Hazy View: Souls of the Vanished (5 page)

Yvonne said nothing, she only looked
thoughtfully at the coffee machine and then at Martin’s door. She
bit on her lower lip and got up slowly and cautiously.

“
If all hell breaks loose
in there I expect you the rescue me. If you don’t I’ll blame
whatever on you.” Yvonne warned.

Without a further word she collected
painkillers from the drawer and strong black coffee. Andrew winked
and shooed her on.

Yvonne walked into Martin’s office
closing the door behind her. She placed the cup of coffee on the
desk and held her hand out to Martin. After a few moments of
silence he extended his hand. His facial expression didn’t change.
He seemed lost, worried and even scared. She dropped the
painkillers into his open hand and withdrew hers without a
word.

Martin’s red sagging eyes looked back
from behind his sunglasses. It was clear he had too much gin last
night. His hair looked ragged and uncombed. His body was heavy and
sluggish. Nothing impressed him as he still seemed
distant.

“Sheriff, I hope you’ll consider
talking to someone. I can’t stand seeing you like this.” Yvonne
started in a gentle voice.

Martin looked up dazed. “Are you part
of the care gang too?”

“
We’re worried about you
sheriff.”

Martin looked up coldly and heartless.
“You and who, Andrew, yes he’d put you up to this, didn’t
he?”

“
I feel like I’m
witnessing a murder.”

Martin turned pale, faint and his
voice scratched that you might think he was choking. “What do you
mean?”

Yvonne stepped back slightly. “I mean
I’m watching you killing yourself and worst, you’re torturing
yourself.”

“
As if you care from the
bottom of your heart, spare me. Thanks for the concern, it's noted.
Tell Andrew I want to see him.”

Martin swung around in his chair with
his coffee in hand. He raised the blinds mid-window. He remained
still staring out of the window. People were walking up and down
the sidewalk. Everyone was looking as if they were looking through
him, seeing his guild. Martin didn’t hear the door opening or
closing. His attention held on the street.

A woman appeared from the shop next
door. She looked and walked like Janet. Her long black hair flowed
in the breeze, her posture was perfect. Seconds later a little boy
skipped behind her, with hands filled with party balloons, his hair
shimmered in the sun. He reached his mother and grabbed her hand,
both looked up at Martin, their smiles turned to a grin, fingers
pointed and eyes stared cold and sharp. Martin turned icy cold and
numb.

Martin mumbled harder then he would’ve
liked. ‘They’re coming for me.’

“
Who's coming?” Andrew
asked suddenly.

Martin glanced out of the window and
saw nothing. With a deep breath he turned his attention to Andrew.
“I don’t have time for guessing games. You’re not making any sense,
what are you talking about?” He picked up a pile of files from the
desk.

Andrew shook his head confused.
“Nothing I just…Never mind you wanted to see me?”

“
These are active cases, a
small accident, drunken brawls and a shoplifting, nothing too
serious that needs your immediate attention.”

Andrew took the files slowly. “Are you
taking time off?”

“
Pay attention. These
closed files need filing. Did you find the child?” Martin
snapped.

“
No. I believe the sound
came from a bird or night creature. We searched the forest and
found nothing. We also heard what we thought was a child crying,
but it's impossible. It cleared the forest and traveled to the
water too quickly like it was in flight too fast for any child. We
had a few incidents. A team on the lake reported an attack on them
while a man in my group broke his arm. This morning we heard and
saw nothing, not even evidence of a child roaming the area.” Andrew
reported.

“
Do you think there might
be some connection between Robert’s death and the missing
child?”

“
I don’t think a missing
child and a heart attack victim has anything in common.” Andrew
said wondering why the sheriff would think otherwise.

“
Good then I’ll close them
both.” Martin said relieved and glanced out of the window then
turned back to Andrew. “Well old boy, you always wanted my job, now
you’ve got it.”

“
Martin…” Andrew managed
shocked.

The phone on the desk rang.

Martin interrupted before Andrew could
say anything else. “From now you’re the new acting sheriff,
congratulations. I’ll be out of your hair in just a minute.” He
snapped up the receiver and turned his back to Andrew. “Hello… Yes
dear… I’m leaving in a short while… Speak to you soon.”

Andrew turned and left the office. He
walked back to his desk, sunk into his chair and remained frozen.
Yvonne leaned forward staring at him.

For a moment Yvonne waited, her
curiosity got the better of her. “What did he do to you in there?
You look like he took you to the cleaners.”

“
He’s leaving.” Andrew
said softly.

Yvonne looked at him not surprised.
“Did he say where he’s going?”

“
I don’t know. All I know
is that he’s leaving and I’m taking over his job.”

“
He needs to get away to
clear his head. Maybe he meant that you’ll have his job till he
gets back.” Yvonne said and tried to lift Andrew’s mood.

“
He’s not coming back. I
heard him speaking to Janet, and it sounds like he’s going home.”
Andrew felt more disappointed than sad.

“
I wonder what he did. His
expressions are always of fear and horror. A man who recently lost
his wife and son goes to the pub for a week or two. He picks a
fight and gets the living daylights kicked out of him.” She paused
thoughtfully. “Perhaps no one will fight him or something else’s
going on. Something he did that’s so inconceivable that he
struggles to live with it. Have you looked at him lately? I mean
looked at him?”

“
He’s broken, such a
softhearted man who loves his wife more than life itself. He can’t
hurt a fly, not even if he tries.” Andrew defended in Martin’s
absence.

Yvonne sighed. “Well good for him, now
he can snap out of this and live his life again. At least we don’t
have to put up with his temper anymore.”

“
That’s mean. He’s still
my best friend, even if he treats me like yesterday’s garbage. I’m
worried about him.” Andrew replied softly and lowered his
head.

Yvonne’s voice turned gentler than
Andrew had ever heard it. “Then you need to be happy for him. At
least his wife’s taking him back. I’m sure they’ll come and visit,
at least I hope he won’t forget you.”

Andrew sighed deeply. “You know,
you’re right. I should be happy for him. I sure will miss
him.”

“
Did you mention the case
to him?” Yvonne changed the subject as it became too soppy for
her.

“
He closed the case
because we couldn’t find the child and it has nothing to do with
Robert’s death. I can’t see any connection between the two cases. I
wonder why he might have thought that they perhaps have something
in common.”

Yvonne lifted her shoulders. “I don’t
know, he’s in his own world most of the time, but I can tell you
something for nothing. There’s more to these cases than we’re used
to seeing.”

“
What do you
mean?”

“
Nothing happens in this
town and we’ve gotten too use to that. Maybe because we don’t want
to see more, we’re overlooking something of grave
importance.”

Andrew sat for moment thinking.
“Something about these cases just doesn’t add up I’m giving it much
thought but I can’t put my finger on it.”

“
So what do you
think?”

“
Oh, just that I think
these cases needs more attention. Now that you mention it, it's
making the most sense.”

“
Then you’re keeping it
open. Good for you. Do you think there’s something wrong with the
lake?”

“
Nothing’s wrong on it,
it's more a case of what’s wrong in the lake.” Andrew
corrected.

“
I haven’t been at the
lake recently, the novelties worn off I’m afraid but I’m not deaf.
I hear the talk and rumors flying around town.”

Andrew opened the Robert Wilson,
missing child, witness statements and coroner’s report. He studied
them carefully.

Yvonne’s voice overwhelmed his
thoughts. “I said I heard Tom had some incidents, small but not
much worth mentioning.”

“
I didn’t hear anything
about that.” Andrew admitted.

“
I wonder maybe it has
something to do with the recent events.”

“
Do you believe in the
power of the supernatural?” Andrew started softly.

“
Not unless I’ve gone out
of my mind, and I haven’t that’s for sure.” Yvonne rejected the
idea.

“
It's strange because I
spoke to Helen James-Leigh this morning. She just moved into
sheriff’s house. She rescued the team from the lake last night. A
father and son, they’re in hospital.” Andrew paused.

Yvonne seemed confused.

“
Never mind, she told me
that she saw a ghost in front of her.” Andrew continued.

“
More than likely she was
hallucinating.” Yvonne remarked and rolled her eyes in
disbelieve.

“
Do you think she
was?”

Yvonne dropped her pen and looked hard
at Andrew. “All these spooky nonsense, it's just stories to bring
trade as the hundreds of times before.”

Andrew lifted his shoulders and got
up. “I’ll have to see the men in hospital. Maybe they can clear
this up for me.”

Andrew collected blank statements from
his cabinet and got ready to leave when Martin appeared from the
office. He had changed into private clothes, and held a large brown
cardboard box filled with personal effects. Yvonne stood up as
Martin turned to her.

Martin took a moment before he spoke
sincerely. “Thank you for your hard work and dedication that you’ve
shown me. I hope Sheriff Foster keeps you on because I consider you
to be a real asset to this office. I’d like to apologize for my
behavior of late. I don’t even have a good excuse, but I wasn’t
myself.”

“
At least you’re getting
out of this deadbeat town, where will you be going?” Yvonne asked
almost convinced of Martin’s sincerity.

Martin forced a smile. “Up north, I’m
meeting my wife and son. They’re staying at her mother’s
farm.”

Yvonne shook Martin’s hand. “I’m glad
everything’s working out for you. Take care.”

Martin turned to Andrew as someone who
had just completed a job rather than a lifelong friend. Andrew felt
Martin’s resentment, but couldn’t place the reason.

“
I’ve left my service
pistol and the safe keys in the top drawer of the desk. My
uniform’s hanging behind my…, I mean your door. I believe you’ll be
a good sheriff and wish you the best. Don’t mind these people too
much. They’ll drive you insane.”

“
I wish you the best too.
Give us a call often and send my regards to Janet and
Christopher.”

Martin looked at Andrew strangely as
he turned and headed to the door. “Sure.” He called back and Andrew
followed.

Martin and Andrew walked out to
Martin’s private vehicle parked in front of the office like two old
friends. While walking they chatted idly, but most of all Martin
chatted about his son and seemed excited about seeing him again
after a three-month absence.

Arriving at his vehicle Martin handed
Andrew the keys to his old service vehicle.

“
Here, you’re sheriff now,
I believe this is yours. Now you’ll need someone else to drive your
vehicle.”

“
Thanks, I know you’re in
a hurry to leave, but may I ask you something?”

Martin turned to Andrew, now he had
the chance to find out what Andrew was thinking. “Sure.”

“
Do you think there’s
something wrong with the lake?”

“
What do you mean? It's a
hole with water, what’s wrong with it?” Martin replied
innocently.

Andrew cleared his throat. “I’m not
asking about the lake’s water, I mean is there something wrong in
the lake?”

Martin laughed sarcastically. “What
could possibly be wrong, don’t tell me the fishes are fighting
among themselves.”

“
Some of the witnesses
said they saw something like an entity in the lake. I can’t see any
sense in that.” Andrew said softly and felt foolish.

“
You’re telling me that
people are making up stories about ghosts. Don’t you think this is
another tactic people come up with to boost business around here?
The town seems a little thin on the trade side don’t you think?
It's the same crisis year after year. Now its ghosts, last year it
was aliens and then wildlife going crazy. How long can this town
keep milking the lake’s reputation for mystery? Don’t you think the
town folks are letting their imagination run away with them? Or are
you telling me instead that you now believe in ghosts.”