Chapter 6 Past
We weren’t far from the lake, so we decided to walk.
The path ran between the Stoll’s property and the Newsome Plantation.
I stopped by the honeysuckle bushes and picked a few.
We had honeysuckle back in Maryland, but no one had ever shown me how to get the nectar out.
Molly taught me when I first moved here—how if you pulled the stem just right, you’d get the tiniest drop of sweetness.
Now, every time we passed that spot, I had to stop.
Lake Sanders wasn’t just for swimming—it was where Shay’s old money came to life. Big docks with even bigger houses. You always knew who had it made. The Newsome place sat up from the water. You couldn’t be on the lake without them knowing it.
I guess that’s why I lingered a little at the honeysuckle bushes; I was hoping Paul might notice us heading down.
But he wasn’t out there. I sighed, but my disappointment went unnoticed as Molly began chatting away about the boy she liked.
He was in the drama club with us—red hair, freckles, goofy but sweet.
Chad Marshal. The other kids called him a drama geek.
Molly had had a crush on him for quite some time, and she was hoping he’d be at the lake today.
As we got closer, Molly’s slow walk turned into a fast little skip. She was so excited to see if her crush was out on his boat.
We came out of the pine straw path and onto the sandy shore. Kicked off our shoes and spread out our towels. Not many people were out yet. The hum of boats was just starting to pick up in the distance. We didn’t see Chad, but it was still early in the day.
I pulled the radio from my bag. It took a little while, but I finally found a station that came in halfway clear.
We laid back as the upbeat tune of “Downtown” drifted out over the lake.
After about an hour of melting under the summer sun and cycling through The Beatles and The Beach Boys, Molly sat up.
“I’m gonna take a dip,” she said.
She had barely taken a step toward the water when she suddenly screamed.