Lainey Quilholt Mysteries Collection

Chapter 4-3

“Leave him alone, you b***h!” Huston said, pushing Arline hard enough to make her take a step or two back. There was a brief altercation between the three girls. Bridget slapped Arline. This was becoming a bit like watching reality TV. The two guys who had held AJ back, came between the fray, trying to keep them from going at each other"s throats. Separated from Arline, Bridget, who was much smaller, and thin as a rail (yet looked like she could tear her apart) pointed a finger at her.

“You"ll wish you"d never been born, b***h, you keep it up!” Bridget said with a finger raised in Arline"s face.

“Go to hell, b***h!” With a swish of her arm Arline stomped off in a different direction than AJ, the path led somewhere behind us, deeper into the woods was my guess. Why she went that direction, I couldn"t fathom. Unless she would double back, somehow.

Nadine said something under her breath.

“Alright! A b***h slapping a b***h,” Wendy said, and the guys laughed along with her. It was as though someone had switched bodies with Wendy. I felt like I suddenly didn"t know her. Certainly she was a moody person, but normally she was quiet, especially around a crowd of people. Was it the beer? Or was it something else that I didn"t know about?

“I would"ve paid good money to see someone slap Arline like that,” one of the guys said low enough only for our ears. Chuckles all around lightened the mood. When I looked around for Bridget and the other girl, they had disappeared, and I had no idea which way they"d gone.

Quiet invaded our small party and then Moon said, “Hell of a party. Who died?”

“I guess Arline, the b***h, ruined it for the rest of us,” Nadine said, looking at her tall friend. I glance up at her as she took a swig of what now was a can of pop.

“I need to find the pee house,” Wendy announced (she always did this even in mixed company), and stalked off toward the parking area, where I remembered the outhouses were. Wendy walked to the edge of our camp site, stopped for a moment, stared down the trail going in the opposite way, which sort of worried me. But she continued on toward the parking lot.

“Hey, everyone. Let"s get this party back into the right mood again.” He picked up his guitar and began strumming a quick tune. Melody picked up the tambourine, and the others joined in on singing “Rocky Mountain High” and right after that one ended, went into another up-beat song. By the time they finished two more songs, we all had forgotten about what had happened. Although everyone seemed to have all but forgotten about Arline and AJ"s fight, I remained puzzled and curious as to what was going on between the two.

Everyone was laughing and in a good mood when Brett put down his guitar and said to me, “How about we take a walk?” He surprised me with the question, and didn"t wait for my answer but took my hand and rose. I stood with him. Nearby, Nadine was in a conversation with a guy I"ve never seen before. I asked Brett to wait a second while I went over to let her know I was taking a walk with Brett.

“Where"s Wendy?” Nadine asked as Brett joined me.

“I don"t know. She went to go pee,” I said and chuckled, slightly embarrassed by my choice of words.

“It"s about ten-thirty now.” Nadine pointed to her watch.

“Yes, Mom,” I said, feeling in a light mood.

“You told me to tell you,” she said.

I nodded and waited until we were down the path, and away from everyone"s ears before saying to Brett, “I actually have a curfew.”

“What time do you have to be home?” he asked.

“Eleven, and it"s ten thirty now,” I said, trying to sound apologetic about it. I figured a half an hour would give us enough time to talk and maybe—hopefully—exchange phone numbers.

hopefully—“No sweat. I just wanted to talk to you for a little while, before you leave,” he said. “So, you live with—I think I heard—an aunt?”

“Yes. I also work in her bookstore.”

“That explains it. You"ve been a spy in a small town bookstore!”

“You found me out!” I razzed back. We chuckled.

A softly hooting owl above somewhere in the oaks joined in with the constant cricket"s song. Then, both night creatures became silent as I noticed the fog had really become thick. I wasn"t crazy about driving home in this fog. I would have to take both Wendy and Nadine home, since they"d walked, which I didn"t mind, but that would take me a few minutes extra to swing by their houses.

The sounds of laughter and louder voices punctuated the relatively still night. We stopped momentarily on the path. Through the fog the other party"s fire with people standing around it became more visible. The fact I could see more than ten feet in front of me made me nearly giddy with relief.

“The neighbors are definitely restless,” Brett said with a chuckle.

“That"s the Harley g**g,” I informed.

“You mean a motorcycle g**g?” he asked, serious.

“Possibly. I mean—I don"t know specifically if they are a motorcycle gang.” I stopped myself from making accusations. “There"s a few who"ve been hanging out around town.”

“Really?”

“I saw a few of them while at lunch at the Burger Joint. One"s an ex-con,” I added the last, leaning slightly toward him in a conspiratorial way.

“You know this how?”

“My aunt dates the sheriff"s police chief.” I couldn"t help but smile.

He whistled. “You move in higher places than I expected.

“Yes. So anything you do or say might be used against you.”

“Oh-ho! I knew it would all go to your head, someday, Lainey!” he teased.

Two men appeared out of the fog, laughing, and shambled along the trail, headed toward the party of bikers. We stood still, waiting and watching the men wend their way drunkenly back to the party.

“Could we move away from here, if you don"t mind?” I didn"t like being so close to those people. They sounded extremely drunk.

“That would have been my next suggestion,” he said, and took my hand and drew me away. After stepping five feet, he stiffened, stopped and looked at a large tree.

“What is it?” I asked, slightly spooked.

“I don"t know. I thought I saw someone.”

“Where?” I moved my head as if it would help me see around the large tree trunk.

“Moving behind that large tree,” he whispered, pointing.

The hairs on the back of my neck actually stood up. Realizing I was squeezing his hand a little more than before, I loosened it.

After we stood looking at the tree for a few quiet, nerve-wracking moments, and no one seemed to be there—neither of us actually wanted to go and check this out—we stepped a little further down the path. Brett kept looking back, and out of reaction, so did I.

“I never got the chance to say how sorry I was to hear about your parents,” he said.

I dropped my gaze. It was hard for me to talk about it still. “Thanks.”

“It seemed like overnight you left school, and I didn"t get a chance to say anything. So, I guess I"m saying it now.”

“I appreciate that,” I said. We walked quietly along. The fog had definitely gotten thicker. My worries slid to my driving back the five miles to town.

“Are you seeing anyone?” he asked.

“Me?” I said a little startled. “No.” I hadn"t gone steady for more than two weeks with anyone. I"d barely dated in high school, especially since I was a new comer to Montclair High.

“Good.” He paused on the trail. “Well, not good, but good that you aren"t dating anyone right this moment.” We both laughed nervously. Taking my hand again, he faced me. “I"d like to start seeing you.”

goodMy laugh bubbled out of me. “Really? I think I might faint.”

He laughed again. I liked his laugh. “Yes. Really. I haven"t been able to get you out of my mind.”

“Me?” I pressed my hands to my chest. News to me.

News to me“Well, yes. You.” One finger came up and touched my nose. “I remember you used to sit in front of me, in our creative writing class. Remember?”

“How can I forget Mrs. Penson?” We both laughed. “She was so edgy, and wild.”

“I just remember you,” he said.

“You"re making me blush.” I was and had to avert my eyes. My mouth stretched in a smile I thought would break my face. I"ve never had a guy pay quite so much attention to me. Well, AJ didn"t count. I didn"t like him. “Why me?”

“I don"t know, you"re just a breath of fresh air. You don"t put on airs, you don"t get too crazy about styles or make-up.” He studied my hair. “Or your hair. You seem so natural. I like that.”

“Wow.” I giggled. “I had no idea. Really.”

“I hope that didn"t come out sounding like an insult.”

“No. Not at all. I"m just… astonished.”

“I"d like to begin seeing you. Would that be alright?” he asked.

It amazed me that he sounded so unsure of himself. This was the guy I"d dreamed of going out with but felt I had no chance of getting his attention. Now, here he was asking me out.

me“Sure. I"d like that,” I said, finding the right words, and somehow not sputtering.

He took my other hand in his and kissed the backs of them. “Good. I"ll be living somewhere nearby—” he broke off and sighed deeply. “If, and when we get a place, that is.”

“You"re still looking?”

“Still.”

“House or apartment?”

“House, if we can swing it.”

“How many bedrooms do you need?”

The sudden start up of a Harley Davidson interrupted us. Then another started up, somewhere behind us. Their motors were exceedingly loud, and close. They must have been parked in that party hole. We realized they"d be taking this trail if they were coming out. One after another started up. I counted four. Their lights pierced the fog, through the trees.

“We"d better move out of their way,” I said. We stepped off the trail and made our way across mowed grass, toward the parking lot. The grass was wet, and it soaked through my sneakers, but I didn"t really care. Unable to really see where we were going, but followed the general direction, we kept moving, until the dim light in the parking lot came into view like a hazy moon, a few yards away.

The glint from metal of the motorcycles, and the hulking dark forms of cars shown eerily through the fog, their dark hulks encased in moisture. We made our way carefully between the split rails that kept the vehicles corralled inside the lot. More men and women, with the obligatory chains, tats, head scarves, and leather, scuffed down the trail heading toward the parking lot to their Hogs, their laughter and voices stirring the fog. I recognized Lassiter among them. I couldn"t miss the long black coat he wore, his distinctive swagger. He headed for the purple Harley with the flames and saddlebags. A woman who was with him hopped on the back, and he started it up along with others to help along the splitting headache that threatened me. For the next five minutes it was impossible to hold any sort of conversation. I put my fingers in my ears and waited it out while exchanging incredulous looks with Brett.