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Samantha walked, she heard yet another splash. She shuddered at the sound. Her feet grew heavy, preventing her from walking much further. A crazy thought occurred to her. Could it be Vince trying to get her attention from the grave? She turned uneasily to look in the direction of the water. The tall grass rippled in the wind. Bold yellow crime-scene tape whipped and wobbled around the spot where Vince had been killed. That was not where the sound of the splashing was coming from.
    As she stared, she heard another splash. She turned towards the sound. It was further along the water's edge, in the opposite direction of Eddy's villa. She knew that she should just continue towards his villa, but her curiosity was now piqued. Not only that but she had a tendency to want to confront anything that made her afraid. Her father had told her when she was just a little girl, that things aren't so scary once you stand up to them. So, she had always done her best to stand up to whatever frightened her.
    Without really deciding to, she began to walk in the direction of the splashing sound. It sounded much too small to be a fish. It sounded as if someone was tossing something into the water. Sage Gardens did allow fishing in the lake, however it was not the season for it just yet. A few of the residents had been known to toss in a line even when they were not supposed to. Samantha guessed that might be what she was hearing. But she still wanted to see for herself.
    As she slowly approached the area of the shore that she had heard the sound coming from, she noticed a man reclining in a chair. He looked quite comfortable. He held one hand in a loose fist. The other was poised in the air, about to throw something. As Samantha watched, the man threw a pebble into the water. She heard the sharp splash of it landing in the water. She immediately felt foolish for being disturbed by the sound. As she turned to walk away, the man shifted his gaze towards her. Only when she saw his face, slightly out of the shadows, did she realize who it was. Jacob, the maintenance worker who did odd jobs around Sage Gardens. She felt relieved that he wasn't just some vagrant that had somehow wandered into Sage Gardens.
    “Hello, Samantha,” Jacob said. He locked eyes with her. Samantha was surprised that he knew her name. She hadn't really spoken to him since he was only hired recently and she didn't often have a job that needed to be done in her villa that she couldn't do herself. As she studied him, his lips curved into a slow smile. “Not so wise to be out so late alone.”
    Samantha felt an icy wave wash over her. Something in his voice made her think that he was threatening her.
    “Are you working?” Samantha asked. It wasn't until after she said it that she realized how rude she sounded. “I mean, do you often stay so late?”
    “I'm just taking a little time before I head home. I need to rest a bit. It's a long drive. I'm sorry if I bothered you.” He smiled again. This time his smile seemed genuine. “Do you want me to walk with you, wherever you are going?”
    Samantha immediately warmed to him at the offer. It wasn't often that men of the younger generation still remembered the simple courtesies that their fathers and grandfathers had displayed.
    “No, thank you. I can make it on my own.” She returned his smile and began to walk away.
    “It's not safe you know, to be out all alone,” Jacob's voice carried along her spine. She glanced back over her shoulder almost expecting him to be pouncing on top of her. Instead he was casually reclining in his chair. He tossed another pebble into the water. Samantha stared at him a moment longer. She knew that she was being paranoid. Jacob had probably heard about the murder and was offering her good advice. She turned and hurried towards Eddy's villa. She wasn't sure if Jacob's words had spooked her, or if she was just starting to think he was right. When she reached Eddy's villa she knocked hard on the