Narrow Paths

Chapter Four

As I hopped in my truck and drove back toward my house and town, I decided that after I stopped by the police station I'd head to Jeremy's house. I hadn't seen him all summer, but I knew he'd gotten back from camp yesterday.

Jeremy was my age and we'd been friends since middle school. I'd helped him get through the stage of his life when everyone referred to him as "Jack-off Jeremy", and in return he'd been my best friend ever since then. His little brother, Edward, was another good friend of mine.

There was little traffic on the roads at the heart of town. The greasy little diner that served as our only restaurant had few customers, despite the fact that it was ten minutes past noon.

The three gas stations were packed. They served as the meeting area for all the town's residents above the age of thirty. They sat in booths, smoking and talking about hunting, fishing, and their wives.

I parked at the station and turned off my truck. I knew that my dad would try to keep me around for a while to cure his boredom, and today I was going to go along with it.

I knew I didn't treat my parents the way I should. I was a smart ass to them nine conversations out of ten. Darcy pointing out that I treated him like he was stupid was only the icing on the cake.

He was sitting behind his desk casually leafing through papers. I sat down in the rolling chair in front of his desk.

"I've got a confession, Mr. Police Officer."

He looked up at me and cracked a grin. "Go for it, kid."

"Well, it's an apology. I've been lying to you about -"

"Those damn kids down at the river." He finished. "Carter, I appreciate you apologizing about that. I know you did it to save your own ass. They'd beat the hell out of you in ten seconds flat. I don't blame you for it."

"Thanks, Dad. To be honest, I didn't really think you knew about them. I'm pretty stupid, considering who my parents are."

"Nah, son, you're not stupid. Just scatterbrained like your mother." He said with a smile.

He handed over an envelope. "Here's those case files I promised. Don't get yourself beat up trying to find out who did it, though."

"I won't," I promised.

I still didn't feel bad about lying to him about the case. Darcy could get in serious trouble if she was caught. Plus, the town council had bought new mailboxes for everyone involved with surplus tax money. The only reason they wanted to catch the culprit now was the principal of the matter.

"Do you want to go out for lunch?" I asked him. It'd been so long since I'd spent quality time with either of my parents.

"Not today, son, maybe tomorrow. You need to get out of those more often, by the way. It's your senior year and your last summer of freedom before you have to think about college."

"I'm actually going over to Jeremy's after here."

"That's good! He's a good kid. A little on the stupid side, but he's a good kid."

I jokingly punched him in the shoulder. "Everyone's stupid compared to me. In your eyes, at least."

He laughed and waved me away. "Go on, get. I've got work to do."

I half ran out of the station and hopped into my truck. Jeremy would be surprised to see me out and about this early. Hell, I think my own parents were surprised to see me out of bed before two o'clock.

Jeremy lived on the road heading north out of town, toward Union City. His house was small, with peeling paint and a carport that was falling apart.