Dead of Autumn

by Sherry Knowlton

  Alexa ducked back inside to check for additional damage. She went straight to the laundry room, located beyond the dining room. Alexa breathed a sigh of relief when she found that the ancient screen on the inside of the big window was intact. The heavy metal mesh kept both the broken glass and the vandals outside the cabin. For once, Alexa appreciated her dad’s tendency to pinch pennies. When he turned the old screened porch into a laundry room, her father hadn’t replaced the sturdy old screen. He had just slapped a window in front of it.

  Alexa marched around the cabin, checking all the other windows, but could find no other damage. However, there were deep gouges on the front doorframe where someone had tried to pry the heavy old wooden door open. She remembered her unease last night and Scout’s restlessness.

  We both must have sensed the presence of intruders, even though we missed the damage.

  As Alexa swept up the shards of glass, Scout ambled up the steps. “Watch it, buddy,” Alexa cried. She dropped the broom and rushed to grab the giant dog by the collar, guiding him away from the glass and into the cabin. After she finished collecting all the smashed pieces and dumped them into the trashcan, Alexa phoned her father.

  “Damn,” he said. “All these years and we’ve never had a breakin—even that year they had all those robberies at the summer cabins in the park. We’re so far back from the main road, I never imagined that a burglar could find us. You’re OK, right?”

  “Yes, Dad. This must have happened before I got home last evening. It was dark when I got here, and my hands were full of leftovers. Even with the porch light on, I didn’t notice the broken window or the scratches.”

  “You had the porch light on while you were gone? That’s strange. Usually these vandals only target the cabins that look closed for the winter. I’ll call the state police and the insurance company. Since it’s the day after Thanksgiving, the insurance people probably aren’t working, but I’ll leave a message.”

  “OK, Dad. I’ll put some of that heavy plastic over the window after the police take a look at it. Don’t worry. This was probably just a random thing.” She made a lame attempt at humor. “Kids all hopped up on turkey and pumpkin pie are out for a drive. They turn down the lane, see this cabin with no cars around, and decide to break in. When it didn’t go easy, they took off.”

  “I hope you’re right, sweetie. Your mom and I have plans with the Mathesons this afternoon, but I’ll be out tomorrow to take a look. Maybe we should get you a security system.”

  After breakfast, Alexa dragged a big roll of plastic out of the storage area beneath the cabin and lugged it up onto the deck. She propped it up against the wall, then went to find a hammer and some nails. Next, she took a few pictures and emailed them to her dad.

  The incident concerned Alexa. Sure, South Mountain saw its share of burglaries. Almost every winter, a few breakins were reported at the seasonal cabins on the outskirts of the park and state forest. But, they were usually places that were closed for the winter. As her father had pointed out, someone trying to break into an occupied cabin was unusual, especially with a porch light burning. Even with no car in the driveway, it was pretty nervy to attempt a breakin here.

  On the other hand, whoever tried to break in hadn’t been very thorough. They would have had better luck with the big dining room and living room windows, but maybe they assumed those windows had the same sturdy screens as the laundry area. If the vandals had walked around the back of the house, they would have had a better chance of getting in through the bedroom windows that were almost level with the hill. Alexa figured it was too dark back there. Maybe they forgot a flashlight. Or maybe, an owl hooted and scared them away.

  The state police didn’t arrive until after one that afternoon. A failed breakin was clearly low on their list of priorities. A very young looking Trooper Graves inspected the door and window. He asked Alexa a few questions and then said, “I’ll file a report on this. I know you’ll need it for insurance purposes, and it’s good to have the details on record. Frankly, I would be misleading you if I say that we’ll catch the perpetrator. There really isn’t much to go on. These old log walls and the cedar doorframe are too rough to show fingerprints. Luckily, the vandals never got into the house.

  “I suspect this is a random crime of opportunity. Someone drove down your lane, saw an empty house, and decided to break in. When it became more difficult than they expected, they gave up.

  “Call us if there is any more suspicious activity. And, of course, dial 911 if they would happen to come back while you are home.”

  The trooper helped Alexa tack up plastic to cover the gaping hole. Just as they finished, Scout gave out a high-pitched yelp. Alexa turned to see the mastiff holding his front paw high in the air; blood streamed from his leg onto the deck.

  “Scout, what happened?” Alexa rushed over and saw that the dog had a gash down the back of his paw and lower leg. A pointed piece of glass, covered in blood, lay on the deck at his feet.

  “What’s the matter with him?” Trooper Graves leaned over to look at the dog’s injury. “Can I help?”

  “I thought I collected all the broken glass, but I must have missed a piece. He’s cut his leg pretty badly. We need to get the bleeding stopped.” Alexa ran into the house for the first aid kit. When she got back, the trooper helped her bandage Scout’s leg, but the wound continued to bleed.

  “I need to get him to the vet. Can you help me get him into the car?”

  Alexa coaxed the limping dog down the steps to the Land Rover, but he was clearly in pain. The brawny young trooper helped lift Scout into the back of the Land Rover, where Alexa wrapped the mastiff in a blanket. Thanking Trooper Graves, Alexa jumped into the car. When she reached cell phone range, Alexa alerted the vet that Scout needed emergency treatment.

  After medical attention from the veterinarian, Scout was in much better shape. Dr. Buck cleaned the deep gash on the dog’s leg and closed it with eleven stitches. The mastiff was still groggy from the anesthesia.

  Dr. Buck elected to keep Scout at the clinic over the weekend. “When the anesthesia wears off, I want to maintain mild sedatives and keep an eye on that bandage. He needs to keep the leg still for a few days so it can heal. Call me on Monday, and we’ll decide if he can go home.”

  Alexa collapsed onto the couch when she walked through her door. Pulling an afghan to her chin, she stretched out for a nap. When she awoke, the room was dark and the house felt empty without Scout.

  After a makeshift dinner of Thanksgiving leftovers, Alexa turned on the TV. She chose one of her favorites, Pride and Prejudice, in an attempt to restore her faith in love. But, she was just too distracted to focus on the movie. A jumble of thoughts intervened—Scout, the attempted breakin, Caleb and his parents, renewed suspicion that Reese was not what he had seemed.

  Alexa lifted the phone to tell her parents about Scout, but remembered that they were out with the Mathesons. She had no sooner put the phone down when it rang. Reese was calling from the road.

  “Hi. I’m on my way home. My family had a great Thanksgiving. How was yours?”

  Alexa was happy to hear Reese’s voice despite Melissa’s news about the blonde girl at Outlaws. “We had a great Thanksgiving dinner. But, today was not so good. Someone tried to break into the cabin yesterday while I was at Mom and Dad’s. I didn’t find the broken window until this morning.”

  “Are you OK? Did they steal anything?”

  “The vandals never got inside. But, Scout cut himself on a piece of glass. The cut was so deep that I had to take him to the vet for stitches. I think he’ll be OK, but the vet kept him for the weekend.”

  “Where was the cut?”

  “His leg. If the state trooper hadn’t been here about the breakin, I don’t think I could have gotten Scout into the car. I feel so guilty. I thought I had gotten all the glass cleaned up.”

  “Hey. Don’t beat yourself up. Scout would have never stepped on glass if some jackass hadn’t broken your window. Was i
t one of those big front windows? Glass probably flew all over the place.”

  “The laundry room window. It was a real mess.”

  “I have an early shift tomorrow, but I could help with any repairs later on.”

  “That’s OK. Dad and I have it under control. I’ll just see you for dinner, like we discussed.” When they ended the call, Alexa felt much better.

  Exhausted for the second night in a row, Alexa went to bed early. Before she crawled beneath the covers, she unlocked the gun closet in the upstairs spare bedroom and pulled out her dad’s shotgun. She loaded shells into the double barrels of the old Fox twelve gauge and took the gun and a box of shells back to her bedroom. With the shotgun on the floor beside the bed, Alexa rolled over and fell into a deep sleep.

  Alexa apologized to Reese when he arrived for dinner, “Sorry, but it’s Chinese again. I didn’t have time to cook today. I had a busy day. This morning, I helped Dad board up the laundry room window. In the afternoon, I visited Scout at the vet. “

  “Fine with me. I love Chinese.”

  Reese ate most of the emperor’s chicken and finished off the rest of Alexa’s sesame chicken for dessert. Watching his enthusiasm for Chinese food, she felt better about serving takeout to her dinner guest.

  Seeing Reese made Alexa happy. Despite her continuing doubts, it felt right to have him kicked back on the couch, drinking after-dinner coffee.

  “It seems empty in this place without Scout,” Reese remarked.

  “I really do miss the big beast. He seems to be healing nicely, but it will be a while before he can come home.”

  After putting the last plate in the dishwasher, Alexa bounced over to Reese with two fortune cookies in her hand. “OK. Now is the time to learn what the future has in store. What’s your fortune? Wait, I’ll go first.”

  Her expression sobered when she read aloud, “A thrilling time is in your immediate future. This must have been meant for last week. Vandalism and Scout getting hurt are enough in the thrill department. I can’t imagine that there’s anything else to come.”

  Reese smiled wickedly as he read from his strip of paper, “Happy life is just in front of you. I wonder what that might mean …” He reached for Alexa’s wrist and gently pulled her down next to him on the couch. “Could this be the thrilling time that your message is talking about?” he murmured as he leaned over to kiss Alexa.

  For several minutes, everything floated away as Alexa became lost in Reese’s embrace. Kissing this man felt so right that she didn’t want him to stop.

  All too soon, he pulled away and declared, “I’ve wanted to kiss you since that day we sat up on Flat Rock and I saw how fearless and centered you were. I was so bummed when I found out about the boyfriend, but I could tell when you talked about the guy that things weren’t really right between you. So, I bided my time, Alexa. Now that you’ve broken up with Caleb, I just couldn’t wait any longer.”

  Alexa looked at Reese and smiled. “We met in a really terrible situation and have been getting to know each other pretty well. I have to admit, that I’ve been thinking about you as much more than a friend. I’m ready to see where this goes, but this whole thing with Caleb sort of knocked me off my bearings. So, I’m not ready to leap into a new relationship too quickly. We need to take it easy.” Alexa laughed. “But not too easy,” she said as she ran her hands through Reese’s thick brown hair and pulled him to her for another kiss.

  A little while later, Reese stood to leave. “I better get out of here before that whole going slow concept goes completely out the window. Plus, I’m working again tomorrow. My boss and I are going to try to track down some of those sites where these militia units train. On Sundays, the switchboard is bombarded with phone reports about automatic weapon fire on state lands, so we’re continuing to try to catch them.

  “Make sure you lock up tight tonight. The thought of burglars coming back makes me worry.”

  “I’ll be fine, Reese. I’ll make sure that everything is buttoned up tight. And if those guys come back, I’ve got Dad’s shotgun locked and loaded. A shotgun blast fired over the head can be a powerful deterrent to petty crime.” Alexa stood by Reese at the door and kissed him one more time. She had to stand on tiptoe to reach his mouth. “Call me tomorrow?”

  “Absolutely.”

  Alexa laughed in a combination of delight and consternation as she heard Reese’s Jeep disappear down the drive.

  After all this self-doubt and agonizing about Caleb, you turn around and immediately get involved with Reese, she admonished. Not to mention ignoring the recent information that might suggest he murdered Elizabeth Nelson.

  “What are you thinking?” she asked herself aloud.

  But, in her heart, Alexa knew exactly what she was thinking. She had been attracted to Reese for weeks. This was not going to be a casual fling. This was going to be so much better.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  On Monday, Dr. Buck discharged Scout with instructions to limit the dog’s activity for a week or so. In a quandary about how to best care for the big dog, Alexa called her parents for help. They agreed that Scout could recover at their house. They were home most of the day, and their kitchen door opened to ground level. The dog would have someone to nurse him and wouldn’t have to deal with all the steps at Alexa’s cabin.

  Alexa stopped by to visit the dog on Monday and Tuesday evening after work. Her parents were spoiling Scout like crazy. With all the attention from Mom and Dad, the mastiff didn’t seem to miss Alexa at all.

  When Alexa rushed into the clinic on Wednesday, she was shocked to see Doc Crowe sitting in a chair behind the counter talking to Tanisha. Shedding her damp coat, Alexa made a beeline through the crowded waiting room straight to his chair.

  “Doc, I didn’t even know that you were out of the hospital. You can’t be back to work already …”

  “He’s not working, and this damn fool shouldn’t even be here,” grumbled Tanisha, shaking her cornrows in dismay. “I don’t know why Alice drove him down here. They just discharged him yesterday.”

  “Tanisha. I am right here and can answer Alexa myself. I appreciate your concern, and I will take it easy.” Doc turned to Alexa. “I just wanted to stop in for a few minutes to check on things. When Elise called to say that the police were here again this morning, I felt compelled to stop by. Alice reluctantly gave me an hour here, but I suspect she’ll show up to claim me a lot sooner.”

  Doc looked like he should be home in bed. He was still quite pale and had lost a lot of weight. “Doc, you need to take care of yourself. I’m glad they let you out of the hospital, but I doubt your doctor said you were in good enough shape to come to work. How many times have I heard you complain about patients who don’t follow the doctor’s advice?”

  “I won’t overdo it, child. Don’t worry about me.”

  “Why were the police here? Do they have a lead on who shot you?” Alexa asked.

  “Unfortunately, that’s not why they were here,” Doc answered. “There was another threat in this morning’s mail. It’s different from the others.”

  Tanisha shoved a piece of paper across the desk, and Alexa read, ‘life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.’

  “The police took the real note, but I copied down the words. Barb says that this is a passage from the Bible; Exodus, I think she said. This threat is just one more reason why Doc should not be here, but instead of staying away, what’s he do? He comes rushing into the clinic.”

  “I just wish they would catch this guy,” Alexa responded before she went to take care of the patient who was standing at the counter.

  By mid-afternoon, quiet reigned in the waiting room with only a few women waiting for appointments. Alice had come to collect Doc, who seemed happy to be heading home to bed. The flow of patients had slowed to a trickle, and Alexa finally had a chance to catch her breath.

  “I’m going to run down to th
e corner for some chai tea. Tanisha, do you want any? What should I get for Barb and Dr. Kearns?”

  It took at least ten minutes to collect orders from the doctor, the nurses, the physician assistants, and Ryan, their heavyset security guard. Finally, with list in hand, Alexa stepped out onto the sidewalk. She paused on the doorstep to raise her hood against the drizzle. She had been in such a rush coming to clinic at noon that the protestors across the street had barely registered. Now she noticed that the crowd was much bigger than usual, which was surprising given the rainy day. There must have been twenty to thirty in the group chanting and marching in a haphazard circle with their signs.

  Puzzled, Alexa stayed a little longer on the threshold, watching them. Most of these protestors seemed new. Alexa didn’t recognize many faces, until one man standing at the far edge of the circle caught her eye. The tall man in black looked vaguely familiar. At that moment, he broke away from the crowd and strode to the edge of the pavement.

  Alexa gasped when she registered that the man was Caleb’s father, Reverend Browne. He had clearly recognized Alexa. Halting at the curb, he stood ramrod straight and glared at her with a thunderous expression. The huge man wore a long dark coat and a broad-brimmed black hat. The drizzle formed droplets on the wide brim and collected in his long gray beard. For a brief second, Alexa imagined that the minister glistened like a ghostly apparition. But the furor in his eyes was all too real.

  After a few seconds, the other protestors noticed Reverend Browne’s focus on Alexa. They crowded behind him, shaking their signs at Alexa and calling out their usual epithets. Amid this frenzy of righteousness, their leader remained implacable, his silver-gray gaze never leaving Alexa. His eyes smoldered as if he was condemning her to the seventh level of hell.

  Reverend Browne’s accusatory stare paralyzed Alexa for several long minutes. The security guard broke the spell when he opened the door and asked, “Is there a problem out here?”