Other books by Tim Shoemaker
Code of Silence
Back Before Dark
Reboot Your Brain: Byte-Sized Devotions for Boys
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www.Facebook.com/AuthorTimShoemaker@TimShoemaker1
ZONDERKIDZ
Below the Surface
Copyright © 2014 by Tim Shoemaker
Requests for information should be addressed to:
Zonderkidz, 3900 Sparks Dr., Grand Rapids, Michigan 49546
ePub Edition © February 2014: ISBN 978-0-310-73502-1
All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means — electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or any other — except for brief quotations in printed reviews, without the prior permission of the publisher.
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Zonderkidz is a trademark of Zondervan.
Cover design: Sammy Yuen
Interior design: Ben Fetterley
Illustrations: David Conn
Printed in the United States of America
14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 / DCI / 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
DEDICATION
To Dad: Thanks for thousands of hours at the lake — a place of fun and adventure that inspires my writing today. And for putting up with the trouble and pranks along the way! Lots of people claim to have the “best dad in the world” . . . but you are the best dad in the world for me.
To Mom: Without you, none of the above would have happened. Thanks for not pulling in the reins too tight! I love you both very much!
And to my grandkids: Our adventures at Lake Geneva are just beginning!
Special Thanks
To Frank Ball — for tightening, oiling, and tuning Below the Surface. What a mechanic!
Nancy Rue — for sound advice and solid support.
Dr. Dale McElhinney — for expertise and input on reactions to fear.
Kim Childress — for expert editing and trusting my judgment.
Cheryl — for encouraging and supporting my writing from the beginning.
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 1
CHAPTER 2
CHAPTER 3
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
CHAPTER 12
CHAPTER 13
CHAPTER 14
CHAPTER 15
CHAPTER 16
CHAPTER 17
CHAPTER 18
CHAPTER 19
CHAPTER 20
CHAPTER 21
CHAPTER 22
CHAPTER 23
CHAPTER 24
CHAPTER 25
CHAPTER 26
CHAPTER 27
CHAPTER 28
CHAPTER 29
CHAPTER 30
CHAPTER 31
CHAPTER 32
CHAPTER 33
CHAPTER 34
CHAPTER 35
CHAPTER 36
CHAPTER 37
CHAPTER 38
CHAPTER 39
CHAPTER 40
CHAPTER 41
CHAPTER 42
CHAPTER 43
CHAPTER 44
CHAPTER 45
CHAPTER 46
CHAPTER 47
CHAPTER 48
CHAPTER 49
CHAPTER 50
CHAPTER 51
CHAPTER 52
CHAPTER 53
CHAPTER 54
CHAPTER 55
CHAPTER 56
CHAPTER 57
CHAPTER 58
CHAPTER 59
CHAPTER 60
CHAPTER 61
CHAPTER 62
CHAPTER 63
CHAPTER 64
CHAPTER 65
CHAPTER 66
CHAPTER 67
CHAPTER 68
CHAPTER 69
CHAPTER 70
CHAPTER 71
CHAPTER 72
CHAPTER 73
CHAPTER 74
CHAPTER 75
CHAPTER 76
CHAPTER 77
CHAPTER 78
CHAPTER 79
CHAPTER 80
CHAPTER 81
CHAPTER 82
CHAPTER 83
CHAPTER 84
CHAPTER 85
CHAPTER 86
CHAPTER 87
CHAPTER 88
CHAPTER 89
CHAPTER 90
CHAPTER 91
CHAPTER 92
CHAPTER 93
CHAPTER 94
CHAPTER 95
CHAPTER 96
CHAPTER 97
CHAPTER 98
CHAPTER 99
CHAPTER 100
EPILOGUE
A WORD FROM THE AUTHOR
QUESTIONS FOR FURTHER DISCUSSION
“Fear — like fire — has the power to protect . . . or destroy.”
“Courage is not about being fearless, but about doing the right thing . . . even when you’re scared.”
Vacations were all about having fun — or running from something not so fun. Cooper needed this vacation to be about both. The fact that he was starting high school in a matter of days wasn’t what gnawed at him. Not really. It was something way deeper. Buried. And he intended to keep it there.
The more he packed his days with fun, the more effective his escape would be. And thanks to The Getaway — rather, thanks to Dad’s uncle, who gave them the old cabin cruiser — that’s exactly what he planned to do. He stood on the teak deck and looked out over Lake Geneva, or rather Geneva Lake, as it was officially named.
“Hey, Coop.” It was his cousin Gordy’s voice.
Gordy bobbed in the two-man inflatable raft by the back of the boat, his white-blond hair blowing back from his forehead. He grinned and pointed at the bucket of dead fish propped between his knees. “We doing this or not?”
Cooper eyeballed the target of their prank — the Malibu wakeboard boat tied to a buoy about halfway between them and the beach. “Absolutely.”
Hiro gave him a questioning look, as if she wasn’t sure this was a good idea. Predictable.
Cooper smiled and hustled to the stern of the boat. He peeled off his T-shirt, swung over the transom rail, and dropped onto the attached swim platform below. The buoy his dad had rented was among a dozen others anchoring pontoon, sail, and speedboats in a corner pocket of Lake Geneva bordering Big Foot Beach State Park. Like the heel of a giant sock, the lakeshore curved in two directions away from where the boats were anchored.
The south shoreline ran nearly straight west from this elbow of the lake. And in the other direction, the beach jutted north along Lake Shore Drive and the park. Eventually this shoreline wound around Maytag Point and on toward town.
The swim to either the beach or to the south shore looked to be about a hundred yards, give or take ten strokes. The Getaway was tied to the farthest buoy from either shore, which meant nothing but water between them and the horizon. The spot — and the lake — was absolutely perfect
.
“Lunk’s gonna wish we’d waited for him,” Gordy said. “But we’d be crazy to miss this chance.”
“You’re both crazy to take this chance,” Hiro said.
Whether Hiro was worried that something would go wrong or that her dream of being a cop someday conflicted with pulling a prank like this, Cooper couldn’t be sure. And he wasn’t about to ask.
Cooper glanced at the Malibu wakeboard boat again. The extreme green fiberglass hull with yellow accents practically glowed in the setting sun. Only a navy blue sailboat sat buoyed between them and their target.
Hiro rested her forearms on the rail above him. “Let’s go for a walk on the beach instead. You guys can skip stones or something.” She smiled and nodded.
Gordy laughed. “Nice try.”
Hiro’s black braid hung over one shoulder as if it were pointing at them. Accusing. “This is a bad idea, guys.”
She was probably right. The Malibu was empty, but not for long. If they were going to do this, now was the time.
“We’re on vacation, remember?” Hiro said. “No trouble. No worries. Just fun.”
Cooper nodded. “That’s exactly what we’re doing. Having fun.”
Hiro raised her eyebrows. “Is that what you call it?”
Gordy grinned. “Your problem is that you don’t know how to have fun.”
“I can think of a lot more enjoyable things to be doing than planting stinky fish in some innocent stranger’s boat.” She smiled and shook her head. “What is it with guys?”
She used the word enjoyable like that was the goal all along. Which only proved she didn’t understand guys at all. This was about taking chances. Risks. And living to laugh about it later. “It gets the adrenaline pumping,” Cooper said. It wasn’t much of an answer, but it was the best he could do. She wasn’t going to get it anyway.
“That’s it? That’s your explanation?” Hiro looked incredulous. “Five minutes ago a guy built like Superman tied that boat to the buoy and rowed his trophy date to shore.”
“He doesn’t look anything like the real Superman,” Gordy said.
Hiro tilted her head to one side. “The real Superman? And here I thought he was a fictional character.”
Gordy looked at her like she was weird. “You’ve never watched the old black-and-white TV show? It’s like from back in the fifties or something.”
“You might find this hard to believe,” Hiro said, “but I find better things to do than watch old TV shows or pull pranks.”
“You’re right.” Gordy didn’t even look up. “That is hard to believe.”
His jab didn’t even faze her. “Did you notice the guy and his date — what was really going on there?”
“Yeah,” Gordy said. “They crossed the street and went into the pizza place. Blah, blah, blah. We all saw that. What’s the problem?”
Hiro sighed that way she did when she was about to make a point. Here it comes.
Cooper smiled and climbed into the inflatable.
“When guys are around girls, they like to show off,” Hiro said slowly. “Impress them. Prove how tough they are.”
Okay. Maybe Hiro understood guys better than Cooper thought.
“And while Superman is chowing down on pizza and romancing his babe, we’re going to leave a little surprise in his boat.” Gordy grinned. “We’ll see how impressed his date is then.”
“Exactly.” Hiro looked up at the darkening sky like she was hoping for a little help. “You aren’t seeing the red flag here?”
Ah. The red-flag approach. One of Hiro’s favorites.
Cooper shrugged. “Looks like a green flag to me.”
Gordy laughed. “Or a checkered one.” He shielded his eyes with one hand and scanned the beach. “I’m not seeing a red one anywhere.”
Cooper loved Hiro’s exasperated expression. Yeah, this vacation was going to be exactly what he needed.
Hiro sighed. “I hate to sound like the mom here, but you two are running with scissors. You know that, right?”
Gordy shook his head like he was trying to make sense out of what Hiro had just said. “What?”
“You’re living dangerously. Run with scissors and eventually you’ll get cut.”
Gordy waved her off. “It’s a harmless prank.”
“Hmmm.” Hiro didn’t look convinced. Or impressed. “We’ll see how harmless it is once Superman comes out and catches you two messing with his boat.”
Hiro was always seeing the danger in things. Trouble was, Cooper knew she was usually right.
“He’s not going to catch us,” Gordy said, “unless you keep delaying us. C’mon, Coop.”
Gordy scooted to make room in the inflatable. “Sure you won’t join us, Hiro?”
“You two have your fun,” she said. “I’ll watch from here. Excuse me if I don’t see the point in all this.”
“Point?” Gordy looked confused. “We’re not trying to make a point. There is no point to it.”
Hiro smirked. “So it’s pointless. Thanks for clearing that up for me.”
Gordy reached into the bucket, grabbed a bloated sunfish by the tailfin, and tossed it at Hiro. She ducked and screamed. The dead fish nearly hit her in the face, then slapped the water on the other side of the boat.
Cooper and Gordy laughed.
Hiro glared at them, but the smile was still there. Sometimes she worried about them more than she needed to. Cooper understood that.
“We’ll be right back.” Cooper pushed off from the swim platform and paddled with his arms toward the speedboat. How long had the couple been inside the pizza place? If they were dining in, there was still plenty of time. But if it turned out to be a carryout order — he’d be wishing they’d listened to Hiro.
He paddled harder. Getting caught doing a prank took all the fun out of it — the mark of an amateur. Not to mention the fact that he really didn’t want Hiro to have the satisfaction of being right.
They paddled past the sailboat. Probably a twenty-eight-footer. Small cabin for sleeping. Ra Ra Avis was painted on the stern. Now the Malibu was in plain view.
Gordy scooped with both hands. “Surgical strike or buckshot?”
Cooper eyed the boat. Buckshot was the quickest — which made it safer. Just get within throwing range and lob the fish into the boat. There’d be no control over where the fish landed — and the boaters would spot them immediately when they got back.
Where was the fun in that?
But a surgical strike meant pulling up alongside the boat and at least one of them going inside to strategically hide the fish. He looked back at the restaurant. No sign of the boaters. “Surgical.”
“Agreed.” Gordy grinned.
A light breeze out of the northwest kept the green wakeboard boat in a perfect position to block the view of anyone watching from shore. Hiro, on the other hand, would have a perfect view — if she decided to watch.
They quickly closed the distance between them and the Malibu. Cooper grabbed the corner of the swim platform and pulled the inflatable close.
Gordy nodded in the direction of the name painted on the transom. “What’s that all about?”
“Krypto Night.” Cooper read the name aloud. Immediately he thought of Hiro’s nickname for the driver: Superman. The boat’s name was obviously a play off the fictional kryptonite that drained Superman of his strength. Was the boat’s owner being clever? “Maybe he thinks he’s Superman, and this boat is his one weakness.” It made sense, in a way. The boat was kryptonite green. And what guy wouldn’t love a sweet boat like this?
“Well, I hope Superman has a strong stomach.” Gordy tapped the bucket. “Some of these fish are getting really ripe.”
The boat looked brand-new, and the dead fish weren’t going to make Superman happy. Cooper hesitated. Did he really want to do this? He pushed the thought out of his head. He was on vacation. “One of us needs to stay with the inflatable.”
“I’m on it,” Gordy said. “You can have the honor of p
lanting the fish.”
Cooper glanced toward the pizza place. There was still no sign of the boat’s owner.
“Okay.” Cooper crawled onto the swim platform. “Here we go.” He climbed over the motor hatch and crouched on the deck. Staying low, he made his way to the side of the boat. “Ready when you are.”
Gordy poured out most of the water, then handed the bucket up to him. “Have fun.”
With the water gone, the fish reeked. He lifted a white seat cushion and hesitated. The guy might never get the smell out of the boat. The boat was too nice — or maybe Cooper was. Besides, if he dropped a fish into the storage compartment underneath, the guy would smell it immediately. Figuring out who did it would be easy.
An ice chest sat on the floor just behind the driver’s seat. Cooper lifted the lid. Jackpot. Ice and drinks. He scooped three dead fish into the cooler. When somebody reached inside for a cold drink, they’d get a real surprise. Cooper stared at the bottles and suddenly knew that Superman wasn’t planning to eat in the restaurant. He was going to bring the pizza to the boat. Time to move.
An air horn blasted nearby — from The Getaway, to be exact. Cooper raised his head just enough to see over the side of the boat. Hiro was motioning wildly as if she were waving a flag — and it definitely wasn’t a green one.
“Coop,” Gordy said, “Superman just left the pizza place. Let’s fly.”
The guy and his date walked lazily across Lake Shore Drive. Pizza box. Carryout. Terrific.
The thing about pranking was keeping your head if something didn’t go according to plan. And this was one of those times.
“You coming?”
Cooper kept his eyes on Superman. “He’ll see me crawling over the side. Start paddling. I’ll catch up.”
Once Gordy started paddling, Krypto Night would block any chance of the inflatable being spotted from the beach.
Gordy looked up at Cooper one more time as if to be sure, then laid back and paddled for Ra Ra Avis. The sailboat was half the distance to The Getaway, and all Gordy had to do was get the inflatable behind it. Cooper turned his attention back to the beach.
Superman hauled a small rowboat off the sand. His date was already inside, holding the pizza box on her lap. Superman boarded, took a seat with his back to Cooper, and pulled on the oars.
Go. Cooper tossed the bucket over the side. The thing would sink, and they could find it later. Right now it would only slow him down. Staying on all fours, he crawled to the open bow seating area. He glanced toward shore. The guy’s back was still to him. Hopefully the girl wouldn’t spot him. But if he stayed in the boat much longer, they both would. Cooper slid over the side and into the water without a splash. His head never dipped below the surface.
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