AllFreeNovel
Share Us
They fell silent as she maneuvered the switchbacks and veered onto a narrow mountain road leading past the main body of the lake toward the cove. Wide leafless branches hung low, creating a canopy-like tunnel across the thin ribbon of dark road before she reached a clearing and parked.
She and Derrick grabbed flashlights and head lamps then pulled on boots to wade through the mud and snake-infested grass. Ellie used her compass to lead the way, illuminating the ground and checking for poisonous creatures as they hiked. Brush crackled and twigs splintered.
The water was still and quiet, the occasional sound of a frog erupting. Worry clogged Ellie’s throat. She tripped over a broken branch and lost her footing but Derrick caught her arm before she went down. For a second their gazes locked. She squeezed his hand, grateful he was there.
They continued on another half mile, then she spotted Cord’s flashlight and headed toward him. She struggled to steady her breathing in the dank air as she reached the peak.
His grim expression made her stomach twist.
“I don’t know what we’re looking at, El, but there are dozens of these small mounds scattered across the area.”
Ellie thought she might be sick as Cord’s flashlight beam highlighted the mountain of tiny graves on the hill.
SEVENTY
WIDOW PEAK COLLEGE MEMORIAL HALL
Three martinis in and Beverly had almost forgotten about the break-in at her house. This morning she’d visited a salon and had the hairdresser shape up her raggedy hair. Still, she was self-conscious and anxious as she searched the faces of the male attendees for the man who’d been in her house.
Three guys had hit on her, but after her disaster of a marriage she wasn’t interested. She didn’t trust a man as far as she could throw him. However, Janie seemed to be flirting as if she’d forgotten her husband was waiting at home with her kids.
She was a bored housewife now. That mindset and the alcohol were a dangerous combination. Beverly nudged her and whispered, “Take it easy, Janie. Don’t do something you’ll regret in the morning.”
Janie shot her an irritated look. “Who are you, my mother?”
Beverly stiffened at the venom in her tone. “Just trying to be a friend,” she murmured.
“Then don’t be a spoilsport.” Janie ordered a shot of vodka. “Besides we haven’t seen these people in ten years and probably won’t for another ten so who cares what anyone thinks?” She tucked a dollar in the tip glass and knocked back the shot. “You know what they say? What happens on vacation stays on vacation.”
Maybe she was being a prude, but the break-in at her house had Beverly on edge and tonight every man here looked ominous. Any one of them could be the man behind the mask.
She left Janie flirting and joined a group of women from their class who were talking about old times, sorority dances and parties that seemed like a lifetime ago. She desperately wanted to call it a night. But she and Janie had a code—they’d promised years ago they’d never leave the other alone.
Nothing about that had changed for her.
For a second, her gaze latched onto another bartender with coal-colored eyes and square framed glasses who seemed to be watching her.
Unease skated up her spine and she nestled in the circle of girls and listened to them chatter about their jobs and husbands and kids. Diamonds and jewels glittered on their hands, the designer clothing and makeup indicating they hadn’t changed since college. When she’d married David nine years ago, she’d imagined a life of shopping, traveling and the country club herself.
So shallow, she realized, now she’d learned her husband was a thief, a liar and a cheat.
“How about you, Bev?” one of her former sorority sisters asked. “Heard you married some hotshot entrepreneur. Where is he tonight?”
Thecouplesconversation always made her uneasy, as if being single or divorced was a cardinal sin. Maybe she should just wear a big fat D for Divorced on her forehead like the scarlet letter.
She lifted her chin, shoving the hurt and shame deep down inside where her heart lay in shambles and her pride was tattered. “Actually, I’m single and loving it,” she said with a fake smile. “I have full control of the remote.”
Amelia gave a nervous little laugh and the others sipped their drinks, ice clinking in glasses as they imbibed.
“Time for a refill,” Beverly said and raised her empty glass. Smiling as if they hadn’t just opened up an unhealed wound and poured salt into it, she headed toward the bar, scanning the room for Janie. She didn’t spot her at the bar or the food tables. A quick glance at the dance floor told her she wasn’t there either.
Her cell phone buzzed in her clutch and she checked the number. Seeing it was a spam call, she ignored it and stepped into the ladies’ room. “Janie? Are you in here?”
Two women were fluffing their hair and touching up their lipstick but the stalls were empty.
Surely Janie hadn’t left without her.
She pushed open the door and searched the room again, then thought she spotted her friend by the rear entrance. Ready to give Janie a piece of her mind then call an Uber, she hurried outside.
