Renee rose and walked over to the door, hollering through the screen to her kids to come inside.
She looked at him and sighed. “Shit. I know I need to tell her,” Renee agreed, walking back to the table. “I’ve put it off long enough.”
The back door opened on squeaky hinges and Molly bounded through, going straight to Matt. He petted the dog’s head and she sat close to him, leaning into his leg and panting.
Well, he thought, at least Renee’s dog likes me.
Julie held the door open. “Hurry up, Robbie, the mosquitoes are getting in!”
Robbie squeezed past his sister into the kitchen. “What’s up, Mom?”
“Sit down, guys,” Renee said, taking her seat again next to Matt. “We need to talk.”
They sat, eyeing Matt. He petted the dog.
“You know we never like it when you start a conversation like that, Mom,” Julie said.
“And you aren’t going to like what I have to say,” Renee replied, “but it’s time.”
Matt rose and scooped up Molly’s water bowl from beside the fridge. He took it over to the kitchen sink to fill it, giving Renee space to talk to her daughter.
Renee took a deep breath. “Julie, remember when your grandfather and uncle discovered that mess in the bedroom in the Gray Cabin?”
“Yes . . . but, Mom . . . I told you, I didn’t have anything to do with that,” Julie said, immediately defensive.
Matt watched her closely as he rinsed out the water bowl.
Renee raised her hand. “I know, Julie, and I’m not saying you did. We probably should have told you this right away, and I’m sorry, but I didn’t want to scare you.”
“Wait . . . what’s going on, Mom?” Julie asked, confused when she realized she wasn’t about to be blamed for something.
Robbie kept quiet, looking on.
Renee’s purse was sitting in the middle of the table. She rummaged through it and pulled out a photograph, handing it to her daughter. “Grandpa George found this in a dresser drawer. Back in that bedroom.”
Julie reached for the photo, looked at it, and dropped it onto the table, recoiling.
“Mom, why would you keep something like this from me? Are you crazy? I am not a child. I deserved to know.” She swung her furious gaze to Matt. “Matt, what do you think it means?”
Matt set the bowl back down on the floor and Molly lapped greedily at the water. He pulled his chair around and positioned it in front of Julie. He sat down, facing the girl, and looked her in the eye.
“Well, to be honest, I’m not sure . . . but I’m having a hard time coming up with any reason that doesn’t worry me. Julie, can you think of anyone that might have an interest in you? Maybe someone you dated? Or turned down for a date?”
Julie eyed the photo lying face-up on the table, not immediately replying to Matt’s question.
“What about that guy you were worried about at Christmas?” Renee asked. “Remember, you said he kept calling and you were worried he was acting obsessed?”
This snapped Julie’s attention back and she swung to face her mother.
“You mean Lincoln? I haven’t seen or talked to him since the holidays. When I got back to school in January, he wasn’t there. I told you that. I ran into the guy he roomed with first semester, and he said Lincoln never came back when second term started. All of Lincoln’s stuff had been cleared out of their room, and he never saw him after that. Lincoln sent him a text saying he wouldn’t be back, was going to try something different. I was relieved he was gone—meant I didn’t have to deal with it anymore.”
Julie reached across the table and flipped the photo face-down, shuddering. Matt watched her walk to the fridge, pull out a Diet Coke and take a sip. She seemed nervous.
Matt pulled out his phone. “You might be right, Julie, the boy might not have anything to do with this. But why don’t you give me his full name, number, and hometown. I’ll do a little discreet checking.”
Now it was Julie’s turn to pull out her phone. “Well . . . OK . . . but just for the record, I think it’s a waste of time.” She pulled up his contact information and handed the phone to Matt.
Matt really did doubt the boy was involved. Kids dropped out after their first semester of college all the time. Julie hadn’t heard from him in over six months. But Matt would do some checking to be sure.
Matt turned his attention back to Julie. “Anyone else you can think of?”
She took a sip of her Diet Coke, thinking for a long moment, then shook her head. “No . . . no idea.”
“OK, well, keep thinking about it, and let me know if you think of anything else. Now, Robbie, what about you? Anyone been bothering you at school, or anyone you met around here this summer?”
Robbie had been messing around with his phone, content to let his sister answer the questions. Now he looked warily at Matt, fidgeting in his seat.
“Nah, it’s been low-key here,” he replied. “I haven’t done much more this summer than work with Mom fixing this place up and mowing grass. The only two weird things I can even think of were what happened that night we dropped gifts off at Anna’s and the guy at school who got mad at me when I didn’t want to buy any of those pills from him.”
“Wait, what? Back up a minute,” Julie insisted. “Nothing happened when we dropped off Anna’s gift. And what guy with pills?”
Now it was Robbie’s turn to get up and grab something to drink out of the fridge. He popped the top on his Mountain Dew, leaning against the fridge door. “It probably doesn’t matter now, but something did happen up at Anna’s. I didn’t tell you ’cause I knew you would tell Mom, and Mom already had way too much to worry about back then. Wasn’t a big deal, really. Still bugs me a little, though . . . it was so weird.” He paused, sipping his Dew. “Remember, I put on that Santa suit and walked back through the alley to deliver Anna’s gifts? After I gave her the box and she went inside, I was walking back through the alley and some guy came up behind me and knocked me down. I can’t remember exactly what he said, but it was something like . . . ‘Stay away from her.’ ”
Renee inhaled sharply. “Jeez, Robbie, why wouldn’t you tell us that? You could have been hurt!”
Matt glanced Renee’s way, giving her a slight shake of his head when she met his eye. He needed her to let Robbie articulate what happened. He didn’t want the boy to temper his recounting to spare his mother.
“I was ticked off and maybe a little scared,” Robbie continued. “Took me by surprise, knocked the wind out of me for a minute. By the time I got my bearings, the guy was gone. I hurried back out to the street because I was a little worried he might have approached you, too, Julie. But you never mentioned anything and I figured you didn’t see him. The guy was probably drunk or stoned or something, and seeing Santa walking down the alley maybe set him off for some bizarre reason. You know, Christmas is the most common time for suicide, biggest holiday for alcohol, crap like that.”
“Did anything else unusual happen that night?” Matt asked.
“Not that I noticed,” Robbie said with a shrug, pushing off from the fridge door and meandering back to his chair.
Matt could see Renee was biting her tongue.
“OK, let’s assume for a minute that’s all it was,” Julie conceded, “but what about the other thing . . . a guy and pills?”
Robbie looked down sheepishly, fiddling with the tab on his soda can, sparing a quick glance at his mom. “That was me being stupid. I was working hard at basketball, trying to make varsity. There was this guy at school. I barely knew him, but he was trying to get kids to buy these pills he said he bought off the Internet. He said they’d help me be better out on the floor, quicker and stronger. He gave me a few to try. I took one and stuck the rest in my pocket. I got sicker than a dog from the one, had to go home from school. I forgot about the other two. Mom found them.”
Julie stared around. “Oh my God, why do you people not tell me this stuff! I am so out of the loop.”
/> Robbie shrugged again.
“Did the guy from school ever approach you again after you told him no?” Matt asked.
“Not really. He called me a pansy-ass one time when I walked by him in the hallway and he bumped into me hard one other time when he walked by, trying to act all tough. But he never gave me too much shit.”
“Robbie, language!” Renee scolded.
“Oh, come on, Mom, give me a break. We’re sitting here trying to figure out who is stalking us, and you’re worried about a few swear words? Damn.”
“OK, first of all, we don’t know that this is stalking, so watch what you say. And second of all, show some respect.”
Matt got up and stood behind Renee. He laid a hand on her shoulder.
“It’s all right, Renee. We’re all a little nervous about what’s been going on. Don’t worry, we’ll get to the bottom of this.”
***
Nothing unusual happened while Matt was visiting, and then too soon, it was time for him to leave. The two of them managed to go out for a nice dinner the night before he left. Jess stayed at the resort with the kids. Of course, they were plenty old to stay alone, but given what had been going on, Renee wouldn’t allow it.
Matt said goodbye to Renee’s family, but not before making sure each of them had his number in their cell phones in case of any more emergencies. Renee walked him out to his car.
“Thanks for driving all the way out here to visit. I’m sorry you can’t stay longer.”
“I’m sorry, too . . .” He saw the look on her face and tried to cheer her up. “Come here, you. You gonna miss me?” Matt teased, pulling her close.
“Oh, you know . . . maybe a little.”
“Any chance I can convince you to talk more than once a week? Maybe we can Skype, save on the phone bill. I want to know what’s happening out here. And I know after spending time with you these last few days I’m going to miss you even more than I did before.”
“Absolutely. Maybe we can talk every other day or so.”
Matt kissed her and hugged her tight. He hated leaving. It had been fun to be around Renee and the kids. She was a great mom. She was doing an incredible job out here, too, getting the resort up and running. Part of him wished he could be part of it all—but he had other commitments, so best to ignore his second thoughts about leaving.
“Call me when you get back to your sister’s, so I know you made it OK.”
“Will do,” he said. “Be safe.”
And he was gone.
Chapter 54
Gift of New Ventures
After Matt left, Renee kept herself distracted fixing up the lodge and learning all she could about the retreat business. Susan was surprised but delighted to hear from her. They talked for over an hour the first time and multiple times after that, and Renee’s initial ideas escalated into fully fledged plans. Before she knew it, Susan was booking a flight to meet with Renee and Jess.
Grant and Grace joined them for dinner at least two nights a week. Grace was benefiting from the fresh air and quiet. She was able to take longer walks as she regained her strength, and her most recent follow-up appointment went well. She wanted to start back at college in the fall, but Grant was trying to convince her to wait one more semester.
Grant was getting plenty of writing done, and seemed satisfied with his daughter’s progress. Deciding to rent a cabin had worked out well for them both, along with Renee. She hated to admit it, but she slept better knowing another adult was close—and she could tell Matt was relieved to have someone there with her, too.
Either way, nothing more happened. Maybe that business was behind them.
***
Renee prepared a celebratory dinner for Susan’s last evening at Whispering Pines. After three days of intense discussions, Renee felt better prepared to tackle her new business venture: Jess was committed to partnering with her on the retreats—They have my back, Renee assured herself—and Susan would continue to be a valuable resource in the future, but tonight was a time to relax.
Grant and Grace joined them for the evening. They all crowded around Renee’s kitchen table. Grant, Jess, and Susan squeezed together on one side, with Robbie on one end of the table and Julie on the other. Renee placed a heavy bowl of corn-on-the-cob next to the potato salad, then sat in the empty chair between Grace and Lauren.
Grace was anxious to hear about their progress over the past few days (and Renee was tickled this young woman had taken such an interest in her resort’s success). “Have you figured out what kind of retreats you plan to offer?” she asked.
“We don’t have all the details mapped out yet,” Renee said, “but in general, we want to offer women a place where they can learn how to take better care of themselves. Robbie, could you pass the burgers around, please?”
Grant accepted the tray from Robbie and asked, “Can you clarify what you mean by that, Renee?”
Renee smiled, excited to share more of their preliminary plans. “I know we want to offer healthy food and time to relax, of course, but I want it to be more than pampering. I would love to help women learn more about everything: finances, self-care, goal setting . . . what to do about relationships they feel trapped in . . . I’d love it if our retreats would include exercise, music, good food, learning, and camaraderie. Stuff like that. An experience, you know?”
They continued to pass dishes around the table until everyone’s plates were full.
“That sounds really fun. Are you going to target a certain age demographic?” Grace asked.
“Why, Grace, you sound like a marketing major!” Renee kidded. “No, I don’t think so—I want women of all ages, you know, so they can learn from each other and enjoy each other’s company. Older women may have more experiences to draw upon, and wisdom to share, but younger women often have a fresh point of view. I like the balance.”
Grant nodded his agreement, his mouth too full of burger to reply.
“Good point, Renee,” Grace said. “You’ll need to find instructors, unless you plan to lead sessions yourself.”
Renee shook her head as she spread butter on her corn. “No, fortunately I’m not naïve enough to think I have the knowledge to do that. Susan shared some pointers on finding instructors.”
“Once you have a better idea what kind of instructors we’ll need, I can use local job boards to see what kind of talent is available,” Julie offered.
“That would be great, Julie,” Susan said. “You’re going to want to use local people as much as possible to keep costs down.”
Jess had been quietly listening to the exchange, having already discussed much of this with Renee and Susan, but the mention of instructors suddenly spurred an idea. “Renee, maybe you could offer long-term cabin rentals to people we hire. If their living expenses are lower, we might not have to pay them as much, and it would be super handy to have them right here.”
“Hey—that’s a great idea!” Renee said. “We’ll have to take a hard look at whether or not we can winterize any of the cabins so they can be habitable in the winter.”
“Speaking of winter,” Grant said, “are you planning to live out here year-round then?”
Grant’s question caught Robbie’s attention. He still wasn’t sure if his mom was going to make him switch schools, despite numerous heated conversations with her over the past two weeks.
“Well . . . yes, I plan to stay out here this winter. So does Jess. Julie will go back to college in the fall and Lauren is going back home to stay with her dad so she can finish out her senior year there.” Renee paused, making eye contact with Robbie before she continued. “Initially, I assumed Robbie would switch schools and stay here with me this fall, but he has convinced me to reconsider. What if this doesn’t work? I’m not sure it’s fair to ask Robbie to give up his school until we know more. His best friend’s mother called me earlier this week and offered to let Robbie live with them this fall. I’m seriously considering it.”
“Yes!” Robbie exclaimed, poundin
g his fist on the table hard enough to make silverware jump. This latest update was news to him, and apparently he approved.
“But remember, kiddo,” Renee spoke directly to Robbie now, “this is only temporary. We will reassess the whole school situation after we see how it goes the first few months.”
Robbie gave Renee a thumbs-up and proceeded to fill his plate a second time, his appetite back now that he had his answer.
“Since that appears to be settled,” Grant said with a chuckle, “when do you plan to offer your first retreat?”
“Ethan and Dad drove over and met with Susan yesterday. As long as I can get the financing figured out, Ethan plans to start construction on the lodge next week,” Renee said, getting up to grab a pitcher of lemonade off the counter. She made her way around the table, refilling glasses.
“And I think,” Susan offered, “if construction can be wrapped up in two or three months, they could shoot for early November as a tentative timeframe for their first retreat. They will want to start out with a few shorter retreats, no longer than, say . . . a weekend. Once they get the wrinkles ironed out—and there will be wrinkles—they could offer some week-long retreats, too.”
Renee sat back down. “I love the idea of a retreat in November focused on gratitude, what with Thanksgiving right around the corner.”
“Oh, man, that would be a great way to start,” Julie said. “Wish I didn’t have to miss out on all the fun.”
“Are you kidding, Julie?” Jess asked. “We’re gonna have to work our butts off to make this happen. You may be glad you aren’t in the thick of it!”
“I doubt that,” Julie mumbled under her breath.
***
“Mom, I don’t want to go back.”
“What did you say?” Renee slowed mid-stride in her morning trek over to check progress on the lodge. “Go back where?”
“To school.”
Renee pulled up short, stopping Julie with a hand on her shoulder. She was shocked at her daughter’s pronouncement. Julie had never given her any reason to think she wouldn’t go back to college in the fall.
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