Coming Home (Norris Lake Series)

  “Well, let’s get the crime scene investigators out here and some prints so we can find out where she came from,” Kurt said pulling the mike off his shoulder.

  Chapter 26

  As Caitlyn put her keys in the door to the lake house, she could hear a staccato pitch of frantic barks from inside. Opening the door with one hip, her arms full of groceries, she dropped a two liter diet coke that rolled across the hardwood floor stopping against the leg of a well-worn rocking chair. Shaking her head, she scolded herself for trying to carry all the bags in at the same time. Though it was still early, her day had been a full one and she sighed as she set the groceries and her keys on the kitchen counter.

  "Hi Pattydog. How’s my baby?” She stooped over to pet the wriggling bundle of fur which spun around in circles barking with excitement at her master’s return. Just as she started putting the groceries away the phone rang.

  "Hello," she said picking the mobile phone from its cradle. There was a silence on the other end of the phone.

  "Hello," she repeated listening intently for any type of sound. In the background on the other end of the line she could hear the sound of passing cars as if someone were there but not saying anything.

  "Is anyone there?" she said again agitated and then hung up the phone with a sharp motion.

  "I wonder who that was? Maybe it was someone calling for Mr. Hill. Who knows?” She turned back to the groceries.

  "Brrrrringg. Brrrringgg." The phone rang again. She hesitated for a moment and then picking it up said, "Hello".

  "Caitlyn? This is Jesse." Unconsciously she released the breath she had been holding as she recognized the voice.

  "Jesse, hi how are you?" Surprised to hear from her friend so soon after their lunch.

  “Honey, I am going over to the crafts festival at the John Rice Irwin museum and I was wondering if you wanted to go?”

  Caitlyn had been to the crafts festival many times when she was young. The museum was started to preserve the way that the local folk lived before electricity and modern conveniences. Crafts people wove cane chairs, carved cedar buckets, sewed quilts and ground grain into flour along with many other skills representing the old ways. They joined together to celebrate a way of life that was long gone but not forgotten.

  A wave of nostalgia came over her. “I’d love to go”.

  “Wonderful, I will meet you at the front entrance. Does an hour give you enough time?”

  “Yes.”

  “Bring your appetite. I plan on eating some of that deep fried corn on the cob and have to have some homemade ice cream.”

  “I will see you there, Jesse,” smiling as she hung of the phone. She was looking forward to the afternoon. An old-time festival and crafts fair was a perfect way to spend the day. “You want to go Pattycake? You can come with me.” She rifled through the drawer next to the phone and pulled out a bright orange UT collar and matching leash. The little dog started turning circles and barking excitedly, a little black whirling tornado, as she recognized the tools for a walk. Caitlyn stooped down and fastened the collar around the puppy’s neck. Grabbing her keys, she picked up the little dog in her arms. “Let’s go.”

  She stepped on to the grounds of the Museum of Appalachia’s Annual Fall Homecoming. The museum had been lovingly assembled over 45 years by John Rice Irwin, a former country schoolteacher credited with saving a piece of endangered Appalachian culture from extinction.

  She could remember meeting John Rice Irwin. He was a stately southern gentleman with a mane of snow-white hair who looked a little like Mark Twain. The museum was 65 acres of a working farm with 40+ rustic buildings including barns, outbuildings and livestock pens, homesteads, corn cribs, smoke houses, schools, churches and a blacksmith shop all with authentic furnishings of the time. The woodsy smell of a soup beans and charcoal from cooking in iron kettles over an open flame mixed with the sweet aroma of sassafras tea being simmered over a fire. A low wooden hewn table was set with colorful plates boasting homemade apple pies, country ham biscuits, tall chocolate cakes and homemade candies. The warm smell of baked goods floated by on the sharp stench of boiling lye soap and hot brown molasses. Behind the chaos of aroma was the twang of a bluegrass banjo, the lilt of a fiddle and the wailing voices for traditional mountain songs. There is also the clop of draft horses pulling against a heavy leather collar as it went round and round to drive a grist mill. There was the whistle chop of an axe cutting cedar logs and a cadence of the water falling from a turning wheel into a shallow stream.

  Caitlyn wandered through the potters and painters selling their wares and exhibiting artist techniques out in front of the entrance to the museum. Pausing to watch a young painter hard at work, she marveled the way he was able to make the mountains and lakes come alive beneath his brush. As she watched, he had repeatedly glanced her way. As the crowd around him thinned she walked forward to introduce herself. As they talked she had told him about her own painting, asking him for advice about how to develop depth when creating objects in the foreground.

  As she was speaking, there was a tap on her shoulder.

  “Hello, Caitlyn Lawson.” Stephen stood there with his dark dangerous eyes laughing at her. A shock of equally dark hair fanned his forehead as he mimicked a gentleman’s southern drawl and bowed low sweeping off his hat.

  “To what do I owe this honor,” she said the words dripping with sarcasm. I thought you’d be out dashing some old woman’s dreams as you forced her into bankruptcy and out on the street or maybe you had more fun planning a foreclosing on an orphanage so you could gleefully throw its occupants out of their homes. Isn’t that what you do as an investment banker, take people’s lifelong dreams and break them up and resell them for a profit?”

  “Wow. You sure are able to put together a string of words without taking a breath. I’ll bet you’d make one hell of an underwater swimmer with a set of lungs like that,” he said teasingly.

  Caitlyn flushed with anger. “Do you want something specific or are you just here to make my day a living hell?”

  “I can live with that if you can. So what wouldn’t you consider a living hell?” he asked.

  She thought for a moment; “How about a day laying out in the sun on a houseboat with a couple bags of Cheetos and a six pack of ice cold beer?”

  “Well that sounds pretty good. You want me to make it happen? Could we rub oil on one another?”

  “You don’t have to make any effort on my part. I can make my own dreams come true. A friend and I have a day scheduled this week already. We’re taking advantage of one of the last sunny, warm days of the summer and taking her father’s houseboat out to Point 19 tomorrow to drink beer, lay in the sun and eat Cheetos. My dream come true.”

  “Well just don’t drink too much. I hope you have fun. I really do.”

  She turned to walk off pulling Patty’s leash so the little dog followed behind her. Stephen hurried his footsteps catching up with her in a couple of long strides. “I’ll just walk with you to keep you company.”

  “I don’t need your company. I am meeting someone.”

  “Oh, a man perhaps? Maybe a lover that your husband doesn’t know about?”

  She turned red. “That’s none of your business.”

  “Oh, so you have a lover,” he said stepping out and picking up the little dog holding it close to his chest under one arm.

  “Don’t pick up my dog. Here, let me have her before you crush her.” They stopped and he handed the little black puffball back to her. She frowned at him not knowing what else to say. Why wouldn’t this insufferable man go away and leave her alone. Didn’t he have anyone else to torment? He walked away for a moment ducking behind a vendor. With his back to her he spoke to a small man with a vending tray pulled out his wallet then turned back to stand in front of her.

  “Let’s start over,” he said. “It’s obvious that we got off to a bad start that day in the trailer. I didn’t mean to be abrupt. I am just used to making things happen one way or
another. I understand your position on the condo project and admire you for standing your ground. How about we call a truce just for this afternoon? Then we can get back to fighting first thing Monday morning.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small sandcasting of a black Pomeranian about half the size of a computer mouse. It’s paws were down on all fours and it’s head looked back over one shoulder. A suction cup was firmly affixed to the stomach. “It’s a computer pet. See you put the suction cup on your monitor. It’s yours,” he said holding it out to her in the middle of one large palm.

  She looked at the small statute and closed her eyes in frustration. She didn’t want to be friends with this person and she didn’t want to call a truce. He was trying to destroy her father’s livelihood. Hell, there was a good chance that he was the person who had not only set fire to the condos but also hired someone to run her off the road. She paused. Or was she just being too judgmental because of who he was. He was the person who had been accused of murdering his sister so many years ago. He was still that freak that the other kids had teased unmercifully. She had strong feelings about underdogs and strays. For some reason she couldn’t resist picking up an abandoned dog, sticking up for someone who was being bullied or standing strong beside someone who was experiencing discrimination. She called it her Joan of Arc complex, a martyr to the very end. She looked at his crooked smile and decided she couldn’t let this ruin her day.

  “Oh, okay. We’ll call it a truce, but just for this one day. It’s not because I am on your side or believe you are innocent in the events over the past few week. I am calling a truce for selfish reasons. I don’t want to ruin my day.” Her hand reached out and took the black dog from his palm. “You can’t bribe me you know. I am taking the present because it looks so much like Pattycake.”

  “Yes I know I can’t bribe you. Call it payment for putting up with me. Now let’s go see who you are meeting?” He put his arm around her shoulders and they walked towards the park entrance.

  “You being seen with me doesn’t mean touching,” she said shrugging out from under his arm.

  “Force of habit. All the women I know hunger for my touch.”

  She stopped again to look at him squarely. “I know you are teasing me now.”

  “Yes. So who are you meeting?”

  In the distance, Caitlyn saw Jesse standing next to a colorful tent examining hand-blown stained ornaments. “ Here I will introduce you to my lover.”

  One arm through his, she led him over to where Jesse stood and tapped her on the shoulder. “Hey. It’s me. I want to introduce you to someone. Jesse, this is Stephen Kane. Stephen, meet Jesse James.”

  Jesse turned quickly smiling at the sound of her new friend. She looked at the young man with the dark hair and piercing brown eyes. She reached out to shake his hand. As their skin touched something turned over in her chest, but she wasn’t sure why. He was certainly an attractive young man but at least 30 years her junior, but young men weren’t to her taste.

  “Nice to meet you, young man. Hi, Pattycake. Here, Caitlyn let me hold her for a minute. You know how I love little dogs. Especially this little one.”

  “Just one moment,” Stephen said pulling Caitlyn around. “Jesse? She’s your lover?” He whispered frantically in her ear trying to keep his voice low.

  “Sure,” Caitlyn said managing to keep a straight face just long enough to see the surprise in his eyes and then turn quickly to once more face Jesse, who was holding the dog up to her face nuzzling the black fur.

  “Jesse, you ready to go in?” Caitlyn asked.

  “You going to join us, young man?” Jesse said handing Pattycake back to Caitlyn.

  “Yes, ma’am.” Stephen replied giving Caitlyn a quizzical eye.

  They meandered through the crafts people looking through handmade candles that looked like golden honeycombs and examining cedar birdhouses of all sizes with hand carved fronts that looked like wizened old gnomes. Stephen followed the women as they giggled and discussed the various crafts picking through items having to touch everything they passed. As the two parted moving in two different directions, he paused next to Caitlyn.

  “ I know you were kidding about her being your lover. It caught me off balance though. I met your husband the other day. He thinks you ran off with your lover. I just never thought of another woman. Did you know that?”

  “I didn’t run off to be with anyone. I was just joking about Jesse. We’re just friends.”

  “He’s quite an interesting guy, your husband.”

  “He’s an asshole at times.”

  “Yes I could see that. He’s clearly an asshole and even more clearly loves you.”

  “I don’t believe you. Dominic is totally absorbed in Dominic and I am just a means to an end. He only loves himself. It will always be that way. He can’t change. What you are hearing is the used car salesman selling you a story. It would be in my best interest to stay away from him. Going back would be the second worst mistake of my life.”

  “What was the first?”

  “Marrying him,” she said as she walked away.

  They’d just finished a homemade fried apple pie each when Caitlyn, Jesse and Stephen saw a familiar face in the crowd. A redhead in a uniform strode towards them. “Well seeing you three together is a surprise. A professor, a writer and an entrepreneur. It’s scary to think what you three have in common?”

  “We don’t know yet but we are going to keep on looking to find out what it is.” Jesse said. “I can assure you on a day like today, we’re not into law breaking, just sunshine and fried pies.”

  Ben smiled. “Jesse, can you and Stephen give Caitlyn and me a minute?”

  Jesse nodded. “Hey handsome why don’t you buy me an apple cider?” She took Stephen’s elbow in her hand and tugged him away.

  “Caitlyn, how are you and your dad?” Ben inquired as they took a seat on a wooden bench.

  “We’re doing fine. I haven’t seen you around much. Is there something I should know?”

  “Caitlyn, I just wanted to clear the air between us. That night we shared was beautiful; something I’d dreamt of but it can’t work between us right now. We’re friends and I treasure that but we need distance until we resolve these problems. I am too close and can’t see what’s important. We should let the rest lie for the moment. Life’s too complicated to take it anywhere else at the moment for you and for me both. I do care about you and want to keep you safe. I don’t trust this Stephen. You shouldn’t either.”

  “I know you have my best interests at heart. I love you for that.” She held his hand. “You are my friend. I treasure that too. Don’t worry about Stephen. I am getting to know him. You’ve heard the old adage “keep your friends close and your enemies closer”? At least with him here in my sight, I know what he’s up to.”

  “Cat, I have some more news that will be hard to take,” Ben paused. “We found some of Michael’s clothing and his watch at Jenny’s murder scene. We don’t have enough to press charges, but have started proceedings for a warrant for his DNA. If they match our evidence…well, you may find this hard to believe, but he may be our killer.”

  “Ben, that’s impossible. It can’t be Michael. I just know it.”

  She stood, pulling him to his feet. They watched Jesse and Stephen coming back towards them.

  “What is it about them?” Ben asked. “Why do they seem so familiar to me?” he mused out loud?

  “You know I was just thinking the same thing. They look like they belong together.” Caitlyn said.

  “It’s not the looks but rather the way they carry themselves and bend together to look at the pottery in that booth. It’s just another puzzle these days.” Caitlyn and Ben walked over to Stephen and Jesse.

  “So, y’all. I have to be going,” Stephen said. “Caitlyn, you take care of my girl.” He squeeze Jesse’s hand and walked away.

  “I’ll go with you,” Ben chimed. “There’s something I want ask you. Ladies,” he bowed, “have a
pleasant afternoon and try not to get into any trouble.”

  Stephen and Ben walked toward Ben’s squad car deep in conversation.

  “You have a nice young man there”. Jesse said

  “Ben or Stephen?” Caitlyn inquired.

  “Stephen.”

  “He’s not mine. He seems to be yours. In fact, now that I think about it, you favor one another. Did you have any children?”

  “Oh, child. I wish. Come, let’s sit for a moment. My feet are tired already and this topic makes me teary,” pulling Caitlyn towards a bench; they sat and Jesse leaned towards her as if taking her into a confidence. “I had a child a life time ago. It must have been at least 30 years hence. He’d be about your age now. I was but a child when I had him, barely old enough to bear a young one, just twelve. I was a child with a child. I was sent away to live with relatives in another state so I didn’t bring shame on my parents. They were very proud and very religious. No one in my hometown even knew that I was pregnant.”

  She looked off in the distance for a moment and paused. “ I never saw the baby even when it was born. My parents took the child from the midwife that day and raised it with the story that the baby was theirs. If the child had stayed with me, it would have been a bastard. With them it was their legitimate child. I never saw my parents again.” My father disowned me for getting pregnant and made sure I knew that I wasn’t welcome back.

  “That’s awful. But what about hospital records?”

  “Oh, child. They didn’t have formal hospital records in those days. There were midwives not doctors. A hospital was a luxury not a requirement. There were no social security numbers. You had a baby not a statistic. If you were lucky the church made a notation of the birth and that was it. The sad thing is that I can’t say I loved my child. I never knew him or her, but I know that child grew up in these parts many years ago. Maybe someday I will get lucky and find him.”

  “You know, I heard once that Stephen was adopted. I don’t know the details but we could talk to the townsfolk. I barely knew Stephen growing up. You can’t tell how hard it was on him. He has changed his looks over the years, but originally he was blonde and had beautiful light eyes. The kids used to tease him for it and call him a freak. He wore hearing aids. They were bulky back then. Now you can’t even tell he has them on.”