The Secret Life of Haans Gerhardt

Untitled Part 5

Chapter 6

As the Commissioner left, Steven watched him out the window. When he was sure he was not going to be seen, he slipped out the door and got into his car. He drove to the school, where he left a note for Joshua to take the bus to his friend, Scott's house after school. Steven knew that Scott's mother would take care of Joshua until he got back. That worry gone from his mind, he then drove to the edge of town, to his hunting cabin. Upon arriving to the cabin, he proceeded to unload a bed roll, some bottled water, and a couple of small coolers filled with food from the house.

As he unpacked the coolers, he made himself a can of soup and a grilled cheese for lunch. After lunch, Steven finished setting up the cabin for his stay. He put away the week's worth of clothes he had packed in the small, handmade dresser at the back of the two room cabin. After he had put away his clothes, Steven retrieved the rest of his things from the car. These things included his service weapon, his off-duty weapon, and his grandfather's Winchester rifle. He smiled as he held the Winchester, and thought to himself, This beauty may be old, but its aim is accurate, and it still shoots like new. Steven laid all three weapons on the cot in the corner of the cabin and silently wondered which of them he would use to kill the man who'd killed his wife.

When Steven had finished unpacking his belongings and getting settled into the cabin, he looked at his watch. He still had a few hours before Joshua got out of school, so he decided to take a hike in the woods. The cool Autumn breeze and the smell of the crisp leaves reminded him of Helen. Every year, when Steven would rake the leaves in the yard of their family home, Helen would bring Tommy out. Tommy would jump into the pile of leaves, squealing with laughter as the leaves flew all over the yard again, and Helen giggled with him.

Thinking back on the past years made Steven smile, though it was a sad smile. He missed his wife dearly. He found himself so consumed by the hurt and anger that her death caused that as he hiked, he carefully put together a plan to go after her killer. He knew that he wasn't supposed to, but he didn't care. He was going to get justice on his own terms.