The Face Behind The Mask

16

Skyden went to the office for a half day while her husband worked the family morning schedule. Brick was half-asleep while scrounging for portable breakfast foods. Kelsey was in full silent treatment mode as she got dressed and shouldered her backpack. Once they all got into the car, she began to vent.

"So that's a no. Can't go to the mall. Can't go to the movies. Can't hang with my friends. Can't even run in my own neighborhood. Home and school. That's my life. Absolutely sucks."

Brick sat in the back seat, saying nothing.

"I know this isn't what you want," Cameron said. He tried to bring calm but knew it wouldn't take when his daughter's temper burned this hot.

"I should have never called Mom. I shouldn't have said anything. I hate my life."

For Brick, home confinement was a temporary inconvenience. For Kelsey, it was torment.

Cameron stopped his BMW in front of the school. Kelsey shoved open the door. "See you after school," he said. She replied by slamming the door.

"Later, Dad," said Brick, getting out of the car.

"Have a good day, buddy." He watched his kids merge into the throng of students seeping into the entrance of the building before driving to the office. He texted his wife: I got them off to school.

Skyden replied: How did that go?

He responded: Why couldn't we have two boys?

She replied with an LOL and a few applicable emojis.

When Cameron arrived home just after dark, he found his wife at the dining room table, paging through her high school yearbook. She was dressed for comfort in her old, faded Outer Banks hoodie, which was almost as old as their son.

He leaned in and kissed her cheek. "There's some really horrendous leftover lasagna in the fridge," she said.

"As tempting as that sounds, I'm gonna pass. I ate a late lunch."

A nostalgic smile grew as she reviewed the line-up of young teen faces, many of her classmates she hadn't thought about in years. Leaning over her shoulder, he said, "Look at you lookin' babelicious in your cheerleader costume."

"Uniform."

"Tell me you still have it."

She raised her eyebrows at him. "Really? You're better than that."

"That was pretty basic." He rubbed his eyes. "I'll see myself out."

She pointed to a picture of a dimple-faced girl with pigtails in her dark hair. "Lauren Mecklenburg. Every guy in the school was hot for her."

"I could see that."

"I wonder whatever happened to her."

"We'll find out at the class reunion."

Skyden rolled her eyes.

"Where are the kids?" Cam asked.

"Brick's downstairs playing video games."

"Big surprise."

They heard heavy footsteps from the second floor.

"And Kelsey's in her room. She's like a caged animal up there. Maybe I'll ask her if she wants to do a Starbucks drive-thru just to get out of the house for a few minutes."

He shrugged. "You mind if I go upstairs and lie down for a while? I got zero sleep last night."

"You look like you could use some sleep." She rested her arm on the table, her eyes back to her yearbook.

She scowled when she turned the page and found a photo of Jonathan Bowman in his football uniform. He had that look in his eye that he carried into adulthood like he knew a vulgar joke he couldn't wait to tell. She closed the book and got up from the table. She found Brick in the kitchen scavenging for snacks in the pantry.

"We got any chips or pretzels?" he moaned. "Or anything good?"

She heard the front door close. "Cam?"

No response.

Skyden raced out of the kitchen, crossed the living room to the front door, and yanked it open. Kelsey stood at the end of the driveway dressed in shorts, a hoodie, and sneakers. Horrified, Skyden darted out of the house. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Going for a run. With Beth."

"No, you are not!"

"I'm not running alone."

Her mom said, "Let's go back in the house." She caught a chill and drew her hands inside the sleeves of her oversized hoodie. 

Kelsey whined. "I am sooooo over this."

"Come here," said Skyden.

Kelsey held her ground.

"Come here!"

"Mom!" Kelsey whined.

"Kelsey."

She took small steps toward the house, defeated, shoulders slumped. Skyden wrapped her arms around her daughter. "I know, baby. I know."

"This sucks so hard."

The snap of a twig turned their heads in unison. It sounded close. Then rustling behind the hedges. Skyden and Kelsey hustled into the house, Skyden locked the door behind them.

Cameron came down the stairs. He recognized the look of fear on their faces. "What? What happened?"

"Sounded like someone was out there," said Skyden.

Cameron burst into the garage and hit the switch. When the garage door opened, light spilled out illuminating the driveway. He grabbed a baseball bat and with a flashlight in hand, he charged outside. He swept the flashlight beam around the flower beds and the ornamental trees and then poked the hedge row with the bat.

Skyden and Kelsey stepped tentatively into the garage watching.

"I don't see anything," he said.

"Guess I'm just jumpy," Skyden replied.

........

As the last of the orange sunlight stretched low in the sky, a young couple plodded through a field. A thin guy with long legs swatted at insects buzzing near his face. "We should get going," he said.

His companion jingled the leash coiled in her hand. "Kirby!... C'mon, boy!... Kirby!"

The high grass rustled just over the rise. A large dog came bounding out of the thicket and braced to a stop in front of the woman. Before she could attach his leash, the dog bolted away disappearing from view.

She shouted, "Kirby!" They made their way through the tall grass toward the disobedient dog. "Kirby," the woman hollered again. "Get over here!"

The dog ignored her and paced in tight circles, pawing at the ground.

She jogged up the hillside, her face flushed, closing in on her dog. She parted the grass and was jolted by the sight of a body sprawled on the ground.

She stumbled backward. "Oh, my God," she wheezed, the words sliding back down her throat.

Her boyfriend trudged through the thicket, stopped beside her, and froze. She looked pale and deflated like she'd forgotten how to breathe.

The corpse of a young blonde teenage girl, one of the victims pictured in the detective's photo array, lay in the grass, pale and wide-eyed, her arms twisted in an unnatural pose. A red scrunchie was embedded in her tangled hair.