When To Put Trust On The Line

Part 27

I rolled my shoulders back and breathed out. Time to improvise. Derrick emerged from around the corner. I stepped forward and acted surprised. "Oh! Derrick!"

"Susan?" I could see him squint in the dark setting. "What- what are you doing here?" He looked around. "Who else is here? I saw some white car in the parking lot."

I swallowed nervously, trying to keep my composure. "Yeah, it's, um- it's, my dad's car. I drove it over here."

"You drove?"

"Yeah, um, I really wanted to come with you, to the docks..." I looked around awkwardly. "Not here, I was expecting the, uh, other one..."

Derrick stared at me, his eyes intense. "You followed me?"

Was he mad? I tried to keep my calm. "Um, not purposely. I, uh, I went to your house to see if you were there, and I saw you pulling out of your driveway." Derrick continued to stare. I felt very uneasy but tried to stand my ground and not squirm. "What are we doing here Derrick?" I asked quietly.

Derrick glanced behind him, then slowly turned his head back to me. "You, followed me all the way over here... What- what did you see?"

I moved around a little bit and glanced over his shoulder, where I could see the white bag laying on the sand, the legs sticking out clear as day. Pure fear took over my body and I could feel my back start to heat up with sweat despite the chill night air. "What do you mean?" I barely whispered.

Derrick followed my eyes and glanced behind his shoulder again before turning back around, his face cold, and stepping forward. "Susan." His voice scared me. "What. Did. You. See?"

I stepped back, my legs trembling slightly. "Derrick, I-"

He pointed a finger at me. "Don't lie." His tone was calm, but full of authority. Seeing this side of him was terrifying. "I just- wanna know what you saw."

I knew there was no point in lying. He was not stupid. I felt trapped. Stalling, I glanced towards the boardwalk. "That boat is yours?" I asked.

"Yeah," he whispered, his eyes not leaving mine.

I forced myself to gather up some courage. "What's in that white bag?" I asked calmly.

Derrick's nose twitched, but he didn't blink. "Did you get a close-up of it?"

I took a shaky breath in. "Sorta."

"What did you see?" I blinked at him and swallowed. What was he trying to do? "Susan, what. Did. You see? Tell me."

I opened my mouth, my bottom lip trembling. "I saw two legs hanging out." I pressed my lips together to control the trembling, before I whispered, "Is there really a person in there?" Frightened tears stung the back of my eyes.

Derrick stared at me in silence for a few seconds before he lost his composure, his hands shooting up and gripping the hair on his head as he closed his eyes, moving back and forth. "Shit! Fuuuuck!" He grumbled and mumbled a few words under his breath.

I kept my eyes on him. "Derrick, who is that?" I was calm.

He stayed still, but continued gripping his hair. "Fuck. Susan, I messed up." He was breathing heavily and sounded like he was on the verge of tears.

Goosebumps on my skin, I leaned forward and repeated, "Who. Is. That?"

Derrick let go of his hair and looked at me, fire in his eyes. "You know who!" he shouted.

His outburst left me standing there in silence for a couple of seconds. "His shoe," I said. "One is missing..."

Derrick's eyes watered. "You know the one person who that connects to. Say his name."