The Quarry

Flash Fiction By Jason Smith

Alex and his car were found at the same quarry where the man from 1984 was buried. The front of his car was a crumbled wreck. He had driven through a barricade and rolled down a hill before plunging to his final resting place. His autopsy showed his alcohol limit was above the legal limit and he’d died from his injuries.

The funeral was a somber affair. Only Logan and his wife Pam attended.

***

A few weeks before Alex died, Logan received an email from his ex-girlfriend, April.

“Are you sure you never told her?” asked Pam.

“I’m sure, besides she never mentioned it.” Replied Logan

“Are you going to reply to her?”

“I feel if I do, I’m opening a big can of worms.”

“Do you know where she lives? Maybe you should go and talk to her.”

“She moved in with her grandfather after she got out of jail. I assume she inherited the house, her grandfather must be dead by now. I don’t want to see her.”

***

In the summer of 1984, Logan was with his older brother Alex. Alex was going through a divorce and drinking a lot. His drinking had always been a problem, it was the reason his wife had left him. They were shooting guns in the same quarry where Alex’s life would end.

The quarry was just outside of town and it had been abandoned for years. Every fall, rain covered the floor and froze in the winter. In spring the water thawed and by summer it was gone.

It was Logan that accidentally shot the man. He was aiming, took his shot and the man walked into his sights just as he pulled the trigger.

Logan froze to the spot as Alex checked on the man. The man’s forehead was wide open and a portion of his scalp lay on the blood soaked ground. All Logan could think was how he had recently landed an academic scholarship with a prestigious university, he was worried his chance to make something of his life was gone.

Alex calmed him down, went to his truck for shovels and dug a grave for the man. It was Alex’s idea, Alex knew if the police found the body, they would find the bullet that killed him and they would trace it back to Logan.

***

That was thirty eight years ago and a month before Logan met April, she was a good distraction when all he could think about was the man buried at the quarry. April was the first love of his life and for all her faults there were times she made him so happy but she would often become jealous and accuse him of cheating on her. Near the end of their relationship she accused him of having an affair with a woman who Logan worked with. The next day April showed up where he worked and caused a scene.

After April’s outburst, he was too embarrassed to face everyone at work and handed in his resignation. Afterwards he told April he was leaving her and she became enraged and threatened him with a knife. Logan called the police and while April was in jail, he packed up his belongings and left and he never heard from her again until the email, claiming she knew about the skeleton in his closet.

How could she know about the man at the quarry? That’s the only skeleton in Logan’s closet and only Alex and Pam know about it.

***

Pam and Logan sat around the dinner table while Pam ate and Logan toyed with his food.

“What’s up? Is it April?” Pam asked Logan.

Logan looked up from his plate, his mind was a million miles away and he only half registered what she said.

“Honey, what is it? Is it April?” Pam asked again, the concern etched on her face.

“Yes.” Logan replied as he rubbed his forehead, his headache wouldn’t go. “I have to go out of town in a couple of days. April was always an early bird. I think I’ll go and see her before I catch my early flight, see what this skeleton in my closet is. There is no way she knows about the man in the quarry, I’m certain of it.”

“Let’s say she does know? What will you do?”

“I’ll cross that bridge when I get there.

***

Logan did visit April, but she wasn’t home. He told Pam he was forgetting about it and hoped he would never hear from April again.  

That night as Pam was watching the news there was a report about a woman who had been killed in her home. Her neighbors noticed her mail was building up in her mailbox and dialed 911. The police discovered her body and suspected a home invader had killed her, there were signs of a robbery. A picture of April was on the television screen. 

***

Logan didn’t know when he was knocking on April’s door, that she’d been murdered. It was early and still dark outside and he didn’t notice her overflowing mailbox.

A few days before, Pam replied to April’s email, pretending to be Logan and arranged to meet at April’s house. When April opened her door, she recognized Pam and let her in. She told Pam she’d met Alex in a bar and he’d told her everything about the man at the quarry.

Pam murdered April and took a few items to make it look like a robbery. The next night she followed a drunk Alex and forced his car off the road into the quarry below.

Pam looked across the room at the picture of her wedding  day with Logan. She loved that picture, she loved him.

---

Bio: Jason Smith writes out of the Pacific Northwest. He’s married and a father to a special needs boy. Originally from England, he has lived near Seattle WA since 2009.

Along with this current story, he has published “Automobile Psychosis” and “The Art Studio in the Basement” with The Yard: Crime Blog. He has also published with The Mystery Tribune.

Read more Flash Fiction on The Yard: Crime Blog

Cover photo by Pexels/Agnieszka Taggart

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