The Beach House (8 page)

Damon came through the front door.
Kristi, Mark, and Megan were all sitting at the table in the kitchen area. They were enjoying coffee and bagels that the girls had picked up at the grocery store the day before.

Kristi offered a bagel to her boyfriend. “Where have you been? I was worried about you when I woke up and you were gone.”

Damon accepted the bagel; he had worked up quite an appetite. “I couldn’t sleep this morning so I decided to get up and take a walk. Scope out the beach.”

Shoving down his last bit of bagel, Mark looked suspiciously at Damon. “So what’s on tap today then?”

“I thought we could head down to the end of the beach. There’s a place where you can rent jet skis. Thought that might be interesting.”

Megan jumped at the idea. “That sounds like a blast. Let’s get ready and get down there.” After the enjoyable dinner of the previous evening, she was looking forward to an opportunity for the four of them to bond.

Mark also thought jet skiing was a great idea. He was hoping it would give him a chance to show off in front of Kristi, he doubted that Damon’s athleticism could even compare to his own.

Megan and Kristi headed upstairs to put on their bathing suits and get themselves ready for a promising afternoon.

***

Sullivan looked at the picture from his camera and the picture taken from the surveillance tape. It was definitely the same woman. No doubt about it.
He couldn’t help but admire her, she was beautiful and it was almost impossible to imagine her murdering Cliff in cold blood. However, this was enough to question her about the situation. Perhaps she saw someone else in the convenience shop at the same time she went in to use the restroom.

The detective scooped up the pictures and his car keys. “Barrett, I’m headed down to the beach to see if I can’t find this woman and see what she knows.”

Barrett took a long look at the photograph in Sullivan’s hand. “She is a beauty, isn’t she? Those are the ones you really have to watch out for. They sucker you in and then get you when you least expect it. She will probably try to use her charm to seduce you into thinking she is an innocent victim.”

Sullivan couldn’t help but be amused by the officer’s insight. He had never been confronted with a case of this magnitude, and really had nothing practical to contribute to the situation. “Don’t worry, officer. I know what I’m doing. Call me if we get any forensics reports back. I want to know if there’s any blood in that restroom.”

Sullivan got into his car and headed back towards the beach. He was hoping to question this woman and find that she wasn’t involved in any way.

***

Clint, with his hand shaking, placed the phone back on the receiver with a loud click. Annoyance was written all over his face. Susan knew what that meant without even asking her husband. Even knowing what his answer would be, she decided to ask anyway. “Is our car ready, dear?”

Clint scowled even more so. “The auto shop guy says he’s swamped today. He isn’t sure that he will get to our car
at all today. It may have to wait until tomorrow.”

Susan peered out the window. It appeared to be a lovely day, lots of sunshine. “Maybe we should get out, take a walk, and grab something to eat. Then we will feel better. We can call the auto shop this afternoon, and see when our car will be ready. We haven’t been away from home for so long. Let’s try to make the most of it.”

Despite his frustration, Clint couldn’t help but to agree with his wife. It had been too long since they had had time together outside of their house. He admired the way that she tried to put a positive spin on things. “You’re right as always, honey. Let’s make the most of it.”

Clint and Susan left the hotel room, arm in arm.

Horace had spread Max out on his favorite blanket in the living room area of the house. He couldn’t bear to face the reality that his best friend was gone. He knew that Damon had come back here to make trouble, which was more than obvious now. Sure, Horace had perhaps overstepped his bounds with that article and by writing Jonathan’s name in the sand.
It really had all been in good fun though; no one was really hurt in any way. Not like this. Now Max was dead. Dead.

Horace had intended to mind his own business. But now Damon had to go and do something like this. Now it really was his business. He decided he would make sure that Damon’s friends found out the truth about what happened on this beach all those years ago. Only two people knew the truth, but that was about to change.

***

Damon, Mark, Kristi, and Megan made their way to the northern most end of the beach. It was an absolutely gorgeous day with the sun shining brightly above them. There were not a cloud in sight which made it difficult to tell where the ocean stopped and the sky began. There was just beautiful blue as far as the eye could see. At the far end of the beach, was a small store where people could rent wet suits, life vests, helmets, and anything else they may need to venture out onto the water.

Kristi looked out into the open ocean. There were several other people who had rented jet skis and who seemed to be having a blast maneuvering quickly through the waters. “Looks like it could be fun, but a bit dangerous out there.”

Nothing scared Damon when it came to this place or the ocean. The ocean was the one thing he owned. “It’s gonna be a blast. Just ride with me and you’ll see how exhilarating it can be.”

They opted to rent two jet skis for the time being. Each jet ski could seat two people, that way the girls could get a hang of riding around on one before they ventured out on their own. Mark was looking forward to showing Kristi just how much more adventurous and athletic he was compared to his male counterpart.

Mark got onto the jet ski and Megan climbed on behind him. As she wrapped her arms around him, he couldn’t help but wish that it was Kristi’s arms that clung onto him tightly. He knew that one day things would be right and that Kristi would realize that he was the right man for her after all. For now, he had to watch Kristi get on the back of the jet ski behind Damon, some strange guy who she found appealing for some reason that was completely unknown to him.

As Mark and Damon raced out into the open water, the girls couldn’t help but laugh and smile as they held on tightly to their men. It was so freeing to be out in the water, feeling the cool breeze, and moving at such a rapid pace. The warm water splashed up against their skin as they lapped over the waves. Damon had been right, it was exhilarating and lived up the expectation of being a great activity for the day.

Mark was having a great time cruising out in the water; this was the most fun he had had since the trip started. Damon couldn’t help but be fascinated by the depth and vastness of the ocean. He once again realized how easily things could go unnoticed out here. The image of Jonathan splashing about and screaming for help flashed through his mind. It wasn’t his fault that his brother had chosen to go that far out into the ocean when he knew he couldn’t swim back to shore.

Damon, being lost in the moment, made a sharp turn and nearly crashed his jet ski straight into the one being driven by Mark. Mark turned right behind Damon, feeling some anger and frustration rising to the
surface. “Watch where the hell you’re going, man. I can give you some lessons if you need them.” He couldn’t help but sense that Damon had nearly crashed into him on purpose. He was sure that Damon was threatened by him and was trying to make him look like an idiot in front of Kristi.

Damon hadn’t liked a single thing about Mark since he had met him. He hated his macho behavior and attitude. He hated that he thought he could have any girl he wanted. He hated that he had a secret relationship with Kristi. It took a lot of will power for him not to act upon this hatred. Instead, he decided that it would be more satisfying to wait for the right time. However, at this moment, his level of self-control began to deteriorate.

Damon again made a sharp turn and began to circle around Mark’s jet ski. Mark, not wanting to get into an accident that would potentially hurt Megan and Kristi, stayed still in the water. Damon continued to circle around him.

Kristi, holding on tightly, couldn’t help but scream as she feared crashing into the jet ski and falling off into the water. “Damon, stop! What the hell are you doing? You’re going to hurt someone. Stop!”

Mark had to suppress his laughter as he watched Damon spiral out of control. He always considered this guy to be a loose cannon. Maybe Kristi would finally realize that this guy belonged in a psych ward, not at her side as a boyfriend. Megan just sat in shock, watching Damon circle around her at a dangerously high speed. She began to worry for her friend.

Kristi began to look more and more frightened, especially considering that Damon was completely unresponsive to her or anyone else. “Damon, stop right now! I’m going to jump off of here if you don’t stop.” She began to feel dizzy, her arms losing their grasp around Damon’s chest. Everything around her seemed to be a blur, and she couldn’t help but scream in fear.

Damon began to come back to reality. He didn’t want to reveal all of his cards right now, not this early on with everyone watching. He brought the jet ski to a complete stop his jet ski directly in front of the one Mark was commanding. “I’m sorry if I scared you. I was playing around, having fun.”

Megan didn’t see the fun in Damon’s antics. “You could hurt someone out here like that. What were you thinking? You scared Kristi half to death doing that.”

Mark recognized that Damon was beginning to lose control. He decided it might be more fun to play along with him rather than engage in conflict with him at the moment. That way the girls would see him as the mature, level-headed one. Maybe Damon would lose at his own game then. “It’s alright. Everyone is fine. Damon’s just having a good time.”

The look on Kristi’s face was pure disapproval. “Well, this isn’t my idea of a good time. I’m ready to go back.”

Damon knew that he had taken it too far this time, and decided he should not protest Kristi’s wish to get back to shore. With that, the guys
carefully made their way back to the shore.

Detective Sullivan pulled up to the beach house where the Jeep had been parked the night before. It was still in the same location which meant that they hadn’t left the area yet. Had they actually killed someone, wouldn’t they have left town and continued on to a place where they couldn’t be easily found? This confirmed in his mind that the woman in the picture was most likely not the person who murdered Cliff. Any information she could give to him may help in solving this case though.

With pictures in hand, Sullivan walked around to the front entrance and knocked on the door. After a few moments, he assumed that no one was home.
This certainly wasn’t surprising; they were probably out on the beach somewhere. He would have to wait around for them to return. He really didn’t mind. There was nothing to do at the station, and the beach provided him with a lot more to admire. He really had no time in his personal life for a girlfriend, but it didn’t bother him to take in all of the sights at the beach, especially all of the bikini clad women.

The detective paced up and down the beach some, patiently waiting for their return. After an hour had passed, he decided to check in with their neighbors. Perhaps they would know something about who was staying at the beach house.

After getting no response from one neighboring beach house which appeared to be vacant, he decided to try the other side. He expected to get no response here either as it looked uninhabitable from the outside. All of the piled up materials and deteriorating structure of the house itself made him cringe as he knocked on the door.

Sullivan was on the verge of walking away when the door swung open. He had to do a double take as he took in the man who stood before him. He appeared to be in worse shape than his house; he stood at the door in stained and torn shorts as well as an old tee shirt that he believed had been white at one time. He wondered when the man had last bothered to take a shower.

Sullivan held out his badge as the man appeared before him. “Detective Sullivan. Mind if I ask you a few questions.”

Horace peered at the badge as if scrutinizing its authenticity. “Name’s Horace. What can I do ya for officer?”

“Mind if I come in, Horace. It’s awfully hot out here.”

Horace wasn’t sure what the detective would think about a dead dog sprawled out on his living room floor. “I’m doin’ some cleaning inside officer. Nowhere to really sit down inside.”

After considering the potential mess inside the home, Sullivan assumed it was safer to remain outdoors. “Sure, no problem. What do you know about the people who are staying next door to you other there.” Sullivan pointed to the beach house that had long been vacant.

Horace couldn’t help but wonder what that boy had done now that had brought this police officer down to the beach. He assumed it had nothing to do with his brother’s disappearance as that case had long been closed. “Not much, sir. They just got here the other day. Four of ‘em I believe. Takin’ in the beach I s’ppose.”

Sullivan held out the picture of Megan to Horace. “Does she look familiar to you?”

Horace squinted at the picture. “Yes, I believe she is one of the young ladies staying there. Real beauty, ain’t she?”

Sullivan tried to peer into the home past Horace as he stood in the doorway. “You live here alone, sir?”

“Just me and my dog, Max. Like it that way. Real peaceful.” Horace thought about poor Max sprawled out in the living room. Now he really was lying.

Sullivan almost felt sorry for the guy. He wasn’t surprised to hear that he had no wife or children living inside with him though. “You haven’t witnessed anything odd recently, have you?”

Horace knew that the detective most likely knew nothing about the disappearance of the boy. “No, sir. Just a bit odd to see someone stayin’ in that house. Ain’t nobody been there since the incident all those years ago.”

Sullivan frowned. It was true that he was not familiar with the criminal history of the area. “What incident would that be, Horace?”

“The s’pposed drowning of that young boy. That was a long time ago though. The family didn’t see no need to come back here ‘til now. Now his brother is back at that beach house. I guess it’s good he’s finally gotten over his brother’s death.”

Sullivan took a step back. “Thank you for your help. You let me know if you see anything strange going on around here.”

“Of course, officer. I usually know everything that’s goin’ on ‘round here.”