Read Online Blackwater Lights by Michael M. Hughes - Free Book Online Page A

and a niece who eats pills like they’re breath mints. But nothing like what you’re talking about—Ecstasy and designer drugs.”
    “And what about your friend Kevin?” Denny asked. “You still haven’t talked to him? Do you think he’s okay?”
    Ray wiped moisture from his beer glass. “I don’t know. I haven’t been able to speak to him. He had to leave because of an emergency, but he should be back anytime now.”
    Ellen lit a cigarette and held it behind her back. Denny frowned but she ignored him. “I have to think that your friend is somehow involved with them,” Ellen said.
    Ray turned. “Why?”
    “Think about it. Kevin is rich, right? A millionaire?”
    “At least,” Ray said. “He passed that mark awhile ago.”
    “Well, who do rich people hang out with? Especially in a town this small?”
    Denny nodded. “Other rich people.”
    Ray sighed. “But he wouldn’t get involved with people like them. I know him. I’ve known him since we were kids. He works in a sleazy business, but he’s not sleazy himself.” He saw the expressions on the others’ faces. “Well, he’s a
little
sleazy, sure. But not … like them.”
    Ellen shrugged. “But he brought you here, right? And then just up and disappeared? Don’t you think that’s a little strange?”
    Ray looked at both of them. “Yes. It is. But you don’t understand. He’s like a brother to me. He wouldn’t lie, and if he did, I would know it. He’s a shitty liar. And when he called me and begged me to come here, he was scared. Like I’ve never heard him before. And he said in his email that his office in Portland burned down. The cops thought it might have been arson. So if anything, the two of them might have done it—torched his business—to get him
away
from here.”
    “Well, you’ll know soon enough,” Ellen said.
    They sat in silence. Denny motioned to the bartender for another round. Ellen excused herself and went to the bathroom.
    Denny leaned closer to Ray. “I found out some things,” he whispered. “But it’s stuff”—he tilted his head toward the bathroom—“that you might not want to discuss in front of her. The other subject we talked about.”
    “It’s okay,” Ray said. “I told her about the lights. And she’s trustworthy.”
    Denny stared. “Okay.” He seemed surprised. And not convinced.
    When Ellen returned, Denny turned the map to face Ray. “On my blog, I’ve written about the archaeological and other anomalies in and around town. And they seem to cluster in this area to the north.”
    “Where the camp was. Or might still be,” Ray added.
    Denny nodded. “There’s a waterfall near the African American church. There are some petroglyphs on the rocks—symbols carved into them. An unknown language.”
    “Naked Connie Falls,” Ellen said.
    “What?” Denny asked. “You know the place?”
    “Of course. Every kid in high school knew it.” She looked at Denny. “Well, most everybody. We used to go swimming there, in the falls. It was always cold as hell. A girl named Connie took acid and got naked and let some guy take pictures of her and they got spread all over school.” She held up her hands. “Naked Connie Falls.”
    Denny stared.
    Ray laughed into his hand. “What else is there?”
    Denny slid his finger. “Here, which, now that I think about it, is pretty close to Craw—” He caught himself. “To
his
property. It’s a cluster of five tall rocks. They’re very unusual in appearance.”
    “The Hand,” Ellen said.
    “That’s what the locals call it,” Denny said.
    “
You’re
a local.”
    Denny’s smile froze. “Okay, we’ll call it the Hand. Anyway, it’s been dismissed by most academics—at least the few who even know about it—as a natural formation. There’s no evidence of anything remotely like it being built by Native Americans, so, in their stunted minds, it couldn’t be man-made. The usual debunker nonsense. But not everyone agrees. I certainly don’t.”