Page 24 of Deadline

The boardwalk that connected the house to the beach was only two feet wide. The planks were old and weathered. Fearing splinters, she didn’t allow the boys to walk on it with bare feet, although the soles of her own feet had been toughened on these same planks every summer for as far back as she could remember. Back to when her mother was in the kitchen humming under her breath as she peeled fresh peaches for the cobbler she would bake. Back to when her father had warned her from his rocking chair on the verandah to be on the lookout for jellyfish.

The saw grass on the dunes rustled in the breeze. The moon was still rising, but even if it had been high in the sky, it wouldn’t have shed much light. It was a narrow crescent, what her father used to call a “fingernail moon.”

The tide of nostalgia and homesickness that assailed her was far stronger than the gentle surf. The lacy foam left on the sand when the soft waves receded sparkled in the beam of her flashlight. She walked along the packed sand, searching for a glint of gold, that precious, tangible connection to her father.

Using the house as a reference point, she made a U-turn and started back the other way, going a little farther up the beach where the sand was drier. She repeated that slow, zigzagging route, moving a little farther away from the shore on each lap. Eventually she acknowledged the futility of the search. If the watch had been lost on the beach, it had probably been washed out to sea with the ebbing tide.

Nevertheless, she searched more carefully around the area where they’d set up

camp that day, even dropping to her knees at the spot where she’d staked the umbrella. She sifted handfuls of sand through her fingers.

Finally, she sat back on her heels and despondently rubbed her hand over her bare wrist. Of all the things to lose, why that? Her mother had always said that tears should never be wasted on inanimate objects. Still, the watch had held enormous sentimental value for her, and while she could buy another, that particular one was irreplaceable.

Sighing with regret, she looked out across the water, then up at the moon. She missed her mother, but that was a familiar ache because she’d been gone for a long time. The loss of her father, however, remained an open wound.

In that moment, she felt very lonely.

But not alone.

Gripped by a sudden and inexplicable fear, she turned quickly to look behind her. Seasonal residents and tourists usually cleared out by Labor Day, so all the other houses along the stretch of beach, her neighbor Bernie’s included, were dark. No campfires flickered. There was one boat anchored offshore, but at a distance, and only its safety lights were on. The breeze didn’t carry any sounds of merrymaking.

Yet, she sensed she wasn’t alone. And it was that, not the balmy wind that raised goose bumps on her arms. Grateful for the flashlight, she got to her feet and started up the boardwalk, moving swiftly, so that by the time she reached the steps to the porch, she was practically running and out of breath. She shut the front door soundly behind her and shot the dead bolt. Then she went through each room of the lower story, checking it. But for what, she couldn’t say.

Feeling a bit foolish for the unwarranted panic, she ordered herself to get a grip. Even so, she poured a second glass of wine and took it with her when she went upstairs. The boys were just as she’d left them. In her bedroom, she finished her wine while preparing for bed.

But she didn’t fall asleep. It wasn’t until much later, after she heard Stephanie come in and quietly shut the door to her bedroom, that she relaxed enough to close her eyes.

* * *

“Knock, knock?” Without waiting for an answer, the back door was pushed open and a shock of white hair appeared in the crack. “Anybody home?”

“Bernie!”

“Bernie!”

Both boys scrambled from their chairs at the breakfast table and rushed to greet their next-door neighbor. They were instantly intrigued by the large sack he’d carried in. With unabashed greed, Hunter asked, “Did you bring us something?”

“Mind your manners, young man,” Amelia scolded.

Bernie laughed. “It’s okay. I did, in fact, bring them something. But they have to finish breakfast before they can have it.”

Amelia gave him a look of thanks as the boys returned to the table and attacked their cereal bowls.

“Coffee?”

“Thank you, but stay where you are. I’ll get it.”

He had one bad hip, and the other had already been replaced. As he went to the cabinet for a mug, Amelia noticed that his tottering gait was more pronounced than usual. After pouring his coffee, he joined her and the children at the table.

“My feelings were hurt,” she told him.

He blew on his coffee. “Why’s that?”

“I thought you might have left for home while I was in Savannah.” He lived in Upper Michigan.

“Without saying good-bye? Never.”

“Your house was dark last night.”