Crystal Stain

9

"Yeah? I lied."

"Harry!"

"Relax! I'm just doing what I've seen in movies!"

"In movies?" I whined, dropping the body to the ground.

Harry stopped on his tracks, also placing her down. He looked back at me with an aggrieved look on his face.

"I think you over estimate my ability to pull off a crime, Adam. I'm not a murderer."

I was barely listening to him, too worried trying to figure out what we were supposed to do.

"Adam" Harry called, interrupting my train of thought. I looked back at him with disinterest until I saw the hurt expression on his face. "I'm not a criminal. This was an accident. I need to know you know that."

Of course I hadn't thought of Harry as a criminal, not even when I saw his clothes drenched in blood, or when he showed me Jessica's body. And just by looking at his crushed face I could see how devastated he was by this whole situation.

"Harry" although I believed what I was saying was the truth, I still wanted him to be a hundred percent sure I did. "You are not a criminal. I know that"

"Thanks" he said softly with sincere gratitude.

We remained silent for a while, and when Harry spoke again his voice had gained back it's characteristic confidence.

"Look, this is what we're doing. We'll take her to the lake shack, change her clothes, burn the old ones, put some rocks in the bag and throw her to the lake." He blurted out the last part as he looked like he was going to be sick.

I felt the same. I had always been horrified by corpses and now I was helping to get rid of one.

I took a deep breath before lifting up the legs from the body and Harry did the same with the other end.

We arrived to the stilt house. The thing itself was the setting for a crime scene.

"Okay, go outside and fill the bag with rocks. Enough of them to sink the whole thing. I'll stay here and handle the body."

"Okay." I was glad I didn't have to manipulate the corpse. I wanted to thank him for he knew I didn't have the stomach to do it.

I went outside and started gathering rocks. Despite being summer the night was chilly, but after a few minutes of looking and lifting rocks I was sweating and panting for breath.

After I was done I went inside to check on Harry. I didn't have the stomach to look at Jessica so I focused on him. He had a firm posture and his movements were quick, however, his hands were shaking and, from time to time, he would wipe the tears forming on his eyes.

"Do you need help?" I asked, dreading the answer.

He looked at me startled, he probably hadn't see me. "No" he smiled. "I'm almost done."

Then I noticed Jessica had no clothes on and was wrapped around a blanket. The image revolted me.

"Why did you take her clothes off?" I managed to say, feeling the bile rise through my throat.

Harry took a deep breath. "I told you, I have to get rid of any evidence. My DNA could be in there. I had to clip her nails off as well, but my hands were shaking so I ended up pulling them out." He closed his eyes after that and I realized how pale he was.

It was just a matter of seconds before any of us would be sick so I changed the topic.

"I didn't see anyone outside. There's just the two of us so I think it will be fine."

"Yeah," Harry nodded "this is usually a lonely place. People think it's haunted."

I swallowed hard, only I could start having fear about the ghosts in a place when there was literally a cadaver in front of me.

"I'm done." Said Harry while he finished wrapping her head around the rest of the blanket.

"What a beautiful burrito." I said trying to light the mood but I immediately regretted it.

Harry squinted his eyes while slowly shaking his head. Then he proceeded to pick Jessica from the table.

"Where's the bag?"

I led him to it and helped him to put her body inside while readjusting some of the rocks. Then we rolled it towards the lake.

"Wait!" I said before we dropped her. "Maybe we should pray for her."

Harry looked at me with wide eyes, I knew he was not much of a believer but I still went ahead and lowered my head while I prayed. Harry did the same, probably not to pray but to show his respect.

Once I was done I looked at him and nodded. With a push the bag felt to the water with a splash.

I guess I was expecting something else from that moment, maybe I thought I would see in slow motion how our crime sank into deep water, but it was so dark I couldn't see a thing, one second I was touching it and the next it was gone.

"So, now what?" I said after a while, eager to head home.

"Now we burn her clothes."

________________

From a general view you could say we were just a couple of kids having fun on a summer night around a campfire.

"Should we sing a song?" Now was Harry's time to joke.

I smacked a mosquito on my face. The heat was making them crazy.

Harry seemed to read my discomfort because he said. "It'll be over soon. Just a couple of minutes."

I nodded, watching the fire consume the last pieces of fabric.

Once it was over, we put the fire out with water and decided to finally head home.