The Thanksgiving Trip

by Kathi Daley

  “And Doug Peterson worked for you year-round?” I asked.

  “He did. During the winter, it was just him. He mostly took care of repairs and cleaning for the short-term rentals. During the summer, his wife helps out with the cleaning. They’d been taking care of the cabins for the past eight years. He’s going to be hard to replace.”

  “Did he live at the lake?”

  Bilson shook his head. “No. He lived in town.”

  “I understand he was seen in town on Friday night at around eight. He mentioned he’d finished the work he had to do at the house. Yet he returned later. Did you call him with extra tasks to take care of?”

  “No. There wasn’t a lot to do. The Techucom folks had been at the house for a month before your stay. There was a tight turnaround because they didn’t leave until Friday morning and you folks were arriving on Sunday. I told Doug he could take care of the place on Saturday, but he wanted to get started on Friday afternoon.”

  “I understand he never returned the key.”

  “That’s right.”

  “And his truck wasn’t at the house on Saturday?”

  “No, it wasn’t,” he confirmed. “Is there a reason you’re asking me all these questions?”

  “Not really. We’re just curious. I guess it’s natural to be curious about the death of a man whose body you found.”

  Bilson tilted his head. “Yeah, I guess.”

  “I was wondering about the house itself,” Tony said. “Do you happen to know if there was a structure built on the property before the house that’s there now?”

  “Sure was. Back when the lake was a base for a nearby mining camp, the camp office was located where the house sits today. It was a boxy place but sturdy. Built of cinder block to prevent robberies because the office doubled as a bank and held the safe where everyone’s gold was kept.”

  “It appears the old office was built right into the new structure,” Tony said.

  Bilson nodded. “The old block building is part of the southeast corner of the house. Paneling was added to both the interior and exterior walls to give it a seamless look. I’m surprised you noticed the old building was still there. The interior walls are thicker in that part of the house. Guess you might have noticed that.”

  “I actually noticed the difference in the foundation,” Tony said.

  He nodded. “Ah. Yes, there’s that as well. I was going to tear down the old bank and office when I decided to build the house to bring in a slightly higher-end clientele, but the history of the place got to me, so I just built around it.”

  I guessed that made sense. I was about to ask about the panel trucks when the phone rang and Bilson answered it. Judging by his side of the conversation, someone had called to inquire about cabin availability over the Christmas holiday. We’d asked pretty much what needed to be asked regarding Doug Peterman; now I needed to work my father and his friend Finn into the conversation.

  “Sorry about that,” he said after hanging up. “One of our repeat customers is thinking about spending some time here next month. Now, where were we?”

  “Speaking of repeat customers, my dad used to come up here every year. His name was Grant Thomas. Do you remember him? It’s been about fourteen years.”

  Bilson shook his head. “The name doesn’t sound familiar.”

  “I understand he went by the name Tuck and came to visit someone named Finn.”

  He frowned. “Are you saying you’re Tuck’s daughter?”

  “If this was the man who called himself Tuck.” I held up the photo of my dad. Bilson took it and pretended to be studying it, but I saw an expression of recognition on his face right away.

  Eventually, he said, “Yeah, that’s him. Didn’t know him well, but he seemed like a good guy. Listen, I need to get back to my inventory. It’s been nice chatting with you both. Have a nice time while you’re here.”

  He turned and went into the back room.

  “Well, that was abrupt,” I said.

  “It seems we’ve been getting abrupt responses to all our inquiries about your dad. The general unwillingness to talk about him is making me even more curious about what might have happened here.”

  “Yeah.” I let out a breath. “Me too. Let’s go back to the house and take the dogs for a walk. I need to clear my head. The snow’s let up a bit, but looking at the dark sky, I’d say the reprieve is most likely temporary.”

  Chapter 7

  We bundled up in extra layers and set off along the forest trail with the three dogs. We’d already explored the trail that circled the lake during our fact-finding expedition, so we decided to see what was down the narrow path that had been created by the snowmobiles that left tracks leading into the dense grove of evergreens. It was a gorgeous walk. The fresh snow that had fallen covered the path just enough to make everything feel fresh but not so much to make it unnavigable. The firs that lined the path were heavy with snow, causing the branches to dip under the weight. I noticed small footprints in the snow. Fox, if I had to guess. I also noticed a few squirrels scurrying here and there. I felt myself relax as Tony’s large hand surrounded my much smaller one. It was nice to spend time in nature without an agenda other than to enjoy the moment and the man I loved.

  “It looks like Leonard is having the time of his life.” Tony laughed as the pup bounced around between Titan and Tilly, attempting, it appeared, to get one of them to chase him.

  “He really is. Talk about a bundle of energy. I think Mike might have his hands full with that one. He’s either going to need to build a fence around his yard or bring the pup with him to work.”

  “He might make a good police mascot,” Tony answered.

  “He’s pretty adorable. Bree could even take him with her to the bookstore once we get him trained not to bother people.”

  “Seems like the only one he really bothers now is Mike,” Tony said.

  I couldn’t help but smile. “True. But Bree has breakable stuff in her shop, and with the holidays, she has all those decorations. Which reminds me: We still need to get a tree for the bookstore. There are some great ones out here. We’ll need to come back before we head home. I wonder if we should get one for your house and my cabin as well.”

  “We have some pretty decent trees at home in White Eagle.”

  “That’s true, and I’d prefer to wait a week or two to put up a tree. I kind of want to get the rest of the space decorated first, then add the tree last. Besides, the less time I have the tree in the cabin, the less time I have to struggle to keep the kittens from climbing it.”

  Tony smiled. “Yeah, there is that. I seem to remember having to pick both Tang and Tinder out of my tree last year. Of course, they were just kittens then. But I agree with focusing on the exterior decorations first and then moving inside to decorate the interiors, leaving room for the trees. I’ve been thinking about having a dinner party. A small one, once we get the decorations up in my place.”

  “That sounds perfect. I ran into Jordan Westlake on Friday, and we talked about getting together. I told him we’d have him out to your place for dinner, and I thought we’d invite Bree and Mike too. Oh, and Brady. I’m sure he’ll fit in nicely with the others. He can bring Lilly or a date, if he prefers.”

  “And we’ll need to invite Shaggy.”

  I scrunched up my nose. “Really? Jordan indicated he has someone he wanted to bring, so I was thinking this would be more of a couples thing.”

  “I’m sure Shaggy can get a date, and he is my best friend. It would hurt his feelings if we had a holiday dinner party and didn’t invite him.”

  “Yeah. Okay. We’ll ask Shaggy too. I’d worry about having Bree and Shaggy at the same table, but she’ll be with Mike, so I’m sure it will be fine. Is Shaggy seeing anyone?”

  Tony smiled. “I think he’s seeing several someones. I’ll make sure he asks someone who’ll fit in with the rest of the group.”

  I put my arm through his and leaned my head on his shoulder. “Suddenly, I fee
l so grown-up, talking about decorating and dinner parties.”

  He laughed. “And you didn’t feel grown-up before?”

  “Not usually.”

  He kissed me on the top of the head. Snow flurries began to appear as we headed deeper into the forest, but I didn’t mind. In a way, they added to the atmosphere of the early winter day. When Mom had first suggested this trip, my main focus had been on investigating my father’s disappearance, but right now, as I walked through a winter fairyland with Tony and the dogs, that complicated mystery was the farthest thing from my mind.

  We’d walked another ten minutes or so before Tony paused and tilted back his head to look into the sky. “I think the storm is going to intensify. We should head back.”

  “Okay. I’m getting kind of cold anyway.” I called to the dogs. “Maybe when we get back, you can do a search on the computer to see what you can find out about Techucom.”

  “Why do you want to know about Techucom?” Tony asked.

  I shrugged. “I can’t quite get the idea out of my mind that whatever they were doing here could be related to Doug Peterman’s death.”

  “I think that’s highly unlikely. The group was gone before Peterman died. Besides, why would anyone from the company want to kill him?”

  “I’m not saying someone from Techucom necessarily killed him, just that I’m interested in what they were doing up here.”

  “Okay. I can do a search if you’d like. All I have is my basic laptop with me, which has a search engine with limited capabilities, but I’m sure I can at least find some general information. The company was originally established in the mid-nineties by Talon Elton, who has an interesting background. He started off as a MIT-trained engineer with a serious gaming and hacking hobby who later honed his computer skills and went on to develop some cutting-edge technology that resulted in contracts with the federal government and the military.”

  “Which sounds like it could be a motive if Peterman stumbled on to the wrong thing.”

  “Again, highly unlikely. I don’t know what might be behind Peterman’s death, but I have the feeling it’ll turn out to be something a lot more ordinary than a government cover-up.”

  “Like what?”

  Tony shrugged. “Maybe Peterson got into a scuffle with someone at the bar who followed him when he left and killed him. We don’t know the guy, but I don’t think we should discount something as basic as a jealous husband or boyfriend. Peterson’s wife has been out of town. Maybe Peterson was getting some on the side.”

  I wrinkled my nose. “I guess that makes as much sense as anything. Or maybe he liked to gamble and owed someone money, or he had a mistress who got tired of waiting for him to dump his wife.” I looked at Tony. “I guess you make a good point that just because we believe he may have been at the house before his death doesn’t mean we should assume the house or the people who had been staying in it are part of it.”

  When we returned to the house, Tony stoked up the fire while I made a pot of coffee. Then he went upstairs to get his laptop while I checked the cat boxes as well as all the water dishes. Mom had baked cookies at some point, and I put some on a plate and took them along with cups of coffee out to the dining table, where Tony had set up. The snow was getting harder. I hoped Mike and the others would be back shortly. I sort of doubted they’d want to spend too much time wandering around the shops in town in a storm. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to text him to check in. Which I did shortly after settling in next to Tony at the dining table. “Ever hear of a man named Orson Hazelton?”

  “He’s another high-profile tech guy. He started Hazelton Technology six or seven years ago, which I believe focuses on guidance systems used by airlines. Why do you ask?”

  “I just heard from Mike and he said the man he saw lurking in the area yesterday was driving a vehicle leased to him.”

  Tony frowned. “Are you saying it was Orson Hazelton Mike had the encounter with?”

  I shook my head. “No. The man driving the vehicle wasn’t Orson Hazelton. It seems someone provided the license plate number of the vehicle to Officer Holderman, and he was able to trace it to Hazelton. Mike says they’re looking at employees of a company called Azeron Enterprises and comparing them to the sketch Mike helped the police artist come up with.”

  “Azeron Enterprises is another company owned by Hazelton. It’s much smaller than Hazelton Technology and is focused on gaming rather than guidance systems.”

  I sat back and considered. “Seems like a lot of tech guys around. Maybe too many to be a coincidence.”

  “Maybe.” Tony narrowed his gaze. “Give me a few minutes to check out a few ideas.”

  I nodded and picked up a cookie to nibble on until he found whatever it was he was looking for. My instinct was to chat while he worked, but I knew from past experience that when Tony was in the zone, it was best to sit quietly and wait. Though after three minutes I was bored to death, so I got up and went into the conference room to have another look around. I don’t know why I was so certain there was something to find, but the little voice in my head that urged me to look again wouldn’t quiet down, so I figured it wouldn’t hurt to try one more time despite the fact that Tony and I hadn’t found a thing that could be considered a clue when we’d looked before.

  I stood in the middle of the room and considered the possibilities. I knew the walls were cinder block, so the odds of there being a secret room were slim. That basically left the table, chairs, and monitor. The monitor was mounted close to the wall and didn’t look as if it would pull out, so that didn’t give me a lot of options. On a whim, I forced my cheek against the wall and used the flashlight on my phone to peer behind the monitor. I didn’t see anything, though I needed more height. I was using one of the chairs to stand on when I noticed something on the floor under the table. I bent down and picked it up. It was a single sheet of paper with a map drawn on it. At the top was a single word: Verdeckt.

  I took the paper and walked back to where Tony was working. “What does verdeckt mean?”

  Tony looked up. “It’s German. It means hidden or concealed. Why?”

  I help up the paper. “I found this on the floor in the conference room. What do you think it is?”

  He took the paper from me. “It looks like a map.” He studied the roughly drawn image in his hand, then pointed to a section of the drawing. “I think this is the lake, and this over here is the mountain behind it. If I had to guess, this is a map to something on the mountain.”

  “Like a mine?” I asked.

  “I would say given that there are abandoned mines all over the place, that’s as good a guess as any.”

  I walked around and stood behind Tony, who was still sitting at the table to get a better look at the map. “Okay, so what does the map lead to and do we think there’s any possibility it’s in any way tied to Doug Peterman’s death?”

  “I doubt it. For all we know, these are directions to a hiking trail. The group who was here before us was here for a month. I’m sure they got outdoors from time to time.”

  “Yeah. I guess you’re right. Still, given the fact that a man is dead and this map was found on the floor of a locked room, I think we should show it to Mike.”

  “Absolutely.”

  “So, did you find anything?” I asked.

  “Maybe.” Tony paused and looked at me. “I don’t know for certain this has anything to do with Doug Peterman, but I found out that Orson Hazelton used to work for Talon Elton. In fact, he was his right-hand man at one point. It seems the two had a falling out over some software Hazelton developed and Elton patented, which caused Hazelton to leave and start his own business. To say that the two men are bitter rivals would be putting it mildly.”

  “So maybe Hazelton sent his man to Timberland Lake to spy on Techucom and whatever they have going on, which required the presence of the panel trucks Tom Flanders told us about.”

  “Perhaps. The Techucom folks left on Friday and Mike saw the vehicle owned by
Hazelton on Monday, so it’s possible Hazelton is interested in the area for another reason altogether.”

  “Unless there’s something that’s remained behind, and that’s what Hazelton is really interested in,” I suggested.

  “Like what?”

  I lifted a shoulder. “I have no idea. I’m just spitballing. Did you find anything else?”

  “There’s some chatter on one of the dark web sites I sometimes poke around in that Hazelton is on the verge of announcing the launch of something that’s going to rock the technology community, but I can’t find a single mention of what that something might be. It’s possible the whole thing is nothing more than a rumor. Unfounded speculation happens a lot on this particular site. If he does have something big on the horizon, I’m not sure why he would be messing around spying on his old boss and current nemesis.”

  “Unless he received some sort of intel that Techucom stole his idea,” I mused. “He might be looking to confirm whether his project has been compromised.”

  “Maybe. But if the man in the truck was here to spy on Techucom, he was a few days too late.”

  “I guess that’s true. Leonard is acting like he wants to go out. I think I’m going to take him.”

  “He just went.”

  I shrugged. “He’s a puppy. Sometimes puppies forget to do what they’re supposed to be doing when they go out and need to go again after they come in.”

  Tony laughed. “I guess so. I’ll come with you.”

  We put on our outerwear, called to all three dogs, and headed outside. Once we’d left the yard, I stopped to look at Leonard. “Now would be the time to pee.”

  The dog cocked his head at me, then trotted over to a tree, where he proceeded to do just that. When he returned, we started around the house to the lake trail. It was then I noticed the footprints in the snow. “Hey, Tony, look at these.”

  He bent down for a closer look. “It appears as if the prints could have been made by the person who made the ones on the first night we were here.” Tony stood up and looked in the direction of the footpath. “Let’s follow them and see where they lead.”