After breakfast, Tony drove over to the Sheltering Arms Fishing Resort. The name sounded like it belonged to a nursing home rather than a place where fishermen gathered to search for “the big one.”
Tony was no stranger to fishing. His grandfather, called Nonno by his grandchildren, had taught him to fish. Nonno was a great fisherman. Patient, hopeful, and successful. When Tony was younger, going out on the lake with his grandfather was a chore, something he did because his parents insisted. However, as he got older, he began to look forward to his outings with Nonno. He found that it was one of the few times he could completely relax. After throwing your bait in the water, there was nothing else to do. You had to wait for a tug on the other end, and you couldn’t work for the results. It was out of your hands. But the anticipation of that tug kept you in your seat, determined to experience the thrill of conquest. Man over fish. He was past due for a vacation. Maybe after this assignment, he’d take some time off, grab his fishing pole, and go somewhere like this. Someplace peaceful.
When he got out of his car, Tony stopped and took a deep breath of fresh air. The fishy scent coming from the lake made him feel as if Nonno were standing right next to him. He felt a rush of emotion. He missed his grandfather. His entire family felt the man’s absence. More than anything, Tony wanted to be the kind of man who could impact his family in the way Nonno had. His love of family, his faith, and his example of what a man should be had shaped the DeLuca family for generations. What a legacy.
The small resort looked clean and well kept. Only six cabins. If it had been much bigger, Kate probably wouldn’t have been relocated here. The Marshals tried to keep their witnesses in places without much traffic. It was safer. That worked great for people who loved solitude, but not so well for those who enjoyed life in the big city.
Tony went inside the small building with the sign overhead that read Office. A tall, skinny man sat on a stool behind the counter, reading a book. He reminded Tony of something his mother used to say about some people. “They look like they’ve been rode hard and put away wet.” She meant they appeared to have had a hard life. Her description would certainly fit this guy. He looked to be in his fifties, but Tony guessed he was only in his late thirties or early forties.
When Tony got a little closer, he glanced at the book the man was holding. It was written by one of Tony’s favorite authors. Top-notch detective fiction. Great reading. At least the guy had excellent taste in literature. After a few seconds, the man looked up from his novel. “Can I help you?” His nasally voice fit his weather-beaten, hangdog face.
“Got any cabins available?”
The man put the book on the counter after carefully sliding his bookmark between the pages he’d been reading. “Yep. How long you gonna be here?”
“Tonight. Maybe tomorrow.”
“That’ll work. We got a big group coming in on Thursday.”
Tony held out his hand. “I’m Tony DeLuca. Glad to meet you.”
The man smiled and shook Tony’s hand. The smile reminded Tony of his sister Sophia’s baby. More of an indication of gas pain than a real smile.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Bobby Wade. Gonna do any fishing while you’re here?”
The guy had a pronounced lisp. Tony immediately felt sorry for him. Unattractive and a lisp. Didn’t seem fair somehow. “Not this time. Wish I could. I’m here to visit my cousin, Emily Lockhart. Do you know her?”
Bobby’s dull eyes took on new life. “Emily from the café? Sure.” This time his smile seemed heartfelt.
“You’re friends?”
Bobby blushed. “Well, kind of. I mean, everyone in Shelter Cove knows each other. We’re a pretty small town. Emily’s just . . . well, she’s special. Always nice to everyone.”
Seemed like Bobby had a crush on Kate. “You lived here long?” Tony asked.
“Nah. Used to live in Phoenix. Got tired of the heat. Bought this place about three years ago. The guy who owned it got sick and wanted out. Been here ever since.”
Tony would have asked if Bobby was married, but he was pretty sure what the answer would be. A glance at his ring finger confirmed his suspicions.
“Need your driver’s license,” Bobby said.
Tony took his license out of his wallet and pushed it across the counter. Bobby picked it up and copied some information into a ledger. This place sure wasn’t high-tech.
Bobby gave him back his license. “How you wanna pay?”
Tony noticed an old credit card machine on the counter, the kind where you had to slide the contraption across the card so it would make an impression on a carbon receipt. He hadn’t realized they were still around. He handed Bobby his card. After processing it on the ancient machine, Bobby gave it back to him.
“Cabin six is close to the dock. Cabin two is closer to the office. Which one ya want?”
“Six sounds good.”
Tony loved the water, but frankly, having some space between him and Bobby sounded like a good idea.
Bobby turned around and took a key from a large wooden board nailed to the wall. He handed it to Tony. “If you need fresh sheets or towels, see me. I’ve got everything. Cleaning lady comes on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. She’s already cleaned your room.”
“Sounds perfect. Thanks, Bobby.”
Tony took the key and went back to his car. Cabin six was the last one in the row. It was more like a small tract house than a cabin, but as long as it was clean, Tony didn’t care. He’d once had to guard a witness in an abandoned bunkhouse on a military base. It had been filthy. He and two other deputies worked like crazy to clean it up so it would be livable, but even after all their hard work, Tony still felt dirty.
Tony grabbed his suitcase and carried it over to the cabin’s door. He stuck the key in the knob and turned it. The door opened into a neat but plain room. On one side were a couch, two chairs, and a small entertainment center with an old TV. An ancient blue Formica kitchen table and matching chairs sat in a corner across the room. A gas stove sat on one side of a sink, with a small fridge on the other side. At the back of the room was a bed. Full size, no headboard. A large maple armoire stood next to the bed.
Tony put his suitcase on top of the dark blue chenille bedspread. A quick look around convinced him the room was as clean as he could hope for. The extremely small bathroom was basic, but it would work. Again, the fixtures were outdated, but they’d been scrubbed. The scent of bleach reassured him somewhat. Nevertheless, he unzipped his bag and got out the spray can of disinfectant he carried with him any time he had to travel. He sprayed the bedspread, the bathroom, the phone, the TV remote, the doorknobs, and the faucet on the kitchen sink. Afterward he felt better.
People liked to kid him about his apartment. He’d had some guys from work over to watch football once, and they’d laughed at how clean and neat he kept his place. “You’ll make someone a great wife,” one of them had said, making everyone laugh. Tony’s mom had raised him to pick up after himself, and he felt better when his surroundings were tidy. He wasn’t embarrassed by the guys’ comments. In fact, he’d had a great time. He kept telling himself he needed to ask them over again, but his job kept him so busy he’d never found another chance. He’d gotten invitations from some of them, but he’d turned most of them down. After a while, people quit asking. It wasn’t something he was proud of, but his work came first. Always.
He hung up his clothes in the armoire but kept his underwear and personal items in his suitcase. Much more hygienic.
After getting settled, he thought about taking a quick nap, but he was still buzzed from the coffee he’d had at the diner. He decided to check out the town a bit before eating lunch. Then he’d be ready to catch a few winks in the afternoon. Although he was certain Shelter Cove was a safe place, it always made him feel better to make sure his surroundings were secure. It had become a habit he couldn’t break.
He changed his shirt and slacks, choosing something more causal. Jeans and a sweater seemed appropriate. The spring air was nippy, and Tony knew from experience it was always colder near water. After he changed, he prepared to leave, but first he removed Kate’s file from his suitcase. He slid it under his mattress, then put the Do Not Disturb sign on the door. Even though Bobby said no one would be cleaning today, he didn’t want to take any chances.
He grabbed his black leather jacket and had just walked out the door when he noticed a green sedan parked on the road in front of the resort. Although he couldn’t see the driver, as soon as Tony stopped to look his way, the car took off. The vehicle was too far away for him to read the license plate. It was probably nothing, but somewhere inside Tony’s head, alarm bells rang. Was there really something to be concerned about or was it his overprotective nature rearing its head? He’d erred on the side of caution more than once. He didn’t consider it a weakness, but still, he didn’t want to overreact.
He sighed as he got into his car. Tony tried hard to listen to his gut, yet everything seemed fine in Shelter Cove. So why did he feel so uneasy?