The Night Swim(92)

Rachel moved toward him. “Hannah’s lived her whole life wondering what happened that night. Tell her and then maybe she’ll agree not to take this to the authorities. She’ll move on with her life and allow you to move on with yours. Isn’t that what you want?”

Dan ran his hand through his light hair, trying to decide on his next move. He sighed and then unburdened himself in a rush of words.

“After I threw Jenny into the water, I went back to the pickup. Bobby had fainted from the pain. The other two had drunk the rest of our liquor stash while they waited. They were in no condition to drive. I took the car keys and drove on the back roads to the north of town. We argued about what we should do with Bobby. I wanted to take him to the hospital. The others said we should kill him. We were all arguing about it and I lost control and slammed into a tree. I had no idea what to do. My friends were dead. Or close to it. I called my dad from a pay phone further down the road. He came within minutes. He put Bobby in the driver’s seat and set fire to the truck. Said it was the only way to explain Bobby’s burns,” he said. “We went home. He beat me senseless in the garage, fractured my arm, and then told me if anyone asked that I should say we’d spent a father-son evening together watching a baseball game.” He let out a bitter laugh. “My father was my alibi. You can’t get a better alibi witness than the chief of police.”

“It didn’t all go according to plan, though. Somehow Bobby got out of the truck,” said Rachel.

“Bobby must have become conscious before the fire reached the cab and the truck blew up. He walked a few steps and collapsed in a ditch. Someone reported the explosion to nine-one-one, and the cops came and took him to the hospital. It was touch and go for days. We honestly thought he’d die. He pulled through, but he never remembered anything about that night. When they charged him for reckless driving and manslaughter he pleaded guilty and served the time.”

“And the boys who were killed?” Rachel asked.

“They were the real ringleaders. They’d planned the whole thing. Aaron and Lucas. They’d had a thing for Jenny for a long time. Both Bobby and I were younger than them. We were pulled into their gang for our own reasons. For me, it was a way to escape my dad’s fists. For Bobby, well, he was looking to belong,” Dan said. “I regret what happened, more than I can ever tell you.” His voice broke. “Sometimes, I think that what happened to Kelly was punishment for what I did to Jenny.”

“If you regret it, then put the gun down,” said Rachel.

“If it was just about me, then I wouldn’t care. But I can’t allow this to come out,” he responded, his eyes narrowed in concentration. He shifted the weapon to the center of Rachel’s chest and then back to Hannah, as if trying to decide which one of them to shoot first. “I can’t allow Kelly to find out. It would kill her to know that her father was once a monster.”

“You’re still a monster,” said Rachel. “Look at you. You’re willing to kill Hannah and me to cover up for your crimes. You should know that I’ve recorded everything you said and it’s automatically uploaded onto my cloud. Even if I die, the audio will be found by my producer. Killing us will only make things worse for you.”

Dan ordered Rachel to hand over her phone. She tossed it to him. He caught it with his free hand and fumbled with it as he tried to see if she was telling the truth. Eventually, unable to figure it out, he threw the phone into the water.

“Stand on the jetty ledge,” he ordered.

Rachel climbed over the jetty rails and Hannah followed suit. Both women had their backs to the rails as they faced the chasm of the ocean. The waves hit their feet and splashed against their clothes. Rachel’s arms ached from reaching behind her back to clutch the rail so she wouldn’t fall into the water, the jetty shifting each time it was hit by a strong wave.

She had lied when she’d said the recording of their conversation was on her cloud. It didn’t automatically upload. And even if it had, the noise from the wind and thrashing waves was so loud that she doubted anything recorded would be audible.

Rachel and Hannah stood next to each other against the jetty rails, facing the ocean, their arms cramping and their body trembling from cold as minutes passed. It was only when Rachel turned her head and saw car headlights moving in the darkness toward the road that she realized he’d left them there and made a getaway.

“He’s gone,” Rachel whispered to Hannah. Hannah didn’t respond. Rachel turned and saw that Hannah wasn’t there anymore. She’d dropped into the sea and was being enveloped by waves.

Rachel jumped into the water, scrambling around until she was clutching Hannah by her arm, trying to keep both their heads above water. They’d drifted far enough away from the jetty that she couldn’t climb back up. They would have to swim to shore.

Rachel felt the weight of her wet clothes and Hannah’s weighing them down into the rough water. She used all her strength to get Hannah to lie flat and float, but it was impossible. Hannah’s long cardigan was dragging her underwater. Rachel ripped the sweater off Hannah’s shoulders, pulling the heavy fabric off her until it floated away. She grabbed Hannah and pulled her along to the shore.

“Stay with me, Hannah,” Rachel soothed. “You’re going to be okay. I promise.”

Rachel’s eyes stung from the salt water, and her body ached from trying to stay afloat and guide Hannah to safety in the choppy waves. When she ran out of strength, she relaxed and allowed them to drift in the surf until she felt sand under her feet. Slowly, she crawled out of the water, pulling Hannah with her until they were lying on the beach.