Page 2 of Rogue Wave

“I’ve only known Hank for a few years now, but I can assure you he doesn’t hate you.” His voice was softer now. I wasn’t sure if he was doing it to keep me from murdering the sheriff or if he was telling the truth.

“He sure has a funny way of showing it,” I mumbled, but he clearly heard me.

His grin only grew wider. “I’ll let you in on a little secret. He’s a stickler for the rules.”

I rolled my eyes. “That’s not exactly a secret, Dougie.”

“Not that part, no. The secret is that Hank doesn’t waste time on people he doesn’t notice.”

“Well, I’d love to be unnoticed for a week or two.”

“Want me to beat him up for you?” His grin grew a bit more mischievous, and while I knew he was just kidding, it felt nice to have at least one neighbor willing to have my back.

“Not today,” I joked back. “It’s a great day for finding things at the beach, and that’s what I plan to do.”

“Good luck, then,” he said, waving before he turned his wheelchair back toward the sidewalk and headed down the street.

I made my way down the trail, sliding down the sandy hill that led to the beach. The cliffs on the south side of the beach made it feel almost private. The north entrance existed, technically, but it wasn’t easy to access. It made me love this beach even more—made me feel like it was just mine. Well, and my neighbors’. Though I’d never seen any of them down here.

I walked along the shore, surveying the piles of seaweed, driftwood, and even some dead fish that had washed up. I picked up a few seashells and put them in the bag I’d brought so I could take them home and clean them.

Then I spotted it. I couldn’t believe my eyes at first. I was so excited that I snapped a photo and sent it off to my sisters in our group text thread.

Me:

Look what I just found at the beach!

Iris:

Umm…did you just send us a dick pic?

Anna:

Why is that dick bent weird?

Gale:

More importantly, why is there a dick on the beach?

Me:

OMG! It’s not a dick! It’s a geoduck.

Cora:

I’m with the others… That looks like a dick…and a really gross one, too.

Me:

It’s NOT a dick. Google geoduck, and you will see. Trust me.

Anna:

I’m not googling that at work… I’ll get fired.

I glanced down at the creature. Okay, so maybe it was a little on the phallic side. But just a little.

I moved along, ignoring my sisters’ weird comments, and continued to search for goodies. I’d already found a purple snail, which was rare on the Northern California coast because our waters were usually too cold. Then I’d found two whole sand dollars, fully intact. So far, this was turning out to be a fantastic day at the beach.