A Flicker of Doubt - Tim Myers [19]
Eve didn’t know that Becka had died from an overdose, so I couldn’t blame her for suggesting it, but I still felt my stomach lurch when she mentioned pills. “Thanks, but I’ll be fine,” I said. We had four minutes left before closing, so I added, “Why don’t you go on home? I’ve got this covered.”“
“I don’t mind staying, truly I don’t”
“I know that but it might help me to keep busy. Good night Eve.”
“Goodnight then.” I knew she was really worried about me when she didn’t put up a fuss about leaving early. Normally Eve wanted to stay longer than I did, and I owned the place.
As I ran the reports from our cash register and started balancing the till, I suddenly realized that I still had Becka’s thousand dollars in my pocket. What was I going to do with it? I surely didn’t want to keep it on me all the time, but I didn’t want it in my apartment, either. I went into the storeroom and pulled down one of the rubber molds from the back of the highest shelf. It was of a Christmas tree, and I loved the candles it made. I jammed the folded bills up into the peak, then put the mold back on the shelf where no one would stumble across it One way or another, that cash would be long gone before people started buying Christmas molds again.
By the time I got back to the register the reports were all run. The totals matched the cash, so I made out my nightly deposit. As I was locking the door behind me on my way to the bank, I heard a car horn.
Erin Lane, the young woman who owned the canoe and kayak rental place on the Gunpowder River, was speeding into the empty parking lot
I waited for her by the steps.
She said, “Harrison, I just heard about what happened. I’m so sorry.”
“Thanks,” I said, already tired of talking about it. If I didn’t have to discuss my horrendous discovery every ten minutes, maybe I could convince myself it never happened. ‘
As she approached me, she said, “I can’t believe you found her in your kayak.”
“Speaking of which, how would you like to buy one, dirt cheap? I’m not going to be needing mine anymore.”
“Harrison, you can’t let this stop you from paddling. I know how much you love being out on the river.”
I took a deep breath and tried to keep my voice calm. “Erin, if I never go out on the water again, it won’t break my heart. Do you want it, or should I just put an ad in the paper?”
Now she was the one who looked like she wanted to cry. “If that’s what you really want, we can work something out but we don’t have to talk about it right now. Would you like some company?”
I thought about it a second, then said, “Sorry, but I’m not in the mood to talk.”
Erin nodded. “I understand that and I promise; no questions. I won’t say a word. I’ll just keep you company.”
“I appreciate the offer, but I’m tired and I’m not really in the mood for company. I just want to drop this off at the bank, then come back here and crash.”
“I can take your deposit for you if you’d like, since it’s on my way home. That way you won’t have to deal with it tonight”
“I don’t mind, really, but thanks for offering.” A hurt expression crossed her face before she could bury it and I wondered if she thought I didn’t trust her. “Okay, I give in. Why don’t you ride with me to the bank? I know it means you’ll have to come back out here with me, but it might be nice having you go.”
“That’s great” she said, immediately brightening.
We walked back to my truck parked in its space behind the building and I held the door open for her.
“Thank you, sir,” she said.
“You’re welcome.” We rode in companionable silence to the bank, and Erin was true to her word. I glanced over at her a few times, but she was looking out the window as darkness approached.
Finally, I said, “The streetlights are really pretty from River’s Edge.”
“You can see them from your apartment? I thought the trees would get in the way.”
“I can see them,” I said, not wanting to share the information that I had a whole other world on the roof of the complex. It was as private a place as I could ever have, accessed only through