Paradise Lake: A Love Story
Shaggy's POV
Chapter Three: Hornet's Nest
The engine of the Mystery Machine purred as it made its way through the streets of Paradise Lake. With the absence of the wind, thick gray clouds had descended on the town in a heavy wet fog that blurred buildings into ghostly shapes that appeared then vanished in a blink of an eye.
It was February, only six days until Valentine's day and Shaggy had no clue what to get Velma. A book was always a safe choice but Velma had enough books to stock a small book store as it was. He mentally scratched 'book' of the possible present list.
Food would be a good choice except he didn't want a repeat of last year. He had tried fixing pancakes for breakfast in bed but the center had remained raw, leaving an uneatable concoction that reminded him of the fog he and Fred were trying to see through now. He had thrown the lot in the trash in disgust. Mentally, 'food' followed 'book' on the possable present list.
Being February, it was the off season and with the low hanging clouds, the only cars on the road were ones that had to be out and about. The only thing that kept the town from having that deserted, ghost town feeling was the bright neon lights that flickered on and off in a feeble attempt to penetrate the fog.
"The Three Bear's Pub" the neon lights proclaimed in a dazzling red. Shaggy didn't think it was really that original for a small English pub in this locality but then again it had caught his eye when others hadn't and it had peaked his interest which was the desired result, so he decided to check it out at the earliest opportunity.
Fred found a parking spot and killed the engine. Momentarily, Shaggy's thoughts returned to Velma. The main problem with getting presents for Velma was simple really, She was so complicated! She would have her nose in a book one moment and the next she'd be doing something tomboy-ish that would make him laugh, and the next she could be dressed to the nines, making a ball gown look like a designer original.
As soon as they exited the van and the wet fog left droplets of water on their faces, it hit him! The perfect gift! A stream of fog produced water ran down the back of his neck, making him shiver, Now, try to convince her to go along with his plans was the next step. It wouldn't be easy.
Fred looked at his long time friend and the goofy smile on his face but said nothing; the three making their way towards the Sheriff's office. "Hey, like, Fred, what are you getting Daphne for Valentine's day?"
"I hadn't thought much about it. I'll think of something." Fred hunkered down into his coat, effectively cutting off any further conversation.
The Sheriff's office was warm and dry but that was about all the good points it had going. That and the smell of fresh coffee simmering on an old hot plate. The paint had been fresh sometime in the past but now looked drab and in need of a good scrubbing.
In contrast, the officer that approached the counter when they entered was pretty, blue eyed and blond.
"How may I help you?" Her smile was genuine and dazzling, which was not lost on the young men standing in front of her.
"Uh, we'd like to speak to the officer in charge of your missing persons department."
'Good recovery, Fred! Good thing Daphne isn't here', Shaggy thought.
"That would be Lieutenant Roberts..." she began.
"The Lieutenant is in a meeting. He asked if I'd fill in for him. Would you be Mystery inc.?" The voice came from a big man, as tall as Shaggy with the look of a Marine drill Sergeant.
"Yes, Mr. Blake said we should check in with the Sheriff's department. We have an introduction letter from our hometown police department." Fred had started to say they were only part of Mystery Inc. but something in the back of his mind warned against it.
"I'm Sergeant Whitley, come on back to my office. Let's see how we can help you."
Sergeant Whitley's office was only slightly better than the reception area. An old battered metal desk, lamp and a few chairs were the only furniture; the rest of the room was taken up with file cabinets.
The next thirty minutes were taken with Sergeant Whitley describing the rules about independent investigators and how they shouldn't be muddying up the waters in his pond (he actually used the term 'lake') but the warning was clear: stay out of the way or suffer the consequences. He wasn't forthcoming as far as just what those consequences would be. He did shake hands when the meeting was over and wished them a safe trip back to where they came from with the suggestion that Scooby be placed on a leash, seeing how Paradise Lake did have a leash law and it was strictly enforced.
The clouds had lifted when the boys and Scooby stepped out of the Sheriff's office. "Well, that was nice." Shaggy muttered under his breath, "I think I have an old leash in the Mystery Machine. Scooby isn't going to like it though."
"It's about to get better, Shag." Fred indicated four good sized men standing beside the Mystery Machine. They were all in Deputy Sheriff's uniforms and jokingly shoving each other around and laughing. One, obviously the leader, jerked his head as Fred reached for his keys.
"This your hippie van?" he snorted. "Quite the paint job."
"Thanks." Fred unlocked the doors, preparing to get in.
"This heap been inspected recently, you know, for safety? Got to be safe nowadays, ya know."
"Just before we started the trip. Got the paperwork in the box if you need to see it," Fred offered.
"Naw, man. I'll take your word for it...this time. Now tomorrow, well, that might be a different story. Get my meaning...boy?"
"Got it, loud and clear."
"Good. Let's go guys. They got the message."
"Did you get their names, Shaggy?" Fred asked, getting in the van. "Nope. Name tags had been removed," Shaggy replied as he and Scooby joined him in the van, "Guess we head home like the good officer suggested?"
"Nope, we meet the girls and lay a plan. Shaggy, remember that hornet's nest we found that summer. Like dummies, we threw rocks at it till we made the hornets mad?"
"Yep, I remember. That didn't end good either. I think we just made the head hornet mad and we didn't even have to throw a rock."
"Shaggy, got any ideas on where to meet the girls?"
"As a matter of fact, Fred, I do."
-Xxxxxx
Later in The Three Bear's Pub, Velma's POV
Velma felt like she had been hit in the solar plexus when she and Daphne stepped into the dimly lit pub. There was no reason for the feeling but there it was. The intrusive memories refused to leave despite anything she tried to do to dispel them.
She understood where the feelings came from; seeing Shaggy standing by the table had probably been the trigger along with the dim lighting. She thought she had dealt with those feelings long ago, locking them away in the dark heart of stone area of her mind. Yet here they were. She knew she'd have to deal with them once again.
"Are you okay?" Shaggy whispered when she sat at the neighboring table. (Fred thought they shouldn't be seen together just yet). Real concern was evident in his voice.
"Yes, I'm fine...No, I'm not." She replied as silent tears threatened to spill out of her eyes and run down her cheeks.
She and Shaggy had kept their secret for so long.
TBC