Bury The Body Deep in Mine Shaft

The sun was a big, orange orange. It hung over the edge of the quarry like it was about to fall and break. The heat felt like a heavy blanket that someone had dipped in hot water. Lenny wiped sweat from his forehead with the back of a dirty hand. His skin felt gritty. The air smelled like dry pine needles and the sour smell of the cheap sodas they had been drinking.

Mick was kicking at a pile of gravel. He was wearing his older brother's boots. They were too big. They made a clunk-clunk sound every time he moved. Stacey was sitting on the hood of her dad's old truck. She was poking at a hole in her jeans. The truck was rusted at the edges. It looked like it was being eaten by orange bugs.

"It's too hot to even breathe," Stacey said. She didn't look up. "Why are we even here? There's literally zero wind. I feel like I'm in a toaster."

"Because the lake is full of tourists," Mick said. He kicked a rock hard. It hit a rusted oil drum with a loud clang. The sound echoed off the high stone walls. "And the quarry is ours. No rules. No moms telling us to put on more sunscreen."

Lenny looked at his sneakers. They were white once. Now they were the color of the dust. He felt a tiny bit of guilt in his stomach. He had told his mom he was at the library. The library was air-conditioned. It smelled like old paper and silence. The quarry smelled like danger and heat. He liked the library better, but he liked Mick and Stacey more. He wanted to be the kind of kid who hung out at quarries. He just wasn't sure if he was actually that kid yet.

"Listen," Lenny said. "Do you hear that?"

"Hear what?" Stacey asked. She finally looked up. Her eyes were squinted against the bright light.

"An engine," Lenny said. "Someone's coming up the trail."

Mick stood up straight. He adjusted his hat. "Probably just some more kids. We'll tell them to get lost."

But it wasn't just some more kids. It was a shiny red dirt bike. It roared over the ridge, kicking up a huge cloud of dust. The rider was wearing a bright white helmet. He looked like an astronaut landing on a brown planet. He stopped the bike and killed the engine. The silence that followed was even louder than the motor. The rider took off his helmet. It was Cody Tulsen. His hair was perfectly blonde. He looked like he had never sweated a day in his life. He looked expensive. His dad was the Sheriff. Everyone knew the Sheriff. He was the man who could make your parents cry just by standing in your driveway.

"This is a private spot," Cody said. His voice was high and sharp. It sounded like a whistle. "My dad says nobody is supposed to be up here after five."

"Your dad isn't here," Mick said. He walked toward Cody. He walked like he was trying to look taller than he was. "And we were here first. So maybe you should just turn that toy around and go back to your big house."

Cody laughed. It wasn't a nice laugh. It was the kind of laugh that meant he thought he was better than everyone else. "My toy? This bike costs more than your house, Mick. And my dad is the law. If I want you gone, you're gone. I could call him right now. He’s just down the road."

Stacey hopped off the truck. "Cody, don't be a jerk. We're just hanging out. There's plenty of room."

"I don't want to hang out with you guys," Cody said. He looked at Lenny. "Especially not Lenny. He looks like he’s about to cry. Are you gonna cry, Lenny?"

Lenny felt his face get hot. It wasn't the sun this time. It was the shame. "I'm not crying," he whispered.

"What was that?" Cody leaned forward. "I can't hear you over the sound of how much you suck."

Mick stepped in between them. "Leave him alone, Cody. Just go."

Cody pushed Mick. It wasn't a big push, but it was enough to make Mick stumble in his oversized boots. Mick’s face went red. He looked at the ground. There was a rock there. It was the size of a grapefruit. It was heavy and gray. Before Lenny could even blink, Mick reached down and grabbed it. He didn't think. He just swung. He swung the rock like it was a baseball bat. It hit the side of Cody’s head with a sound like a wet branch breaking. Thwack.

Cody didn't scream. He just stopped. He stood there for a second, his eyes wide and surprised. Then his knees buckled. He fell onto the gravel. His head hit the ground with a soft thud. The dirt bike tipped over, its wheels still spinning slowly in the air. The white helmet rolled away, stopping near a patch of dried-up weeds.

"Mick?" Stacey whispered. Her voice was tiny. "Mick, what did you do?"

Mick was still holding the rock. His knuckles were white. "He pushed me," Mick said. His voice was shaking. "He was being a jerk. I just... I just wanted him to shut up."

Lenny walked over to Cody. He didn't want to, but his legs moved on their own. He looked down. Cody’s eyes were open, but they weren't looking at anything. There was a dark spot on the dirt near his ear. It was growing. It looked like spilled juice, but it was darker. Much darker. Lenny reached out and touched Cody’s hand. It was still warm, but it felt like it was empty. Like the person who lived inside had already moved out.

"He's not moving," Lenny said. "Stacey, he's not moving."

Stacey ran over. She knelt in the dust. She put two fingers against Cody’s neck. She waited. Her face went pale. She looked up at Lenny, and Lenny saw something in her eyes he had never seen before. It was real, grown-up fear.

"There's no beat," she said. "Lenny, there's no heartbeat."

"We have to call someone," Lenny said. He started to reach for his pocket, but he realized his phone was gone. He must have left it on the truck or dropped it in the scuffle. "Mick, give me your phone!"

"No!" Mick shouted. He dropped the rock. It hit the ground with a heavy sound. "No phone! Do you know who his dad is? Sheriff Tulsen will kill us. He won't even wait for a trial. He'll just shoot us right here in the dirt."

"It was an accident!" Lenny yelled. He felt like his chest was full of bees. "We can tell them it was an accident!"

"Does that look like an accident?" Mick pointed at the rock. "I hit him with a rock, Lenny! That's not an accident. That's... that's the end of our lives. We go to jail. We stay there until we're old and gray. My dad is already in jail. I’m not going too."

Stacey stood up. She was shaking, but she was thinking. She was always the one who got the best grades. She was the one who knew what to do when the power went out. "Mick is right," she whispered. "If we tell, we're cooked. The Sheriff... he's not a normal dad. He's mean. He treats everyone like they're already guilty. He'll never believe it was a mistake."

"So what do we do?" Lenny asked. He looked at Cody. The boy looked so small now. He didn't look like the bully from two minutes ago. He looked like a broken doll.

"We hide him," Stacey said. "We hide him where nobody will ever look."

Lenny looked around the quarry. It was wide and open. There were no trees here, just rock and dust. "Where? There's nowhere to go."

"The Silver-Pine mine," Mick said. He looked toward the woods. "The old shaft. It’s four hundred feet deep. It’s full of water at the bottom. If we put him in there, he’s gone. Forever."

Lenny felt sick. He felt like he was going to throw up the soda and the sun. "We can't do that. That's... that's what bad people do."

"We're already bad people, Lenny," Mick said. He grabbed Lenny’s shoulder. His grip was tight. It hurt. "We're in this together. If I go down, you go down. Stacey goes down. Do you want Stacey to go to jail?"

Lenny looked at Stacey. She was biting her lip so hard it was bleeding. She shook her head. "I can't go to jail, Lenny. I'm supposed to go to college. I'm supposed to get out of this town."

Lenny looked back at Cody. The light was fading. The shadows were getting long and skinny. They looked like fingers reaching out from the edges of the quarry. He felt very small. The world felt very big and very cold, even though the air was still eighty degrees.

"Okay," Lenny whispered. "Okay."

The Dark Mouth

The truck bumped over the old logging road. Every rock felt like a mountain. Mick was driving. He didn't have a license, but he knew how to move the gears. In the back, under a heavy, greasy tarp, was Cody. The dirt bike was there too, hidden under some old blankets and a rusted shovel. Nobody talked. The only sound was the engine groaning and the trees scratching the sides of the truck. The trees looked like giants standing guard. Their leaves were dark green, almost black in the twilight.

They reached the Silver-Pine mine. It was a crumbling building made of wood and corrugated metal. It looked like a skeleton. The air here was cooler. It smelled like wet stone and old iron. Lenny got out of the truck. His legs felt like they were made of jelly. He didn't want to touch the tarp. He didn't want to see what was under it again.

"Grab the other end," Mick said. He was acting tough now, but his voice was still too high.

They carried Cody toward the shaft. The shaft was a hole in the ground surrounded by a rusted fence. The fence had a hole in it. They squeezed through. The hole in the ground was black. It wasn't just dark; it was a kind of black that seemed to suck the light out of the air. Lenny looked down. He couldn't see anything. He just heard the faint sound of water dripping way, way down. It sounded like a clock ticking.

"On three," Mick said.

They swung him. One. Two. Three.

There was a long silence. Lenny held his breath. He counted in his head. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Then, a splash. It was a small sound for such a big secret. It sounded like a pebble hitting a pond. But it wasn't a pebble. It was a boy.

"The bike next," Stacey said. She was standing by the truck, her arms crossed. She looked like she was freezing, even though it was still warm.

They pushed the dirt bike into the hole. It made a louder crash as it hit the sides of the shaft. Clang. Bang. Then, another splash. This one was bigger.

"It's done," Mick said. He wiped his hands on his pants. "It's like it never happened."

But Lenny knew that wasn't true. It did happen. He could still feel the weight of Cody’s feet in his hands. He could still see the white helmet in the dust.

That night, Lenny didn't sleep. He lay in his bed and watched the shadows on his ceiling. Every time a car drove by, he thought it was the police. Every time the wind blew, he thought it was Cody’s ghost. He thought about his room. It was full of things that reminded him of who he used to be. His baseball glove. His comic books. A model airplane he had built with his dad. Now, those things looked like they belonged to someone else. A kid who didn't know how deep the Silver-Pine mine was.

The next morning was Monday. School. Lenny didn't want to go, but his mom made him. She made him pancakes. They tasted like sawdust.

"You're quiet today, sweetie," she said. She was drinking coffee. She looked so normal. It was weird. The world was broken, but she was just drinking coffee.

"Just tired," Lenny said.

School was a blur. He sat in his history class. The teacher was talking about the Great Depression. Lenny thought about the great depression in his chest. He looked at the seat behind him. It was empty. That was Cody’s seat. Usually, Cody would be poking Lenny in the back with a pencil or making fun of his haircut. Now, the seat was just a piece of plastic and metal. It looked giant. It looked like a monument.

In the middle of the second period, the door opened. The principal came in. Behind him was a man in a tan uniform. It was Sheriff Tulsen. He looked different than usual. His hat was pulled low. His face was gray. He didn't look like a scary lawman. He looked like a dad who hadn't slept.

"Sorry to interrupt, Mr. Henderson," the principal said. "Sheriff Tulsen needs to speak with everyone. It's about Cody."

Lenny felt his heart hammer against his ribs. It felt like it was trying to break out. He looked at Stacey. She was sitting three rows over. She was staring at her notebook. Her pen was shaking. Mick was in the back. He was leaning back in his chair, looking out the window. He looked like he didn't have a care in the world. He was a good actor. Too good.

"Cody didn't come home last night," the Sheriff said. His voice was husky. It cracked a little. "We found his bike tracks leading up toward the quarry. Did anyone see him yesterday? Any of you?"

The room was silent. Lenny felt like everyone could hear his heart. He felt like he was glowing with guilt. He wanted to scream. He wanted to say, 'He's in the mine! He's four hundred feet down!' But he didn't. He stayed quiet.

"We were at the quarry," Mick said suddenly. He didn't even hesitate. "We saw him fly by on his bike around six. He didn't stop. He headed out toward the highway. We thought he was going to the mall in Kenora."

The Sheriff looked at Mick. He stared at him for a long time. "The highway? You're sure?"

"Yeah," Mick said. "He almost hit Stacey's truck. He was going real fast. We yelled at him to slow down, but he just flipped us off and kept going."

The Sheriff sighed. He looked older than he had a minute ago. "Okay. If anyone hears anything... if he texts you or calls... you let me know immediately. Understand?"

Everyone nodded. The Sheriff walked out. The sound of his boots on the linoleum was like a hammer.

After class, Lenny found Mick by the lockers. "Why did you lie?" Lenny hissed. "You said he went to the highway. Now they’re going to be looking in the wrong place."

"Exactly," Mick said. He had a weird look in his eyes. It was a little bit of a smile. "That's the point, Lenny. Keep them looking away from us. I kind of liked it. Did you see his face? The big, scary Sheriff, asking us for help."

"Mick, that's messed up," Lenny said. "His son is dead."

"And we're alive," Mick said. He stepped closer. He smelled like cigarettes. "Keep it that way, Lenny. Or I'll make sure you're the one who takes the fall. I've got nothing to lose. You do."

Lenny backed away. He looked at Mick and didn't see his friend anymore. He saw a stranger. A stranger with a heavy rock.

The Golden Trophy

Tuesday was worse. The town was crawling with police. There were helicopters in the sky. The sound of their blades was a constant thump-thump-thump. It felt like the whole world was a giant ear, listening for a secret.

Lenny, Stacey, and Mick were called into the principal’s office. A detective was there. He had a mustache and a notebook that looked like it had been through a washing machine. He asked them the same questions over and over.

"What time did you see him?" "What was he wearing?" "Did he seem upset?"

Mick told the same lie. He didn't blink. He even added details. He said Cody was wearing a blue shirt. He wasn't. He was wearing a gray one. But the detective wrote it down like it was the truth. Stacey nodded along. She looked like she was about to faint, but she kept her voice steady. Lenny just looked at the floor. He said, "I don't know," a lot. The detective seemed to think he was just a shy kid who was scared of the police. He wasn't wrong about the scared part.

When they got out, Stacey pulled Lenny into the empty gym. It smelled like old sneakers and floor wax. "We have to tell," she whispered. Her eyes were red. "I can't do this, Lenny. Every time I see the Sheriff, I feel like I'm dying."

"We can't," Lenny said. "Mick will... I don't know what Mick will do. He’s different now. Did you see him in there? He liked it. He liked lying to them."

"He's losing it," Stacey said. "He thinks he’s a movie character or something. But this isn't a movie. It's Cody."

That afternoon, they went over to Mick’s house. Mick lived in a trailer at the edge of town. The yard was full of old car parts and weeds that were taller than Lenny. Inside, it was dark and messy. Mick was sitting on his bed, tossing something in the air and catching it.

It was shiny. It caught the little bit of light coming through the window.

"What is that?" Stacey asked.

Mick held it up. It was a watch. A big, heavy gold watch. It looked like something a rich person would wear.

"It's Cody's," Mick said. He grinned. "I grabbed it before we dropped him. It’s a Rolex. Do you know how much this is worth? Like, five thousand bucks."

Lenny felt a cold shiver go down his spine. "Mick, are you insane? Put that away! If anyone sees that, we're done. That's evidence!"

"It’s a trophy," Mick said. He put it on his wrist. It was too big. It slipped down to his hand. "He doesn't need it anymore. Why should it sit at the bottom of a hole when I can have it?"

"You're a monster," Stacey said. She reached for the watch. "Give it to me. I'm going to throw it in the lake."

Mick stood up. He was much bigger than Stacey. He pushed her back. "Don't touch me. And don't touch my stuff. I’m the leader here. I’m the one who’s keeping us safe. You guys would have folded in five minutes if it weren't for me."

"You're not keeping us safe!" Lenny shouted. "You're making it worse!"

"Shut up, Lenny," Mick snapped. "Go home to your mom. Go play with your toys. Leave the grown-up stuff to me."

Lenny and Stacey left. They walked down the dirt road in silence. The sun was starting to set again. The sky was a bruised purple color.

"He’s going to get us caught," Stacey said. "He’s going to keep that watch until someone sees it. He wants to be caught. He wants everyone to know what he did."

"No," Lenny said. "He wants power. He never had any before. Now he feels like he’s the king of the town because he knows something the Sheriff doesn't."

"What are we going to do?" Stacey asked.

Lenny didn't answer. He was looking at the woods. Somewhere in there, Cody was at the bottom of a hole. And somewhere in there, the truth was waiting to come out.

Wednesday morning, the school announced a search party. They wanted volunteers to help look in the woods near the quarry. The principal said it was our 'civic duty.' Lenny felt like he was in a nightmare. He had to go look for the body he had helped hide.

They were assigned to a group led by Mr. Miller, the gym teacher. They spent hours walking through the thick brush. The mosquitoes were terrible. They bit Lenny’s neck and arms. The sun was hot again. The woods felt tight. The trees seemed to be leaning in, trying to hear what the kids were saying.

"Keep your eyes peeled, boys," Mr. Miller said. "Anything out of the ordinary. A shoe, a hat, anything."

Lenny looked at the ground. He saw a candy wrapper. He saw a rusted soda can. He saw a beetle crawling over a dead leaf. He didn't see Cody. He knew Cody was miles away, under four hundred feet of water.

He saw Mick. Mick was whistling. He was actually whistling while he searched. He looked like he was on a nature hike. He kept touching his pocket. Lenny knew the watch was in there. Mick was carrying the murder weapon's best friend right in front of a teacher.

Stacey was walking next to Lenny. She looked like a ghost. She wasn't looking at the ground. She was looking at Mick. She was looking at him with hate. It wasn't just fear anymore. It was pure, cold hate.

"I'm going to his house tonight," Stacey whispered to Lenny when Mr. Miller was ahead of them. "I'm going to get that watch."

"Stacey, don't," Lenny said. "He's dangerous."

"I don't care," she said. "I’m not going to prison because he’s an idiot."

"I'll go with you," Lenny said.

He didn't want to go. He wanted to run away and never come back. But he couldn't let Stacey go alone. They were a team, even if the team was broken. Even if the team was built on a lie.

The Locker Room Choice

The sun had finally gone down. The air was thick and heavy, like it was made of wool. Lenny met Stacey behind the old hardware store. They didn't speak. They just started walking toward the trailer park. The moon was a thin sliver. It didn't give much light. Everything was shadows.

When they got to Mick’s trailer, the lights were off. His mom’s car wasn't there. She was probably working the night shift at the diner.

"The window in the back is always loose," Stacey whispered.

They crept around the side. The grass was wet with dew. It soaked Lenny’s sneakers. He felt cold, despite the heat. They reached the back window. Stacey pushed it up. It creaked, a long, slow sound that made Lenny’s skin crawl. She climbed in, and Lenny followed.

Inside, the trailer smelled like stale smoke and old food. It was even messier than before. They went to Mick’s room. It was tiny. There was a pile of dirty clothes in the corner and a poster of a rock band on the wall.

"Check the drawers," Stacey said.

They started digging. Lenny felt like a thief. He was a thief, he realized. He had stolen Cody’s life. Now he was stealing his watch.

Suddenly, the front door slammed.

"Who’s in here?" a voice yelled. It was Mick. He sounded angry. And he sounded drunk.

Lenny and Stacey froze. There was nowhere to hide. Mick stomped into the room. He saw them, and his face twisted into a snarl.

"What are you doing?" he shouted. "You’re trying to steal from me?"

"We’re taking the watch, Mick!" Stacey yelled back. She found it. It was sitting on his bedside table, right out in the open. She grabbed it.

Mick lunged at her. He tackled her onto the bed. They struggled, a blur of arms and legs in the dark. Stacey was screaming. Mick was growling. Lenny stood there for a second, paralyzed. Then he saw Mick’s hand go for Stacey’s throat.

"Stop it!" Lenny screamed. He grabbed a heavy lamp from the table and swung it. It hit Mick in the shoulder. Mick let out a roar and turned on Lenny.

He hit Lenny in the face. It felt like being hit by a truck. Lenny’s head snapped back. He saw stars. He fell against the wall, sliding down to the floor. His nose was bleeding. He could taste the copper in his mouth.

"You think you're better than me?" Mick stood over him. He was breathing hard. He looked like an animal. "You're nothing, Lenny. You're a coward. You helped me. You’re just as bad as I am."

Stacey scrambled up. She had the watch in her hand. She ran for the window.

"Get back here!" Mick shouted. He started to follow her, but he tripped over the pile of clothes.

Lenny grabbed Mick’s leg. He held on with everything he had. "Run, Stacey! Go!"

Stacey disappeared through the window. Mick kicked Lenny in the ribs. It knocked the wind out of him. Lenny curled into a ball, gasping for air.

"You're going to pay for that," Mick hissed. He looked out the window, then back at Lenny. He realized he couldn't catch her. He sat down on the bed, his head in his hands. "You guys ruined it. We had a plan."

"There was no plan, Mick," Lenny wheezed. "There was just you being a jerk."

Lenny got up. His body hurt everywhere. He climbed out the window. He didn't look back. He ran until his lungs burned. He found Stacey waiting by the bridge. She was crying. She handed him the watch.

"What do we do now?" she asked. "He’s going to kill us."

Lenny looked at the watch. It was heavy. It was the reason everything was falling apart. He looked at Stacey. She was his best friend. She deserved a life. She deserved to go to college. Mick... Mick was already gone. He had chosen to be a monster.

"I know what to do," Lenny said. His voice was cold. It didn't sound like his voice at all.

He went to the school early the next morning. The doors were open for the search party volunteers. He went to the locker room. He knew which locker was Mick’s. Everyone did. It was the one with the 'Keep Out' sticker on it.

Lenny looked around. The hallway was empty. He took the watch out of his pocket. He wrapped it in a piece of paper he had written on. It said: I'm sorry, Sheriff. I didn't mean to do it. He had practiced Mick’s messy handwriting all night.

He slipped the watch and the note through the slats of the locker. It landed with a soft metallic click.

Then, he walked to the payphone in the lobby. He dialed the Sheriff’s office.

"I have a tip," Lenny said, his voice disguised. "Check Mick’s locker. He has something that belongs to Cody."

He hung up.

An hour later, the school was full of police again. This time, they weren't asking questions. They were moving with purpose. Lenny and Stacey stood by the front doors. They watched as Sheriff Tulsen walked toward the locker room. He looked like he was made of stone.

They heard the sound of metal being pried open. A loud bang. Then, silence.

A few minutes later, they led Mick out in handcuffs. He was screaming. He was calling them names. He looked at Lenny, and his eyes were full of a terrible realization. He knew.

Sheriff Tulsen followed behind them. He was holding the gold watch in a plastic bag. He looked at it like it was the most painful thing in the world.

Stacey reached out and took Lenny’s hand. Her hand was ice cold. Lenny didn't feel anything. He felt empty. He looked at the bright summer sun. It was beautiful. The trees were green. The sky was blue. But for Lenny, the world would always be the color of the bottom of a mine shaft.

He looked at Stacey. She looked back. They didn't smile. They didn't say anything. They just turned and walked away from the school, leaving the noise and the sirens behind. Their friendship was like a piece of glass that had been shattered. You could glue it back together, but the cracks would always be there.

As they reached the edge of the parking lot, Lenny saw the Sheriff’s car pull away. Mick’s face was pressed against the glass of the back window.

Lenny felt a vibration in his pocket. It was his phone. A text from his mom. Where are you, honey? Lunch is ready.

He looked at the screen, then at the road ahead.