Murder in Mountain Springs

by Alene Anderson

  “A s-snake,” she stammered.

  “Is that all?” He couldn’t help but laugh. He knew from his research there were no poisonous snakes in the area. “Come on, let’s go find it and I’ll get rid of it for you. That is, if your screaming hasn’t already scared it away.”

  “Oh, I can’t.” She clutched at his arm. “I couldn’t stand to see it again. Oh, dear, why did I ever buy this place? No one warned me there were snakes.”

  “Come on, Doll.” He laughed again. “You have too big an investment in this place to lose it all just because you’re afraid of a snake. It’s probably just a garden snake.”

  “Don’t make me go back in there,” she begged.

  He gave his arm a small jerk and she released it. Heading for the cabin, he called back over his shoulder.

  “Where exactly was it?”

  “O-On the table in the living room, curled around the vase.”

  He could feel her right behind him until they reached the open door. Then she stopped. When he stepped inside he saw the small snake immediately. It appeared to be sunning itself in the bright sunlight that poured in through the window.

  Picking it up, he turned to take it outside.

  “Aren’t you going to kill it?” Kate asked in a weak voice. She stepped back and he walked a few feet away from the cabin where he leaned over to release it by a large rock.

  “No, I wouldn’t want to upset the balance of nature,” he answered.

  “Balance of nature?”

  “Every creature has its place in nature. That snake eats the bugs that would destroy your plants and flowers, that is, if you had any.”

  He looked around the cabins and the lodge, which were devoid of any plant life that might brighten up the place. In his mind’s eye, he could see colorful flowers growing around the buildings.

  “Why aren’t there any flowers?” he asked.

  “I’m not very good with flowers and plants,” she admitted ruefully. “I usually end up killing them.”

  “I think it’s safe for you to finish up your chores now.” He smiled.

  “Would you come in with me and make sure there aren’t anymore?”

  She gave him a pleading look and he could tell she was totally sincere.

  “Okay, Doll, I’ll do it this one time but don’t expect me to do this every morning. I didn’t come to Mountain Springs to work the snake patrol.”

  “Never mind,” she said. “It’s my problem and I’ve got to learn to deal with it.”

  She stepped inside and closed the cabin door. As he waited to see if there would to be any more screams from Kate, he lit up a cigarette and studied the mountain where Hank had told him the old hunting lodge was. He was pretty sure it was the place he had seen with the security gate the first day he had arrived in town.

  Finishing the cigarette as Kate came out of the cabin, he watched her move on to the next one without glancing his way. He couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed she no longer seemed to need him to protect her from some other form of nature lurking about. Something she had obviously never had to deal with in her previous life.

  She was one gutsy lady giving up her former lifestyle and starting on a whole new venture. He wondered why she hadn’t used her teaching degree instead of picking something she obviously had no experience with whatsoever. Not that she wasn’t good at it.

  He couldn’t fault her for the way she ran the lodge and took care of the cabins, even if she did have that no smoking rule. Maybe he would quit smoking while he was here. He had thought about doing it before but he had never really had the right incentive. Not until now, that is.

  Where had that thought come from?

  He kicked at a small rock with the toe of his boot and set it spinning down the hill. Then he followed the path it had taken, veering off to his cabin to grab the keys to his Jeep.

  As he headed down the hill toward town, he almost sped by the nursery, but on a sudden impulse, he swung into the parking lot. Climbing out of the Jeep, he went to have a look around. There were many plants and flowers that he knew would grow well in the area.

  “Can I help you?”

  He turned at the sound of a woman’s voice.

  “Hello, I’m Jake Soubrette,” he said, holding out his hand.

  “Connie Westin.”

  “I’m staying over at Kate Harrington’s lodge for a month and I noticed how bare it is over there. No plants or flowers.”

  “I have mentioned that to her. Even offered to send someone over to plant some, but she said it would be a waste of money. Claimed she didn’t have a green thumb and they would probably die.”

  He smiled. “Yeah, she told me the same thing, but I was thinking I might pick some up anyway and maybe I can teach her how to take care of them.”

  “Hank’s pretty good with plants. Maybe he could tend to them between baking those pies he’s so proud of.”

  “Good idea. I’ll mention it. Meantime, why don’t you help me pick out a few things and maybe if Kate sees what an improvement it will make in the looks of the place, she’ll be willing to buy some more.”

  The woman gave him an approving smile and began to point out various flowers and plants.

  “I’ll take as many as I can get in my Jeep,” Jake told her.

  Connie gave him a sharp look, but made no comment. Maybe she thought he was hoping to make points with Kate. After all Kate was single and also very attractive.

  A short time later, Jake drove into the lodge and stopped in front of the porch. Intent on unloading his purchases and envisioning in his mind where he was going to plant them, he didn’t realize Kate had come outside and was watching him.

  “What on earth are you doing?” she asked, raising a brow.

  “I’m going to plant these and brighten up the place a little.”

  “You have no right to do that without my permission,” she said indignantly.

  “Hey, Doll, don’t get yourself in an uproar. This is something I wanted to do. I’m the one that will be out of pocket, not you.”

  “But I can’t let you do that.”

  Straightening from setting down a large pot with a small evergreen in it, he looked at her from underneath the brim of his cowboy hat.

  “Why?”

  “I, well, it’s just not right,” she stammered.

  “Why?”

  She turned away, seemingly at a loss for words.

  “If you don’t like it when I’m finished, I’ll dig them all back up and take them back to the nursery. Mrs. Westin gave me a money back guarantee.”

  Kate frowned as she walked back into the lodge. She had never dealt with a nursery. If something was needed, Walt, her ex, had always taken care of it. But somehow a guarantee on perishable plants sounded a little farfetched.

  She knew she had backed off from an argument with Jake, but she had never been good at confronting the men in her life. Both her husband and her father had been controlling and she had always ended up doing as she was told.

  She was determined to start working on what she considered a major character flaw. And she might as well start with Jake. But she wouldn’t start now. She would start tomorrow. Then she chided herself for being a coward.

  She climbed the stairs to her apartment above the lodge. As she entered, she stared in horror. The kitchen floor was covered with water. She gasped as she sloshed through the water to the sink.

  From the looks of it, a pipe had broken. She had to get it mopped up before it leaked down to the ceiling below. Grabbing rags and towels she spread them on the floor in an attempt to soak up the water. Then she ran down the stairs calling for Hank.

  When she heard no answer, she ran outside to where Jake was digging a hole, a plant sitting beside it.

 
“Have you seen Hank?”

  “He said he was going down to the market for something,” Jake said without looking up.

  “Darn!”

  “What’s the matter now, Doll? Another snake?”

  “I wish it was that simple. No, a water pipe has evidently broken in my apartment and there’s water all over my kitchen floor. I’m afraid, it’s going to leak through to the ceiling below.”

  “Go get it mopped up and I’ll find the water valve and turn it off. Then I’ll come up and see what the problem is.”

  “Thanks,” she said, then rushed back to her apartment.

  The towels she had thrown down had soaked up most of the water and she grabbed a bucket and threw them in it. Finding more dry rags she finished mopping it up and the floor was reasonably dry by the time Jake arrived.

  Striding into the kitchen, he opened the cabinet door under the sink and squatted back on his heels and peered underneath.

  “Do you have a flashlight?” he asked, holding up a hand.

  She took one out of a drawer and handed it to him.

  “Umm, I see what the problem is. Your pipes are pretty old but I think I can put some sealant around the leaking seam and stop it for the time being.”

  “If Hank doesn’t know where to find sealant around the lodge, I will have to run to the General Store and get some.”

  Standing, Jake glanced around her apartment. It wasn’t what he had expected. Instead of being rustic like the rest of the lodge and cabins, it was light and airy with white plantation shutters at the windows, modern furniture, and lots of artificial plants. Various framed photos were sitting on shelves filled with books. A quick glance showed him there were no photos of her ex-husband.

  He followed her downstairs to see if Hank had returned. He was in the kitchen but he had to admit he didn’t have a clue as to where they could find some sealant.

  “Mrs. Sessions pretty much had someone clean everythin’ out after her husband’s death.”

  “You’re right, she did,” Kate agreed.

  “I’ll take a run down to the General Store,” Jake said. “I know exactly what is needed.”

  “Not a bad guy,” Hank observed as Jake walked out of the lodge and a minute later they heard the engine of his Jeep roar into life.

  “At times,” Kate agreed and Hank gave her a sharp look, but made no comment.

  “Hope he doesn’t take too long, I’ve got to git to cookin’ dinner and I can’t very well do that without water,” Hank said.

  As Jake drove down to the General Store, his radio blaring loudly as usual, he thought about how much he was enjoying the day. He had gotten such a kick out of the snake episode with Kate. Then it had given him a great deal of pleasure to work with Mrs. Westin at the nursery picking out plants for the lodge.

  He wondered if Kate would mind if he did some other things in the way of maintenance. He had seen a few things that needed attention. Maybe, even build a gazebo. Now that he knew where the Geisha House was,

  It was only a matter of time until he gathered the information his boss needed to make a raid on the place. He could afford the time to do some things around the lodge in his spare time.

  After parking at the curb in front of the General Store, he swung his long legs out of the Jeep and went inside. He had already given the store a thorough inspection and he remembered right where the plumbing supplies were, what few were there. He found a tube of sealant he was sure would do the trick and walked to the counter to pay for it.

  “Hello, Jake. How’s life treating you today?” the man behind the counter inquired.

  “Great, Howard. How about you?”

  “Same,” the other man said as he rang up the sealant. “Got a little plumbing problem up at the lodge?”

  “’Fraid so. This is only going to be a temporary fix.”

  “It’s a good thing you’re there to fix it. Hank may be a great cook, but he’s not much on maintenance.”

  Jake smiled as he handed Howard a bill and waited for his change.

  “See you later, Howard,” Jake said, thrusting the change into his pocket.

  As he drove back to the lodge, Jake realized he liked the small-town friendliness. He wouldn’t mind retiring from government service and settling down in a town like this.

  Now what had put that thought into his head?

  When an image of Kate’s smiling face flashed into his mind, he knew.

  Chapter 3

  “Why not, Doll? You owe me one.”

  “What do you mean, I owe you one?” Kate asked.

  “Who rescued you from the snake? Who fixed your leaking pipe? Who planted flowers and shrubs, which you said really improved the looks of the place?”

  “If I had known there was going to be some kind of payback, I would never have asked for your help,” she replied, setting her cup of hot chocolate down with a bang.

  “Aw, go ridin’ with him, Kate,” Hank pitched in. “You’ve been workin’ hard. Time you took a break. I’ll keep it covered here.”

  Kate looked across the table at the two men who appeared to be ganging up on her.

  “Oh, all right,” she finally said in a tone that implied it wasn’t her choice of fun things to do. “On one condition.”

  “And what is that?” Jake asked.

  “You’ve got to quit calling me Doll. My name is Kate and that’s what I would like to be called.”

  “Okay, Doll. I mean Kate.” Jake grinned as he corrected himself.

  She was sure the slip had been intentional, but she chose to ignore it.

  “You’ll have to wait until I get the cabins cleaned.”

  “I’ll help you.”

  She stared at him. Going horseback riding with Jake was one thing. Being inside a cabin doing domestic chores with him was something entirely different.

  “Why don’t you go up to the stable and get the horses ready? I’ll meet you up there when I’m finished.”

  “And when will that be?”

  “Give me an hour.”

  Jake did a double-take when Kate climbed out of the car an hour later at the stable. Instead of the jean skirts she wore as some kind of uniform around the lodge, she had on a form-fitting pair of jeans with a light-green shirt and a dark-green cowboy hat.

  He gave a low whistle as he walked over to her SUV. He grinned in delight as she blushed.

  “Doll, I mean Kate, who would have thought you have been covering up such a delectable body with those loose-fitting dresses you wear around the lodge?”

  “Where’re the horses?” she asked, choosing to ignore his remark.

  “Follow me,” he said.

  He led her toward one of the corrals where two horses stood tied to a weathered hitching post.

  “I hope you didn’t get me an old nag,” she muttered.

  “No,” he assured her. “Marion picked out the one she said you liked to ride.”

  He loosened a set of reins and handed them to her. “Do you want me to help you mount?”

  “No thanks, I think I can handle it,” she said curtly.

  He stood back, admiring the way her jeans stretched over her backside as she threw one leg over the saddle. When she was seated she looked down at him and he couldn’t help but grin when he realized she knew what he was thinking and had blushed again.

  “Don’t just stand there. You wanted to go riding, let’s go riding.”

  He gave her a lopsided grin and strode toward his horse. Gathering up the reins, he swung easily into the saddle and turned his mount toward the trail that led into Cedar National Forest.

  He could hear Kate following behind him and he suddenly had that feeling of happiness he had been getting a lot lately. Especially when he was around Kate. She c
ertainly had gone from shy to feisty in only a matter of a few days.

  He tried to deny the feeling of pleasure was because of Kate. No, it must be coming from the clear blue sky and the mountains that stood out in rugged relief against it. But he had a sneaking suspicion, even if it had been a dark, rainy day and he could spend it with Kate . . . He decided not to go there.

  He kicked his horse into a gallop as though it would help outrun his thoughts and he smiled when he heard Kate’s horse right behind him. She was certainly no inexperienced rider and he settled back in his saddle to enjoy the day.

  As Kate followed Jake up the trail, she knew she was glad she had decided to come with him, but she wasn’t about to admit that to Jake, or Hank either, for that matter. She hadn’t expected Hank to side with him. But didn’t men always stick together?

  The trail turned slightly as it began to wind its way alongside a gurgling mountain stream. As they climbed higher, they passed numerous small waterfalls, made by large rocks embedded in the bottom of the stream.

  They had ridden for over an hour when they came to a waterfall, which towered high above the aspens. Jake drew back on the reins of the sleek black horse, bringing it to a halt and Kate rode up beside him.

  “This is beautiful,” she said.

  “Now, aren’t you glad you came?”

  Feeling calm and relaxed by the sights of nature, she smiled and nodded.

  “I think this would be a great place to stop for lunch,” Jake said.

  “Lunch?” She gave him a skeptical look. “And where do you expect to find food out here?”

  “In my saddlebags.”

  “Your saddlebags?”

  “Yes, I packed us a lunch.”

  “Really?” She gave him a look of disbelief.

  “Well . . . Hank helped a little,” he admitted.

  She smiled. Jake didn’t look like the domestic kind, but he had fooled her on several occasions. She wondered what else she would find out about him.