Hot Springs Murder Read online

  “Path,” Sarah mumbled under her breath.

  “I heard that,” Amanda said, and nudged Sarah with her elbow.

  Sarah began to reply but slammed on the brakes instead. The jeep jerked and came to a hard stop just as a large grizzly bear wandered out onto the road. “Oh my!” Sarah whispered as the color drained from her face.

  “Don’t move,” Amanda whimpered and grabbed Sarah’s arm.

  Sarah debated on whether to back her jeep away from the bear, but she knew she wouldn’t get far. The jeep could only move forward at no more than ten miles an hour. Backing down the road would be far slower, at a speed a large grizzly bear could easily catch. “We’re like fish in a barrel,” she whispered to Amanda as the big bear stood in the middle of the road just staring at the jeep.

  “I didn’t need to hear that,” Amanda whimpered again. She kept her eyes locked on the bear and began to pray.

  The grizzly, who appeared bored and sleepy, suddenly sat down on his backside and simply looked at the jeep. “No,” Sarah begged, “don’t sit down. Shoo! Get out of the way,” she pleaded and made moving motions with her hands. “Go that way... off into the woods.” The grizzly bear reached up a powerful paw and swatted at his nose, then went back to staring at the jeep.

  “We're food,” Amanda said in a pained voice.

  Amanda’s words caused an idea to race into Sarah's mind. Sarah quickly turned in her seat, reached around, and grabbed a small green cooler. “Food,” she said, and carefully opened the cooler. “Peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, to be exact.”

  “Los Angeles? Love...what are you doing?” Amanda asked, in a dread-filled voice.

  Sarah slowly grabbed four sandwiches out of the cooler, removed each sandwich from its sandwich bag, reached her left hand out of the driver's window, and began throwing each sandwich toward the rear of the jeep. “Food! Come and eat, big fella!” she yelled.

  “Oh my,” Amanda gasped, and quickly rolled up the passenger window.

  Sarah pulled her left arm back into the jeep, rolled up the window, and waited for the grizzly bear to act. To her relief, the bear began sniffing the air, looked toward the jeep with curious eyes, and then stood up. “Take the food,” Sarah begged.

  The grizzly slowly began to lumber toward the jeep. “Here he comes,” Amanda whimpered and threw her hands over her face, waiting for the jeep to slashed open by its claws. To her shock—and relief—the bear walked past the driver’s side door, made his way to the back of the jeep, and then began searching for the sandwiches. Sarah didn’t wait. She carefully pressed down on the gas pedal and got the jeep moving, leaving the bear safely behind eating a mid-morning snack. Amanda turned in her seat, spotted the bear eating a sandwich, and let out a heavy breath. “Los Angeles, you are my hero.”

  “A hero with shaky hands,” Sarah confessed, and then let out a nervous laugh. “That was a very large grizzly bear.”

  “He could have cut this jeep in two with just one paw,” Amanda agreed and looked at Sarah. “We won’t tell our hubbies about the bear, okay?”

  “Deal,” Sarah agreed and looked into the outside mirror. She spotted the grizzly bear eating a second sandwich. “I don’t think that big fellow is going to chase us.”

  Amanda wiped at her forehead. “We are in the middle of nowhere,” she explained. “Mr. Grayman did warn me this land belongs to the animals and not man.”

  “Are you having second thoughts?” Sarah asked, easing around a bend which pushed the jeep out of the bear’s line of sight.

  “Oh no,” Amanda replied, in a tough voice. “No bear is going to scare me away from achieving my dream.” Amanda glanced over her shoulder toward the bend. “I’ve seen bears in Snow Falls. That doesn’t mean I’m not going to step outside my home.”

  Sarah looked at Amanda and then smiled. She felt proud of her best friend. “Well then,” she said, “we better make up for the time we lost back there. It’s almost time to meet Mr. Grayman.”

  “I called Mr. Grayman from the telephone at that old gas station we stopped at,” Amanda told Sarah. “While you were filling the jeep with gas, I also sneaked in a few candy bars.” Amanda patted her coat pockets.

  Sarah rolled her eyes. “Why am I not surprised, June Bug?” she asked.

  Amanda grinned. “Never take me for granted, Los Angeles,” she replied and continued. “Anyway, Mr. Grayman said he has his plane ticket in hand. All he’s waiting for is me to get there and sign on the dotted line.”

  “His attorney is here, right?” Sarah asked, in a hopeful voice. “June Bug, this sale has to be legal in every single aspect. You’re going to need legal papers to secure the transfer of—”

  “Mr. Grayman assured me that Mr. Fields is on the property,” Amanda assured Sarah.

  “Good,” Sarah told her best friend as she carefully moved over a thick root climbing across the road. They bounced in their seats as the vehicle’s shocks jolted across it. “My jeep is taking a beating.”

  “I’ll work on the road later,” Amanda promised. “Right now, all I want to do is sign on the dotted line, wave goodbye to Mr. Grayman, and get to work.” Amanda rolled down the passenger’s side window and let fresh, cool air into the jeep. “Oh, June Bug, the resort is so cozy. The cabins are simply charming, and the main lodge is a place a person could snuggle up in all winter—well, it will be when we’re finished.” Amanda let her eyes fall out across the rugged landscape. “I guess calling our new business a resort isn’t so wise,” she spoke after a minute.

  “Well, we’re not really going to a resort, are we?” Sarah asked. “More like a—mountain hideaway.”

  Amanda bit down on her lip. “Maybe we should name our business—” Amanda rubbed her cheek, “maybe—Snow Creek Hideaway and Springs?”

  “How about Snow Creek Springs?” Sarah suggested. “The name is simple, remains original, but takes off the false gold.”

  “Snow Creek Springs—I like it!” Amanda beamed and patted Sarah’s arm, “Thanks, Los Angeles.”

  Sarah smiled, “How much further, honey?”

  “A mile, I guess,” Amanda replied. “See how the road is starting to climb? That means we’re very close to the re—I mean, to our hideaway,” Amanda said, using a secretive voice full of playful humor.

  Sarah looked to her left and soaked in the view of the land. “June Bug, this really is a hideaway,” she pointed out. “We’re miles from the nearest town—miles from any hospital, police station, or gas station. If someone were to get hurt, a medical helicopter would have to fly in here. We’re not talking about a little clubhouse behind your parents’ house. We’re traveling deeper and deeper north, straight into wild, untamed wilderness.”

  “I understand the dangers,” Amanda told Sarah in a calm voice.

  “I know you do, honey,” Sarah nodded her head. “I know you understand the dangers more than anyone else. You’re not the type of woman to rush into a decision without investigating every single corner of the room first. I'm sure you have every cautious concern placed in a binder, stored and studied.”

  Amanda reached into the right pocket of her coat and pulled out a caramel candy bar wrapped in a green and gold wrapper. “I’ve spent the last few days going over every single detail,” she confessed. “I’ve considered the dangers—the pros and the cons—the ups and downs.” Amanda opened her candy bar. “There is one phone on the property,” she continued. “About twenty years ago, an old research station stood where the main lodge stands now. The state managed to run an underground phone wire all the way to the station. The station was privately funded, and someone paid some big bucks to have the phone line run from the station down to the main road.”

  Sarah listened to Amanda talk. “I bet,” she said.

  Amanda nodded her head and continued, stepping away from the topic of an old research station that had been closed down and forgotten about. “There is a clearing for a helicopter to land if injury occurs,” she told Sarah. “It’s about a quarter of a
mile east of the main lodge. The trail leading to the hot springs is well marked and easily navigable.” Amanda munched on her candy bar. “There are some heavy duty generators sitting in the sheds that are off to the back of the cabins and lodge. The generators are solar powered, which is really neat—but costly. Mr. Grayman added in the cost of each generator to his selling price. He knocked a couple thousand dollars off because the generators are used and not new.”

  “Solar generators are good to have.”

  “Sure beats hauling gas up here all the time,” Amanda agreed. She polished off her candy bar. “Los Angeles, I’ve dotted my ‘i’s, and crossed all my ‘t’s.”

  “I know, honey.”

  “And it’s not like we’re going to be entertaining hundreds of guests,” Amanda said, and looked out of her window. “Mr. Grayman said my dear hubby and I were the third couple he’s had in over a month. People will come—but in tiny trickles. And that’s okay. I don’t want to buy a resort and build miles of parking lots. I want a quiet, cozy place that brings in a handful of guests a month.”

  “You want to hide away from the world,” Sarah told Amanda and quickly bit her lip. “Oh honey, I'm sorry.”

  “No, no, it’s true,” Amanda confessed. “After all we’ve been through, Los Angeles; after all the crazies we’ve fought. Like the Back Alley Killer, that insane model building those creepy snowmen, Mr. Mafia, that mental FBI agent, Ms. Bad Daughter, and that troubled kid in Oregon,” Amanda sighed. “It’s true. I do want to hide away from the world, in a place that is my own—our own—but a place that can still have life to it.” Amanda looked at Sarah with desperate eyes. “Does that make any sense, love? Probably not.”

  “Makes perfect sense,” Sarah smiled. “Conrad and I bought that remote cabin, remember? We take hikes back to the cabin when we can. That’s our place to hide away from the world.”

  Amanda folded her arms and smiled. “I want this place, Los Angeles. I can’t explain it—but in my heart, this place is calling out to me. I feel excited and scared, anxious and uncertain—but so hopeful. Oh, so very hopeful. For the first time in my life, I’m stepping outside of my own safe zone, not because I’m forced to, but because I want to.” Amanda let out a tired laugh. “I would rather face a grizzly bear than the creeps we’ve had to face in the past.”

  Sarah laughed. “I second that,” she agreed, and looked at her best friend. “We’ll turn your place into a charming getaway in the woods,” she promised. “Come spring, we’ll force our husbands to haul everything we need up here and get to work.”

  Amanda smiled. “I’m glad you said that because I’ve drawn some designs for the main lodge. I’m thinking of keeping the atmosphere rustic, yet I want a vintage look, which means we have some antique shopping to do.”

  Sarah’s eyes lit up as she said, “I love to go antiquing.”

  “Me, too,” Amanda giggled as Sarah brought the jeep around another bend in the road. When the jeep cleared the bend, the road began a steeper climb. After what seemed like forever, the road came to an end at a dirt parking lot designed to accommodate no more than four vehicles. A hiking trail led away from the parking lot and zoomed north. “End of the road,” Sarah announced, and parked next to a rough, weather-torn gray truck.

  “Just the beginning, actually,” Amanda promised, and looked at the trail leading to the main lodge. As she did, a strange feeling swept through her heart—a bad feeling. Something was wrong—horribly wrong. She didn’t remember the lodge being so far from the parking lot, for one thing. “I—guess we better get our hiking shoes on,” she said, and forced a nervous smile to her lips, afraid to confess her feeling to Sarah.

  2

  Sarah grabbed a heavy brown backpack and, using every ounce of energy she had, hoisted it onto her back. “Ready?” she asked, looking around. The last thing Sarah wanted was to spot the grizzly bear she had encountered down the road. She glanced down at the brown hiking boots she was wearing and hoped they’d be light enough to lend her some speed if the bear appeared on the trail.

  “Almost,” Amanda said, placing a green pack over her shoulders and grabbing the small food cooler. “We can come back for the blankets and cleaning supplies later.”

  Sarah nodded her head. “I want to get acquainted with my surroundings before we start preparing this place for the winter,” she explained. “I would like to spend the day walking around and doing a little exploring—if that’s okay with you, June Bug.”

  “That’ll be fine,” Amanda assured Sarah and cast her eyes at the trail leading to the main lodge. Her stomach filled with worry and dread.

  Sarah spotted the sudden cloud in Amanda's eyes. She closed the driver’s side door to the jeep and walked over to her best friend. “June Bug, honey, what’s the matter?”

  “Huh?” Amanda asked, in a distant voice. She slowly turned her head and locked eyes with Sarah. “Why would anything be the matter?”

  Sarah turned her head and studied the trail. “Because you’re looking at that trail like it’s going to lead you into a grave,” she pointed out.

  “Don’t be silly,” Amanda replied and closed the passenger's door. “After all, this trip was all my idea, right?”

  “Yes,” Sarah agreed. “But, June Bug, we can always turn around and drive home. You haven’t signed any papers and, as of now, you’re simply a guest. You have no obligation to continue on this venture if you’re starting to feel uncomfortable.”

  Amanda glanced around. The landscape was absolutely breathtaking. She raised her eyes and studied a mountain that stood with strength and mystery. The top of the mountain was already showing white. “Look around, Los Angeles—this land is beautiful. And listen—what do you hear?”

  Sarah listened. “The wind, and birds.”

  “Exactly,” Amanda pointed out. She focused back on the trail. “Do you realize that maybe twenty people at the most travel this road during the course of a year? That’s what Mr. Grayman told me. No more than twenty people. Most of those people travel in a single vehicle like we did. This place is untouched—pure.” Amanda kept her eyes on the trail. “When I left London, I was very heartbroken. After all, I’m a city girl, right?”

  “Right,” Sarah agreed.

  “I grew up walking on sidewalks. The only wilderness I knew was taking holidays to the countryside and visiting my Aunt Rachel,” Amanda continued. “I never knew such places like this even existed.” Amanda finally looked at Sarah. “Honey, I’m growing older—we both are. Sure, we’re not old biddies—not yet—but we’re a long way from eighteen. It’s time for me to have a place to call my own. My hubby picked out our cabin—he chose Snow Falls.” Amanda took her eyes back to the trail. “All I’m trying to say is that I need something that the world hasn’t polluted—something I found all on my own.”

  Sarah focused on the trail. “We’re really far out,” she reminded Amanda. “I don’t think the world has touched this beautiful piece of the world.” Sarah smiled tentatively. “Ready?”

  Amanda drew in a deep breath. “I’m ready,” she said, even though her gut whispered at her to run. Something just wasn’t right. A darkness had invaded her special hideaway. Amanda felt it inside her heart. But she told herself this was just a bad case of the jitters, a little nervousness as she embarked on a big adventure. After all, she was a little nervous about not telling her husband in advance about all this. Perhaps it was nothing more than that. So instead of telling Sarah, she marched to the trail and pointed up a hill. “The trail goes up a steep hill, levels off and then goes for about a quarter of a mile and ends up at the main lodge.”

  Sarah studied the trail and then glanced back at the parking lot. “I hope Mr. Grayman drove his attorney up here from the main road,” she pointed out, “because my jeep and that truck are the only two vehicles in sight.”

  Amanda had noticed a third vehicle wasn’t present and didn’t say anything. She knew Sarah, being a former homicide detective from Los Angeles—a woman who had worked
deadly streets and chased down ruthless killers—would notice that a third vehicle was missing. The fact of the matter was that the missing vehicle was indeed worrying Sarah. “Let’s hope,” she said, and began walking up the steep hill, stepping over broken sticks and rocks.

  “Let’s hope,” Sarah whispered back and followed Amanda, feeling the weight of her gun pressing against her right ankle. She knew her gun was no match for a grizzly bear—but a human would surely take a bullet and stay down.

  Amanda glanced over her shoulder, tossed a weak smile at Sarah, and focused back on the trail as her mind grew silent and still. She didn’t say a word until the trail ended and came up behind a large log cabin with a cozy wraparound porch attached to it. The cabin acted as the main lodge, standing in a wide clearing filled with wildflowers and grass that had never been touched by the blade of a lawnmower. Four smaller cabins sat side by side next to the large one, like obedient children waiting for a treat. Each cabin faced north toward an open field with a large, powerful river running through it. Beyond the field stood the mountain—majestic and breathtaking. The mountain looked down on the rugged scene with loving eyes, overlooking the five cabins standing in a small clearing surrounded by wild land. “Here we are,” Amanda announced in a careful voice. She stopped walking and studied the back of the main cabin and began searching for signs of where Mr. Grayman might be.

  Sarah walked up to Amanda and looked across the land. “Gosh, it’s beautiful,” she said, catching her breath. “Now I can see why you wanted to buy this place so badly. I don’t think I’ve ever seen land so beautiful in my life. And look over there—a river—and look at that mountain! The scenery alone is enough to make a person melt.”

  “It is beautiful,” Amanda agreed. For a mere second, she managed to push the storm in her heart away and focus on the beauty of the land. “I would love to explore that mountain,” she told Sarah. “I would love to get a boat and travel that river—have a picnic—so many wonderful things.” Amanda looked toward the river. “I would love for my hubby to take me for a romantic walk. I don’t think that’s asking for too much, do you?”