Shadows On The Lake

Shifting the baby, she freed one arm and knocked loudly on the weathered wood. Nothing happened. Not a sound from inside.

She knocked again and the door opened slightly. She sensed someone peeking out, but couldn’t clearly see who it was. Courtney knew her aunt hadn’t seen her since she was a youngster, and they’d never exchanged photographs, so she quickly identified herself.

“It’s me, Aunt Devanna. I’m sorry to be arriving so late. You gave good directions in your letter,” she offered the reassurance. “I found the houseboat without any trouble.”

The door slowly opened and a woman was silhouetted by the small light behind her. Courtney couldn’t see her features clearly as she opened the door wider and motioned her inside.

When she didn’t say anything, Courtney said, “I really appreciate your invitation to come and spend the summer with you.”

As they stepped into the light, Courtney could see that her aunt was a rather plain, sturdy woman, about five foot eleven, with hair obviously dyed to cover any gray. She was plainly dressed in slacks and a pullover, and looked a lot younger and healthier than Courtney had expected.

The frown on her aunt’s face eased as her gaze dropped to the baby in Courtney’s arms, and a visible warmth rose in her face.

“This is Jamie,” Courtney said quickly, pleased at her aunt’s reaction. As she reached for the baby, Courtney promptly handed Jamie into her waiting arms. “He’s probably ready for his nightly bottle and another diaper change.”

“A baby boy.” Her aunt’s voice was soft and loving as she gazed at the infant. “How old?”

“Four months,” Courtney answered. Her aunt must have forgotten that she’d told her his age in one of her letters. At the time, Courtney had been concerned that Devanna wouldn’t appreciate all the fuss and paraphernalia that a baby required, but that worry was put to rest as she watched her aunt sit on the couch, cuddling Jamie.

How sad that Devanna had never had any children of her own, Courtney thought, watching her with the baby. Her aunt had married a man twice her age, and when he died, she’d inherited a modest lifetime income that allowed her to withdraw into herself and live as a recluse. She must be close to fifty years old now.

Courtney’s mother had rarely heard from her sister. Apparently there had been some friction between them. After her mother’s death, an exchange of Christmas cards with her aunt had been the extent of their communication until Devanna learned of the death of Courtney’s husband and the birth of the baby. No one was more surprised than Courtney when her aunt made the effort to mend family ties. As Courtney watched Devanna with the baby, she was glad she’d decided to come.

Glancing around the houseboat, Courtney could see her aunt had made little, if any, preparation for their arrival. In fact, it didn’t even look as if Devanna had gotten herself settled in. A galleylike kitchen area at one side of the room had numerous boxes sitting on the counters. There were stacks of books on the floor waiting to be put on shelves. Clothes were piled on chairs in the sitting and dining areas.

“Haven’t had time to straighten up,” her aunt said as she watched Courtney’s gaze pass over the clutter.

“I thought you had hired a woman to help you.”

“She didn’t work out,” she answered flatly. “I had to get rid of her.” For an instant it seemed as if a faint smile hovered on her lips.

“Oh, that’s too bad,” Courtney answered, puzzled why her aunt would be pleased about the situation. “Well, I’m here now, and you can tell me what needs to be done.”

Jamie let out a wail that settled matters for the moment. Courtney hurriedly heated a bottle and accepted her aunt’s offer to give it to him.

“Thanks, I’ll go bring everything in from the car. I need to boil some bottles and water for a new batch of formula.”

“You’ll teach me how,” her aunt ordered in a commanding tone that startled Courtney. “You’ll show me everything.”

“Yes, of course,” she responded, totally surprised, not knowing exactly how to handle her aunt’s insistence on caring for the baby.

Courtney made several trips up and down the narrow steps as she unloaded the car. The houseboat was a big disappointment. All imaginary pleasures of living on the water quickly faded as Courtney realized what little privacy she was going to have.

Having seen Hollywood’s version of romantic life aboard such accommodations, Courtney had allowed herself a foolish hope that her visit would be, at the very least, a change from her humdrum routine. The present situation mocked those idle fantasies.

There was more living space in some of the modern RVs Courtney had seen. The houseboat sitting area was divided from a small galley by a counter and barstools. The kitchen included a three-burner cooktop and a small refrigerator crowded with just the things Courtney had unloaded from the ice chest. No dishwasher, but it was blessed with a compact clothes dryer mounted on top of a washing machine. At least she wouldn’t have go out every day to wash the baby’s soiled clothes.

There were two sleeping quarters, small but private.

“That’s mine,” her aunt said in a warning tone to Courtney and she quickly shut the door of one, as if to emphasize that it was off-limits. “You and the baby take that one,” she said curtly, pointing to a door opposite hers.

The sleeping compartment was postage-stamp sized with bunk beds, a small closet, and barely enough floor space to turn around. Courtney set Jamie’s bassinet on the lower bunk, settled him in it, and eyed the top bed with less than enthusiasm.

“It’s plenty big,” her aunt said in an argumentative tone when Courtney didn’t say anything.

“And the bathroom?”

“Right there.” Devanna pointed out a minuscule bathroom crammed in between the two sleeping compartments. The floor space was scarcely big enough for the necessities of toilet and shower, and a couple of small shelves were already filled with her aunt’s toiletries.

Courtney’s expression must have registered her irritation because her aunt quickly opened the door of a small cupboard under the sink. “You can put your stuff here. And there are some extra towels for the baby—and you.”

Devanna smiled with such satisfaction that Courtney was taken aback by the sudden warmth in her eyes. Maybe everything was going to work out after all.

“I’ll get Jamie bedded down for the night, and then we can talk.” Courtney said, anxious to keep her aunt in a good mood. Even though she was dead tired, she knew it was important that they get off to a good start.

Her aunt’s behavior was not at all what Courtney had expected from her friendly letter. Except for her loving attention to the baby, Devanna seemed totally indifferent to Courtney’s presence. Her responses to questions were vague and noncommittal. Even though Courtney knew her aunt had been a recluse most of her life, her lack of social skills was startling.

As soon as Jamie nodded off to sleep, Courtney returned to the sitting room to have some quiet time with her aunt, but she wasn’t there and her sleeping compartment door was closed.

Courtney made a cup of tea, hoping it would help her stay awake until her aunt returned and they could chat. She eased down in a recliner chair that was as well worn as the couch.

The dank, musty smell that Courtney had noticed before seemed even stronger as she sat there in the muted light. The constant sound of a mooring chain clanking against the dock scraped her nerves. As the wind battering the houseboat grew stronger, the ever-present movement of the floors increased under her feet. A sharp peppering of rain against the black windows created a trapped feeling that finally brought her to her feet.

She’d waited long enough. The get-acquainted conversation with her aunt would have to wait until tomorrow. Jamie was sleeping peacefully as she kissed his warm cheek. Just looking at him, she had a sense of purpose in her life that she’d never had before.

As she settled in the upper bunk, a cacophony of weird noises echoed across the water. They were like voices rising and falling in warning. Courtney tried to close her ears to them. Tomorrow in the sunshine, everything would feel different.

Wouldn’t it?

Chapter Two

Courtney spent a restless night, and it seemed to her she’d just dropped off to sleep when Jamie made his presence known and demanded his early-morning bottle. She threw on a robe and picked him up.

His demanding cries would surely wake her aunt at this ungodly hour, she thought as she tried to hush him, but as she hurried past Devanna’s closed door, muted sounds of someone talking and laughing were faintly audible.

Did she have someone in the room with her? The idea was so preposterous, Courtney quickly shoved it away. A radio! Of course. Devanna must be an early riser, listening to an early wake-up program, Courtney decided as she hurried to the kitchen.

Having some company at this early-breakfast hour would be a pleasant change, Courtney thought as she laid the baby on the sofa, changed his diaper, and braced him with pillows while she heated his bottle. She expected her aunt to join them at any time, but Jamie finished his bottle and dropped off to sleep, and still Devanna hadn’t come out of her room.

As Courtney passed the closed door on her way to put Jamie in his bassinet, she listened for the earlier sounds, but there was only silence. Apparently her aunt had fallen back asleep.

Courtney eyed the top bunk, but decided to get dressed instead of going back to bed. She debated about taking a shower before she dressed for the day. If Devanna had gone back to sleep, she didn’t want the sound of the water to awaken her. Better wait until later, after they’d established some kind of mutual routine, she decided.

A displaced feeling was steadily growing in spite of the fact she’d only just arrived. It was probably fatigue that was making her feel jumpy, she reasoned as put on her last pair of clean jeans and a comfortable summer knit top. She’d quickly lost the weight she’d gained with Jamie, and her wardrobe was very pragmatic, mostly denims and summer cottons. She doubted that she’d need anything more during her visit. Her one good outfit would do if Devanna wanted to go out somewhere.

The rain had stopped during the night, leaving a moist fog behind. As the sun began to break through lingering gray clouds, wispy tendrils of a mist rose from the lake. As Courtney looked out the windows, she felt as if the houseboat were floating away into an unknown dimension of nothingness.

It was midmorning before Devanna emerged from her room. She wore dark slacks and a plain green blouse. In the daylight, her complexion looked ruddy, and the deep creases in her forehead showed.