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“How about we go home, clean up, and take the rest of the day off?” Cody said.
“Yeah.” Demmy nodded. “That sounds good.”
Cody put his arm around Demmy’s shoulders as they crossed the trail and approached the truck. A few feet from the vehicle, Cody stopped in his tracks at the sight of the raccoon sitting in the truck bed, blinking at them. Demmy snorted a quiet laugh, and even through his sudden irritation, Cody felt a little better. Another good sign Demmy was coming out of his shock.
“This is fucking ridiculous,” Cody said.
“We should take him back with us.”
“Take him back? And do what with him? He’s not going to sleep on the foot of the bed.”
“Not with your tendency to kick,” Demmy said.
Cody gave him a long look. “That sounds more like a personal complaint than concern about the welfare of a stubborn trash panda. You might be feeling a bit better, huh?”
“A bit.” Demmy nodded toward the truck. “The raccoon is a good distraction.”
“While that’s good to hear, I’m not up for adopting a wild animal.”
“What do we do?”
“I take him back to the wild where he belongs.” Cody waved toward the truck’s cab. “Go ahead and get in.”
“Okay, good luck.”
It took Cody fifteen minutes and three tries. He snared the raccoon in the long-handled net and carried it wriggling and hissing out to the woods where he turned it out and ran back. The first time, the furry fucker beat him back to the truck and sat blinking at him while he stood doubled over with his hands on his knees, panting. He thought he heard Demmy laughing from inside the truck but let it go.
The second time, Cody beat the raccoon to the truck but it clambered up into the bed as he’d tried to back the truck out. The third time, he left the net on the ground with the raccoon tangled inside, and finally managed to drive off.
“He is a determined little guy,” Demmy said as Cody drove faster than was safe along the trail.
“He’s not little,” Cody grumbled. “I don’t know what he’s been eating out here, but he’s like a furry top weight kettlebell. Jordie would love him.” He reached over to take Demmy’s hand, noting how cool his skin felt. “You doing okay?”
“I’m okay. It was just a big shock, you know? I mean, we were naked and swimming and everything was fine. Then I felt something touch my foot, and I bumped up against a dead body.” He shuddered so hard his body shifted back and forth in the seat. He rubbed his right hand up and down the leg of his shorts, but he never pulled his left out of Cody’s grip, which made Cody feel good. “I can still feel how slick and cold her skin was when I touched it. It’s like every nightmare all wrapped up in one scenario. Swimming in deep water. Being naked and vulnerable. Touching a dead body.” Another shudder. “Ugh.”
“Hopefully a shower and some rest back home will help you feel better.”
“It should.” Demmy squeezed his hand. “Thank you.”
Cody turned onto Route 118 and headed toward town. “You let me know if you start feeling more off than this, okay? I’m worried about you.”
“Yeah, I’ll let you know.” From the corner of his eye, Cody saw him give a shrug. “It’s not like we haven’t seen a body before.”
“While that might be true, we’ve also never swam up and touched one before.”
Demmy made a face and shuddered again, but it wasn’t as pronounced this time. “I wonder who she was.”
“Hopefully Lucia will have an ID when we go in tomorrow morning.”
“Another fun morning visit to the sheriff’s department.”
They rode the rest of the way home in silence, holding hands. Cody was encouraged by the warmth he felt returning to Demmy’s skin. Once at the house, Demmy headed for the bathroom and Cody went into the kitchen to call Jugs and explain.
“Another body?” Jugs said. “What the fuck is wrong with you two?”
“Hey, it’s not like we killed her.”
“No, you just found her. Like all those times before.”
