"s**t," huffed Billy. "We're almost out, aren't we?"
"Yeah," said Dave, gazing at the water. "Just a little further now."
"Damnit," hissed Billy, whacking the wheel with the palm of his hand. "He's gone, man. That son of a b***h is gone."
Dave nodded. He wasn't thinking of Larry; the proximity of the familiar lake had momentarily distracted him. He was struck by how strange the place looked, how different it seemed from the way that he remembered it. He'd never seen it at this time of year, before the summer season; dark and vacant and shrouded with rain and mist, it looked desolate and unearthly, like a frigid, lifeless pool in some gray netherworld.
"Y'know, we should've caught up with him," grumbled Billy. "I'll be damned if I know how he could've lost us in that old Caddy."
