Misty Lake: Book One in the Misty Lake Series (21 page)

“I think you can count on it.”

“If you believe that then how can you continue to think one of them is behind everything?” Sam tried to keep her voice casual but knew the frustration she felt was coming through.

“I need to look at all the possibilities, Sam. Zach’s story is suspect and he’s not doing anything to help his cause. You can’t deny it makes him look guilty.”

“We’ve been over this so many times. Just because they have problems in their past doesn’t mean these kids are bad kids or that they’re going to be in trouble for the rest of their lives. They just need help, need people to believe in them.”

Jake debated but decided it was only fair to let Sam know what Kyle had told him. “Like Danny?” he asked gently.

Sam whipped her head around to look at Jake with wide eyes. “What about Danny?”

“Kyle told me about him, about how he died. I’m so sorry, Sam.”

“I didn’t know he told you,” Sam whispered. “I should have told you a long time ago.”

“You didn’t owe me any explanations.”

“No, but it wasn’t really fair of me to get so upset with you and never try to explain.” She paused a moment then added, “Can you understand, even a little, why I want to help these kids? Why I need to believe in them?”

“Of course I can. I want to see them succeed, too, but I can’t ignore the facts.”

“I know, and I can’t stop believing.”

“And you shouldn’t. You’re good for them, Sam,” he said, taking her hand and lifting it to his lips.

20

It was amazing what a couple weeks of calm, ordinary days could do for a person, Sam thought as she made her way to the shop. She and Susan had settled into a routine sharing household duties, finding time to have fun together, and knowing when to stay out of the other’s way. Susan had taken a part-time job at It’s a Lake Thing, the home décor and gift shop in town. When Sam had questioned her on why she hadn’t looked for something more along the lines of what she had been doing in Chicago, Susan had shrugged saying for now, she just wanted something fun. Sam had swallowed her opinions and let it go.

Classes with her students couldn’t be going better. The kids were completing their projects and gaining confidence in their abilities by the day. A couple, who had already finished, were working on picture frames and learning how to use a mitre box. Sam was proud of them all.

She and Jake were dating. The thought still made her a little giddy and she felt like a teenager as she skipped through the yard with Rigi at her heels. They had gone to a movie, had dinner at For Heaven’s Steak with Joe and Karen, took in a Misty Lake Renegades baseball game, spent a Saturday shopping for groceries and making their own dinner, and even attended an informal class reunion with some of Jake’s high school friends. Things a real couple did.

Perhaps best of all, though, was the fact that there hadn’t been a hint of trouble for over three weeks. Sam had forgotten ordinary could feel so good.

She made her way into the shop with a spring in her step, determined to get a couple hours of work done before the kids arrived. When she spotted the Renegades cap on the hook inside the door she tenderly picked it up. Jake had bought it for her at the game, along with a huge bucket of popcorn and a sticky poof of pink cotton candy. He had been so sweet when he dropped the cap on her head telling her he didn’t want her to burn her nose. He’d tugged a little on her ponytail then kissed the nose he had professed concern over. If she had had any doubt left that she was in love with him, that simple gesture had erased it. Smiling, Sam pulled the cap on and got to work.

She stood back a little and watched Jackson work. His concentration was intense as he measured for the placement of hinges on his nearly-completed jewelry box. It was truly a work of art. Sam doubted she could have done better herself. True, she had guided and assisted but he had done the work and the modifications to the original design were all his. She had been giving him as much space as possible for weeks but couldn’t help herself today.

“Jackson, I have to tell you, I am so impressed with your work. This jewelry box is as well made as anything you’d find in an expensive store. You should be very proud.”

“Thanks, Ms. Taylor. I guess it turned out pretty well, didn’t it?”

“That’s an understatement. It’s fantastic.”

Embarrassed by the praise, he dropped his head and mumbled a reply.

“I was talking to Mr. Lindahl the other day,” Sam continued. “I asked him a little about your school. He said woodworking classes are offered.” She let the thought hang.

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Do you think you might give it a try at school? I know you’d do well.”

Now he looked up at her. “Maybe. I talked to one of the counselors at camp the other day—we all had to—about school. I guess there are a couple classes I need to re-take in order to graduate. I don’t know if I can fit a wood shop class in my schedule.”

He seemed ashamed by the admission and Sam couldn’t help but think that if they had had the same conversation at the beginning of the summer, his attitude would have most likely been one of defiance, instead. It was humbling to think she may have made an impact on him and she fought to keep her voice steady as she answered him.

“I had to re-take a class in high school. It was an English class. I didn’t like the teacher and didn’t like the assignments. I couldn’t understand why I needed to pretend I was a piece of fruit and write a poem about my feelings.”

Jackson gave her a doubtful look. “It’s the truth,” Sam said, tracing a cross over her heart. It was ridiculous,” she said, laughing. “I had to go to summer school and write poems that year instead of taking driver’s ed.”

Jackson chuckled and Sam’s heart melted. It was the first time she’d heard him laugh.

“Hopefully, if you want, you can fit in a woodworking class. If I can remember that far back, it seems senior year tends to have some room for electives. If I can help in any way, just let me know,” she added.

Jackson nodded and bent over his jewelry box once more.

When Sam stood up she noticed Zach was watching and listening intently. He seemed troubled but quickly looked away when he caught her looking his way.

Hmmm, Sam wondered. Could she get through to two of them in the same day? She made her way over to Zach’s spot and studied his hunched shoulders and bent head. Something was definitely wrong, he had been even more withdrawn than usual and this wasn’t the first time she had noticed him looking at her as if he wanted to ask her something.

“How’re things going today, Zach?” She tried to sound as casual as possible.

“Fine,” he mumbled without looking up.

“It looks like you’re just about finished. You’ve done a good job.”

“Thanks.”

“Do you need any help with the finishing work? With…anything?”

He hesitated and glanced up at her then quickly around the room before putting his head back down. “No.”

Feeling helpless, Sam sighed. “Okay, but all you have to do is ask if you need anything, Zach.” She waited a moment. When he didn’t respond she moved on, desperately wishing he would ask for help.

Sam showered quickly after the kids left and was rushing to get her hair and makeup done when Susan stuck her head in the bathroom.

“Going out?”

“I’m meeting Jake for lunch.”

“Another date? What’s that, about ten in the past two weeks?”

“Maybe.”

“Wow, I just moved in and now you’re going to go and get married and kick me out,” Susan whined.

“No one said anything about marriage. It’s just lunch. I mean, really, married? I don’t think so.” Sam was shaking her head.

“Hey, calm down. I was just kidding,” Susan grinned. “I…” she studied Sam in the mirror. “OH MY GOD! You’re in love with him!”

Sam whirled around. “What? No. It’s just…” She put her hands over her eyes and peeked at Susan. “How did you know?” she squeaked.

Susan grabbed her and hugged her tight. “I guessed from the first time you talked about him. Then when I saw you two together I was even more certain. I’ve just been waiting for you to catch up!”

“It’s kind of scary,” Sam admitted. “What if he doesn’t feel the same way?”

“He’s crazy about you, Sam.”

“I know he cares about me, we have fun together, and I know he’d like to take our relationship to the next level, so to speak, but love? I don’t know.”

“I’ve seen the way he looks at you. I don’t think you have anything to worry about.”

“But how do I know? And am I supposed to tell him? Or do I wait for him to tell me first? I don’t know how this works.”

Sam was pulling her hands through her hair and looking utterly distraught. Susan took pity on her cousin. “Oh, sweetie,” she said, hugging her and rubbing her back. “Calm down. This is a good thing, a happy thing. Now, I can’t claim to have a lot of experience in this particular area but if we can believe the movies and novels, you’ll know. You’ll just know.”

Sam sat across from Jake and looked at him over her burger and fries. “They really tried to tell you it was oregano?” she asked, referring to the two teenagers Jake stopped to help earlier in the day.

“They did. They claimed their grandmother was Italian and cooked a lot. When I said it didn’t look or smell like oregano they changed their story and admitted it was marijuana but said it was from Colorado so it was legal.”

“Did they realize they were in Minnesota?”

Jake gave an eye roll. “They started talking over each other trying to come up with a plausible story. It was all I could do not to laugh. Possession of that much marijuana with intent to sell is a crime, of course, but at that point I was almost thinking their bigger crime was stupidity.”

“So they told you to get the jack out of the trunk?”

“Yes,” he said, having a hard time believing it himself. “When I stopped to see if I could help them with their flat and asked them if they had a jack, they told me to grab it from the already opened trunk. There were six bags of marijuana just lying there in plain sight.”

“And they were just kids?” she asked, looking a little sad.

“Brothers, sixteen and seventeen. You know, though, the only thing they said that I really believed was that this was the first time they had done anything like this. They claimed they’ve never even smoked pot and I believed them. They seemed so naïve—clueless, really. I mean, they sent me to the trunk for the jack! These aren’t hardened criminals by any stretch. They want to buy a fishing boat and said a friend told them that he had a way they could make some easy money.”

“I hope they learned a lesson,” Sam said. “Hopefully this will be enough to keep them away from the stuff.”

“I have a feeling it will. And, if they didn’t get enough of a scare riding in a police car and spending some time in jail, I’m pretty sure their father will take care of the rest. He was none too pleased when I called him. He even asked if it’s okay if he lets them sit in jail for a little while before coming to get them. He’s determined to teach them a lesson.”

“Sounds like a good dad. I hope he gets through to them.”

“He will,” Jake said, putting a hand over hers. Then, determined to get a smile back on her face, he asked, “What do you think about this weekend? What do you feel like doing?”

“Well, since you asked,” she said with a sly grin, “I’m thinking about buying a boat. Do you want to go boat shopping with me?”

“Really? I didn’t know you were interested in having one.”

“I’ve been here for months and have hardly been on the lake. I think it’s time. Besides, a boat would be fun. Now, I’m not talking about anything like Joe has. I was actually thinking about a pontoon.”

“That’s definitely not like what Joe has.”

“Do you think it’s lame? My thought was I would use it to cruise around, Rigi could come with me. Maybe I’ll even start fishing, who knows?”

“I think it sounds perfect. You know, I have a boat parked out behind Joe’s place. I haven’t put it in the water this summer since Joe has his new one. It’s nothing as fast and fancy as his but it moves pretty well. If you’d like, I could move it over to your place, teach you how to drive it, and you could use it whenever you want.”

“You could do that.” She studied Jake. She didn’t want to make it seem like she was going to consider his boat hers, didn’t want to make it seem like they were sharing property. Although, he had suggested it, she thought. “That’d be good. I think I’d still like to look around a little at pontoons, though. It seems like it might be a little more relaxing floating around in a pontoon. Besides, they kind of remind me of the old raft we’d drag out into the lake and jump off when we were kids. I might have to invite all my cousins here for a game of King of the Pontoon.”

She was beaming, her eyes twinkling, and Jake knew he’d move heaven and earth to help her find the pontoon of her dreams. “Then we’ll look at pontoons this weekend.”

Sam glanced at her watch. “I suppose you need to be getting back soon? I’ll just finish these fries,” she said, popping one in her mouth.

Jake grinned at her. “Enjoy your lunch?”

“Ha! I suppose you thought I’d order a salad or something girly. But you know what? I’ve been swimming almost every day, swimming hard, so I decided I deserved to splurge a little. Besides, this was delicious,” she said, as she finished the very last french fry and licked a drop of ketchup from her thumb.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it. And you’re right, I do need to get back.”

Just then his radio crackled. “We have a domestic at 158 Spruce, reports of shots fired.”

“10-4,” Jake responded. “On my way.” He turned to Sam give her a quick kiss and found her frozen, eyes wide and terrified. “Sam?”

She grabbed his arm and squeezed tight. “Oh God, Jake,” she whispered, barely able to get the words out.

“Sam, it’s okay. Everything will be okay.” He hated leaving her, wanted with every ounce of his being to stay, but knew he had to go. “I’ll call you soon, very soon. I promise.” He put an arm around her, hugged her tight, threw some bills on the table, and darted out the door.

Sam sat and stared after him, unmoving. Shots fired. The words replayed over and over in her head. He was going to get shot, he was going to die and leave her, too. Another cop would ring her doorbell, give her the news that someone else she loved was gone forever.

Her head was spinning with horrific images and she felt nauseated. Gripping the edge of the table, she told herself, No! She had to do something. She couldn’t sit back and let it happen again. She wouldn’t.