Page 21 of Kindred Lies
Chapter 12
The speedboat rocked against the waves and pushed it closer to the dock. Ben turned the key but the engine didn’t roll over. He tried again but nothing happened. Amethyst frowned and leaned forward. “Is there something wrong?”
He shook his head and then tapped his finger on something near the steering will. Probably a gauge of some sort… One thing was very clear. If he couldn’t get the speedboat started they were not going out on the lake today. Amethyst sighed. She had been looking forward to their outing.
“It looks like the gas tank is empty,” Ben told her. “I’m going to have to walk over and get some in a can. It’s bone dry and won’t leave this part of the dock.” He shook his head lightly. “I’m sorry. It shouldn’t have been left this way. I swear it had a full tank after I last used it.”
That seemed like an easy enough solution to their dilemma. “Don’t worry about it.” She tried to sound easy going and hoped she conveyed that in her tone. “Would you like me to walk with you to get the gas?”
Ben seemed to ponder that and then shook his head. “No,” he began. “It won’t take me long to walk over to the station. Stay here where you will be more comfortable.”
That sounded a bit patronizing. “I don’t mind really.” Amethyst was starting to get restless and wanted to move around. He probably wouldn’t understand that though. Ben seemed determined to make sure she stayed in the boat. “It’ll do me good to stretch my legs before we go out for a while in the boat.”
He didn’t even bother to reply to her. Ben walked over to a sideboard and pulled out a small gas can, then hopped onto the dock. He strolled away leaving her in the boat by herself. Where had the charming guy gone? The one she’d met at the inn and earlier in town. This Ben wasn’t anything like him. He was treating her as if she was…insignificant. Did something so minor as an empty gas tank really rate such an attitude from him? She suddenly didn’t want to go out on the water with him. If he was going to act like a jerk then she would much rather go back to the inn and be by herself.
She stood and hopped off the boat. As she strolled down the dock in the opposite direction of the boat and Ben a roll of thunder echoed in the distance. Amethyst glanced up at the sky. Dark clouds had rolled in across the lake. Lightning filled the sky and thunder followed again soon after. It was a good thing they hadn’t left out on the lake. She would have hated to be stuck on a boat in the middle of a lake in the midst of a thunderstorm.
“Amethyst,” Ben yelled from behind her. “Where are you going?”
Raindrops started to fall at that moment. It wasn’t a full on storm yet, but it wouldn’t take long for it to start in truth. She glanced up at the sky and then quickened her pace. Ben jogged over and tapped her on the shoulder. “Wait,” he said. “I’ll come with you.”
She shook her head. “No. I’m just going back to my room. I’ll talk to you later.” Amethyst didn’t want to stand out in the rain and hash any of it out.
He ignored her and fell into step beside her. Luckily, the inn wasn’t too far from the docks. Amethyst ignored Ben and kept her pace brisk until she reached the inn. “Did I do something to upset you?” Ben asked.
She let out an exasperated breath. “This isn’t really a good place to discuss this. There is an impending downpour.” A fat drop fell onto her nose. Amethyst wiped it away in disgust.
Ben held up his hands. “All right I’ll give you some space. It’s clear that you’re in a mood.”
How dare he…“You know what. That’s the first thing you’ve said in the past fifteen minutes that makes sense. Iamin a mood and it would be best if you left.” She hated being treated as if just because she was female there was something innately wrong with her or she was presumed to be overly emotional.
“If that’s what you want…” He backed up.
“It is,” she said in a scathing tone.
Ben shrugged and walked away from her. As he crossed the parking lot the clouds unleashed its hoard of rain on the entire town. Amethyst rushed into the inn and shook off the droplets. Her hair was damp but she managed not get entirely soaked from it.
She rushed up the stairs and headed straight to her room. Once there turned on the shower and stripped off her clothes. A hot shower sounded heavenly. Afterward she’d settle in and read some more of Marianne’s journal. She had been planning on leaving it alone today, but sometimes plans had away of unraveling when you least expected it.
Amethyst finished her shower and toweled herself dry, then dressed quickly. The storm continued to rage on outside. More thunder crackled and the wind whistled. It blew so hard the windows rattled against the pressure. The lights in the room flickered.
“Damn…” She frowned. “I hope the power doesn’t go out.”
That would suck and make it even more difficult to read the journal. She should head down to the lobby. Maybe they had an extra flashlight or some candles she could take up to her room. She wasn’t afraid of the dark but she didn’t exactly like total blackness either.
Amethyst ran a brush through her wet hair and braided it, then fastened a hair tie at the end to hold it in place. She slipped on her sandals and left her room. As she reached the stairs the power went out around her. Hopefully she didn’t fall down the stairs in the dark. That wouldn’t be a fun way to fall at Cooper’s feet—that is if he was working…
* * *
Cooper satbehind the computer at the front desk and tapped away at the keys. The storm had cut the power, but the laptop battery kept it going. He finished what he’d been working on, saved it, then shut it down. He didn’t know how long they would be without electricity and he’d rather save the power for more important things.
“Ouch…”
That sounded like Amethyst. Cooper leapt to his feet and went toward the sound. It was hard to see anything in the dark. Lightning flashed giving some light to the room. He found her sitting on the steps rubbing her ankle.
“Are you all right?” he asked.
“I’m fine,” she said. “I just tripped over my own feet. At least I was at the last step and didn’t tumble all the way down.”
