A Killer Christmas Wish Page 4

  “Yep. But what should we do about the others? Should Cat do her meet and greet?” Shauna pointed out the problem with having four other guests in the house.

  “Go on with what you had planned. I’ll take a look and have someone come get the body. If I think it’s a crime scene, I’ll need the room locked and off limits. And I’ll interview the others as soon as I determine if it was a crime. Right now, it’s classified an unattended death.” Uncle Pete stomped his boots, getting any snow off before going inside. He turned back. “Keep the living room door shut.”

  Cat and Shauna followed him inside. The writers were in the dining room grabbing coffee and looked up as Uncle Pete walked past.

  Shauna nodded to the group. “You go have your welcome meeting and I’ll help your uncle.”

  “What in the world am I going to say about Dan’s absence?” Cat whispered, pulling Shauna out of sight of the dining room. “I can’t just lie.”

  “You can’t tell them he’s dead. Not until your uncle confirms it. Just be vague.” She squeezed Cat’s hand. “You can do this.”

  Cat nodded, but she wasn’t sure she could. She went into the dining room and poured herself a cup of coffee. Then she turned to the group. “Let’s go get comfortable in the living room.”

  Andi raised her hand. “Dan’s not here yet.”

  “He’s unavailable right now. But you guys are ready so let’s go.” Cat smiled and nodded as the group filed out into the lobby area and then went to the living room. Cat closed the doors behind them. When Andi frowned, she nodded toward the fire. “I want to make sure we stay warm in here. This old house can be a bit drafty in December.”

  They seemed to accept her statement even though Cat thought her face must be beet red due to the heat she felt on her cheeks. She crossed the room and pointed to the chart. “Okay so I’m big into setting goals. You may not be, but this week, you’ll need to open your eyes and mind to the idea. Kind of a ‘my house, my rules’ thing.”

  The women laughed and settled back into their chairs.

  “Each session, we’ll set a goal for what we want to accomplish but they’ll all come back to the goals we set tonight. We can change or add on to this list or even delete something, but we have to start somewhere. Think about why you signed up for the retreat. What did you want to get out of your time here? Spend a few minutes free writing, then we’ll share.”

  Andi raised her hand. “I didn’t sign up. The college signed me up for the retreat.”

  Inwardly, Cat sighed but she tried to keep her frustration off her face. “Okay, your situation is a little different. But once you found out you were coming, was there something you wanted to do with this week? Something new you wanted to try? Or maybe a project you never had time to finish before?”

  Andi nodded seriously then started writing.

  In a few minutes everyone seemed to be done. Cat pointed to Eliza. “Do you want to go first?”

  “Sure. I am looking for evergreen subjects I can write and pitch to different wedding magazines and websites. I want to have at least one pitch written for each month. That way, I can customize it based on where I’m submitting. Maybe even pre-write some blogs for my website to get people into my writing.” Eliza picked up a different color pen and made a note in her book. “Here’s my first goal. By the end of the retreat, I will have twelve seasonal pitches written for use next year in my business.”

  “Nice job.” Cat wrote the goal on the page. “I want to point out that Eliza used the magic word. Business. I think non-fiction authors get the concept that their writing is a business easier than your fiction counterparts. Who’s next?”

  “I’ll go.” Julie Smith, the historian, raised her hand.

  As Julie started talking, Cat sat down and sipped her coffee. A text buzzed and she picked up her phone. The message was from Shauna. The ambulance is here picking up his body. Dan’s dead. Give us at least thirty more minutes before you break.

  She set the phone down and focused on Julie telling the group what she wanted to do for the week. To Cat’s surprise, Julie told the group she was studying the local area for a possible book proposal. A pang of recognition flooded Cat’s memory from her discussion with Dante. Was this the writer who had called him? Cat watched Julie carefully, but she looked like most of the historians from the college. Mild and just a little boring. When Julie finished, Cat stood at the flipchart.

  “Okay, I’m going to paraphrase here, so if I get it wrong, correct me. This is your goal, not mine.” Cat smiled to put the woman at ease. Had Dante said he’d met with the woman? Maybe he could stop by and see if Julie was the same person? Cat shook her head. Seth would have a cow. She focused back on the goal. “You have a list of people to interview and you want to work in the Covington library to expand your list if possible and maybe do some genealogy? That’s a lot of goals. Let’s narrow it to this. Set up and complete ten in-person interviews during the week. That’s two a day. And, we can add, spend at least two hours a day researching the subject in the library. That way, both of the goals are measurable. Does that work?”

  Julie nodded in agreement. “I know I’ve got a lot on my plate. And I always over-schedule my time. But my mom always said the best way to eat an elephant was one bite at a time.”

  “That’s gross.” Andi laughed at the image.

  “Gross but true. It’s the first tenent in time management for writers. You have to break your big projects, like writing a book, into manageable steps or bites. I suspect Julie’s an over-achiever. The group is going to have to make sure she eats and takes a little time for fun while you all are here.” Cat smiled at the historian whose face had turned a little red at the praise.

  “I can handle that part of the week.” Andi raised her hand again. “I’m going to be bugging all of you on things I want to learn. But I know Aspen Hills and the best places to eat. And I just turned twenty-one so I can even go into the bar if that’s what you want to do for a team building activity.”

  “Okay, Andi, are you ready to share your other goals for the week? Or do you want Teri to go first?” Cat loved the girl’s enthusiasm. At least the retreat wouldn’t be boring. Then Dan’s face popped into her head. Boring was never an option with a Warm Springs Writing Retreat.

  “Teri, you go. I’m still thinking.” Andi turned to the older woman.

  Teri Close was the oldest in the group. Cat guessed her age to be mid-fifties but she had a bright smile and a bounce to her step.

  “I’m outlining my first organization book. The focus is organizing your life after change. I don’t mean little change. I mean, the big ones like death, divorce, retirement, losing a job. The changes that knock the wind out of you. I’ve played around with a title, but I’m not set yet. So I’d like some brainstorming help with that. If I leave here on Sunday with an outline, a title, the back-cover copy and at least one chapter, I’ll be happy.”

  “I love that idea.” Cat stood and made notes on the board. “I’ve had to deal with massive change at least twice in my life when my head wasn’t clear, especially during my divorce. A book like yours would have been helpful.”

  Teri blushed and Cat hoped her writing was as strong as the idea for the book. “Thanks. I think so as well. Maybe I could interview you for the book while I’m here?”

  “Of course. Just set up a time. You have an event schedule in your folders that were left in your room with a few bags of candy. We live on sugar here.” Cat paused, then added. “You might want to talk to Shauna too. She’s had a couple of life hits that she might be willing to discuss with you.”

  “Oh, I try not to get too personal. It’s mostly about things that slipped and ways you recovered your life,” Teri clarified. “Thanks for offering. I’ll reach out to Shauna too. I love having successful women to learn from.”

  “Okay, Andi, you’re up.” Cat glanced at the phone. They’d been talking more than thirty minutes since the text, but she wouldn’t give them a break until Andi finished her goa
ls. Then Cat would talk to her uncle and formulate what she was going to say to the group about Dan.

  Andi started with an over-arching goal, focused on the history of the houses on Warm Springs. A subject that had Julie jumping into the conversation.

  “I can help you find original sources if you want my help when we’re at the library.” Julie offered.

  “That would be great. I’ve always loved these houses and wondered who lived here.” Then Andi listed off her goals. “I want to learn how to research the specific material I want to know and then” —she smiled at Cat— “I want to write a fictionalized accounting of Aspen Hill’s early settlers. I’d love to know who lived in houses like this and what their lives were like.”

  Cat summarized Andi’s goals into a few that were measurable including talking with Miss Applebome about what they had in the archives. She wondered if any of the English professors had a specialty in fictional history writing. She’d reach out to the current Dean on Monday.

  Cat glanced at the list. “I’ll add in my writing goals for the week. I want to write daily on my current project and hit twenty thousand words this week.”

  Andi whistled. “That’s a lot.”

  “Three thousand, three hundred, thirty-four words per day, more or less for six days. Eating the elephant.” She added her goal which now that she’d claimed the high number, she wondered if she’d be able to make it. It was set now. She looked around the room. “So does this plan work for the week? We can adjust if we need to, but these are the goals we’re going to come back to on Saturday.”

  As the group nodded and wrote in their notebooks, she stood. “Let me check and see if the dining room is set for us and then we’ll take a quick break. Wait here.”

  Cat left the room, closing the pocket doors after her. She looked up and Shauna was coming down the stairs. “Everything clear?”

  Shauna nodded and came closer. “Go ahead and have your break. Your uncle is still upstairs but he said he’ll bring his CSI crew out of Denver tomorrow when the group is at the library. He says since everyone just got here, he wants to talk to Seth about the drive from Denver. Then he’ll decide if he needs to interview anyone of the guests.”

  “Does he think he just passed?” Cat glanced up the stairs.

  Shauna shook her head. “He didn’t say, but I doubt he’d be bringing in the CSI team if he did. Anyway, he said you could say he died unexpectedly and that the police were looking into it as an unattended death. That it was a state law.”

  “Well, at least that part is true.” Cat rubbed her friend’s arm. “Are you okay? I’m sorry I was busy with the group.”

  “It’s part of the job, right?” Shauna took a deep breath. “Honestly, I just can’t believe he’s gone. He seemed so alive when he arrived.”

  Cat glanced at the living room door. “I better let them out. But if you need to talk later, we can have cocoa in the kitchen after I finish the session.”

  “I’m going to set up the house for tonight then go and hang in my room. I want a long hot bath and some quality sleep time. Even though I might have to use one of my sleeping pills after today. I’d ride my tension away, but I don’t want to take Snow out for a ride in this slick weather. Maybe next Sunday the conditions will be better. I might have to find an indoor arena to ride in during the winter.” She nodded toward the living room. “Go play with your writer friends. I’m alright.”

  “Okay. Now I just have to get Seth to forgive me and we’ll be back to being the Three Musketeers.” Cat headed to the door. “I need to be better at this fiancée thing.”

  “You’re doing fine. Every couple fights.” Shauna grinned. “Especially if there’s a hot neighbor butting into their lives every so often.”

  “He’s not…” Cat paused; she couldn’t say Dante wasn’t hot because he was. And he lived a few houses down when he wasn’t in Boston. “Butting into our lives. It was one cup of coffee.”

  “Whatever you have to tell yourself.” Shauna disappeared into the kitchen.

  Cat faced the living room door and took a breath. It would be better to tell them now about Dan. Then they could talk about Dan at the break and get back to their projects this evening. She paused. That seemed cold. But they hadn’t been in the middle of the retreat where they’d forged friendships. And, on the other hand, they’d paid for a full retreat. She’d give them the option of continuing.

  With that decision made, she moved back into the living room.

  “So, we’re almost ready with the evening treats but I wanted to talk to you for a minute. Dan Lawrence will not be continuing with the retreat. He passed away earlier this evening.” Cat glanced at the writers, trying to read their reactions.

  “How did he die?” Eliza asked. “It wasn’t something contagious, was it? Should we be in quarantine?”

  Cat waved the energy of the room down. “Don’t get excited. There is no evidence that says his death was contagious. My uncle, well, he’s the police chief in town. He’s taken custody of the body and will have tests conducted to determine cause of death. It’s standard protocol here if there was an unattended death.” She glanced around the room. “Please let me know if you need to talk to someone about this. The retreat will pay for a counseling session if you feel the need. I know having someone you know die can be disturbing.”

  Teri shrugged. “I didn’t know him except for the ride here in the van. Unless it’s a plague or something where I’ll have to be quarantined, I’m not sure the incident is going to affect me one bit. Although if I was quarantined, maybe I’d get this book done.”

  “I can’t believe you’re being so flip.” Andi rubbed her hands over her face. “Dan was sweet. He was nice to me when we were checking in. I was hoping to get to know him better this week. That’s the breaking point for me. I need chocolate. Are we done here?”

  “I’m sorry if I sounded cold. I really didn’t mean to come off that way. Look, let’s take a break. We can reconvene in fifteen minutes. I’d like to go over the week’s schedule and get you orientated to the house rules.” Cat watched the group as they walked out of the room and toward the break room. Maybe they wouldn’t be as upset about Dan’s death as she’d thought they would be. “You can attend or not, it’s your retreat.”

  She didn’t follow them. Instead, she let them mingle in the dining room together. She hurried up the stairs, hoping to find her uncle still around. She paused at the closed door to Dan’s room. She knocked, then let the door open slowly. Her uncle wasn’t in the room. It looked empty. But there were signs from the paramedics all over. She pulled out her phone and snapped pictures of the room. When she was done, she stepped inside and took pictures of the bathroom as well. Leaving the room, she paused at the welcome basket Shauna put in everyone’s room the first day. It had their Warm Springs Resort coffee mug, local snack products including jerky and some nuts. Shauna had also plastic wrapped several cookies, added a couple of bags of candy, and a few bottles of water sat near the basket. Dan hadn’t even had time to eat a cookie before he’d died.

  A notebook sat by the phone and Cat leaned over to try to read the notes Dan had made. He’d written down everyone’s names at the retreat. Even hers and Shauna’s. Cat’s last name was underlined three times with a note that said, Start here.

  “Start here for what?” She heard footsteps on the stairs. Quickly she left the room, pulling the door closed. She’d come back when the house wasn’t so busy. She moved toward the steps and saw Seth standing there, watching her. “Hey.”

  He stepped toward her. “I heard what happened. Are you all right?”

  She nodded. “I don’t understand why things like this keep happening here.”

  He opened his arms and she went to him, welcoming the contact. “I think I need to tell you something,” he said.

  5

  Cat and Seth sat at the kitchen table. She’d finished her Sunday night session to an attentive, if quiet group. She took a sip of her hot cocoa. “I wonder if I sh
ould just cancel the retreat. Send everyone home.”

  “Don’t do that. Your people are just a little shocked. They didn’t know the man well, so it’s not like that one group where they’d been friends for years. This awkwardness will pass. Besides, I heard Teri say during the ride from the airport that she saved for over a year to come here. She should get her retreat. No matter what.” Seth sipped his own cocoa but he also had snatched a couple of brownies from Shauna’s stash in the kitchen. “They’ll get through this.”

  “I know. Anyway, what did you want to tell me?” Cat stole one of his brownies and took a bite of the dark chocolate wonder. Sugar was a magic drug that made all things just a little more bearable. Even bad things.

  “I was out at Bernie’s, this afternoon after our fight.” He shook his head. “Don’t look at me that way. I nursed a beer and held a mini pity party at a table in the corner where I could watch the game.”

  “So you took some time for yourself. You don’t really have to confess that.” Cat finished the brownie. “You were right to be mad. I should have told you I was planning to meet with Dante.”

  “Let’s table the Dante issue until after the retreat. Besides, that’s not what I wanted to tell you.” He leaned forward. “I heard someone talking about your ex. They said his name, Michael Latimer. I looked around but I couldn’t tell where the voices were coming from at first. Two women were standing, paying their bill. I only saw their backs, but one said something about the house. It was the same voice. I tried to get over there, but George stopped me and asked me about a job he wants me to bid. When I looked up, they were gone.”

  Cat frowned and stirred her cocoa, making sure the whipped cream got into the drink and not stuck to the side of the cup. “This is weird. Michael’s name has come up three times today. Dante’s visit, your bar girls, and our Covington student.”

  Cat went on to tell Seth what Andi had said. When she finished, she looked at him. “What do you think?”