Page 47 of Too Close To Call

I step out onto the deck, kick my sandals off, and walk down to the beach. My phone vibrates with a text. I check the screen and grin. It’s from Case.

Running late. Should be home around seven.

Having fun?

The project would be fun, but the guy… high maintenance.

You taking it?

Not sure. See you later. Don’t cook. I’ll bring something home.

Don’t worry about it. I’m not hungry. Your babysitters fed me well.

Busted. Gotta go.

I sit down high up from the waterline with my legs folded under me. The ocean breeze keeps a steady stream blowing through my hair. It’s cooling against my heated skin. It’s nearing four in the afternoon and is still hot. I have three hours before Case gets home.

“Hey, can the kid that lives here come play with me?”

I startle, having not seen anyone approach, but the tiny person beside me is far from scary. She’s small and falls somewhere between Daisy’s age and maybe eight years old. She resembles Daisy with her blonde hair and blue eyes, but that’s where the similarity ends. This little girl looks like she’s been rolling in grass and dirt with part of it still in her matted hair. Her denim overall shorts are stained with I’m-not-sure-I-want-to-know-what and her once white t-shirt is ripped on one sleeve.

I shade my eyes and look up at the newcomer. “Hey, who are you?”

The girl frowns and looks back up at Case’s house. “Is the girl home? Can she come out?” she asks again.

I don’t remember meeting this child before and I’d know it if Daisy had played with her. Which leaves me feeling as if I’m in the twilight zone. “No, I’m sorry. She isn’t home. Have you played with her before?”

She shakes her head and frowns. “No, but I’ve seen her on the beach. You should be careful. This beach is haunted, you know.”

I grin. “No, I didn’t know that.”

“People hear screams all the time that can’t be explained. A Viking ship was attacked by pirates and sank off the shore hundreds of years ago and killed all ninety-nine men on board. They say you can still hear their screams. And on red moon nights, you can even see their ghosts walking up and down the beach, searching for a way home.”

I shudder. This is getting creepy. I don’t believe a word the child is saying, but the worst part is that a child her age thinks about these things. It’s not normal. Daisy will not be playing with her. I look up and down the beach for her parents and see no one.

“On very dark nights, you can see the ship’s fading lanterns beneath the water. The pirate captain cut off the Viking captain’s head and mounted it on the bow of his ship. During storms, you can hear the captain crying out, “Where’s me head?” She raises her voice and uses a thick vibrato. “Where’s me head?”

My brow arches as I stare into her serious little face. Is this child for real? Before I can come up with a remark or question about her tall tales, she spins on her bare feet and calls over her shoulder, “Tell the kid I want to play with her next time.”

That’s not happening. Daisy would have nightmares for weeks.

She heads toward the edge of the water and then runs back down the beach. I stand and brush the sand from my shorts and look in the direction she took. The girl is gone? I take a few steps and crane my neck, but she’s gone. Disappeared. She’s not even a blip in the distance. She couldn’t have gone that far.

I wait, expecting to see her pop out, but after about ten minutes, I walk back up to the house wondering if I imagined the whole thing.

CHAPTER 15

CASE

As soon as I step into the house, the lack of smells coming from the kitchen is good. That means Tori didn’t attempt to cook. I shift the takeout chicken parm in my hand and look for her in the living room on my way to store the food in the refrigerator. She’s not there. I glance out onto the deck and don’t see her there either.

For a frantic heartbeat, I think she’s left. “Hey, Tori, I’m home.”

“I’m up here,” she calls out, and the hand that had been unconsciously rubbing my chest falls to my side.

I thought she’d left. Deserted me without a word. It doesn’t go unnoticed that the trust issues I have with Tori haven’t magically vanished. The first place my mind went to was her up and leaving.

I climb the stairs to my bedroom… well, Tori’s bedroom since she’s been staying here. The door is standing open a crack. Determined to stay on the safe side of the doorway, I push it open a bit more. “Hey, sorry I’m…”

---