Dead Endz

by Kristen Middleton

  “What happened to her?” I asked.

  My mother cleared her throat. “Before you answer that, would you like to come in and have a cup of coffee, Sheriff?”

  He smiled pleasantly and stepped inside. “Thanks; don’t worry about the coffee though. I really need to be leaving, soon.”

  “So, was she murdered?” asked Nathan.

  The sheriff shook his head. “I don’t think so. She had a history of drinking too much and left a party pretty intoxicated at the time she went missing. She may have fallen into the water and drowned.”

  Nathan frowned. “So, there were no witnesses? Nobody at the party saw her leave?”

  Caleb shook his head. “No. That particular party got a little out of hand and we ended up arresting a few minors that night for intoxication. It was an ugly mess.”

  “Well,” said mom, folding her arms under her chest. “What a horrible thing for her parents.”

  He nodded looking very somber. “They’ve been frantically searching for her. At least Tina’s parents have some closure, now.”

  “How tragic, I can’t possibly imagine how I’d cope in their situation,” mom sighed. “Are you sure you wouldn’t like a cup of coffee? It’ll just take a minute.”

  He smiled. “No, but thanks, again, for the offer. Well, I’d better get going; my daughter’s expecting me home, soon.”

  “Oh, you have children?” asked mom.

  He nodded. “One daughter, Celeste. She’s about your age,” he said to Nathan.

  “Our age,” I said. “Nathan and I are twins.”

  “Of course,” smiled Caleb. “Anyway, being a single parent can be difficult sometimes, especially with my hours.”

  “It’s difficult with normal hours,” replied my mom.

  “And you have twins,” he said, looking at both of us.

  “Yeah, but they’re very good kids,” she said.

  He smiled. “Good, then they won’t have to see much of me.”

  Mom burst out laughing.

  “I’m just kidding,” he said. “Most of the other kids around here are pretty well behaved as well.”

  “Good, then I can relax when Nikki and Nathan go out.”

  He smiled. “I wouldn’t go that far. They’re still teenagers”.

  “So true,” she said, getting off the couch. “Well, thanks for getting out here so quickly. We were all pretty shaken up.”

  His lips thinned. “I’m sure. What a horrible experience for your first night in Shore Lake, too. I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

  “So are we,” she said.

  Caleb nodded and put his hat on. “Well, I’d better get going. I hope the next time we meet it’s under much better circumstances.”

  My mom smiled and walked him to the door. “Me too. Good night, sheriff.”

  “Caleb,” he said.

  She nodded. “Good night, Caleb.”

  It was actually early morning but mom and Caleb didn’t seem to notice. They were too busy staring at each other with their lonely middle-aged hormones. Talk about disturbing.

  “Goodbye sheriff,” said Nathan with a knowing grin.

  “Yeah, see you,” I added with a wave.

  Caleb smiled once more with his gleaming white teeth and then finally left.

  “He’s such a nice man,” said mom.

  “Oh, you hardly know him,” I mumbled.

  Both my mom and brother stared at me in surprise.

  I raised my chin. “Sorry, but it’s true.”

  “Oh for Heaven’s sake, Nikki; don’t be so quick to judge other people.”

  I shrugged and started walking up the steps to my bedroom. “Whatever, I’m going to bed.”

  “She’s just being a crab-ass,” said Nathan.

  “I heard that!” I hollered.

  I knew it was true though. It had been a long day and I was ready to sleep for the next two.

  Chapter Four

  I slept until almost eleven the next morning. Mom was already up drinking coffee and working in her computer when I padded downstairs in my bare feet.

  “Morning,” I mumbled, pouring some coffee for myself. Normally I wasn’t a coffee drinker, but I really needed something stronger than orange juice to perk me up.

  “Good morning,” beamed my mother, who was always a morning person, no matter how late she stayed up.

  “Where’s Nathan?” I asked.

  “He’s outside by the boat. We were thinking about taking it out on the lake within the hour.”

  I yawned. “I’ll eat something and get ready.”

  I took a drink of coffee and walked over to a large window facing the lake. The skies were blue and it looked like a beautiful day. Then I thought about the dead girl from last night.

  “Um, did you actually find her in the lake?” I asked. The idea of swimming in the lake when there’d been a floating body in it the night before was disturbing. I seriously doubted that I could do it.

  “Why?”

  I could tell from her expression that she knew where I was going.

  I shrugged. “It’s just kind of gross to think about swimming in it.”

  My brother entered the kitchen. “Don’t worry Nikki; that lake is so big, I’m sure there are plenty of other bodies lost somewhere beneath the surface. People still swim in it all the time.”

  “That’s gross,” I said with a scowl.

  Mom sighed. “Thanks, Nathan. Listen, people drown and it’s just a fact of life. I’m sure every lake has stories of people disappearing in it, including the ones you’ve swam in the past.”

  “Well, that doesn’t make it sound any more enticing,” I said, putting my coffee mug in the sink.

  ~~~

  An hour later we were racing across the lake in a twenty-five foot Sting Ray. Nathan was grinning from ear to ear, my mom was also smiling and desperately trying to hold her hat to her head, but I was still thinking about the girl in the lake. I just couldn’t shake the horror of knowing there’d been a body near the cabin we were now staying. The fact that my mother and brother were able to push it aside was a little disconcerting, too.

  “This is great!” yelled Nathan over the motor as his light brown hair whipped in the wind. “There’s hardly anyone out here and we have the entire lake to ourselves!”

  It was true but it was also early in the week. From the look of all the boats docked near the shoreline, this place was pretty busy on the weekends.

  Nathan slowed down after crossing the entire lake and set the anchor. “Okay, I’m going for a swim,” he said, smiling.

  “Sounds good,” said mom as she pulled out a book from her tote. “I’m going to read and work on my tan.”

  I handed her some sunscreen. “Not without this, you’ll be a lobster tonight as it is.”

  She smiled and began rubbing some into her skin.

  “Coming in twerp?” asked Nathan, removing his t-shirt.

  “Quit calling me that,” I snarled. “Maybe later I’ll come in and drown you.”

  He dove into the dark water. When he surfaced he yelled, “Wow, it’s really nice! Come on out Nikki. Don’t be such a wimp!”

  I let out a long sigh and stood up. I lifted the beach dress over my head and dove into the water.

  “See,” said Nathan, when I popped my head back out. “It’s not so bad.”

  “I guess not.” And it didn’t hurt that we were on the other side of the lake from where the girl had been found. For some reason, that comforted me a lot.

  A small fishing boat was trolling towards us and I strained to see who was driving it, half expecting the sheriff who’d been making eyes at my mom earlier. Even today she’d caught the attention of a couple fishermen we’d passed by on the lake in her bikini, too. Even I had to admit she looked pretty fit for someone reaching forty.

  “Hi,” waved Nathan at the young man who stopped his boat next to ours.

  The dark haired guy looked about our age, maybe a little older. He was wearing dark sunglas
ses and striped swim trunks. “Hey. Nice boat!” he said.

  Nathan smiled. “It’s not ours but thanks.”

  The stranger removed his sunglasses and returned the smile. “I’m Duncan. You guys vacationing out here?”

  “No,” answered my mom “We’re renting a cabin on the other side of the lake.”

  He nodded. “There are more than enough cabins available on this lake, that’s for sure.”

  “What do you mean?” I asked.

  He stared at me for a minute and then said, “I just meant that some of these cabins are only seasonal homes, so many of the owners rent them out during the year when they’re not in use.”

  “I’m Anne, but the way,” said my mom, “And those two in the water are Nikki and Nathan.”

  He saluted us. “Nice meeting you all.”

  “You too,” replied Nathan.

  I waved my fingers.

  “Do you live on the lake then, Duncan?” asked mom.

  He nodded. “I live with my dad on the north side of the lake. He owns the boat repair shop over there and our cabin is right next to it.”

  “Cool,” said Nathan. “I suppose you get to see a lot of nice boats coming through there.”

  He nodded. “Definitely, my dad’s is the only repair shop nearby and so he’s pretty busy. Because the lake is so big and there’s money on it, we definitely get some nice little yachts coming in for repairs.”

  I swam back over to our boat and climbed up the steps while Nathan and Duncan continued talking boats. As mom handed me a towel, I noticed Duncan steeling glances towards me. When our eyes suddenly met, he looked away.

  “So, what do you guys do for fun here, other than fishing?” asked Nathan.

  Duncan cleared his throat. “Actually the town is having their annual end of summer barbeque this weekend, at Turtle Beach. It’s on the northern side of the lake, too. I’m sure they’ll have tons of food and games. Then at night they’ll launch the fireworks. They do it every year.”

  “Well, we’d better not miss that shindig,” smiled my mom.

  He nodded. “It’s a pretty big deal. Almost everyone in town will be there.”

  “Will you be there?” I blurted out without thinking. I surprised everyone, even myself.

  Duncan stared at me for a moment and smiled. “I wasn’t planning on it, but I might change my mind.”

  I could feel my face burning and it wasn’t from the sun. “I, um... I just think it would be nice for Nathan to meet someone closer to our age to hang out with.” Which was only half the truth; even I had to admit that Duncan was cute and had nicely sculpted pecks.

  He nodded and looked at Nathan. “If you’re bored, you should stop by the shop, later today. We just took in this mint Bluewater yacht that is incredible. I might even know someone with the keys who could give you a secret tour.”

  “I might do that, thanks,” said Nathan.

  “You ladies are invited too, of course,” said Duncan.

  “Thanks,” said mom, “but maybe another time. I have too much to do this afternoon.”

  “Okay. Well, I’d better get going. I’ll be around the shop all evening. Hope to see you there,” said Duncan, his eyes meeting mine. Then he started the engine and was gone.

  “That’s cool,” said Nathan as he got back on the boat after Duncan left. “Now I can check some nice boats while Nikki checks out Duncan.”

  I gasped and slapped him on the shoulder. “Very funny,”

  He laughed. “Come on, I saw the way you were drooling over him!”

  “I was not!”

  My mom smiled and added her two cents. “Actually, I noticed a little extra interest myself.”

  “Whatever, you guys are seeing things. Anyway, you both should talk, what about that red-head in the parking lot yesterday and sheriff, “White Strips.”

  My mom looked confused. “Sheriff White Strips?”

  Nathan nodded. “Yeah, Caleb. His teeth were whiter than your skin mom. Bleached white.”

  This time mom got up and slapped him playfully. “Very funny,”

  “Sorry, couldn’t resist,” laughed Nathan as he started the engine. “Let’s go back home, I’m starving.”

  Nathan punched it down and we were back near our neck of the woods in no time. As we slowed down we noticed a middle-aged woman sitting on her dock, fishing. She smiled and raised her hand in greeting.

  “Must be our neighbor,” said mom, waving back. “Ernie mentioned that she was recently widowed. I think he said her name was Abigail. Very nice woman, I guess. Maybe it would be a good idea if I stopped by later and said “hello”.”

  I nodded. “That’s a good idea. She’s probably lonely.”

  Nathan docked the boat and we helped him as he tied it down.

  I looked down into the brown water and shivered. “Must be pretty deep, right here.”

  Nathan nodded. “It is. That’s why they built the dock this distance from the shore. It’s safer for the boat.”

  I wondered if there were any more dead bodies below and started to feel queasy.

  “I’ll meet you guys on shore,” I said, rushing away.

  “Are you okay?” called my mom.

  “Just a little too much sun,” I shouted back. As I passed by the area where the body was found on shore, I averted my eyes and forced myself to keep going.

  I waited on the porch and as soon as my brother climbed the steps, he stared at me with concern. “You’re really freaked out about that girl, aren’t you?”

  I nodded. “Aren’t you?”

  He sighed. “I’m trying to forget about it. It was a tragic mistake she made when she started drinking that night and hopefully her friends have learned from it. But I’m not going to dwell on it and either should you. Heck, you didn’t even see the girl, I discovered her. I should be the one wigging out about it.”

  I nodded. “I know. It’s just so creepy.”

  He put an arm around my shoulder. “It is, but you have to let it go. Or mom will send you to a shrink, which she should have done a long time ago.”

  I pushed him away. “Ha, ha.”

  Mom met us on the porch and took out her keys. “Whew, it’s getting hot out here. Thank goodness for air conditioning.”

  “Summer’s almost over, mom. Then you’ll be complaining about the cold. I heard it gets really cold here,” I said.

  “That’s when the fireplace will come in handy,” she said.

  Nathan cleared his throat. “Nikki, go get dressed and we’ll drive into town and check it out. I need to start looking for a job, too.”

  “Yeah,” I replied. I’d worked at a boutique back home and my savings was starting to dwindle. I wanted my own car soon so I didn’t have to rely on Nathan all the time.

  “Then we’ll go check out your boyfriend’s boat repair shop,” he said.

  “You’re just full of jokes today,” I said.

  Just then my mother, who’d been checking the cabin phone’s voicemail, started smiling. She hung up the phone and stared at us. “Guess who asked me to dinner?”

  I groaned. “Sheriff Snagle Tooth?”

  She frowned. “That’s not nice Nikki. He seems like a very nice man.”

  “You going for it, mom?” asked Nathan.

  “I don’t know. Maybe I’ll just invite him over to our house tonight for dinner. Can you pick up a couple of steaks in town, Nathan?

  He nodded. “But if you want wine, you’ll have to get it yourself.”

  She snorted. “That’s the last thing I need, to get tipsy in front of the town’s sheriff.”

  Nathan smiled wickedly. “He can handcuff you if you get too out of hand.”

  Her eyes lit up. “Oh, I never thought of that.”

  “You’re sick,” I said climbing the staircase. “Both of you.”

  My mom, who was still cracking up, said, “I can’t wait until the love bug nips you in the butt. I am going to tease the crap out of you.”

  “That’s not happe
ning anytime soon,” I said.

  “We’ll see,” she said.

  “Be ready in thirty minutes, twerp” called Nathan. “We’ll go cruising.”

  Chapter Five

  I took a quick shower and changed into a dark blue halter sundress and white sandals. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and applied a little lip gloss.

  “You look pretty,” smiled my mother as I entered the kitchen, looking for Nathan.

  I looked down at my dress and shrugged. “Oh, it was one of the few things already unpacked.”

  She gave me a knowing smile and kissed the top of my head. “Don’t break too many hearts in town.”

  “Ha, ha, mom. Very funny. ” I said, although I did feel sort of pretty in the new dress.

  Nathan was polishing up his Mustang when I found him outside. The red paint gleamed in the sun when he was finished.

  “Now I’ll definitely be a chic magnet,” he teased, flexing his muscles. “Don’t take offense if I ask you to duck down when the ladies are scoping me out.”

  “You’re such a dork,” I said, shaking my head.

  I got into the car and we took our time driving back into town.

  “Hear from Deanna yet today?” I asked.

  He sighed. “Yeah, she called freaking out again. I just don’t know what to do about her. I mean, the more I think about it, the more I realize that I’m tired of the drama. Then I look at this town we’ve moved to and I think about all the possibilities.”

  I smiled. “You mean all the chics?”

  “Hell, yeah,” he laughed.

  I shook my head at my brother who was so predictable.

  “Okay, keep your eyes open for something interesting,” said Nathan. “Both of us need jobs.”

  As we entered the town I pointed right away to a diner called “Ruth’s”. “Let’s stop in there and see if they’re hiring,” I said.

  “Good idea,” said Nathan. “I’m hungry again, too.”

  We were seated by a frazzled looking waitress who appeared to be one of only two working. It was only three in the afternoon but the place was packed.