Devil's Food Cake Murder (Hannah Swensen, #14)(53)

Summer was beautiful, too, bringing blooms to the area surrounding the lake. There were gypsy flowers along the sides of the gravel road that circled the shoreline, their small red blooms on the very ends of their stalks, waving at you with pretty little flags as you drove by. Gray-headed cornflowers vied for attention with their bright yellow blooms around dark gray centers. Field thistle joined them in the sunny areas, their blooms spotting the wild grasses with pink and purple color.

Then there was the lake, itself. The sparkling water was dotted with white and yellow water lilies, and yellow lotus. Norman had shown her one quiet inlet containing a veritable garden of aquatic color that someone had planted there years ago. The surface of the lake created a waving reflection of the trees and sky, and the sunsets were simply spectacular with their vivid oranges, pinks, and reds mirrored in the gently rippling waters.

Fall brought another kind of beauty to Eden Lake. Cattails thrived on the shoreline and in the shallow areas of the lake, standing tall in the autumn breezes. Bulrushes sported brownish flowers on the ends of their stems. Field thistle was still blooming. It would continue until cold weather set in, and heath aster with its white and yellow flowers bloomed on the dry hillsides. The water took on a greenish cast from the algae that multiplied in the last hot months of summer, and long-legged cranes patrolled the banks. Canada geese flew overhead in ragged vees, and the deciduous trees around the lake wore orange, yellow, red, and mahogany-colored leaves.

Then winter came, and everything except the evergreens donned black and white. Trees lifted their bare twisted branches heavenward to catch the rays of feeble winter sun, and the lake was covered with snow. Today the surface of the lake was a sheet of glistening white, unbroken but for the hillocks of snow formed by the wind. The glare was almost blinding, and Hannah looked down at her notebook again to rest her eyes. Hugh Kohler lived in the fourth cabin past the huge oak tree with a yellow Minnesota Breeder’s sign nailed to its trunk. It was a faded blue cabin, and someone had propped up the sagging front porch with cinderblocks.

“There’s the tree Doc told us about,” Hannah pointed to the huge oak with a faded sign on its trunk. “Hugh’s cabin is the fourth one on our right. It’s blue.”

Norman drove carefully, and Hannah was glad. The snow had blown across the gravel road in drifts that almost reached the hubcaps, and this was no place to get stuck! She hadn’t seen any cell phone transponders since they’d left the main road and not many people wintered at the lake. If they got hung up in a snowdrift and Hugh Kohler wasn’t home, they’d have to hike out to the road to get help.

“That’s it,” Hannah said as she spotted a faded blue cabin. “It’s the one with the moose antlers over the door.”

Norman took one look at the driveway and shook his head. “I don’t want to risk pulling in. Unless that’s a really short mailbox, the snow’s a lot deeper in the driveway.”

“That’s okay. I’m wearing my boots. How about you?”

“I’ve got mine in the back seat. They’re on the floor behind my seat. Can you reach them?”

Hannah reached back, retrieved the boots, and Norman pulled them on. Then she got out of the car and walked toward the house. Norman had been right. The snow was a lot deeper in the driveway, and Hannah was glad that they hadn’t attempted to drive up. It took a while to wade through the knee-deep drifts, but they managed to get to the door.

Norman knocked and Hannah pasted a smile on her face. She still wasn’t sure what questions to ask to determine whether Hugh was guilty or innocent, and she just hoped she could come up with something before the door opened.

A split second later, the door opened and Norman and Hannah blinked in shock as they found themselves staring down the twin barrels of a double-barreled shotgun.

“I’m really sorry about that,” Hugh said, “It’s just that it’s pretty isolated out here, and they still haven’t caught that murderer who escaped from Stillwater last week. I was listening to Jake and Kelly on the news this morning, and someone reported that they’d seen him around here.”

“That’s okay. No harm done,” Norman told him.

“I’m kind of helpless, you know? Being in this wheelchair and all. I’ve got the phone, but the lines are down and my truck won’t start.”

“If you need a ride to town, we can take you,” Hannah offered. “What’s wrong with your truck?”

“The battery gave out on Sunday and I’m the only one around for miles. I’m just lucky I made it back here with my supplies before it gave up the ghost.”

“Then you have enough food?” Norman asked.

“Plenty.” Hugh turned to Hannah. “It’s nice of you to offer to give me a ride, but all I really need is for someone to call the garage and ask Cyril to send out one of his mechanics with a new battery.”

“Are you sure?” Hannah asked.

“I’m sure. I can stand up and even walk a little with a walker. It’s just that I’m not supposed to put a strain on my back.”

“That must make it tough to cook for yourself,” Norman commented.

“Not really. I’m all set up here. I eat a lot of sandwiches and I’ve got the microwave on a table I can reach from the wheelchair. Soup and a sandwich is a pretty good meal.”