Chapter 5: Light's Out
E L L I E
The whispers around me intensify. "They found something... What is it?... Can you see?"
We all inch forward toward the yellow caution tape, craning for a better view of the water below. The surface of the lake looks calm and unbroken, except for the presence of the boat. From this distance, perched on a clifftop high above, it reminds me of a bath toy I used to play with as a kid. A white plastic replica of a powerboat with dark blue lettering across the hull:
P O L I C E
We're too far away to see the expression on the officers' faces, or to hear the words exchanged. But we can see the search diver emerge from beneath the water in his black wet suit. His flippers disturb the pristine surface as he paddles his way toward the boat. He's only swimming with one arm. The other arm stretches before him, holding out the sunken treasure that he's exhumed from the depths below.
"Is it... Is it... her?"
I'm not sure who spoke the question. The voices around me intermingle, mixing and echoing inside my head, jumbling together with my thoughts. Only Maddox's voice breaks through.
"No. I don't think so."
I don't think so either. I'm up on my tiptoes, inching my way toward Maddox's turned back. I can see better from this position. Whatever that diver is holding, it doesn't look human. Way too small.
The diver reaches the boat and holds the object out to a policewoman kneeling on the deck.
I gasp. The air expels from my lungs in unison with all the lungs around me. Nineteen sets of lungs, I think, fully operational...
All but one.
I wonder if the officers realize what that thing is – so similar to the scuba goggles the diver wears across his eyes. We students up above all recognize it at the same moment, as a fading ray of sunlight catches the smooth surface of the lenses.
An InSight Visor.
It's identical to the one I received on my first day here at Winthrop. Or not exactly identical, I realize, as I squint and strain for a better view. There's something that doesn't look quite right. One key difference, so minor, and yet so huge.
"The light," Maddox whispers, echoing my thoughts.
He notices it at the same moment I do. You'd think we wouldn't be able to tell from this distance. But it's all too clear as the policewoman turns the visor back and forth in her hands. That bright blue LED in the center of the frames, perpetually lit...
It's gone now. Faded into darkness. Extinguished by the water's cold embrace.
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