“For the other models, not me, and indoors, and let me tell you how pleased everyone is with the prepping you did here. They are thrilled knowing the lodge is well-stocked and a generator will keep the lights and heat going in case electricity is lost. They are already making plans for snacks and drinks around the fireplace after the shoots are done.”
“Sounds good for later for us as well, only by ourselves,” I said and kissed his cheek before hurrying out into the snow.
I was glad to hear that the models appreciated that I prepped the lodge. It was something I had to do once I learned the lodge and its sixty acres belonged to me. I would be derelict in my duties as a prepper not to have done it. I had learned the hard way of not being prepared when I got caught in Hurricane Sandy, while living on the Jersey Shore during my college days, and losing what little I had. After that I started prepping and it led to a very lucrative career. Between keeping my website relevant, my social media active, and writing bestselling books, I’m constantly busy. The thing is, I really enjoy prepping and also helping others to realize that with a little bit of effort they can be prepped and prepared, my motto, so that if an emergency hit, there was no need for worry. And that, in itself, is priceless.
I hurried into Josh’s squad car, Mo already sitting patiently in the backseat.
“That’s one smart dog you’ve got there,” Josh said with a nod to Mo. “I should get to know him better, maybe take him for a walk in the park in Barnsville when the weather turns nice.”
I laughed. “So, you want to use him as a chick magnet.”
Josh smiled. “He’s big, handsome, and huggable, no woman could resist him.”
Mo barked in agreement.
The ride was short to my place, though the snow would add a few extra minutes. I didn’t want to waste one of them, so I quickly asked, “How is Dad doing with the crime scene?”
“He’s beside himself. Not only did he misjudge Travis Rodgers but a quick look at the bones beneath suggests it’s a female and he’s wondering what connection it has with Rita Carson’s murder, her body having been found in the woods but a distance away, off lodge property.”
I thought aloud. “But not buried.”
“Maybe the killer got spooked by something and fled before he could bury her,” Josh said.
I might have beaten my brother endlessly when it came to mystery games, but he was always a worthy opponent. It was why he fit so well on the police force. He didn’t give up even if the odds were against him.
“The CSU guy, Nick, wouldn’t confirm anything, said he had to get the bones back to the morgue.”
“Will Stan still help on the case?” I asked.
“With Stan’s expertise and extensive experience with old bones, CSU would be crazy not to let him help. But no worries, Stan has a lot of friends in the forensic department and politicians as well. He’ll get in on the case and keep Dad updated.”
My brother was sharing info far too easily and I had a feeling I knew why.
Josh pulled up to my house and turned to me after putting the vehicle in park. “Don’t think you slyly got me to talk about the findings. I gave you the info so you could help Dad. He’s going to drive himself crazy over this and blame himself for the Rita Carson case not only going unsolved all these years, but that he got it wrong.”
“I’ve been itching to solve this murder ever since I heard Dad talk about it when I was teenager,” I said.
“Which means you’ve given thought to who it might be.”
I shook my head. “No, more like a long list of suspects. My worry is, what if it was just someone passing through, a random stranger, how then do we find him?”
Josh got out of the car with me and opened the back door to let Mo out. He ran playfully in the snow, then dropped down and rolled on his back in it, then he plopped himself down in a small drift as if content to stay there.
“Pepper,” Josh called out, stopping me just before I reached my porch. “You should be prepared. This may be one mystery you can’t solve.”
I smiled. “You want to wager on that?”
My brother drove off without answering.
It took bribing with dog biscuits to get Mo inside and, of course, Roxie couldn’t be left out, which meant I didn’t get to my paper files and computer files on the Carson murder until both were settled comfortably before the fireplace, enjoying their snacks and the fire’s heat.
First, though, I texted Amy, needing to check on her and see how she was doing.