On Tall Pine Lake

by Dorothy Garlock

  Maggie sat down across from Nona.

  “Do you want to eat? One hotcake or two?”

  After Mabel had given her a plate of food, the young girl didn’t do much more than pick at it. Occasionally, she’d glance up at her sister, but if Nona made eye contact, she’d quickly look away.

  Nona understood how Maggie was feeling. She had appeared to be frantic on the dock and had hovered over Nona’s bed like a mother hen for most of the night. There hadn’t been a chance for them to talk about their argument, about the harsh words that had been spoken, and Nona worried that Maggie blamed herself for what had happened. Guilt gnawed at her; the knot on the back of her head was no one’s fault but her own.

  “I believe I’ll go and fold some laundry,” Mabel said as a way of excusing herself from the room. After her footfalls had disappeared, the kitchen was silent except for the occasional clink of silverware.

  “I’m glad you’re better,” Maggie nearly whispered into her plate.

  “I just needed some rest.”

  “Nona, I . . . ,” she began, but a lump caught in her throat. When she finally looked up, her eyes were moist and her brow furrowed. “I was so afraid that you were gonna drown . . .”

  “Me, too, Maggie. Thankfully, Simon was there to help.”

  “But what if he hadn’t been there? I couldn’t reach you.”

  “Don’t worry about that. He was . . .”

  Before Nona could say another word, Maggie bolted out of her chair, rounded the table, and fell to the floor beside her sister. Her arms snaked around Nona’s waist and held on tight. Tears began to slide down her face. “I’m sorry, Nona!” she cried. “I’m sorry I made you run!”

  Her hands stroked Maggie’s hair, and she felt like the biggest fool on earth! She’d overreacted to her sister’s teasing and had lashed out at her. Sometimes she forgot that Maggie was still only fourteen years old.

  “Shhh,” she said softly. “It wasn’t your fault that I slipped.”

  “If I hadn’t run off you wouldn’t have gotten hurt!”

  “If I hadn’t opened my big mouth and said those hurtful things, you wouldn’t have had to run off in the first place.” With her hand, Nona lifted Maggie’s face until their eyes met. She smiled down gently. “I slipped on the wet dock because I’m clumsy, not because of you.”

  “I was scared,” Maggie said.

  “I was, too. If anything were to happen to you, it’d just kill me. You’re all the family I’ve got, you and Mabel, and a life without you wouldn’t be a life worth living.”

  “I’m still sorry.”

  “Not as sorry as I am,” Nona said, a tear of her own falling. She reached down and hugged her sister as tightly as she could.

  It was over an hour before Simon’s boots made loud thumps on the wooden porch to announce his return. Maggie had returned to her normal joking self, and she, along with Nona and Mabel, had been laughing and talking when the screen door opened and Simon entered the room.

  “So how did it go?” Mabel asked.

  “A couple of guys from Little Rock trying to find a place to do a little fishing. I told them that with the renovations it would be several weeks before we accepted guests again.” With a wry smile, he added, “I neglected to tell them that we’d just fished a dead body out of the lake. Didn’t think that would be good for business.”

  “Good thinking.” Mabel chuckled.

  “Do you think they were looking for Harold?” Nona asked. After everything that had happened, all who came to the camp were under suspicion. Were they responsible for Ernie’s death? Were they with the men in the boat who’d tried to get Maggie?

  “Harold?” Maggie asked in surprise.

  “I don’t think so.” Simon ignored Maggie’s question. “But that doesn’t mean that I don’t want the three of you to be extra careful. That especially means you, kiddo,” he said to Maggie.

  “Why me?”

  “Because I said so.”

  “What does this have to do with Harold?”

  Simon looked at Nona for approval to continue. They’d tried to keep things from Maggie, not wanting to worry her, but now she deserved to know the truth. Nona nodded.

  “Your half-brother took money from a bank,” Simon said, putting a hand on Maggie’s shoulder and giving it a light squeeze. “He hid the cash and these men think you and your sister might know where Harold or the money is.”

  “Did he rob the bank?”

  “Not with a gun.”

  “He took the money from the bank where he worked,” Nona explained.

  “That sounds like Harold, the creep,” Maggie said matter-of-factly. The three adults in the room were surprised at the girl’s statement. “Don’t look so surprised,” Maggie continued. “It didn’t take much to figure out Harold is so crooked he’ll have to be screwed in the ground when he dies. I’ll be surprised if we get any of the money Daddy left us.”

  “You never said anything about this,” Nona exclaimed.

  “I never needed to. We had other things on our minds.”

  “My little sister is growing up.”

  After they’d chatted awhile longer, Maggie got up from the table and went back to the room she shared with Nona. Simon took a seat at the table and motioned for Mabel to join them. “Sit down. I think it’s time we cleared the air around here a little.”

  Nona took a long look at Simon. His features had taken on a no-nonsense appearance. His face had an inherent strength. His green eyes searched hers questioningly. It made her conscious of her unruly hair, her bruises, wrinkled blouse, shiny nose, and colorless mouth. She looped a strand of hair behind her ear and folded her hands on the table.

  “Feel all right?” Simon asked her.

  “I’m fine.”

  “That’s good.” He paused before continuing, “There’s something that I haven’t told you ladies yet. I didn’t tell you that it was my Grandpa Wright who owned the bank where Harold was working. It was his vault that held the bank money and jewelry that had been placed there for safekeeping by a depositor.”

  “Oh no!” Mabel exclaimed.

  “Why didn’t you tell me this when you told me Harold was your cousin?” Nona asked angrily. Everywhere she turned there were surprises!

  “Because I was hoping I wouldn’t have to tell you.”

  “But wait,” Mabel said. “If your mother and Harold’s mother were sisters, don’t you have the same grandfather?”

  “No. My Grandpa Wright was my father’s father.”

  “It’s all so confusing. I should have known it was too good to be true when my ex-boss told me about this job. You had no right to manipulate us the way you did!” Nona scolded.

  “You’re right, I didn’t,” Simon admitted. “But let me ask you a question. If you had known my connections with Harold and my grandfather’s bank, would you have accepted this job?”

  “That’s beside the point.”

  “No, it’s not. It’s exactly my point. I did what I had to do to get you here.”

  “I can’t believe you! I don’t believe Harold thought Maggie and I would be put in any danger.”

  “Then you don’t know him half as well as you think you do.”

  Chapter 12

  FRUSTRATED, FRANK POUNDED on the steering wheel with both fists as the car bounced down the road. His bald head glistened with sweat and his face grew redder by the second. Life in the sticks was getting to Frank, and his frustration had begun to boil over.

  “I think we should stay out of sight for a while,” Webb said.

  “I’m tellin’ you, we’re gonna do somethin’ and we’re gonna do it soon.” After another blow against the wheel, he added, “Let’s grab the kid the first chance we get, she’s gotta know something. She’ll have to use the can sometime, and when she does . . .”

  “I won’t be part of a kidnappin’.”

  “How the hell else are we gonna find out what they know?”

  “Beats the hell out of me,” Web
b groused. “We’ve been out here too friggin’ long. Besides, I can’t think worth a damn when my stomach’s growlin’. I gotta eat somethin’ soon.”

  “Damn, you’re a pain in the ass!” Frank sneered. “They’re lucky we ain’t in Chicago. I’d just kick in the door, snatch that brat, and make her talk. When we were done with her, we’d sell her on the street or dump her in the lake.”

  Webb looked out the window at the passing landscape to keep Frank from seeing the look of revulsion on his face. Frank was a member of a mafia that had no fear of the law. They’d bought and forced their way into high places. Out here, it was different. Get on the wrong side of the men in these parts and they’d come after you vigilante style. They’d been known to throw a rope over a tree and hang a man. If he wanted to keep his bones inside his skin and his head on his shoulders, he had to be careful.

  It was nearly noon when they drove into town. Usually, there were few people around; most were home for lunch this time of day. Today was different. Groups of excited men and women gathered, talking loudly and gesturing wildly.

  “What the hell’s goin’ on?” Frank asked.

  “Beats me.”

  Frank brought the truck to a stop in front of the bank and hollered at an older man in overalls. The old man hobbled over and spat a wad of tobacco out onto the sidewalk. He put his arm on the truck’s cab and smiled, showing his stained, uneven teeth.

  “What’s goin’ on?” Webb asked.

  “Found a fella floatin’ out in Tall Pine Lake. Sheriff said that he’d been beat somethin’ fierce. Don’t nobody know who it was but that hadn’t stopped people from guessin’.” The old man spat again. “Town like this needs somethin’ to jaw about.”

  “Thanks,” Frank said and drove on.

  “Reckon it was Ernie? After all, he didn’t show up last night.”

  “If it was, that’ll take care of him.”

  They stopped in front of the diner with a faded sign naming it “Alice’s” hanging above the door. Inside, Webb and Frank sat on the two remaining bar stools at the scarred counter and looked at the hand-printed menu on the blackboard hanging on the wall. Frank ordered a cup of coffee, while Webb ordered two hamburgers and a bowl of chili.

  “I don’t see how you can eat that shit,” Frank growled.

  After the waitress had brought their orders, Webb dug heartily into his. He didn’t give a damn what Frank thought. He hadn’t eaten anything except pork and beans, salami sandwiches, and potato chips for a week.

  The waitress brought Webb a dish of crackers, and when he looked up to thank her, he took a good look. She was certainly overweight. She reminded him of a sack of potatoes with a string tied in the middle. Her eyes lingered on him.

  Webb smiled easily. She was obviously embarrassed that he had caught her looking at him. She lowered herself down, putting one pudgy arm on the countertop. “Did you hear about the man they found out in Tall Pine Lake?”

  “Not a word,” Frank butted in. “Who was it?”

  “I’m not really sure, but the sheriff was in here earlier and he mentioned that the fella’s wife was staying out at the camp. I guess they’d been staying there for a couple of weeks.”

  “Poor guy likely fell outta a boat,” Webb said before putting a big spoonful of chili in his mouth.

  “That isn’t what the sheriff was saying,” the waitress explained. Webb smiled to himself; just let her keep talking. “He said the man was beat up pretty bad before he was dumped in the lake.”

  “I’d bet your one-horse sheriff wouldn’t know his own ass from a hole in the ground,” Frank said drolly before taking a gulp of his coffee.

  “Does this sort of thing happen often?” Webb asked.

  The waitress turned her glare from Frank and looked Webb straight in the eyes. He knew that she found him attractive, when compared to what Home had to offer, and he could use that to his advantage.

  “Oh, the lakes around here get one or two a year. Some people don’t have any brains at all when they get out on the water. How about you two? Are you here to fish?”

  “I’m all thumbs when it comes to rods and reels.” Webb laughed. “No, we’re just here long enough to see the sights.”

  “That’s too bad.” The waitress frowned. “But if you’re around, there’s a dance every Saturday night over at the Grizzly Bear.”

  “You don’t say,” Webb said, trying to make himself sound excited. “If we’re still in town, I’ll try to stop by.”

  Frank dropped his empty cup onto the counter. “Get our check, girl.”

  The waitress wrinkled her nose at Frank like he was last week’s garbage. “Yes sir, Your Majesty. Right away.” She winked at Webb and left the counter.

  “Little bitch,” Frank growled.

  When the waitress returned with the bill, Webb picked up his hat. With a nod and a wink at the waitress, he said, “Thanks, honey.”

  “You’re welcome,” the woman answered with a sigh.

  The two men walked to the door and exited to the street. “You sure as hell gave her a thrill,” Frank said. “I doubt anyone in this town’s ever called that cow ‘honey.’”

  “My mama always said you catch more flies with honey than vinegar.” They stood on the sidewalk in the afternoon sun, neither man moving toward their car on the other side of the street. Finally, Webb spoke. “You think that body they found in the lake was Ernie?”

  “I ain’t gonna assume anything,” Frank argued. “But we gotta find out, one way or the other. If it is him, we gotta know if it was an accident or if someone killed him.”

  “Who do you think did it?” Webb looked at Frank with suspicion.

  “That’s something we gotta find out. If Wright did it, that means Ernie might’ve told him about us. We’re gonna have to be careful or we’re gonna end up floatin’ in the lake ourselves. We’re gonna ask around. People in this town like to talk, just like that fat cow back in there.” Frank jerked his thumb back toward the diner. “You go down to the bar, order a drink or two, and start listenin’ to what you can pick up. Somebody’ll talk.”

  “What are you gonna do?”

  “I gotta make a call. Chicago’ll wanna know what’s happenin’.” He took off his hat and wiped his brow. His shoulders slumped as he said, “They ain’t gonna like this one bit.”

  An hour later, Frank returned to the car in a black mood. He’d talked to the head man who hadn’t been at all pleased with what Frank had told him. They were becoming impatient to get their hands on Harold and the money. He hadn’t been concerned over Ernie’s death.

  “Just as well,” the man had said, “you would’ve had to off him anyway.”

  Frank hopped into the car, drove to the other side of town, and stopped in front of the Grizzly Bear Tavern. Webb stood out front talking to a middle-aged man who looked, even at three o’clock in the afternoon, as if he’d had too much to drink. Webb nodded to the man before walking over and getting in the car.

  “Find out anything?” Frank asked before speeding out of town.

  “That fella was sayin’ the deputy told him they didn’t have a clue who’d killed the man. ‘Bout the only thing they did know was that he hadn’t just fallen out of the boat and drowned. Whoever it was beat the shit out of him.”

  “Huh,” Frank grunted.

  The hot summer wind flew through the open window and struck Webb in the face. For the briefest of moments, he longed for the wide-open spaces and simple life of west Texas and the hometown he’d left behind. How in the hell have I ended up here?

  Frank turned the wheel recklessly, sending the car whipping around the blind turns, its wheels sliding on the loose rock. Webb asked, “What’d the big man have to say on the phone?”

  “They act like we ain’t got no more worth than Leasure,” Frank seethed. “If it was you or me floatin’ in that lake, they wouldn’t give a shit as long as the other one found the money.”

  “What did you expect?”

  Ignoring the que
stion, Frank kept complaining. “We could just walk over there and take what we want if it weren’t for that son-of-a-bitchin’ Wright. He’s the problem.”

  “He ain’t but one man.”

  “Yeah . . . but he’s got a hell of a lot of connections.”

  “Then what do you plan to do?”

  Frank was silent for a moment, his hands gripping the steering wheel so tightly that his knuckles became white. “We’re gonna do what I told you about.”

  “We’re gonna snatch the kid?” Webb’s eyes narrowed as he turned to look at Frank’s profile.

  “You got a better idea?” the older man growled.

  The thought of grabbing the girl sickened Webb. He’d been told to come to this backwater place to find the missing money and jewelry, not to take part in kidnapping some kid. Still, they weren’t any closer to finding the money. “I guess not,” he muttered.

  “We’ll snatch her and make her talk. If she don’t tell us what we wanna know, her prissy sister will. We don’t even need to take her far, just out in the woods. Hell, if she don’t talk, we’ll leave her overnight. By mornin’ she’ll be so scared that she’ll be singin’ like a canary. Then we’ll get the hell outta here.”

  “All right, but I ain’t gonna stand by and let you hurt her.”

  “Goddammit, Webb! Get some balls!” Frank barked. “We’ve only got a few more days here. If we don’t have somethin’ to report soon, they’re gonna pull us out. Ain’t but one thing happens when the boss ain’t happy.”

  “Yeah,” Webb groused. “We end up in Lake Michigan.”

  “Exactly. You remember that next time you’re feelin’ squeamish!”

  Jack stood next to the door while LeAnn wrapped a light shawl around her shoulders. He’d offered to walk her back to her cabin to retrieve a few things. “Don’t worry,” Jack said to Simon. “I’ll check the place before she goes in.”

  “Don’t let her out of your sight,” Simon said. “There’s a murderer around here someplace.”

  “We’ll be careful.”