“She’s being admitted now, Jake’s with her. I gotta tell you, I ain’t never seen Jakey so upset. I think he believed her when she told him she did it because of him. He won’t leave her side. I’ll go get someone to show you to her room.” Finlay stopped and turned back around to look into four shocked faces. “I really am sorry.”
***
“Mr. Olsen, you okay?”
John looked up to find Jake standing in front of him.
“You okay?” Jake repeated.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. Must’ve lost track of time.”
John had lost track of two hours, Jake noticed. He wasn’t terribly concerned though. He knew exactly what and who had taken the minutes from him. Unfortunately, they were all haunted.
“I finished the second boat. If you’d like, I can come back and do the third tomorrow. But right now, I am beat.”
Still recovering from his thoughts, John shook his head. “You don’t need to do that, Jake. I’ll have some of the guys do it on Monday. No need to waste your entire weekend here. You go home and take some time for yourself.”
“Okay, but you’re sure you’re all right?”
“I’m about as okay as you are, Jake.”
John walked away from him and disappeared into the building. Jake walked back to his truck, threw his bag in the bed, and headed home.
CHAPTER 8
The next morning, Jake awoke more refreshed than he had in a long time. For the first time in two years, Maddie hadn’t haunted his dreams. She was still there, he knew. She just had given him the night off and, for that, he was grateful.
He began his day as usual with a few stretches and push-ups. As he laced up his sneakers, he thought of Lily. A small smile played on his lips. Despite himself, he enjoyed her company, even if she was a pain in the ass. No. That wasn’t fair. She wasn’t really a pain in the ass. She was just someone he wasn’t prepared for. Not that anything would ever develop. From what he’d heard, she was only in town through the end of the summer. Still, it was nice to have a friend who knew nothing of his past, of his pain.
He opened the door of his house only to find Lily stretching in the front yard, this time in a sports bra and bright yellow running shorts. A braid replaced the loose ponytail from yesterday and he couldn’t help but look at her appreciatively.
“Hey! Since yesterday wasn’t a total disaster, I figured you wouldn’t mind a running partner today. Look, I even brought my iPod so we can run in silence!”
She’s crazy, he thought as he smiled to himself. “I guess I wouldn’t mind if you tagged along.”
“Well, thanks for the invitation.”
“I thought you invited yourself.”
“Same, same. You didn’t say no, now did you?”
She had the best smile. Her teeth were just a little bit crooked and her summer skin glowed golden. And her eyes. To Jake, her eyes looked like the deepest warmth he’d ever seen. And as he noticed all of this, the tiny something in his stomach got a little tighter. “No. I guess I didn’t. You all stretched?”
“Yup. I got here about fifteen minutes ago. I figured I’d get a head start.”
“How’d you know I’d run today?”
“I didn’t. I just thought I’d take the chance.”
“And what if I didn’t?”
“Who knows? Look, you wanna sit here and debate about the what-ifs all day or do you wanna put a hurtin’ on those muscles?”
“You’re crazy. Let’s go.”
This time, Jake didn’t try to push her. Instead, he settled into a comfortable rhythm right next to her. Their footfalls fell together, their strides matched, and the atmosphere was more relaxed. Whoever this girl was, he was happy to have her around, even if she was just a running partner.
When they finished running on the beach, instead of heading right home, they sat at the edge of the surf and watched as gulls dove for fish and dolphins played in the water. The morning sun hadn’t yet hit debilitating temperatures and the early day’s breeze offered comfort.
Her shoulder bumped his, playfully. “So, I’ve been doing a little background checking on you.”
Jake was intrigued. “On me?”
“Yup. I got a few tidbits here and there but I’m too much of a stranger to really get anyone to talk to me. Even Uncle Billy tells me to leave it alone.”
Jake picked up a shell and threw it into the sea. “Maybe you should take his advice.”
“Maybe. Or maybe I should ask you.”
“You may not want to know the answers.”
“True, but I’m willing to take my chances. You interest me, Jacob Morgan.”
“I’m not that interesting.”
“Sure you are. For example, I know you gave up a college scholarship when your mom died. I know you work with your dad, and your brother, Danny. I know you live alone and don’t have many real friends.”
“I have friends.”
“Of course, you do, but no one you’ve let in. No one you’d consider a—oh, I don’t know—a best friend.”
“A best friend? I’m a guy. I don’t need a best friend.”
“Maybe not. But I’m willing to bet you haven’t talked much to anyone lately. I’d bet no one knows all your demons.”
She was getting awfully close. Too close, for Jake’s taste, so he figured he’d switch the conversation around to her.
“What about you? What are you doing here? Don’t you have any friends?”
“Sure, I do. I just finished grad school, and I decided to hang with Uncle Billy this summer on my way to Atlanta. I have a few friends down there, and I’m planning on sharing an apartment with a college roommate. I already have an internship lined up.”
“So you’re in transition?”
“I guess you could say that.”
“And that makes you, what? Twenty-two, twenty-three?”
“Try twenty-five. I took a year between undergrad and grad. That’s not much younger than you, you know.”
Jake didn’t say anything. Instead, he stared at the surf, watching the waves roll in and pull back out. He studied how the water crashed onto itself, over and over again, like it didn’t realize it was just repeating itself. Kind of like his relationship with Madison. Sure, things changed, evolved, but in the end all they kept doing was repeating the same behaviors again and again. Nothing had ever changed no matter how much he’d wanted it to.
“Hello? Hello? Lily snapped her fingers in front of his face to grab his attention. Earth to Jake.” He looked at her and she noticed his eyes were somewhere else. Sure he was looking directly at her but he was lost for a minute. “So, you wanna tell me who she was?”
That brought him back real quick. Time to deflect. “Who who was?”
“I don’t know. I figure it must be a girl who keeps you so lost.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“I don’t? I don’t know, Jake. You seem awfully defensive.”
“And you’re awfully nosey.” He stood and shook the sand off his clothes. “Look, I gotta go.”
“Wait, don’t go. We don’t have to talk about that.”
“Too late. You know, I had a nice time until you went all private eye on me. Thanks for the run.”
He jogged off and she sat there, not watching him leave. Instead, she too stared at the waves and noticed the repetitive manner in which the ocean moved. Over and over, the water crashed down on itself and then began again. Looking for a new ending? Or a new beginning?
CHAPTER 9
Lily was counting out her tips at the end of her shift when Billy came and sat down across from her in the booth. She barely looked up as he dropped a bowl of pretzels on the table. “Hey, Billy.”
“How you doing, Lil? You have everything you need?”
“Yeah. Of course. Business seems to be going well. At least the tips are good.”
She finished counting and put the money in her apron. She reached for the glass of water in front of her, s
tared at a bowl of pretzels, and debated about getting something to eat.
“Yeah. Yeah. Business has always been steady,” Billy agreed. “Mostly townsfolk, some tourists from up the road. How was your run this morning?”
“Good. It’s nice to breathe in the sea air. Makes me feel, I don’t know, energized.”
“How’s Jake?”
She looked at him for a minute before answering. She knew he had told her to keep her distance, as he had told Jake to stay away from her. She couldn’t figure out why, but she knew for Billy to become so protective there had to be a good reason, even if she didn’t listen to his advice.
Giving in to the rumble in her belly, she reached for a pretzel. “What’s the deal with you and Jake? Why can’t I talk to him?”
“Jake’s a good kid.”
“He’s twenty-eight. Hardly a kid.”
His laugh was forced. “Well, when you’ve been around as long as me, anyone under thirty is a kid.”
“You didn’t answer my question.”
“Look, like a said, Jake’s a good kid. He’s just had some issues dealing with his past. I don’t think he’d be good for anyone right now, and I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Why would I get hurt? It’s not like he and I are gonna start dating. I’m leaving at the end of August, anyway. That would give us two months to develop something. Not gonna happen.”
“You’re a smart girl. Jake’s just haunted, for lack of a better word, by the memories of a girl who took his heart and tossed it into the ocean. He walks around like a shell of who he once was. I can see it in his eyes, and until he learns to deal with it, he’s not gonna be able to move forward. Like I said, he wouldn’t be good for you. He’s not even good for himself.”
“I don’t understand. What did she do that was so horrible?”
“You should ask him that.”
She took a large gulp of water. “I did.”
Billy lifted an eyebrow at her. “And?”
Lily shrugged her shoulders. “He got a little mad and walked away.”
“Well, there you go. He doesn’t want to talk about it.”
“But if he’s hurting that bad, doesn’t he need to?”
Billy leaned back in the booth, his eyes clouded over. “Sure he does, Lily. But you can’t make someone talk about something they don’t want to.”
“I just want to be his friend. He looks so sad. No. Not sad. Something else. Like he’s empty.”
“Lily, if you want to be his friend. Go right ahead. You’re old enough and smart enough to make your own decisions. Just be careful. He has a history of snapping.”
“Snapping? Like you think he would hurt me, like physically?” Lily didn’t think that sounded at all like the Jake she barely knew. But that was the key word—barely.
“Oh goodness, no. At least I don’t think so. But I gotta tell you, I am sure Maddie pushed him to the point where he sure as hell wanted to hurt her. She was sneaky. She was a liar and she was no good for anyone. It’s a shame, too. She comes from a good family, and she was one of the prettiest things I ever saw. What she did to him, however, was unforgiveable, if you ask me.”
Lily’s curiosity was peaked. What on earth could someone do that was so awful? She was lucky enough in her life to be surrounded by good people, good friends, and a solid family. Maybe she was naïve in matters of heartbreak and disrespect. “I am sure she had her reasons, whatever she did.”
“Lily, listen to me. Madison Olsen did everything she did for selfish reasons. She never once thought of anyone but herself. She never once did anything to better herself or the lives of those around her. She broke a boy I’ve known since he was in his mama’s belly. No one deserves what she did. And that is all I have to say on the matter. Tread lightly, Lily. Just tread lightly. That boy’s hurtin’ a whole lot.”
“All right. I’ll figure it out. Thanks for talking to me about it.”
Billy stood up, adjusted his pants over his soft belly. “Anytime. Listen, you hungry?”
“Sure, I could go for something.”
“All right, then. I’ll tell Randy to whip you up something. He’s on a roll today with the creative crap. That boy fried tomatoes and made a salad out of it. Who would've thought of sticking fried tomatoes with lettuce and that mozzarella cheese? It’s good, but what a strange way of cookin’, huh?”
“Actually, that sounds kinda good. Have him make one for me.”
“No problem, Lil. I’ll send Marta over with a beer. You look like you could use one.”
“Thanks, Billy.”
Billy walked to the kitchen and placed Lily’s order before retreating back to his office. He knew his niece wouldn’t listen. She was too caring to allow someone to walk around empty. She was just the opposite of Madison, and he walked around with guilt over the fact that he never told anyone what Maddie had done...
***
It was a busy Thursday night, busier than usual and Maddie was twenty minutes late. She was always late anymore. Billy toyed with the idea of firing her but, truth be told, she hustled when she was there. She turned tables like no one else. And besides, he liked her family. He figured she was going through something, so he gave her a little time and space. Maybe he’d ask Jake what was going on. He knew she had been in the hospital not too long ago and he knew why. He just hoped she wasn’t falling back into that pit.
It had just about hit the hour mark from the time her shift started when she hurried in. Billy’s first thought was that she looked like hell. Her normally-shiny blonde hair was disheveled and greasy. Her skin was tinged with gray and her uniform was dirty. Not at all like Maddie. Even when she was going through trouble, she always took pride in her appearance. With her propensity for drama, often her looks were all she had going for her. After all, she wasn’t the nicest person you’d ever meet.
Serving up a beer to a customer at the bar, Billy yelled over to her, “You’re late.”
“I know, Billy. I’m sorry. Just had to take care of something.”
“You coulda called. I was about to call the house to see where you were.”
“I said I was sorry, Billy. What do you want me to do? Give you my first born?”
Snippy, he thought. At least she usually faked pleasantries.
“We’re a little backed up. Those three booths just sat down. Go and take care of them, would ya’?”
“In a minute. I have to use the bathroom first.”
“You couldn’t have done that before you got here? I’m swamped here.”
“How ’bout I piss in a beer mug and serve it up? You want me to do that? Didn’t think so. Now, let me pee.”
She hurried off to the bathroom. Billy wasn’t in the mood to deal with her shit today. Maybe he’d just send her home. Then, he’d take care of the booths. Later, he’d have to talk to her.
Quite a bit of time had passed and Maddie still wasn’t back from the bathroom. He dropped his towel on the bar and headed towards the back. He lightly knocked on the women’s door. No answer.
“Maddie? You in there?”
No answer. He jiggled the doorknob but it was locked.
“Madison! Open this door!”
When she didn’t answer, he grabbed keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door. Madison was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall. She looked dazed.
“Maddie! Are you alright?”
She rolled her head back and looked at him with glassy eyes. Something was definitely wrong. He kneeled down beside her. An empty syringe lay next to her and her arm was tied with rubber tubing.
“What did you do?”
She didn’t respond verbally. Instead, mascara-tinged tears streamed down her face. Billy picked her up and brought her back to his office. He laid her down on the couch he kept there for those busy nights he wasn’t able to make it home. After covering her with a blanket, he called her father. No use bothering Jake with this. He was already beat down from the last time she did this.
“
John, It’s Billy.”
“Hey, Billy. What’s up?”
“You need to come down here.”
“What? Why? What’s happened?”
“Maddie’s on something.”
“On something? You mean, on drugs, don’t you?”
“Yeah. Yeah. She’s in my office right now, sleeping it off.”
“Did you call Jake?”
“No. I didn’t call Jake.”
“Okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can. Don’t tell anyone.”
“I understand. See you soon.”
Billy clicked off and looked at the girl with confusion and pity. Grabbing the chair from his desk, he and rolled it over to the couch and sat next to her, stroking her hair and trying to think of ways he could help.
Through the open window of his office, he heard John pull in and park behind the bar near the kitchen entrance. When he walked into the office, the look on the man’s face said everything.
John picked up his daughter, gave the Billy his keys, and was grateful he knew to follow and open the car door. John placed Maddie in the back seat, leaving the blanket wrapped around her. The two men didn’t say anything to each other. They didn’t need to. This was becoming too much of a usual occurrence.
Billy never told anyone about the incident, least of all, Jake. When Jake called that night looking for her, Billy just told him she wasn’t feeling well and had gone home with her parents. It wasn’t exactly a lie but it wasn’t exactly the truth either. And Billy hated that.
***
Billy shoved away the bad memories, got up from his desk, and walked back to the kitchen to pick up Lily’s order. If anyone could snap Jake out of this, it was her. He just hoped it wasn’t too late—that Jake wasn’t too far gone.
CHAPTER 10
Jake was in the backyard, working on replacing the flooring of his back deck. He’d ripped it up almost a year ago and all that was left were the concrete footings. For some reason, today he felt like he needed to accomplish something. So he went to the lumberyard and bought the materials he’d need to finish it. What used to be a standard ten by ten space off his kitchen was now going to become something more. He had great ideas for his new deck. Nothing too fancy, just different. Besides, he thought, it was high time he did something that mattered now, instead of reliving what mattered then.
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