Chapter Two

Duncan was able to take Courtney home. He always thought that one day he would be able to drive her car, but not like this. He wanted to steal it and take it for a joyride as Courtney went to work at the Ferris Wheel. To be able to cruise through the streets and to the secret cove that only him and his friends knew about. To get there with ease. To light up and just escape from the world as he watched the waves crashing. But that wasn't what was happening. Driving her car only because she was too shell-shocked to do anything but stare out the window.

He arrived at the bottom of the entrance to her neighborhood. He only visited the neighborhood a handful of times when he was paired up with Bridgette or Courtney for a class project. The homes were large, some even dated back to when the town was first built.

He pulled up the driveway. Tree's scattered across the large front yard, one was close to the driveway, hiding the house from him for a moment. He stopped the car at the front of the house and got out. He watched as Courtney got out of the car and walked forward to be a few feet in front of him.

"How will you get home?" She asked, her mind coming back to her for a moment.

"There's a bus stop not too far from here." He stated, reaching his hand out to give her the keys.

She stared at him for a moment before she gave him her thanks and walked to her door. Duncan didn't say anything but waited for her to get inside before he walked off.

Lucky for him, Courtney lived only ten minutes from the entrance. He walked down the street, the gnawing need for another cigarette came to him. He pulled one out, ready to light when he felt something drop onto his hand. He looked up and noticed the clouds had come in. The summer heat had invited thunderstorms to Grand Musko. He almost wanted to laugh. Rain on a tragic day? How cliché could the universe be?

He got home thirty minutes later. He walked inside soaked to the bone. Not to his surprise, his mother asked him if he was okay. He didn't pay her much attention, stating that he needed to call the guys to tell them what happened. She didn't press any further but he could still feel her gaze on him as he walked to the kitchen.

First DJ, then Geoff. It was weird, Duncan knew what was happening, he knew that he talked to them about the situation, but it felt so quick. He blinked and he was on his bed, soaking up the sheets as he stared up at the ceiling.

The hours passed by him. Eventual sleep took him. He let out a groan when he woke. His clothes still felt damp, and his body chilled.

Better than being hot as shit, he thought as he sat up.

He looked at his clock, 6:30 in the evening. Well, he wasn't going to sleep that night. He stretched and made his way to his dresser. He tossed a black shirt and pajama pants onto his bed before he undressed, chunking the wet clothes into a pile of dirty clothes on the floor.

He wondered if dinner was ready. He hadn't had anything to eat all day and yet he still wasn't hungry, it just felt like a routine needed to continue. He went upstairs and to the kitchen, dinner had yet to be made. In the living room, he could hear his younger brother, Coby. He was watching a rerun of the Beetlejuice cartoon.

"Where's Ma?" Duncan walked out of the kitchen to his brother.

"Iunno, in her room?" Coby refused to look away from the TV.

Duncan didn't feel like bullying Coby and walked up the stairs to his parent's bedroom. The door was closed, showing that a private conversation was happening. Gently, he opened the door to listen in. He saw through the crack, his dad was sitting on the edge of the bed, staring down at the floor. His mom was right beside him, her hand on his shoulder.

"Does this have to do with Grant's suicide?" She asked, her hand now moving to rub his back.

"That's just it! Everything looks like a suicide, but it doesn't make any sense. Why would he turn on the ride and commit it there? His office makes more sense if he wanted to commit suicide at work." He kept his hands together as his elbows leaned against his knees. They tightened.

"What? Are you saying it was murder?" She asked, her voice concerned over her husband's far off statement.

"No. Yes. Maybe." He let out a sigh, placing his forehead against his hands. "I don't know Sarah, I just can't shake the feeling of something off about it."

"Give the feeling a few days. It might be that you just can't accept Grant's death. It's very common to come up with excuses instead of facing a harsh truth." She moved her body to lean her head onto his shoulder.

"Yeah, you're probably right." He mumbled, moving his left hand to place it on hers that was on his shoulder.

Duncan took a few steps away from the door and made his way back to the basement. Grant murdered? Why and who would want to do that? His mind raced through the memory of that morning.

He picked up his backpack and brought out a few sheets of notebook paper that were shoved to the bottom of the bag. He took a seat at what was once his dad's old desk. Using his arm he shoved the trash onto the floor before he placed the papers onto the desk. Pencil now in hand he flattened out the papers and began to write.

'Murder?' 'Motive?' 'Why was the ride on?' 'Wanted to be found.'

He tapped the head of the pencil against the last sentence. The ride was on, screaming for someone to come in and see why. If there was a murderer who did he want to see it? Did it even matter? Did Grant get threatened? Was that why he acted so distant?

A deep sigh escaped him as he slouched against the chair.

"What am I doing?" He groaned, moving his hand up to rub against his forehead.

Grant's face flashed in his mind. He was laughing. His smile was dropping, fear coming to his eyes. Eyes closed, blood started to fall down his face.

A knock on the top of the stairs made his eyes snap open. He grabbed the papers and shoved them in one of the desk's drawers. He didn't want whoever it was to ask him what it was, or how he was doing. Getting up he made his way to the foot of the stairs and saw that it was his mom.

"How are you holding up?" She asked once at the bottom.

"As much as one would be."

"Well, Coby wants pizza, is that good for you?"

"Pizza sounds fine."

Duncan knew his mom wanted to ask more, to make sure if he wanted to talk he could. However, they both seemed to know he wouldn't. She reached up and gave his shoulder a light squeeze before she went back up. He leaned against the wood paneled wall, staring at the desk. He kept hearing his dad's voice in the back of his head, saying it made no sense. Duncan let out a curse before he slid down the wall to sit on the floor.

His dad was right. This situation didn't make sense.


It had been five days since Grant's death. Courtney sat at her vanity and finished applying her mascara. She was able to hide the dark circles under her eyes. This week was filled with end of the year exams and she was getting little sleep. Even when she did sleep, nightmares would plague her mind. She kept dreaming of the body. Sometimes it was Grants, others it would be people she knew. Bridgette, her mom, DJ, just anyone from her life.

"Bebé?"

Tearing her eyes away from her reflection she looked at her door. It was her mom, she wore both a black dress and shawl. When her mom said that she was coming to the funeral Courtney was surprised. Her and Grant were never close, plus she had a business trip that she rescheduled. Gabriella Flores was many things, kind, determined, but also very business-oriented. She tried many times to be a part of Courtney's life as much as possible, but business seemed to always get in the way. Still, her and her daughter had a good relationship.

"Coming Mamá." She smiled, standing up from the vanity.

The Pearly Everlasting Cemetery was on the west end of town. The graves were set at the edge of town, the forest as its backdrop. A tent was placed overhead, for fear that the clouds meant rain. The day after Grant died the heatwave had left the town of Grand Musko, leaving the residents with peaceful weather. Courtney, for only a moment, thought that it was the universe snuffing out the light that was Grant's soul.

When they got to the cemetery Courtney spotted Brigette and Geoff, who for once didn't wear his hat. Brigette opened her arms and brought Courtney into a hug, while Geoff placed a hand on her shoulder. There was a knowing silence between them. They knew once someone spoke it would cause something to come out. Not one of them wanted to be a blubbering mess, that wasn't what Grant would want.

DJ and Duncan were already in the cemetery. They stayed at the entrance of the ceremony, staring out at the others who were walking towards them. Duncan gave them a nod before the group went inside to take their seats. They all sat relatively close to one another, DJ, Geoff, and Bridgette sat with their parents in the row behind Duncan and Courtney. The only people that came from the Murphy family were Duncan, his mom, and his dad. Courtney now had a closer look at him. He had bags under his eyes, it seemed like he, too, wasn't getting enough sleep.

Courtney stared at him for too long, he turned his gaze from the casket to her. Her eyes darted to the front, she hated to admit that she got embarrassed by it. Her brown eyes took their place at the casket. It was closed, obviously, no one wanted to see his face looking slightly distorted. She could see him smiling, telling her that death wasn't the end for him and that he would be surfing the clouds next.

Michael got up to speak the eulogy, clearing his throat before he did so.

"Grant Foster," He began, "was a friend to everyone he met. Would give the shirt off his back if you needed it. He brought great memories to anyone who came in contact with him. He truly was the King of The Boardwalk, he made sure everyone had a good time."

Her eyes caught the sight of Duncan twisting his hands into fists as his father continued his speech.

"It truly shows that even the happiest of people could be hiding something so dark."

Courtney moved her hand to cover Duncan's, her gaze not moving away from Michael now. She knew Duncan was staring down at her, wondering what she was doing. Her thumb moved over his, as she tried to soothe his anger. It wasn't fair, someone so nice and great being taken away from them. They should have noticed the signs. She should have noticed the signs.

Grant was buried into the ground and people were beginning to disperse from the cemetery. Courtney noticed Gwen and Trent standing beside Geoff's van, talking to him and Bridgette about something. She was noticed by the blonde, her friend excused herself and walked over to her.

"Me and the others are going to The Cove. You know, as a way to pay respects to Grant in our own way." Bridgette explained. "You want to come?"

Courtney gave a nod, a soft smile on her face. "Yeah, I'd like that."

"Cool, I'll go see if DJ and Duncan want to come."

"All right, I'll go tell my Mom," Courtney stated as she spotted her mother walk to their car.

They parted ways and Courtney made her way to her mother's car. Gabriella opened up the car door and stared at her daughter and then back to the others around Geoff's van.

"You, go stay with your friends for a while." She spoke, taking Courtney off guard. "Just be back around 9, it is a school night after all."

"Promise." She smiled before she gave her a hug and went back to Geoff's van.

It was a Volkswagen Bus. The exterior was a faded brown, while the inside smelled heavily of a substance Courtney dare not touch nor even think about. She made her way to the front seat when she noticed that Gwen and Trent were sitting on the front row of seats. They looked like they were getting chummy. She reached to open the door when Geoff quickly put his hand on hers.

"Wait, uh, Bridge is sitting up front!" He told her, taking his hand away when he knew Courtney would let go.

"Did she call it?" Courtney didn't mind sitting in the back, but she wanted to mess with Geoff for a bit.

"Well, no, but-."

"Then I'll take a seat."

"Come on!" He sounded just the right amount of exhausted and whiny that she let out a knowing chuckle.

"Actually, you know what, I think I'll sit in the very back." She climbed into the van and sat in the back row of seats.

No offense to both Gwen and Trent but she didn't want to feel awkward at the moment. The two had been in a stage where they were friendly with one another, but they would awkwardly flirt with each other every so often. Courtney was never a fan of being a third wheel.

She stared out the window, ignoring the two's conversation as she mentally made a schedule of what she was going to study that night. They only had one more day for tests and then they would be free. Courtney would be free of the ability to ignore whatever she was repressing when she was awake. Take away her outlet of focus and then what? What could she do?

"Pile in!" Geoff's voice caused her to look at the opened doors of the van.

DJ and Duncan made their way into the car. The two were fighting over who would get in first. Duncan was able to get inside, a smile of victory on his face. He was about to sit down in the front row but was shoved to the back by DJ.

Duncan chuckled, kicking the back of the seat. "Dick."

The roar of the engine and the sound of Earth Wind and Fire's: September played, the song felt slightly off considering what event they just left. Geoff didn't seem to mind as he tapped his steering wheel along with the beat.

About a minute passed before something warm tickled her ear. She looked over to Duncan, ready to yell at him but stopped when she saw a familiar face.

"Bridgette, what exactly is Duke doing here?" Courtney called to the front.

Duke, short for Duke Paoa, was a chocolate Lab. He was a very friendly dog, so friendly that he didn't notice Courtney trying to pull away from his licks. He got her several times on the cheek before she shoved his face away from hers.

"Sorry, Geoff picked me up, somehow Duke got out and he wouldn't stop following."

"No worries though," Geoff smiled, "I left the windows open so he's cool."

"Totally not 'cool.'" Courtney sighed, relieved that Duke's attention was brought to Duncan who welcomed it.

"Come on fella, come sit by me." He tapped the empty spot between him and Courtney.

With the high elevation of the trunks' floor, Duke happily jumped over the seat and got between them. He hit Courtney in the face with his tail causing Duncan to laugh.

Earth Wind & Fire was the only thing that filled the van that was once again silent. Duke had laid down, head in Duncan's lap, his tail happily tapped against Courtney's thigh. She looked over to the delinquent, he looked out his own window, absentmindedly petting Duke. After Saturday she found herself staring at him. Observing his movements, wondering if he too was affected by the situation. Today was the only time she actually got close enough to notice the dark circles under his eyes, but one thing she noticed from her seat in the classes they shared was that he wasn't as loud. He would often look somewhere and stare for a long time, deep in thought she guessed.

Geoff took a sharp turn as he got the van off road and towards where they usually parked. When he got it parked, DJ was quick to open the door and take a step outside to stretch out. Duke was quick to follow, his tail wagging as he jumped onto the ground.

Geoff led the group of teens to the secluded beach area. There were already logs set around what would eventually be their fire. Bridgette was the first to take a seat on a log. She dropped her beach bag onto the ground and pulled out a mason jar and a boom box.

"I thought we could bury a little bit of Grant here on the beach." Bridgette began, lifting up the jar. "I was able to get his name tag."

"Man, that's a cool idea." Geoff smiled. "Where should we put him?"

Gwen walked a few feet to the right of the sitting logs. "What about right here? I'd always see him work on his board here."

The others had no objections and so DJ and Trent started to dig up the sand. They got two feet deep before Bridgette put the jar inside. Courtney and the others formed a circle around the grave. DJ decided to be the only one to cover the jar, leaving Trent to stand up and wipe his hands on his jeans.

Geoff let out a cough. "So who wants to speak first?"

"I'll go first." Gwen sighed after a moment of silence. "Even though I didn't work there he was still pretty cool." She let out a snort, remembering something. "I had just turned 12 and my mom was so busy with work that she completely forgot about my birthday. I guess I was feeling vulnerable or something because I ended up telling Grant about it. So he asked me if I could get anything in the world, what would it be. I told him I wanted an easel and more paints, but I knew I probably wasn't going to get it because that year was really rough on my family."

She paused, rubbing away a tear with the palm of her hand. "Well, the next day he came over and he brought this large box wrapped in the best shade of blue I had ever seen. He told me Happy Birthday and I opened it up. In that box was an easel, like 11 to 15 canvases, and a whole set of acrylic paint. The whole thing probably cost him more than 100 dollars… I still don't know why he did it, we barely knew each other, but that was probably the best birthday present I ever got."

Trent brought his hand and placed it onto her shoulder and smiled. Gwen didn't do anything about it, just accepted it, even when he continued to keep it there.

"I'll go next." He began. "Grant was an awesome dude, he taught me how to play guitar. I would always go to his house every Thursday for my lessons."

He paused, trying to figure how to word his next sentence. "Every kid would say that their favorite day was Friday or Saturday. Mine? It was Thursdays, and I think it will continue to be Thursdays, even this one. As twisted as it sounds, it's not, because I know Grant wouldn't want me to view today as a sad day."

"He would want us to celebrate his death. He'd say he's free from all earthly tethers or something." Geoff was quick to agree as he went over to where the boom box was. "He told me that this was the song playing when he was offered the job of being the manager of The Boardwalk. He wanted it to be played at his funeral but Duncan's dad said no, so we're playing it here."

It was American Pie by Don McLean. As the tune played throughout the beach Geoff brought something else out. It was hiding behind a tree from the forest that surrounded the cove. It was a bottle of wine, and red solo cups.

"He said he bought this the first night on the job. He was going to open it up the night he retired, so here's to him!" He sat on a log and began to pour the drinks. "Only thing to do now is toast the man's life."

Geoff was smiling and acting like his usual carefree self, but something in that smile of his was not missed by anyone else there. It was forced, he wanted to be happy like Grant wanted but it was obvious that he was breaking just a little under the façade he built for this moment.

Bridgette was the first to leave the group and grab a cup from Geoff. This brought the others to slowly walk over for their own. They raised the cups. Geoff was the first to cheer, "To Grant, the best surfer, and person to have ever walked the Earth!"

"Here, here!" DJ smiled as he and the others pushed their cups together.

The sunset and the fire from the pit began to leave a bright glow around the teens. The boom box continued to play songs from the 70s. They talked about stories of their time with Grant and what it was going to be like working at The Boardwalk now, who might be the new manager.

Courtney remained silent as she watched them talk. The wine was thick and dry, Courtney could only sip at it. The others seemed to not mind as they drank. Her brown eyes went over to Duncan. He actively talked but slowly he began to stop. His eyes went to the fire, he watched it like it would give him an answer to something.

She wondered what he was thinking about again. He must have felt her staring, his eyes looked past the flames and to her. She couldn't look away from him. Earlier that day she averted her gaze, but now she kept it. Her face felt heated, but she didn't know if it was from the wine or the way he stared at her. He lifted up his cup, giving her a silent word of acknowledgment, and took a sip. His eyes calmly looked away from her and brought his gaze over to the rest of the group as Geoff tried to balance a red solo cup on his forehead.

Courtney herself knew if it was a regular night she would probably be laughing at his antics. She wouldn't be drinking alcohol either, but the situation seemed appropriate. Honestly, she just wanted to look at the stars and try and feel something about the situation, because right now she just felt so tired.

Duke's barking brought everyone's attention away from Geoff. The lab was running after a squirrel that made its way onto the beach. Bridgette called for him but it was no use as the dog quickly ran into the forest to catch it.

"Ah, man. Duke's totally going to get lost in there." Bridgette sighed, standing up from her spot.

She tipped over a bit, grabbing hold of DJ's shoulder for balance.

"You okay?" DJ asked.

"Yeah, just lost balance for a bit."

"I'll go with her." Courtney offered as she twisted her cup into the sand to keep it in place. "Don't want you to trip over a root and hurt yourself."

Trent dug into the beach bag and brought out a flashlight. "Take this, it's wicked dark in there."

"Thanks." She smiled, taking it and turning it on.

Both Bridgette and Trent spoke. "You're welcome."

"Dude, it's my flashlight." She stated.

Trent laughed in good nature. "Yeah, but I gave it to her."

"Stay out of my stuff." She rolled her eyes, her smile not hidden.

Courtney and her left for the forest. Courtney paused, looking back at the group. Geoff punched DJ in the arm, a look of offense on his face.

"Dude, what the heck."

"What? Did you want me to move so she could fall?"

She smiled. She wanted to enjoy their company like before. She hated the thought of this empty feeling to continue. To sprout out whenever it wanted. She thought about ways that might keep the feeling at bay as she followed behind Bridgette.

Courtney pointed the flashlight around as they both called Duke's name. Five minutes into the forest and the trees had already blocked the view of the beach, the branches acting as a canopy to block out most of the night sky.

"Man, I hope he didn't go far. Duke!" Bridgette called into the forest.

Courtney noticed something on a tree, a carving of a small skull. Her fingertips grazed over it, Duncan must have gone this far at some point that summer. The two heard a twig break, causing Courtney to pull her hand away and point the flashlight to where the sound was.

The light fell on Duke's body. He was low to the ground as if he spotted a predator. Bridgette went down and started to pet him. Her hands did not soothe him as he let out a growl. It was as if he was warning them of something.

Courtney, now curious, pointed the flashlight where Duke was growling. It was the body of a man. His face looked at them. His soulless eyes staring deep into Courtney's soul. Her eyes took notice of something else. There was a person standing at the dead body's feet. Something shined in his hand. His face was covered by a black hood and he was looking down at the body. She didn't have time to look at his face, her hand touching Bridgett's shoulder, forcing her to stand up.

Duke let out a bark causing him to look at them. His face was covered with the mask Jason wore in Friday the 13th.

"Go," Courtney told Bridgette who picked up her dog. "Go, we gotta go!"

The two raced for the beach. Duke kept barking over Bridgette's shoulder. Courtney felt her heart beating in her throat as fear and adrenaline kept her feet moving. Her black dress could not slow her down on her need to survive. He was coming after them, she just knew it. They witnessed a murder and now he was chasing after them. They just needed to get to the beach and they'd be safe. She saw the light of the fire peek through the trees. They were safe.

A shadowed figure walked in front of the small clearing of the trees. She couldn't slow down, she was going to run into him and he was going to kill her. What if he already killed the others? Slit their throats or shot them and her and Bridgette would be next.

He brought his arms out, ready to catch her. His hands gripped her shoulders as he stopped her in place.

"Where's the fire?" He sounded like Duncan.

She looked up. It was Duncan. Relief washed over her as she reached for his upper arms, steadying herself from collapsing on the beach. He looked from her to Bridgette as the two tried to gain their breath.

"There was.." She tried to string her words together but couldn't come up with a sentence. She couldn't even bring herself to say it.

"I think we just witnessed a murder," Bridgette spoke up as she put down Duke who was still on edge.

Duncan stared at her before his eyes went back to Courtney. His instinct was quick as he pulled away from Courtney and walked over to the others. Geoff was standing, dancing to a song, causing the others to laugh. He grabbed his arm that was about to do another move.

Courtney watched him whisper something into Geoff's ear, causing him to turn around and look at the two who walked over to them. He quickly went over and turned off the boombox.

"Guys, we gotta end it here. Trent, get the fire out while I pack everything up." Geoff's order was followed as Trent went over and picked up a bucket for the beach.

DJ and Gwen looked at each other and then to Geoff.

"Wow, I didn't know someone like you could be all partied out." Gwen teased as she stood up from the log.

"It's a first time for everything." He stated as he put the items back into Bridgette's beach bag.

The water washed over the fire and it was out, the only light now coming from the moon and stars. Geoff kept everything calm as he got to the front of the line. He led the group of teens back to his car.

"Can we use a flashlight? I mean isn't it a little dark?" Gwen spoke, almost tripping over the ground for the third time.

Trent moved his arm in front of her, catching her before she could fall. "Where's the fun in that?"

"Probably not a broken neck." Even with Gwen's sarcastic comment she still felt a blush coming on. She, for the first time, thanked everything in existence that it was dark.

"Don't worry, we're almost there," Geoff stated as he brought them to the small clearing that the car was parked in. "Come on everyone let's go, let's go."

The three who didn't know what was going on were confused at the sudden rush but got inside nonetheless. It didn't take long for the group of teens to leave the forest and get back to the main road. Duncan leaned forward between Trent and Gwen.

"Just head to the police station, I think my old man is still working." His statement caused those in the front row to look at each other in confusion.

"We didn't leave because party boy got tired, did we?" Gwen asked as Duncan leaned back into his seat.

"Courtney and I saw something in the woods. We think we just saw someone kill a guy." Bridgette stated, moving her body to look at those in the back.

"No shit?" Trent asked, his face now becoming serious.

Bridgette shook her head. Geoff reached over and put his hand on her shoulder, giving it a gentle rub.

"That's why I wanted to keep the lights out, dude." He told them as he quickly made it past a green light.

Trent nodded, agreeing with the plan. "Smart."

"What'd he look like?" Gwen asked Bridgette.

Courtney was the one to respond instead, her voice indicating that her mind might be a mile away at the moment. "He wore a hockey mask, like Jason."

"That's unsettling," Gwen mumbled, wrapping her arms around herself.

Only ten minutes later did they arrive at the Grant Musko Police Department. Duncan went inside with both Bridgette and Courtney as Geoff went to park the van. The people who were working past 9 looked at him, wondering why he was demanding to see his dad. Instead, they got his partner, Clifton Brown. Clifton was the same age as his dad. He moved there in 1974 and the two have been partners since he became a detective back in '86. Duncan knew only a few things about him. He was nice, but also serious like Micheal. He was friendly enough when Duncan was put into the holding cells there. He would ask him what he was in for. He would always give out an amused hum when Duncan told him whatever he did.

The three were quick to all recount what had happened, leaving Clifton a little overwhelmed but he still seemed to understand.

"You three stay here, I'll get some men to go and check it out."

"Will you be able to find it?" Bridgette asked, following him as he went to get someone.

"Yes, a dead body is hard to miss. Plus, bringing you would be stupid, the murderer could still be there." He told her as he motioned for some men to come his way.

"But what if he moved it." Courtney was quick to get beside Bridgette.

"You two probably spooked him away. It might have been a prank gone wrong. You said he was wearing a hockey mask like Jason, right?" He looked down at Courtney who gave him a nod. "Just stay here, and we'll be back with a report. For now, call your parents."

Geoff and the others walked inside as Clifton left along with some uniform officers. He raised a brow at them causing Duncan to wave him over. Minutes later that station was filled with multiple parents asking their children if they were okay. Gabriella was cupping Courtney's face in her hands, her eyes filled with worry.

"I'm fine, Mamá." Courtney forced a smile, her hands touching her mother's shoulders to calm her down.

Her mother looked her over, not fully believing her child. Her cell phone didn't leave room for her suspicions. She stared at her for a moment more before she pulled out her large mobile phone. She moved a few strands of hair away from Courtney's face before she walked a few feet away to answer her call.

Duncan took a seat beside her, his arm outstretched to be over the back of her own seat. She looked at him, he looked way too relaxed for the situation.

"At least we might get out of the rest of the exams because of this." His statement caused her to glare at him.

Her voice was a harsh whisper as she leaned closer to him. "This is not the time to act like that. A man just got murdered Duncan, how could you be so nonchalant about it."

"Calm down, I'm just kidding. Also, you're the one that wants everything to look fine to mommy dearest." He sighed, rummaging through his jacket pocket before he pulled out his packet of cigarettes.

He tapped it against his knee to get one of the sticks free before he brought it up to pull the rest of it out with his mouth. She kept her glare as she watched him put the carton back into his jacket.

"What are you talking about? Just because I tell my mom I'm fine doesn't mean I'm going to act like some freak, happy to know that I won't have to study tonight." Her response was given a shrug as he lit it.

"Well, it's the truth. Not like you'll be able to focus tonight, right?"

She let out an annoyed sigh as she looked forward again. "You are impossible."

He let the smoke leave through his nose. "You wound me, Princess."

Courtney looked over to her mom. She was still on the phone, talking to someone from Toronto. She guessed they were talking to her about the meeting she missed. Courtney knew that her mom would leave her alone in that big house tomorrow morning.

They were there for another 30 minutes. Courtney's mom was still talking to whoever was on the other line. Courtney fell asleep ten minutes after Duncan's comment. He stayed in place as her head fell onto his shoulder. He even stayed silent when he flicked the bud of his cigarette into the coffee mug of one of the detectives.

He gently shook her head with his shoulder when Clifton walked back into the station, some of the other officers looked pissed. Everyone who did not belong to the police department looked around, wondering what was discovered.

"Courtney, Bridgette? I need you two and your parents to come with me." Clifton spoke as he rubbed the back of his neck, clearly, he felt awkward about what was found.

"Yeah, sure," Courtney mumbled, trying to hide the tiredness in her voice.

"Were you able to find the body?" Bridgette asked as he brought them into a room.

He waited until he closed the door to answer. "Not exactly. We found a body, it just wasn't human."

"What are you getting at here, detective?" Gabriella asked her hand now on Courtney's shoulder.

"How do I say this?" He grumbled, taking a seat in front of them. "You two didn't witness a murder. It was just some hunter who shot a deer."

"What are you talking about? Maybe you guys missed the area. Go check again, there was a dead body out there." Bridgette stated, her voice was loud enough for those outside to hear.

"Yeah, why would we just make that up?" Courtney, too, was now on the defensive.

Clifton was quick to raise his hands up, showing he had no animosity towards them. "Look, I'm not saying you guys made it up. Your brains probably made something up. It's not uncommon for people to share the same hallucination while under the influence."

He brought out the bottle of red wine. Courtney felt her heart stop. They weren't going to be believed just because of a glass of wine? Courtney barely had anything to count as being under the influence. Before the parents could get onto them Clifton raised his hand for them to stop.

"Courtney, have you been sleeping?" He asked her.

"I don't see what that has to do with anything."

"Courtney." Gabriella scolded, causing her to let out a sigh of defeat.

"Not really, no."

"You seemed to be in quite the shock when I arrived on the scene Saturday. I think what happened was a lack of sleep. Your mind conjured up the traumatic event."

"But I saw it too!" Bridgette was quick to come to Courtney's defense.

"What probably happened was that Courtney stated what happened and your mind filled in the rest. From my understanding you love animals, maybe, your mind is protecting you from the horrific scene of a dead deer."

"Listen, I know what I saw!" Bridgette protested, slamming her hands onto the desk.

"Even so, there was no body there, so no crime was actually committed. Michael and I will take a look at the forest tomorrow. We might see something in the daytime, but we might not. So it's best to not get your hopes up and to understand that you two might have just thought you found something." He smiled, his eyes showed pity for them. "Listen, I'll forget about you and your friends drinking underage, you guys went through something difficult to grasp after all."

"Thank you, officer. Can we leave now?" Gabriella was quick to take Courtney out of the police department.

Once outside Courtney tried to tell her mom that what she saw was the truth. She was going to explain to her that yes she had some wine, and little sleep, but she saw a dead body there. She saw some freak wearing a hockey mask. Gabriella gave her no room to talk as they got to the end of the steps.

"I should have noticed. Your drinking is a cry for help, right? You even got poor Bridgette to believe in this delusion of a dead body."

"But there was a dead body!" Courtney was growing frustrated that all of a sudden no adult believed her.

Her mother looked around as people began to look at them. She was calm, staring her daughter down. "We'll talk about this in the car."

Gabriella left to get the car to bring it to the front. Courtney was left to see her friends leave with their parents. Bridgette tried to give her an encouraging smile as her mother ushered her where their car was. The only one left was Duncan who was flicking his lighter on and off.

"They didn't believe me." She spoke, causing him to stop. "They think I'm having some.. Mental breakdown because of seeing Grant."

She gave an annoyed laugh. "Apparently, I planted the thought of a murder into Bridgette's mind. In reality, we just saw a hunter kill a deer. I only had half, HALF, a cup of wine, and so what if I've had little sleep this week. Someone just doesn't make up a murder. I just don't make up a murder."

"I saw the fear in your eyes, you definitely weren't making shit up." Duncan agreed, putting his lighter back into his pocket.

"Right? Why of all things would I conjure up a hockey mask. Gwen, I understand, she watches those thriller movies. Me? If I were to see anything it would be Tom Cruise." Courtney stated, her body finally giving up on her as she sat on the steps.

"Jason is a pretty weird thing to make up."

"Courtney!" Gabrielle's voice caused the two to look at her.

Duncan noticed the glare she was giving him. "I don't think your mom likes me."

"Yeah, she probably thinks you're a bad influence." She stated, swatting at her dress to get the dirt off.

"Hmm. We should probably kiss to make her upset." His smirk was met with a weak glare.

"Good night, Duncan." She sighed before she made her way to the car.

He let out a small chuckle. "You too, Princess."

He watched her get to the other side of the car before he cupped his hands around his mouth.

"Love you, babe!"

She made an annoyed face at him before she got into the car and her mom drove away.

"Are you and that Murphy boy dating?"

"Oh my God, Mamá." Courtney let out an exasperated sigh. "No! Duncan's just like that. Being super annoying is his thing."

Gabriella paused before she spoke again, her voice not hiding her judgment. "Is he the one that made you drink?"

"No one made me drink. I only had half a cup, we were toasting Grant." Courtney tried to convince her mother, she only let out a hum. She wasn't believing her.

"Let's take a break from those friends for a while."

"What? Mamá, no. Duncan might be a delinquent but I can make my own decisions myself. I slip up one time and you act like I just ruined my chances at an Ivy League school."

"You're drinking to forget about Grant's death. I mean it brought you to having a breakdown, what will those at the University of Toronto think?"

"It. Was. A. Toast." Courtney tried to remain calm with her mom, but sometimes the woman would not listen to anything anyone had to say once her mind was made up.

"Enough. You have to study for your exams tomorrow." Her mother stopped the car once they got to their house. She let out a sigh and brought her hand up to touch Courtney's cheek. "Listen, bebé, I just want the best for you. I just want to know that you'll be okay when I leave."

Courtney let out a tired sigh, she wasn't going to win the fight, and her mother was already ready to give her an olive branch.

"I know, Mamá. I know."


Courtney looked at the clock in the room. It was 1 in the morning. She rubbed at her eyes, Duncan was right, she couldn't get any studying done. She was lucky that her last few exams were for classes she was good in.

She kept thinking of what she saw. A dead body and the person in the hockey mask would sometimes flash to that of a hunter and a deer. Even with this new memory of the deer, she still knew it was wrong.

She wanted to go back in time. To the Monday of last week where all she had to worry about was making sure Duncan behaved at The Boardwalk. Grant would still be alive, she'd be able to check up on him, to make sure he was okay. Maybe if she just reached out he would be fine. He would be walking around, saying hey to everyone like normal. If he didn't die then they would not have been at The Cove that night, and she wouldn't have seen the dead body.

Even that thought made her feel guilty. She knew that this man was a person, but a selfish part of her didn't want to deal with the aftermath of witnessing the event. Not only did those around her didn't believe the story, but the murderer might have seen what her and Bridgette looked like.

The grip on her pencil loosened as the realization came at her so late. If he saw them, he might come for them, right? Or was he blinded by the light of the flashlight? He didn't come after them so he might have just run away, not knowing who saw him. That was a possibility, right?

She stood up from her desk. She needed sleep. Her anxiety might be high because of the lack of sleep. It wasn't like she was getting anything done at that point. She got into her bed, pulling the floral duvet up and over her body. She forced herself to think of images that brought her happiness. That one time Duncan got a snow cone thrown in his face by some random girl. Bridgette saying something funny as they both hung out in her bedroom. Duncan telling her that he believed her. She fell asleep after that, welcoming it. That night all that greeted her was a deep sleep, no nightmares to wake her up.


Author's Note: Wanted to address a mistake I made from the last chapter. I gave Gwen the last name of Anderson, which now has been changed to Cooper. I don't want people to be mistaken by my own mistake. Gwen is in no relation to Cody, she's actually going to get with Trent in this story so if those of you don't like them as a couple it might be best for you to dip out now. Sorry for the mistake, and thank you for reading!