20
Samuel!” Alex knocked on the old wooden door, and Courtney and Julia stood behind him.
The cabin was small and decrepit, with weathered cedar shakes, missing shutters, and a sagging roofline.
The property was barely cleared in front, clumped with underbrush.
Thick evergreens blocked the sun, so the air felt cool and oddly damp.
“Samuel?” Alex knocked again, then nodded toward an old black Prius parked on a patch of crumbling asphalt. “He should be here, that’s his car.”
Courtney frowned, worried. “Do you think he’s okay? Maybe something’s the matter?”
“Okay, let’s go in.” Alex opened the door, and they entered the cabin, but Samuel was nowhere in sight.
They found themselves in a living room that was full of books that overflowed a bookcase and sat stacked on a battered plaid couch, a ratty ottoman, an old coffee table, and the floor.
The walls were paneled and held no art. There was no TV or computer. The air smelled musty.
Courtney turned to Alex. “So he reads a lot. What does he do for a living?”
“He’s a retired geologist and has a master’s in engineering.
He knows everything about this part of the state and remembers everything.
When things go wrong, like they did here, that’s unfortunately not the best trait.
” Alex looked around. “He’s got to be around here somewhere.
” Alex walked into the kitchen, at the back of the cabin. “Samuel?”
Julia and Courtney followed him into a kitchen that was a small square ringed with knotty pine cabinets and butcher block countertops.
The appliances were outdated, and there was a toaster but no microwave.
Near the window was a single chair and a wooden table cluttered with papers, mail, and bills.
“Should we check the bedroom?” Courtney peered to the right, where another door was ajar.
“Okay.” Alex came over, and they entered the bedroom, but Samuel wasn’t here either. There was a messy double bed against the wall and more books stacked on the night table, oak dresser, and floor. Alex shrugged. “Maybe he’s out in the woods and didn’t hear us come up.”
They left the bedroom for the kitchen, which had a back door. They opened it on to a large, rocky clearing that had a paddock with a rusted metal gate. An old bay horse stood at a hayfeeder with a large green water bucket.
Alex nodded. “Okay, I bet he went riding. He has two horses, and one’s missing. He rides out for hours. Sometimes he camps overnight.”
“Oh no,” Julia said, disappointed. They didn’t have time to wait.
“Oh my God, look at this.” Courtney was turning to the kitchen table, where there were a slew of photos. “Whoa. These are pictures of Grandma Kay.”
Julia recoiled, scanning the photos. “Wait. Jeez. They’re all of her.”
“Really?” Alex asked, shocked, and Courtney picked through the photos, then looked up, her lips parting.
“Alex, were they seeing each other?”
“I have no idea.” Alex’s blue eyes flared in bewilderment. “Do you?”
“No. She didn’t say anything, if they were.
I kind of doubt they were. She loved my grandfather.
She never had any interest in dating after he died.
She was fine being on her own. She actually liked being alone.
” Courtney returned her attention to the photographs.
“If they weren’t dating, Samuel obviously had a crush. ”
“He never said anything to me. And they would be the oddest couple ever. Samuel’s a mountain man, and Kay was so sociable.”
Julia eyed the photographs. “Her death must have hit him hard.”
Alex nodded. “I knew it would. I haven’t spoken to him since her murder and I don’t know how he found out.
I found out from a student’s mom, who heard it in town.
I sent out an email to the Shenandoah list but Samuel doesn’t have a computer.
” Alex shook his head, nonplussed. “Maybe he found out in town. Word travels, and everybody knows him.”
Julia thought it over. “Maybe he was so upset he took off for a few days. Does that sound like him?”
Alex nodded. “Yes. He isolates, big-time.”
“Look at this one.” Courtney picked up a photograph that showed Kay pulling weeds in her garden. “This is at the house, but taken from far away, maybe from the treeline beside the pasture.” She turned to Alex, her eyes narrowing. “Did he have a telephoto lens?”
“Sure.” Alex blinked. “He had an old Nikon SLR with all kinds of lenses. It was with him all the time. He probably took it with him now.”
Julia put it together, aghast. “Kay didn’t know he was there. He must’ve been hiding in the treeline, taking pictures of her.”
“Fucking asshole!” Courtney threw down the photo and started rooting through the others, then Julia and Alex joined in.
Half an hour later they had gone through all of the photographs and sorted them into ones taken with Kay’s knowledge and those taken without.
Thirty-two of fifty-five photos were taken at Kay’s house without her knowledge, snapped from various vantage points and at different times.
Most were of Kay weeding, planting, or tilling the beds in her garden, and others were her reading outside in a chair or talking on the phone.
Courtney’s eyes flashed with fury. “He took pictures of her on the phone? She’s probably talking to me! That fucking freak!”
“I can’t believe it.” Alex rubbed his face. “He’s a gentle guy. I’m sure he didn’t mean any harm.”
“This is harm, Alex,” Courtney shot back. “It’s an invasion of her privacy. It’s stalking, too. What if he killed her?”
Alex recoiled, frowning. “What? You told me you saw the guy who killed her, you chased him. It wasn’t Samuel.”
“No, but there could’ve been more than one man. He could’ve been in the truck already.”
Julia agreed, her mind begging to race. “Maybe he’s the one with the missing object from the basket. He could have been with her when she found it. Or she told him.”
“Right.” Courtney nodded, agitated. “He could have had a motive, if he made a move and she rejected him.”
Alex exhaled, stepping back and raising his hands. “Courtney, slow down. I know why you’re upset. I’d be upset, too, I am upset. But I don’t think he’d ever hurt her.”
“You don’t?” Courtney pursed her lips. “I’m not so sure. He could have, or he could be in cahoots with somebody who would. Maybe he went there to get the object, whatever she found, and things went wrong and she ended up dead?”
Alex shook his head, setting his jaw. “No, I’ll tell you why. Another thing about Samuel. He couldn’t work with anybody. He can barely participate in a group project, much less be an accomplice to murder.”
“Is that supposed to be a comfort?” Courtney asked, incredulous. “That he hates people?”
“He didn’t hate people, he just kept to himself.
Kay was friendly enough to reach him. I swear, he wouldn’t hurt her or cooperate with anybody who would.
” Alex gestured at the photos. “Look how many pictures he took of her. He could have hurt her any one of those times. He obviously cared about her, all this time, like he carried a torch.”
Julia swallowed, wondering if Alex wasn’t talking about Samuel anymore.
Courtney arched an eyebrow. “Does he have a gun, do you know?”
“He doesn’t. That’s another good point. He’s a peaceful guy.”
“He could still have a gun.” Courtney eyed the photos again. “You know what? The pictures are taken from the south side of the pasture, in the woods. That’s where the state police found the ghost gun.”
Alex shook his head. “Samuel doesn’t have a 3D printer. He’s a Luddite. Do you see any tech here, at all?”
Courtney shook her head, slowly. “I hear you, Alex, but I’m taking the pictures with me for evidence and I’m telling the cops.”
Julia nodded. “I agree.”
Alex pursed his lips. “I think you should tell the cops, too. But let’s take pictures of the pictures, rather than taking them. I wouldn’t feel comfortable taking his property.”
“Fine, I’ll call Kowalski.” Courtney slid her phone from her pocket, scrolled to the number, and made a call.
She put the phone to her ear. “Of course, it’s going to voicemail.
” Then she said, “Detective Kowalski, I may have important evidence in my grandmother’s case.
Please call me as soon as possible. I’ve called you several times.
” Courtney ended the call, angry. “Jesus.”
“Hang in there,” Julia said, touching her arm.
“I’ll try Glushenko.” Courtney scrolled to the Buckley police website, found the number, and placed the call. “Chief Glushenko please,” she said, giving her name, then put the call on speaker.
“How can I help you?” Chief Glushenko asked, but his tone said, What now?
Courtney filled him in. “These photographs are evidence that Samuel was stalking my grandmother, and they look recent. That makes him a suspect. You need to start looking for him—”
“What in God’s name are you up to? Detective Kowalski is conducting this investigation. You had no right to enter Samuel’s cabin. You’re trespassers. Alex, you should know better.”
Alex interjected, “Chief Glushenko, we thought something was wrong.”
Chief Glushenko scoffed. “Horseshit! Those ladies wanted to search the place. If you’re still in Samuel’s house, you need to exit immediately.”
Courtney shook her head. “I’m going to take pictures of the photos—”
“No. Leave the premises. You’re interfering with police business.”
“This is my business. It’s my family—”
“Your grandmother’s funeral is tomorrow morning. That’s your business.”
“How dare you!” Courtney hung up, her lips pursed. “I hate that guy!”
Julia touched her arm. “Do you want to go, or do you want to take pictures of the photos?”
“Have we met?” Courtney answered, defiant.
Twilight had fallen by the time they finished taking pictures, and Samuel hadn’t returned. Detective Kowalski hadn’t called Courtney back, so she’d emailed the photographs to him and Glushenko. They left the house and closed the door behind them, crossing the porch.
Alex took Courtney’s arm, his expression soft. “Hey, would you like to get dinner? We can catch up. Julia can take your car back to the motel, and I’ll give you a ride home.”
“Sounds great,” Courtney answered, with a shaky smile.