Buried [Completed]

Chapter three- Forgotten

Dougal Lachlan stood in long term parking at the Portland Airport and tried to remember where he'd parked his SUV. Holding a duffel bag in one hand, and a pet carrier with his cat Borden in the other, he needed a third hand to get out his keys. It was seven in the evening and raining. He'd just spent ten hours flying from New York City to Portland, with a connection in Chicago, and he still had a five and half hour drive to Twisted Cedars. Home. Strange to be calling it that again after all these years. But then, a lot was strange these days. Most notably, finding a buried body in the former garden at Librarian Cottage. And then that body belonging to Charlotte's sister Daisy. 

He was worried about Charlotte. She hadn't answered any of his calls while he was away. Maybe she was pissed at him for taking off so soon after finding Daisy's body. But he had his demons, too. And he'd had to get his cat. Borden let out a yowl of displeasure from inside her carrier. "I hear you." He set down the carrier to get his keys. When he hit the "unlock" button on the fob, lights flashed on a vehicle halfway down the next row, accompanied by a quick beep. 

There it was. He tossed his luggage in the trunk, then set up a makeshift litter box behind the driver's seat. On the other floor mat, he put a bowl of water and an open tin of tuna. It had been a long, confusing day for Borden and she howled at him when he let her out. She ignored the food, sniffed the water, but wouldn't drink it. She did make use of the litter, though. When he offered her a greenie treat, she wouldn't deign to even look at it. 

"Don't think I'm joining you in this stupid hunger strike of yours." 

He put her back in the carrier and secured it with the seat belt. Fifteen minutes later he was in the drive-through line for a burger and a soda, after which he filled the tank, and tried phoning Charlotte again. No answer. Again. Hell, what was going on? The July days were long, which worked in his favor. He didn't lose the sunlight until he finished the mountain traverse to the coastal highway. Then he had only a few more hours to go. 

Moonlight was playing on the ocean waves when he finally reached town limits, shortly after midnight. Despite his longing for his new forest home, he drove past the exit to the Librarian Cottage and headed instead to the Hammond's beautiful beach home, where Charlotte lived alone. The house was much too big for one person. He suspected Charlotte had hung onto it, after her parents' deaths, in the hopes that one day her sister would return. The two story clapboard would have had plenty of space for Charlotte and Daisy, as well as Daisy's two children. But that was not to be. A pale light shone from the main floor, suggesting not only was Charlotte still awake, but she hadn't even gone up to her room, yet. Dougal scooped Borden from her carrier. 

"I want you to make a good first impression, okay? So be friendly." 

He jogged up the steps and followed the wraparound porch to the kitchen door, which he tapped on lightly, before trying the door. Unlocked, as usual. For a woman plagued with numerous irrational fears and anxieties, Charlotte was surprisingly casual about practical matters of safety. 

"Charlotte? It's me. Are you up?" 

The familiar smell of her house made him feel like he was truly home. In his arms, Borden was wiggling so much, he had to set her free. But as soon as the feline's paws landed on the unfamiliar tile floor, she froze. 

"Yeah, it's another strange place. But I promise, you'll like this one." 

"Dougal?" 

He heard Charlotte's sleepy voice a second before she rounded the corner. She was wearing a long T-shirt, her shapely legs and feet bare. The blanket she usually kept on the sofa was wrapped around her shoulders. Clearly he'd awakened her.