AllFreeNovel
Share Us
But Brogan, like Jade and Kelly, could tell a spa might have difficulty convincing women to travel here alone. It was a calming spot away from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, but it was far off the beaten path. One had to follow a curvy, twisting, narrow, one-lane road to get there that eventually dumped into a picturesque flagstone parking lot.
Their group arrived in four separate cars to make it look like the lodge had multiple guests coming at different times in case anyone watched from afar. If their trap had any chance at success, it had to look like the retreat was packed.
“This might be a great place for a wedding venue,” Kelly assessed, tugging her bags out of the SUV she’d driven.
“Sounds like a hint directed at Beckett,” Birk fired off.
Kelly swatted him on the arm. “Don’t be ridiculous. I’m not that sneaky or subtle. If and when I’m ready to tie the knot, I’ll let Beckett know ahead of time. He’ll have plenty of chances to make a run for it.”
“She will,” Beckett confirmed. “We talked about our long-term plans last night. But that’s if I survive this Pollock setup.” He studied the hilly, woodsy terrain. “Plenty of places to hide and pick me off with a high-powered rifle from a distance.”
A pained look crossed Lucien’s face. “I’d do it, but Pollock knows me.”
“Stop worrying. Both of you,” Birk bemoaned. “That’s why Jade and I got here ahead of everyone else. We scouted the entire area, including all eight cabins. This place is a veritable ghost town.”
“Brent did say it had fallen on hard times,” Brogan added. “Which is why we booked the entire place—for safety reasons. It’s bad enough that we’re asking Beckett to do this without jeopardizing anyone else.”
“It’s also a plus that it’s pet-friendly,” Kelly said, looking around at all the dogs they’d brought. Journey, Brodie, Poppy, Stella, Mia, and the puppy Miles rolled around in the grass.
Brogan studied the byplay between Mia and Miles. It seemed Mia had calmed down somewhat. “How’s the mama dog treating her baby? Are things any better?”
“I talked to Taylor for two hours yesterday. I spent another hour with her on the way up here until we lost cell reception,” Jade admitted. “I didn’t know that Australian shepherds are considered lazy mothers. Taylor said that perhaps Mia was too young to breed, which made her too inexperienced at handling motherhood, let alone constantly being around a growing puppy. It probably wasn’t the smartest move on our part to adopt mother and son together. Mia might not recognize Miles as belonging to her. I know it sounds crazy, but it is what it is now. Taylor offered a few things we could try beginning with a more calming, quiet environment where we lavish Mia with more attention. Last night, we tried that, and Mia let Miles lie down next to her for the first time—with us supervising the entire time, of course.”
“Did Taylor say how long she thought that kind of reinforcement would take?”
“Weeks, maybe months. But we’re not sure we can ever completely trust Mia to be alone with Miles. Bummer, huh?”
“Maybe it will get better the older Miles gets,” Brogan proposed, trying to sound optimistic.
Kelly looked on as the pups wrestled on the lawn. “Like I said, I’m giving this place five stars because they let us bring the dogs.”
“The owners were thrilled to have the business,” Jade proclaimed. “When we arrived, the couple behind the desk was eager to see us settled. Birk picked Cabin Number Five for Chad Pollock’s downfall.”
“Cabin Number Five sits in a field away from the tree line within sight of the main lodge,” Birk noted. “I’m halfway done installing cameras inside the room. Beckett’s handling the outside perimeter. We’ll have surveillance and audio up and running to listen in on his phone calls. If Pollock so much as sneezes, we’ll know about it.”
“It’s the forest that makes this place seem so spooky,” Brogan realized as she took in the fog creeping in, rising over the treetops. “We’re only twenty minutes away from the ocean, but it feels much higher in altitude. We should probably move this conversation inside and go over the plan again now that we’re all here.”
The lobby—or the guest hub as the owners called it—featured stone tile floors throughout, including a pub area where a young bartender stood ready to dole out drinks. An attached restaurant called The Eatery offered a full-service menu for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
The lounge area had a moose head hung over the mantel with a roaring fire underneath, making the room feel warm and toasty.
Lucien headed to the bar to order drinks for everyone while the other men sat at one of the tables clustered together for social gatherings.
Brogan took a seat in one of the two well-worn but comfy leather sofas. “It feels like we’re here on vacation instead of a stakeout.”
Kelly dropped down next to Brogan. “I’m seriously thinking about a wedding here. Birk wasn’t that far off the mark,” she whispered. “Other than hard-to-get-to and a bit bohemian, I don’t see anything wrong with this place. If you love nature—which Beckett and I do—it’s picturesque and full of scenic backdrops. Think of the photographs we could get.”
“Maybe you should wait and see how Beckett comes out of this thing first,” Jade suggested in mock concern, plopping down on the opposite sofa. “Chad Pollock could be diabolical enough to pull this off. I mean, even Phil Spector almost got away with murder.”
Brogan made a face. “Record producers are a sleazy, arrogant lot. I never understood how a group of talented musicians need someone in the booth standing there with their arms crossed, faking interest in the sound quality.”
“I bet you saw that firsthand,” Kelly prompted, waiting for a story.
“Not with Pollock but a string of others over the years who had absolutely no idea what my dad’s creative vision was for a song.”
Lucien nodded, handing off locally bottled craft beer to the guys and wine glasses to the women. “I never knew a record producer who contributed to the overall choice of songs. Not one. And if they suggested changes to the lyrics or melody, they’d better be able to take on Rory or Graeme and prove the changes were an essential element to the track quality.”
“Oh, definitely. The final arrangement would always fall to Rory or Graeme. They wrote the music and lyrics. They already knew the direction of a project without input from anyone, least of all a producer. I’ve heard lots of people say that a record producer is like a film director. I disagree with that comparison.”
