Hush Little Babies

Chapter Two

We had just moved, to Clintonville, Wisconsin, on Round Lake. The house needed a tremendous amount of work, but had great possibilities and a lot of character. I dreaded the fact, that we had to relocate. My husband had worked for Bircham, sawyer and Leek for fifteen years. I guess, he thought if we moved to a small town, he could control my every move. He had a tendency to forget that, we were partners, and I should have had a say in the move. Jeffrey and I had more than our share of disagreements, in our lives, as did any long term marriage, I suspect.

Jeffrey, was a beautiful specimen. He was six-foot-three, with blonde hair, and blue eyes. He had dimples to die for and when, he looked at me with, those baby blues, my heart would melt.

I was deliriously happy, with my life in New York. I left all my friends and gave up, my beautiful, self-decorated office with all the trimmings, for the cold, mosquito ridden, Cheese-heads, of Wisconsin. I felt like I was taking a large, step in the wrong direction. I guess, I’d been married too long and hadn’t wanted to admit that, enough was enough.

April was creeping up fast, and Jeffrey’s, first day at his new branch, had arrived. Bircham, Sawyer & Leek, was a well-known law practice. The alarm, jerked me out of bed, and into the kitchen for the morning ritual.

Jeffrey thanked me for breakfast, and with a kiss, out the door he went. As with any man, in his world, all was well and euphoric.

“You’re welcome sweetheart, see you this evening,” I shouted, over the rumble of, the car engine.

I fixed him a cucumber sandwich, and cottage cheese, for lunch. In his anticipation, of the day, he forgot to take it. I would have taken it to him, but if you know anything about Wisconsin, you must know, everything is miles away and through the ice and snow, your destination, can imitate, eternity.

The town of embarrass, is the closest to us, if you could call it a town. Embarrass, is approximately fifteen minutes from Clintonville. It consists of, a Post Office, a small antique store, and a Mobile station, which sold everything from tire irons to hot roasted chicken.

I was typing on my computer, and again, I heard, what sounded like a child’s scream. Oh no, not again, I thought, as I ran to the kitchen window. The big old Oak, outside my window added gloom to the already, overcast day. I got a chill as the hair on my arms rose up. There were several, large Oak trees, in the back yard, but not a sign of life, in the water. The leaves had fallen from the hard winter. The dock was sagging, in the middle, and because, I’d already had one horrifying ordeal, a few days back, the desolate, bitter, outdoors, creeped me out.

There were footprints, on the softened, sheet of ice, that appeared to be hard. The footprints, led to what materialized, as a hole in the ice. I trembled all over. I cannot begin to describe, how frigid, I felt, thinking three days ago, I had almost lost my life, out there in the murky, ice-covered, Lake. I saw no one in the water, this time, but because I was already, traumatized, I stood petrified. My concentration was sporadic, and my heart was in my throat.

I ran to the phone, and called Jeffrey’s office.

“Bircham, Sawyer and Leek, Carol, speaking.” “How can we help you?”

“Carol, this is, Susan sawyer, Jeffrey’s wife.”

“Yes, Mrs. Sawyer, it’s nice to finally speak with you. What can we do for you today?”

“May I speak with Jeffrey?”

“Of course, hold for a moment, please.”

“It took Carol, a long time to get back with me. In the mean-time I thought about Jeffrey. He can be so self-righteous and irritating sometimes. Maybe I shouldn’t have called. I guess that comes with the territory, considering he is an attorney. Let’s see, how does that joke go? You know; the only good lawyer, is the one at the bottom of the ocean. He used to be such a sweetheart so sensitive and caring. Perhaps, I’ve changed, him. My thoughts were abruptly shattered, by his captivating voice.

“Good morning, Jeffrey Sawyer, here, what can I do for you today, Mrs. Sawyer?”

“Sweetheart, don’t be silly.”

“All right, love, what’s up? You sound a little anxious, is something wrong?”

“Well, I heard this high-pitched noise outside, in the lake, like another baby screaming.”

“Excuse me, darling, can you hold a minute, I need to take this call.”

I was on hold for about, five minutes…

“Sorry, Susan, you were saying?” asked Jeffrey.

“What is it Carol?” Jeffrey asked, with his hand over the receiver.

“I’m sorry, Susan, now, you say you heard some noise outside? Hold on a minute, my other line is ringing," said Jeffrey.

So, needless to say, irritation, was setting in!

“Sorry, sweetheart, finish your story,” Jeffrey said, when he got back to the phone.

I heard his phone ring in the background. “You know what, Jeffrey, It’s not that important. Never mind, I’ll tell you later. I have to go, someone’s at the door,” I said and I hung up.

The knocker, on this big old house, echoed in my head, like a train, hitting a steel wall.

“I wonder who could be knocking?” I said, out loud. I didn’t know anyone here. When I opened the door, one of my neighbors introduced her self and welcomed me to the neighborhood, with a basket of cheese and crackers. Go figure!

“I’m Gina, your next-door neighbor, to the south,” she said. Gina, stood, about five-foot tall. She had shoulder length, dark hair, that turned up at the ends, and brown eyes. She appeared to be a little over weight, but she had a sweet smile.

“Thank you,” I said. “Won’t you come in? I’m Susan Sawyer. It’s wonderful to meet you, and, you’re so sweet to drop off a gift.”

“Well, truth be told, I just wanted to be the first to say hello,” she said, smiling. “My husband, George, owns the Five and Dime, in Shawano,” Gina, declared.

As we talked, the afternoon, seemed to fly by. We gobbled down cheese and crackers and sipped on Tea. She told me about, Clintonville and about several, disappearances around the lake. Immediately, I was intrigued.

“Gina, I was in the middle of unpacking, Thursday and I actually had to rescue a child from drowning, in the lake. Then a few minutes ago, I thought I heard another baby screaming outside. I went to look, out my window and saw footsteps on the ice, and a hole in the middle of the lake, close to where the first occurrence took place. Did you hear anything?” I asked.

“You poor dear; yes, I saw the whole thing, from my living room window. I always hear noises from the lake,” she, explained. There are a few Loons, that come to Round Lake, every spring, and they stay until its time to fly south. They make a sound, just like a human, when they sing. I just ignore them, any more. I’m only home on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays, what with all the work at the store. George is stocking up, for our big Spring Sale. George usually hires teenagers, to help, but we haven’t had any bites, in quite a while,” said Gina.

I guessed, that’s some sort of fish joke, here, ‘bouts, I thought.

“People here at Round Lake, are afraid to let their children, go out to play. It’s rumored that if you go for walks at night, always carry a big stick. They joke about it, but since there have been so many missing children, I don’t find it funny. Say, I’ve got to get home. My womanly duties are calling. You know, laundry, sewing, cooking. I don’t have much time during the week, so I have to do, what I can, when I get the chance,” said Gina. “It was very, nice to meet you. I think we can be great friends.”

“Thanks again, for being my welcome mat. I’ll call you,” I said.

Gosh, I thought, how did I end up here? I figured Gina had quite the imagination, herself. We’d probably, get along, wonderfully.