by P.J. Lowry
# 20: walk by that lake one more time.
Lizzy’s heart was in her throat. Someone out there knew what lake that Hayden was talking about and had taken the time to mail this card to her and let her know. She jumped on the phone and called Hayden’s family again and asked them about trips they had taken to Lake Huron. David recalled going out to Lake Huron the first weekend of every August. They always went to the same camp ground, stayed at the exact same campsite that was near the beach and the water. They had done it every summer David said, that was until the summer of Hayden’s eighth birthday. Something had happened and his Dad was so upset that they had packed up two days earlier and left camp. They never went back to that campsite again. Lizzy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. Something had happened at that lake, but no one had any idea except Mr. Sheppard and the person who sent her the postcard. She was debating about what she should do next but the answer came to her in the form of another postcard. On it was another picture of Lake Huron, and this time written on the back was another message:
Visit the camp site. Find out why Hayden never came back.
That was all that she could take. Lizzy packed up her stuff, rented a minivan and decided to go camping, to an extent. She booked a hotel room that was only a few kilometres from the camp site, and from there she could do all the lake recon she wanted. While Hayden seemed like the kind of person that loved the great outdoors, to Lizzy room service was about as close to ‘roughing it’ away from home she would want to be. After she checked into the hotel, she quickly drove up to the campsite and thanks to David’s instructions she found the exact campsite that the Sheppard’s used every summer. Much to her surprise, the campsite was already in use. There was a small RV parked out front, but there was a still a small green tent that was pegged up with skill and an open fire that was burning within a controlled setting and a few coolers that were likely filled with soda, booze or both. The fact that someone was sending her postcards about this campsite and the Sheppard’s spot was taken clearly wasn’t a coincidence to her. She parked her van, and walked right up to the RV. She knocked on the door several times, sometimes almost punching the door. There was no answer. Whoever this RV belonged to, the person clearly wasn’t there at the moment. She was ready to scream, clearly frustrated by what was going on. She wanted answers, and didn’t want to wait another minute for them. She was about to toss something at the RV when her eyes locked onto a small folding chair that was located near the picnic table. She walked up to the chair and realized that sitting in the chair were some of the answers she had been looking for, especially the identity of the person who had been mailing the letters. She picked the small stuffed bear up off the chair and smiled.
“Hello Hermy,” Lizzy said with a smile, “We meet again.”
“You know if he wasn’t a lifeless teddy bear.” A voice came booming from behind. “I honestly think he would be flattered that you remember him.”
Lizzy wasn’t afraid of that voice, since she had already figured out who it was. “If I’m not mistaken Sergeant Major Smith, don’t you have a crew of fresh recruits to whip into fighting shape at the base?”
“No Ma’am.” Gary Smith said with a smile. “As of last week, I decided to cash in some long overdue vacation time. I got a loan of this RV from an officer that owed me a favour and decided to go camping. I love the outdoors. My family came out here every summer, as did a lot of families from my hometown, especially during the first weekend of August. That weekend was always a big event for our town. My spot used to be about a kilometre that way. This spot belonged to the Sheppard family, but I think you already knew that.”
“You only looked over the list for a few seconds.” Lizzy said to him.
“I have a photographic memory.” He replied.
“Number twenty-four.”
“Take Liz to the vines.”
“Do you have any idea what that means?”
“Not a clue.”
“Number seven.”
“Have a picnic at that park.” Gary raised his hand and paused for a moment. “What park was he referring to when he wrote that?”
"Central.”
“Very nice.”
“So you memorized the entire list?”
“Not perfectly but good enough to be of some use,” Gary replied, “When I got back to the barracks, I recited the list from memory and put it to paper. I was sincerely touched by how you went out of your way to do something for me that day. So much that I wanted to return the favour and help you. As it turns out, I have the unique ability to help you resolve what happens to be one of the toughest tasks on your list.”
“That being the lake I had no idea about.” Lizzy supplied.
“Exactly. I happen to know that this is that lake.” Gary said as he pointed towards Lake Huron. He was dressed very casually, wearing cargo pants but a plain grey t-shirt, probably as close to vacation as the soldier was going to get. “I applied for leave because I wanted to help you with your list, starting off with this lake. No one else knows why Hayden wanted to come back here.”
“And you do?” Lizzy asked.
“As a matter of fact, I do.” Gary boasted. “I was here when the incident happened.”
“What incident?”
"The one that caused the Sheppard family to leave early and never come back,” Gary casually walked over and took his Hermy back from Lizzy. He walked over to the RV and opened the door and tossed the bear inside, “There are a few clouds forming. I don’t want him to get wet.”
“Of course.” Lizzy agreed with a smile.
“Come this way, I want to take you to the exact spot where it happened.”
She walked a few feet behind the Sergeant Major, and he was moving respectfully slow since he didn’t want Lizzy to fall behind and not be able to make it to their destination with him. After a few moments she realized he was walking her to the beach, the coast of Lake Huron. The lake was huge and made for a stunning sight, one that clearly took her breath away. Even though on a map it seemed like a small body of water compared to like the oceans, the lake still looked like it went on forever into the sunset. He passed by two life guard stations, and then eventually came to a stop and stood there, looking out at the lake. He was quiet and didn’t say anything to Lizzy as she walked up to where he was standing. After a few moments, he finally spoke. “It happened right here.”
“What did?” Lizzy asked.
“This almost became Hayden’s final resting place.” Gary answered.
“That summer when the Sheppard family stopping coming here?” Lizzy asked.
“The very same,” Gary confirmed, “It happened when Hayden was only eight. I had a few years on him, but I wasn’t too old either. I was only eleven but I hit a growth spurt and I was a lot bigger. I was swimming about fifty to sixty feet from the shore, just farting around when it all started. I heard a man screaming from the beach. It was Hayden’s father, calling out for him. He couldn’t find Hayden on the beach and was running up and down the coast, frantically looking for him. He was in a panicked state and for good reason.”
“Where was Hayden?” Lizzy asked.
“He was under the water, drowning.” Gary took his shoes off, walked a few feet into the water to get his toes wet. “This was where Hayden almost kicked the bucket. From what I tell based on where I found him, the tide had dragged him out and he was under for close three minutes. I didn’t know what was going on until I heard his father calling for him. I turned and could see his Dad running up and down the beach, screaming his name. I had stopped what I was doing to look around and out of the corner of my eye, I saw a few fingers come up and then go back underwater.”
“That was Hayden?” Lizzy guessed.
“It was. I swam over to where he was and he was still under. He wasn’t tall enough to reach the surface and he didn’t have the strength or ability to swim.” Gary paused for a moment and skipped a stone into the lake. “Even though I w
as pretty far out, I was still tall enough to stand on the ground and stay above water. Barely, but tall enough so I walked over to where Hayden was and I simply reached down into the water and grabbed him. I lifted him out and held him in my arms and waited for him to breathe. A few rough slaps on his back with my hand and the little guy was sucking air again. As I started to walk back to the shore, I bumped into one of Hayden’s sisters. She came over and took him from me and brought him back to his father who immediately took him back to camp. That was the last time I saw him that summer.”
“You saved his life,” Lizzy couldn’t believe what he was hearing, “Did Hayden know it was you?”
“If he knew, he never told me or tried to talk about it.” Gary replied, “Chances are he didn’t know because he was confused, dazed and probably in the state of shock. I don’t even think his sister recognized me, and I never talked to any of them after it happened.”
“You didn’t tell them?” Lizzy said, clearly surprised herself.
“No, I didn’t.” Gary quickly replied. “I didn’t feel it was necessary. My Dad had told me not to go swimming that afternoon. I was out there against orders and chances are if I had listened to my Dad, Hayden would not have made it out of the lake alive. Some will call it luck, others will call it fate. I was fortunate enough to be out there to reach in and pull him out of the water and back into our world. I don’t know which factor led to it, but I was glad to be out there when he needed me.”
“Does anyone else know about this?” Lizzy asked.
“No one,” Gary answered, “I never told a soul about what happened that day. You’re the first.”
Lizzy couldn’t believe what she was hearing. It was clear to her that Hayden had wanted to come back to the lake for personal reasons. He apparently wanted to face that very lake that almost took his live over twenty years ago. “That’s why he wanted to come back. To walk down the beach that nearly took his life.”
“He was lucky to get out alive.” Gary said as he kept walking in the shallow water. “Since that day Hayden had been living on borrowed time. Everything that happened after that day was his second chance. From the details I heard from you and his brother, he made the best of that and did very well with the time he was given.”
“He did.” Lizzy confirmed as she took off her sandals. She walked ankle deep into the water as well and started to stroll with Gary. “Why didn’t you tell anyone what you did? You saved a boy’s life. You deserved to be treated as a hero for what you did.”
“Being there for him was reward enough.” Gary replied as he looked back out. “I didn’t need anyone to tell me what I had done was right. I already knew.”
For the next several minutes they strolled down the beach, not saying a word to one another. Just enjoying the view and each other’s company in a place that to Hayden was very scary for reasons no one knew but himself and the man that pulled him free from the water. She appreciated the fact that Gary had led her to the lake to find out what had really happened. Not even David or his own father had really known what had happened. Gary never told anyone and merely just passed Hayden to his sister who probably didn’t see anything either. Mr. Sheppard would never learn how close Hayden really was to death that afternoon, but he was still scared enough to pack up the family early and call it a vacation. And here she was at that lake Hayden wanted to see again, with the same guardian angel that helped him out the first time he needed it. This time out she was the one that needed help, unaware of any of the details or the lake that Hayden wanted to see. Despite his rough exterior, Gary had reached out to Lizzy in her time of need and revealed that tiny soft side the soldier had, the side that still longed for his teddy bear after all those years. She walked over and gave the big lug a soft hug. “Thanks for your help.”
Gary cracked a grin, the first she had ever seen. “Glad to be of service, Ma’am.” He admitted as he continued to stroll down the shoreline. “Even though I’m supposed to be the tough guy, the romantic in me has a deep respect for what you’re doing.”
“You mean the list?” Lizzy asked, already aware of what he was talking about.
“Yeah.” Gary said as he turned to respond. “I wish there was someone out there who thought of me enough to do that stuff.”
“Too much time in the core to find someone?” Lizzy guessed.
“No, I walked down that aisle already.” Gary admitted as he grabbed a new stone and tossed it into the lake. “It didn’t work out too well.”
“Sorry to hear that.”
“It happens.” he paused for a moment and then turned around. “How many items are left on that list?”
“Ten.” She answered.
“You’re doing really well. Don’t give up now. You’re getting into the homestretch. This is when things will get really difficult, so you’ve got to dig deep and stay the course. Remember why you’re here and that will give you all the energy you need to carry on.”
“The pep talk from the Sergeant Major?” Lizzy asked, slightly sarcastically.
“Kind of.” Gary honestly confessed.
Lizzy paused for a moment and then asked a new question. “How much leave did you apply for?”
“I’m off for the next four weeks. I haven’t taken any leave in six years. You should have seen their faces when I asked.” Gary answered with another grin. “Is there something else on the list you needed help with?”
“Not really.” Lizzy confessed, “But I could use some company.”
“I did notice that Team Hayden has taken a few hits.” Gary observed.
“You could say that.” Lizzy confirmed.
“It happens. In the core we call this attrition.” Gary said, “The deeper you go into a mission the more loses you’re bound to take. Occasionally reinforcements help when making a final push.”
“Are you volunteering?” Lizzy asked.
Gary walked back until he was only a few feet away from Lizzy. “I’m game to help out. Now that we’ve taken a walk by that Lake, I assume number twenty is taken care of. If memory serves me right the next item had something to do with a ball game, right?”
“You would be correct,” Lizzy replied, “See a game at the last ballpark.”
“Do you know where this last ballpark is?” Gary quickly asked.
“As a matter of fact, I do.” Lizzy slyly answered before she turned away and started to walk down the beach in the opposite direction.
“Aren’t you going to tell me?” Gary called out.
“Tomorrow,” She called back, “After you have a chance to pack everything up and get ready to deploy. I’m going to my hotel. I’ll be back around ten in the morning.”
“All right,” Gary conceded, “I’ll be ready to go, oh ten hundred.” He watched her walk away and laughed as he began to realize what he had gotten himself into.