Out of the Depths Read online

  “Really?”

  “Really. You were just making sure I was okay, not making a pass at me, right?”

  “Right.”

  “Well then, no problem.”

  Although Trudy Lynn was being totally honest with him, a hidden part of her heart wanted the circumstances to be otherwise. She’d thought she’d permanently cast aside all romantic notions long ago, yet Cody’s nearness kept urging her to reconsider. Given his physical and emotional scarring, not to mention his hardheadedness, that was not a good idea. Not good at all. Then again, as long as she kept her wandering thoughts to herself and merely befriended him, what harm could it do? Even cynics like Cody needed faithful friends and compassionate comrades.

  Speaking of which…a furry black blur the size of a pony galloped up and started to circle their legs with panting, drooling enthusiasm.

  Will joined them a few seconds later. “Sorry ’bout the dog, Miz Brown. He must’a heard the ruckus and busted out of the cabin. I know I shut him in.”

  Cody sighed. “I don’t doubt it. Sailor’s strong enough to break the links in chains made to tether normal dogs. There isn’t much that stops him when he makes up his mind to go somewhere.”

  Trudy Lynn patted the dog’s broad head. “That’s okay, Will. Mr. Keringhoven needs his crutches. Would you mind fetching them?”

  “Glad to. You folks all right? I heard an awful commotion a few minutes ago.”

  “We’re fine. Did you call the sheriff?”

  “Yes, ma’am. Was that okay?”

  “Perfect.” She smiled at him. “We think we finally have a clue.”

  “Well, well. About time.”

  “That’s for sure.” Trudy Lynn noticed that Sailor had wandered away. She frowned at his master. “Where’s your dog? He wouldn’t have tried to track the vandal, would he?”

  “I doubt it. He’s no bloodhound.” Cody cupped his hands around his mouth and broadcast a firm, “Sailor! Come.”

  Silence followed his call.

  “Where could he be?”

  “Best guess?” Cody sounded disgusted. “Swimming. It takes his coat forever to dry, too. That’s why I keep him inside at night. The last thing I want sleeping in the cabin with me is a soggy dog.”

  “Can’t argue with that. For your sake, I hope he’s just sniffing a tree or something.”

  “Me, too. Sailor! Sailor, get over here.” The words were barely out when Cody followed them with, “Here he comes.”

  Trudy Lynn looked around in time to see the Newf bound over an upside-down canoe and head straight for them. She didn’t realize what he was going to do next until he stopped between her and Cody and started to shake himself. Repeatedly.

  She gave a little screech and turned away in time to keep the flying drops off her face. The rest of her, however, was well showered. So was Cody.

  “I told you,” he said. “I should have known any dog with webbed feet would behave like a duck.”

  “No wonder he loves swimming.”

  “The mud he tracks in is the worst.” Cody’s eyes widened. “Oh, no.”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “The crowbar,” he said, pointing. “Sailor’s been stepping all over it. If there were any good fingerprints, after you handled it, they’re smeared, now.”

  The sheriff arrived shortly, visited the scene of the crime with Will and took brief statements from Trudy Lynn and Cody before leaving. They remained seated on the porch of Cody’s cabin, talking and unwinding, until long after the rest of the camp had quieted down.

  “Later in the summer we’ll need bug repellant to sit outside like this,” she warned. “Mosquitoes can be deadly around here.”

  “They’re deadly everywhere these days,” he said. “Might as well be cautious.”

  “Right.”

  Cody was studying her profile in the reflected light from the cabin window. “What’s wrong? You’re awfully quiet.”

  “Maybe I ran out of things to say.”

  “That’s never stopped you before.”

  She took a playful swing at him. “I’m not that bad.”

  “Could have fooled me.” His smile faded. Now that they’d discussed recent events and he’d gone over her list of employees, there was a suggestion he wanted to make. He just wasn’t sure how to broach the subject without putting her on the defensive.

  “Listen, I know you like to handle things yourself, and I commend you for it,” he said, “but after what happened tonight, don’t you think it’s time to call in some professional help?”

  “Like what?”

  “Well, how about we start by asking Logan to do some background checks for us?”

  “We? Us?” Her eyebrows arched.

  “I just thought, since he’s my brother-in-law, it would be best if I did the asking. You’re welcome to approach him yourself if you’d prefer.”

  Trudy Lynn shook her head. “Becky already suggested it. The main reason I haven’t is because I don’t want to interfere with his pastoral duties. I can’t believe how busy that poor man is, day and night.”

  “He won’t be too busy to make a few inquiries for us, will he? After all, you do go to his church.”

  “I suppose it won’t be so bad if we make sure he understands we don’t expect him to drop everything and go back to being a private investigator.”

  “Then it’s settled. We’ll give him a call tomorrow and put him on the trail.” Cody saw her make a comical face that was half frown, half smile. “What?”

  She pointed to a sliver of sky visible through the oaks. “I think we’d better call Logan today. That sure looks like the glow before sunrise.” She yawned. “No wonder I’m so tired.”

  “We’ve both been running on adrenaline. Now that its effect is wearing off, we’re bound to feel exhausted.”

  “How’s your knee?” Trudy Lynn asked.

  “Not as bad as I’d thought it would be by now,” he confessed, eyeing his propped-up foot. “Ask me again in the morning.”

  “I just did. It is morning, remember?” Stifling another yawn, she stood and stretched. “Get some rest. As soon as I finish my chores I’ll call Becky and see if she knows what Brother Logan has scheduled for today. If he’s not too busy, I’ll ask for his opinion. Okay?”

  “Sounds good to me.”

  Cody purposely waited until she’d left before he tried to move. The calf muscles in his injured leg were tied in knots, but at least his knee wasn’t throbbing. He used his hands to support and cautiously lower it. So far, so good. At least he hadn’t had to stifle a shout of pain.

  He pulled himself upright by tugging on the porch railing, then tucked a crutch under each arm before starting for the door.

  Tail wagging, Sailor was already waiting there, ready to go in.

  When Cody turned the knob, it came off in his hand! Disgusted, he looked at his dog. “So, that’s how you got out. What’d you do, eat the inside handle?”

  The Newfoundland wagged his tail and panted, his sad, brown eyes giving him a totally innocent expression.

  Cody pushed open the door. Expecting the worst, he was relieved to note that the only thing Sailor had done to escape was chew at the knob and make a series of scratches below the lock.

  Correction, Cody thought. Not below the lock. Below where the lock would have been if the interior knob was still attached.

  He picked up the pieces and reassembled them as best he could, mostly to make sure Sailor hadn’t ingested anything dangerous. When he was satisfied his dog had merely chewed the lock set apart and spit out the mechanism, he hobbled wearily to the bed, lay across it and closed his eyes.

  In the morning, he’d use his cell phone to call the local hardware store and have them send out a replacement. That thought brought a quiet chuckle. Make that later this morning. Much later. Right now, he didn’t care if the sun was rising or not. He had to get some sleep.

  Although Trudy Lynn had made the initial request for Logan’s professional advice, Cody
had followed it up with a friendly call of his own, and the pastor had used that ready-made opportunity to pass along the results of his brief investigation.

  Cody suggested Trudy Lynn drop by his cabin to discuss Logan’s findings. She found him sitting on the porch in his favorite position, foot elevated, and paused at the base of the wooden steps. “Okay. I’m here. What was so bad that Logan couldn’t tell me about it?”

  “Like you said, he’s a busy guy. We happened to be talking and he asked me to pass along some data, that’s all. There’s no conspiracy to leave you out of the loop, honest.”

  “I’ll reserve judgment on that. Go ahead. What did Logan say?”

  “Sure you don’t want to sit down?”

  “No thanks. I can’t stay.”

  “Have it your way.” Cody unfolded a slip of paper and began reading. “William Garfield Wilson, age sixty-seven, paroled after serving three years of an eight-year sentence in…”

  “Whoa! You’re telling me Will, my Will, has a prison record? Are you sure?”

  Cody nodded. “The information came straight from the state police Web site. Logan was surprised, too.”

  She sank onto the porch step, shoulders slumping, and laced her fingers together around her bent knees. “What was Will arrested for?”

  “Maiming a man in a brawl. It happened when he was in the Merchant Marines.”

  “That was ages ago.”

  “I know. There’s more.”

  “I can hardly wait.”

  “Hey, I’m just the messenger. Don’t grumble at me. I didn’t make this stuff up.”

  “I know. Sorry. Go on.”

  “The other info you may already have heard through the local grapevine. Ronnie Randall? The kid you fired? His whole family has a reputation for being pretty unforgiving when they think they’ve been wronged. The boy’s father and uncles have been arrested for getting belligerent numerous times. One of the kids working on the canoes told me they’ve been spreading the rumor you let poor Ronnie go because you’re prejudiced against folks who have more influence than you do.”

  “Humph. That would be just about everybody in Fulton County, if it were true,” Trudy Lynn said. “What I’m prejudiced against is thieves. I don’t suppose anybody mentioned the little problem of missing sodas and candy from the camp store, did they?”

  She was surprised to see Cody nod and refer to his notes again. “Matter of fact, they did. Ronnie swears he’s innocent. Naturally, his family believes him.”

  “Naturally.” She sighed. “Is that all?”

  “Not quite.”

  The tone of Cody’s voice caused her to glance up at him. “Uh-oh. What else?”

  “Did you know that your cousin Jim is on probation? He was convicted of drug possession.”

  “Of course I knew. That was all a mistake. He was just holding a backpack for a friend. He had no idea there was anything illegal in it.”

  “That’s the oldest excuse in the book, but okay. If you say so.”

  “I have to give him the benefit of the doubt. Jim can be kind of reckless when he’s hanging around with the wrong crowd but he’s not a criminal. If anything, he’s a genius. I’ve never known anybody so gifted with a computer.”

  “Which reminds me,” Cody said. “When did he say he could spare me an hour or so of time on the Internet?”

  “I didn’t get around to asking. Tomorrow’s his day off. Anytime then should be fine. Let me know when you want to come over to the office and I’ll send Will to get you on the ATV. Is that okay?”

  “Sure. No problem. It’ll give me a chance to ask him about his prison time.”

  “Don’t you dare!”

  “Why not? Aren’t you interested in hearing his side of the story?”

  “Not if it means making him think I don’t trust him. People’s feelings are more important to me than dredging up details of a past that can’t possibly have any connection to my vandal.”

  “How do you know it can’t?”

  “I just do,” Trudy Lynn insisted. “In all the years Will has worked for me, this is the first time I’ve had any problems. If he were involved, the trouble would have started long ago, and you know it.”

  “Probably. Unless whoever’s been smashing your canoes was incarcerated till recently.”

  “A cell mate, you mean?”

  “Maybe.”

  “I’d sooner believe fish could fly.”

  Cody chuckled. “As slippery as fish are, I imagine they’d have a real hard time roosting in trees. Birds wouldn’t like the competition for food, either.”

  In spite of her worry over Will, Trudy Lynn couldn’t help joining in. “Neither would the squirrels. Big catfish actually eat acorns if the nuts happen to drop into the water. I’ve seen them do it.” She giggled. “You know, you have a very strange sense of humor.”

  “So I’ve been told. Doesn’t it bother you that you always laugh at my crazy jokes?”

  “Not at all,” she said with a broadening grin. “After my trick with the gravy boat the other night, I figure my reputation has nowhere to go but up.”

  SEVEN

  After thinking it over, Trudy Lynn decided that even if his closeness was a bit unsettling, Cody would be safer riding the ATV with her than with Will. The older man was cautious, sometimes to a fault, but his peripheral vision and reaction time left much to be desired.

  She picked Cody up at 10:00 a.m. and drove straight to the camp office. Instead of making him climb the front steps and enter through the store, she ushered him through her kitchen and out into the central hallway.

  “Like I said before, the computer is in that room over there. I’ve locked Widget in the bathroom so he won’t bother you.” At the arch of Cody’s eyebrow she added, “It’s a trick I learned from a guy with a really big dog.”

  “Glad to be of service.”

  “Speaking of service, Anne’s on duty in the store. She’s a sweetheart. I’ll tell her you’re working in here. If you get hungry or thirsty, just holler and she’ll bring you whatever you want.”

  “I should be fine. All I want to do is access my accounts and see if I need to make any modifications. It won’t take long.”

  “Investments like that have always scared me,” Trudy Lynn admitted. “I prefer to put my money into things I can see and touch, like this place.”

  “I’m glad it’s worked out for you.”

  “Me, too. It’s been a long, hard road but I’m finally starting to see a small profit.”

  “Good. Well…”

  She gestured toward the open office. “Right. I’m keeping you. Go on in. Make yourself at home. If you want privacy, just shut the door. I won’t mind. If I need anything, I’ll knock. Just promise you’ll be careful. I almost never touch that computer. Jim gets really upset if he thinks I’m fiddling with his programs.”

  “Understood,” Cody said.

  Trudy Lynn noticed that not only was she babbling again, her hands were making exaggerated, fluttery motions to accent her words. That fit with the way the butterflies in her stomach were behaving. She’d been unnecessarily on edge all morning and it was beginning to rile her. What a ridiculous response to doing a simple favor. Surely, there was no need to be worried about Cody accidentally losing or corrupting important files, so why be nervous?

  She solved her fidgeting problem by stuffing her hands into the pockets of her jeans. “Okay. Have at it. I’ll go do some chores. See you later.”

  “Okay. Thanks.”

  Trudy Lynn paused to watch him turn and make his way to the office. He did seem to be getting around a little better. Was he? Or was that just wishful thinking on her part?

  Make that wishful praying. Cody Keringhoven had been in her prayers ever since Becky had told her he’d been hurt, and there was certainly nothing wrong with affirming a positive result. She didn’t need the equivalent of thunder and lightning to convince her the Lord was working in Cody’s life. She knew He was.

  Though she stil
l wasn’t sure what part she might play in Cody’s recovery, she was open to heavenly inspiration, just as long as it didn’t require the kind of trust she’d once placed in Ned. Becoming involved with one overly controlling, pigheaded man had been an honest mistake. Falling for a second one who was carrying even more excess emotional baggage would be totally idiotic.

  Besides, until she and Cody had recovered from the disappointments in their respective love lives, neither of them could count on thinking clearly. Entertaining the notion of becoming romantically involved again, let alone acting on it, scared her silly.

  Trudy Lynn felt a sudden, overpowering urge to flee. She was outside, taking gulping breaths of fresh air, before she realized that no matter how much distance she put between herself and Cody Keringhoven, her tenderhearted sympathies would remain with him.

  Okay. She could live with that. There was nothing wrong with well-placed compassion and concern. So what if she happened to like the man? That didn’t automatically mean she was falling for him, did it? Of course not.

  Letting her thoughts gel, Trudy Lynn began to smile and relax. She cared about a lot of people, her friends, her pastor, her employees, even the folks who rented canoes and campsites from her. Why not extend that same innocent sentiment to Cody? He might be grumpy at times but who wouldn’t be, given his past? When he was in good spirits, he was a lot of fun to be around. There was nothing wrong with enjoying his company.

  Satisfied with that logical conclusion, she skipped down the steps, feeling more lighthearted and more alive than she had for ages.

  Cody was still seated in front of the computer monitor when Trudy Lynn returned and rapped on the doorjamb before poking her head in. “You busy?”

  “No. Just finishing up. Am I in your way?”

  “Not at all. As a matter of fact, maybe you can do me a favor. I called my insurance agent about the canoe that was damaged last night. She says she needs the date of purchase and the unit price before she can process my claim.”