Dark Realms (13 page)

He smirked. “It lives.”

“Very funny, butthead,” I answered.

“Just kidding, twerp,” he replied with his
mouth full. “Hey, guess who called for you this morning?”

Duncan?
“Who?”

“The manager at that diner you put in an
application for.”

I stared at him in surprise. “Wow,
really?”

“Yeah, you’re supposed to call her back if
you’re still interested in setting up an interview. Here,” he said,
handing me a slip of paper, “call Rosie at that number.”

“Awesome,” I said, grinning from ear to
ear.

Ten minutes later I had an interview set up
for later that afternoon.

“Wow, that was fast,” said Nathan. “I guess
I’ll have to give you a ride.”

“Or, you could just loan me your car.”

He snorted. “Right. Nobody drives that car
but me. Not even Deanna got the privilege of driving my baby.”

“Hi, kids,” yawned mom as she shuffled into
the kitchen.

“You were up late,” said Nathan.

She turned on the Keurig and smiled. “Well,
Caleb’s an interesting man. He’s traveled all over the world and we
talked for hours about his crazy adventures.”

“Small town sheriff-slash-traveler
extraordinaire, huh?” smirked Nathan.

Her eyes lit up. “He’s been to so many
places, it’s amazing.”

“Oh, shoot,” I said. “Speaking of Caleb, I
forgot to tell him about the note I received from the waitress
yesterday.”

Mom waved her hand. “Oh, I mentioned it to
him and he didn’t seem too concerned. He said this town has had its
share of crimes, but there certainly wasn’t anything to be afraid
of, even in the dark. He also mentioned that Amy was having a hard
time getting over the loss of her friend, the one we found. It’s
made her a little… unstable.”

I narrowed my eyes. “What do you mean,
unstable?”

She sighed. “I’m not supposed to talk about
this, but, she tried to commit suicide a couple weeks ago.”

“Wow,” replied Nathan. “That’s rough.”

Mom nodded. “I guess her parents have been
trying frantically to get her help, even going as far as putting
her on antidepressants, but obviously, she still has some emotional
issues.”

“And Caleb knows all about this?” I
asked.

She poured some cream into her coffee.
“Yeah, his daughter, Celeste went to school with Amy. They both
graduated in June.”

“Oh,” I said.

“How did you sleep last night?” she asked
me.

“Fine, although, I had some disturbing
dreams. Other than that, I slept pretty well.”

“Holy crap,” interrupted Nathan. He turned
up the volume on the television and I stared at it in horror. A
picture of the waitress who’d served us yesterday flashed across
the screen.

“Seventeen-year-old Amy Kreger was found in
the woods near Lake Shore, early this morning,” said the female
reporter, standing next to an old Chevy Camaro. “Her car had been
found abandoned by the side of the road with drug paraphernalia
sitting openly on the front seat. When police officers were called
to investigate, they found the deceased in the woods with
self-inflicted wounds on both wrists. Tragically, this young girl
was close friends with Tina Johnson, who went missing a few weeks
ago. Tina’s body was found just two days ago, washed up onshore in
an undisclosed location. Police officials do not suspect foul play
in either case.”

Nathan turned off the television and we all
stared at each other in shock.

I cleared my throat. “No foul play in either
case? Seems unlikely now, doesn’t it?

“Maybe it’s just two very disturbed girls,”
replied Nathan.

Mom shook her head sadly. “That poor girl.
Her parents must be devastated.”

“She was so pretty, too,” said Nathan. “It
just goes to show that you can’t judge people by what’s on the
outside. Amy must have been pretty messed up.”

I stood up. “Did it ever occur to you that
maybe she wasn’t messed up?”

“Nikki…” said my mom.

“They found drugs in her car. Obviously, she
had issues,” said Nathan.

“Whatever, I’m going to lie down in my room
for a while,” I said. “This is nuts.”

I went upstairs and took out the note Amy
had given me. It gave me the chills to know that she was now
dead.

“Hey,” said Nathan from my doorway. “I’m
taking the boat out in an hour if you want to get some fresh air
and clear your head.”

I nodded. “Yeah, that sounds like a good
idea. Is mom coming?”

He shook his head. “No, she’s going into
town to talk with her new boss. I guess she’s starting work on
Monday.”

“Okay. I’ll be down in an hour.”

He left and I took a quick shower, still
thinking about Amy and the face in the window last night. I wasn’t
sure at this point which was more disturbing. I knew one thing,
however; I was going to try and talk mom out of staying here.
Something was going on in this town. I wasn’t sure if it was just
one crazy freak or a group of them. What I did know was that there
were two dead girls and now someone was spying on us. At this
point, dad seemed less frightening.

After I toweled off, I slipped on a pair of
shorts and a tank top, then piled my hair on top of my head.

“Ready?” asked Nathan when I met him
downstairs.

“Yeah, let me grab something to eat
first”

When I entered the kitchen, mom was standing
over the sink with the water running, her face pasty white.

“Are you okay?”

She nodded. “Yeah, I think I had a little
too much wine last night. It’s finally catching up to me.”

“Really? A delayed hangover? That’s weird.
Hey, what’s that on your neck?” I asked, staring at her skin. “Did
you get bit by a couple of mosquitos?”

She touched her neck. “I must have.”

The skin on her neck was definitely swollen
and there were two small red bumps just below her ear.

I squinted. “Does it itch? It looks pretty
inflamed.”

My mom had always been very sensitive to bug
bites, so it wasn’t a surprise that her skin was tender and
sore-looking.

She shrugged. “No, not really. It’s a little
tender, though.”

“You should put something on that,” I said,
turning away from her. I reached into the cupboard and grabbed a
box of chewy granola bars. “Some of that Neosporin stuff.”

“I will.” She touched her head and groaned.
“God, remind me not to have more than one glass of wine the next
time anyone offers.”

I snorted. “No doubt.”

She grabbed a paper towel, poured cool water
over it, and then dabbed her forehead. “You know, I think I’m going
to lie back down for a while.”

“Hey,” I said as she began walking away, “I
have an interview this afternoon. That diner I was telling you
about.”

“Good job, sweetheart. I’m sure you’ll get
it.”

I’m sure, too. They’re
really in need of help now that Amy’s gone,
I thought bitterly.

Thirty minutes later, Nathan and I were
racing across the lake in the boat again.

“Let’s head over to Sonny and Duncan’s
marina!” he yelled over the engine.

I gave him the thumbs-up. I had to admit,
the thought of seeing Duncan again was stirring up the butterflies
in my stomach.

The sun was already hot, and by the time we
reached the marina, I could feel the back of my neck and shoulders
begin to burn. I grabbed some sunscreen and started lathering it
on.

“Hey!” called Duncan, who was putting
gasoline into a fishing boat.

“What’s up, Dunc?” asked Nathan.

He smiled. “Not much.”

Nathan docked the boat and tied it. “So, did
your dad mention anything about the job yet?”

Duncan laughed. “Haven’t had time to talk
about it. But I think you have the best shot so far. My dad seems
to like you.”

“Cool. Nikki already has an interview later
this afternoon for a waitressing job.”

Duncan looked at me. “Ruth’s?”

“Yeah. By the way, did you watch the news
this morning?”

He shook his head. “No, been working.”

I told him about Amy and then mentioned the
face in the window.

His eyebrow shot up. “Seriously? Wow, it’s
weird that you mentioned that, because I’m pretty sure that someone
was watching me last night, too.”

Chapter Nine

My stomach clenched up like a fist.
“Really?”

He nodded. “It was just before midnight and
I was in the kitchen, having a snack. I heard some weird scraping
noises near one of the windows, and when I looked up, I could have
sworn someone ducked away. I even went outside to check it
out.”

I shivered. “Did you find anyone?”

“I didn’t. But I felt like someone was
watching me when I was outside, too. I have to admit, it kind of
scared the shit out of me.”

I turned to Nathan. “So, do you think I’m
still seeing things?”

He looked at both of us and shook his head.
“Fine, I believe you. Maybe it’s a Peeping Tom?”

Duncan shrugged. “Could be, or something
worse. It also happened to me a few weeks ago, too, but I thought I
was just imagining things. In fact, now that I think about it, I
believe it happened around the night that girl went missing, Tina
Johnson.”

I looked at both of them. “And last night,
Amy was murdered.”

Nathan groaned. “Nikki, quit it already. You
watched the news! They have evidence that she committed suicide.
They found drugs in her car and her wrists were slashed. She was
messed up. Caleb’s daughter even told him she had issues.”

“Maybe, but I still have a hard time
believing it. Someone could have killed her and covered it up. She
was terrified of something. Why would she warn us if she
wasn’t?”

Nathan walked over and shook me playfully.
“You’re making something out of nothing. Okay, even if someone was
watching both of you last night, it’s probably just some
pervert.”

“And that’s supposed to make me feel
better?” I asked incredulously.

With a determined look on his face, Duncan
said, “You know what? I think we should try and catch whoever’s
doing it.”

“How?” I asked, my heart beginning to race.
It sounded frightening and exciting at the same time.

“We could set up video cameras. I have some
extra ones in storage that we keep for the marina. Hey, we could
monitor both our cabins.”

I nodded, feeling the surge of adrenaline
strike every part of my body. “I think we should! If we get it on
camera, the sheriff will take us seriously!”

“Fine,” replied Nathan. “If it’s going to
help you get over your paranoia, Nikki, I’ll help Duncan set it
up.”

“Okay,” said Duncan. “I’m pretty busy this
morning, but around lunchtime, I can get them out of storage and
start setting things up.”

“I have to bring Nikki to her interview this
afternoon. We’ll stop by your place after and you can follow us out
to the cabin to set up something there.”

Duncan nodded. “Sounds good.”

“Thanks, Duncan,” I said softly. “I’ve been
going nuts about this.”

Duncan’s eyes met mine. “You’re
welcome.”

“We’d better get back,” said Nathan, looking
at his watch. “I’m hungry and Nikki probably wants to prepare for
her interview.”

His eyes lowered and he grinned. “If she
keeps that outfit on, she’ll definitely get hired.”

My cheeks burned red. I didn’t know what to
say, although I had to admit, I was beyond delighted.

Nathan snickered. “Wow, Duncan, I’ve never
seen Nikki at a loss for words. Do you want to move in with us?
Could sure use the peace.”

I flipped him the bird. “Very funny.”

Nathan untied the boat and pushed us away
from the dock. “See you later, Dunc.”

“Yeah, see you,” I said.

“Goodbye and good luck with your interview,”
he replied.

“Thanks.”

As we drifted away and Nathan started the
engine, I put my sunglasses on and watched as Duncan began fueling
another boat. Not only was he cute, but he believed me, without
question. So far, he was the only real good thing I’d encountered
in Shore Lake.

Chapter Ten

Three hours later, I sat across from Rosie,
who’d inherited Ruth’s diner from her mother several years back. As
she looked over my job application, I studied the rail-thin,
bleach-blond woman and gathered she was somewhere in her sixties
because of her weathered skin. She did have a cigarette resting
behind her ear, so she could have actually been younger.

“You’re new in town?” she asked in a
gravelly voice.

“Yes, we just moved here a couple of days
ago.”

“Have you ever waitressed before?”

I sighed. “No. I worked at a boutique,
though, so I’ve used a register before and have experience with
customers.”

She nodded. “You’ll be on your feet a lot.
Do you have any problems with that?”

I shook my head.

“Are you available to work nights?”

I bit the side of my lip. “I’d prefer days,
if that’s possible.”

She studied me. “To be honest, I really need
the help at night. I don’t expect you to work past midnight, but my
second shift is really hurting right now. I’m even willing to pay
you an extra dollar an hour.”

I sighed. “That’s fine. Is there a chance
that I can switch to days in the future? When school starts, my mom
won’t want me working past ten.”

She nodded. “We won’t make you work past
nine during the week, but we’d need you until midnight on Friday or
Saturday. Would that be an issue for you?”

“No,” I answered.

She asked me a few more questions then hired
me on the spot.

“Wow, that was fast,” I blurted out.

She smiled. “We need the help, desperately.
Can you start tomorrow?”

I nodded. “That shouldn’t be a problem.”

“You’ll be training with Susan. So, we’ll
see you around four, tomorrow afternoon?”