Page 15 of My Wife

The motion catches Vee’s attention. Sitting up, she announces, “It’s hot as fuck out here.”

I gesture at the flames.

“Yeah, but you know what I was thinking? We should go for a swim. Cool off in the water.”

Tommy chuckles. “Ocean’s right behind you, Vee. Knock yourself out.”

“Swim at high tide in the Pacific, Tommy? With sharks out there? You must be joking. No,” Vee says, waving her hand toward the woods flippantly. “Let’s go to the lake.”

My stomach twists.

Tommy goes still.

Summer shifts on Tyler’s lap, sitting on him with her back to her husband, facing the rest of us on the other side of the bonfire. “Did someone say we should go to Halo Lake?”

The lake.

It wasn’t really the island itself that I didn’t want to see again. I have wonderful memories of my time here… but Halo Lake?

It’s what’s called an incursive lake. A body of water that’s nestled in the center of the island, its circular shape makes up part of the design that gave Halo Island its name. The lake is about twelve feet deep in its center, and unlike the shore, there are no tides. No waves. It’s peaceful and serene and, tucked away in the middle of the island, it’s incredibly private.

It’s also where my mother died.

Ten years later, I can still see the scene vividly. It was mid-May. The weather had been gorgeous all afternoon. Our gym teacher brought a pair of volleyball nets and set them up on the sand. We held an impromptu volleyball tournament—Tommy and Clay’s team winning, of course—and built a bonfire to roast hot dogs for dinner, marshmallows for dessert.

The temperature dipped as the sun set. Too chilly to take a swim even if the lake wasn’t off-limits after curfew. Everyone knew that you were risking the chance to walk at graduation if you broke any of the three rules: no swimming after dark, no starting a fire without adult supervision, and no swapping bunks once yours was assigned. That last one was to keep guys and girls from intermingling, and considering that just meant a handful of students snuck out to fuck where they couldn’t be caught, it didn’t really work.

The lake was different. Us seniors knew better than to go into the ocean at night, and even if we tried, two of our teachers set up tents on the sand to keep an eye on the shore. Because the lake was a hike to get to, none of the chaperones set up near it. The threat of possible expulsion was supposed to be enough to keep us away.

I would’ve. I didn’t have any intention of sneaking out and walking all the way over to the lake that fateful night. By mom…

When I saw her floating on the lake, I didn’t want to believe it was her. I recognized the purple blouse she was wearing, clinging to her soaked skin. Her hair—a paler shade of blonde than mine, turned dark from the water—was loose, wafting like a cloud in front of her. The tendrils barely moved since the lake itself was so still.

She had her shoes on. I remember that detail so vividly. The expensive heels Rick gave her, that she told me she’d wear when they got married at the courthouse later that summer… she was still wearing them when the Coast Guard came and dragged her body out.

I was the one who found her. I didn’t know what I was supposed to do, and for longer than I want to admit, I stared in horror as she bobbed on the surface of the lake, just out of my reach. It was only when Clayton Rivers—Tommy’s best friend… he was just Tommy’s best friend then—stepped out of the woods, saw my mom drowned and me in shock, that I knew it was real.

It happened.

My momdied.

Later, Clay would admit he was sitting on the back porch of the cabin he shared with Tommy and a couple of the other guys on the football team when he saw me sneaking away from mine. I’d been worried that my mom hadn’t come back at curfew so I went searching for her. Clay didn’t stop to grab Tommy. He simply followed to make sureIwas okay.

And I wasn’t. It took a long, long time until I was again, and Clay had a lot to do with that. He was the one who held me that night as the shock wore off, denial settling in just as quickly. He was the one who walked back to get help when I couldn’t leave her, even though we both knew my mom was too far gone to be saved, and who retrieved Tommy for me after news broke and everyone came rushing toward the lake to see what happened.

Then, when I needed a place to stay, I moved in with Clay. And whether it was trauma-bonding or what, I started to see him as more than just Tommy’s best friend.

He becamemine.

Now he’s gone, too, and just the thought of going anywhere near the lake where my mom died, without the man who saved me back then…

I should’ve known better than to agree to this. Of course someone would suggest we visit the lake some time during our stay. I’d have put money down on that person being Summer, not Vee, but Madison and Chase have already nodded their agreement, while Tommy rubs my upper arm.

I look at him.

His eyes are bright. Not from the alcohol, either, but the excitement of continuing the night near Halo Lake. “What do you think, love?” he asks me. “How about a swim?”

Fuck. Tommy wants to go.

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