The Angler's Secret

I sigh, knowing that he'd stay until midnight if he had to just to catch one fish. This was likely to be a long day and night.

I was so absorbed in my thoughts that I almost missed the light tug on my line.

"Dad! Dad, I think I've got something," I say excitedly.

"Well, pull 'er in, son," he laughs.

So I do. However, when it finally emerges from the water, it wasn't even a fish at all.

"A license plate? That's all? Sheesh, what a disappointment," I say, a bit embarrassed.

Dad shifted a bit and looked around as if he were looking for someone. "You know, you're right, son. I don't think we're gonna have much luck in this area. Let's call it a day."

That was odd, especially for Dad. One minute, he's set on staying to catch some fish. The next, he's eager to get going.

I shrug it off and we row the boat back to shore. I was still pretty disappointed that we never caught anything.

When we got back on land, I saw an older man fishing by himself. When he noticed us there, he looked up and smiled before speaking to me. "Did you catch anything out there today, young man?"

I shook my head. "No, sir, the fish aren't seeming to bite today. All I caught was this old license plate," I said, holding it out for him to see.

I watched him study it for a moment before he spoke again.

"Hmm... This license plate looks pretty familiar, but I can't seem to recall where from. Say, where'd you pull this from?"

I pointed over towards our usual spot. "Over there where the dead end of the road stops. Hey, you can have it if you want. I don't really have a use for it myself."

The man thanked me and reached out to take it. At that point, my dad decided to intervene. "You'd better take this home so we'll have something to show your mom, you know? Don't wanna go back completely empty-handed," he said.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. Sorry about that, sir," I said apologetically.

"It's not a problem, I can live without it," he smiled.

"Alright, son, it's about time we hit the road. Your mom's probably waiting on us for supper," Dad said, silently ushering me to get in the truck.

Why is he acting so weird today?

"Okay, Dad. Well, it was nice meeting you," I said. After that, we got in the truck and drove off.

꧁𖥸꧂

The old man thought about the license plate as he watched the boy and his father get in their truck.

UIG-942.

It sounded so familiar yet so far from his memory. He just couldn't place it.

Then, it all clicked in his brain.

The disappearance of four teens, the hunt for the car with that exact license plate, all the evidence of the crime gone without a trace, and the case he had worked on for years as a police officer.

Well, he had retired long ago, but that didn't mean he could simply forget everything.

He quickly pulled out his phone and snapped a picture of the truck with its own license plate as it drove off in case he- or rather, the police- needed to contact them for something. Then, he called up the police to report what he'd discovered.

"Martin? Hey, it's Dan. Yeah, it's certainly been a while. Listen, you remember that missing persons case from 1967 with those missing teens? Well, I think I finally found a lead..."

꧁𖥸꧂

After some discussion, they decided to call in the dive team to investigate the area. Sure enough, they found an old vehicle in the same area Alex and his dad had been fishing.

They lifted the submerged vehicle from the lake, where human bones were discovered in the interior of the vehicle. The vehicle was, in fact, the one they had been looking for.

While they sent off the bones to be tested, Dan told the others of the fishers who had been there earlier.

"I think it would be good to question them to find out if they know or found anything else. Now, I know I'm retired and all, but this was my case from the start, and I'd like to see it through. If I could at least tag along with you all, I'd feel like my job was finally complete," he said. Since the team knew him so well, they agreed to let him come along.

From the picture of the fisher's pickup truck, they were able to see his own license plate to trace their home address.

When they arrived at the house, the man came outside to meet them.

"Come on in, guys. I think I already know why you're here. Sit down, this old angler has a story to tell you."

꧁𖥸꧂

After everyone had sat down, he told everyone the truth. Years ago, in 1967, he was in high school. At the time, his name was Billy. Now, he was never that popular and had a hard time with bullying from his classmates. One night, the three other teens who had given him the most trouble broke down on the side of the road after a party. He offered to give them a ride home, but Chad, the football player, decided he would drive instead. He didn't think anything of it at first and agreed.

Shortly after, Chad decided to mess around and torment him like usual. He began driving like a maniac down an unfamiliar road. He was gaining speed and blasting music, not paying attention to Billy as he yelled for him to stop. What Chad didn't know, and what he was trying to tell him, was that there was a dead end up ahead. Unable to get him to slow down, Billy buckled his seatbelt and prayed to God to keep him safe.

The car crashed through the dead end and fell into the lake, killing the passengers almost immediately. However, Billy survived. He escaped the car and tried to save the others, but it was too late. They were already dead.

"I didn't know what to do," he said. "It was my car, the police would have thought I killed them on purpose. So I did the first thing I thought to do. I ran off to another town with what little money I had and started a new life under a new name. Things shouldn't have gone this far, but they did. Now that it's all out, I'm ready to face the consequences, whatever they may be. Now maybe their families will find peace, and mine as well, because living with that secret has been far harder on me than anything the future may hold."