Beach Lanes
Chapter One
Kenzie loved Friday nights. Just him and Ali, eating, drinking and smoking; the perfect end to a long week driving around in the works’ sweaty delivery truck. A job he vowed to escape from sometime soon, but for now, it paid the bills.
It was approaching midnight, and the TV gushed out its usual late-night trash. Kenzie surfed the channels while half-listening to Ali chatter away from the adjoining kitchen. He took the last gulp of beer from the can, crushed it and tossed it across the room, aiming for the cardboard box beside the TV. Ali’s cans had missed the box every time and now lay scattered all over the floor, the consequence of which had her fixing snacks. Kenzie’s aim had been spot on all night, until now. The can hit the far right corner and bounced out, landing under the TV.
“Man, what’s with me?”
He slumped back onto the sofa and hoped Ali would think it was another one of hers. She was pretty drunk, so there was a good chance she wouldn’t question it when she came back in.
Despite the late hour, the room felt hot. Living so close to the beach usually blessed them with cool evenings, but tonight the air was still and heavy. Careful not to disturb the sleeping cat on his lap, Kenzie sat up slowly and removed his sweater, leaving him wearing his faded old Lakers’ vest. It did nothing to cool him; he was still too hot. His stomach turned, and for a moment, he thought he might throw up. He tightened his abdominal muscles, which staved off the sensation but still left a sickly taste in his mouth. Beads of sweat were starting to build up on his forehead, swelling enough to drip down his face and off his chin. When he wiped them away, they began dripping again within seconds. Sticky hairs at the back of his neck agitated him, and his vision began to blur. He squeezed his eyes closed and called out to Ali, his voice was barely a whisper as sharp pains stabbed into his head. The only sound he could hear was her sweet voice still chatting away in the kitchen.
***
Light-headed from their consumption of beers and joints, Ali was making a mess. As she prepared cheese on toast for them, a trail of breadcrumbs and grated cheese followed her across the counter. She’d been telling Kenzie for the last ten minutes about the goings on at the store where she worked and how the latest development would affect her. Unsure if he was still listening, she carried on regardless – getting things off her chest might help her decide what she should do. She knelt down so she was level to the grill and watched as the cheese melted while mulling over the pro’s and con’s of the new branch opening.
Once the cheese began to crisp on top, she removed the pieces of toast, sliced them in half with the pizza wheel and put them on a plate. Still chattering about the store, she took the plate through to the table near where Kenzie sat a few meters away, then returned to the kitchen area to get napkins and more beers. As she turned back to Kenzie, everything fell from her hands. He’d gone. He was there just a second earlier, she was sure of it. Her concentration had been focused on not letting the toast slide off the plate, but he had been there; he had definitely been there. Their cat, Mr. Big, had been on his lap. He now stood on the sofa looking up at her and mewing, and appeared to be as confused as she was.
A shiver went down her spine.
“Kenzie, where are you?” No reply. “This isn’t funny.”
Rushing to the bedroom, she flicked on the light. Nothing. Same in the bathroom. There was no sign of him anywhere. Both the front door and the slider to the back yard were locked. She opened the slider and called his name – again, nothing. Unlocking the front door, she went out to the end of the driveway. The lane was dimly lit, and there was no sign of movement and no response to her calls. Confused and unable to make any sense of what was happening, Ali went back into the apartment and sat down. There was little she could do but chew her nails and wait.
An anxious ten minutes later, the door handle turned, she rushed over and unlocked the door to see Kenzie standing on the doorstep looking totally bewildered.
“Where the hell have you been? Are you OK?”
Shivering and mumbling under his breath, he ignored her questions, walked past her and went and sat on the sofa. His arms were folded tightly around his body. Ali sat next to him and put her arm across his shoulders.
“You’re freezing! Where did you go? You were here, but a split second later, you’d gone.”
“I… I was on the beach…” His voice was unsteady as if he didn’t believe his own words.
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
“I don’t understand how you got out so quickly; the doors were both locked.”
He rubbed his hands over his head and stood up.
“Where are you going? Are you OK?”
***
Kenzie left the room without saying another word and went into the bathroom. He flicked the lock, then turned to the basin and splashed his face with cold water.
As he looked down at his hands, he saw small cuts scattered across his palms and fingertips. As he lifted his left hand toward the light for a closer look, he couldn’t believe his eyes. He watched as the small smudges of blood withdrew back into the wounds and the skin pulled back together. Within a minute, there was no trace of a cut on either hand; they had healed completely. A cold sweat broke out over his body as his stomach tightened, a wave of nausea washed over him, and he rushed to the toilet bowl to throw up. His head was now throbbing with pain, and his entire body ached. He dropped to the floor and lay on the cool tiles to recover, his stomach muscles still in spasm. The urge to close his eyes was strong, but he managed to haul himself into the bedroom next door, where he collapsed onto the bed, his body exhausted and his mind utterly confused.
***
Ali gave up knocking on the bathroom door after a few minutes and was now sitting on the back porch smoking another joint, relieved that Kenzie was back but frustrated by his silence. She had no idea what had happened, and his behavior since he returned had left her even more perplexed. Her head dropped back into the rocker, and she took a long drag on the joint. She exhaled slowly and watched the smoke as it danced into the clear night air. A feeling of calm washed over her as the marijuana worked its illicit magic.
“Man, what the fuck was all that about?” she asked herself with a giggle. “Some trick! And to come back in and keep a straight face like that, he deserves an Oscar.”
She went over it again and again in her mind, positive that he had been sitting there when she put down the plate, but unable to explain how he got out so fast. Surely she would have heard or seen him get up? The room was small, leaving nowhere to hide. Thinking back to her reaction and dropping the beers, she laughed as she swung back and forth gazing up at the full moon.
“Do you know how he did it, Mr Moon?”
After finishing the joint, she sat for a few more minutes, still going over the events in her head, before going back inside the apartment. She checked the bathroom but found it empty.
“Oh, not again!” she laughed.
On opening the bedroom door, she saw Kenzie flat out on the bed, still wearing his clothes. She undressed, climbed into bed and pulled the covers over both of them.
“If I didn’t love you so much, I’d hate you for spooking me like that,” she whispered to him. But by now, Kenzie was in the deepest sleep of his life.
Chapter Two
Kenzie woke early the next morning, 7:07am. He closed his eyes in the hope of going back to sleep, but found himself alert and refreshed. Ali was still sleeping, releasing a soft snore with each breath. Black mascara was smudged under her eyes. He watched her for a moment with a smile.
“Man, you’re cute.” He kissed her gently on the forehead before getting out of bed.
Entering the bathroom, he shuddered at the memory of throwing up, and tried to piece together what happened. He remembered burning up, the pounding headache and losing the ability to speak. After that, nothing, until he found himself stumbling barefoot across the beach.
Reaching the steps to Beach Lane came back to him next. He remembered slipping and scraping both hands as he fell, yet now there wasn’t a mark on them. He stared for a moment before shaking his head. He must have imagined that part. As for ending up on the beach in the first place… too many beers and far too many joints.
After dressing, he went through to the kitchen to clean up and fix breakfast. The dried-up remains of cheese on toast lay on a plate now scattered with cat hair – Mr. Big had enjoyed quite a feast. Beer cans were all over the floor, most of them empty ones near the TV, but also two unopened ones under the kitchen table. He picked them up and shook his head, then placed them back in the fridge.
“We have got to stop smoking so much,” he said under his breath.
He finished cleaning up and tidied the apartment. Ali would be impressed when she woke up; house chores and hangovers were a bad combination. As he started to make the coffee, he found they were out of milk, so he grabbed his keys and headed up to the nearby store.
The early sun felt good as he raised his face to the sky and embraced the morning. Joggers and dog walkers were already out along Pierpont Boulevard, getting an early start and making the most of the weekend. He felt energized and alert, his senses heightened. Whatever happened last night left him feeling cleansed and rejuvenated. With a spring in his step, he circled his arms above his head as he walked, enjoying the stretch across his chest and back.
The store was quiet. Des, the owner, was busy opening boxes of candy and stocking the shelves as he whistled along to a tune on the radio. Kenzie approached him quietly and tapped him on the right shoulder, then swiftly moved over to the left, prompting Des to turn a full circle before seeing him – an old trick that he always fell for.
“Well, looky here,” Des said in his heavy Texan accent, “are my eyes working right? What happened, did someone shit the bed?” he laughed as he patted Kenzie on the back. “You’re not actually up early to go get wet, are ya?”
Des often referred to Kenzie as a ‘pm surfer’ because he lacked the motivation to get up and out on the waves before dawn like many of the dedicated surfers around town.
“Not today, Ali’s day off.”
“How is she?”
“Beautiful,” Kenzie replied with a smile.
“That she is, you’re a lucky man, Kenzie, a lucky man.”
Kenzie often dropped into the store for a chat with Des, always first with local gossip that he loved to share. New or broken relationships, cars for sale or apartments to rent, Des seemed to know it all.
Despite growing up in Texas, Des referred to himself as a beach boy, claiming to have been ‘born to surf’. He’d left Texas over thirty years ago and had only been back on two occasions. It wasn’t so much that he disliked The Lone Star State, more that once he found the ocean, he couldn’t tear himself away.
After a few minutes of banter and local gossip, Kenzie picked up a basket and began to gather his groceries together. Bread, milk, eggs and a newspaper – the usual breakfast necessities. As he walked toward the counter, his basket lightly knocked a young woman who was browsing the magazines. She looked up at him, and a flash of recognition swept across her face; her mouth opened as if she were about to speak, but then closed again.
“Pardon me, Ma’am.” He stepped aside and continued on to the counter. “Who’s that?” he mouthed to Des.
Des raised his shoulders and eyebrows to gesture that he didn’t know. The lady, unaware of their silent communication, put down the magazine and left the store.
“She looked at me like she knew me, but I don’t know who she is.”
“Never seen her before either, cute though, huh?”
Kenzie paid for his things, including a bunch of flowers for Ali, and strolled back to the apartment, still thinking about the young woman and the way she had looked at him.
He made coffee and scrambled eggs on toast and took them through to the bedroom, along with the flowers which he laid on the pillow next to Ali. He then kissed her on her forehead to wake her.
“Morning, cutie.”
“Hey, how are you? They’re beautiful, thank you.” She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “Mmm, you smell good. How come you’ve been out already?”
She sat up in bed, and Kenzie passed her a mug of coffee and moved the plate closer to her.
“I was wide-eyed at 7am, so I hopped over to the store. Sun’s shining, we should go do something.”
“What’s got into you? I feel like crap. Thought you would too, are you sure you’re OK?”
“Couldn’t be better.”
“But last night, what was all that about?”
“What d’ya mean?”
“The disappearing act.”
“What disappearing act?” Even as he said it, he had no idea why he pretended not to know.
“Come on, Kenzie, don’t mess with me again. You totally freaked me out, don’t tell me you don’t remember.”
“I don’t. You sure you didn’t imagine it? We smoked a lot of weed.”
“Well, you were there one minute, then I turned around, and you’d gone.” As she spoke, she began to look confused.
“Oh, the walk on the beach, you mean?”
“It was a bit more than that. You managed to get out through a locked door and go missing for ten minutes with no shoes or sweater.”
“Locked door? Nah, must have been open. We were loaded, and I needed to clear my head. Came back and dumped my guts – guess that’s why I feel so great now.”
Ali took a bite of the toast and crumpled her forehead into a frown.
“You must have dreamed it all up in that pretty little head of yours.” He said as he gently tapped her head with his knuckles.
She let out a sigh, “if you say so.”
He hadn’t intended to lie, and he hated doing it. But until he made sense of it himself, he saw no reason to worry Ali any further.
He pushed the guilt aside and climbed back under the covers. She finished her breakfast and then snuggled in close to him, her nakedness pressed up against him. They lay still for a few minutes before Kenzie noticed her fumbling with his zipper.
“And what d’ya think you’re up to?” he teased.
Ali sat up and kissed each of his eyes, his nose and finally his lips. Without saying a word, she disappeared under the covers. Kenzie closed his eyes and smiled, then felt even more guilty about lying.
Chapter Three
Kenzie swung his truck into a parking space, hopped out, clicked the key fob behind him and walked to the grocery store. It had been a few weeks since the strange incident. Apart from a few crazy dreams, nothing else out of the ordinary had happened, and Ali hadn’t mentioned it again. He grabbed a basket from a stack by the door and went inside. It was mostly him who did the shopping. Ali’s hours in the boutique usually meant he was home first, and he liked to do his bit. They got by on a small budget, and he took charge of the finances. Ali was too easily swayed by the latest offers and loved trying out new products. Probably why she was so good at her job, her enthusiasm often spilt over, and she would subtly persuade customers to buy more accessories and cosmetics than they may have planned.
The store was empty, too early for the after-work crowd stopping by for bottles of wine or something for their evening meal. In no particular hurry, he cruised the aisles looking for inspiration. After some deliberation, he settled on tuna steaks and salad. Ali liked low-fat mid-week meals, saying it gave her a license to eat at weekends. He collected a few other items and headed to the checkout. After unloading the basket, he looked up, aware someone was staring at him. It was the woman he’d seen in Des’ store the other week. She held his gaze for a few seconds, then moved away and disappeared into one of the aisles.
“Good afternoon, find everything OK today?” asked the cashier.
“Yeah… um, yeah, I did thank you.”
“Are you OK? Did you forget something?”
“Um, no. No, I’m good.”
He finished packing and paid, then took a final glance around the store, but could see no sign of the woman. He left the store and headed back over to his truck, but hesitated before starting the engine and instead sat for a moment, unable to decide what to do. With only one exit, she must still be inside. Should he go in? What would he say to her?
Within a few minutes, she came out. She noticed him and quickly walked away in the other direction. Her reaction gave Kenzie the answer he needed, and he jumped from the cab and rushed after her across the parking lot, but he was too late. Her car was already pulling out onto the main road, and his chance was gone.
Chapter Four
Ali finished clearing up in the kitchen after their evening meal and topped up their wine glasses.
“It’s a beautiful evening, shall we go watch the sunset?” she asked.
“Sure, I’ll grab a shirt.”
Once outside, they were pleased to find the bench empty. Its position at the top of the steps to the beach meant it had a high number of visitors at all times of the day. Some of the neighbors were already out, chatting together in the lane as they did most evenings. They sat down and clinked glasses, and once again reminded themselves how lucky they were to live where they did. The sun was low in the sky, and despite a light breeze, the evening was warm, and a few children still played in the waves.
At 7:45pm, the sun began to set, lighting the clouds to stunning shades of orange and red. They watched as it sank beneath the horizon, treating them to the rare sight of green before disappearing.
“Yay, we got the green flash! Not seen that in a long time,” Ali said excitedly, “something’s gonna happen.”
“What?” he laughed. Ali’s superstitions often amused him, but he’d not heard this one before.
“My Grandma used to say that if the sunset flashes green, then it’s a sign of luck.”
“Well, that’s good. What sort of thing?”
“Who knows, it might be good luck or might be bad luck.”
“Yeah, right, you and your stories.” Kenzie put his arms around her and began tickling her belly, making her squeal and laugh.
“Stop it, you’ll make me spill my wine!”
He kept going for a few moments longer before letting her and picking his glass up from the bench. As he took a sip, he looked up and saw the woman from the store walking along right in front of them.
More casually dressed than earlier, she now wore a white t-shirt and cropped jeans and was carrying her flip-flops. Kenzie froze. After her reaction to him that afternoon, he was desperate to talk to her, but with Ali next to him, it would be impossible. Ali’s laughter caused her to look over at them, but the moment she saw him, she dropped her head and carried on walking.
“Hi,” Ali said, “beautiful sunset.”
“Yes, very pretty,” she said without stopping.
Ali often made small talk with strangers; it was a cute habit of hers, but not this time and not with this particular stranger. Kenzie watched as she walked further up the beach, heading toward the steps down to the next lane. When she reached them, she turned around and glanced back at him, but seeing that he was still watching her, she hurried away out of sight.
“REPEAT! Shall we go in now?”
“What? Um, sure. Sorry, I was miles away.”
“So I noticed, come on.”
She rushed down the steps and across to their apartment. As she waited for him to catch up, she began brushing the sand from her feet.
“Hurry up, you’ve got the key.”
Kenzie quickened his pace, but his mind was still on the woman. If she lived around Pierpont, it wouldn’t be long until their paths crossed again. Next time, he wouldn’t let her get away.
Chapter Five
Cool air blasted over Kenzie as he entered the bank, a welcome hit after a morning in the delivery truck. After filling out a deposit slip he joined the line behind several other customers. Only one clerk was on duty, typical for a mid-week afternoon
“Oh Man…” he mumbled under his breath.
A few people further along the line shuffled on their feet and half looked around in acknowledgement of his comment. It was at that point he saw her. The lady was three people ahead of him in the line. He shrank back to hide behind the customer in front of him. It had been over a week since he’d seen her on the beach and he was determined to find out who she was this time.
“Next customer please,” the teller called out, the line moved forward.
Before she had a chance to notice him he slipped out of line and went back outside and positioned himself behind one of the entrance pillars. Several anxious minutes later, he watched as she took her turn at the desk. He tucked himself further behind the pillar so he would be hidden when she came out.
“Any second now… come on, come on…” he whispered to himself.
The next time he looked inside she was just stepping away from the teller’s window. His heartbeat went up a gear as he watched her turn and walk to the exit. After a quick fumble in her purse, she put on her sunglasses and stepped outside. She walked straight past his hiding post and headed over to the central car park.
He took a deep breath and skipped out onto the path and caught up with her.
“Excuse me.”
She turned and looked at him but said nothing. Her shoulders stiffened and she continued walking.
“May I please have a word with you?”
“I’m in a hurry,” she said, still walking.
Kenzie fell into step beside her and persisted. “Have we met before?”
“No.”
“So why do you keep dodging me?”
“I don’t,” she protested, still not stopping.
“Just give me a minute then I’ll go.” He touched her elbow and she stopped. “I’ve seen you a few times now and you seem like you know me…” He paused, waiting for a reaction but she said nothing. “Then you dodge me like I’ve done something to offend you.” She shuffled on her feet. “Have I? Have I offended you somehow?”
She took in a deep breath before shaking her head and started walking again.
“Well there’s something you’re not telling me,” he called after her. This stopped her in her tracks. Still with her back to him, her head dropped in defeat. Gotcha.
He caught up with her. “So what’s this all about?”
“I had you confused with someone else, that’s all.”
Her left arm was across her body and she covered her mouth with her other hand. He wondered if this was to stop herself from saying more. It worked, she fell silent again.
“That’s it?”
“Yep, no big deal,” she said, trying to sound casual.
“So why didn’t you say that?” he quizzed.
She bit her lip and turned to carry on walking. Again, he followed.
“I don’t believe you.”
Irritated by her reaction, he grabbed her wrist harder than he meant to.
“Ow! Andrew let go.”
Several people looked over at them. He loosened his grip but still kept hold of her wrist.
“So you do know me.”
She hesitated before answering. “Sort of.”
“What do you mean?” she said nothing. “Listen lady, you need to tell me what’s going on.”
Aware that a couple of middle-aged ladies were watching them he gestured to the coffee shop a few yards up.
“You wanna carry on with this out here or should we go someplace quiet so you can explain?”
“OK… Ok…”
Once in the coffee shop he suggested she find a seat while he got some drinks. He watched her from his place in the line. She looked to be in her late twenties, maybe 30. Attractive and well dressed, the cherry red shirt under a dark gray skirt suit complemented her cappuccino colored skin. Her curly, dark hair was pulled back and held in place with a clip. Other than a small gold chain she wore no jewelry. Kenzie tried to guess what her job was. Judging by her clothes, something professional, but she looked out of her comfort zone now. She sat on the edge of the sofa fidgeting with her purse strap. Kenzie carried the drinks over to her. She caught his eye as she looked, then took her gaze straight back down at the floor. He placed the mugs on the table and took a seat on the opposite sofa. Neither of them sat back in the comfortable seats, both perched on the edge and killed time by adding sugar and over-stirring their coffee. It was Kenzie who broke the silence.
“Who are you?”
“My name’s Sonja.”
“How do you know me?”
As she reached out to pick up her coffee cup he noticed that her hand was shaking.
“Andrew, have you felt OK lately?”
“Fine. Why, are you a Doctor?”
“No.”
“And quit calling me Andrew.”
“I’m sorry, what would you prefer?”
“My name’s Andrew McKenzie. Everyone calls me Kenzie.”
“OK Kenzie.” she took a deep breath and let it out between her lightly glossed lips. “Has anything strange happened to you recently?”
“No, what’s this all about?”
“What I’m about to tell you might be difficult for you to take in.”
“Try me,” he said.
“OK. A few weeks back, late on a Friday night, I saw you…” she paused, “someone that looked like you, outside my apartment.”
“Where do you live?”
“Denver Lane, I just moved there a month ago. You live on Beach Lane, don’t you?”
“Yeah.” he said, eyeing her suspiciously. “What of it?”
“The other week. I’d just got home, I put my car in the garage, closed the door and there you were… he was… this barefoot guy wearing only his shorts and a vest. He scared the hell out of me.”
“What did he want?”
“Well, he was jumpy, talking fast. At first I thought he was some nut-job, but he knew my name. He kept calling me by it and tried to grab me. When I told him I’d never seen him before, he got really upset.”
“So he got you mixed up with someone else,” Kenzie said. “No big deal.”
“It was more than that.” Sonja leaned forward. “He knew my birthday, my parents’ names… things no stranger should know. Then he told me his name was Andrew McKenzie, that he lived on Beach Lane with his wife, Alison, and that we were good friends.”
“And you actually listened to all this?”
“I didn’t have much choice. He was standing outside my apartment in a panic.” She took a sip of coffee. “What’s your wife’s name?”
“I don’t have a wife,” Kenzie snapped. His leg began twitching. “I’ve got a girlfriend. Ali.”
Sonja held his gaze.
“Short for Alison?”
Kenzie pushed back his chair.
“Kenzie, please. I haven’t finished.”
He wanted to leave. The night on the beach had been confusing enough; this was something else entirely. Reluctantly, he sat back down.
“He told me he’d been at home with his wife, getting ready for bed. Then somehow he found himself on the beach.”
Kenzie frowned. “And?”
Sonja glanced around to make sure nobody was listening.
“Then he vanished.” Her voice dropped to a whisper. “One minute he was standing in front of me… the next he was gone.”
Kenzie slowly lowered his coffee cup.
“I know how impossible that sounds,” Sonja said. “I kept telling myself I’d imagined it, but I was completely sober. The next morning I saw you in Des’s store and thought you were him—until you looked straight through me. That’s why I’ve been avoiding you.”
Silence settled between them.
“Has anything strange happened to you?”
“No.” Kenzie stood again. “I don’t know who that jack-ass was or why he picked you, but it wasn’t me. The whole thing’s crazy.”
Sonja called after him, but he was already through the door.
Back on the street, Kenzie weaved through the parked cars and sprinted to his truck, narrowly avoiding a passing vehicle. He tore out of the parking lot, tyres screeching as he hit the road.
“Shit… shit… what the fuck is going on?”
He slammed the steering wheel with the heel of his hand. Turning into Beach Lane, he ignored the neighbours shouting at him to slow down.
Inside the apartment, he lit a cigarette and began pacing. He remembered lying on the sofa, then waking on the beach. Everything in between was a blank. He hadn’t seen anyone, hadn’t spoken to anyone. So who the hell was the other Andrew?
Only an hour earlier he’d been desperate to find Sonja. Now he wished he’d never met her.
***