*Nids.
Ray Garton.
Acknowledgments.
I extend my thanks and appreciation to those who helped out with research, gave me feedback, or simply gave their support while I was writing the stories in this collection: My wife Dawn, Brian Hodges, my brother-in-law Bill Blair, Jenny Orosel, Tod Clark, my nephew Billy Tuschen, Joe Parks, Bob Strauss, Bobby Mooney, and T.M. Wright.
Dedication.
This book is for my agent and friend, Richard Curtis, whose patience, wisdom, inspiration, and unyielding support have helped carry me through the last two decades.
PART ONE.
An Unidentified Animal.
One.
The explosion took place on a clear, cool spring night that smelled of honeysuckle, beneath a bright crescent moon.
It was the first time seventeen-year-old Rodney Lepke had brought Heidi Stokes to the place known as Lovers' Lookout. It had been a make-out spot for generations. Rodney's parents had come to Lovers' Lookout when they were in high school. Everyone in Hope Valley a the natives, anyway a had been there at least once. To get there, you had to drive a short way out of town and up Creasey Hill Road. It was a dirt road riddled with potholes that led up to the top of the hill where the Creasey family used to live decades ago. The family had left town after the house burned down long ago. Now, the road was used only by teenagers looking for a place to park. Halfway up the hill, a turnout that provided a nice view. Half of Hope Valley was visible from Lovers' Lookout. From there, you could watch a movie on the big drive-in screen at the northern end of town. North of the town, less than a mile from the turn out where they were parked, just beyond a patch of woods, was BioGenTech Inc. It was a blocky rectangular grey building that had been erected eight years ago. It was a bit of an eyesore sticking out of the sprawling green woods, but it had provided a lot of jobs for residents of Hope Valley and nearby Newbury and Ridgeton.
The crickets were so loud that night, they were clearly audible above the radio playing a song by Evanescence.
Rodney had not yet made the first move. He and Heidi had only started dating a couple of days before.
"I've never been up here before," Heidi said.
She had moved to Hope Valley only a week ago. Her father worked for the Forest Service and had been transferred there from Southern California.
"It's called Lovers' Lookout," Rodney said.
Rodney's white 1972 Mustang convertible had bucket seats, but he reached back and took a big pillow from the backseat and placed it between the buckets. Heidi scooted over a little closer to him.
"Is that why you brought me up here?" Heidi said. "To have your way with me?"
"Well, yeah, I was kinda hoping."
She laughed. "Are you nervous, or something?"
"Nervous? Why?"
"I don't know, you seem ... kinda stiff."
"Yeah, well ... maybe a little."
"Don't be." She leaned over and kissed him on the lips. It was a brief, gentle kiss and her breath was minty. She pulled back a little and smiled. "I don't bite," she whispered.
Rodney put his arm around her, pulled her to him and kissed her. It lasted longer this time. Their tongues met as he passed his hand over her back.
The song on the radio changed, but they were no longer listening to it.
Rodney put both arms around her and she scooted closer to him. When they separated for a breath, he kissed her cheek, then her neck. He was afraid to appear too eager, so he tried to hold back a little, although it wasn't easy.
Heidi was a beautiful girl a long dark hair, deep, soulful brown eyes, full and pouty lips, and a body that made guys stop and gawk at her like lobotomy cases. And she was with Rodney. He found that more than a little surprising.
The day Heidi had come to Hope Valley High School, Rodney had been walking by the principal's office when he'd heard his name called. Mrs. Kirtney, the principal, was standing in the office doorway with Heidi. She'd called Rodney over, introduced him to Heidi, and asked if he'd be willing to take her under his wing and show her around the school for her first day. Had that not happened, Rodney doubted they would have gotten together. Heidi was the kind of girl who was immediately taken in by the popular crowd, of which Rodney was not a member. But Heidi hadn't known that. He'd been nervous at first, but after showing her around that first day, he'd become quite comfortable with her. He'd made her laugh a lot that first day and she'd actually seemed to like him. They'd been together ever since.
They kissed for a while as the radio played and the Mustang's windows fogged up. She nibbled on his ear and he stifled a laugh.
"What's funny?" she said.
"That tickles."
"Oh, you're ticklish, huh?"
She tickled his ribs with one hand. Rodney wiggled and laughed as he tried to push her hand away.
"You've got it bad," she said as she tickled him with the other hand.
Light oozed through the foggy windows as another car pulled up. It was closely followed by another.
"We're not alone," Heidi said.
"Yeah, we are." As he kissed her again, he tickled her ribs, but she didn't react.
"I'm not ticklish," she said, her lips still touching his. "Not there, anyway."
"Where?"
"I'm not telling. You've gotta find out for yourself."
But Rodney wasn't interested in tickling. He passed his hands over her body as their kissing intensified.
Two.
The first of the two cars to join Rodney and Heidi at Lovers' Lookout was a blue 2000 Volkswagen Beetle. Alan Burgess was at the wheel, and his girlfriend Natalie Williams sat in the passenger seat. As soon as Alan killed the engine, he and Natalie got out of the car, pulled their seats forward, and got in the back seat.
"Rodney's here," Alan said.
"Yeah, I saw his car. You think he's with that new girl?"
"I don't know who else he'd be with. I don't know who's in the other car."
"Yeah, I don't recognize it, either," Natalie said. "Is the beer cold?"
"Cold enough."
A six-pack of Coors was on the floorboard behind the driver's seat. Alan handed one of the bottles to Natalie and took one for himself. The caps made little phut sounds when they unscrewed them.
"A toast," Alan said.
"To what?"
"To, uh ... " He shrugged. "I dunno."
Natalie laughed as they touched their bottles together, then drank.
"I hope you've got some Binaca, or something," Natalie said. "If my mom smells beer on my breath again, she's gonna freak."
"I've got Binaca and Tic Tacs in the glove compartment."
"Good."
They drank some more, then Alan put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her to him.
"Wait till we finish our beer," Natalie said.
"What're you, an alcoholic?"
"No, I just wanna finish my beer. I mean, you don't want beer spilled in your car, do you? The smell sticks around."
"Can I at least feel you up?" he said.
"If you want, sure."
Natalie drank her beer as Alan slid a hand beneath her pale green sweater. She wasn't wearing a bra and he found one of her breasts, cupped it in his hand. He ran his thumb back and forth over her nipple, which quickly became hard.
Natalie laughed and reached down between his legs. "You're already hard."
"When I'm around you, I'm always hard. When was the last time I told you you've got the best tits in Hope Valley?"
"I think it was last night on the phone."
"Finish that beer." He pulled his hand out from under her sweater. He put the beer bottle to his mouth and tilted it back, gulped the rest of the beer. He put the empty bottle back in the cardboard six-pack.
"If I did that, I'd belch until breakfast," Natalie said.
Alan took her beer away from her and gulped it down. "There. You're done with your beer. Take off that sweater."
"You're always in such a hurry."
"I can't help it if you drive me crazy."
"I'm not responsible for that." She pulled the sweater off over her head.
Alan's eyes drank in her breasts for a moment, then he leaned forward and put his mouth on one of them. They were round and full and pert, with pale nipples.
Alan and Natalie had been together since November. They'd met on the yearbook committee and had been unable to keep their hands off of each other ever since.
"Take off the skirt," Alan said as he unbuttoned his shirt.
"Why? I'm not wearing any underwear."
"You're not? Oh, shit, you make me crazy."
Natalie laughed. "I swear, you are so easy to please."
Three.
In the battered old silver Toyota Corolla that had come in behind Alan and Natalie, Brandon Carr lit a joint. He inhaled the smoke and held it in his lungs.
"Do you, like, have to smoke that?" Tiffany Huff said.
He waited a moment, then exhaled slowly. "I don't have to," he said, "but I want to. I was hopin' you'd have some, too."
"Well ... maybe a little. But if I smell from that stuff when I get home, my parents are gonna, like, shit fire, or something."
Brandon handed the joint to her. She took a drag on it, held it, exhaled.