Return to The Quarry

Prologue

There's nothing like a bear attack to drive the price of real estate down, or at least that was what one lucky developer certainly thought when he swooped in like an angel of mercy to the despairing town of North Kill, New York. The thunderclouds of disaster and scandal had gathered so thickly that the chamber of commerce never thought they would see the light of day again. First a sheriff dies in a fatal fire in Hackett Woods. Two hikers disappear in the same area. Then bears attack counselors at the town's mainstay summer camp. The acting sheriff during that fiasco imprisoned two people unlawfully. The list of bad associated with the whole incident went on and on.

The clear negligence on the part of the Hacketts is what stood out in most people's minds. The carelessness with which they, North Kill's most respected family, had neglected the safety of their employees was astounding. While their neighbors certainly had sympathy for them losing two of their own as a result, it was roundly agreed that prison for the remaining members of the family was fitting. After all, how many generations of parents had entrusted their children to a camp that was apparently not secured against dangerous wildlife? And then to learn that Sheriff Travis Hackett tried to silence two employees by jailing them for two months . . .

No one in North Kill could tell what those in town government were thinking when all of that happened. Mostly because they said nothing. They were conspicuously tight lipped about specific details related to what had happened. Even worse, they were silent about what was going to happen next. The camp brought some traffic to the town and paid a decent chunk of the tax base . . . would the property taxes on the modest and remote homes in the area skyrocket? What would become of the vacant camp? Would it allow the wildlife problem to spin out of control for everyone in the vicinity?

The first rays of hope began to cut through the black patch when a savvy hotelier from down state had offered to buy up the land attached to the Hackett name around November of 2021. True, North Kill was selling it at a huge loss, owing to the land's troublesome reputation. But in a turn of good luck, the developer agreed to buy all of the Hackett family's debts and damages with it.

With the old Hackett's Quarry Summer Camp no longer an attractive nuisance hiding behind a veil of overgrown foliage like some sort of sinister secret, North Kill was able to look forward to moving on from the incident. The bright yellow construction vehicles paraded through town on flatbeds in the fall of 2021 just as the yellow school buses full of children from the city once – and never again – made the journey to and from the camp. The sounds of work being done day and night echoed through the rocky expanses all through the winter, and by the spring of 2022, the curtains were drawn back and the town's savior was revealed.

Stone Cutter's lodge Hotel and Resort was a masterpiece of design and careful planning. A five-star Catskill themed resort, it capitalized on the region's seasonal outdoor entertainments, and promised family-oriented events to not only entertain the locals, but draw much-needed revenue into the suffering town. Much of the camp's countenance remained, albeit updated and given a luxurious facelift. The pool was refurbished. Outdoor dining and bar facilities were added, and the once rustic cabins were overhauled, making them into niche amenities such as spa and massage treatments. Though the island was not particularly developed (outside of a good cleaning up), the boathouse on the mainland was outfitted for a variety of larger motorized boats, jet skis, and even the sculls and shells used by various rowing teams that competed on what was once called Lake Septimus. Add an upscale bar and dancefloor, more seating for a small-plate restaurant, more ziplines, and enhanced Wi-Fi, and everyone would be having too much fun to remember that it was right there that the body of a missing hiker had recently been moored.

Not far from there, several well-placed tennis courts had been installed, and the previous camp lodge had been refurbished to be a high-toned tennis clubhouse. The general store was now concierge and corporate offices. The dilapidated Hackett Mansion had been pulled down, and a five-star mountain lodge-themed hotel was built, promising breathtaking views from floor-to-ceiling windows, award winning service, and world class accommodations.