Otherworld

County Life

Spring swept in slowly as winter melted. Farmers tended to their fields, tilling the land and spreading manure from local farms out over the rows as they planted. All over Huron county, farmers seeded corn, sugar beets, beans, and hay as soon as tillers could break the ground. I don't know why, but I always loved the smell of Michigan springs.

My mother already had us readying our garden. Often, if we waited too late to plant, we would miss the season, just like last year. When my father did this, it cost my mother her favorite melons and pumpkins. She was livid.

Such things were a vital part of survival here, even though it was now 2003. Most people lived like us. They were self-sufficient and environmentally conscious to a degree. Nearly everyone out in the country had a burn barrow, recycled, and washed out cans to return at the grocery store in Bad Axe. I spent a lot of time walking the ditches over the last few years with Derrik, collecting any that people tossed out car windows to help Mom out. It was not much, but that ten cents could add up if my brother and I were adamant about it.

Our farm was a few miles southeast of Harbor Beach. I used that term loosely; it was more like a homestead. We had a cow, which I always had the displeasure of hand-milking, and a couple of chickens. The garden provided fresh food for canning, too. There were a few acres of pine and birchwood that backed up against the north side of the little yellow farmhouse, hiding wonders of its own. Mulberries, raspberries, blackberries, and apples came from within them. Heck, we even had a reasonably large well.

The yard was green with fresh blades of grass, and the budding trees made way for new growth. It was slightly warm. I welcomed it by snagging an old blanket out of the mudroom so that I could go layout in the yard with a book after we finished the work. I was barefoot, but in a snuggly hoodie to keep the breeze coming off the lake at bay.

Derrik made a show of exploring the woods, but I didn't mind it. He tired of whatever game he was playing quickly. Instead, he ran to where I lay. "Gwen… Let's go rock hunting." He suggested, flopping over me like he was a giant fish.

"Aren't you tired of collecting pebbles?" I teased.

"Awww, come on Gwen. You can find all sorts of stuff on the beach. Remember the huge piece of driftwood I found last summer? Too bad dad wouldn't let me bring it home. You like sea glass, right?"

He had a point. No, Lake Huron wasn't a sea, but it sure did act like one. "Alright. I'll tell you what. Go ask mom. If she says yes, I will take you up to Wagener." I ruffled his blond hair a bit. Sixteen or not, I was never going to be too old to collect beach glass.

With permission and a curfew of six, Derrik and I headed out to the county park. That gave us a full eight or so hours to scour the shore if we wanted to. Since it was still early in the year, the stones would be ripe for the picking. The ice on the lake over the winter always seemed to replenish what we could find. It was still too early for the park to have much more than local traffic. They'd only been open for about a week so far this season.

The drive through the park was short but enjoyable. The freshness of spring was in the air even though it was colder near the water. "Put your jacket on," I told Derrik as I parked. We had a perfect view of Lake Huron. Large grey clouds hung over the water, promising to bring in rain sooner or later. It was windy, too, which was a pretty common thing for the county. Though, I thought it was a little more so than usual. Whitecaps crashed against large stones in the shallows, sending smaller crests up to the shore. Mom would kill me if I let him run around without making him bundle up.

I loved the smell of fresh water. While Derrik darted towards the shore, I took time to roll up my pant-legs and tucked my shoes on the floorboard. That way, I could get around the beach without messing up my mom's car. The old farmer's jacket that I inherited from my late uncle swallowed me comfortably. I sauntered along after him with my bare feet in the cool sand when I was ready.

 As I expected, we were the only people in the park save for the rangers. That would suit Derrik just fine. He didn't like crowded places. He was already calf-deep in the still chilly waters of the lake. As long as he didn't go past the shallows, hard to do since the water here was chock full of large rocks, I wouldn't say anything about it. He knew better than that, anyway.

Taking a deep breath, I decided to sit down on the old swingset that sat just feet from the shoreline. For as long as I could remember, the same set made its home in the park. Normally, I would not have used it. Its seats were either too low or lopsided, and the rusted chains made an awful screech when weight was applied. This wasn't the case anymore. Though the same setup was still used, the community donated entirely new swing seats. Plus, someone already tossed one over the bar a few times, which made it more suitable for longer legs.

"Gwen, help me!" My brother cried out. I launched myself off the swing and hurried towards the little inlet Derrik was playing around in, thinking he had somehow gotten out past the shallows or stuck in the muck. But I stopped short when I noticed him running down the beach like a madman. At first, I was confused at why he was screaming like a little banshee. Then I saw it. He was being chased by a hissing blue crayfish about the size of my foot. Honestly, I tried not to laugh at him. I just couldn't help myself.

Who knew those things got that big? Well, they do. I burst into laughter and tears. "What did you do to make him mad?" I called as Derrik climbed up on the slide where the crayfish couldn't get him.

"All I did was kick some sand at it. I wanted a rock he was by cause it looked like a Petosky stone.I tried to move around it, but the crayfish started hissing at me. If I hadn't seen it, I would have thought it was a snake. So he got a foot full of dirt in his face."

"Oh yeah? How's that working out for you?"

"Shut up. Is it gone?"

"Derrik, it didn't chase you that far. You can get down anytime." I wiped my eyes on the sleeve of my jacket, calming down. "Are you gonna live?"

"I think so. Can- can you go get the rock for me? Please, Gwenny?" Derrik attempted to give me puppy eyes.

I rolled mine in response. "Fine, ya baby. You owe me one." Swiping a stick off the sand just in case the crayfish wanted to try me, I followed Derrik's tracks back toward where he had been. I didn't see the blue menace anymore, though. The creature might have fled up into one of the shallow creeks dotting the lakeshore, leaving the stone unguarded. Looking down, I rose a brow. It wasn't a Petoskey stone, nor any other kind I knew about. "That's interesting. I wonder what it is…"

Carefully, I crouched low and dug it out of the damp sand. Within my palm, I turned it over to get a better look. The trinket was made out of limestone, which was not uncommon around here. The interesting thing about the stone charm was the shape of it. It seemed to be hand-carved into a spiral, though its center was a flat circle that had a few punctures in it. A thin line connected them together. "This looks like a constellation. But I don't think I have ever seen this one before," I mumbled to myself. Again, I turned the piece over, noticing it had a small hole all the way through. It must have been a part of a necklace or something.

If that wasn't intriguing enough, I swore I could feel eyes on me. They couldn't have been Derrik's. The sensation was so intense that I glanced out at the water. There, in the waves, was a strange-looking woman. I only saw her for a few seconds before she vanished into the tide.

My body trembled as fear washed over me in waves. What the ever-loving hell was that? Both haunting and beautiful, the specter in the water chilled my blood. There was simply no possible way someone was out in the surf on a day like today. My body froze into place.

"Hey? Are you deaf?" My brother asked, sounding so much louder than I had anticipated. Apparently, he'd been calling me for a while, but I hadn't heard him until he was next to me.

I looked at him like I was stupid. "What?" I replied, utterly confused.

"I said I don't want to be here anymore. We should go home."

Did he see the lady in the water? He seemed spooked. I waited for a moment before I stood up. "Did you notice her, too?" I asked, trying to control my shaking.

Derrik raised an eyebrow. "See who? Are you alright?"

"The woman in the water…" I mumbled back. Well, that answered my questions at the least. "Just… Never mind. Are you done with your hunting then? Get too cold?" I asked after I cleared my throat.

"No, stupid. Look at the sky. It's dangerous to be on the beach during a storm."

I glanced up, finding angry purplish-grey clouds filling the horizon, blocking out much of the afternoon sun. How had I missed them? I mean, I knew that the weather over the Great Lakes could change at the drop of a dime, but to change in a manner of seconds was alarming. "Alright. Wash your feet off and get in the car. Buckle up." 

Before I followed Derrik to rinse my feet at one of the park pumps, I took a last look towards where I saw the woman. There was nothing there anymore so far as I could tell. I shook my head and slung my arm over his shoulder after I caught up with him. "Look at what I found." I held the charm out for view.

"That's neat. But it's not what I wanted. You can have it." He said, brushing it off.

"You sure? I didn't see a Petosky stone anywhere near where you were. Just this. We can come back another time, I guess."

"Yup. It looks like something you would like. Besides. I didn't find any glass for you like I said I would."

                                                                                      *

As my family and I sat at the dinner table, I was just dying to talk about our day on the beach. Mom made her signature dish, chicken and cheddar rice, spooning huge portions onto plates and passing them around the table. Dad told Derrik about seeing the Detroit Red Wings this season; they'd recently bonded over the love of hockey they shared. This left me to squirm a little. I sat quietly as I mulled over the events of the day and the spiral in my pocket.

"Hey, dad?" I began, glancing up at him when I thought he finished with the Hockey talk. 

"What is it, Princess?" He replied, shoveling a forkful of food into his mouth, earning him a swat in the back of his head from my mother. You never wanted to talk with your mouth full around her.

"Uh… So, have you ever seen anything in the lake? Not like fish or anything. But like, people?" That came out wrong. "Ugh. That's not what I meant." I frowned and ran a hand through my hair.

My father chuckled and scooted over a little to pull me to his side. "That depends on what you mean. Why don't you tell me all about it?"

I loved this about my father. He more laid back than my mom. He was born and raised in Huron county and knew about the lore of the area. He was the kind of man that liked to share such stories and often humored things my mother would never have entertained.

Even now, she gave him a look. Mom never wanted to butt in on such matters, though. It must have been difficult for her to restrain herself.

"Well, I thought I saw a woman out on the lake this afternoon, past the shallows, and in the waves. Only for a moment, though. She was tall and thin, and she had long wavy black hair." I tried to show him with my hands. "She looked like she was made of the water, but her face seemed human, and I could have sworn she was pointing at me," I explained. "I know I saw her." I insisted, though after saying it out loud, I almost didn't believe it myself.

"That reminds me of a story your Grandad told me when I was young." My father smiled. Even though my mother scoffed and shook her head, he patted my hair gently. "You know, people used to say he was three ways to Sunday. But, he was just as sane as you and me."

I cracked a broad smile and giggled. "Really? I wanna hear it."

"Those sorts of stories are not appropriate at the table, Erving." My mother interrupted.

"Oh, Bethany. It's just a story." He countered her with a playful wink. "And the kids want to hear it, don't ya guys?"

"Yeah," Derrik managed to spout with a mouth full of casserole. Luckily, he was out of swatting distance.

That did not stop Mom from scolding him entirely. "Swallow. Then speak. Honestly. You weren't raised in a barn."

"I want to hear the story. Please, mom?" I begged, trying my hardest to look as sweet as I could manage. 

"Fine. But just this once." She gave in. Not because of us but because of my father... He had a way of charming her into bending. She took her seat and flashed him a soft smile.

"Of course, dear. Let's see. Where to begin? Ah. That's right. It started when your grandad was little. Your great grandparents just bought the land for the family farm and built their house on it. Huron County was still trying to recover after the great fire. Still, the ground was fertile and ready for tilling, so the land was up for a reasonable price.

He was quite the adventurer, your grandad. There was a lot to explore, from the patches of woods dotting the fields to the lakeshore. Truthfully, he enjoyed nature and all she had in store for him. Your grandad was always like that. Remember when he used to take you kids out on the lake to fish?"

"Yeah. He would always catch a lot more than us." I mused. God, I missed him.

"That was because he said he always felt a tie to the land. He said that on one of his fishing trips along the shore, he was blessed by the lake herself. I suppose you could say he always hoped you kids would feel the same way about it."

"Oh, come on, dad. How can you get blessed by a lake?" Derrik said in disbelief.

"Now wait a minute. Let me finish." He chuckled, pausing to drink some of the beer my mother just sat in front of him. "There he was, knee-deep in the water with his pole slung over a shoulder. He was out a way, aiming to climb up on one of the large rocks sticking out of the lake. It was pretty low that year so he could walk out farther than he usually could.

That day, it was hot and dry. The lake was as calm as a pane of glass. And as your Grandad pulled himself up on top of the boulder, he saw her. The Lady of the lake. She was a tall beauty, made of the very water and waves he said. Gentle and wise, she called out to him with a task she felt only he could do. He never really did tell me what it was, but he did use to say he saved the entire county." My father continued to talk about his own thoughts on the matter, but I tuned him out, lost in my own thoughts on the topic.

 My grandfather saw her, too? I knew it. If only he were still around for me to ask about her, I was sure he'd tell me everything. I thought about her a little more. I only got a glimpse of her. To me, she looked like an elf, and a Native American all rolled into one. I suppose that wouldn't be too farfetched. There were plenty of them around the Great Lakes back before immigrants settled Michigan.

I ate up, letting my dad go on and on. Then he got off the subject and went into another story about fishing. Something that captivated Derrik, even if it had been one of those roundabout stories with no possible end in sight.