Page 30 of Flynn

He glanced at his watch. It was almost one thirty in the afternoon, but the cloudy sky made it seem darker than usual. Falling back from daylight saving didn’t help. The sun would go down earlier than ever. “Too bad we don’t have a boat.”

“Are you sure about that?” She gestured to the window. “This might be a relatively small house, but most rental properties on a lake include a boat of some sort. And we should do it now before it gets dark.”

He considered that for a moment, then nodded. “Good point. Let’s check it out.”

Taylor pulled on her winter coat as he shrugged into his fleece, zipping it over the gun holster on his hip. The boathouse was down near the shoreline, so he headed out the back door.

The brown grass slopped down to the lake. Taylor’s foot slipped on a slick spot, so he caught her hand to steady her.

“Thanks,” she murmured. “I don’t think early November is a time of the year to take a swim.”

The boathouse door had a keypad lock on it, the same make and model as the one on the front door. He punched in the four-digit key code, and the door opened. A musty, stale scent wafted over them.

“No one has been down here in a while,” he said. The boathouse was stuffed to the brim. He could barely walk inside, turning sideways to get past the wide-backed Adirondack lawn chairs, two kayaks and paddles, an inner tube, several life vests, and finally what appeared to be a small fishing boat.

“Do you think the motor works?” Taylor’s gaze was doubtful as he checked out the fishing boat. While getting to the vessel was difficult from the doorway, he could now see that the boat was positioned up against the single garage door so that it could be easily pushed into the lake.

“If not, we can always use the oars.” He wasn’t surprised to see two long oars stretched along the bottom of the boat. They were a hint that the motor may not be super reliable.

Or maybe the owners of the lake house just wanted to be sure they provided enough equipment to forestall complaints.

“Are we really doing this?” Taylor asked as he stepped out of the boat and unlatched the garage door. “We’re taking the boat out?”

“Yep.” He hoisted the garage door open. The lake lapped against the shore, the water higher than usual according to the rocky edge being more than halfway submerged. “We’ll be fine as long as it doesn’t rain or snow.”

Taylor hesitated. “Nobody else is on the lake from what I can see.”

He nodded, having noticed that too. The icy chill in the air didn’t make for a fun trip across the water, but they wouldn’t be out for long. The more he considered their limited options, the more he warmed to the plan. “Don’t worry, we’ll make it a short trip. Since there isn’t anyone else out here, we can do straight down the middle to see if we can spot the house behind your cousins.”

“Okay.” She placed her hands on her hips, glancing from the boat to the lake with a frown. “I’ve never been out on a boat before. What do you need me to do?”

He appreciated her willingness to assist. “First, I need to get the boat into the water. Then I’ll hold it steady for you to climb in.”

Taylor watched as he pulled the small fishing vessel out of the boathouse. She bent over and helped push from her end.

To his surprise, the boat went into the water with relative ease. Clearly the owners and renters had done this before.

“Okay, get in.” He held the boat steady with one hand, holding the other out to her. She grasped his hand and gingerly stepped into the boat. It wobbled from side to side, so she quickly sat down on the middle seat.

“Good job.” He quickly climbed in behind her, then grabbed one of the long oars. He pressed the flattened edge of the paddle on the grassy shore and leaned on the oar until the boat was floating freely in the water. The small fishing boat motor was tipped up so that the lower blades were out of the way. After sliding the oar back along the bottom of the boat, he moved the motor so that the blades were submerged in the murky water. After two quick pulls on the rope starter, the engine roared to life.

Not bad, he thought. They could probably get from one end of the lake and back to their rental without a problem. A quick glance at the bottom of the vessel confirmed the boat was sound. He didn’t see any sign of water seeping in from a seam or hole. He turned to sit by the engine, steering the boat into the middle of the lake.

“This is nice,” Taylor said from her perch on the center seat. “Chilly but nice.”

“Once the lake freezes over, you’ll see all sorts of ice shanties going up,” he said. “Ice fishing is a big deal out here.”

She turned to stare at him. “They drill holes in the ice to catch fish?”

“Yep.” He smiled when she wrinkled her nose in distaste. “Hey, don’t knock it until you try it.”

“I like fish, but no thanks on the ice fishing part.” She turned back to scan the lakeshore. “You watch that side.” She gestured to the aft side of the boat. “I’ll watch this one.”

The putt-putt of the motor seemed loud in the stillness of the day. Most adults were working while the kids were still in school.

The wind cut through his fleece, making him wish he had a puffy winter coat like Taylor’s. Doing his best to ignore the cold, he scanned the homes lining the shore. Most were huge and expensive, but every once in a while, there was a smaller home, much like the one they were currently renting.

Not everyone living out here was rich and famous.

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