Page 106 of Secrets Along the Shore (Beach Read Thrillers #1)

CHAPTER

TWELVE

I dream of the boat again.

Every detail is familiar. The thick summer heat pressing against my skin.

The waves of lake water against the hull.

The vibration of fireworks overhead, coloring the sky in bursts of crimson and gold.

I can smell the faint tang of gasoline, feel the wood grain of the oars beneath my fingers. But this time, something is different.

I see another boat.

I see it just beyond the dock lights, half-cloaked in darkness.

A flash of white. A movement. Someone standing at the edge.

A limp figure lifted. Hair dripping like seaweed.

My throat closes. I want to call out, but my voice won’t work.

I’m paralyzed as I watch the body drop into the water with a soft splash, swallowed by the lake.

I know that hair. I know that girl.

Livvie.

I jolt awake, heart pounding. My skin is slick with sweat. The room is dark, cloaked in shadows, but the light from my phone glows beside me. It vibrates a second later.

Evan (5:22 AM): Can we talk?

I stared at the message. For a moment, I didn’t move. The dream clung to me like cobwebs, thick and disorienting. My chest tightened. That second boat, a motorboat, had never been in the dream before. What else had I missed? What else was my mind hiding from me?

I texted back quickly, my fingers trembling.

Scarlett: Not here. Let’s meet in town. Eight? That bakery near the post office.

Evan: Okay. I’ll be there.

I moved to get ready, not wanting to return to sleep, taking a long, scalding shower to let the water rinse the sweat and fear from my body.

Then I changed into jeans and a hoodie, pulling my hair back tight before making my way to leave.

I glanced toward the back deck as I reached the door.

That same sense of being watched prickled my skin.

I opened the door and froze.

My tires had been slashed.

All four of them.

My heart dropped to my stomach. I stepped outside slowly, my eyes sweeping the woods around the lodge. The early morning mist still hung low, blurring the tree line. Was someone beyond the outskirts of the forest?

Was someone watching me, ready to strike?

A bird flew above, sweeping low over my head and made me jump. I spun in a slow circle. Was someone out there?

The forest gave nothing away.

I retreated inside and grabbed my phone from the hoodie’s front pocket. My hands shook as I scrolled to Sheriff McNealy’s number. I texted quickly.

Scarlett: Someone slashed all four of my tires last night.

A long pause before his response came.

McNealy: I’m not surprised. I warned you .

I shook my head in frustration.

Scarlett: Not helping. Someone wants me trapped out here.

McNealy: Or a warning to leave while it’s only your tires. I’ll be right over, but Scarlett, it might be time to think about packing it up. Put the house on the market and walk away.

I glance toward Becca’s property, just visible through the fog.

Scarlett: Becca won’t ever come out if she knows whoever did this is still out there. You think I should just run away and leave her here? Alone? Terrified? An agoraphobic that not even her parents will help?

McNealy: I think you should stay alive.

Scarlett: No one has a reason to hurt me.

I’m not sure I believe that statement.

McNealy: For now.

I dropped my phone onto the counter and pressed my palms into the wood, my breath shallow. The memory of Livvie’s limp body slipping into the lake flashed through my mind again. If that wasn’t an accident…if someone killed her…

Then I saw it.

And if I saw it, then someone may think I’ll remember them, too.

Maybe that’s why they’re trying to scare me off.

I exhaled slowly and grabbed my bag, slipping on boots before locking up.

I can walk into town. It wasn’t far, just under two miles.

The cold air cleared my head as I trekked along the paved road.

If the sheriff passed me by, I’d see him.

But something told me I wasn’t a priority to him. Which didn’t help the situation .

The truth was, I was afraid.

Because if I remembered Livvie, I might remember everything. And would remembering everything make me a target too?

I reached the bakery with a few minutes to spare. Evan was already there, seated at a corner table with two steaming cups of coffee. His eyes lit up with a smile as I entered, but it faded as he saw my face.

“What happened?” he asked, standing.

“Someone slashed my tires last night.”

“Was it a joke?” He motioned for me to sit. “Are you okay?”

I shake my head, then nod, not sure which answer I’m replying to, and if either of my answers were the truth. I lower myself into the seat and take a sip of the coffee the server placed before me. It’s hot and rich, grounding me.

“The sheriff thinks I should leave,” I said quietly.

“Do you think he’s right?”

I shake my head. “Not yet. Not until I know what happened to Livvie.”

Evan leaned forward. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. I’ve been thinking a lot since our last conversation. I want to help you.”

I met his eyes. “Becca was with a boy that night.”

His face twitched. “I’ve heard that rumor.”

“Do you know who he was?”

Evan shook his head. “No. But it makes sense. She disappeared during the fireworks. She came back alone. Her dress was wet.”

That last detail hooked me like a fishhook. “Wet?”

“Yeah,” he said. “I remember because she was shivering. Claimed she spilled punch on herself, but she reeked of lake water.”

My pulse raced. “I think she was there when Livvie died. What if the boy was too? Maybe they saw something. Or maybe…he did something.”

Evan swallowed hard. “You think Becca’s protecting him?”

“I think she’s protecting someone. Whatever happened has caused her to lock herself away.”

We sat in silence for a moment. Outside the window, people walked the streets, going about their day without a concern .

“I have this recurring dream,” I said. “About the lake. I’m in my rowboat. But last night I dreamed there was another boat. A motorboat. I think someone dumped Livvie’s body that night. I think I might have seen it happen.”

Evan didn’t respond, but the muscle in his jaw tightened. He glanced over his shoulder, and I wondered if I spoke too loud.

“And if I saw it,” I continued, voice softer, “maybe that’s why someone wants me gone. Maybe they’re afraid I’ll remember.”

Evan leaned back, studying me. “Then you have to be careful, Scarlett. Because if you remember the truth, they might try to do more than slash your tires.”

I nodded, feeling the weight of his words settle around me.

He reached across the table, covering my hand with his. “But you’re not alone in this. I’m here to help.”

For the first time in days, I believed that might be true. Even if the path ahead was filled with danger. Even if remembering Livvie meant facing the darkness I’ve kept locked away for years.

I glanced out the window again, toward the road that winded back to the lake. Whoever was trying to stop me was afraid of what I might uncover along the way.

Which meant I was getting closer.

Evan pulled his Jeep into the gravel drive beside the lodge and cut the engine. I glanced back toward my SUV, still sunk low on slashed tires like a sad, wounded animal. Evan stepped out and walked over to it, crouching low to inspect the damage. I followed to the rear of my car.

“All four,” he said after circling the car and returning to me. “Clean cut, like with a knife. Definitely intentional. I’ll call to see what’s in stock. Might have to order them.”

The image of the knife that had protruded from the deck post flashed in my mind.

I’d left it in the rowboat. Intentional was right.

A message sent to me that I wasn’t alone out here.

I folded my arms and tried not to let the sense of violation crawl any higher up my spine.

“ You really don’t have to go through the trouble of ordering new ones. I can manage.”

Evan’s expression softened. “Scarlett, you shouldn’t have to deal with this. You own the place and have every right to live in peace, but all you’ve gotten is hostility. It’s not right.”

“It’s nothing new. The town never welcomed us.

” I looked away, down the road, into the woods, anywhere but at his face.

Because it was the truth, and there was nothing he could say to negate my words.

I wasn’t welcome here then nor now. I’d hoped time might have changed something—softened old edges or healed the scars of gossip.

But maybe those wounds just scabbed over in the years in between.

Or perhaps my presence here represented Aaron Scanlon, and that’s what people actually struggled with. Could I blame them, knowing what I know now?

Evan sighed and looked out over the lake. The sunlight glittered across the water like a shattered mirror. “Then let me be the exception. You deserve at least one person in your corner.”

I smiled, grateful. Not romantically. Not yet. Probably not ever. But friendship meant something. And right now, I needed someone to lean on.

“Come in,” I said. “There’s something I want to show you.”

We walked together into the lodge. He glanced at the living room with its mismatched furniture and faded rugs, not saying anything. But his eyes were curious. Even a little excited. I thought it was kind of cute.

“You want to see the room again, don’t you?” I asked.

He broke into a wide grin, like a kid presented with a lollipop the size of his head.

“I just have a feeling that whatever you’re looking for, it’s in there.

Scanlon didn’t build a space like that just for the novelty.

There’s something he couldn’t leave behind…

or couldn’t trust anyone else with. Not even his family. I want to help you find it.”

I smiled, appreciating his acceptance of me here in his town. “I’d like that.” With the tilt of my head, I invited him to follow me.

Back in Scanlon’s room, I pulled out the book and opened the secret door.

Cool, stale air rushed upward as I stepped into the darkness.

Evan followed behind me. His boots thumping on the wood floor vibrated, sending a shiver through me.

I flicked on the lamp on the desk, casting the room in its warm, golden glow.

The space was nearly as he’d seen it last, except for my recent discoveries. Evan crouched near the desk where I’d left a spread of documents and opened yearbooks. He began flipping through one file, carefully lifting the contents as though afraid to tear something fragile.

I let him catch up to where I was at, giving him a few minutes before speaking. “I’ve been wondering about something.”

He looked up. “What’s that?”

“What if he wasn’t hiding these things from the school?” I blurted.

Evan’s eyebrows furrowed. “What do you mean?”

I took a step closer to the bookshelves, scanning the labels again. “I’ve been looking at the students, the experiments, trying to understand what he was doing. But what if these weren’t secrets he kept from the school? What if he was hiding all this from someone else entirely?”

“Who?”

“His family,” I said, and the word hit hard.

I turned back toward the center of the room.

“He had no children. Clarice told me. But he had a nephew. The attorney who contacted me about the will said everyone assumed the nephew would inherit this place. Except he didn’t.

Scanlon left it to me. Why? Perhaps his nephew couldn’t be trusted with all this. ”

Evan slowly stood. “You think his family didn’t know what he was doing?”

“I think he wanted to make sure they never found out. When Clarice had an idea that something was up, she ran, not wanting to know the details. Scanlon built this room for a reason. These records, these files, the secrecy…it’s hidden for a reason.

Hidden from someone who had access to this house.

He wasn’t preserving something. He was protecting it from the people closest to him in his own home. ”

Evan crossed his arms, processing. “Okay. So then, who might that be?”

I exhaled slowly. “Maybe there was someone he trusted at first…someone he confided in. Or maybe someone he was afraid of. ”

Then something occurred to me. I turned quickly toward Evan. “Clarice said his nephew came up here some summers.”

Evan blinked. “Nathan? The one who thought he’d inherit the lodge?”

I nodded as I wondered if I’d mentioned the nephew’s name and figured I must have at some point. “What if he saw something? What if he was a witness, or worse, involved somehow? Maybe Scanlon didn’t leave the lodge to him for a reason. Maybe he knew something Nathan did—or almost did.”

Evan looked toward the door, then back at me. “That means someone in his family might have a stake in keeping all of this quiet. But first, they have to find this place.”

I nodded, cold settling deep in my chest. “And if Nathan was here the summer Livvie died, he might’ve seen it happen. Or been part of it.” I wondered if he could be the boy Becca had been with.

“Hey, you okay?” Evan asked. “You’re going to chew through that lower lip if you’re not careful.” He touched my chin softly, and I let my lip go. I watched him as he studied my lips, his fingertips still grazing my cheek while his eyes misted over with something more than friendship.

I stepped back, letting his hand fall back to his side and pretending a line between us hadn’t just been tarried with.

I cleared my throat and composed myself. “We should go. I need new tires.”

Evan nodded, not meeting my gaze. “I’m sorry.

” A chagrined expression crossed his face.

“Can we just forget what just happened? I really want to help you, not put the moves on you. You were just so cute, and I…well, never mind. We need to figure out who slashed your tires. That’s all.

They know you’re looking. Come back to town with me.

We’ll pick up the new tires, and I’ll change them for you. ”

I figured he was trying to cover for his slip, and under other circumstances, I might have enjoyed the flattery, but I also needed to reestablish some boundaries. I decided to give him another chance and take the offer for a ride to town.

“Fine, but you can drop me off at the library first. I want to do a little research. ”

“Oh, yeah? Research about what?”

I closed the bookcase door and replaced the book on the shelf. Something inside me had me holding my tongue.

“Just want to learn some history about this place.” I walked ahead of him, effectively ending the conversation.