Short Story Fiction
The Lakeside Cabin
Scott A. Gese

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Their plan was for a quiet weekend. Someone had other ideas. Murder was not out of the question.

Neal and Eileen Stewart needed a break from their high pressure work environments. They thought they had found the perfect weekend getaway in a secluded lakeside cabin.

It would be the ideal place for the two of them to get away from the city and unwind. No electronics allowed. The plan was to do nothing but relax, unwind and reconnect with each other.

Neal was a successful Prosecuting Attorney. For the past three months, he had been under an enormous amount of pressure. He was tasked with convicting a high profile mob figure named Louie “Sonny Boy” Eskaveto.

The trial was plagued with a series of issues from the beginning.

The first jury was dismissed due to jury tampering accusations. Then, he had been offered a handsome bribe to lose the case. When that didn’t work, his life was threatened. Not once but twice. His land line was found to be tapped and one of his witnesses disappeared. She was found days later floating in a nearby reservoir.

It was a hard fought case but in the end he had won. Sonny Boy was sentenced to life at an out of state high security prison.

Neal had made some powerful enemies along the way. He knew there would be retribution. Some sort of blowback. He didn’t know how it would show itself, but he was convinced in all certainty it would happen.

For now it was something he refused to let himself worry about. This weekend would exclusively belong to him and Eileen.

Eileen was an emergency room doctor at a major hospital. She took on the most critical patients. Her job was rewarding but very stressful. In her ER, cool heads prevailed. For the past five years she made it her mission to never lose control of a situation no matter how dire the circumstances. She always prevailed.

Her plan for the weekend was exactly like her husbands. Do nothing butrelax and recuperate.

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They arrived at the cabin on one of the hottest afternoons of the year.

The evening stayed warm. The saving grace was a slight breeze coming off the lake. It was a clear evening accented by a full moon that reflected across the surface of the lake. Neal had planned a relaxing and romantic candlelit dinner at the end of the dock. No phones, no laptops. Just relaxing conversation about anything. Anything but work.

The dinner, the wine and the deep conversation went on for hours. It was perfect.

At the end of the evening when the bottle was empty and the candles had burned low. When the moon was sinking low and its reflection showed long across the surface of the lake, Neal suggested a starry night cruise.

There was a small rowboat tied to the dock. It beckoned them to prolong the evening. Eileen thought it was a great idea but only if they took along the dessert. She grabbed the cake and a knife to cut it and climbed in. They paddled out away from the dock and sat quietly looking up at the night sky and its vast array of glittering stars.

The quiet moment was suddenly interrupted when something quickly came up out of the water alongside the boat. There was enough light to make out a silhouette of someone in a scuba suit. The diver grabbed the side of the boat and lifted himself up as he violently tried to tip it over. Neal picked up one of the oars but before he could swing it, the diver disappeared under the water.

“What in the hell was that all about?” Exclaimed Eileen.

Before Neal could reply the diver came up again. A spear from a speargun grazed Neal’s shoulder knocking him to the edge of the boat. In a flash, the diver grabbed his arm and pulled him over the side. They both disappeared beneath the surface.

Eileen’s emergency room training kicked into full gear. She made a quick assessment of the situation, grabbed the knife and without a second thought jumped in after them.

It was dark, but she knew there was a struggle going on right next to her. She reached out and grabbed hold of whatever she could get her hands on. It happened to be the divers air hose.

Not wanting to stab the wrong person, she did the next best thing. She cut the hose and plunged the knife into the back of the person wearing the tank. The struggle stopped as suddenly as it had started. She grabbed Neal and helped him to the surface.

They were both strong swimmers. Even with Neal’s wounded shoulder they easily made it to shore. Once they reached the cabin she immediately tended to his wound.

Fearing the lake attack may not be the last, they made the wise decision to cut their weekend short. They didn’t waste any time. Eileen helped Neal into the car and they quickly headed for town. They were both on high alert. Neither one of them said a word until they were sure they were out of danger.

Finally Eileen broke the silence. “What the hell was that all about?” She asked again.

Neil looked over at Eileen. The seriousness of the situation showed on his face.

“Blowback,” he replied. “Blowback.”

© Copyright 2023 by Scott A. Gese All Rights Reserved.

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