Carl scanned the shoreline. “So you're saying if you don't buy the land and building I should do something with it?"
Paul tapped his temple. “Think, man. That building could be used for lodging or it could be rented out to corporations for meetings.” Paul tapped his temple again. “If you don't start thinking like an entrepreneur, you'll never succeed."
"I'll think about it,” Carl said as he walked toward the patrol car. “My problem is cash. I was counting on cash from the sale of the mortuary land to pay my bills. If I don't sell it, I'll have to come up with the money. You know I don't have money.” He grinned across the top of the car. “Not that my wife knows about."
The two men opened their doors. Suddenly, Carl let out a yell. “What the…?"
The contents of a red tackle box were strewn over the car's interior. Most of the barbed hooks were deeply embedded in the car's upholstery and fishing line had been entwined throughout the interior forming an impenetrable web. Carl's clipboard dangled from the rearview mirror. Each numbered citation had ‘PIG’ written across it in bold, black letters. Mermaid lures hung from the ceiling with dried-up minnows on the tips of the barbs.
"That witch,” Carl shouted.
"Who?"
"Sadie. She did this,” Carl yelled.
The Witt's End van pulled into the parking lot, stopping next to the patrol car. One of the resort's guests climbed out of the van. “Thanks for taking us into town, Sadie. We got some great pictures to show the folks back home. I'll bring them over as soon as I get them developed."
Sadie followed the woman out of the van. Theo, Lora, and Michael trailed close behind.
Carl grabbed Sadie's arm. “Were you in town all afternoon?"
She slapped at his hand and pulled free. “Yes, I was. What business is it of yours?"
"Do you have any witnesses?"
"For what?"
"To vouch you were in town all afternoon."
Sadie looked up at Theo, who stood next to her with a big smile on his face. “What are you grinning for?"
"Grinning? I'm not grinning. Do I look like I'm having fun?” Carl's voice rose with each word as he glared at Sadie.
Theo gestured toward Carl's patrol car. “You better take a peek in there."
Sadie raised up on her toes and looked in the window. She let out a hoot. “Did you leave your car unlocked?"
"No, Sadie. I always drive a car that looks like a tackle box."
"That's really stupid.” Sadie reached in and pulled on a tightly wound portion of fishing line. The line twanged like a guitar string setting several lures into motion. “Those minnows stink."
Sadie shouted toward her cabin. “Jane. Call the newspaper and ask them to come out and take a picture of Carl's patrol car. Maybe we can get the idiots who plan to vote for him to change their minds."
Carl spun to face Jane. “If you call them so help me I'll get ten more patrol cars out here and make a big scene. I'll tell everyone there's a murderer on the loose. Your guests will cancel their reservations and leave."
"At least they'll leave laughing.” Sadie dabbed at a tear.
Carl opened his pocket knife and began cutting the tightly wound strings away from the steering wheel. “Look at this mess. It'll take me a week to find everything. I'm going to catch whoever did this. You can count on it."
"I doubt it,” Sadie said, catching a glimmer of Rodney dangling a fishing lure as he leaned against a tree.
Carl cursed under his breath. “First I find out I can't use your rifle and now this.” Carl stopped cutting and glared at Paul over the top of his patrol car. “How the hell can you lose a rifle?"
"I already told you. It must have jarred loose from my four-wheeler. I backtracked, but I couldn't find it. There's so much hazel brush along that trail, it's impossible to find anything."
Rodney swung a dangling fish hook in a wide circle waiting for Sadie and the other crosssers to close the door on Cabin 14. He checked the area to his left and then his right before reaching behind the tree. He jerked his hand back to his side. Aanders hurried past the patrol car, hopped up onto Sadie's porch, and yanked the door open. Rodney scanned his surroundings one more time. Reaching behind the tree, he pulled out the rifle he had taken from Carl's patrol car and disappeared into the woods.
18
The massive glass doors swooshed closed behind Lora as she began one more unbearable trek down the tiled corridor. Michael dragged his feet in resistance. Impending disaster circled his young shoulders like the time his dad suffocated his cat. Nursing home employees hustled past the pair, intent on keeping to their daily schedules as the ever-intrusive call lights blinked impatiently.
A nurse aide emerged from one of the resident's rooms pushing a wheelchair. She situated the resident, a man in his late eighties, next to the wall in the hallway. Another aide selected a clean set of sheets from a linen cart before entering the man's room. The man's chin rested on his chest. He sighed deeply without waking.
Michael paused in front of the man and looked up at his mother.
"I think he's sleeping. I don't think he's the one we're looking for,” Lora said. She put her ear close to the man's face for a moment before continuing down the hall.
Lora walked in and out of each resident's room, Michael leaned on the door jamb. He'd let her walk three to four doors down the hall before running to catch up. He stayed close, but out of her way. On previous visits he had squatted on the floor creating a make-believe gravel pit with make-believe front-end loaders like the one his dad drove. When that bored him, he spread out on a bed and counted ceiling tiles with his fingers. This time he created a new make-believe Dad. One that wouldn't hurt them anymore.
Lora poked her head around the door frame. “Don't go too far. I don't like it when I can't see you.” She continued down the hall to investigate the condition of each resident.
Lora walked deeper into the skilled-care unit. She scanned the length of the hall hoping to see staff scurrying to a resident's room. Sadie had told the crossers that a sudden gathering of medical staff could be an indication of someone on the cusp.
Michael hooked his fingers on each side of a door frame and swung like a hinge into one of the resident's rooms. He lost his grip and tumbled to the floor. With lightning speed, he sprung upright, retreated back into the corridor and pressed his back flat against the wall.
He heard sobs and sniffles coming from the people standing around the bed. He looked for his mom. He didn't see her. Michael slinked back into the room and inched his way closer to the bed. He skirted two pairs of legs so he could see why the people were crying.
The daughter of the dying woman held her mother's hand to her cheek and sobbed. “We're here Mother. We love you.” The words came in gasps. The others in the room brushed at tears and held fast to one another.
Michael listened to them tell the woman she had suffered long enough. They told her to let go. He tiptoed closer and peeked around one of the men.
A nurse entered the room and took the woman's vital signs. She jotted the information on the chart. She motioned for the woman's son to join her at the rear of the room and whispered something to the man. The man moved back toward his sister and embraced her as he burst into tears.
Michael moved to the bed and looked at the woman. She looked just like Sadie did when she was sleeping. He leaned against the bed and propped his chin against his fist.
The woman's daughter reached down and smoothed her mother's hair before placing a kiss on her cheek. She straightened her gown and gently pulled the covers up to her chin. Each family member took turns planting a kiss on the woman's forehead saying their final good-byes.