|
eantholo |
Last | Home | Next
Casting Shadows
Nathan Alander
 Frank Sullivan pulls his
1982 metallic blue Ford station wagon into the parking lot on God
damn, Frank thinks, it’s been a while since we were together. He cracks open his beer, touches the can
to his lips and drinks. The beer has
a metallic aftertaste and it makes his lips pucker. The first sip is always the hardest he tells himself,
and tilts his head back again. For a
moment, he forgets that it has been two years since he last had a sip of
alcohol, but this thought is quickly subdued as the sound of Neil Young’s
acoustic guitar finally fills the stereo speakers. Frank turns up the volume, toasts himself with his beer, takes
another quick swig, and sings along: Old man lying by the side
of the road, with the lories rolling by.
Blue moon sinking from the weight of the load…dada dad a dada da. Frank pauses for a
moment, listening to the lyrics, then chimes in as the next line comes on. Dead man lying by the side of the road
with the daylight in his eyes. Don’t
let it bring you down. It’s only
castles burning. Just find someone
who’s turning. And you will come
around. Frank continues to sing
along only where he remembers the words, and where he forgets them, he drinks
his beer. When the song is done,
Frank turns off the stereo, and reaches for another beer. His eyes finally adjust to the complete darkness,
and Frank steps out of his car.
Finding a boulder in front of his car, he takes a seat and breathes in
the cool autumn, night air. From the
parking lot, the only lights that he can see are those of his small hometown,
five miles below. The lights remind
him of when he was in high school.
Frank and his friends would drive up to this parking spot on the
weekends to drink beer and smoke pot.
Hardly anyone used the road, especially at night, so it was a safe
place to drink away from the cops.
There are no residences on The small town of Stony
Brook hasn’t changed much since Frank moved away five years ago. Most of the same families are still living
in town. A few new houses have gone
up, mostly on Stilling’s Farm Road, but the development had begun before Frank
moved to Montana. It’s nice to see
that some things don’t change Frank thought. A stiff cold wind began to
pick up, and the trees let loose what’s left of their autumn leaves. The crackling sound was amplified in
Franks head and he feels himself catching a buzz from the second beer. Two beer queer. I remember when you could drink six of
these before you really started drinking for the night. Franks tries to disregard his thoughts,
but takes another sip, just to warm my stomach. Something catches Frank’s
ear, and he quickly turns his head to look behind him. He sees nothing but the metallic blue of
this station wagon reflecting in the moonlight. He pauses, takes a deep
breath, and listens. There, he
thinks, I hear it again. The sound is closer, and Frank begins to
panic. His heart races. What the hell is that? Before he has time to react, Frank sees a
light flickering through the trees.
“Jesus”, he says in a somewhat
calming voice, “it’s only a car.” The sound of the car grows
closer, and as the vehicle rounds the corner just above the parking lot, the
headlights temporarily blind Frank before he can turn his head. “Thanks pal,” he says
aloud. The beer has ignited his
authority. The vehicle fails to slow
as it rounds the corner where Frank has parked his car. The tires of the vehicle squeak as it
cruises past the parking lot at 60 m.p.h.
Who the hell is this
asshole,
Frank turns his head back around to look at the vehicle. The headlights illuminate the shape of a
pickup truck with a wooden rack in the back.
A red glow from a single brake light illuminates the back of the truck
as it approaches the corner just below the parking lot. Frank’s eyes notice the Chevy emblem on
the back of the truck. But something
else catches Frank’s attention, and it makes him shiver in his place. “What the Fuck was
that?” A face. There was a face peering at Frank through
the red haze of the taillight. “Danny?” Frank immediately drops his beer can and
runs to his car. He gets inside,
shuts his door and locks the other three.
He turns the ignition and JUMPS when he is bombarded by the booming
sound of the radio. He turns down the
volume and listens to Roger Waters sing All that you touch, and all that
you see… The psycadelic background
music of Pink Floyd calms Frank momentarily.
“Ok Frank, what the hell
just happened here?” Frank sits stiff
backed in the drivers seat and cups his hands over his mouth and nose. His mind begins to race as he replays the
events that just occurred. He thinks
about the photograph he found earlier in the day. He thinks about Danny and how he disappeared. “I’ve gotta get the fuck outta here.” Frank turns on his
headlights, backs the car into the road, and begins to drive the five miles
back into town. His old Ford is heavy
and Frank keeps both hands on the wheel as he approaches the first turn below
the parking lot. The car hugs the
road and Frank keeps his speed to a steady 35m.p.h. What am I going to do when I get back into town? Frank begins to think. I can’t go home, Teresa will know I’ve
been drinking. Immediately Frank
remembers the brown paper bag with the remaining beers from his six
pack. Evidence. “Shit.
I should have left those at the lookout.” The road is vacant and
winding. A light fog lingers in the
roadway, and Frank turns off his high beams to reduce the glare from the
lights. He blinks, trying to moisten
his parched eyes. “Jesus,” he says
and readjusts himself in his seat. Out of nowhere, a deer
jumps out of the woods on the driver’s side and into the road in front of
Frank. He slams on his brakes, and
without thinking, swerves to miss deer.
The heavy Ford station wagon skids across the opposite lane. Frank violently turns the wheel and the
rear end of the vehicle swings around, sprays up dirt and comes to a
screeching halt. Frank puts his hand
to his heart, feels it pound against his chest, and pants for breath. Frank tries to calm
himself with deep long breaths. He
turns his head and pans the roadway for any sign of the deer. “I can’t believe I missed that
bastard. Jumped right out in front of
me.” Frank eases his foot off the
brake pedal, and slowly drives the car back onto the road. He turns and looks out the driver’s side
window and slams on the brake again. Just
outside the window is the entrance to the fire roads. But the entrance is not what grabs Frank’s
attention. Rather a single red light
taillight flickering through the leafless trees horrifies Frank. He snaps his head around to the road,
steps on the gas with a heavy foot and races his car the remaining two miles
back into town. Not once does Frank
take his eyes off the road, not even to look in the rear-view mirror. ************************** The parking lot of the
Stony Brook Pub is still full for a Wednesday night. Frank notices the sign out front, “Wed.
Locals Nite” and pulls in to look for Kevin’s truck. The baby pea green Chevy, a former Forest
Service vehicle, is parked in the back of the pub. A 30-30 hunting rifle is mounted in the back window pane of the
cab. Frank parks his car and starts
for the pub entrance. He stops
halfway, remembering the brown paper bag, and walks back to his car. He takes the remains of his six-pack, bag
and all, and throws them into the dumpster in back of the pub. It’s like nothing ever happened. The bar is dark and the
musty smell of cigarette smoke overwhelms Frank as he walks in. The pale yellow lights cast shadows that
float and dissipate with the rising wafes of smoke. Kevin is sitting at the far end of the bar, his eyes fixated on
the single television set, watching an old re-run of the Dukes of Hazard, and drinking a Miller Light bottle. Frank walks up behind Kevin, puts his hand
on his back and sits down in the last remaining seat at the bar. “Well I’ll be. Look what the cat dragged in.” “Hey Kevin, how’ve ya
beeen?” “Pretty Damn good. What the hell brings you in here? Not for a beer, I know you’ve been dry for
a while.” “No, not for a beer. I was just driving by and spotted your
truck, thought I’d drop in to say hi, that’s all.” “Well, at least let me buy
you a Coke or something.” “Don’t worry about it
Kevin, I’m fine.” “No, I insist. Hey Bill,” Kevin gets the bartenders
attention, “How about a Coke down here?” “A Coke?” Bill asks. “Yeah, for Frank.” Kevin pats Frank on the back and they both
look at Bill. “Jesus Frank, I didn’t
even see you come in. How the hell
are ya?” “I’m fine Bill, just
fine. How’s everything with you?” “Oh, you know. Same shit, different day.” Bill pours a Coke into a mason jar and
hands it to Frank. “Not much changes
in this ol’ town.” “No, I guess not.” Frank takes a sip and sets the glass down
on the bar. “So anyway,” Kevin turns
and looks at Frank, “You were just out driving around hunh? What’d the wife kick you out of the
house?” “Well, I’d say it’s more
like I chose to leave. We’ve been
cleanin out her mother’s house all weekend, and I’ve had enough of lookin
through file cabinets and photo albums and all the other shit her mother collected
over the years. She was a god-damned
pack rat if you ask me. That old
woman saved the napkins from every one of Teresa’s birthday parties. I told Teresa we should just throw all
that shit out in the back fire pit and save ourselves the hastle.” “I guess she didn’t see
the humor in it?” Kevin says with a
smirk. “No. I guess not.” Frank looks around the pub.
Bill is back at the other end of the bar, talking with Sally and A.J.
Roberts. “Anyway Kevin, there’s
something else I want to talk to you about.” “Well, spit it out
dude.” Kevin glances back up at the
T.V screen as the General Lee jumps over a riverbed. He takes drink from his beer. “I think I saw Danny
tonight.” Kevin chokes. “What are you talking about Frank? You know as well as I that Danny
disappeared five years ago.” “I know... but I swear I
saw him tonight. He was in the back
of a pickup truck.” “Where?” “I saw him up on Kevin stands up and pushes
his bar stool away from him. “Hey
Bill, what do I owe you? I’m all done
for the night.” “Ah…fifteen awtta cover it
Kevin,” Bill says from across the room. “Where are you going
Kevin?” Frank asks. “You say you saw my little
brother up on Frank face goes
white. “Sorry dude, but I don’t want
to go back up there again tonight.
I’ve had enough weird shit happen to me.” “Don’t even try to get out
of this Frank. You come down here,
tell me you seen Danny in the back of some truck, and now you ain’t gonna
come look for him with me.” The serious tone of
Kevin’s voice makes Frank pause and look into his friend’s eyes. He slowly pushes his stool away from the
bar, “All right Kevin.” He says in a low, monotone whisper, “Let’s go.” ****************************** The cab of Kevin’s truck
has a strong smell of gasoline, and the warm air blowing on the windshield
circulates the gasoline smell, making Frank a bit lightheaded. The tan dashboard is cracked and caked in
dust. The tan pleather bench seat is
also cracked, exposing the styrphome cushioning. A coiled metal spring pokes Frank in the lower back. As the two approach the second entrance to
the fire roads, Kevin slows his truck down, turns off the pavement and onto
the dirt road. Kevin flicks on his
high beams and drops the automatic transmission to the 2 position. “So you saw that truck
turn off here?” “Yeah.” Frank pauses. “Well, I mean I saw the taillight through
the trees. I didn’t actually see it
drive in here.” “And you saw Danny in the
back of the truck?” “Yeah.” Kevin’s truck creeps along
the dirt road. The road is a maze of
potholes, some washing out half of the road.
Kevin does his best to maneuver the truck around the holes. The droning sound of the heater is
interrupted only by the scraping sound of metal on metal as the bed of the
truck and the cab swim through the potholes. The heat finally warms the
cab to Kevin’s likening, and he turns the fan off. The sound of the fan slowly dies down, leaving the men with a
screeching whistle before completely stopping. “Fan belt’s a little
loose.” Kevin says. “That’s on my to-do list.” Frank is moving his feet
around, trying to uncover the floorboards of the truck underneath piles of
empty cigarette boxes, coffee cups, Gatorade bottles, and other miscellaneous
trash items. His hands are rubbing
his thighs and he is staring into the light, mesmerized by the shadows cast
by the trees. Kevin turns and looks
at Frank. “Remember when you and me
and Danny used to come up here and drive around all night, drinkin and talkin
about what we were gonna do when we
all got older.” “Sure Kevin, I
remember.” Frank does not look at
Kevin as he speaks. He is
uninterested in what Kevin is saying, staring out the passenger window,
looking at the way the hillside slopes away just beyond the edge of the dirt
road. He begins to think about what
would happen if Kevin swerved just a little too far. How
far would the truck tumble down the embankment before it stopped in the
trees? “Are you even listening to
what I’m saying?” “Yeah, I’m
listening.” Frank finally turns and
looks at Kevin. “Stop the truck for a
minute.” Kevin stops the truck and
Frank gets out. Frank walks to the
back of the truck, and looks down the steep embankment. He looks up through the narrow passage of
trees and stares at the blanket of stars.
Kevin lights a cigarette, opens the driver’s door, and steps out of
the cab. He takes a long drag, and
looks at Frank without saying a word.
As he exhailes, he finally speaks. “What’s going on
Frank? Everything okay?” “No.” Frank lowers his head and looks at
Kevin. “I don’t like it up here
anymore Kevin. It just doesn’t feel
the same.” “What do you mean?” “I feel out of place
here. This used to be a comfortable
place for me, someplace I could come to reflect. Now, I just want to get out of here.” Frank begins to fidget.
He paces back and forth along the side of the truck. He begins to look wildly around. “Can we just get out of here? Maybe come back when it’s a little
lighter?” Kevin is puzzled. He finishes his cigarette, “What the hell
has gotten into you tonight Frank. I
feel like there is something more than you just being spooked. We can get out of here, but I’m gonna
drive through the loop roads on our way.
If my brother is up her, I’ll be god damned if I’m gonna leave without
looking for him. So tell me Frank,
did you really see Danny up here or didn’t you?” Frank stops pacing, and
look at Kevin. For a moment, the two
men stare at each other in through the dim light of the night. The engine of the truck is still running,
and the headlights remain on. “I saw Danny… I saw Danny
the night he disappeared.” “What do you mean you saw
Danny the night he disappeared? No
one saw him that night.” Franks heart is pounding,
just like it had when he first saw the face in the back of the truck. “Kevin, I am the reason Danny
disappeared.” “What the fuck are talkin
about Frank?” Kevin reaches inside
the cab of his truck and grabs his 30-30 off the gun rack. He cocks the gun and aims it at
Frank. “You better move your ass into
the light of those headlight where I can see you, and you better start making
some god damned sense, or I’ll make some sense of you.” “Ok. Take it easy Kevin.” Frank slowly walks to the front of the
truck, looking at Kevin as he walks.
His heartbeat is still accelerated, but he tries to calm himself. Kevin lowers the gun once
Frank is in the light. He reaches in
his breast pocket for his pack of Marlboro’s. “Now what are you trying to say?” Frank begins. “Me and Danny came up here the night he
disappeared and were driving around, drinking. I had always suspected that he and Teresa had been involved
before I married her, so I confronted him about it.” “What did he say?” “We were both really drunk
Kevin. He admitted that he had slept
with her once when I was away at school.
I couldn’t deal with the thought that he might still have feelings for
her. I told him to get out of the
truck, and I took off, leaving him to walk home alone.” “You left him up here to walk home?” Kevin’s voice rises to a yell. “I got so pissed off that
I drove away. But I couldn’t go home
and see Teresa, knowing that Danny had been with her. What would I say to her? I stopped my truck just before the main
road, and turned around. I kept my
headlight off and drove back to where I had left Danny.” “You mean to tell me you
drove back to kill my little brother.”
Kevin is still smoking his cigarette. “I didn’t want to kill
him, Kevin, I swear. I just wanted to
hurt him. To make him feel the pain
that I felt. He was taking a piss in the
middle of the road, he didn’t even see me coming. After I hit him, I stopped the truck and got out. He didn’t move at all. I didn’t want to leave him there, so I put
him in the back of the truck and drove off.
I must have clipped a tree turning around, because my back taillight
blew out.” Kevin is speechless. His eyes are wide. His cigarette has burned down to the
filter, but he continues to hold it between his fingers as he stares at
Frank. “I’m not a killer
Kevin. I didn’t want to kill
Danny. But I did, and I couldn’t face
the facts. I pretended that it was
all a dream. I blamed it all on the
alcohol, and I told myself that if I didn’t drink anymore it would all go
away. And it did Kevin. I stopped drinking, I moved out to Kevin can’t help but stare
at Frank. Sticking out his bottom
lip, he moves his cheeks from side to side.
Kevin reaches in his breast pocket again. “So what did you do with my brother? The authorities looked all over these woods. Not a shred of evidence was ever found.” “Well I knew I couldn’t
leave him here. Once he was reported
missing, I was sure they would send search parties out thought the woods, and
the dogs would pick the scent if he was buried out here. I picked up few pieces of the taillight
that I could find and started driving back to the main road. I decided that the only way to get rid of
the body was to burn it. The one
place in town that always has a fire going is the peg mill. Since Teresa’s brother is the night guard
at the mill, and he is usually passed out drunk by Kevin takes that last drag
of his cigarette and drops it at his feet.
“Your damn right your sorry you son of a bitch. How could you be so jealous? My brother was a good man, and you robbed
him of his life because your bitch cheated on you back in college. Fuck you.” Kevin raises the 30-30 and
takes aim at Frank. “Kevin, hold on a second,” Frank pleads. He starts to
walk toward Kevin. “I didn’t mean to…”
“Fuck you Frank,” Kevin
interrupts, “You shouldn’t have come back here.” He fires a single shot at Frank’s chest. The force crumbles
Frank’s his body and blows him back ten feet. Frank’s limp body lies lifeless in the pale yellow light of the
headlights. ********************************** Dawn is breaking over the “Everything alright
Kevin?” “Yup. Everything’s fine Ralph.” “Whatcha doin here so
early in the morning?” “Just drivin ‘round
Ralph. Ain’t much else to do ‘round
here.” “Yup. Well have a good one Kevin.” “You too Ralph.” Kevin’s truck drives away
as the first smoke of the day rises from the peg mill chimney.
Author’s Note With the final draft of
this story, I attempted to make the final scene between Frank and Kevin more
dramatic. I left most of Frank’s
confession, but I gave the characters more interaction during the confession. I have also broken the confession up,
adding dialogue between the two characters.
Also, the final draft
introduces a gun earlier in the story.
It is a background object, but it makes its appearance at the end, and
the reader is able to understand where it came from. I also made Kevin more of a smoker. His character has empty cigarette boxes in
his truck, so he needed to smoke more through the story. I would like to know if the reader finds
any parts that need more clarification, of if it reads well as is. I feel confident that this
is a final draft. I would like to
submit this for publication, just to see what would happen. |
