Farewell to Felines

by Kathi Daley

  “Not necessarily,” Siobhan replied. “For one thing, if you reduced the amount of fuel there you’d reduce the rate at which the fire would spread. Additionally, the proposal calls for an access road into and out of the hollow. A road would make battling a smaller fire possible from the ground.” Siobhan looked at me. “I know there are no easy answers, but I have to agree with Cody that sending these guys packing may not be as easy as you’d like.”

  Okay, this discussion had become seriously depressing. I couldn’t imagine the hollow with a road through the middle of it and I certainly couldn’t imagine the removal of a good percentage of the Madrona trees that gave our island its personality. On the other hand, it would be irresponsible not to consider the situation. The idea of a fire that local firefighters couldn’t even begin to battle was heavy indeed.

  “Okay,” I said. “I can see that this is a complex subject, so let’s leave solving it for another night. The real question is, do you think, after speaking to the men, that they’re responsible for tainting the water in the hollow to drive the cats away?” I asked Cody.

  “No. I don’t. They have no reason to take such a drastic step at this point. They have a very viable plan they haven’t even had the opportunity to present to the island council yet. Doing something as desperate as tainting the water supply would be extremely premature. The men I spoke to seemed to be the patient sort with a plan they’d stick to.”

  I rotated my shoulders to try to relieve the tension. “Assuming the logging company isn’t involved, what’s going on? Thea is dead, the water in the hollow has been tainted, and the grad student is missing and most likely dead. Who or what is behind this?”

  No one responded, I imagined because they didn’t have a clue.

  “I think we need to look at each incident in isolation at least one more time before we automatically connect them,” Cody said.

  Finn nodded. “We’ve talked about Thea quite a bit, so let’s switch gears and look at Travis Long. After his assistant came to the island looking for him I did some digging. Travis should have graduated from the University of Washington last year. He’d spent three years working on a project that ended up with inconclusive results. The doctoral committee couldn’t accept his dissertation as presented and he was allowed another year to come up with additional information to support it. This isn’t the first time he’s been on the island. I found lodging records that indicate he spent time here for short periods over the past two years. This stay, which was bordering on three months, was by far the longest. He seemed to have been focusing all his energy on our water quality; he hasn’t traveled to any other location since his dissertation was rejected last July.”

  “If his dissertation was rejected in July, what was he doing between then and three months ago, when he arrived here?” Siobhan asked.

  “He made several short trips to the island between August and November and arrived in mid-December to begin his current stay. I’d imagine long-term lodging at a reasonable price could have been a problem prior to that.”

  “Okay, so Long has been on the island for an extended stay. I’m assuming his presence is related to whatever’s going on in the hollow,” Siobhan said. “It sounds like he has a lot at stake. He must have felt like he hit the lottery when he happened across the tainted water.”

  “Unless he’s the one who tainted it,” I said. “Think about it. The guy was desperate. He couldn’t find in nature what he needed, so maybe he created an environment to support his hypothesis.”

  “Do we know what he’s trying to do?” Siobhan asked.

  “Beth said he’s working on some sort of a water purification system that can be used in natural settings such as a lake or pond and doesn’t require chemicals. I didn’t really understand it, but I think it involves a filtration system.”

  “So he’d need a tainted water source to provide a subject for his experiment,” Siobhan summed up.

  “Exactly. The water in the hollow has definitely been tainted. It not only smelled bad, it appeared cloudy. Beth said the smell could be due to sulfide gas in groundwater, which could be caused by rainwater being filtered by decayed vegetation, and we’ve discussed the vegetation in the area being dense. The thing is, natural tainting of the water would take time, and the water was fine when I visited the hollow last summer. The only conclusion I can come to is that something’s been added to the water recently, intentionally or unintentionally.”

  “And you’re suggesting Travis tainted the water to accommodate his experiment,” Siobhan said.

  I shrugged. “It’s possible.”

  “What about the wallet and the blood in his room?” Tara asked. “Both suggest he’s the victim here.”

  “What if he wasn’t assaulted? What if everything was planted?”

  “Why would he want to make it appear he’d been hurt or abducted?” Tara asked.

  I frowned. “I don’t know why he’d fake his own abduction. It really doesn’t make sense. But I think someone intentionally tainted the water; if not Travis or the men behind the logging operation, who?”

  “This is giving me a headache,” Siobhan said.

  “Let’s take a short break and then start fresh,” Cody suggested.

  I decided to take Max out for a quick run as long as we were taking a break. The air temperature had cooled quite a bit since the sun had set, so I put on a jacket. As soon as I opened the door Max ran out, and Apollo, who I hadn’t intended to take along, ran out after him. I figured it wouldn’t hurt to let the cat walk along with us, so I followed them down the beach. It was a beautiful evening, the sky clear and the air still. Unlike the huge waves we’d seen during the storm, tonight the waves rolled gently onto the sand.

  One of Max’s favorite things in all the world was chasing after sticks, so I picked one up and threw it down the beach. Apollo seemed content to walk by my side, and I found the tranquility of the moment did a lot to still the busyness of my mind. Life can be complicated and confusing at times, and it’s nice to know I always have the calming effect of the sea to keep me from stressing out completely. I was lucky to live on the water and couldn’t imagine being anywhere else. I guess I understood why Cassie wasn’t more excited about going off to college. I’d felt the same way when it had come time for me to select a path for my future. I’d had a hard time getting things started, but now I had Cody and the bookstore, and life was just about perfect.

  When we approached the edge of Mr. Parsons’s property, where the beach turned away from the peninsula to hug the island’s south shore, I paused and prepared to turn around. I called to Max, who ran back to me, but when I started walking back to the cabin Apollo didn’t follow.

  “Come on, kitty. It’s time to get back. The others will be waiting for us.”

  “Meow,” Apollo said before continuing in the direction in which we had originally been heading.

  I sighed and took out my phone to call Cody. “I’m trying to come back, but Apollo seems to have other plans. I’d better follow him.”

  “Okay, but stay on the line.”

  “Okay. Hopefully, whatever it is he wants to show me isn’t too far away.”

  I only needed to follow Apollo for about ten minutes before he stopped near an old pier that had rotted with age and mostly decayed. The pillars still stood and near the one farthest out in the water I noticed a dark object. I shone the flashlight from my phone toward it and then put the phone to my ear. “You’d better get Finn. I think Apollo just found Travis Long.”

  I sat down on the sand as a hollowness gripped my heart. I was really, really tired of all the death that seemed to find its way into my life. I knew it was somehow my calling and therefore my duty to act as a human catalyst for the cats, but there were times I was overcome with the emotions involved in such a task.

  By the time Finn and Cody arrived I had shed all the tears I needed to and was ready to do whatever the situation required of me.

  “He’s pretty far out,” Finn said.
/>
  “Mr. Parsons has a rubber raft he used to use for fishing and I use for diving,” Cody offered. “I’ll run there and get it. That way you can retrieve the body without getting too wet.”

  I stood up and walked over to where Finn was standing at water’s edge.

  “It’s too dark to make out any details. Why did you assume the body is Travis Long?” Finn asked.

  “For one thing, Apollo led me to him. For another, he’s missing, so it made sense the body in the water would belong to the missing person. And I just sensed we’d found him.”

  Cody returned with the raft and Finn rowed out to the end of the pier. He used a rope to attach the body to the raft and then rowed back to the beach. Once the body was ashore, Finn called the main sheriff’s office and reported the body. They would send someone to retrieve what was left of it.

  “I pulled his photo when he was reported missing,” Finn said. “I’d say based on an initial observation, this is the man from the missing persons report.”

  “It looks like he’s been in the water for a while. Several days at least,” I said.

  “The medical examiner will have a better idea of time of death, but I think you’re right,” Finn said. “Why don’t you go back and let Siobhan and Tara know what’s going on?” he suggested. “I’ll need to wait here until someone gets back to me about transporting the body. This most likely isn’t the actual crime scene, so the sheriff might just want me to bring the remains in rather than sending someone over from San Juan Island.”

  “I’ll go get the truck and bring it here,” Cody offered.

  “Thanks, I’d appreciate that.”

  Cody, the animals, and I set off back down the beach while Finn waited for his instructions. Life on the island was different from life in other places. More often than not, calling for backup meant waiting for reinforcements from one of the other islands. If the resident deputy could handle a situation on his own, usually he did.

  “Are you sure the body you found belongs to Travis Long?” Tara asked as Cody headed off with his truck and Max, Apollo, and I went inside.

  “Finn said he thought it was from a photograph he has, and I thought it was right away.”

  “What do you think this means?” Tara asked. “Where does it leave us? If he’s another victim does that mean he wasn’t the one to taint the water?”

  I took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “I wish I knew. At this point all I have are questions. It feels like everything is connected, but operating under that assumption to the exclusion of all others would hinder the investigation. For now, we need to focus on answers to specific questions: Who killed Thea Blane? Who killed Travis Long, assuming he was murdered and didn’t simply drown? Who’s tainting the water in the hollow?”

  “It’s getting late,” Siobhan said. “I think we should call it a night.”

  “I do need to get home,” Tara seconded. “Should we plan to regroup tomorrow evening?”

  “Sounds good to me. In the meantime, I think we should all spend some time with the three questions and jot down anything that comes to mind. Sometimes our subconscious has already figured out what our mind insists on muddying up.”

  Chapter 11

  Friday, March 16

  Who killed Thea Blane? Who killed Travis Long, assuming he was killed and didn’t simply drown? Who was tainting the water in the hollow? I spent half the night pacing the cabin trying to answer those questions. Cody had helped Finn transport the body and then gone to spend the night at Mr. Parsons’s house; he’d been away so much lately, he’d wanted to spend some time with him. When Siobhan and Tara left, it was only me alone with the muddy waters of my very confused brain.

  I tried to get some sleep, but all I managed were a few catnaps between all the pacing. Finally, I gave up, took a shower, and got ready to face the day. The problem was, when I went to make my morning pot of coffee I realized I was completely out. The only solution was to head over to the main house to see if Finn and Siobhan were up and had made coffee. I found Siobhan sitting at the dining table in her bathrobe talking to Cassie, who was dressed for school. Happily, there was a pot of coffee on the heating tray, so I helped myself and joined them.

  “You’re here early,” I said to Cassie. “Is everything okay?”

  “Everything is fine. I just had a hard time sleeping last night, going over all the college options in my head, so I thought I’d talk to the one Hart who’d been to college to find out what she thought.”

  “That was a good idea.” I looked at Siobhan who was sipping a glass of orange juice. “What do you think about Cassie’s dilemma?”

  “Personally,” Siobhan said, “I couldn’t wait to go to college. Mom and I were fighting, Finn was getting too serious too fast, which was making me feel trapped, and I wanted to get away from everything that was suffocating me. For me, college was my get-out-of-jail-free card. I left the island as soon after high school as I could, arguing that I needed to get set up before classes began, I met a couple of girls I had a lot in common with, joined a sorority, and the next four years were some of the best of my life. But Cassie isn’t me. She loves her life here. I left to escape, but for her, leaving represents giving something up.”

  I turned my attention to Cassie. “Are you any closer to a decision?”

  “No. I feel as confused as ever. Even if I do decide to go to college, which one, and what should I major in? The whole thing feels overwhelming.”

  “You don’t have to choose a major right away,” Siobhan said. “The first year can be about taking general education classes and finding your passion.”

  “I guess it would be fun to join a sorority. And I’m starting to like school. I just wish there was a college on the island, so I could go there and be home with my family and friends at the same time.”

  “So go to school in Seattle,” Siobhan suggested. “It’s close enough to come home every weekend if you want to, although once you make friends and get into the social aspect of college, I doubt you’ll want to.”

  “And if I hate it?”

  “If you try it and hate it you can quit. If you don’t try it you’ll always wonder.”

  Cassie smiled. She leaned over and hugged Siobhan. “Thanks. That helps a lot. I’m going to take another look at the University of Washington.” She stood up. “I need to get to school.” Cassie looked at me. “I told Tara I’d come in to help out at the bookstore after classes, so I’ll see you then.”

  After Cassie left I poured myself a second cup of coffee. “It seems like you really helped her.”

  Siobhan shrugged. “I just answered the questions she asked. I think Cassie knows what she wants deep down inside, but fear of the unknown is keeping her from making a decision. She’ll feel better and will probably even be excited about what the future holds once she commits.”

  “I could have used a big sister to talk to when I graduated high school.”

  Siobhan put her hand over mine. “I know. I’m sorry I wasn’t here for you.”

  I shrugged. “It’s okay. You had your own life to live and everything worked out okay.” I sat back in the chair. “I noticed Finn’s car is still here.”

  “He’s upstairs on the phone. He has to run over to San Juan Island this morning. He was scheduled to testify in a deposition next week, but it got moved to today.”

  “The timing could be better with two murders to deal with. At least I’m assuming Travis was murdered. Did Finn say when he got home?”

  “It appears Travis died from blunt force trauma to the front of the head. It’s possible he was on a boat and fell, hitting his head, which made him disoriented, which caused him to fall into the water and drown, but for now he’s going with murder. He should have a preliminary report from the ME later today.”

  I was about to respond when Finn walked into the room. “Anything new?” I asked.

  “I’m having Travis Long’s banking and phone records sent to me, as well as his student file from the University of
Washington. I wish I didn’t have to go to this deposition. I’d like to hit the ground running with this investigation.”

  “I have a baby doctor appointment this morning. I was planning to take the day off. If you want I can go over to your office and look through the files when they show up.”

  “That might be helpful,” Finn said as he pulled on his jacket. “You should be able to access them off the server. You know the password. If you find anything interesting text me. I’m not sure how long the deposition will take; sometimes these things drag on and on.”

  “I’ll call Willow to see if she can help out at the bookstore. If she can and Tara doesn’t need me today I’ll help with the research,” I offered my sister.

  “That would be great,” Siobhan answered. “I’m going to run upstairs to get showered and dressed for my appointment. If you can help me just meet me at Finn’s office. I should be there by ten-thirty.”

  I returned to my cabin and called Willow, who was fine with helping out for a few hours. I planned to take in the cats and help Tara open; Cassie would come in when she got off school at two-thirty, so Willow just needed to be there from ten-thirty to two-thirty. If it got really busy for some reason I’d just be down the street; Tara could text me and I’d come running.

  I made my arrangements, took Max out for a quick run, and saw to the cats in the sanctuary. Tending the cats was a big commitment when Maggie was away; they needed to be fed and played with twice a day, and there was all the cleanup to see to as well. Cody helped when he was around, but he had a lot on his plate as well, so I hated to ask. Perhaps I should talk to Danny about helping. He wasn’t really a cat person, but he wasn’t working at the moment, and he was living in Maggie’s house for free. He had the time and I didn’t suppose it was an absolute requirement that you love cats to feed them and clean a few cat boxes.

  After everyone had been fed and played with I started loading the cats I planned to take to the cat lounge today. I had a black feral who had been grumpy when he first arrived, but I had been spending extra time with him and felt he might be ready for a forever home if I could find the right person. On a whim, I decided to take him with me today and was loading him into the car when Danny pulled into the drive behind me.