by Nicole Ellis
“The egg toss, three-legged race, and tug-of-war are the first things. Then the barbecue lunch.” I leaned against the cabin to watch them. “The boat races start after we eat.”
“Are we participating in any of them?”
“I hadn’t planned on it, but you’re welcome to if you want. I’ve got to manage them and I’m charged with coordinating the ribbons at the end of each event.”
“So, no egg toss for you?” Adam teased me. “Your mom once told me how much you loved egg tosses. Said you’d had a great time at one when you were little.”
I gave him a dirty look. “Haha.” I shuddered. When I was a kid, I’d participated in an egg toss that had left my hair dripping with egg yolks and whites. My mother had tried to convince me that it was good conditioning for my hair, but I could still remember the slime dripping down into my ears. I’d had a fear of egg tosses ever since that day.
“Well, maybe Mikey and I will participate in the three-legged race.” He looked over at Mikey. “Does that sound like fun?”
Mikey cocked his head to the side. “What is that?”
Adam pressed his leg up against Mikey’s. “We tie our legs together like this and then have to move our legs at the same time. See—three legs.”
“Cool! Yeah, we’re going to win because I’m really good at moving my legs like that.”
I smothered a grin as Adam fought to do the same, unsuccessfully.
“Sounds like a plan. Now, does anyone want to go play on the playground?” I asked Mikey.
“Is Anthony up?”
“I don’t know, let’s go see.” We walked over to the Torres’s cabin. They were all sitting out on their porch having scrambled eggs.
“Hey, guys.” Desi held out a spatula and a frying pan. “Do you want some? I didn’t want to take any of the eggs home with us, so I made them all.” She frowned. “We’ll be eating eggs for dinner if you don’t help us out.”
“Sure. I didn’t eat yet.” Adam followed her into the cabin and came out with a full plate.
I took the boys over to the playground for an hour, then dropped them off with Desi so I could work on the event coordination. Happily, everything seemed ready to go. Del and Leah were preparing for the boat race and setup for the catering crew, and I was in charge of the morning’s games. They’d given me permission to have the resort staff help get the games ready, but everybody seemed busy.
Sela walked by, not carrying anything, and I stopped her.
“Hey, can you please help me fill the mud pit for the tug-of-war? I’m not sure where the hose is and I have to run back to my cabin and get the ribbons and medals for the events.” I laughed. “There will be a revolt if I’m not there, ready with the prizes for the winners.”
She eyed me disdainfully. “Can’t. I’ve got stuff to do.” Without another word, she strode off. I rolled my eyes and got back to work. Luckily, Del came by and filled the mud pit for me with a hose he pulled out of the storage shed.
People trickled down to the grassy lawn next to the lake from their cabins and drove in from town. A fire truck and police car had been decorated and stationed near the office for kids to climb in and take pictures with. I set up the egg toss and got out of the way so I wouldn’t get hit by a stray egg. After I handed the winners and the participants their ribbons for that event, I put out the stretchy bands that would be used to tie the “third leg” together in the three-legged race.
Mikey and Anthony ran up, with their fathers in tow. Desi followed with the babies in the double stroller.
“We’re going to win. My daddy is faster than yours,” Anthony boasted.
Mikey stuck his tongue out at his cousin. “No, we’re going to win, right, Daddy?” He looked up at Adam.
“I think we’ll have to see who’s the fastest,” Adam said diplomatically.
All of the contestants lined up. At the end, two other father-and-son teams loudly jostled for position. I eyed them. I’d seen them around the resort, most recently in the recreation hall. The pre-teen boys had been fighting over whose turn it was to play the solitary arcade game in the hall. Were they going to be trouble now?
Unfortunately, the answer to my question was yes. Halfway down the grass course, they veered toward each other, all four of them toppling to the ground. The fathers started yelling at each other and the kids were wrestling next to them. As they got louder and louder, everyone else stopped what they were doing to watch the commotion.
Tomàs jogged over to the brawlers. “Hey, hey, break it up. This is a family event.”
I was glad he’d stepped in. As a police officer, he was trained in conflict resolution and I’d seen him diffuse such situations before.
“Back off,” one of the men said. “This guy has had it out for me since we accidentally cut him off out on the lake a few days ago.”
“You did it on purpose.” The other man glared at his foe.
Before the first man could form a retort, Tomàs had skillfully maneuvered him away from the situation. Adam plucked the bigger boy off of the other, holding him back from hurting the other kid.
“Let’s all calm down here.” Tomàs looked from one man to the other. “There are kids here. I don’t think you want anyone to get hurt, right?”
“No,” they both grumbled, their eyes still shooting daggers at one another. They each grabbed their kids and stalked off from the grassy lawn.
I breathed a sigh of relief. Sometimes having a brother-in-law who was a police officer could come in handy.
“Thanks, Tomàs.” I clapped my hands and addressed the rest of contestants, who were gathered nearby, watching the spectacle. “Now, since we all got distracted, let’s start over, ok? Everyone back to the starting line.”
They started over, and this time a team made it to the finish line.
“Aww. We didn’t win,” said Mikey.
“Us neither,” Anthony said glumly.
I handed the first place ribbon to the winners, a mother and her daughter who looked to be about seven. Everyone clapped and the little girl jumped up and down in excitement. She bounced off with her mother and the crowd dispersed.
“Well, I think that was enough excitement for the day,” I said to Adam.
He nodded. “Some people take these competitions way too seriously.”
“So you’re not going to participate in the tug-of-war?”
He gave me a wounded look. “Of course I’m going to help with the tug-of-war. I’ve got to beat Tomàs at something.”
I laughed. “May the stronger team win.”
Desi, the kids, and I watched from the sidelines as Tomàs and Adam, on opposite sides, fought to drag their opponents into the mud pit in the center. As Adam’s team slid closer to the pit, I walked closer, ready to call a winner. The team Tomàs was on gave a final tug and the game was over.
Adam had been near the back of the line, and he walked away with only a few splashes of mud on his legs and shoes. Those that were near the front were not so lucky. I stifled a laugh when a man walked past me covered in oozing mud. He didn’t seem to mind and, in fact, was racing down to the lake with his kids to jump in and wash off.
The aroma of fresh barbecue wafted over to us. I’d handed day-of responsibility for the catering over to Leah so I could focus on the games, but I was curious to see how the food would taste. My event duties were over for the morning and my stomach was grumbling. I regretted not taking some of the eggs Desi had offered. Under a large canopy tent set up next to the picnic tables, the caterers appeared to be ready to serve.
“Lunchtime!” I announced.
Adam eyed Tomàs. “Race you to the lunch line.”
“You’re on,” Tomàs replied.
They both took off, leaving us staring at them.
“Seriously?” Desi asked. “What is with the competition between them now?”
I shrugged. “Give them one thing to compete over, and it’s suddenly a tournament.”
“Maybe we tell them we’re giv
ing out a ‘best dad’ award and watch them fall over themselves trying to best each other in taking care of the kids.”
I shook my finger at her. “You may be on to something there. If I have any leftover ribbons, I’ll keep one and we can try it.”
We both laughed and guided the kids over to the lunch area. Tomàs and Adam were already there, holding plates of food. I didn’t know who had won the race, and I wasn’t going to ask.
I looked around. Everything was going according to plan, an event planner’s dream. We were all finishing up our lunch of barbecue pork, corn on the cob, coleslaw, and cornbread that the restaurant in town had catered. All around us, people wore satisfied expressions as they mopped barbecue sauce off of their faces.
“When are the boats going to race?” Mikey asked, scanning the lake for any sign of action.
Below the gently sloping lawn, paddle-powered boats had been decorated with flags and a number. They floated by the docks, ready for their contestants to jump aboard.
I checked my watch. Almost one o’clock. Del was in charge of the boat races and he was on the docks, checking things out. I had the gold medal for the winner, but I was free from event duties until then.
“Soon, Mikey.”
Almost one o’clock also meant that Goldie had been left in our cabin for several hours already. I didn’t think he’d get in any trouble, but I wanted to take him out for a walk to make sure.
“Can you take the kids down to the lakeshore to get a good viewpoint for the races?” I asked. “I’m going to go check on Goldie.”
“Yep.” Adam glanced at Mikey’s mouth, which had brown sauce dripping from it like a barbecue zombie. “After I get this kid hosed down.”
I laughed. “I don’t care how you do it, but get the sauce off before he gets it all over everything. And don’t forget to keep Ella’s hat on, ok?”
He saluted me. “Aye, aye, captain.”
“Hey, I’m not racing today,” I joked. I rose from the picnic table and brushed some cornbread crumbs off my lap. “I’ll see you in thirty minutes or so.”
“We’ll save you a seat,” he said absentmindedly as he scrubbed at Mikey’s face with a water-dampened paper towel.
Desi popped up too. “I’ll tag along. I want to grab some more sunscreen from our cabin.”
“Sure.” We walked back toward our cabins, away from the crowds.
She branched off at the fork in the path and went into her cabin, while I approached ours. I stopped. Something wasn’t right. It was strangely quiet for housing a friendly dog who’d be awaiting his family’s arrival. I quickened my pace as I rounded the corner to the front door. The screen was open.
“Goldie?” I called out as I ran into the cabin. If he’d managed to push the door open, I didn’t think he would go far, but this was unfamiliar territory and the prospect of catching a squirrel could entice even the most obedient dog into a long chase.
I hurriedly searched every room in the cabin, but Goldie wasn’t there. I eyed the door. I could have sworn we’d locked it. Goldie was smart, but not smart enough to unlock a door and open it.
A chill traveled through my body. Was this some kind of joke? It didn’t look like anything had been stolen from our cabin. Adam’s tablet was on the table and my purse was where I’d left it on an end table in our bedroom. So why was Goldie gone?
A piece of yellow paper taped to the wall next to the door caught my eye. That hadn’t been there earlier. I walked over to it and plucked it off the wall.
Your dog is taking a little vacation. You might want to come get him before he’s eaten by the neighbor’s dog.
The blood drained from my face. Someone was threatening Goldie’s life. Was it the same person who was vandalizing the resort?
Footsteps crunched along the pathway outside of our cabin, and I craned my neck around to see who it was. Only Desi. I moved my attention back to the note.
“Are you ready to head back? I had to scrounge around for it, but I finally found some sunscreen in the medicine cabinet. Tomàs always insists on unpacking every time we stay somewhere, but then I can’t find anything. I knew where everything was when it was in the suitcases.” She stopped and I felt her eyes on me. “What’s wrong? What is that you’re looking at?” She came around behind me and read over my shoulder.
I let her grab it out of my trembling hands.
“Someone stole Goldie? Who would do that?”
“I don’t know. But I think he’s over at Tyler’s house.”
“That creepy guy with the dog with the big teeth?” Her eyes widened.
“Yeah.” I glanced in the direction of Tyler’s place.
“What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to get my dog back.” I dropped the note on the floor and stalked off.
Desi jogged along behind me. “You can’t go by yourself. Let’s go get Adam and Tomàs.”
I turned my head slightly. “That would take at least another fifteen minutes. Who knows how long Goldie’s been gone for?”
“Argh,” she cried out. “Fine, I’ll go with you. You’re not doing this alone.” She caught up with me, and we half-ran, half-jogged along the lakeside path, the crowd roaring behind us as the starting pistol went off for the boat races.
At Tyler’s house, it was blessedly silent. No sign of him or his dog. I heard a whimper coming from the barn. Goldie.
I threw the doors open, and Desi and I rushed in. When our eyes adjusted, we both looked around frantically for Goldie.
I’d expected the barn’s interior to be dusty and coated with hay, or at the very least, full of junk. Instead, the walls were lined with heavy-duty shelves and countertops, along with a wide selection of wood-working tools.
A worktable in the middle of the room held a handcrafted frame of an armchair, with beautiful scrollwork on it.
Desi ran a finger over a sculpted flower on the back of the chair. “Did that guy do this?”
“I don’t know. The delivery man from the general store did say Tyler was a woodworker.” I searched the inside of the barn. “But let’s focus on finding Goldie right now.”
“Right,” she said.
We heard another whimper and I slowly spun around.
“Up there.” Desi pointed to the hay loft.
“Goldie?”
Scuffling noises followed, along with more whimpers.
“Why isn’t he barking?” she asked.
“I don’t know.” My legs wobbled like they were made of gelatin. What had they done to my dog? “I don’t see a ladder.”
The floor was bare in a spot where a ladder had recently rested.
“Maybe we could use that rope to get up there?” Desi pointed to a thin rope hanging from the ceiling near the loft.
I shook my head. “There’s no way I can climb that. Besides, it’s frayed at the top. You look around in here. I’m going to go outside and see what else I can find. We’ve got to get him down from there.”
I exited the front door then navigated around the exterior of the building. Car parts were strewn everywhere, along with empty beer bottles and paint cans. At the back of the barn, there was an open window into the loft. Underneath it, an old truck had been parked alongside the barn, its front end covered by an equally old blue tarp.
“Desi,” I shouted. “Come here.”
“Where are you?”
“Around the back.”
Desi appeared in a matter of seconds. “What?”
I pointed at the cab of the truck. “I think if we climb up there, we can get into the loft through that window.”
She eyed the window dubiously. “How are we going to get him out afterwards?”
“I don’t know. Right now, all I want to do is find out if he’s ok.”
I pulled myself up into the bed of the truck and then held my hand out to her to give her a lift.
“Do you think you can brace my feet while I climb in?”
“I can try.”
Below our feet,
the truck creaked under our weight on the cab.
“I don’t know about this.” Desi stared at the ground. “I hope it can hold us.”
I wondered the same thing, but at this point, we didn’t have a choice. I didn’t know where the dognapper was or when they were coming back. So far, the acts of vandalism hadn’t been violent, but I didn’t want to take any chances. At the back of my mind, a little voice reminded me that Jed’s murderer hadn’t been found. What if the vandal and the murderer were the same person? I shook the thought from my head. Right now, I needed to focus on Goldie.
“Can you give me a boost?” I moved as close to the edge of the truck cab as I could and leaned against the barn. Even with my arms outstretched, the window was at least a foot above me.
Desi threaded her hands together and I stepped on the makeshift stirrup, giving me enough of a boost to pop my chin over the edge. Goldie lay on a blanket on the floor of the loft, chained to a beam with his mouth muzzled. Tears sprang from my eyes, wetting my cheeks.
“He’s here and he looks ok,” I shouted down to Desi. “Can you lift me up a little?”
She responded by raising her arms, allowing me enough leverage to get through the window. Although I wasn’t super fit, I had some arm strength from lugging around two small children on a daily basis.
I fell onto the wooden loft floor in an undignified heap, and Goldie strained to get closer to me.
“It’s ok, boy.” I crawled toward him, holding out my hand. “I’ll get you free.” I removed the muzzle and he licked me. As I was figuring out how to release the chain from his collar, he started barking ferociously and tried to get to the edge of the loft that overlooked the main room of the barn.
I looked over the edge to see who’d entered. I hoped it wasn’t Tyler and his dog.
It wasn’t Tyler.
“Sela?”
Her head shot up to view me and her eyes widened.
“How did you get up there? I took the ladder and stashed it in the woods.”
I ignored her question as I didn’t want to put Desi in danger. “Why did you take Goldie?”
She laughed. “When you aren’t there, the whole celebration will fall apart. It’ll be pretty embarrassing when you’re not there to hand out the medal for the big boat race. Then they’ll have to sell the resort and Del will be free of Leah.”