The Reservoir (12 page)

“Wrong,” Holly told him.  “Service is great
on
the lake, but there’s no service on the banks.”

“Great,” Aaron muttered.  He glanced over at Niqui, and then went and sat beside her on the couch.  He reached for her hand and said, “What’s say we blow this Popsicle stand?”

Niqui studied his face, indecision etched on her features.  Finally, she shook her head with a sigh.  “We can’t leave.  We have to help Cassie.”

“Well, as yet, I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting Cassie, and I’d like to keep it that way,” he said, glancing around at his friends. 

Niqui frowned and licked her lips nervously.  “Well, actually, neither have Kendall or I.”

“I’m thinking you girls might want to keep it that way too,” Aaron suggested.  “We can drive out of here and never look back.  The three of us.  Come on.  Kendall?  Niqui?  What do you say?”

Kendall glanced at Daniel, whose face was resolute.  He wasn’t going anywhere.  Neither was she.  “I’m staying.”

Niqui’s frown deepened and she shook her head.  “We’re in this together, Aaron.  I understand your hesitation—I do—but this girl needs our help.”

Aaron leapt off the couch.  “How do you know she needs anybody’s help?  Heck, she could be a dang poltergeist who doesn’t want anybody swimming in her lake.  For all we know, she’s out there drowning small children and punching holes in fiberglass boats.”

Zack emitted a haggard sigh.  “Okay, look, you’re right.  We don’t really know what she’s after.  Don’t you think we considered that she might be dangerous, particularly after what she did to Daniel and me?  But…”

“What?”

Holly answered him.  “When Zack and I saw her on the dock, she reached out her hands as if praying, as if she was imploring us to help her.  And Aaron, we know she’s strong.  Daniel couldn’t get away from her, and Zack couldn’t get him away from her.  If she had wanted to harm him, why not drown him right then and there?”

“Maybe she likes playing with her food before she feeds it to the fish,” he quipped.

Holly ignored the remark.  “Too,” she raised her finger to emphasize the point, “think about the phone calls.  You said she said, ‘
They
don’t like the water, it’s too dark, and help us.’”  Suddenly, Holly’s eyes widened in abject terror.  “Oh, God.  Oh, God.”  She drew her hands to cover her mouth, her eyes as big as saucers.

“Holly, what?” Zack said, hurrying to her side.

“Zack!  Don’t you get it?  There’s more of them in that lake?”

“More what?” Aaron said testily.

“Dead girls!” Holly cried.  “There are more dead girls in the lake.”  Holly paused, her mouth ajar, her mind working a mile a minute.  “Thomas said Cassie loves the water.  She didn’t tell Aaron
she
doesn’t like the water.  She said
they
don’t like the water.  Oh, God, that’s it!  She’s trying to tell us that there are more bodies in the lake and she wants them found.”

“Oh, man!” Zack cried, wrapping Holly in a protective hug.  “I think you’re right.  And, I think she wants us to identify the killer.”

Aaron gave a disgusted snort.  “Well, if that’s the case, why didn’t she name him on any one of her phone messages?  Huh?”

“She may not know her killer’s name,” Kendall said.  “But I do think it’s relevant that Cassie apparently keeps coming back to this dock,” she said with an apologetic glance at Holly.

Holly gave a nervous laugh.  “Come on, are you guys really suggesting David might be the killer?”

Zack didn’t speak, since he didn’t want to offend her, but Daniel spoke up instead.  “Holly, don’t get angry, okay?  But … why would Cassie keep coming back here?  And it’s pretty incriminating that your stepfather has a shed full of chains and anchors.”

“Why is that incriminating?” Holly demanded, but the fight promptly went out of her.  “Okay, it’s kind of strange,” she admitted resignedly.

“And, it’s strange that Thomas went through an open window in that shed a week ago, and today, it was boarded up,” Daniel said.

Zack turned to Holly.  “Do you remember during the past week, ever seeing David going to that shed?”

Holly searched her brain, and then her eyes widened.  She did remember seeing him leaving in that direction, carrying a hammer and several boards.  She told her friends.

“That doesn’t bode well for his innocence,” Kendall pointed out.

Holly shook her head.  “It doesn’t mean anything.  Maybe he happened to notice someone had gone in through the window—maybe he saw broken glass—so he repaired it.  I mean, come on, we are in the woods.  Aside from burglars, animals could get in.  Repairing it makes sense.”

“Look,” Zack said in a placating tone, “we’re getting way ahead of ourselves.  For all we know, Cassie pays visits to every dock on this lake, trying to get peoples’ attention.  Thomas wouldn’t know her habits, being as he only comes up here for two weeks during the summer.”

“You could be right, Zack,” Daniel said.  “Maybe she brings him to this particular dock because he’s unwilling to get into the water, forcing her to stick close to land in order for Thomas to try to accompany her where she wants to take him.  Maybe this is as far as they can go because the foliage around the lake is too thick beyond this property.”  He searched his memory.  “From the boat yesterday, I noticed there are a couple cabins north of us, but I don’t recall how far away the next cabin over is—south of us, I mean.  Holly, do you know?”

She shook her head.  She had no idea.

“None of this is relevant right now anyway,” Daniel said.  “What is relevant is the following question?”  He turned to Aaron.  “Are you staying?”

Aaron sighed loudly and turned to look at Niqui, who nodded persuasively.  “Yeah, okay, whatever,” he relented.  “But if I die because of that girl ghost, I’m going to haunt each and every one of you!”

“Thanks for the warning,” Daniel said.  “Okay, next point of interest, which has apparently escaped all of you…”

“What’s that?” Zack asked.

“Cassie called Aaron.”

His friends watched him, their faces bewildered. 

“She called Aaron,” he said, looking at them as if they were morons.

“Okay, yeah,” Zack said.  “She called Aaron.”  He spread his hands in a gesture of confusion.

“Do I have to spell it out for you people?”

“Apparently,” Zack said drolly.

Daniel turned to Holly.  “Who’s listed first on your cell phone contact list?” he asked.  “Come on, folks.  This isn’t rocket science.”

Holly practically conked herself over her own head.  “Aaron—which means…”

“Who’s she calling next?” Daniel said, nodding his head up and down.

Holly moaned.  “That would be Bethany, Brittany, Cathi, Chrissy…”  Holly slumped into a nearby chair.  “Oh, no!”

Suddenly, everyone understood the implication of Daniel’s words.  All but Holly snatched their cell phones from their pockets and attempted to check them for calls.  Unfortunately, each phone registered the ‘no service’ icon.

“Holly,” Kendall said with a grimace, “if your stepdad is involved in these girls’ deaths, then…”

“What?” Niqui said.

“‘D’ for David,” Kendall informed.

Holly’s gut wrenched and she looked panic stricken for several seconds, but then a look of relief crossed her face.  “Wait, I might get a short reprieve.  I have him in my phone under ‘S’ for ‘stepdad.’”

“Better that than ‘K,’” Daniel said.

“What?” Holly said, her brows furrowed in a frown.

“Better ‘S’ for stepdad, than ‘K’ for killer.”

“Or ‘M’ for ‘Murderer,’” Kendall added, but turned when she heard a noise.  “Hey, did I just hear the sound of a boat motor…”

“Anybody home?” a voice called above the sound of the motor, which promptly shut off.

The voice sounded loud, apparently emanating from a bull horn, the kids realized.

“What the heck?” Zack said, heading for the back porch.

The group followed him outside.  They glanced down toward the lake.  A Marine Patrol boat was tied to the dock.  A uniform-clad deputy climbed over the side and landed soundly on the dock.  He spied the kids and gave a wave.  Another deputy remained at the wheel, but was seated and eating a sandwich.

When the kids didn’t walk down to the dock to greet the deputy who had exited the boat, he left the dock and sauntered up the slight hill to greet them.  When he reached them, his eyes passed over the faces of each of the teenagers.  “Who’s Holly?” he asked finally.

She took a step forward, said “Me,” and then accepted his proffered hand.

“I’m Donner,” the man said, smiling.  “Your dad told us to stop by and check on you.  Everything going okay?” he asked.

The group had been shocked to see the deputy arrive—Holly included.  She shook herself slightly to pull herself together.  “Fine,” she told him, and then introduced her friends, one by one.      

“Yep, your ol’ pop was worried about you and wanted me to check on you.”

“You mean, her
stepdad
asked you to check on her,” Kendall clarified for him in an especially droll voice, causing the others to give her a sharp glance.    

The man sent her a speculative glance.  “Well, yeah, but I know he thinks of Holly and her brother as if they were his own,” the man said, aiming the remark at Holly.  “You kids and your mom have made him a happy man.  I, for one, am glad to see that he’s found someone to share his life with.”

Holly smiled.  What else could she do?  It wasn’t as if she could say,
well, the jury’s still out on the count, because if he’s a homicidal maniac, everybody’s happy days could be numbered. 

Were
they in danger? she wondered, her eyes reflecting her fear.  The deputy noticed.

“Hey, are you okay?” he asked her.  “You look a little green around the gills.”

Holly roused herself and forced a smile.  “I’m fine.  Thanks.  Um, would you like a soda or a bottle of water?”

“Hey, thanks for asking,” he said cheerily.  “I just drank my last water and it’s already heating up out there.”

Holly started for the cabin and to her surprise, the deputy fell into step beside her.  Her friends followed, unsure what else to do. 

Inside the cabin, the deputy strode to the kitchen and pulled a water from the fridge.  Evidently, he knew the layout of the cabin.  When Holly gave him an inquiring glance, he noticed.  “Dave let me rent the place for several weeks during early summer.  Did a lot of fishing.”  He twisted the cap off the water and took a deep swig.  “Beautiful country up here.”

Holly nodded, and her friends echoed in the affirmative.

“I grew up here,” he said brightly.  “On this very lake.  Have to say, I miss it.  I’m living in Vancouver now, but city life, it’s just not the same.”

Holly glanced at Zack, who read her thoughts. 
He used to live up here
.

“Want a donut?” Kendall asked in her monotone voice.

The cop glanced at her, apparently in an attempt to gauge if she was making a joke about cops and donuts.  When Kendall’s face remained stoically impassive, he grinned.  “Don’t mind if I do.  My wife usually packs my lunch, but she’s out of town, and well…”

“I’ll make you a sandwich too,” Niqui offered, and he didn’t refuse the offer, but instead checked his watch. 

“You know what?” he said jovially.  “I’ll just take my lunch here and now.  I do appreciate the offer of lunch.  It’s been a long time since breakfast.”  He quickly radioed his partner that he’d be a few minutes and then smiled at the kids, who had taken seats at the dinette.  He joined them.

Awkwardly, Holly smiled, unsure what to say.  She glanced at Zack, who shrugged.  “Something on your minds?” the deputy asked, and then thanked Kendall for the donut she passed him. 

“Would you like a root beer?” Daniel asked.

He lifted the water, and then set it down with a tap.  “Water’s fine for now, but I’ll take one for the road,” the man said cheerfully.  “Nice of you kids to offer.”

Soon, Niqui passed him a turkey and cheese sandwich, along with a heaping pile of potato chips.  He smiled his thanks.

Niqui sat down and the kids remained quiet as he devoured his lunch.  He glanced up, speaking through a mouthful of sandwich.  “You kids all right?  I have a daughter about your age and she’s never this quiet.”

“Oh, uh, we’re fine,” Zack said.

It was Kendall who apparently realized the deputy might be a valuable source of information, and as always, she was direct and to the point when she questioned him.  “Hey, were you around a couple of years ago when that girl disappeared up here?” 

“Okay,” the man said, bobbing his head up and down knowingly.  “Now I know why you’re all out of sorts.  I take it you’ve talked to Thomas, her brother.”

Zack nodded.  “We’ve met him.”

The deputy put his sandwich down and wiped his hands on the napkin Niqui had provided.  “Look, don’t you kids be worrying about that business.  I know Thomas weaves a frightening tale, but it’s nothing to be worrying about.”

Zack decided to play dumb, and said instead, “I don’t know what you mean about him weaving a frightening tale…  Well, I mean, having his sister disappear is frightening, if that’s what you mean.”

“Oh, he didn’t tell you about…”  He let the words trail off, and shook his head to clear it, before turning to Kendall.  “In answer to your question, yes, I was here when Cassie Cooke disappeared.  I was called out the night she went missing.  The next morning, Search and Rescue was called out.”

“But authorities never found her,” Holly said.

“Well, that’s true,” the man admitted, “but we certainly never found a … body.”

“But you found her jet ski, propped against a log…” Kendall reminded him.

The deputy sighed.  “At the time, it was believed she had taken off with friends.”

“But what if she didn’t?” Holly asked.  “Did you search the entire lake?”

The man smiled with forced patience.  “Honey,” he said, in a tone she found too condescending to her liking, “that lake, reservoir,” he clarified, “is over four-hundred feet deep in places and covers 3,780 acres.  If her body is down there, we’re not going to find it.”

“But you did try?”

“We searched the Siouxon…”  He narrowed his gaze.  “Why the interest?”