The Thanksgiving Trip

by Kathi Daley

  “It’s freezing,” I said as we exited the warm interior of the truck.

  “Do you want me to dig out your jacket?” Tony asked.

  I rubbed my hands up and down my arms. “No, I’m fine. I imagine this is where you check in. Once Mom gets the keys, we can head to the cabin and unpack.”

  The five of us entered the little store, which was well stocked for such a small enterprise. Mom gave the man behind the counter her name, and he produced a set of keys and a map. I wandered around, looking at the various items for sale, while Mike and Mom got directions to our cabin. I was happy to see the store carried all the staples one might need, including eggs, milk, bread, butter, and flour. I couldn’t help but notice the rows of chips, candy, and other junk food too. I guess I was hungry. It had been a long time since breakfast.

  “We’re all set,” Mike said as he walked up to me. “We’re on the opposite end of the lake. There’s a one-way road that will take us there. Do you need anything while we’re here?”

  “Maybe some chips.” I grabbed a bag. “I’m starving.”

  “Okay. We’ll head out to the truck while you pay for those.”

  I purchased my chips and Tony and I got back into his SUV. The one-way road was narrow, so the going was slow. After puttering along at five miles an hour for a good ten or fifteen minutes, Mike pulled up in front of a two-story house. Beyond it was a large deck, and beyond that a dock, which would be great in the summertime.

  “Wow, this is really nice,” I said. It was so quiet and peaceful. A lot like home, but different as well.

  “Let’s get this stuff unloaded and then we can take the dogs for a walk before the sun goes down,” Tony suggested.

  I opened the tailgate, and all three dogs jumped down. Of course, as was required of any new location, the dogs ran around sniffing at and peeing on everything in sight. I kept my eye on them as Tony carried the cat carriers into the house. We’d decided we’d let the cats out in our bedroom, with food, water, and a cat box, while the rest of the supplies were being unloaded. Once they got used to the room, and the vehicles were unloaded and the front door could be closed, I’d introduce them to the rest of the house.

  “We have a fireplace in our room,” Tony said when he came back outside. “In fact, the house has four suites, all with attached baths and fireplaces. The main living area has a huge rock fireplace that’s almost two stories high. When you said your mom had rented a cabin at the lake, I was visualizing something a lot more rustic.”

  “Me too,” I said. “I wonder why Mom got such a big place. It must be costing her a fortune.”

  Tony leaned over and kissed my neck. “I guess she realized privacy might be an issue with five adults living together for a week. Our room is on the second floor. If you want to check it out or need to use the facilities, I can keep an eye on the dogs.”

  “Thanks. I would like to check on the cats.”

  “Just take a left at the top of the stairs. There are two suites on each floor. We have the second-story suite to the left and Mike and Bree have the one to the right. Your mom is on the first floor.”

  I jogged into the house, found our room, checked on the cats, used the bathroom, then grabbed my jacket from the suitcase someone had dropped off. I headed back out to the hallway, where I ran into Bree.

  “Isn’t this fabulous?” she asked.

  “It is pretty spectacular,” I agreed. “I had no idea Mom had rented such a nice place.”

  “There’s even a hot tub on the back deck. And the kitchen. Did you see the kitchen?”

  “Not yet.”

  “It’s fabulous. When your mom said she planned to cook a full Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings, I wondered how she would pull that off in a cabin in the woods. But the kitchen is not only huge, the appliances look almost new.”

  “It does seem larger and newer than any of the other cabins. I suppose the man who owns the land might have wanted to start catering to larger groups.”

  “I guess that makes sense. It would be a nice place to have a family reunion or a corporate retreat.”

  I looked toward the stairs. “Tony and I are going to take the dogs for a walk before it gets dark. I didn’t see where Mom went, but if you could let her know we’ll be back in an hour, that would be appreciated.”

  “Sure. No problem. Have fun.”

  Tony and I both changed into our heavy boots and donned our heavy jackets, then set off along the lake trail with the three dogs. It appeared the pup had settled in just fine. I’d overheard Mike asking the man at the general store when we’d checked in if anyone was missing a puppy. Not that he knew of, he’d said, but he’d ask around and let us know if he heard anything. I’d also overheard him tell Mike that most of the cabins were vacant now, the café was closed until spring, and the little store was only open a few hours a day, from noon until four. During the winter, it was closed most Sundays and Mondays too, but he’d opened today because he knew we were checking in.

  I’m sure the lake was a fun place to be when the cabins were full and there were boats on the water, but I was just as happy for the quiet. “This is really nice,” I said to Tony as we walked hand in hand behind the dogs. “I can see why my dad came up here every year.”

  “It’s a beautiful location. And a lot more isolated than I expected. The little cabins around the lake seem just right, but the big cabin your mom rented seems somewhat out of place.”

  “It’s certainly larger and newer than anything else here. Bree and I wondered if it might have been added to accommodate larger groups.”

  “Makes sense.”

  Titan came running back to Tony and me with something in his mouth. It wasn’t the stick Tony had thrown but a hat. A baseball cap. “Where did you get that?” I asked the German shepherd as I looked around for Tilly and the pup, who seemed to have disappeared. “Tilly,” I called. My call was met with barking. “Come on back.”

  Tilly came running toward me from a location that was just out of sight because the lake curved and the trail merged into the trees.

  “Where’s the pup?” Tony asked.

  Tilly barked once, then turned around and ran back the way she’d just come.

  “We should follow her,” I said.

  We set off in the direction Tilly had run. When we rounded the corner and cleared the trees, we saw the pup standing at the edge of the water, looking at what seemed to be a man floating in the water.

  “Oh God,” I said, and Tony and I both waded in.

  Chapter 3

  Tony used his satellite phone to call 911 as soon as we realized we were much too late to help the man. We were told to wait with the body but not to disturb it. Of course, we were both soaking wet and it was freezing cold, so in the end we decided to call Mike and have him wait with the body while we went back to the cabin to change our clothes. By the time Mike had arrived to watch over the body and we’d walked the dogs back to the house, changed, and returned, the local police had shown up.

  “Who is it?” I asked Mike.

  “According to the officer who responded, the victim’s name is Doug Peterman. He’s a local who works as a maintenance man. He, along with his wife Gwen, clean and repair the cabins after each tenant moves out.”

  “How long has he been dead?” I asked.

  “My best guess is a day or two,” Mike answered.

  “A day or two? Did his wife report him missing?”

  “Apparently not. The police will follow up to see what she knows. The officer in charge has Conrad Bilson, the man who runs this place, on the phone right now. Let’s wait to see if he wants to speak to the two of you. Then we can head back and let the local PD do their job.”

  Tony and I stayed with Mike while the officer finished his call. As soon as he hung up, he came over to us.

  “Officer Holderman, this is my sister, Tess Thomas, and her boyfriend, Tony Marconi. They were walking their dogs when they came upon the body in the lake.”

  “I
understand you’re renting the retreat house,” Officer Holderman began.

  “If you mean the big house on the north end of the lake, yes,” I answered. “My mother rented it. We just arrived maybe twenty minutes before we set off to walk the dogs.”

  “According to Conrad Bilson, he’d last seen Mr. Peterson when he picked up the key to the house on Friday afternoon to clean it and do some minor repairs after the group from Techucom left that morning.”

  “Techucom?” I asked.

  “Bilson built the house on the north end of the lake to cater to groups, mainly corporations, looking for a place to hold corporate retreats. A tech company from California had rented the house for the past month. They just left, so, according to Bilson, he sent Peterson to get it ready for your arrival today. Did you happen to notice if there was any evidence of foul play when you arrived at the house?”

  “No,” I answered. “But I was only inside for a minute. I just went up to our room, checked on my cats, changed my shoes, and grabbed my jacket.” I looked at Mike. He’d been in the house the longest of any of us.

  “I had a good look around,” Mike said. “The door was securely locked when we arrived. I poked my head into all the rooms when I was unloading the luggage with the exception of the door behind the kitchen, which was locked.”

  “That’s the room a lot of the renters use as a conference or meeting room,” Officer Holderman informed us. “It’s mostly empty, with only a table and a monitor in it, so I’m not sure why it would be locked.” Holderman looked toward his men, who had just finished bagging the body. “I’m going to check with the others for a few minutes, then I’ll be going up to the house. The three of you are free to go. If I have any other questions, I’ll ask them when I arrive.”

  “What about the wife?” I asked the officer. “Doesn’t it seem odd that she didn’t report her husband missing?”

  “Bilson told me she’s been visiting her sister for the past few weeks. She isn’t due back until Tuesday. I’ll call her once I wrap things up here.”

  I’d never even met Doug Peterman, but I found his death had jarred me. I supposed it was natural to be upset after finding a dead body. Still, there was nothing I could do to change things, and this trip was important to my mother for reasons I still didn’t understand, so I vowed to do my best not to let the man’s death put too much of a damper on my mood.

  When we arrived at the house, the puppy ran over to Mike, wiggling and wagging his whole body. “Someone’s happy to see you.” I laughed.

  Mike bent over and gave the pup a pat on the head. “There, there, good boy. Now shoo.”

  The pup totally ignored the shoo part, instead sitting on Mike’s foot.

  “I think you have a new buddy,” Bree said.

  “He’s not my buddy; he’s just a stray,” Mike countered.

  “Maybe we should name him,” Mom said.

  “He doesn’t need a name,” Mike insisted. “I’m sure we’ll figure out where he belongs when we start asking around. Remind me to mention it to Holderman when he gets here.”

  “Holderman?” Mom asked.

  “Officer Holderman.” Mike walked over and stood in front of the fire Mom or Bree must have started while we were gone. “He’s coming by in a while to take a look at the house.”

  “Why does he want to see the house?” Bree asked.

  “It seems the last time the man was seen, at least the last time he was seen by Conrad Bilson, who owns this place, was Friday afternoon, when he stopped by the camp store to pick up the key. He was supposed to clean it and take care of a few minor repairs. He never returned the key, though Bilson did tell Officer Holderman that he wasn’t expecting him to do that until Saturday.”

  “The place looks clean,” Tony commented.

  Mike nodded. “True. Which means that whatever happened to him happened after he finished up here.”

  “Are we safe in the house?” Mom asked.

  “I’m sure we are,” Mike replied.

  “Do you know how the man died?” I asked.

  “It appears he was shot in the back. I’m assuming that was the cause of death.” Mike bent down and picked up the pup, who had been sitting on his foot the entire time we were talking. The pup wagged his tail and licked Mike’s face. Mike smiled before setting him back on the floor. Oh yeah; that pup had found a new daddy if the old one wasn’t located.

  “Should I start dinner?” Mom asked when there was a brief lull in the conversation.

  “I’d wait until after Holderman has his look around,” Mike answered. “He should be here any minute.”

  As if on cue, there was a knock on the door.

  “Come on in,” Mike invited him inside. “This is my mother, Lucy Thomas, and my girlfriend, Bree Price. You’ve met Tess and Tony.”

  “I’m sorry for the inconvenience,” Holderman said. “I’ll try to be quick so you can get back to your holiday.”

  “Do you know what happened to that man?” Mom asked.

  “Not yet, ma’am. How did you find the place when you arrived?”

  “It was clean, if that’s what you’re asking,” Mike answered. “If there was a group that left on Friday morning, I’d say Peterman cleaned the house and took care of any repairs before anything happened to him.”

  “You said the conference room was locked?” Holderman asked.

  “Yes. I tried the handle just after we arrived and it was locked,” Mike said. “I didn’t think much about it. I’ve rented houses before where the owner keeps a locked room for personal property.”

  “Do you mind if I take a look?” Holderman asked.

  “Help yourself.” Mike led the way to the room, although it was clear Holderman knew where it was.

  He tried the knob, which confirmed the door was locked. He took a tool out of his pocket and picked the lock. He opened it and stepped inside. Mike followed him, and I followed Mike. The others waited in the hallway.

  “It looks like someone’s been in here,” Holderman said as he looked around. “And he or she probably entered through the window.”

  I glanced at the window, which had been left open a crack. The screen had been removed and was on the ground outside. As Holderman indicated it would be, the room was empty, except for a long table surrounded by ten chairs and a computer monitor hanging on a wall.

  “Would the key Peterman picked up have opened this room?” I asked.

  Holderman frowned. “I’m not sure. I’ll need to check with Bilson.”

  “A few things aren’t lining up for me,” I said. “The room is empty, as you said it would be, so why lock it? And for the room to be entered from the outside, the window would have had to have been unlocked and maybe even partially open to get a grip on it. Why would it be open even a crack? It’s freezing.”

  “Tess is right,” Mike said. “It’s likely someone, probably Peterman, was working inside when someone arrived. Someone he was afraid of or wanted to avoid.”

  “So he locked himself in the conference room,” I continued Mike’s thought, “then opened the window and slipped out.”

  Officer Holderman bent over to take a look at the window lock. “That’s not a bad theory, although I don’t suppose it’s the only one possible. If that’s what happened, I’d say whoever Peterman was trying to avoid caught up with him.”

  We had the all-clear to go on with our evening and Holderman left. Tony, Mom, and Bree headed to the kitchen to get dinner ready, and Mike went outside to bring in more wood for the fire. And I went upstairs to check on the cats, who were still locked in the bedroom.

  “Sorry, guys,” I said as I entered the room. “It’s been a little hectic, but I think it’s okay to come out now.”

  I decided I’d move the food, water, and litter box down to the laundry room I’d seen off the kitchen. Hopefully, Mike’s new puppy wouldn’t harass the cats because I intended to set up the food and water for the dogs in the same room. Maybe I’d put the cats’ food as well as their beds on to
p of the long counter I’d seen so they could escape the dogs if they chose to. I was fortunate in that neither Tang nor Tinder were afraid of or intimidated by dogs in general. They were used to being around Tilly and Titan, and I didn’t think the pup would actually hurt them. He was interested in them for sure, but it seemed as if he just wanted to play.

  After I got all the animals settled, I went upstairs with the dog beds we’d brought for Tilly and Titan. I was going to suggest to Mike that he let the pup sleep in his room, but if he wasn’t willing to do that, I’d use the extra blankets I found in the hall closet to make up a bed near Tilly. In my mind I knew there was a good likelihood we’d find the pup’s owner, but based on the interaction between Mike and him, I had a gut feeling the two were meant to be together, even though neither Mike nor Bree had ever shown any interest in having a dog.

  By the time I made it back down to join the others, the kitchen elves had something wonderful smelling in the oven and Mike had a roaring fire crackling away in the fireplace.

  “What smells so good?” I asked.

  “It’s a baked ziti Tony threw together while I made us cheesecake for dessert and Bree made salad and sliced the rosemary bread,” Mom said.

  I could see I was going to have to do a lot of hiking on this trip if I wanted my jeans to fit as well at the end of it as they did today.

  “Wine?” Mike asked, holding up a bottle.

  “Please.” I accepted a glass. “I have Tony’s and my animals all settled, but we’ll need to use blankets to make up a bed for the pup.” I looked at him. “I thought we could put him in your room.” I glanced down at the puppy, who was sitting at his feet. “He seems quite taken with you.”

  Mike hesitated, and surprisingly, it was Bree who spoke up. “Yes, let’s put him in our room. You already have enough animals to trip over.”

  “Okay,” I said. “I’ll make up something after dinner.”

  “I think we need to give the little guy a name,” Mom repeated.

  “We aren’t keeping him,” Mike countered. “He’s just here until we find his owner.”