He walked up onto the big farmer’s porch that surrounded the lodge, admiring the big, old house. It had been in the Kowalski family for generations, and he was impressed with the level of care the renovations were given. Obviously they loved their home and had worked hard to bring it back. He knocked on the door and waited until Rose opened it.
She had a baby on her hip and, even if he didn’t know Sarah was Mitch and Paige’s daughter, the bright blue eyes and the dark hair would have marked her as a Kowalski.
“I’m so glad you could come today,” Rose said, leading him in to the kitchen.
“You have a beautiful home,” he responded, since he still had no idea what was going on and that’s what people always said on television.
He knew Josh and Andy—who was Drew’s dad and Rose’s boyfriend—worked at the lodge full-time, but he hadn’t seen them anywhere. As far as he could tell, it was him and Rose for lunch. And Sarah, who was being strapped into a high chair and didn’t seem happy about it.
“Have a seat at the table. Make yourself at home.”
He could tell that, as in his parents’ home, the kitchen was the heart of this house. It was warm and inviting, and the baby calmed when Rose gave her a toddler cup of juice and a handful of Cheerios.
“I bet you’re wondering why I invited you over for lunch,” Rose said as she set a bowl of chicken stew in front of him, along with a plate of freshly sliced, homemade bread. The smell alone was enough to make his mouth water.
“I am curious, yes.”
She set down a bowl for herself and sat across the table from him. “You’ve lived here a long time, but nobody really knows a lot about you.”
Max dipped his spoon into the bowl, stirring the thick broth. So that was it. She and Fran were good friends and loved to one-up each other with gossip. Rose was obviously going to pull out all the stops to find out what he did in his basement.
“I’ve been spending a lot of time with Paige lately,” she continued. “You know, with Mitch traveling a lot and little Sarah Rose to visit with.”
Those two things didn’t seem to go together, but Max just waited quietly. Obviously Rose was going to take her time getting to her point and, rather than be thought rude if he interrupted, he’d wait for a question.
“Paige happened to mention you and Tori Burns have been spending time together lately.”
When she paused, he realized she was waiting for confirmation from him. “We’ve become friends, yes.”
“Tori can seem like a tough nut at times, but she’s not really. And Paige looks out for her, of course. She’s not just her boss. They’re friends, too. And she’s a little worried, which makes me a little worried.”
He paused with his spoon halfway to his mouth and looked her in the eye. “I’m not a serial killer, Ms. Davis.”
“Call me Rose or Rosie. And I know you’re not a serial killer, though we do have a lot of fun making up stories. I think Josh and Katie know what you do, based on a bet I’m pretty sure Josh lost, and Drew probably knows. If you were up to something criminal, you’d be gone already.”
“Then there’s no reason to worry,” he said after swallowing a mouthful of the best chicken stew he’d ever had.
“You’re a puzzle with a lot of pieces missing, Max Crawford. Just because you’re not going to hack Tori into pieces and shove her in a freezer doesn’t mean we don’t have to worry.”
Sarah threw a Cheerio at Max, as if to show her agreement with Rose. It landed near his bowl and he looked at it for a moment, wondering if or how he should react. Then he picked it up and reached over to set it back on her tray. She threw it at him again. Since his first reaction hadn’t seemed to satisfy her, he ate it.
And she cried. Or screamed, actually.
“I’m sorry,” he said as Rose got up. “I assumed she wanted me to have it.”
“No, she wanted you to throw it back at her like her uncle Josh does when he thinks I’m not looking.”
Rose cut a banana into chunks and added those to the pile of Cheerios on the tray. Sarah stopped screaming and mashed a piece into her mouth. And her nose.
Max turned his attention back to his stew, wanting to eat as much as he could while Rose was fussing with the baby. All too soon, she was back in her chair and ready to resume the conversation.
“I know you like to have your secrets and, believe it or not, I keep the ones that need keeping, but I’m asking you straight out what you do for a living.”
He set down his spoon. “I custom-paint brass engines and rolling stock for model railroaders. My work space is in my basement because it offers space and was the easiest way to manage climate control and ventilation. It has its own security system due to the value of the models and my equipment and maybe a slight degree of paranoia on my part. Drew, Josh, Katie and Tori all have been in my basement and can confirm that.”
“Really? Now isn’t that interesting.” She leaned back in her chair. “My uncle had some model trains. What were they called...garden scale?”
“Yes, ma’am. G scale is significantly larger than what I usually work with, but I’ve done a couple of engines and a boxcar in the past.”