The Secret Life of Haans Gerhardt

Untitled Part 13

Chapter 14

At the hunting cabin, Steven Douglas sat thinking. It had been two weeks since Helen was killed, and the man responsible was still running loose. This bothered Steven to the point where he went out to the hunting cabin every day once Josh and Tommy were at school. He made sure his guns were loaded and his ammo was fully stocked. On a few occasions, he actually hunted. Remembering how Helen had hated the smell of animal blood, Steven cleaned and dressed the deer he had killed by the stream that wound its way around the back of the small, rustic cabin. He skinned the buck, and stretched the hide on a tanning rack, just as his grandfather had taught him. He then carefully butchered the meat, separating what he would take home from what he would freeze at the cabin. He put the meat in for home into one of the coolers he had brought, then drove up to the bait shop by Lake Adena, about five miles from the cabin. There, he bought some ice and poured it into the cooler. As he did this, he saw a familiar truck pull into the parking lot beside him.

Looking up to see who it was, he saw Sabrina Dunn in the driver's seat. He closed the cooler in the back of his own truck, and walked over to the truck where Sabrina sat. 

"Hey, Sabrina." said Steven. "How's Grandma doing? She hasn't been to church for a while." 

Sabrina, startled to see Steven this far from home, answered, "She's been real tired lately. She seems to be getting better, though." 

Just then, Joe Montgomery, who had been sleeping in the passenger seat, sat up and looked around. His still- sleepy gaze fell on Steven. 

"Hiya, Chief." he yawned. 

Steven smiled. "Hi, Joe. How are you?" he said. 

"Oh, I'm just fine." answered Joe. 

Steven nodded. "So what brings you two all the way out here?" he asked the couple. 

"Sabrina and I are going camping," answered Joe. "She's real tore up about losing her brother, so I figured I'd get her out of town for a while." he said. 

Sabrina nodded in agreement, a wave of pain crossing her face at the mention of Neil's death.

Steven reached through the window of the truck and patted Sabrina's shoulder sympathetically. 

"I came out here to get away, too." said Steven. "The robbery stole my Helen from me and my boys." he told Sabrina. A flash of anger showed itself on his face, and he added, "I will catch the guy responsible for this, and I will kill him with my bare hands!" 

Sabrina jumped, startled at Steven's sudden anger. Thinking quickly, she gave an excuse as to why they had to leave. 

"Well, Chief, it's good to see you, and I'm glad you're so dedicated to the case. But Joe and I need to get in here and pick up a few supplies so we can find a good campsite before dark." she explained. 

And with that, Sabrina and Joe hurried into the bait shop.

Steven climbed into his own truck and drove back to the cabin, thinking about the encounter. Something definitely smelled fishy with those two. He thought. He pushed the thought from his mind as he packed up a few more items, then drove back home to Josh and Tommy.   

Author's Note:

Thank you for your patience in waiting for my updates. I apologize for not regularly updating. I've been distracted by work and the holidays.