The Reef

by Lois Kay

  Jody gasped and pressed a hand against her chest. “You were in the hospital?”

  Sam faced Jody and her expression softened. “I was in the hospital for almost three weeks. I was pretty banged up and wasn’t allowed to travel for a while. My parents had flown in and as soon as I was cleared to travel, I went back to The Netherlands.”

  * * *

  Eight years ago.

  After a sleepless night, Sam had left very early that morning. When Lucy had called her to tell her what had happened to Jody, she’d been a nervous wreck. She had been counting the hours until morning. She knew Jody depended on her to pick her up in time. Her uncle and aunt had been very worried and reluctant about the whole thing, but couldn’t disagree with their niece when she said that Jody was an adult and had a right to live her life the way she wanted to. After promising them she would be very careful, Sam had stepped into her uncle’s truck to start her two-hour drive.

  She had arrived early and had parked the truck off the road near the local gas station. She was out of sight but could keep an eye on the road that led to the McDonnell’s property and she would be able to see anyone coming or going. With every minute that passed her anxiety increased. Finally, after waiting for an hour and a half she saw a familiar blue Toyota HiAce come down the hill, slowing down at the junction and heading for town. Immediately, Sam had started the engine and drove past the gas station. She turned right, steering the car up the hill. It was nothing more than a dirt track, with a lot of gravel and ruts she carefully tried to avoid. Halfway up the hill she noticed a motorbike in her rearview mirror. When it came closer she recognized it as Matthew’s. His face was determined and she could see Jody’s brother was angry.

  “Don’t give me a hard time, Romeo,” she said. The expression on Matthew’s face worried her. He steered his bike next to the truck and motioned her to stop, which she did.

  “Are you here to pick up my sister?” He sounded angry.

  “Yes, Matt, I am,” Sam said. “Your sister is an adult, let her live her own life. She has that right.”

  “She’s in love with you and that’s wrong.” Matthew spat the words in her face. “My sister is not turning into one of those…perverted…gay people.”

  “I’m not going to discuss this with you, Matt. Not here, not now. Whether you’ll like it or not, she’s going to leave.”

  “Like hell she is.”

  Sam ignored him and continued to drive. She could hear Matthew shout at her, but she tried to ignore his angry remarks. When they arrived at a hair-pin corner he tried to overtake Sam on the left, forcing her toward the edge of the road that was bordered by a steep cliff. A wave of nausea hit Sam when she realized where her truck was heading. In a panic, she slammed the brakes. The loose gravel and dirt caused the truck to spin out of control and while fear nearly choked her, Sam felt the vehicle skid over the edge. With a sickening crash the vehicle overturned once, twice, tumbling down a thirty-meter drop, finally hitting a sturdy tree, which forcefully halted its fall. A sharp agonizing pain jolted through Sam’s body. It took her breath away and she could feel the darkness creep up.

  “Jody. I’m so sorry,” were the last thoughts Sam remembered before unconsciousness claimed her.

  * * *

  Jody rested her forehead on her hands. They were still so firmly clenched around the arm of the chair that her knuckles were white. She tried to cope with what Sam had told her, but it was like her head was surrounded by a foggy cloud. It made it hard to think.

  “I didn’t know,” she said in a whisper. “Sam, I didn’t know.”

  “Where did you think I went to?” Sam asked. There was no anger in her voice. Just fatigue and sadness.

  Jody rubbed her face. She looked at the still form sitting in the chair next to her, so close and yet so far away. “I was told you had an accident. That you tried to run Matthew off the road. They said you had some cuts and bruises, but you were fine. Dad,” Jody swallowed hard. “Dad said the police gave you two options; to stay and face the consequences of causing the accident or to go back with your parents. He said you choose to run.” The sadness and pain were making Jody’s voice waver.

  “And you believed that?” It was no accusation, but more a sad confirmation.

  “Did I have a choice?” Jody whispered. “All I knew was that you had left the country. Without an explanation. Without saying goodbye. I …I…felt so hurt and betrayed. No, I’d never believe you’d intentionally try to hurt Matthew, but you disappeared, Sam. I didn't know what to think.”

  Sam raked her fingers through her hair. She turned her face away, but not before Jody saw a single tear slide down her cheek. Before Sam could wipe it away, Jody’s thumb gently removed the drop. When Sam leaned into the hand, Jody let out a strangled sob.

  “So, it was all a clever way of keeping us apart,” Sam finally said. “Well, they sure succeeded. I thought the accident had ruined your brother’s life and although I knew it wasn’t my fault, I still felt very bad about it. When I... when I was staring at that awful hospital ceiling…all those days, I…I thought you were angry with me for doing that to your brother. I figured that had to be the reason you didn’t come to see me.”

  The lost look on Sam’s face and the anguish in her voice stirred up a fire Jody thought was long lost. Her hand caressed Sam’s cheek as their gazes locked. “Sam, I know we can’t turn back the clock, but we’re both here now. Maybe we can clear up all those misunderstandings. We used to be such good friends. I’ve missed that.” She swallowed away a painful lump in her throat. “I’ve missed you.”

  “So many nights, when I couldn’t sleep, I watched the stars, hoping you would do the same,” Sam confessed. “Until I realized we were both in totally different hemispheres and some of the constellations were now upside down and looked totally different. That almost did me in then. So, I stuck with the moon. At least that would be unchanged. So, I focused on that. Did you…look at the moon and—?”

  Jody smiled through her tears. “I did. More nights than I care to remember.” She took a deep breath and quietly added: “I still do.”

  Sam returned the smile and carefully brushed away a strand of Jody’s hair. “When I was finally able to fly home, I remember sitting in the plane and you know how they play background music when everyone is taking forever to board? I had to listen to ‘Starry Night’, by Don McLean.” Sam let out a soft laugh. “To this day, I can’t hear that song without my chest hurting.” She took a deep breath and looked into a pair of eyes she had never been able to forget, no matter how many times she had told herself she had moved on. “Can I interest you in a little stargazing tonight? On the beach? Just like the old days? I’d like to, maybe resolve a few more misunderstandings. I…it's not that I don't want to talk to you right now, because I do, but…I've got a lot of things to think about. Right now, my head’s a mess.”

  Jody’s heart skipped a beat and a sense of peace she hadn’t felt in years settled in her chest. “I’d love to,” she answered. “But what do we do about William—?”

  “Don’t worry about that right now,” Sam said. “I’ll think of something today and see if I can come up with a plan.”

  Jody slowly stood. “I’d better go back to work then. Even though I recognize what you just said. My head’s a mess, too.” She wasn’t at all interested in returning to her office, but she wanted to give Sam the space she needed. She straightened her back, feeling a little stiff after sitting in the same position for such a long time.

  Sam looked up at her. Her eyes were tired, but Jody also noticed Sam looked a lot calmer than earlier. “Where do you want to meet?” Sam asked.

  “I guess it’s best not to meet here, since you’re incognito. There’s a newspaper stand, about half a kilometer down the road. I can meet you there after work. Does five o’clock sound good?”

  “Five sounds great.” Sam smiled. “I’ll take care of the food.”

  “Fish and chips?” Jody teased.

  “Wai
t and see,” Sam answered. “I think I may surprise you.”

  ***

  It was hard to concentrate on work that morning. Fragments of her conversation with Sam kept playing through Jody’s mind and numerous times she caught herself staring at her computer screen without seeing anything. She never thought her father would have been capable to do the things he had done. Granted, there had been some big issues between the two of them, but she had always thought of him as at least being honest. The few things Sam had shared with her had mercilessly opened her eyes, confronting her with a reality she never knew existed. That knowledge filled her with both a profound sadness and a deep anger. The sight of the pain in Sam’s eyes and the hurt in her voice had struck a chord deep inside her heart and Jody wondered if there was a possibility of them be, at least, friends again. The phone on her desk buzzed and, still deep in thought, Jody answered.

  “G’day, sis.” Lucy’s voice was cheerful. “Is everything alright?”

  “You’re incredibly curious, aren’t you?”

  “You can’t blame me. It doesn’t happen too often that one of your long-lost lovers reappears in your life.”

  Jody softly snorted. “Yeah, right. And a long list of lovers it is.”

  She heard Lucy laugh and Jody could picture her face, impish and full of mischief.

  “Come on, Pea, tell me already. Did the two of you talk?”

  “Does your boss approve of all those private phone calls?”

  “Don’t be a spoilsport, Pea. Just tell me. Besides, my boss loves me.”

  Jody took a deep breath before continuing. She was still processing what Sam had told her. “As a matter of fact, we did run into each other again, same corner, but without the bump this time.”

  She could hear Lucy laugh and she paused. “Go on,” Lucy encouraged. “I bet there’s more to the story.”

  Jody quickly told her what had happened that morning, filling Lucy in on most of the details.

  “You’re joking,” Lucy said. The disgust in her voice was evident. “I knew there had to be more to it, but …he lied to keep you two apart. That’s sick. I can’t believe he told Sam that Matthew’s a paraplegic. That’s plain…evil. And letting you believe Sam chickened out after causing an accident. He made all of us believe that. I…Pea, I don’t know what to say.”

  “Neither do I,” Jody admitted. “One part of me is still shocked and the other part is furious.”

  “How’s Sam?”

  “I think she’s as shocked as I am,” Jody answered. “She went through hell back then, Luce. She was injured, waiting for me to show up in the hospital, and I never came. All I was thinking at the time was how angry and hurt I was for her leaving me like that.” Jody took a deep breath to try to keep her voice from shaking.

  “I want to see her.” Lucy’s voice sounded determined.

  Jody had expected Lucy to say something like that. “That’s fine with me, you know where to find The Reef.”

  “Alright, I’ll stop by in a few hours. I’ll see you then.”

  * * *

  After Jody had left, Sam sat in her chair for a very long time. She was reliving the conversation of that morning repeatedly, trying to remember every word and every expression on Jody’s face. Her head was filled with chaos. Her heart was filled with emotions, new ones and ones she had pushed away for so long. She needed to process and wrap her mind and heart around what had happened that morning. She also needed to think about what was going on at The Reef. Her father was counting on her to figure out why and how money was disappearing. Sam closed her eyes and rested her head against the back of the chair. Every time she tried to focus on the reason she was at The Reef, the image of ocean-green eyes that could turn darker, or lighter, depending on Jody’s mood, pushed all other thoughts out of her mind.

  Sam sipped another cup of coffee, her third and was not at all motivated to put in any of the work she was required to do. With a groan of frustration, she put the cup on the coffee table and got up from the chair. She cast a glance at the clock next to the bed and quickly calculated that it would be more than seven hours before she would meet Jody at the news stand. Seven hours. Yet, it felt like seven days. It had been eight years since they had been separated and currently Sam felt every minute she had to spend away from Jody was one too many. There was so much they had to talk about. So many questions that needed answering. Sam was startled when there was a loud knock on the door. Her heart jumped and her first thought was Jody.

  “Get a grip, Stevens,” she said. She walked to the door and opened it. The woman standing in the hallway jumped a little, but then sent her a nervous smile and relaxed. She was tall and slender, but not as tall as Sam. Her long, dark hair hung down her back in a thick braid. She was dressed in a classic, black pantsuit, with a white, silk blouse. But what had caught Sam’s attention from the moment she’d opened the door were the dark-green eyes.

  “Hi, stranger.”

  Sam stared at the woman in front of her. Her brain was trying to link the image in front of her with the memories she had. “Lucy?”

  Lucy smiled and Sam saw her rapidly blink. “Do you mind if I come in?”

  “No. No, of course not.” Sam stepped back and gestured Lucy to follow her into the room. She closed the door and was at a loss for words.

  “A little bird told me you’re back in town and I just had to see you.”

  “Lucy?” Sam let out a chuckle. “I…I don’t know what to say.”

  “I tend to have that effect on people.” There was a twinkle in Lucy’s eyes and Sam laughed.

  “You might be all grown up, but you still have a bratty attitude.”

  “So, I’ve been told.” The expression on Lucy’s face turned serious. She reached out and touched Sam’s arm. “You’re really here,” she said in awe. “Is it okay for me to give you a hug?”

  Sam didn’t answer, but opened her arms and with a barely suppressed sob Lucy disappeared in her embrace. Sam gently rubbed her back and quietly held her, until she pulled back and looked up at her with a tear streaked face.

  Sam smiled. “I guess you’re happy to see me.”

  Lucy chuckled and wiped away her tears. “You’ve been missed so much, Sam.”

  A wave of sadness made Sam take a deep breath. She bit her lip, not wanting to break down in front of Lucy.

  “I spoke to Jody this morning,” Lucy said. “She told me a lot of things I didn’t know. We didn’t know. I can’t tell you how angry and ashamed I am for what my father did to the two of you.” Lucy took a deep breath. “I don’t understand how he could do such a thing. We knew he wouldn’t accept a romantic relationship between you and Jody, but I never could have imagined the blatant lies he told everybody. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forgive him for that. Everybody could see how Jody and you belonged together.”

  Sam appreciated Lucy’s honesty, but the words hurt. It opened wounds she thought had healed, or at least, scarred over. A heaviness settled in her chest and she turned away to hide the tears that were pooling in her eyes. “It’s been eight years, Luce. That’s a long time. People change. Things are different now.” Her voice was strained with unshed tears.

  “Is this a roundabout way of telling me you’re married with four kids?”

  Lucy’s question made Sam laugh through her tears and she shook her head. “No, you idiot.” She looked up and knew what the next question would be. “And no, I’m not involved with anyone.”

  Lucy looked relieved and Sam’s curiosity piqued. “What’s going on in that head of yours?”

  “Nothing. I was just…inquiring.”

  “You look guilty.” Sam laughed. “Some things never change, do they?”

  Lucy grinned. “Nope. You know what they say: ‘Where there’s life, there’s hope.’”

  “Don’t get your hopes up too high, Freckles. As I said, people change. Eight years is a long time. Besides, your father—”

  Lucy shrugged. “Dad’s no issue anymore, he hasn’
t been for a very long time now. Even if he was, he wouldn’t be anymore. Not after today.”

  “What do you mean?” Now it was Sam’s turn to be curious.

  “Jody didn’t tell you,” Lucy concluded. “Alright. After you left, things got worse at home. Dad was constantly angry with Jo, but it didn’t take her long to stand up against him. When Jody tells you this she’ll downplay her actions, but I’ll tell you, Sam, she’s my hero. It took a lot of guts to do what she did. Three weeks after you, supposedly had left the country, she walked out. She wasn’t allowed to leave the house, but she packed one bag and left in the middle of the night. She was so hurt, Sam, she couldn’t take it anymore.” The last words were spoken with such sadness it touched Sam deep inside. “She cried herself to sleep every night.”

  “I’m sorry, Lucy. I know how much you love your sister and I swear if I’d known, if I’d only known—”

  Lucy nodded. “I know, Sam. Anyway, that was the last time she’s been home. Dad disowned her and they haven’t seen each other since. Lots of things happened to Jody, but I think she’s the one who should tell you about that. Oh, uh…one more thing.”

  When Sam she saw the impish smile, she knew what was coming.

  “Jody has no attachments either.” Lucy grinned. “Just in case you wanted to know.”

  “Thanks, Luce. But I already figured that out.”

  Lucy’s eyes narrowed and Sam knew she had said too much.

  “How?”

  “Wild guess?”

  “No, no. You’re not getting away with it that easily.” Lucy laughed and her eyes were sparkling. “When I talked to Jody earlier I knew she was holding out on me. You forget I know her like the back of my hand.”

  “Alright, since you insist. First, she’s not wearing a ring, at all.”

  “I see. You’re an astute observer,” Lucy teased.

  “Secondly, I invited her for dinner and she accepted, which makes me think she doesn’t have anybody waiting for her at home. She would have mentioned it if she had.”