Submerged

by Cheryl Kaye Tardif

  "Did he have pants on, or a skirt?

  Ella giggled. "A skirt."

  Colton shook his head. "Pants. Jeans. Really old and dirty ones, like my dad's work jeans for when he fixes the car."

  Marcus nodded. "Now we're getting somewhere. Do you remember what color his jacket was?"

  "He wasn't wearing one. He had a T-shirt on."

  "A plain one, or did it have words or a design?"

  "Both." Colton scrunched his eyes, trying to remember. "It had…a car on it. And maybe a street name…I think." His eyes flared open. "And he had a baseball cap on. Edmonton Oilers. That's why I couldn't see his hair." His voice grew excited. "Did I do a good job remembering?"

  "Excellent job. Did you tell the detective all this?"

  "I just remembered now, except for the jeans."

  Marcus took out his cell phone and called Zur. He relayed the info about the man at the gas station. "Oiler's cap, old, dirty jeans and a T-shirt with a car and a street name on it."

  "I'll get one of our guy's on it," Zur said. "We'll bring in some photos of T-shirt logos later tonight. Maybe we'll get lucky and someone else saw this guy."

  "What about a security camera? Does the gas station have one?"

  "Yeah, we had a tech guy on it already. We did see one guy near the door when Mrs. Kingston and her kids went inside. But we couldn't identify him."

  "What about his vehicle?"

  "He parked out of view of the cameras."

  "Shit." Marcus gazed at the kids, who were smirking at him. "I mean, shoot."

  "You said a bad word," Ella mumbled as soon as he hung up.

  "Yeah, I did. Sorry."

  "That's okay," Colton said. He lowered his voice so Ella couldn't hear him. "My dad says the F-word sometimes."

  Marcus didn't know what to say to that.

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Hinton, AB – Saturday, June 15, 2013 – 6:46 AM

  When Rebecca opened her eyes, the early morning sun lit her hospital room with an orange glow. She didn't have a clue what time it was, but she realized where she was—and why.

  Her head swam as she tried to move it.

  Someone patted her hand. A young nurse. "Everything's okay, Mrs. Kingston. Your surgery went well, and your kids are right next door."

  "Can I see them?" Rebecca rasped.

  "Dr. Monroe wants you to rest awhile first. You don't want your kids to see you all groggy, do you?"

  "No, I guess not."

  "Besides," the nurse said, moving to the door. "You have another visitor. Are you up for it?"

  "Who is it?"

  "A man. Police maybe. Sorry, I didn't get his name. Should I go ask?"

  "That's okay. Let him in."

  Rebecca licked her lips. Her mouth was dry and her throat hurt. But the pressure she'd felt around her ribs and chest was gone.

  She lifted the covers.

  "I think everything's where it's supposed to be," someone said.

  She dropped the sheets and saw a man standing in the doorway. His face was grizzled but attractive, and his pale gray-blue eyes twinkled.

  She blinked. "Marcus, I can't believe you're still here. I figured you'd gone home."

  "And miss this happy reunion? Not likely." He crossed the room and stood by the bed. "I promised to meet you here, and I'm a man of my word."

  "Yes, you are. But I didn't expect you to wait here for hours."

  He shrugged. "Who said I did? Maybe I went out for dinner, or went shopping."

  She chuckled. "The doctor said there was a man pestering everyone for status updates on me every fifteen minutes, while I was in the operating room. I know that wasn't Wesley."

  "How are you feeling?"

  "Like I was run off the road by a maniac."

  Marcus's face drooped.

  "Sorry. Bad joke." She gingerly touched her stomach. "I'm pretty banged up."

  "That's what you get for driving into a river."

  She tried to smile, but it made her head hurt. "Wasn't exactly done on purpose."

  "I know." He studied the soft contours of her face. "You do clean up well."

  "That's good to know. So do you."

  He offered her the glass of water that was beside her bed, and she took a sip before saying, "How are my kids?"

  Marcus pulled a chair to the side of her bed and sat down. "Your son and daughter are enjoying their sugar high at Hotel Hinton."

  She frowned, then realized he meant the hospital. "I hope they're behaving."

  "They're fine. Right now they're watching Shrek." He paused for a minute. "I hope that's all right."

  "Yeah."

  She couldn't take her eyes off his face. This was the man who had saved her. And her children. Those eyes and smile belonged to the man who had talked to her when she wanted nothing more than to scream and cry. He'd kept her sane when her world was pure insanity.

  "Uh, do I have pudding on my face?" he asked.

  She smiled. "Sorry for staring. It's just that you…" She didn't know what to say next.

  "I know. You're trying to figure out how a guy with such a sexy voice like mine could look like this." He rubbed his bristly chin.

  She held back a laugh. "Not exactly what I was thinking. But yeah, you could use a shave."

  Marcus shrugged. "I've been a little busy. You know, being a superhero and all." He leaned back in the chair and stretched his legs beneath her bed.

  "Wow. You're quite modest."

  He grinned. "I'm repeating what you called me."

  The man was more than charming. He was flirting with her. She couldn't recall the last time a man had done that. It felt kind of good.

  "Feel up to talking about the truck?" he asked.

  "I see. First you get me all comfortable and unsuspecting, and then you bring on the questions."

  "Sorry. It can wait."

  "I was teasing." She released a long sigh, then added, "I didn't see much. A truck with those hunting lights. The truck was a dark color. That's all I remember."

  "And Wesley doesn't own a truck like that."

  She eyed him. "No. And he'd never hurt his kids." She could tell when he squinted down at the floor that he didn't believe her. "He wouldn't, Marcus."

  "Colton saw a man outside the gas station when you stopped."

  "Really? I didn't see anyone."

  "You were busy getting the key. The guy wore an Oilers cap, a T-shirt with a car on it and dirty jeans."

  She shut her eyes, willing herself to remember. "I didn't see him."

  "You said you saw a couple of cars and a truck in the parking lot. Where were they exactly?"

  Opening her eyes, she nodded. "The cars were near the pumps. The truck was…" She sucked in a sharp breath.

  Marcus jumped to his feet. "Are you okay? Want me to call the doctor?"

  "No. I'm fine. It's not that." She licked her lips again. "I remembered something."

  "What?"

  "That truck had lights on the top, like the one that ran me off the road."

  "Are you sure?" Marcus asked, sitting again.

  "I didn't think of it before because they weren't turned on at the gas station. The truck was idling, but the lights were off. Even the headlights." She caught his gaze. "That's weird, isn't it? Usually if you stop and idle the engine, you don't turn off the headlights."

  Marcus nodded. "I think that's your truck."

  "It was blue!" she blurted. "That shiny metallic blue. Navy blue."

  "You sure?"

  "Positive. The lights around the gas pumps lit it up."

  "Anything else?"

  She smiled. "When I drove away, I passed the truck. I wasn't really paying attention, but I did look in my rearview mirror."

  "What did you see?"

  "Balls." She blushed. "You know, those metal bull balls some guys hang on the hitch of their trucks."

  Marcus chuckled. "Ah, those cool cowboy wannabes."

  "Rednecks."

  They both laughed.

&
nbsp; "So," he said, "you saw a navy blue metallic truck with hunting lights on top and bull balls on the hitch."

  When he put it like that, she had to grin. But her smile faded fast. "Why would someone do this?"

  "We’re not sure. My friend Detective Zur is working on it. They're looking at the security footage from the gas station."

  "But you all think Wesley had something to do with this."

  "Do you have any enemies?"

  "No. Not that I know of."

  "Has Wesley pissed anyone off lately?"

  "Probably."

  "That's why the police are considering him a suspect." Marcus leaned forward and picked up her hand. "We have a guard on your door, Rebecca. The kids too. Whoever did this might come back."

  "Because I'm still alive," she said in a small voice.

  "Yes."

  "Are you going back to work?"

  He released her hand. "I've taken a…leave of absence."

  She sat up on her elbows. "It wasn't a voluntary leave, was it?"

  Marcus's gaze shifted to the wall, then the window. "I'm on suspension. Until an investigation is completed. It's the price you pay when you break the rules."

  "I'm sorry."

  His eyes snapped back to hers. "Hey, don't be. I'm not. I could use a little break."

  "I guess being a 911 operator isn't easy."

  "Some days."

  "And this was one of them," she said dryly.

  He shrugged. "It was a challenging day." Then he grinned. "But I'd be kind of a lame superhero if I didn't face challenges."

  "Well, I'm your number-one fan."

  "Speaking of numbers," he said. "Remember when I told you about Jane's habit of adding dates?"

  "Yeah."

  "And you said the thirteenth was an unlucky day to plan your trip?"

  Where's this leading? "Uh-huh."

  "According to Jane you have to add up all the numbers and boil them down to a single digit. So June is six. Plus thirteen. That's nineteen. Then you add the one and nine, which equals ten. Then you add the one and zero, which equals—"

  "Sounds pretty convoluted," she said with a laugh.

  "I'm not done. One and zero equals one. Then add the numbers in the year 2013, which equals six. Then add that to the one, and voila!"

  She grinned. "Seven. A lucky day. Really?"

  He shrugged. "You're still here."

  "You're right. That's pretty lucky, all things considered."

  She yawned and he clambered to his feet. "I'll let you rest."

  "For a bit," she agreed. "Then I want to see my kids."

  Marcus walked to the door. "Sweet dreams."

  "Wait!"

  He turned back.

  "Today's June fifteenth, 2013," she said. "What does that add up to?"

  "Nine," he said after a moment.

  "What's a nine mean?"

  He smiled at her. "I'm fairly confident it means 'out with old and in with the new.' Means you've completed a cycle, and tomorrow you can start anew."

  As the door closed behind him, she contemplated his words. Could she really start fresh? Was tomorrow the beginning of a new life? And would Marcus Taylor be part of that life?

  To all three questions, she thought, I sure hope so.

  Chapter Twenty- Nine

  Hinton, AB – Saturday, June 15, 2013 – 7:12 AM

  While Colton and Ella visited with their mother, Marcus sat in the kids' room and probed Zur for information. "She remember anything else?"

  "Nothing. And we've checked the husband out thoroughly. His alibi checks out. Witnesses state he was in the bar in Fort McMurray when all this went down."

  "Maybe he hired someone and paid cash."

  "We found no large withdrawals that couldn't be accounted for."

  "The guy's a gambler, John. Maybe he won some money and used that to finance the trucker."

  "We're looking into every possibility."

  "You check her past?"

  "Rebecca Kingston's?"

  Marcus nodded.

  "She's clean. No priors, no arrests. Not even a speeding ticket."

  "No weird religious affiliations?"

  "You mean like a cult?"

  "Wouldn't be the first time a cult went after a mother."

  "No, she's Presbyterian."

  "Really? Your investigation went that deep that it looked at her religion?"

  Zur grinned. "It was on her hospital chart, Marcus."

  "Oh."

  There was silence in the room.

  Marcus scratched his head. Who the hell wants Rebecca dead? Who benefits?

  "You still think it's the ex?" Zur said.

  "It's almost always the ex." When Zur squinted at him, Marcus added, "I watch a lot of Law & Order."

  "Believe me, we're still looking into Wesley Kingston. He's rubbed shoulders with some wrong people over the years because of his gambling debts. Maybe Mrs. Kingston wasn't the target. Maybe her husband was."

  "You think maybe someone was trying to send him a warning?"

  "Makes sense. He rakes up debts and can't pay, and they go after him. Maybe they thought he was driving the car. Or they decided to get at him via his wife and kids. Would give most guys incentive to pay up."

  Marcus rubbed his face. "Addictions, hey. Screws everyone's life up."

  "Unless they make a choice to get help." Zur patted his arm. "How are you doing?"

  Marcus shrugged. "You know how it is. Go to meetings, feel guilty, want to use, go back to meetings, feel guilty. It's a vicious circle."

  "But you're doing it. You made the right choice." Zur released a heavy sigh. "Last thing I want to do is get called to a scene and find you dead. You're too good of a guy to go down that path. Remember that. People need you."

  Like Rebecca and her kids?

  Marcus thought about them, how it would be a whole other outcome if he hadn't picked up the phone last night and taken her 911 call. Sure, Leo would've done his best to help her, but he played by the rules. Most of the time.

  "Listen," Zur said. "I have to leave. I'm going to swing by some of the casinos, talk to the people there. Maybe we'll get a break."

  "You have to catch this guy, John."

  "We will. Count on it."

  Marcus watched his friend move down the hallway. As soon as Zur stepped into the elevator, Marcus turned to the guard and said, "I'll be back in an hour or so. If Rebecca or the kids need me—"

  "I'll tell 'em."

  There was someplace Marcus needed to be. Badly.

  When he entered the small hall twenty minutes later, Marcus tried to be inconspicuous. With some hesitation at being in unfamiliar surroundings, he scanned the room, took note of the strangers there and sat down on a chair in the back row.

  "My name is Bert," the man at the podium said, "and I'm an addict."

  "Welcome, Bert," Marcus murmured with the group, as he fought to control the overwhelming need that raced through every nerve in his body.

  He was so focused on his breathing that he didn't notice when someone sat next to him. But he did notice when his arm was nudged. He looked up.

  Leo grinned. "I knew I'd find you here."

  "What are you doing here?" Marcus whispered.

  Leo lowered his voice. "Came to see you."

  "I'm okay, Leo."

  "Yeah, I can see that. That's why you're sitting at an NA meeting."

  "I'm not going to use."

  "That's good to hear."

  A woman in front of them swiveled her head and glared. "Shh…"

  Like a scolded schoolboy, Marcus folded his hands in his lap. Leo followed suit. They sat quietly for the duration of the meeting, each fighting their own personal demons.

  Afterward, Leo said, "Let's grab a bite to eat."

  Marcus followed him outside. "Take one car?"

  "Sure. I'll drive."

  Marcus followed Leo to his car and climbed in the passenger seat. Leo settled in behind the wheel, but didn't start the car.

&
nbsp; "What's up?" Marcus asked.

  Leo shook his head slowly. "Thought I was gonna lose you, man."

  "Well, you didn't. You're stuck with me."

  Leo squinted at him. "Was it worth it?"

  "You mean breaking the rules, getting suspended and finding Rebecca and the kids?"

  "Yeah."

  "Worth every second. I'd do it again."

  Leo sighed. "That's what I'm afraid of."

  Marcus grinned. "Hey, don't worry about me. Really. I've never felt better. Feels like my life is finally falling into place. Like a burden's been lifted off my chest. I'd never realized how hard it was to breathe before."

  "So tell me, how exactly did you find them?"

  "Divine intervention."

  "What, you seeing ghosts again, or did God speak to you this time?"

  Marcus chuckled. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

  "Ghosts or God?"

  "Maybe a bit of both. Hell, I don't know. Maybe I imagined it all."

  "Who'd you see—Jane?"

  Marcus's smile faded. "So clearly I could almost touch her. And this time I wasn't dreaming."

  "How do you know?"

  "Because I was driving. Last night I saw Jane standing in the middle of the road, then sitting in the back seat of my car. It's not the first time either."

  "You've seen Jane's ghost before?"

  Marcus nodded. "And Ryan's."

  Leo's mouth gaped open, but he remained silent.

  "You don't believe me, Leo?"

  "I believe you believe."

  "Then I should probably tell you about the first time I saw ghosts. Remember when I went out to that cabin near Cadomin Cave? While I was there, I was using, but that doesn't explain everything that happened."

  "Like what?"

  "Like the gifts I started receiving on my doorstep. Or the children I saw in the woods."

  Leo shrugged. "You probably weren't the only one renting a cabin."

  "Actually, besides me and maybe three oil workers, there was no one else except Irma, the owner of the cabins."

  "And no kids."

  "Not a one. In fact, Irma said the last kids who'd been in the area had died in a fire."

  "You think you saw their ghosts?"

  "What else could they have been? I didn't know anything about those kids before I saw them. And nothing else explains the bizarre things I found outside my cabin." He frowned and scratched his chin. "I was there right before that mother—you know, the one whose son went missing back then. He was kidnapped by The Fog."