Cotton Grass Lodge (16 page)

“A woman like Victoria?” Duncan gazed into his glass of tea, jiggled the ice, and pretended the tawny liquid was scotch. A breeze from the lake made a quick turn around the porch, cool and refreshing. He didn’t usually sit here during the busy afternoon. He liked it.

“Why, yes. Like Victoria. The funds from the trust will help you get re-established where you should be.”

Duncan watched his mother’s attempt to reconstruct his life. She had been a driving force in his father’s success. Even though she’d never worked, she knew all the right people, knew all the best-kept secrets, and volunteered with the proper civic organizations. The only thing out of her control from the very beginning had been her son.

“Duncan, what your mother is trying to say—”

They’re tag teaming me
. He could succumb to the anger building in his gut or try being an adult. It would be interesting for a change. He stood and tossed the last bit of liquid in his glass over the railing into a bed of yellow snapdragons below. “Dad, what do you really want?” Duncan took a deep breath.

Paul reached for his glass. “We want what’s best for you. We want…”

Pamela interrupted, “Duncan, don’t be difficult.”

Usually her phrase was the end to civility in these conversations. Duncan smiled, he didn’t want to fight. He really wanted a conversation. A debate, if it had to be. He could control a debate and be comfortable with the results. “Mother, answer the question.” He kept his voice even and in control. “What do you and Dad really want? Not the ubiquitous
what’s best for you
. What do you want?”

Pamela smiled slightly, victory in her eyes, “We will gladly help you get rid of this little place. There’s no doubt you put everything you have into it.

“Victoria told me you could go back to your position at the Regent Corporation whenever you want. I might add she was devastated when you sent her away, but I think she understands how desperately alone you are. You’ve had time to realize what a gem she is, but she won’t wait forever.”

Paul leaned forward to scoop a cracker into the salmon dip. “I know you liquidated your account with my firm. We can put some of the funds you stand to inherit into another retirement and the rest we can manage to help you get back on your feet.”

Duncan linked his fingers behind his head, cradled his neck, and leaned on the corner porch-post. He gave a quick nod to acknowledge the Swiss hikers and their three children as they dropped backpacks and chatted amiably with each other at the other end of the porch.

“Mom, do you remember what you said when you left me, in traction—to go to Europe?”

“Oh please, Duncan. You make it sound so cold. The tickets were non-refundable, and you were in a hospital.” Pamela rolled her eyes. “The car wreck was your fault; it’s not like you were sick.”

“You’re right,” Duncan said. “And three months in traction gave me time to consider what you said. Which was, ‘It’s time you started to think about your future. A future without this family to prop you up.’ Did I remember correctly?”

Pamela lifted her chin slightly. “Yes, I think so.” She seemed pleased her tough love was remembered properly.

Duncan turned to his father. “You and your insurance did pay for the rehab facility and the last two years of college. Considering what an ass I was up until then, I thank you. But have you given me money for anything at all since then?”

“No,” Paul answered, he brushed his hand over the knee of his slacks and crossed his legs.

“Duncan.” Pamela started and Duncan held up a hand to still her.

“Let me finish. This—” Duncan waved his hand in the same manner his mother just had. “Little experiment has made me happier than I ever thought possible. I worked hard for sixteen years and, Dad—I didn’t put money in just one account at your firm. You taught me to diversify, remember? I have an obscene amount of money in several firms because I didn’t have a life. This little experiment will be appraised at close to a million dollars by this time next year.”

“We always wanted you to be happy and successful,” Paul said quietly.

“I am, both. Would you like a tour?” Duncan looked down at his wrist where he used to wear a watch. “It’s about to get busy, and Alice won’t have dinner ready for another hour.”

Pamela slid a skeptical eye toward Paul. “It seems quiet enough to run itself. You could easily hire a manager.”

As if on cue, chaos at the Cotton Grass Lodge erupted. Alice came out on the porch, “Duncan, Rebecca fell and broke a tooth. Jacob is bringing her to the lodge in his skiff. He’ll be here in a couple of hours. I already called Hanna to find out if she can squeeze them in on the way back to Anchorage tonight.” While she stood there explaining the logistics, Mathew’s sunburned fishermen carried a full cooler up from the lake. They would want to package their fish and get them into the freezers before supper. The wives of those three men came into the yard from their picnic on two of the four-wheelers.

Duncan warmed as he watched Hanna stroll into the yard.

****

Hanna’s line of vision stopped on Duncan when she came out of the brushy trail into the yard of the lodge. Mr. GQ Cover Boy was standing on the porch, and her pulse raced. Damn it! She had a teenage crush. Or worse, admit it, a much more dangerous big girl crush.

She never let men come up to her cabin, her safe place. Duncan’s arrival changed everything. What was she going to do about him? He lived here. She couldn’t hide from him, and he was making her crazy.

Duncan came down off the porch and met her half way. “Sorry about this.”

“We roll with it.” Hanna shrugged. “Rebecca weighs every bit of forty pounds, and your parents don’t have any luggage. I’ll have to stay in town tonight, but Jacob and Rebecca can stay at my apartment, and Jacob can use my car to get her to the dentist.”

“You’re awfully nice.”

Hanna looked at Duncan for a moment. “It has nothing to do with nice. They’re neighbors.”

Duncan took his parents to watch the fish processing and invited the two newest guests to join them.

Hanna went into the lodge to help in the kitchen. An hour later, Alice rang a bell for the supper buffet. The food was Alaskan plain and plentiful. Which made it exotic and abundant for the guests milling around the dining room. The menu tonight: barbequed salmon, braised moose, several salads, and roasted herbed potatoes.

Duncan’s parents seemed pleasantly surprised when they finally relaxed into the evening routine at the lodge. After the meal and a finish of the tour, Paul and Pamela enjoyed the porch again. The brilliant summer sun dipped close to the tops of the trees.

Hanna came through the door of the lodge and announced, “We need to start back.”

Paul looked up from his watch in amazement. “It can’t be nine o’clock.”

Hanna grinned. “Yup.”

Duncan laughed with his father. “I’m still astonished by how much daylight there is.”

“How do you sleep?” Pamela asked.

“I just close my eyes,” Duncan responded. “I’d love to have you stay for longer than one afternoon. You would see what a haven I’ve found.” Duncan looked at Hanna and brushed in irritation at a bug flying around his face.

Hanna’s gaze locked on Duncan.

“I don’t know when we could take the time,” Pamela said. After a moment of hesitation, she added. “On second thought, when you have to sign the final papers on the probate, perhaps we could come up again.” She looked at Hanna. “You could join us all for dinner, as a thank you for your nice flight today.” She smiled back at Duncan.

Duncan paled and stood quickly. “We need to get moving.” He pointed at the lake. “There’s Jacob’s skiff.”

The next fifteen minutes bustled with the business of picking up a packet of outgoing mail, and a short grocery list, when Duncan left the lodge to walk everyone back to the strip he picked up the 30.06.

“Duncan, this isn’t the old west,” Pamela said. “Is it really necessary?”

“I hope not,” he replied. “But this time of night and this time of year, I’d rather be safe than sorry.”

When they got to the strip, Jacob was tying his skiff up at the dock. He hefted a backpack onto his shoulder and Rebecca, his sprite of a six-year-old clung to his hand. Her somber tear-streaked face the only evidence of her dilemma.

Eerily the hair on Hanna’s neck prickled.
Something? Trust you guts!
She turned, expecting to see a bear. Instead, the Shaman was squatted beside the plane. Nameless lay beside him soaking up the aura as the Shaman ran his hand over the young dog from head to haunches. Another husky lay beside him.

Little by little everyone became aware of the Shaman. He stood up and focused on Rebecca.

The lake went quiet. All the breeze and birds and buzzing insects became silent. Hanna hated the dreamlike fear he invoked.

Pamela stepped closer to her husband. Paul shushed her murmur of concern. Hanna’s eyes followed as the Shaman advanced toward Rebecca. The scrawny, unwashed man reached gently toward her chin and tipped her face up. He placed both hands over her ears and stood silently, his eyes locked with hers.

As soon as Rebecca’s shoulders relaxed the Shaman took his hands away. His eyes connected with Hanna’s. Angry guilt, like an unpaid traffic ticket, surged through her. Without a word or another acknowledgement he walked into the brush along the lake and disappeared.

“Papa?” Rebecca’s tiny voice said, “It doesn’t hurt so much now. Do we still have to go into town?”

“It’s was just a temporary fix, baby girl.” Jacob looked at Hanna. “Are we ready to go?”

“That’s it?” Pamela’s tone bristled. “You people let a nasty old man touch a little girl, and all anyone says is, ‘are we ready to go’? He obviously needs help. Aren’t there institutions up here for people like him? He’s… he’s….”

Jacob looked from Hanna to Duncan. “He’s crazy as a bedbug, and everyone knows what he is.” Without another word he led Rebecca toward the plane.

Duncan seemed to consider what his mother said. “Everything you said may be true, Mother, but he’s ours. Crazy or not, he’s the only Shaman we’ve got.”

Chapter 16

Ping
. Hanna felt a tiny snap inside her chest. Warmth radiated down her arms and legs. She wanted to ignore it and couldn’t. She could dislike the Shaman and all he stood for, it was her contrary right. Someone from Outside didn’t have the right—to tell Alaska how to deal with its crazy people.

Duncan donned the mantle of Alaskan. “So—there,” he said to Hanna. “Want some help pulling this plane out of the weeds?” He energetically turned to help with the process of getting ready to leave.

Hanna nodded her numb, half-smiling face. What she wanted was to throw her arms around him. Mr. GQ cover boy was turning into another kind of man. She’d prepared to dismiss the man who showed up in loafers and an unlined leather jacket. What was she to do with this man? She did a slow walk-around looking for puncture marks. She paid special attention to the tires. Bears love the rubber like kids love lolli-pops.

Duncan walked with her and when they got behind the plane he lowered his voice. “Don’t trust my mother’s barracuda smile. You can never know what she’s thinking.”

“Thanks. I can handle myself.”

“You don’t know her,” Duncan continued. “She has her heart set on
The Amazing Victoria
, any other woman is in danger.”

“You make it sound like I have reason to worry.” Hanna gave him a flirtatious leer.

“You do,” Duncan said quietly. He was close and the flutter in her chest gave her trouble catching her breath. Her ears pounded until she got her plane in the air.

The next afternoon, when Hanna got back after dropping Jacob and Rebecca at the north end of the lake, she landed.

Tom met the plane with the four-wheeler for the freight, what little there was. “You coming up to the lodge?”

“No. Tell everyone
hi
. I’ve got projects. You know—winter is coming.”

Tom nodded sagely. “Tell me about it.”

She went directly to her cabin. She had jobs to finish before snow made them difficult or impossible. The lodge was busy, and the summer was in full swing; tomorrow was the first day she didn’t have to fly into Anchorage.

Hanna swung the maul from high above her head, and the resounding thwack reverberated through her arms. The birch round split with a crack, and she reached down to set another in its place. Thwack. Out of the corner of her eye, a movement caught her attention, and she stopped as Duncan’s four-wheeler picked its way through the sun-dappled woods.

“What are you doing out here?” she asked.

“I came to take you on a picnic.”

“A picnic?”

“Yup, I brought a lunch. Tom told me I have to explore the area, and I decided I needed a guide.” Duncan’s infectious grin spread across his face.

“Sorry, I’m busy.” Hanna avoided looking at his charming face and set up another round of birch.

“All work and no play…” Duncan trailed off. “You’ll always be busy. When was the last time you went out the old mine road?”

“Uhh.”

“It’s what I thought. ‘Com’on, I need to know where I send these people when they want to go hiking. He pointed to the birch tree scattered in neat rounds across the forest floor. “Your dead tree will still be here tomorrow.”

Hanna shook her head. “Can’t do it. I need to get my wood shed full before I go back this week. It’s what I have on my schedule.”

“Your schedule. Couldn’t you rearrange the schedule?”

“No.” Hanna hefted the maul and let it fall.
Thwack
.

“You’re breakin’ my heart here,” Duncan said. “I’ve never had a woman turn me down. Never.”

“Then I must be good for your development into a well-rounded, fully formed human being.”