Chapter 26
The morning before Christmas Day Slade got off the phone with his parents and said to Sheri, “My parents confirmed they are grilling steaks at their house for the Christmas Eve dinner. Your parents and Hans are all set to come. Amelia and Gavin will be there with the babies. And Elizabeth and David are coming.”
“I’ll make roasted garlic Parmesan baby potatoes,” Sheri said.
“I’ll help you with it. Amelia makes a creamy brussels-sprout bake that Mom always asks for.”
“That sounds delicious.”
“It is. Believe me.”
“And tomorrow, my parents are hosting Christmas Day lunch. When we have a home of our own, we can take turns hosting one of the Christmas meals for the family.”
“I agree. So for lunch tomorrow, my parents are bringing the turkey and stuffing, yours are having a glazed ham, and Hans said he was making the mashed potatoes and turkey gravy,” Slade said.
“That leaves us with the cheesy green bean casserole and pfeffernusse cookies. I have all the ingredients.”
“You mean those little white puff balls?” Slade asked.
“Yep. No extra decorating required,” Sheri said.
Slade laughed. “You’re afraid I’ll make more green blobs with red eyes.”
“Ha! I hadn’t thought about it, but those could be your signature Christmas cookies.”
If he ever wanted to create a signature dessert for the holidays, he would want it to look a whole lot more appealing to eat, though his cookie had tasted great.
“Oh, oh, what about Dulcie? She’s here on her own and has no family. I’m sure one of the police officers’ families will invite her over for a meal, but she’s a member of our wolf pack now.”
“And she and your brother are single. Have Hans invite her,” Slade said.
“To both Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day lunch?”
“Sure, why not?”
“Okay. I’ll give him a call then.” She called her brother and put it on speakerphone, “Hey, Hans, we were just talking about the meals for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.”
“Yeah? What do I need to bring for the Christmas Eve dinner?”
“You always bring the best fresh bread and wine. But Slade and I were discussing that Dulcie doesn’t have family here, and since she’s one of the pack now—”
“You want me to invite her to Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas lunch?” Hans asked.
“Yeah, before one of the other families does,” Sheri said.
“Okay, I’ll ask her. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Good luck.”
Then Slade got a call from his mom and put it on speakerphone. “Yeah, Mom?”
“I have another mission for you. Since you know the person involved, I thought you wouldn’t mind going on this last-minute Pilots N Paws trip to fly to Minneapolis. You should arrive before lunchtime and return home well before Christmas Eve dinner,” Lolita said.
“Yeah, sure.” Slade knew it was important or they wouldn’t need him to make the trip, but he was more than curious about who wanted the dog and why. “Who’s it for?”
“Tex Lincoln.”
“The man who had a heart attack in the Boundary Waters?” That really surprised Slade because he already had a dog.
“Yes. Benny is a German shepherd that’s a fully certified cardiac-alert service dog. We just found one for him.”
“Of course.” Now Slade understood. He glanced at Sheri, and she nodded at him. “Is the dog ready now?” he asked his mom.
“He sure is. They’re delivering him to the airport and should be here by the time you arrive. He was scheduled to go with another Pilots N Paws pilot, but the pilot became ill.”
“Yeah, sure, Mom. I’m on my way.” Then he said to Sheri, “Are you coming with me?”
“To see Mr. Lincoln and ask him a couple of questions? You bet.” She smiled. “And of course to help deliver the dog.”
“We could do a little last-minute Christmas shopping.”
“Yes!” she said.
“And lunch.”
“Yeah, that would be great. I love your job.” Then she grabbed her purse and said, “Let’s go.”
Slade loved that about Sheri. She was always ready to go. He’d gotten her some things for Christmas, but he wanted to get something more for her since they were now mated. They didn’t have a whole lot of shopping available in their small town, and ordering anything online now meant the presents wouldn’t be delivered until after Christmas. So this was going to be fun. Besides, they could have a nice lunch there too and they would be helping a heart attack victim with a companion dog that might even save his life in the future. Even though Mr. Lincoln already had a dog, Jet, and the dog had alerted Slade and Sheri to come to his owner’s aid in the Boundary Waters, Jet wasn’t specifically trained on how to alert Mr. Lincoln that he was having a potential heart attack.
They reached the airport and made sure Benny was secure for the flight, then once Slade had done his flight checks and was given the go-ahead, they flew to Minneapolis.
“So what are you getting me for Christmas?” she asked.
Slade gave her one of his deep ho-ho-hos. “You don’t sneak under the Christmas tree and peek at your presents in the middle of the night, do you?”
“I did once or twice when I was little. Did you?”
“Absolutely. And I should have warned you before we mated that when it’s Christmas morning, there’s no sleeping in.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t think of it. I’ll be poking at you to get out of bed before you’re trying to wake me,” she assured him.
They were perfect for each other. “We could go to Mall of America to do our shopping after we drop off Benny. They have some great restaurants.”
“Yeah, sure, that would be perfect.”
The flight only took a little over an hour, and when they arrived, they rented a van so they could deliver the dog. Often the new dog owners would meet him at the airport, but in this case, because Mr. Lincoln was still at home resting up from his surgery and his wife was there caring for him, Slade didn’t have any problem with taking the dog to his home.
When they arrived at the Lincolns’ house and heard Jet barking, a woman opened the door and greeted them. “Hi, I’m Nancy Lincoln. Thanks so much for bringing the dog here for us. He could be a real lifesaver.”
“That’s so true. How is Mr. Lincoln doing?” Slade asked.
“Much better.”
“That’s good,” Slade said, hoping Sheri would ask to see Mr. Lincoln before Nancy took Benny into the house and closed the door on them.
“I’m Sheri Whitmore, the one who called you when Slade”—Sheri motioned to Slade—“and I were in the BWCA and Mr. Lincoln had his heart attack.”
Nancy’s eyes widened.
“I’m a private investigator. I was looking into Mr. Lincoln’s cousin Gerard’s disappearance. I did locate him, but I still have some unanswered questions. You probably heard that we found Gerard’s plane wreckage in the Boundary Waters.”
To Slade’s surprise, Mr. Lincoln came to the door and motioned for them to enter the house. “Come in. I want to talk. You can call me Tex.”
Glad he invited them in, Sheri and Slade walked inside with Nancy and Benny. Benny greeted Jet and thankfully the two dogs seemed to hit it off. Then Jet made Sheri and Slade feel as if they were old friends. They both petted him, glad to see him again.
They went into the living room to talk, and the two dogs sat down on the floor near Tex as he took a seat on a recliner, as if they wanted to be there for him if he needed their assistance should he have another heart attack.
Nancy asked, “Would you like sodas or water to drink? Coffee? Tea?”
“I’ll take some hot tea, thanks,” Sheri said.
“I’ll have some too,” Slade said.
Then Nancy went off to the kitchen to make the tea.
“So from what I heard you saying to Nancy, you’re the PI Betty hired to locate Gerard,” Tex said.
“Yes.”
“You know about his brother blackmailing him?”
“Uh, yes, and the reason for it,” Sheri said.
Tex let out his breath. “Gerard called me. I’m glad he’s resolved that with Betty.”
“Yes. So now Fitz doesn’t have anything to blackmail Gerard with. Did Fitz approach you about piloting Gerard’s plane when he didn’t show up to fly it?” Sheri asked.
“Yes. And I said no. Fitz offered me money. I’ve been having some medical issues and I could have used the extra cash, but not from him.”
“Why not?”
“Because…” Tex cleared his throat. Both dogs looked up at him. “Because Fitz was always a schemer. If he could get money from the government through some scam or conning people, even talking women into loaning him money and never paying them back, he would. I knew this couldn’t be something legitimate that he was doing. I understand Gerard vanished and wouldn’t do the job for him. I knew for sure it wasn’t legit then.”
“Did you worry about Gerard disappearing? That something might have happened to him?” Sheri asked.
“I did at first, but I knew Betty had contacted the police and then a PI to look for him. Later she told me that Gerard had shown up at home. Right before that, though, I got a call from him and a couple of text messages. He didn’t want me to worry about him and told me not to fly the plane if Fitz tried to convince me to do it. He said he didn’t know what the merchandise was but that if Fitz was involved, it was probably stolen.”
“So do you know who ended up flying Gerard’s plane?” Sheri asked.
Nancy brought in a tray of cups of tea and a bottled water for Tex.
“Thanks,” Slade said.
“Thank you,” Sheri said.
“You’re welcome,” Nancy said, and sat down to have her tea with them.
“No, I didn’t know that he had gotten anyone else to fly the plane. I thought if I said no to flying it because I had health issues, they wouldn’t risk my taking the mission. Truthfully, I had no idea I would end up having a heart attack in the BWCA or I wouldn’t have risked that trip either,” Tex said.
Nancy scoffed.
Everyone glanced at her.
“He was going ice fishing hell or high water,” Nancy said. “I worried about him, of course, but I didn’t realize the area would suffer such a damaging storm and it would lead to Tex having a heart attack.” Under her breath, she said, “Cantankerous old fool.”
Tex smiled. “I missed going last year. I didn’t want to skip going this year again, not with my health being the way it is. But no, I don’t know who flew the plane.”
“Gerard’s daughter, Jessica,” Sheri said.
Nancy gasped. “No.”
“Aww hell,” Tex said.
“Fitz blackmailed her with the same reason he used on Gerard, that he would tell Betty about Gerard’s affair and subsequently the child he had from their union.”
“Bastard,” Tex said. “Okay, I’ve got to tell you that one day my cousins and I were sitting around drinking beers a couple of years ago, and we were talking about this and that and the subject—Fitz started—was about making the perfect heist. So I proposed a way to do so because I used to work at a company that delivers packages. I never thought Fitz would buddy up with his friends Otis and Danbury and pull it off.”
“Are you and Gerard on friendly terms?” Slade asked.
“Yes,” Tex said.
“And it would be fair to say that you’re not on good terms with Fitz,” Slade said.
“Correct. He has always been the troublemaker in the family, but he has always managed to get away with everything he has done.”
Slade heard a car pull up in the driveway and Jet began to bark. Because Benny was a service dog, he did not.
Nancy went to see who it was, and after she looked out the window, she turned, her face ashen, and whispered, “It’s Fitz and that other guy. Otis, I think.”
“Do you have a protective order against him?” Slade asked.
“No,” Tex said, but already Benny was pawing at him, which was one of the indications that Tex’s heart rate or blood pressure was elevating.
“Okay, I want you and Nancy and the dogs to go to a safe place in the home where there are no windows. With your permission, I’m going to call the police.” Slade didn’t want them to have to deal with this and for Tex to have another heart attack.
“We have a comfortable den in the basement and can lock the door,” Nancy said.
“All right, then you go there, and we or the police will let you know when everything is all clear,” Slade said.
Nancy looked at Sheri as if she thought she should stay with them.
“I’ll be helping Slade. Do you have any security cameras inside your house?” Sheri asked.
“No,” Nancy said, moving Tex protectively by the arm to the basement stairs.
“Outside security cameras?” Slade asked.
“Yes, front porch, corners of the property, back porch,” Nancy said.
“You’re going to have to tell the truth about what is going on with Fitz and this heist,” Slade said to Tex. “It’s the only way to get some protection from your cousin and his cohorts.”
“Yes,” Nancy said, speaking for her husband. “He is. And we’ll get a lawyer.”
“Good idea,” Sheri said.
“I don’t have a gun you can use to protect yourselves with,” Tex warned. “But”—he glanced at Nancy—“she got me a good solid hiking stick that’s under the Christmas tree. You can’t miss it.”
“You peeked,” Nancy said, not sounding surprised.
“I love you for getting it for me. That means I’m going back to the BWCA hiking.”
“Only with me. And both the dogs. It would be helpful if Sheri and Slade were in the vicinity at the same time, but we know that wouldn’t be possible,” Nancy said.
“Thanks—if we need it, we’ll use it.” Though Slade hoped if they needed it, he wouldn’t break Tex’s Christmas present.
Once the couple and the two dogs were securely locked in the basement, Sheri said to Slade, “I’m going to shift.”
“Okay, I’ll get the hiking stick.” Then Slade hurried to the Christmas tree and found it way in the back of the presents, mostly hidden, but part of the Christmas wrapping paper on the hiking stick had been peeled away and Slade couldn’t help but smile.
Sheri was hurrying to remove her clothes before she shifted while he pulled the wrapping paper from the hefty stick, the handle decorated in a hand-carved wolf’s head.
“Oh, that’s beautiful. Don’t break it,” Sheri said, then shifted.
“I’ll try not to unless I’m stopping one of them from shooting us.” Slade got on his phone and called the police. He noticed the men hadn’t come to the front door. They had disappeared and he suspected they were going to a window or maybe even the back door. He raced back there to make sure the door was locked. Sometimes when an owner had a dog, they would let them out every so often and not always lock the back door.
Someone answered the phone and Slade said, “We have a break-in at Tex and Nancy Lincoln’s house in progress. I’m Slade White, delivering a cardiac-alert service dog to Tex. He and his wife are secure for—”
He hadn’t reached the back door when he heard it open. He whispered into the phone, “Two men involved in criminal charges in the Boundary Waters, Fitz Connolly and Otis Risotto, have unlawfully entered the Lincolns’ home.”
“Hello!” Fitz called out. “Tex? Where are you? You and I have some unfinished business to take care of.” He was still standing at the back door.
His heart racing, Slade ducked into a hallway leading to the bedrooms. He didn’t know where Sheri had gone to, but he didn’t want her to be on her own.
“Are they armed?” the dispatcher asked.
“They were armed with illegal guns while they were in the Boundary Waters,” Slade said into the phone, his voice hushed.
“Hey, Tex, you don’t want to have another heart attack, do you?” Fitz called out.
That would be an easy way to get rid of him for sure. Just upset him enough to give him a heart attack since he already had a heart condition. But Nancy would be a witness too.
“Come on, Tex. Let’s not play games with each other.” Fitz’s voice was now near the kitchen, but Slade heard someone else moving through the house too.
At least Nancy and Tex were keeping Jet quiet, or he would have given their location away. He might not have been barking because he recognized Fitz’s familiar voice.
“Maybe everyone’s gone,” Otis said, his voice low. “Maybe that’s their son’s van and he’s off driving them around in Tex’s car. You said he might come home for the holidays this year.”
“Rarely. He rarely comes home. Come on, Tex, talk to me.”
Slade thought it was telling that Fitz was staying put, as if he believed someone else might be in the house and he didn’t want to get injured, so he was letting Otis do the exploring.
His footfalls muffled by the carpeting, Otis was nearly to the hallway where the bedrooms were. Slade moved into the first bedroom on his right. It looked like a master bedroom, and he mostly smelled Nancy’s scent. If Otis was carrying a gun, Slade would whack him with the walking cane and hopefully knock it out of his hand.
Sheri suddenly moved out from behind a queen-size bed and bumped Slade’s leg. He realized she’d gone into the bedroom to wait for one of the men to show up too. He patted her head and shoved his phone in his pocket, still open to the 911 operator.
Slade moved behind the door, but he couldn’t see Otis if he peered into the room. Sheri was standing by the dresser nearby and she would be able to observe him. Slade didn’t want her there, but he realized she intended to be the distraction. She looked as tense as he felt, her body held still. She was barely breathing, her gaze focused on the doorway, her tail held straight out. She was ready for the hunt.
Then Otis poked his head into the bedroom. Sheri’s hackles raised, her body crouching, poising to pounce, she growled low and threatening. Slade came around from behind the door, swinging hard with the cane and connecting with Otis’s gun hand. Slade heard a crack and knew the carved wolf head had broken the man’s wrist, thankfully not the cane.
Otis cried out, dropped the gun, and fell to his knees in pain, clutching his injured arm close to his chest. “You,” he said, when he saw it was Slade, murder in his blue eyes. He smelled of anger and agony.
Slade grabbed Otis’s gun while Sheri guarded Otis. “Yeah, stay there or my dog will put you down. She’s a trained police dog, retired, but she’s good at her job.” To Sheri, Slade said, “Watch him. If he moves, take him down.” She would know Slade only meant for her to threaten him. They couldn’t have her biting and turning him.
With the cane still in hand, Slade moved quietly down the hall. Fitz wasn’t making a sound, and Slade wondered if he had taken off, abandoning his coconspirator.
Then from the kitchen, Fitz whispered, “Otis? Did you get him?” Coward.
Then Jet started to bark in the basement. Aww damn it.
Fitz said, “Someone’s in the basement. Hurry up and join me.” Then he headed for the basement door.
Slade was afraid Fitz would shoot his way through the door and kill both Nancy and Tex. Slade wouldn’t have tried this risky move otherwise and rushed forward to stop Fitz from reaching the basement door.
For a second, Fitz’s eyes widened as he saw his nemesis—the guy who had helped the police take him into custody the first time. Fitz raised his gun to shoot him. Slade jumped behind the wall and Fitz shot at him several times, the bullets hitting the wall, sending chips of plaster flying.
His breathing hard, Slade considered his options. He felt sure Fitz would continue to target him until he could take him out and then go after Tex and Nancy, leaving no witnesses behind. Slade waited for a heartbeat, not hearing any movement from Fitz, then came around the wall low, targeting him with Otis’s gun. Fitz’s eyes widened to see Slade was prepared to shoot him.
Fitz fired his weapon, the bullet whizzing by Slade, smacking the wall just to the right of him. He jumped a little, and then he pulled the trigger of Otis’s gun to stop Fitz. Nothing happened. Hell!
Frustrated, Slade ducked behind the wall again, his heart beating hard. He tried to clear the gun, but he didn’t have time. He heard Fitz quickly moving down the hall, getting closer, his knee cracking, his heart thumping, his breathing hard. At least Slade could pinpoint where Fitz was as he approached Slade’s position. Slade moved to a bookshelf, glad Fitz couldn’t hear him changing his location. Then Fitz ran the rest of the way to the corner of the wall. Trying to make sure Slade didn’t have time to unjam the gun? That’s what Slade would have done if the roles had been reversed.
Fitz came rushing around the corner, gun ready to shoot. Last chance to get this right. As soon as Slade saw Fitz, he threw the walking stick as hard as he could, aiming it at the center of him. Shocked to hell, Fitz didn’t react until it was too late. The cane sailed through the air and struck Fitz hard in the chest. The round Fitz fired at the same time slammed into the ceiling above Slade’s head, chips of paint and plaster falling from the ceiling. Slade instinctively ducked. Fitz fell back and landed on the floor from the impact, the breath knocked out of him.
Slade rushed to get his gun from him.
At the same time, a car pulled up in the driveway and Slade suspected it was the police. He realized at once the problem he had. Sheri was keeping Otis locked down in the bedroom, but she couldn’t release him. Slade needed to get to the front door and open it for the officers. He told the 911 operator that the police were at the house. “Both men were armed, but I disarmed them. The back door’s unlocked. Both men are down. I’ve got their guns.”
Slade set them on a high table.
The police came through the backyard and then through the back door, slamming it against the wall, guns drawn. Slade held up his hands. “That’s Fitz Connolly, cousin of the owner, Tex Lincoln, who is secure in the basement with his wife, Nancy. The other man, Otis Risotto, is in the bedroom. Guns are over there.”
Slade knew this was going to be a problem because Sheri was still wearing her wolf coat, but he didn’t know how to protect her. He was going to mention the dog in there but what if she had shifted and wasn’t a wolf? How would he explain that? The dog had just…vanished?
A couple more police cars drove up to the house and one of the officers handcuffed Fitz and another went to take Otis into custody.
Slade made a move to go to Sheri since she hadn’t left the bedroom, but the officers wouldn’t let him for his own safety. This wasn’t good.