Liquid Lies Read Online Free PDF

the creation of time. As though trapped in a 1950’s time warp, she wore her hair in her signature platinum beehive. She wore turquoise eye shadow from her eyelids to her brows and bright ruby lipstick lined her cupid bowed lips. Her petite, soft, plump body was squeezed into pedal pushers two sizes too small for her girth. And she topped off the outfit with a skimpy midriff sleeveless blouse, under which the folds of her pale white tummy spilled out. Being around Hazel made me feel as happy as being in the front row at a parade.
    “Hello Hazel.”
    “Hi ya, CiCi!” Hazel glimpsed up from counting her money drawer. “You look like hell.”
    “I took a swim in my clothes.” My khaki shorts, white polo shirt and jacket were still damp and wrinkled.
    “Swim my ass.” She reached out and touched the cut on my forehead. “I heard you almost drowned and Mark saved your skinny butt. He blabbed it to me before he ran into the locker room. He was all excited about doing makeup. I never thought he was…” Hazel rocked her hand back and forth. “Not that there’s anything wrong with that whole alternative lifestyle but…”
    I smiled at her. “He’s straight as an arrow in that department, but warped otherwise.”
    She leaned over and kissed my cheek. “Anyway, no more near death, by drowning or otherwise. I can’t handle that. Okay?”
    “Too bad, I was going to try it again tomorrow.”
    Pushing a glass of water and two aspirin my direction, she said, “Motor Mouth also told me you had a headache.”
    I popped the two aspirin in my mouth and chugged the water. “A dip with the Grim Reaper can cause that.”
    She shifted in her chair. “Why don't you take the rest of the day off, go home and convalesce? Mark can finish up.”
    “There’s nothing to recuperate from. I'm completely back to normal.” I fiddled with the keys on the back of the ticket booth door.
    “Fine then, Ms. Normal. Are you hungry? Here's a tuna fish on rye I made for you.” She dug into large canvas sack slung over the back of her chair and pulled out a brown paper bag.
    “Thanks. You’re the best.” I could eat anything on rye bread.
    “Now go to the locker room and change out of those wet clothes before you catch a cold.” She handed me the sandwich wrapped in wax paper.
    “Thanks. See you later.” I unwrapped the sandwich as I walked over to the bulletin board inside the ticket booth. I grabbed the schedule for the rest of the week and headed over to the locker room.
    As I exited the ticket booth, I heard the beeping of a trailer backing up. It went down the cement ramp next to the pavilion and then unloaded a red boat into the water. White letters on the back read, ‘I Sea You.’ Ken’s new boat. I wanted to take a closer look, but my makeover from the mortician-in-training waited.
    As I rounded the corner of the pavilion my black Labrador, Skipper, almost knocked me over. “Hey there.” I bent down and scratched him behind his ears as he enthusiastically wagged his tail. Skipper looked up and licked my face. I tore off a big chunk of the sandwich and handed it to him and he gulped it down in one bite. I gave him the rest.
    My aunt Estelle walked over and kissed me. “I thought I would take him for a walk. What happened to you? You’re soaking wet. And you’ve got a cut above your eye.”
    “I’m fine.”
    “Wait a minute young lady. Were you the one that nearly drowned? The whole town is talking about it. Oh my goodness. What happened?” She held her hand to her heart.
    “It was nothing at all. I just slipped off the boat,” I said, trying my best to act nonchalant so as not worry her.
    Her eyes narrowed under her wire-rimmed bifocals. She pulled a handkerchief from her basket and held it to the cut on my forehead, “I think you need to get that looked at.”
    “I got checked out and have a clean bill of health. I don’t want you to worry one second. Promise me?” I gently pushed away her handkerchief from my