“Yes,” she says. “I looked for a long time. I didn't know if she would ever come. But then, there she was. As if she’d been waiting for him as long as we’d waited for her.”
“Elsie,” I say.
Laura nods. “She came right to us. She stood right there, nearly where you are, and talked to us. It's been so long.” She looks around. “Where is he?”
“Who?” I ask.
“My son,” she says. “Where is he? He needs to hurry. We're all waiting for him. It won't be long now before his bride is ready.”
“Are you talking about Aaron?”
“Yes,” she says. “He's finally home. He knows I've been getting everything ready for him. Where is he? Where do you have him?”
“I don't have him,” I say.
“You do,” she snaps. “Don't lie to me. I saw him with you.”
Her voice has lost its soft quality, and the smile is gone from her lips.
"Laura, listen to me," I try to calm her down.
"No. You listen to me. Aaron is a special boy. My special boy. He's not for you. He deserves someone just as special as he is," she says. "That's why I found her for him."
"The same way you found the others?" I ask.
She nods. "Yes. I couldn't let my boy be alone. He needed toys and friends, a family to be with him. So, I did that for him. I made sure he had everything he could need. So, he would be happy. I love my son."
"I know you do, Laura. And that's why you let Adrian take all those pictures of him over the years, right? You wanted to show him off."
She nods again, the anger disappearing and the happy smile returning.
"He took pictures of my sweet Aaron doing everything he liked most. He loves this mountain. He'd been gone for so long. But then he came back. He came back, and I knew I had to make sure he had everything he needed right here."
"And you thought he needed friends who liked the same things he did, right?" I ask. "Like camping and the swimming hole."
"They needed to be just like him. So they would get along and he would be happy. "
I want to tell her the truth, to point out her son is dead. But this isn't the time. She's not ready to hear it. Right now, I need to get her out of the water so we can start to unravel what really happened.
“Laura, why don't you come out of the water? Come up here with me and tell me more about Aaron,” I say.
“You don't need me to tell you,” she says. “You know him. But you need to let him go now. You understand that, right? It's time for him to come home. Everyone's ready for his wedding. All we need is him.”
“Then come with me to find him,” I offer. “We'll get him and make sure he's all ready.”
She shakes her head.
“No. I have to be ready for Elsie. She'll be here soon.”
“Laura, where is Elsie?
“I suppose she's getting ready. Getting married is a very important thing.”
I nod.
“I know,” I say. “I'm getting married. Look.”
I hold up my hand to show her my engagement ring.
“It's lovely,” she smiles. “Who's the lucky man?”
“His name is Sam,” I say. “He's very nice. I could take you to meet him. Then maybe you could take me to Elsie, so I could see her dress. I haven't picked mine out yet.”
She shakes her head. It's as if something has spooked her. She takes a step deeper into the water.
“No. No, I need to be here. The guests are here. I have to be a good hostess. I'm the mother of the groom," she says. "Soon, they'll be here, and we will all be together."
My skin crawls, but I don't let her see. I'm not getting anywhere with her, and the longer we stand here, the worse the situation is getting. She's starting to get uncomfortable, starting to shift her weight and look around anxiously. She's becoming unstable, and the flash of moonlight off metal in her hand when it briefly lifts out of the water tells me I need to be careful.
My gun is on my hip, but I don't want to reach for it yet. If I can get her to come out of the water and to Sam, this can end peacefully. That's what I want. There's been enough tragedy here.
"Laura, come on. Just take my hand and walk with me," I say.
"No," she says more adamantly this time. "I'm not leaving them. I need to be here for Aaron. He'll be so happy when he sees everyone here for him."
I draw in a breath.
"Where are they?" I ask. "Where is everyone?"
The smile spreads wider across her face.
"They're right here."
"Can I meet them?"
She nods and takes several more steps back in the water, then dips down until the surface of the lake just brushes along the center of her throat. A look of concentration crosses her face for a brief second before she starts walking toward me again.
Laura stops a few feet from the shore and lifts her hands. The black water slides away, revealing chains draped across each palm. A curdled breath chokes me, and one hand flies to cover my mouth, the other pressing to my heart as my eyes trail down to the bones attached to the metal links.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Silt, underwater plants, and bits of debris cling to the bones. After so many years in the water, there's no more flesh, but long hair drapes down from a skull toward the bottom of one of the chains. The strands float on the surface of the water and catch the moonlight.
“Every year I brought more,” she says. “When he was a little, I made sure he had toys, things to play with. But as he got older, I realized he would need friends.
