“Hi! Gabe Crane.” He offered his hand in greeting. “I’ll pass on the coffee. Good to see someone up here in the old mill.”
“Kelly. Kelly Franchetti. Nice to meet you, Gabe. Excuse the way I look. I just woke up. What brings the police by this morning?” His hand was large and strong. I wouldn’t say it was rough, but it wasn’t soft like the hands of the male teachers I know and most of the ill-fated dates I’ve had.
Gabe tapped the patch on his short sleeve shirt. “Wisconsin DNR, I’m a conservation warden, not exactly the police.” He looked me right in the eye. “And you look just fine to me, Kelly.” There went the smile again, making me weak at the knees. “I was going to walk the creek.” He pointed to the stream feeding the mill pond. “The road ends here at the mill. You have to hike the rest of the way, but I got sidetracked. I spotted some unusual tracks along the shore.”
“Unusual tracks? Like what?” Barney and his super-sized frog feet left weird tracks. I was still wondering if he was just being polite or if he meant what he said about my appearance being fine. Did Gemma’s little kitty spell work?
“It was probably a swan. Something with very large webbed feet. I’m sure it’s nothing to worry about. I was just curious myself. I’ve never seen swans up on the hillside. What about you? What’s a nice girl like you doing in this old mill? I didn’t even know it was for rent or sale.”
“I’m staying up here for the summer with my friend. We’re from Chicago. It’s sort of a business trip. This place was arranged for us. We just got here yesterday, and so far, I really like the old mill and what little I’ve seen of the town. I’m hoping to do a bit more exploring today.”
“Oh…well, let me be the first to welcome you and your boyfriend, I mean friend, to Caldron Falls.”
I laughed at his not-so-subtle inquiry into my relationship status. “Very effective intentional slip up. Not a boyfriend. Just Ezzy, who is one of my best friends. And please let the official report reflect that we are both completely unattached.” This was promising. He wouldn’t have asked about my relationship status if he wasn’t more than a little interested in me.
Thanks to Gemma, Gabe was apparently fooled into thinking I was set for a brisk morning walk or run. “How’d you like to come with? Up along the creek?”
My eyes literally popped wide open. “Sure!” I set my coffee cup down on a little black iron bistro table that had seen better days. For a brief few seconds, I thought of the little bistro table in my garden at home and the ghost sighting I experienced. I shook off the uneasy memory, happy to be where I was, and invited to go on a walk with the incredibly handsome man before me. “Lead the way, Gabe.”
Gabe’s smile was genuine and appreciative. We walked down to the pond in silence, at first. I was waiting for something witty to come to mind, something about natural resources. I’m an English teacher, after all. I should have been able to ad lib a forty-five minute American literature lesson on Thoreau and his views of nature and the human existence. But I was out of my classroom element. The path before us narrowed for a way, and Gabe walked in front of me. All I noticed was what a nice ass he had, and shoulders, and how his strong neck rose from them.
“So what do you do, Kelly? Down in Chicago.”
“I teach middle school English. So this is my summer break. My friend, Ezzy, has gotten involved in a business venture…I guess you could say it’s offering counseling through new age spiritualism.” It was a quick, obscure way to cover our witchcraft.
“You mean like crystals and Paganism and that sort of stuff?”
“Oh…not quite like that. You could say she’s more of a life coach who approaches things with a different philosophy.” Not only was I concealing Karma Inc., I realized I was somewhat distancing myself from the business. I really liked Gabe and since I had just given him the notion that Karma, Inc. was nothing more than some new-age life coach business, the last thing I wanted to do was to paint myself as a Millie Kovacs style hippy. I had no idea what sort of dealings a DNR warden may have had with someone like that. What a web we weave.
“Interesting. English teacher? You know, it was reading Thoreau in high school that got me interested in conservation.”
“See? There is some value to teaching the classics! What else makes up Gabe?” We were walking side-by-side once again. “Are you from here? Family?”
“Yep. Born and raised. My entire family is from this little twelve square mile area.” Gabe waved an arm out. “Some people would wonder why I wouldn’t want to leave. The fact is, I’m perfectly at home here. As long as I can be outside, in the woods like this…then I’m content. Protecting this place is perfectly natural for me.” Gabe looked at me and smiled. “And in case you’re wondering, I’m completely single.”
“Hmmm. What a coincidence.” I laughed. We continued on the path that wove between the trees along the creek’s bank. The forest seemed more dense and wild as we went further upstream. “So what are we going up here to look at, exactly?”
“There’s a spring a little further ahead that’s the source of this creek. I come up here periodically to check it out. Not that there has ever been any problems, but it’s such an important part of the watershed. If someone were to dump trash or interfere with the spring in any way, it would affect the entire creek, the river, and the lakes. Besides, wait until you see it. It’s beautiful and it’s warm.” I noticed the trees were thinning out ahead. After a few short yards, we had arrived. The pond of water was about the size of a football field and amazingly clear. Surprisingly, I could see clear through to the bottom of the pond. Beams of sun were tinged in faint blue and reached down into the abyss. There were no weeds or other visible vegetation. Only a few old tree trunks and small branches rested like shipwrecks on the white limestone bottom. Massive fish swam in lazy circles.
“Wow. Just wow. I see what you mean. It is beautiful.”
“The Ojibwe called this place Ishpeming. It means heaven. I think they had the perfect name for it.” Gabe lifted some cedar boughs, revealing a large wooden box that was secured by a padlock. He opened the large wooden box with one of his keys and retrieved two life jackets and a canoe paddle. He handed me a life jacket. “You’ll need to put this on.”
I donned the life jacket and must have had quite a puzzled look on my face when I looked around. “For what?”
“This.” Gabe lifted another pile of boughs, uncovering a red fiberglass canoe. I watched him expertly set the canoe in the water, holding one end up on the shore. “Ready? Hop in.”
I didn’t hesitate, although I wasn’t really prepared for the unstable situation I found myself in. Gabe held the canoe with one hand and took my hand with the other. The canoe rocked back and forth, and I didn’t quite take a seat as I pretty much fell down on one. Gabe shoved the little craft from the shore, simultaneously hopping on board with a single stride. He dipped the paddle into the water cautiously, trying not to make too much of a disturbance on the glassy surface. “Look down, Kelly. If you look to the right of the old cedar tree down there? Watch how the floor of the spring seems to change shape.”
I watched the sand and stones swirling around. The sands shifted to create unique azure and emerald hues. “Yeah. It’s hypnotizing, really. It’s absolutely beautiful.”
“I know. It’s like invisible mermaids have their own Zen garden.” His imaginative description made me smile. “That’s the deepest spot, about forty feet down. There are fissures in the limestone where the water rushes out at a nearly constant pressure and temperature. At fifty-five degrees, it’s chilly in the summer, but still above freezing, so in winter it never freezes up.”
“Ouch! Fifty-five degrees is too cold to swim in, unfortunately.”
“I swim in here sometimes, on a warm day. The only thing is…I don’t want to accidentally add any artificial dyes or chlorine, so I choose to swim au naturel.”
I laughed, but I couldn’t help picturing Gabe swimming through the clear water in all of his naked glory.
I nearly bit my lip off. “Be my guest. I wouldn’t mind.” I winked. “Not at all,” I flirted.
“Oh no. We just met. I’m not that easy! I won’t go skinny dippin’ with you until you’ve gone out to dinner and a movie with me.”
“Good answer, Gabe. If you would have stripped, I would have been disappointed. It would make me wonder if you do that with every girl you bring here to your perfect blue lagoon.”
“What? Oh, not at all. Actually, you’re the first girl I’ve been here with. I’ve been up here with some guys before.” Gabe fumbled for words. “No. Not like that. I mean, I’ve come up here with friends when I was a kid. The only girl I’ve been here with was my grandma. But what do you say?”
“About? Swimming?”
“No. I mean, will you go out to dinner and a movie with me?”
I leaned back, savoring the moment. The hottest guy ever was asking me out, and he was a little off his footing. This was a first. I planned to take full advantage of the situation and enjoy every second of it. “Seeing that you have me out in a canoe, I don’t think I have much of a choice but to say yes.” I smiled. He was just too adorable to play hard to get with. “Gabe, I want to thank you.”
“What for?”
“Taking me out here. I can tell this place is really special to you. It says a lot about you.”
Gabe smiled instead of awkwardly dismissing my gratitude, like some people do. Instead, he told me a little story that was perfect for the moment. “There’s an old Ojibwe legend about this place. They say if you take a piece of birch bark, pour a little honey on it, and dip it in this spring…well, the person you give it to will love you with all their heart, forever.” Rays of sunlight danced across the water, creating a luminous blue glow. The otherworldly light reflected in Gabe’s soft brown eyes, turning them nearly golden. I considered asking him where he’d been all my life. Butterflies danced in my belly, my heart fluttered, and for the first time in my life, I questioned my conviction that true love was just a myth propagated by the greeting card industry.
“Hmm. I better be wary of men bearing gifts of wet and sticky birch bark then.” We laughed together, and I tried to give him my best sultry look. I shielded my eyes from the sun with my hand while I watched the shoreline.
“What are you looking for, Kelly?”
“Oh, just wondering if there are any birch trees close by. A girl never knows when she might want a little bark.”
Chapter Twenty
Gertie Arrives
Our magical moment and the silence of the surrounding woods was interrupted by a very familiar voice drifting up from somewhere in the forest. It was none other than a girl’s Irish accent that I was happy to hear. “Where are you, Mama? I’ve got your babies here!”
“Oh God.” I scanned the shoreline. “Gertie?” I called out. I still couldn’t see her.
“Well, look at you! You’re here for one day and you’ve already found a cute boy to rock your canoe.” Gertie appeared on the edge of the spring. “I’m still not sure what it means, but it seemed like a good time to use that phrase of yours. You know, rock your canoe.”
I slapped the palm of my hand on my forehead, Gabe laughed, but then his face suddenly turned serious. Dead serious. “What does she have under her arms?”
“What? Gertie, what do you have there?” I tried to make sense of the black bundles under her arms.
“Two wee bear cubs. The poor babes lost their momma. I’ve been lookin’ for her.”
Gabe paddled and this time without regard for displacing the mirror-like surface. “Oh shit! Put those cubs down!”
A monstrous adult black bear charged through the bushes, Gertie swiftly heeded Gabe’s request. The cubs sprinted to their mother, taking cover behind her. Momma bear paused to confirm her babies were unharmed before resuming her charge.
“Play dead, Gertie!” I yelled some sage advice I thought I heard once before. Gertie dramatically acted out a death scene and dropped limply to the ground.
“No! Don’t play dead!” Gabe roared as the canoe came to a sudden jolting stop on the shore. He sprang into action, waving his arms, shouting like a madman. Gertie was miraculously resurrected and came toward me in leaps and bounds. She zipped right past Gabe, who ironically looked like a Salsa dancer on angel dust. The bear attempted to flank him, wanting to pursue its primary target, Gertie. She stood in front of me, trying to speak, but her lips only trembled as she mumbled something unintelligible. Her shaking hand held her little broom out in front of her and abruptly she vanished in a puff of pink smoke. While Gertie was performing her panicked spell, the bear stopped in its tracks, stood up on its hind legs, sniffed, snorted, and bellowed. Gabe only shouted with more ferocity. The bear dropped to all fours, and momma bear and babies bolted into the darkness of the woods at the exact moment Gertie disappeared.
Gabe bent over, bracing himself with his hands on his thighs. He took a few deep breaths. “Oh man, that was close. Was she one of your friends?” Gabe looked around.
“Yep. That was Gertie. Once she ran past you, she never stopped. At the rate she was moving, she might be halfway to Chicago by now.” I said a silent thanks to Gertie for using her magic before Gabe turned around.
“Make sure you let your friends know that we have real wild animals here. Not just deer and squirrels. There are bears, wolves, the occasional cougar…other things.” There was something strange about the way he said “other things”. At the time, I didn’t know what he meant, and I’m not sure he would have told me if I asked.
Gabe returned the canoe to its concealed location before stowing the paddle and lifejackets. On our walk back to the mill, we had a little more time to talk. “Has anyone ever suggested doing something to preserve this area around the springs? It would be a real loss if some developer got in here to commercialize it.”
“It would be a disaster. There’s no way the area around the spring could support any sort of excavation or any sort of construction. It would completely ruin it…forever. The land up here is owned by the same family who owns the mill, the Vodnik family. They’ve owned it for generations. The state has reached out several times to purchase it. Private trusts that are involved with conservation have, too, but the family has never budged.”
“That’s a shame.”
“I suppose the silver lining is they haven’t considered offers from developers either. All that remains of the family are an elderly couple. I’ve never talked to them, but I’ve seen them around occasionally. They always smiled and waved, like they welcomed my visits up to the spring. They seem to be very active. The word around town is they left to go on some sailing trip around the world and won’t be back until next year. Once I heard that news, I decided to come up here more often, to make sure nobody was disturbing the land. I’d do just about anything to preserve this place. The only threat right now is Mr. Catania. He’s been buying up land like crazy around here, and I can guarantee you he has his sights set on this area as well.”
“That man sure seems to be the central power for Caldron Falls.”
“I suppose. I don’t care for his business practices much,” Gabe replied quietly. “Have you met Henry yet?”
“No. I haven’t met anyone by that name yet.”
“I’m sure you will soon enough. He’s the caretaker of the place. He’s pretty old, but gets around well enough. He doesn’t say much at all. Sort of an odd, old bird. Your friend must have made the rental arrangements with him. You’ll know when he comes around. He comes all the way up here from town in a very noisy riding mower. It’s about a four mile trip.”
“That’s good to know, in case anything needs repairs or if we have any questions. He must be the one who talked to Gisele.”
“Gisele?”
“Yeah, she’s the one who set Ezzy and I up with this whole business plan and suggested Caldron Falls. She had the mill already rented for us when we got here. Do you know her?”
“Nope. Never met anyone by that name. Other
than Henry and the Vodniks, you’re the only other person I’ve seen here.”
We took our time walking back down the creek, toward the old mill, but it didn’t help. It’s one of those mysteries of the universe, the way time passes too quickly when you’re having a great time. Once we arrived in the parking area in front of the mill, Gabe took my hand. Now, he could have done what most guys do after meeting. He could have just said something like “Nice meeting you. See you later.” Or vanilla goodbye words to that effect. But Gabe felt what I felt out in the canoe. His hand was warm and gentle. “Thanks for coming with me, Kelly. It was really nice. Listen, I know we just met and I normally wouldn’t say this, but…”
“No, go ahead. Say it!” I urged. Whatever Gabe wanted to say, I was certain it would be good.
“I felt, I feel, something special. With you. It’s nice, you know?”
“Yeah, I know. I feel exactly the same.”
“So, Kelly…can I pick you up tomorrow about six?”
“I’ll be right here, waiting.” I smiled. He was still holding my hand. I know it would be too much to hope we would kiss, but I hoped all the same.
“Here. Take my card. It has my numbers on it. If you or your friends ever see anyone coming around, looking for the spring, just call me. Of course, you don’t have to wait for something like that to give me a call.” At that moment his phone wailed out the most annoying noise.
“Excuse me. Emergency call.” He plucked the phone from the case on his belt and walked away. Gabe’s calm, romantic mood was replaced with urgency. “Gotta run. I don’t know what it is about bears today, but a sow with two cubs managed to find her way into Larry’s Super Value and they’re ripping the bakery section to shreds.” Gabe jogged to his truck and hopped in. He poked his head out as he drove away. “See you tomorrow, Kelly!”
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