by A. J. Norris
Brayden tilted his head and squinted in the late afternoon sun, looking up at Harry. “You have to work.” The words were stated like it was a fact, not a question. “We can go fishing another time.” The kid kicked some loose dirt and tiny rocks with his shoe.
The sight of Brayden’s caved in, deflated shoulders reminded Harry of the look Grace always had as a child when he’d chosen work over her. He owed her a huge apology. Now he was right back in the same scenario with Brayden, except this time it was worse. Not only was he on the verge of ruining their fishing trip, the baby he and Natalie created would suffer that same fate too if he didn’t make some serious changes to his lifestyle. He loved his family, but how in the hell would they know it? Harry took a deep breath, because this one was going to hurt.
“Tina,” he said to the waitress. “Do me a favor and call the nearest ATF office and explain what happened.”
“What’s the number?”
“Call information. There should be a number listed for the closest office. Do it right now before he gets further away. If he’s on foot, they’ll find him.” Tina nodded and went inside without asking anymore questions.
“How come you don’t do it?” Brayden asked.
“It’s not my case. Not sure it ever was.” He thought about the breadcrumbs Cam left behind; the newspaper article in his car; the brief bag with the initials ADK; and the odd answers he gave during the interviews Harry now believed were meant to confuse him. Was he Eric’s accomplice? Or worse yet, were they in a sick game of competition with each other?
Not your problem.
The cabin was ten miles from the diner, safely hidden off the road. Natalie wore a bracelet that said, ‘Let It Go’, words he needed to heed.
“Let’s go back inside.” Brayden tugged on Harry’s sleeve.
“Yes, let’s. We do have pie coming,” Cedric added.
“Sounds wonderful, think I could have a slice?” Harry asked.
CHAPTER
FORTY-ONE
Grace
Grace had rehearsed what she wanted to say to Natalie. The little baby the woman carried in her womb was her sibling. She had never wanted one until faced with the reality of it. Mikey believed Natalie would do the right thing. But the right thing for whom, her or the baby?
She squared her shoulders, took a deep breath, and rang the doorbell. The door wasn’t answered promptly. The longer Natalie took to let Grace inside, the more she wondered if it was her place to say anything. No, it probably wasn’t. Her shoulders sagged.
Dammit.
She had been so sure of own self-righteousness on the drive over. The door creaked open as she turned toward the porch step.
“Grace?”
Crap.
“Oh, you’re home.” Grace stayed poised, ready to walk away.
“Is there something you needed?”
“No, I just…” Her face flushed.
“Why are you here then?” Natalie touched her stomach so naturally Grace’s eyes went there too. “Did you need to talk? Is everything okay with Mikey?”
Grace blew out a breath. “Yeah, Mikey’s great, except for driving me nuts because he misses Brayden already.”
Natalie opened the way for her. “Come in. Have something to eat with me. I’m making chicken noodle soup.”
Grace followed her to the kitchen. “Mmm, smells delicious.”
“Thanks. It was your great-grandmother’s recipe.”
“My mother gave it to you?”
“Gave it to me? No. More like begged me to make it for your dad.” Natalie smiled. “You never knew, did you?”
“Uh uh. I always thought she had made it. Then again, she was a terrible cook most of the time. Did my dad know?”
“I dunno. I never told him.” Natalie chuckled. She ladled soup into two bowls. “Sit at the table, I’ll bring it to you.”
Grace sat down while Natalie served the soup and saltines. Once they were both settled, Grace did more digging. “Did you make other things my mom passed off as hers?”
“Well, as you know my husband and I spent practically every holiday with your family after your grandmother passed away. I think you were about ten.”
“I remember you helping my mother in the kitchen. No, say it isn’t so.” Grace covered ears in jest.
“She helped me in the kitchen.”
“I told you not to say it. My childhood memories are crushed.” Grace giggled. “Seriously, my dad had to have picked up on that.”
Natalie laughed. “I’m sure he noticed.”
They talked and laughed for a few minutes until Natalie changed the subject. “What was the real reason you came over? I know it wasn’t to talk about recipes and family secrets.” She winked.
Grace cleared her throat, not because she needed to but because she was stalling. Her expression grew serious. “I wanted to say something about the decision you’re about to make.”
“What decis—”
“Let me say this and I’ll never bring it up again.”
“Grace…”
Grace held up her hand, quieting Natalie. “I want a little brother or sister.” The statement hadn’t sounded nearly as whiny inside her own head. “I know it’s your body, but it’s my family too we’re talking about and whose fate is in your hands. Mikey believes you will do the right thing, but honestly, I’m scared.”
Natalie smiled. “I’m having the baby. Didn’t Harry call you with the news? He was so happy when he left this morning, he practically floated out of here.”
“Then what was all this talk about options?”
“Fear and raging hormones.”
“Oh.” Grace laughed. “Sorry.”
“It’s all right. I don’t know what I was thinking. I’m still pissed at Harry for telling Rudy before I was ready though.”
“Yeah, my dad called me about that. So it wasn’t about the choice he took away from you?”
“Not really, but if I wanted to choose to end the pregnancy, he had taken that away from me. How could I look at anyone in the eye after that if I had wanted and had taken that route? I don’t want to. I love your dad even if I don’t always know that he loves me back.”
Wait, what? “How can you say that? My dad loves you.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Absolutely. He’d still be drinking if it hadn’t been for you. I truly believe that. He respects you, always has, because you stayed strong after Mr. McGregor left. Your opinion means a lot to him.”
Natalie put her spoon down and leaned back in her chair. “I don’t want to be the sole reason for him not drinking. It should be for himself.”
“That’s not the way everyone works. And I’m sure you’re not the sole reason. People’s motivations for staying sober are different for everyone. For Mikey, all he has to do is look at his son and he knows what he has to do. I imagine he looks to me as well. And I’m okay with that.” Grace shrugged. “For my dad, it’s you. He wants to be good for you because he loves you.”
Tears welled in Natalie’s eyes.
“Quit that or I’ll cry.”
“He never tells me,” Natalie sobbed.
Grace recoiled. “That surprises me.” She sniffed back her emotions, the same way her father did.
“Why?”
“Because he tells me all the time, and how grateful he is that you still wanted to give him a chance after all these years.”
Natalie looked up from her bowl. She took a bite of a saltine cracker. A tear rolled down her cheek. “Oh Grace, I didn’t mean what I said about me being the only reason for his staying sober. I’m sure it’s mainly you.”
Grace snorted. “Doubtful. It never worked on him before, seeing me cry and begging him to stop. He always drank before my mother died, and it got ten times worse after we buried her.”
“I don’t remember when he quit. What was it like five years ago, give or take?”
“Yeah. I asked him one time why he decided it was time and he told me i
t was something you said to him.”
It was Natalie’s turn to recoil. “Something I said? I have no idea what I said that would make a difference like that.”
“You’d be surprised how much influence something you say can have on a person’s life. A simple truth you never thought much of when you said it can have a life changing effect on someone else.”
“I guess. He told you that? Did he say what it was I said?”
“No, he wouldn’t tell me. I always figured it was private, between you two. I didn’t pry, which isn’t like me.” Grace giggled.
Natalie wiped her tears with a napkin. “You know, I was surprised by everyone’s reaction to the pregnancy.”
“Why? It’s wonderful news.”
“‘Cuz we’re old and I thought people would think I was crazy to want a baby at my age, especially Harry. Think about it, he’ll be seventy-three by the time our kid graduates high school.”
“So? That just means he’ll fit right in with all the other grandparents.”
Natalie tilted her head back and laughed. “You’re terrible.”
CHAPTER
FORTY-TWO
Harry
“It’s still early enough if you want to get a canoe lesson in before tomorrow’s trip,” Harry said, pulling into the driveway. The cabin was situated at the end of a winding, overgrown two-track. An early spring made the trees and shrubs lining the lane dense. They covered the road like a canopy. Strawberry patches at the mouth of the driveway were starting to get fruit on them.
“I didn’t know we were going canoeing,” Brayden said.
“We’ll travel up the river a bit and there’s a good-sized beach with the best fishing spot.”
“Cool!” Brayden leapt from the car before Harry had put it into park.
Harry’s heart lurched. “Jesus!”
“Oh, relax, he’s excited. I don’t remember ever having that much energy,” Cedric said. He groaned while getting out of the car.
Harry grabbed his and Brayden’s bags from the trunk.
“I can get mine,” Cedric said.
“Good, because I’m not your butler.” Harry met Brayden on the porch of the green-stained A-framed cabin. A well weathered and faded sign hung next to the door. The only letter you could still make out was the ‘M’ in ‘The McGregors’. He unlocked the place and Brayden ran inside. Harry headed straight to the bedroom on the right to deposit his bag. The bed had a sheet and blanket laid out on it. He could have sworn he and Natalie stripped the beds before they winterized the place. But heck, Natalie had taken care of the beds while he’d shut off the water. He’d never gone back and checked her work. Why would he? Man, the water pump needed priming. Aw, screw it, he’d do it in the morning. They were all guys, weren’t they? They could survive one night without a toilet. And they had only so much time in the evening left for a canoeing lesson.
After Harry came out of the bedroom, Cedric was parked on the sofa.
“I don’t think I can do them stairs. I can sleep right here if you don’t mind,” Cedric said.
“Fine by me. I was planning on sleeping in the bedroom. Brayden, you get the loft.”
“I get the whole upstairs to myself? Cool!” Brayden bounded up the steps. The ceiling creaked above the kitchen area where the loft was. His feet shuffled and then he came back to the first floor.
“Bray, come on out back with me,” Harry said.
Cedric followed them to the door. “While you’re boating, I’m gonna take a ride into town for some snacks.”
“Good idea.” Harry handed him the keys to his car.
Brayden ran around the house toward the river. Harry went to the rack which held four steel upside-down canoes. It always amazed him they weren’t stolen while no one stayed there most of the year. “Hey, why don’t you call your dad and let him know we made it all right.”
“Can I call when we get back? I left my phone in my bag.”
Just as Harry nodded, his phone rang. “Hey, Nat.”
“Hi, I take it you made it to the cabin?”
“Yeah, Bray and I are canoeing for a bit before it gets dark. Can you do me a favor and let Mikey know we’re here?”
“Sure. Harry, I…”
“Did you see the news last night?”
“You know I never watch the news. It depresses me.”
“The Feds are looking for a suspect in my case.”
Brayden stared at Harry with his steel-blue eyes with his hands on his hips.
Natalie inhaled deeply into the phone. “Don’t talk to me about your case while you’re on vacation.”
“Okay, did you see—”
“I’m not listening. The reason I called is I’m sorry.”
“What could you possibly have to be sorry about? I’m the one that should be sorry. You never let me apologize for what happened with Rudy.”
“We can talk about that later, I forgive you.” Even though she had told him she forgave him, he knew she wouldn’t forget so soon. He deserved it.
“We canoeing or not?” Brayden asked.
“I gotta get going, Bray’s giving me the stink eye. But hey, when we closed up the cabin last fall, did you leave some bedding on the bed in the master?”
“Um,” she paused, “I don’t think—maybe, it’s possible. Why?”
“A blanket and sheet were left out on the bed.”
“Huh? I guess I must’ve then.”
“All right, well forget it. I’ll talk to you soon.”
“I know you’re doing your thing right now but can you call me later? I still need to talk to you.”
“Is there something I should be concerned about?”
“No. Just call me later.”
“Okay, talk to you soon.” Harry hung up after saying goodbye. “Grab an end of a canoe and help me carry it to the water.”
They took one from the bottom of the rack and hefted it to the edge of the water and flipped it over. The paddles were missing.
“How deep is it?” Brayden asked.
“It’s about four feet in the deepest part. You can swim, right?”
“Yep. My mom used to say I must’ve been a fish in a past life. Don’t we need oars or something?”
“Paddles. They’re in the house.” Harry jogged back inside, leaving the door open. The paddles weren’t behind the bedroom door. He searched the closet. A mothball smell smacked him in the face, reminding him of his grandmother’s house as a kid. Breathing through his nose, he located two paddles. He breezed out of the bedroom only to stop when the glass in the gun cabinet hadn’t rattled.
That’s odd.
Normally when someone walked by, the giving floorboards rattled the cabinet. Harry stuck his hand through the door where the glass should be. Shit! Now he understood why no one bothered to steal the canoes. Natalie’s ex, McDingleberry had had two guns stored in the cabinet. One was missing. He looked on the floor for pieces of glass, and nearly overlooked the two fragments against the base molding on the wall. He leaned over…
“Did you find them?”
Harry snapped upright, instinctively reaching for his gun that he had left in the trunk of his car, which Cedric was driving into town. He pivoted. Brayden stood inside the cabin by the door. “You startled me.”
“Yeah, okay, please don’t shoot me with your imaginary gun.”
Harry smirked. “I’ll try not to, deal?”
“Deal.”
They returned to the canoe. Harry instructed Brayden to sit in the front of the canoe. He pushed them away from the shore and only got his feet a little wet. The kid learned how to paddle quickly and before too long they were cruising along, close to the river bank. They wound around a few of the lazy bends. They neared the sandy beach, which really wasn’t a beach but a part where the river had once been wider. The water had long since dried up, leaving behind the sand from the riverbed. Harry steered them toward the beach.
They got out of the canoe and Harry pulled it halfway on the shore. “
Let’s park it on the sand for a while.”
Brayden took his shoes off and plopped down. Harry sat next to him. The place was so damn peaceful, he laid back with his hands behind his head and closed his eyes, letting the sun warm his face.
Water splashing surprised Harry. He sat up and Brayden was wading in the water with his pants rolled up above his knees. He looked up from the river. “Oh, you’re awake.”
“Was I sleeping?”
“Yeah. Snoring too.”
“Sorry. What time is it?” he muttered, pulling his cell from his pocket. Damn, it was almost 7:00 and they needed to get back. “Come on and get your shoes back on. We’ll walk back along the edge.”
“We’re not canoeing back?”
“Not upstream. See the rope at the front?”
“The red one?”
“We’re going to use it do tow the canoe back to the cabin.”
“Cool.”
“Sure is, unless you wanna carry it back.”
“Yeah right. No, I’m good.”
Harry chuckled.
CHAPTER
FORTY-THREE
“Through the woods to grandfather’s house we go.”
The killer said the words over and over, trekking through the woods toward the cabin he had been squatting in for weeks. After the first week, he was sick of the food from the vending machine he’d knocked over at a 24-hour truck wash. He easily shot out the security cameras when no one was around at three in the morning and raided as much snack foods as he could stuff into a pillow case.
The next week, he had found the Nifty Chef after hours of wandering alongside the freeway. There weren’t a lot of places to eat in a rural part of the Midwest. When he’d woken up this morning, he had some kind of intuition about the day, however his growling stomach had other plans, so he’d hitched a ride south.
Now he paid for his stupidity. Not only had the news been circulating his picture, Detective Harry Hunter chased him out of the diner. Where the fuck had he come from? There was no way the cop had followed him there, not with Mikey’s son in tow and the old guy with the cane from the kid’s party. Too much liability.