Page 8 of Refuge for Cherilyn

Johnny nodded. “Yeah. That’s him. Why?”

“Because he’s working on what I’m working on.”

“Ahhhh,” his dad said as though he’d just figured out the creation of the universe. “You be careful with that.”

Leslie had dropped off the laundry and was pouring another cup of coffee. “Wanna come over for dinner tonight?”

“I will if I can. Gotta see where this goes first.” Shaw stood and pushed the chair up to the table. “I’d better get on it or I’ll miss whatever it is you’re planning on cooking.”

“Pot roast with potatoes and carrots,” his mom said with a smile.

“Ahhhh, you know how to rope me in! See you guys later.” He stepped up to his mom, gave her a kiss on the forehead, and rested his hands on top of her shoulders. “Love you, Mom.”

Her hand softly brushed his cheek. “Love you too, my boy. Although I wish you’d shave that mess off your face.”

He laughed as he headed for the door. “Always gotta be a ‘but’ in there somewhere, right?”

“I didn’t say ‘but.’ I said ‘although.’ Big difference,” she called after him.

“Oh, yeah. Right. Bye, Dad.”

“Bye, son. Have a good day.”

As his truck rolled out of their driveway, Shaw took stock. He had a nice home with three bedrooms and a den. His job was his life, and he loved it. As he was growing up, he never thought he’d have a job that would let him spend so much time outdoors with the local flora and fauna, and he felt like the luckiest guy in the world. He had an agency truck, plus he had his own truck, a nice Sierra extended cab pickup. And every day he thanked his lucky stars that Morgan had made more money than he did. Because of that, she didn’t get a damn thing in the divorce settlement, so he got to keep everything he’d worked for. Didn’t hurt that she’d already taken up with a wealthy attorney and everybody in town knew it. She certainly couldn’t claim she had nothing. As soon as the divorce was final, Austin’s mother had thrown an engagement party for them, and Austin gave her an engagement gift?a cabin cruiser. He kept hoping he’d catch them out on the river or lake with some kind of violation, but he’d never seen them out. A couple of his friends told him they’d heard that the boat was taken to the Gulf of Mexico and Morgan and Austin spent a lot of time down there. Good. Less opportunities for him to run into her.

The truck rolled to a stop in the parking lot of the resort’s lodge, and Shaw looked around. The car was still there. After he’d sat on the tailgate and put on his hiking boots, he pulled out a hooded sweatshirt, dragged it on, and grabbed his backpack and his hiking poles. The most obvious route, at least to him, was the trail that led down to the river.

Three-quarters of the way to the river, he realized his original doubts were being confirmed. Four people had already passed him going back toward the lodge, and there was another party somewhere behind him headed in the same direction he was. No one who was hiding would choose a path where there was so much traffic.

But he wasn’t sorry. When the trail spit him out at the water, he almost gasped aloud. It was beautiful. There were a few hawks circling an area on the opposite bank, and a crow cawed from somewhere up in the trees. Songbirds were everywhere, and he noticed some bear tracks down near the water line?deer too. Everything was starting to green up, and little wildflowers grew here and there in patches. That spot embodied everything the outdoors was supposed to be. Clean water. Fresh air. Wildlife. Abundant plant life. And he was there to see it all. He pulled out his phone, made a panoramic shot of the area, and then turned to walk back.

After he offloaded everything he had into the truck, he made his way back to the steps of the lodge and strode up, once again marveling at the workmanship. The lodge was a massive, friendly structure, and a familiar feeling of pride swept over him. His state?Kentucky. It was glorious, a verdant playground of the gods, including the ones who owned horses and the ones who made bourbon. Yes, they were definitely classified as gods. Who else could come up with things so perfectly suited to mankind?

“Hey there!” a voice chirped, and Shaw looked up to find a familiar young woman standing there.

“Hey. Shannon, right?”

The girl blushed. “I’m surprised you remembered!”

“I remember names and faces pretty well. How ya doin’ today?”

“I’m good. You been out hikin’?”

“Yeah. Walked back to the river on the trail up there. Lots of people out today.”

She nodded. “Yep. We’ve almost got a full house for the next few nights.”

Shaw leaned on the counter. “You work nights here?”

“No. I’m off nights.”

“Oh. What time do the night people get here?”

“They usually start showing up about three thirty or so.”

“Okay. Thanks. I’ll catch up with some of them.”

“Great. Oh, and if you get here before I leave, I’d be happy to sit and have a free meal with ya. To show appreciation, ya know.” She was beaming and her cheeks were flaming pink.

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