Finally, the penny dropped!

My heart ached for her. It was almost like she’d become so accustomed to being lied to that she expected every man she met to do the same. I loved Kane like a brother, and I respected his choice to keep his private life private, but Meadow needed to know. If he wasn’t going to tell her about them, I had to.

She deserved to know. Meadow deserved to be told the truth about what happened.

“Oh, hun, Kane isn’t married. He’s never been married and he doesn’t have a child,” I said as I held her hands in mine.

She glared at me. It was like she suspected me of covering for him.

“Meadow! If Kane was cheating on someone, I’d be the first one to knock him over the head. Don’t you know the code? Hoes before bros,” I said with a laugh, hoping I’d at least get a smile out of her.

I didn’t.

She kept looking at me with the same untrusting glare. She was desperate for an explanation and I was ready to give it to her.

“Kane has never been married, but two years ago, he was engaged.”

She crossed her arms and looked at me. Feeling like I was on the stand, I continued.

“The little girl was his fiancée’s daughter. Not Kane’s child. His fiancée had her with another man long before her and Kane even met.”

I could see Meadow slowly calm down as I continued.

“She wound up in Pismo Beach much the same way you did. She’d been in an abusive relationship with the father of her daughter and finally decided she’d had enough. She loaded her car with some things, drove through the night with her daughter, and ended up here.”

Meadow cleared her throat.

“Kane was the first person she met. Without hesitation, he insisted they come stay with him while she figured out her life out. Her name was Carolyn.”

Meadow’s eyes shot daggers the second I said her name. I still didn’t know how she’d found out about Carolyn and Tamara, or how much she knew, but it was clear she knew her name.

“Anyway, the two of them moved in with Kane and never moved out. He fell head over heels in love with both of them. We were all shocked. Kane had always been the lone wolf type, but it was different when he met Carolyn. Something changed in him, for the better.”

Meadow let out a deep sigh. I could see the tension releasing from her body as the story progressed.

“He loved those girls more than anything in the world. He adored Carolyn and treated Tamara like she was his own. In no time at all, they were engaged. Kane wouldn’t stop bragging about it. He wanted everyone to know. He had big plans for starting a life with the two of them. He hated that they’d been mistreated and vowed to show them a more loving life.”

I could tell Meadow was less than interested in the love story of Kane and Carolyn. She seemed more interested in the part that explained that he wasn't engaged anymore. I got the hint and got to the point.

“Two years ago there was an accident.”

Meadow’s expression was completely blank.

“Carolyn had packed a picnic dinner for the three of them. It was this adorable thing they used to do. They’d go to their favorite spot on a cliff overlooking the ocean. They’d eat dinner, swim and watch the sunset together.”

“I see,” Meadow said. It was the first she’d spoken since I started telling the story.

“Kane got caught up in a job at the shop he had to get done. He called Carolyn and told her to take her own car to the spot and he’d meet up with them as soon as he could. Their spot is just a little ways down the highway.”

“I think I know it.”

Meadow’s voice was so soft I barely made out what she said.

“Maybe you do. It was a bit of a secret spot. The tourists hadn’t found it yet, so it was essentially a private beach. Though it was so secret that it also meant there were no lifeguards, beach flags and warning signs to tell current conditions.”

“I’m pretty sure I noticed flags there,” Meadow said, correcting me while trying to make sure she was remembering correctly.

“Yeah. There are now. They put those there two years ago.”

That was the moment Meadow’s anger cooled down enough to figure out where this was going. Her arms uncrossed and she held her hands together in front of her chest. She said nothing and waited for me to go on.

“Carolyn didn’t grow up on the ocean like Kane did. Kane could tell just by looking at the water if it was a good idea to get in or not. He was so protective of those two. Not every picnic dinner included swimming. If the conditions were even the slightest bit off, Kane got strict and wouldn’t allow them to get in.”

“Oh no,” Meadow said, piecing the rest together for herself.

“I guess Carolyn was feeling confident that she’d been there enough with Kane to know what to look for. The wind was calm that day and the waves were gentle so she assumed it was fine. Most people would have assumed the same. She and Tamara went into the ocean for a swim while they waited for Kane to finish work.”

It had been so long since I’d told the story. It felt strange to be telling it. It had become something that no one ever spoke of. That day shook the whole town. No one was quite the same after it, but soon enough, life goes on and we got on with it. As the memories came flooding back, I could feel my voice start to tremble.

“There was a massive undertow. It was nothing the untrained eye would have been able to spot. Now, no one else was there, so I’m not exactly sure what happened. Kane told us once what happened when he got there.”

“What happened?” Meadow said, her voice breaking.

“He pulled into the lot and saw her car parked there. Excited to see them, he headed down the steep, winding path to the beach. He saw their clothes, blanket, and towels on the beach. He looked out into the water to see them swimming. But he couldn’t see them swimming. He started to glance around frantically, noticing the dangerous conditions. It was then that he saw Carolyn, way off in the distance. He couldn’t see Tamara at all.”

“Oh, God.”

“He rushed into the water and swam toward Carolyn. He had always been a strong swimmer. He swam and he swam towards Carolyn, all the while scanning for a sign of Tamara. Eventually he reached Carolyn, but it was too late. She was just floating there, facedown. He grabbed her in his arms, turned her over, and knew she was gone.”

“What about Tamara?” “He held onto Carolyn and looked for Tamara. He could feel the strong pull of the current as he tried to stay afloat but he never gave up. Not until he saw Tamara’s tiny pink water shoe. Then he knew in his heart he’d lost her too.”

By that point, I wasn’t even looking at Meadow anymore. I couldn’t. I kept my eyes down as they filled with tears. When I did look up, Meadow had the same tears in her eyes, her hand covering her mouth.

“I’ve made a horrible mistake,” she said with a look of gut wrenching regret.