions you might have, but I don’t think so.”
Andrew was still eating. “Why are you not looking for your sons?”
“Trust me. I’m doing everything humanly possible to find the boys. I’ve got people coming to do just that.”
“Don’t you trust in our ability?”
“Yes, and I don’t want to get in your way. I believe I’ve got more friends then you. Your town’s smaller than most, you need friends right now, if I can call favors to cover more ground, then why not? It's not costing you anything.”
Mr. Craft looked out the window, looking for something. After a moment of silence he turned his attention to Andrew who had finished his meal.
“Look at the photos. Something pulled them under the water, if they had made it to shore they would’ve contacted me. I’m hoping that they’re out there alive, unlikely but I’m hoping against the odds.”
Holding the set of six photos, Andrew tapped them against the table. Looking at them meant he had to except Janet and Christopher Parker never left town.
The waiter noticed tension and walked over briskly to collect the plate and offer more coffee. There was silence until she left. Finally Andrew inspected the photos.
Most showed a hazy human figure in front of a night sky. Andrew flipped through two similar photos and stared at the last.
He felt sick to the pit of his stomach.
Color drained from his face, his head started to spin forcing him to lay the photos face down on the table.
The image on the postcard size photo confirmed his worst suspicions.
As clear as daylight the wet, neglected, gray eyed image of Janet was center of the photo. She was hands reach from the camera. In the background the small image of Christopher was hazy, but recognizable.
Andrew was silent, starring out the window. “Are you sure this isn’t just a hoax?
“They’re real, as real as you and I. There aren’t many documented events of this kind. The boys were here, to proof paranormal activities does exist. It's important that I offer my help and complete the study my sons started. Please don’t push me away. There’s so much we can learn from this. I beg of you, allow me to do what I’m good at.”
Finally Andrew got his thoughts in order. “How do we stop her?”
“You need to find out what’s holding her here.”
“What happened to her you mean.”
“Exactly, give her a reason to move on. Solve the problem that she can’t.”
“First let’s find your sons.” Andrew said and stood up. He walked a few steps and turned to Mr. Craft. “Coming?”
Andrew walked to the counter, paid the bill and walked out the door. Mr. Craft followed.
*~*~*
*IV*
The sun was still bright and hot. Occasional clouds drifted in front of the sun blocking its brightness, and the breeze was soft and gentle. A blue pick-up parked next to the panel van and was off loading diving equipment. Seven men dressed in wet suits gathered around the pick-up. A sign on the door worded “Diving and Salvaging” and listed four numbers in the city.
Andrew turned his attention to a small group of volunteers. The divers left the parking lot and walked to the pier to start searching the water. Andrew divided the groups into teams of fo
ur to concentrate their search on land. Andrew watched as the teams scatter and walked to the rear of the panel van where Tom was standing.
“Sheriff, there’s something I’d like you to hear. It might help to identify your ghosts. The cameras recorded images and the sound recorders caught voices besides that of my sons. Do you have a moment?”
Andrew entered van and sat on an empty chair in the corner. A shelf held different computers on the one side of the van.
“This is an interesting setup you’ve got here. I’m sure it must’ve set you back a bit.”
“My life’s savings and much hard work, some of this equipment’s not easy to come by.” Mr. Craft admitted proudly.
“Can you show me the camera footage as well? I need to see what happened out there last night.”
Mr. Craft turned to one of the computers. “I’ve got it ready for you.”
Andrew watched the footage without comment. The first time it played in silence. Mr. Craft added audio and played it again.
“Do you know the woman?” Mr. Craft asked noticing Andrew had turned pale.
“It point to someone I thought had left town. The more I hear people talking and now seeing this footage. I’m convinced that she had never left.”
“You were close to her. I can see it in your eyes.”
Andrew’s deep sadness carried in his voice. “I’m ... was this boy’s godfather. I would think it's impossible for something like this to happen, and no one even suspects a crime.” He paused for a moment. “We even felt sorry for her husband. He was going through hell. We thought it was because he couldn’t deal with them leaving. Meanwhile the only reason he ran away so fast, is because Janet’s haunting him and he can’t deal with them, the bastard.” Andrew said, as sorrow turned to anger.
Mr. Craft fell silent. “I feel your loss.
“Thank you.”
“This is what I wanted you to hear.” He remarked and played the audio again.
The radio in Andrew’s hand cracked to life.
“We have reached the far shore and are splitting up.” The volunteer called.