11. Chapter Eleven
Chapter Eleven
Remington James
R elief over Charlie’s response floods me. He’s always been steady and even keel, there was no reason to think he’d drop me, but a long history of not mattering still affects me from time to time. Seeing his reaction to the gift, eases any doubt I had over his possible guilt. That paired with Detective Hemminger’s response to my meeting him today.
“Can I ask you something?” It still crosses my mind too much and I need to put it to rest. “When Cal showed me Lakeside Park and the gazebo, he said that all of you grew up playing there. You, too. But on the Fourth of July didn’t you say you get sick from the vortex anomaly?” Carefully watching for his reaction, I try to keep my tone nonchalant.
“Cal said… why would…” Charlie’s brow wrinkles in confusion. “I’m not sure why he would include me in that. Maybe you misunderstood him?”
Did I? I remember him talking about Charlie, don’t I? Now, I can’t be sure. My heart screams at me to stop this inquest, but I keep going. I’ve always been a curious person who questions things, but the stakes here are the highest they’ve ever been. I want to know as much as I can. “Do you remember any of the other drowning victims? I’m sorry for bringing this up. It’s just, thinking about Katie…”
I grab the fabric of my knee length dress, pressing down to keep my legs from jiggling with my fraying nerves. Charlie doesn’t look phased by the question in the least. “Of course. It’s hard to forget.”
“Do you think they’re all connected, or do you know of any connections between them?” I put the last spoonful of the mixed ice cream in my mouth. I’ve heard what Wilder could remember, now I’d like Charlie’s perspective.
Charlie leans back, folding his arms over his chest. “I’ve always said that it’s too coincidental that they’ve all been at a specific spot near The Bends.” He frowns before going on, “I didn’t know the two tourists very well, but the rest all grew up here. As for connections, I don’t know what they could be.”
“So, you think it’s possible?”
He nods before saying, “I’d say it’s hard to believe otherwise.”
Satisfied that Wilder, Grady, and Charlie are all concurring that there must be a thread connecting the drownings, I tell myself if Cal would open up he might too. His reluctance to talk about the past isn’t enough to point a finger his way. I used to deflect the shit out of discussing Relia, the landlord of the womb I came out of.
Charlie throws our empty ice cream cups away, returning to the table he asks, “What’s Skip been up to? It’s been a few days since he called me in a panic.”
“Just freaking out over a bug in the security cameras, but Wilder got to the bottom of it. Then he started to come up with schemes to get Gary Marlow to sell him some land.” I shake my head with a laugh. “Still delusional.”
“Say what? He had camera issues?” Charlie rubs his cheek. “What did Wilder do exactly?”
I shrug. “He had to remove spyware and reroute the video storage. I don’t understand any of it, but Skip was losing his mind over it. Now hopefully we’ll find out who is responsible for the vandalism.” My attention is pulled to the door when a group of teenagers enter laughing and joking with one another.
“Huh. Spyware?” Charlie asks while he tucks the gifts I gave him in his shorts pocket. “That’s interesting.” His tone is light, but his furrowed brow and the way he is staring at the table give me the impression he’s processing something. Focusing his beautiful sky-blue eyes at me, he warns, “Please be careful. I said it before, but if you can avoid it… don’t be alone with him. With Wilder. There are some things not adding up here.”
“I’ve been hearing a lot of that lately. Be careful I mean.” There is a long history between Charlie and Wilder of contention. It’s not really for me to mend things between them. He’ll see that he was wrong, eventually. “One of my favorite things about you is that you’re protective of the people you care about. You don’t need to save me from Wilder.”
Before we leave, I pull the old Altoids tin I keep in my purse out, taking out two of the googly eyes inside to place on the mayor’s wife’s face displayed on her real estate flyer hanging next to the door. “You are adorable, Rem. I love that you keep those in your bag,” Charlie whispers.
He talks me into letting him walk me back to the cabin, telling me that it’s for his peace of mind. It’s hard to put up much of a fuss when spending time with Charlie makes me feel like everything will be alright with the world.
There are days I wonder if all the chairs pull up to my table. Freaking faily on the daily lately. I forgot Father Lowe was stopping to bless the cabin this afternoon. He’s waiting with Ceily when I return with Charlie, alongside a miserable looking Wilder, who has a bruise forming on the side of his face. Awkward is a safe word to describe the atmosphere. Both my guys eye one another up like apex predators, the cheery Father Chris comments several times about my ‘unconventional’ pets while Ceily tries to push her cookies on us.
“Oh, no, no I just had ice cream, I’ll pass.” She’s hard to say no to, but I’ve made the mistake of accepting her fingernail clipping, asphalt treats before. That may not be the ingredients, but it’s got to be close. “I’m happy to get started. Last night was rough. Winifred was restless.” I can’t call her Katie around Charlie.
“What happened?” Wilder asks me perplexed.
Fair enough, because I neglected to share. It’s become commonplace to have strange things going bump in the night around here. “Scratching or scraping sounds, but I don’t know where it was, Droolius was whining and pacing near the door, the Hops were all squeaking… it was a whole ordeal.” Once Skip gets word back about the rental home on the southside of Lake Hollow, he’s sure to hightail us out of here.
I’ve grown attached to the cabin though. To being near Wilder and Grady. I’m even sad that Father Lowe may be able to help Katie’s spirit leave. But she deserves rest, she was able to get her diary where it needs to be.
Charlie checks in on my froggie friends. “Is this one, okay?” He points to Sir Hops A Lot who likes to try squeezing through tight spaces, but gets stuck, usually at weird looking angles. It’s his thing.
“Mmm... spatially challenged.” I bloop him through the bark covered tunnel before wandering over to Ceily and Father Chris deep in discussion about blessings versus exorcisms. I’m having nightmares tonight, no doubt.
“...back a few years ago. Don’t you remember?” Ceily leans more heavily on her cane. “Half the town council was livid.”
Dare I ask? “What happened?”
“Father Connelly performed a ceremony at Lakeside Park to bless the lake, but it was presented as a casting out of all evil spirits that dwell within the lake. There was controversy over that implication.” She waves her hand while rolling her eyes. “Pure lunacy. Half the town wanted to ban anyone from swimming in the lake because they felt the Lakeside Park energy doohickey was proof of a demon portal, and the sane half just wanted everyone to shut up already.”
With Charlie on one side of me, Wilder on the other, we watch Father Lowe walk into each small room of the cabin repeating his prayers. “Lord, send down your mercy and your blessing upon us here and upon this house. May your angel of mercy watch over it and keep all who live here safe from anything that is evil. May he guide us into the fulfillment of your holy will, teaching us to observe what Christ has taught us.”
He breaks out a fancy looking jar, a worn bible, and recites another prayer. Ending it with, “In the name of Jesus.” He then sprinkles water from the jar around the cabin.
It’s not lost on me that Wilder is being more overt in his affection with Charlie here. He keeps a hand on my waist, or arm. Likewise, Charlie has been doing the same. I can’t say the attention sucks, but they are definitely trying to send a message to each other. Wilder laughs, lightly, under his breath.
“Now what?” I poke him in the side.
“Just watching a bit of theater.” He gives me a half smile.
“I think we might actually agree on something.” Charlie leans in to say, “But if it makes you feel better then who cares if it’s just some parlor tricks.”
It’s worth a shot. Most of what he says could be mumbo jumbo, but on the off chance that it works to free the spirit I believe is here, then chant away.
A chill rolls through me, a nervous laugh escapes. How is this real? I can’t be as flippant about this as Charlie, or skeptical as Wilder. I know a spirit has been here… Katie or someone else. There may be a second less friendly one, too. Father Chris’ normally jovial talking becomes serious fervor as he does the prayer again.
Ceily comes to stand by me when Charlie moves behind me placing his hands on my shoulders. She grabs my arm. “The Lord will hear him.” I think the whole group of cabins at The Bends hears him, but I don’t know about the big guy.