“Golly,” said Gina, tipping her head as she stepped back to look at him, “did I meet you at the Pub last night? I feel like we’ve met before.”
“Umm … not last night,” said Hank. Now he had his handkerchief out and was wiping at his eyes and nose. The man’s mounting discomfort and awkwardness paralleled Osborne’s feeling of smugness.
“I had a Trout Unlimited meeting at Ralph’s last night—to plan our sponsorship banquet. Lewellyn, we missed you.” Again he coughed and hacked. Meanwhile, the familiar way in which he used Lew’s name did not pass unnoticed by Osborne.
“That’s it. I was there, too. At Ralph’s, I mean,” said Gina, going back to her chair. She beamed at everyone in the room. “Now that’s what I love about a small town. Doesn’t take long to get to know people. I mean, gee, this is so fun.”
“So what is it exactly you folks are doing that you need Zenner’s help?” Hank asked Lew.
Before Lew could answer, Gina piped up, “Oh, just a little R&D with databases. Research and development,” she added at the puzzled look on Lew’s face. Gina waved her hand dismissively toward her computer screen. “Nothing too fancy, but Zenner sounds like he has the skills to help me install some customized software so it will accommodate Chief Ferris’s needs. Shouldn’t take long. Feel free to sit in.”
“Say, Hank,” interrupted Lew, “you’ve met a lot of people since you’ve been up here. Ever run into a Michael Winston?”
Hank dropped his head in thought. “No … I know Jim Winston, runs the Cove Restaurant. Could that be one of his sons?”
“No, this would be an older man. Dark hair, medium height.”
“Sorry,” said Hank, “but I can check our T.U. membership list if you want.”
“Wouldn’t hurt,” said Gina. “You know, Mr. Kendrickson, I would love to see your game preserve. Can the public just drive in? Are you open if I stay in town over the weekend?”
Oh no, groaned Osborne inwardly. Not her, too.
“Well, why don’t you and Chief Ferris plan to come out and let me give you a private tour,” said Hank, obsequious in his geniality. “Let me check our schedule, and I’ll give you ladies a call later today. Is there somewhere you can be reached, Gina?”
“I’m staying at the Stone Lake Motel.”
“Good. Maybe Sunday. Nice meeting you,” said Hank with a wave to Gina. Then he reached for Lew’s elbow and propelled her into the hallway. A proprietary gesture if ever Osborne had seen one. He was so irritated, he barely listened as Gina rattled on.
“I’m not sure he’s real happy about my using Zenner, Doc,” she said. “Now how do I know him. I don’t think I saw him at the sports shop and I know it wasn’t at the Pub … hmm … I hate it when I do that. It can be so embarrassing. You’d think in my work, I’d be perfect at remembering names and faces.
“Hmm … this really bothers me, Doc. Gee, something about him is so familiar. Shoot! And I know it wasn’t at Ralph’s….”
She paused, suspending her fingers above her keyboard, then she braced her chin in her hand, leaning her elbow on the table. She studied the air in front of her as she tried to remember. “Maybe he was on my flight…. Do you ever do that, Doc? Happens to me all the time in Kansas City. I’ll see a familiar face, and I can’t place it. Then I feel bad because I think it’s someone I should know. Of course, half the time it’s someone I saw in my shrink’s waiting room, a face I’m not supposed to remember.
“My most embarrassing moment is running into one of my married friends out with another woman,” said Osborne, trying to be polite and still overhear what was being said in the hall.
“Oh, come on. That doesn’t happen here in Loon Lake—”
“Actually, it’s happened twice. And with people you would never expect.”
Before Gina could respond, Lew walked back into the room, pausing in the doorway to look back down the hall.
“That man can be such a pain,” she said through gritted teeth. “Sorry, I thought I’d never get rid of him.” She rolled her eyes.
“Uh-oh. And there I go inviting us out to his place. I’m sorry, I had no idea,” said Gina. “If he calls, I’ll go by myself. But,” she scrunched her face and her shoulders as if wincing in pain, “he probably won’t call me. It’s pretty clear who he wants to see.” She winked at Lew.
“He’s a nice man but a bother,” said Lew. “Now he’s roped me into fly-fishing tomorrow night with some friends of his from Minneapolis. Business partners, I guess. I don’t mind when I’m not busy, but the timing is bad right now.” She leveled a look at Gina. “For the record, it’s not a date, it’s a civic thing.”
“You mean civil,” said Osborne.
“No, I mean civic, Doc. As the head of law enforcement here, I have to humor certain individuals, I have to attend certain social events. Comes with the job.”
“So whenever he asks you, you have to go?” asked Gina, teasing.
“No. But today he backed me into a corner. He had already talked to Lucy and had her check my calendar.”
“What an asshole,” said Gina. “That is totally out of line.”
“That’s what I mean; he’s a bother. But enough of this,” said Lew, slapping a file folder down on the desk. “Here’s the last set of ATF files.”
“Chief!” a woman’s voice called from the door just as Osborne took his last swallow of coffee. It was Lucy, the switchboard operator. “Ray Pradt is on the line. Has to talk to you right way.”
“Oh, good. Can you put him through to the phone in here?” said Lew.
The look of frustration on Lew’s face changed to anticipation as she listened to Ray. “Yep, yep, okay. And Ray? Thank you very much.” She hung up. “Doc, do you have time to run out to Timber Lake Lodge with me? Ray found something. He left it in the lodge office for us.”
“What is it?” said Gina. “Can you tell me?”
“Ashley’s fanny pack with her cell phone and a small journal still in it,” said Lew.
“Forget ATF,” said Gina, “I’m coming with you. If that’s all right?”
The fanny pack lay on Helen’s desk. Osborne had three pairs of surgical gloves from his emergency dental kit, which he had learned to carry in the station wagon ever since working for Lew the first time. He handed a pair each to Lew and Gina.
Helen sat at the desk, a piece of paper in front of her. She looked at Lew. “Ray had to be somewhere, so he asked me to pass along some information. He said he’ll call you later. He seemed to be in a real rush.”
Lew nodded, so Helen continued. “He told me to tell you it looked like the pack had caught on a branch while the body was being carried along a deer trail out there. Here’s a map he drew for you.” She handed Lew the paper. “He marked the branch, too, so you can go in and study the site yourself. He said whoever dumped Ashley’s body must not have seen it catch and rip off.”
“So much for Roger’s ability to survey a crime site,” said Lew dryly.
“He told me to be sure to tell you not to be critical of your deputy. When he didn’t find any tire marks off the circle back in there, he drove down to Gaber’s Landing and put his boat in. He came in through the swamp to a ramp that crosscountry skiers use. You know the one that runs along the south bank of the river? That’s where he saw bloodstains leading to the deer trail. He said he had plenty of sign along the deer trail until it crossed an old logging road, where it became more difficult to read. But Ray said he found enough sign for you to be sure that’s where the killer came in.”
“Yep, I know the area,” said Lew. “Damn! This is all my fault. I told Roger to look for evidence of someone driving back in there. Why didn’t I think of access by water? Dammit.”
“Lew, don’t be hard on yourself.” Osborne put his hand on her shoulder. “Who besides Ray would ever think to track through a swamp? We don’t even hunt back there.”
“But that is what makes it infinitely logical, Doc. I have to blame myself. My job is to think like a kille
r.”
“Am I the only one who wants to see what we have here?” said Gina, pulling on her set of gloves.
“Open it,” said Lew. Gina unzipped the pouch and tipped it forward gingerly. Out slipped a tiny, expensive cell phone.
“I’ll take that. Lucy can call the phone company and ask them to help us get a listing on any calls made.” Lew set the phone to one side. A set of keys and one other object had slipped onto the desktop.
‘Those are our house keys,” said Helen. “We give each guest a set so they can let themselves in at their convenience.”
“Yes!” said Gina, reaching for a small brown leather-bound book with deckle-edged pages. “I was hoping we would find this.”
twenty-five
“Once an angler, always a fisherman. If we cannot have the best, we will take the least, and fish for minnows if nothing better is to be had.”
Theodore Gordon
Gina paged excitedly through the small volume. “I looked for this before I flew up here. I’ve been wondering what happened to it. Remember I told you Ashley had asked me for help writing a business book?”
“Yeah.” Lew nodded.
“I started her out with instructions to keep a daily journal. I told her to write like she was talking to someone. I wanted her to get comfortable in her own voice and not try so hard to be literary. You know what I mean?”
“Not exactly, but keep going,” said Lew.
“So okay.” Gina turned pages, scanning quickly. “Here’s an entry from three weeks ago … here’s about two weeks … here … I got it!” She read in silence as everyone in the room waited. “Oh my God,” Gina said softly, “I forgot about his dog. Oh my God …” She flipped back a few pages in the diary. “I’ll start here.”
She looked up at the expectant faces in the room. “I forgot Winston had a dog. Apparently, when he left Kansas City, he took the dog with him….” She paused to read. “Oh no … Ashley never told me she was doing this.” Gina took a deep breath. “Here, I’ll read you something she wrote almost a month ago—”
“Take my chair.” Helen jumped up. Gina sat down and set the book carefully in front of her, smoothing the pages back. Osborne edged in closer, standing so close to Lew he could feel her shoulders against his chest. She didn’t move away.
Helen checked to be sure the door was closed. The room was absolutely quiet as Gina started to read in a soft, deliberate voice.
“ ‘I start my search today. Am I crazy? I heard Gina tell someone at dinner the other night that you can always find a fugitive with a dog because they forget to change the dog’s name when they take them to a vet. I wonder if Michael will do that. That could be how I can find him. I’m going to try. I must find him. I have to. I have to know if he ever loved me. I must know. I cannot live without knowing.’ ”
“Next entry,” said Gina.
“What are the dates on these?” asked Lew.
“May fourteenth and fifteenth, about a month ago.”
“ ‘I started calling today. Called twelve vets around Savannah, where he hunts boar. No luck. Then I called the lodge in Montana, out where he hunts elk. They gave me names I’ll try tomorrow. Oh, Eagle Nest, Wisconsin. I almost forgot; I’ll try that, too.’ ”
“Next entry …”
“ ‘An incredible day. I still can’t believe it. My first call to a vet in Rhinelander, Wisconsin, and I might have something. They said they had a yellow Lab with that name in for shots six months ago. I’m sending a letter up for them to forward to the owner. I hope and pray this is Michael.’ ”
“So that’s how she found him,” said Gina, looking up from the diary.
“What’s the dog’s name?” asked Lew. “I didn’t hear you read that.”
“She doesn’t say.”
“You don’t know either?”
Gina shook her head. “No. I was never around Winston and his dog. I never heard Ashley say anything about the dog, either, except that he spent thousands getting it trained for bird hunting. Ashley was a cat person; she didn’t tune in to dogs.”
“Damn.” Lew snapped her fingers. “If only we knew the dog’s name, we’d have Winston.”
“Let’s call local vets for a list of everyone who owns a yellow Lab,” said Gina.
“That’s not as easy as it sounds,” said Osborne. “This is dog country, and Labs are the most popular breed up here, especially yellows … and they all need shots. You’re better off tracking the guns first, if you ask me. What about someone in Kansas City who hunted with him? They might remember the dog’s name.”
“You’re right,” said Gina. “I’ll see what I can find out.”
“Gina, keep reading,” said Lew with an impatient wave of her hand.
“ ‘Michael called today. Out of the blue, his voice on the phone. I couldn’t believe it. He sounded like he was in the next room. His voice was so warm and gentle. It fills my heart. He said he was thrilled to get my letter, that I would never know how much it meant to him. He asked me to forgive the cruel things he said. My heart stopped. I could only whisper. He asked if he could call again. I said I didn’t know, but of course I want him to. Oh my God, my God.’ ”
“The next entry is dated the next day,” said Gina.
“ ‘Again that voice. I couldn’t wait to hear him again. I’m lost, I’m lost in this man. I have the whole world, but all I want is him. He is so gentle. He asked if I could forgive, and I said the time to forgive was past. I said forgiveness is the heart of my love for him. He asked me to keep these phone calls a secret until we know what we’re doing. He wants to leave the past behind. He wants to start over with me somewhere far away. God, how I miss him. When I hang up the phone, my heart is so full. I know in my bones this is right.’ ”
Gina read on. Two more pages, three more days, then Winston made his move: “ ‘Today Michael asked me to marry him. But he won’t let me answer until we’re together. He’s sending me tickets to fly up tomorrow. He said he wants to surprise me, so he has reserved a suite for me at a little bed-and-breakfast. He’ll have directions for me when I get there, I guess. He said he lives in a beautiful place with trout streams, eagle nests, and six different species of hawks. I can barely wait, it sounds so heavenly. He said it is very important to him to return the money he needed when he left. He invested it and will return every penny four times over. Silly man. I told him I don’t want the money, it doesn’t matter. He said it does matter, it proves he did not betray me. I have a surprise for him, too: a wedding band. As for the money, whatever he gives me, I’ll give back.’ ”
Gina turned the page. Only a few lines remained. “ ‘I’m here in this delicious B-&-B. My love has called and we’ll be together in less than three hours. I’m so excited. I told him I have to go for a run to calm my nerves. He thought that was cute and gave me directions to a route he said I will love. Funny, life will be so different when I pick up this journal again. Oh God, how this man stops my heart.’ ”
“That’s where it ends,” said Gina. She closed the book and set it square in front of her. She looked up at Lew and Osborne, her eyes hard with hate. Osborne had always thought hate was something evil. But he was wrong. In this moment, it was honest, true, and deadly.
“Hell of a book,” said Lew with a slight smile, as if to break the tension.
“She found her voice, that’s for sure,” said Osborne.
“Oh golly, what time is it?” Lew pulled her sleeve back to check her watch. “The funeral for Sandy Herre is at noon, and I really should be there.”
“It’s just eleven,” said Osborne.
‘Thank goodness. I have to change,” said Lew. “Gina, I’ll be back at the office by two. Can you be there?”
“Of course. Do you want me to take these items with me?”
“Thank you. Ask Lucy to call the phone company—”
“I’ll do it if you like,” said Gina. “It’ll take me two seconds. We do this kind of thing all the time at the paper.”
“Lew, why don’t I attend the funeral with you?” said Osborne. “It’s at Saint Mary’s and the Herres were patients of mine. I was planning to go anyway.”
“That would be nice, Doc.” Lew smiled with relief. “There are bound to be questions from the family, and I hate having no answers.”
Phil Herre was waiting at the entrance to the church. A clear blue sky had banished the gray morning. Plump billows of white scudded overhead. Sunshine, fragrant with lilac, flooded the steps leading into Saint Mary’s Church. Though the loveliness of the day lifted Osborne’s spirits, he felt it a gentle mockery of the grief in Phil’s face.
As they entered the vestibule, Phil spotted them. He hurried over to Lew and Osborne, gesturing weakly toward the sunshine spilling through the doors still open behind them. “At least we’ll be able to go to the cemetery in decent weather.
“Chief Ferris, is there any chance you can finish going through Sandy’s apartment today?” he said. “Her sisters would like to help her mother and me with her things while they’re here. They both have to leave tomorrow morning.” His eyes were red and bleary. “It’ll make things so much easier on my wife.”
“Of course, Phil,” said Lew, placing her hand on his arm. “I’m sorry that I didn’t finish before this. And it won’t take long. I want to check her desk one last time, and her car. As you know, the car was found near the crime scene, and I had it returned to her apartment complex. The Wausau lab checked it over and dusted for fingerprints, but I’d like to have a look myself.”
“I understand,” he said. “You sure have your hands full, don’t you. So I was thinking, we have the funeral luncheon following Mass, then the interment…. Could I bring the girls over after that? Does that give you enough time?”
“It should,” said Lew. “I’ll go directly from here, Phil. You just come by when you’re ready. You have a key in case I’ve finished?”
“Yes.” He turned to walk away, then stopped. “Do you think there’s any connection with that other shooting?”
“It’s too soon to tell, Phil,” said Lew gently.
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