Lake Effect

by K C Gillis

  Scanning the parking lot, Jordan noticed another spectator. Unlike the others, this one sat in his car in a parking spot close to the maintenance building. This particular car, a black BMW M4 Coupe, was definitely at a higher price point than most cars in the lot. But it didn’t scream “boater” to Jordan. To her, it said either banker or drug dealer. The man in the driver’s seat faced the forklift’s direction and appeared to be talking on his phone. Jordan couldn’t make out much detail through the heavily tinted windows but made a note to try to get a look at him if he got out of his car.

  Jordan saw Derek approach, his face stern and covered with sweat.

  “What’s up?” she asked as he got close.

  “Mike told me to knock off. Pulling forklifts out of boats isn’t my specialty. Most of the service and maintenance team is here now. I need a drink. How about you?”

  “Sure. I can introduce you to my sister. She got here just before the forklift accident.”

  “No shit? So your cover story is now technically true. Perfect.”

  Rachel had left the parking lot area a few minutes earlier to find the restroom. She told Jordan it was part of her new pregnant reality. Jordan found her at their spot at the bar with a fresh drink in front of her.

  “Rachel, this is Derek. He’s an instructor here. Not to mention Kasey’s boyfriend and the police chief’s son.”

  Derek extended his hand. “Nice to meet you. I see good looks run in the family.”

  “Seriously, Derek, put away the cheesy one-liners,” Kasey said. “You’re embarrassing me.”

  “It’s not a problem,” Rachel said. “I’ll take all the flattery I can get.”

  Derek sat down heavily on a barstool. “I could really use a cold beer.”

  “Fresh drinks for those who need them, coming right up.”

  Jordan couldn’t wait to get some information. “Derek, what do you think happened with the forklift?”

  “It looks like it just drove right out of the maintenance shed and kept going until it hit something. In this case, our outdoor storage racks.”

  Jordan asked the obvious question. “Did it get away from someone who was using it?”

  “There wasn’t anyone using it. It had been parked inside the building from earlier in the day.”

  “So how do you think it got out?”

  “Honestly? I have no logical explanation at all.”

  “How about an illogical one?”

  Derek shook his head. “There just isn’t anything that makes sense. It’s like someone started the forklift, pointed it toward the storage rack, and then jumped off. How likely is that?”

  Jordan was glad Derek said it out loud. This was the exact notion that had been floating around her brain since the accident. If it had come from her, it would have sounded like reporter overexaggeration.

  “Is what you said actually possible?” Jordan asked. “Could someone jump off and the forklift not stop or shut itself off? I remember my dad had a lawn tractor that would shut off if the driver got out of the seat.”

  “There is something called an operational-presence system that should prevent the forklift from operating without someone in the seat,” Derek explained. “But I also know from the guys in the shop you can disable that feature. If anyone ever did that and Mike found out, they’d be fired. The liability is all on Mike.”

  “So someone could have set the forklift in motion and gotten off?”

  “Sure.”

  “What are you saying, Jordan?” Rachel asked. “That this could have been done on purpose?”

  “I still need to catch you up on everything, but, yes, I am. This is the third strange accident since I’ve been here. And the second with an unmanned vehicle. I wouldn’t rule out something intentional.”

  Kasey had come back with the drinks. “If you’re actually right, then we need to tell my dad. He’ll be wrecked to think someone is doing this on purpose.”

  “He may be wrecked,” Derek said, “but I can tell you he’s already getting paranoid. He kept pestering my dad that these accidents can’t all be coincidental.”

  “I have something to share,” Jordan said. “But I want to keep it among us for now. Deal?”

  Everyone agreed.

  “Right after I got up to the parking lot and saw the accident, I noticed someone in the maintenance building. He was hugging the inside of the doorway and watching the aftermath. When he saw me looking at him, he took off inside the building. He was wearing something dark. Maybe a sweatshirt, not any of those staff shirts I’ve seen here.”

  “Really?” Kasey said. “Did you get a good look or try to get closer?”

  “No. I was about to go over when your mom came up and asked me some questions. By the time she left, he was gone.”

  “Damn,” Derek said. “So that’s why you think this may have been on purpose. I get it now.”

  “What about surveillance?” Rachel asked. “There must be a security system in place.”

  “Right,” Jordan added. “You must have something?”

  “Yes and no,” Derek said. “We have an external system to monitor the grounds. But we’re upgrading it with a new system where everything is Wi-Fi connected. As for inside the maintenance building, we have nothing.”

  “OK, so nothing there.” Jordan remembered the guy in the BMW. “Oh, I almost forgot. Did you see the guy sitting in a BMW?”

  “Do you mean the one parked near the maintenance building?” Derek said.

  “Yeah, that’s the one.”

  “I was wondering who that was. I’d love to take a ride in that.”

  “Why are you asking?” Kasey said.

  “I’m not sure. It’s just that he was the only real onlooker of the accident who stayed in his car. That seemed out of place.”

  “I’ll take a look later,” Derek said. “Right now, I need to finish my beer.”

  Alice went inside the main building to the offices behind the showroom. Mike had a dedicated office, but there were a couple of general-purpose offices that some of the marina staff could use. She needed to make a call, and it had to be done with privacy.

  “Alice,” Chris said, “I wasn’t expecting to hear from you.”

  “Hi, Chris. We need to talk.”

  “Really? About what?”

  “About Copper Lake. And the marina.” Alice sensed the hesitation on the other end of the line.

  After a momentary pause, Chris replied, “What specifically is on your mind?”

  “There are some weird things going on up here, and I’m worried. You might have to speed up your plan.”

  “Hold on. One thing at a time. What’s happening up there?”

  “There have been some accidents. Strange ones.” Alice went through the different accidents and how they seemed like they had happened on purpose. She felt far from calm but forced herself to at least act calm.

  “All right. I see why you’re concerned. Are you sure there’s not a logical explanation for what happened?”

  “Jesus, do you think I’m an idiot? The facts are simple. None of these things could have happened without someone starting them.”

  “Fine, fine. I’m not trying to insult you. Let’s assume you’re right and that someone is doing this on purpose. What does that have to do with me?”

  “I don’t know for sure. But it can’t be good.”

  “I’m sure there’s nothing to be worried about.”

  “So you say. But let me ask you a question. Have you had anyone approach Mike about selling the marina?”

  “Absolutely not. Why are you asking?”

  Alice decided that Chris needed to know. “Mike met with someone the other day. I had never seen the guy before. But I overheard him make an offer for the marina.”

  Silence. It felt like seconds to Alice. “Chris, did you hear me?”

  “Yes, yes, I heard you. Are you sure that’s what you heard?”

  “I couldn’t make out everything they said, but I heard the guy with
Mike say the offer was very generous.”

  “And you’re sure Mike said no?”

  Alice let out a small laugh. “I didn’t need to hear that part. Mike doesn’t want to sell this place. Probably not ever. At least not without some real persuasion on my part.”

  “Do you know anything about who made the offer?”

  “No. I’d recognize the guy if I saw him again. Do you want me to ask Mike about it?”

  “I don’t think we have a choice. I need to know who it is.”

  “OK. I’ll ask.”

  “Good. Let me know right away. Now, I’ve got a question for you.”

  “Oh? What is it?”

  “Do you happen to know if there’s a reporter in town? Someone from Boston?”

  “Not that I know of. Why?”

  “Nothing important. I just heard that someone was digging around, maybe sticking their nose where it doesn’t belong.”

  “I’ll keep an eye out. Do you know what he looks like?”

  “It’s a she. I think she’s young. Pretty. Black hair. I haven’t actually seen her myself.”

  Alice knew right away who it must be. If Chris was worried about a reporter, he was hiding something. From her as well as others. “That helps. I’ll let you know if I see her.”

  “Great, thanks. I’ve got to go. We’ll talk soon.”

  “Chris, wait.” Alice hated to ask this. It made her feel like she was begging, and she didn’t beg for anything. “When will I see you again? It’s been too long.”

  Chris cleared his throat. “I’m not sure. But soon. I’ll make some time. Let me know what you learn about the buyer.”

  Alice barely had a chance to say bye before Chris ended the call.

  21

  The marina bar was still busy at ten p.m. The air was warm and humid, with just a hint of a breeze. Jordan and Rachel had stayed in pretty much the same place the entire evening, with Derek coming and going as he bounced around from different groups of people he knew. Kasey was still hard at work and making a killing in tips.

  “Are you ready to head out?” Rachel asked. “I’m beat and need some sleep.”

  “Is that what it’s like being pregnant?” Jordan said. “In bed before midnight?”

  “I’m always in bed before midnight. Otherwise, I’d never be able to get up at five a.m. and drag my ass to the gym before work. Since I’m here at this beautiful lake, I thought I’d convince you to join me for a morning swim.”

  “You might be able to convince me. But we’ll have to get in the water early. I don’t want to get run over by a boat.”

  “Deal.”

  As they stood up to leave, Jordan looked at her phone and saw that she had a voice mail. She’d completely forgotten she’d ignored a call earlier in the day. Whoever had called must have left a message. “Hang on, sis. I’ve got a voice mail I forgot to check earlier.” Jordan played the message:

  “Ms. Reed, this is Mary from the UPS Store you were at this morning. I shouldn’t be telling you this, but you seemed nice and I thought you should know. Well, um, after you left, a cop came in and asked to see the package. He made me tell him what was inside, and when I did, he said he needed to confiscate it. I didn’t want to let him take it, but my manager said I had better cooperate. Anyway, I’m sorry about the package. If you call back, I’m sure I can give you a refund. I don’t think that police chief will bring the package back. Please don’t tell my manager or the cop I told you. Sorry.”

  “That son of a bitch,” Jordan said. She sat back down on her seat, her shoulders sagging. She put her bag on her lap, her arms on top of the bag.

  “What is it?” Rachel said.

  “Remember I told you I came here to investigate what killed a bunch of fish? Well, I sent one of the dead fish to a friend at the CDC to get it tested.”

  “Right. Makes sense.”

  “Yeah, well, that was the UPS Store. Apparently, the chief confiscated the package. It didn’t get sent.”

  “What? Really? Can he do that?”

  “I sure as hell don’t know what he can and can’t do. But he did it anyway.”

  “What are you going to do now?”

  “I need Derek. He has another fish.”

  Jordan looked around the bar but didn’t see Derek.

  As she stood, scanning the immediate vicinity for any sign of Derek, she got Kasey’s attention and mouthed “Derek” to her. Kasey pointed toward the docks. Jordan followed the direction Kasey indicated and saw someone sitting in a boat. It looked to be the same boat that Derek had used to show her the lake.

  “Let’s go talk to Derek,” Jordan said to Rachel.

  They headed down to the docks. The boat was well lit with some internal lights, and Jordan could hear music playing at a low volume. It was definitely Derek in the boat, reclined on the leather seating in the bow compartment.

  “Hey there,” he said as Jordan and Rachel reached the dock. “Please come aboard.” Jordan and Rachel stepped onto the boat from the stern and walked to the bow and sat down. “What’s up?” Derek asked.

  “We have a problem,” Jordan said.

  “It better not be another accident. That would be the end for Mike.”

  “No, nothing like that. But nothing good. It’s your dad.”

  That got Derek’s attention. He sat more upright, putting his feet on the floor of the boat. “What did he do now?”

  “He took the fish. The one I thought I sent to my friend.”

  “Shit. He must have gone into the UPS Store after you left. When did you find out?”

  “Well, I just listened to the message they left me. It came in earlier today, but I forgot to check it.”

  Jordan could see Derek doing some mental calculations. “If he took the fish, then he knows you got it from me. He’s going to be pissed.”

  “Sure. But did you get the last fish to Kasey?”

  “No. I was going to get it to her tomorrow. What should we do?”

  “Simple. We need to get to your place and get that fish. If we’re not too late.”

  “What do you mean ‘we’? After what you told me about today, if my dad sees you at the house, he might decide to arrest you.”

  “Arrest me? For what?”

  “I don’t know. But he could. For a day or two, at least.”

  “I’ll take my chances. We need that fish. If we don’t get it tested, we’ve got nothing. So I’m coming with you. If your dad is there, I’ll park on the street and wait for you.”

  “Promise me that you won’t let him see you.”

  “I promise. Let’s go already.”

  22

  Jordan and Rachel followed Derek for the short drive to his place. Before turning left into the driveway, Derek stopped, and with his arm out the window, gave a stop signal like a cyclist would use. Jordan concluded his dad was home. To conceal her car, she did a three-point turn to face the direction from which they came and parked her car as far on the shoulder of the road as she could.

  Jordan texted Derek to remind him that she’d be waiting until he came out with the fish.

  Jordan was happy to sit in silence, but Rachel wasn’t. “What’s really going on up here? It sure looks like you’ve got yourself in a big mess.”

  “This isn’t big. Just a little messy. My plan was simple. Come up here, see if there was any sign of what killed the fish. Get one tested. Then either find the cause or go home. But Derek’s dad seems to not want anything about the fish to get out. For me, that’s the real story.”

  “Why do you think he’d want to cover this up? Just to protect the town’s reputation as a lake retreat?”

  “That’s the simplest explanation. But if there’s something wrong with the lake that’s killing the fish, it won’t go away just by covering up what happened. He’s making things worse, because it will happen again. Only the next time, it could kill more fish. Or worse. Maybe it’s harmful to people. It would eventually come out that he covered it up once, and he’d be blamed
. The chief seems too smart for that.”

  “So that leaves what? Do you think he knows the cause?”

  “He might. Why else would he have acted so quickly to get rid of the evidence? He has to know something. When I know what killed the fish, then I can act.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “If there’s a cause of death that the chief knows of, the source has to be nearby. I’ll find it. Even if I have to follow the chief.”

  Rachel’s face responded in a look of pure surprise at what her little sister was proposing. “No way. You can’t seriously think you can get away with following a cop?”

  “Why not? It’s not against the law to be in the same vicinity as him. Besides, he knows something. That’s the only explanation for his actions.”

  “You better not get arrested. I don’t want to bail you out of jail.”

  “Relax. I won’t get arrested.”

  Jordan’s phone buzzed. It was a text from Derek. As she looked at her screen, four more messages appeared. Jordan had to read them twice to make sure she was reading them correctly.

  Dad wants to talk about the fish

  I don’t think I can get at the second one

  You need to get it

  Go through garage, turn right, go down basement stairs to freezer

  Wrapped in newsprint

  “Oh shit,” Jordan said. “Derek wants me to get the fish.”

  “You mean from Derek, right?”

  “Not exactly.” Jordan showed Rachel her phone.

  “You can’t be serious. If the chief sees you, he’ll definitely arrest you. It’s too dangerous. No, wait. It’s too stupid.”

  “If I don’t, we’ll lose the only real evidence that there were any dead fish in the first place. The chief probably didn’t think Derek had two fish, but if he pressures him now, Derek may crack. I’ve gotta get in there.”

  “Fine. I don’t like it, but I’ll be here if you need help.”

  “Thanks, sis.”

  Jordan got out of the car and walked toward the Fosters’ driveway. The sky was clear, and there was an abundance of stars visible. The night air was mostly quiet, the rhythmic chirp of crickets the only noticeable sound.