The Body in the Cattails

The Body in the Cattails ~ A Rose Creek Mystery ~ Catherine Dilts Encircle Publications Farmington, Maine, U.S.A. The Body in the Cattails Copyright © 2023 Catherine Dilts Paperback ISBN 13: 978-1-64599-457-2 E-book ISBN 13: 978-1-64599-458-9 Library of Congress Control Number: 2023936841 All Rights Reserved. In accordance with the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the publisher, Encircle Publications, Farmington, ME. This book is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places, and events are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Editor: Cynthia Brackett-Vincent Cover design: Deirdre Wait Cover images: © Getty Images Published by: Encircle Publications PO Box 187 Farmington, ME 04938 [email protected] http://encirclepub.com Chapter One “Mom, did you leave the door open?” Parker was tall for eight, but thin as a reed. He looked vulnerable with his curly dark hair backlit by light seeping through the crack in the door. A door that had been closed. Drew Brauner climbed the three stone steps onto the covered porch. She had left a lamp on in the living room, knowing they’d return after sunset. That explained the light. But she had definitely locked the front door. The big-city habit was hard to lose. Parker pushed the heavy oak door. It swung inward on creaking hinges. Drew grabbed his arm. “I’m calling the police. We’ll wait in the car.” If she was in Boston, she could take refuge in a neighbor’s condo in a situation like this, although there had never been the need. In their secure building, intruders couldn’t make it past the front door. She had anticipated even less danger in sleepy Rose Creek. As Drew and Parker trotted across the stepping stones to the driveway, she tried not to jump at every night noise. Crickets, the wind rustling through newly leafed out bushes, the hoot of an owl. Her new home was in town, but might as well have been in the Oklahoma countryside. The spacious yard of the hundred-year-old farmhouse was crammed with enough vegetation to hide a phalanx of kidnappers, burglars, and mass murderers. Drew clicked her key fob. They took refuge in the car. Starting the engine and turning up the heat, Drew tried to dispel the creeping chill. Her shivers had little to do with the cool spring evening. She deflected Parker’s increasingly alarmed questions. He worried someone might have stolen his video game console, the one source of entertainment besides reading in his solitary existence. Even in Boston, he wasn’t a sociable little boy, having only a few acquaintances who shared his obsession with video games. In the month since they’d moved, he had yet to make any friends. Parker was nearly in tears by the time a police car pulled in behind them. Red and blue lights reflected off the faded white exterior of the old farmhouse. Drew waited with Parker in her Audi, rolling down the window and resting her hands on the steering wheel. Another big-city habit, where drivers assured the police they were unarmed by taking a stance indicating empty hands. “You called for help?” From under her police cap, a short blonde ponytail brushed the officer’s shoulders. “Yes. My son and I came home from the bookstore. Our front door was open, but I know I locked it when I left. We waited in the car until you got here.” Drew knew her East Coast accent instantly pegged her as an outsider, but the officer didn’t make the “you’re not from around here” comment she had received on her first trip to the grocery store. Instead, she got right to business, introducing herself, and asking whether anyone else was home. “Parker and I are the only occupants.” Of a three-story, five-bedroom house. Drew hoped more explanation of the situation wasn’t required. “You wait here.” Officer Sarah Chandler had a sturdy but feminine build. She took a step back from the car. “I’ll check it out.” She moved up the stone steps with smooth confidence. Officer Chandler pushed the front door the rest of the way open, then pressed her back to the front of the house. Slowly, she leaned toward the door. After a moment, she entered the house in a crouch, her firearm in her right hand. Drew shivered, then rolled up her window. “I hope she shoots the burglar.” Parker’s brown eyes shone with excitement. “Whoever opened our front door is long gone.” Drew didn’t want to panic her son. Or herself. “They might not even have gone inside.” Second-floor windows glowed as lights winked on upstairs. Parker fidgeted, chewing on his already chapped lower lip. “Let’s look at our books while we’re waiting,” Drew said. Parker didn’t need more of an invitation. He clicked on the overhead light, then clambered to his knees on his seat and reached for the canvas bag on the back floor. When he was six, Drew and Joel had instituted a system of rewards. For every hour of reading a book, Parker earned time on his game system. He had unexpectedly developed an unquenchable love of reading. “Here’s yours, Mom.” Parker handed Drew the used copy of the latest bestselling thriller she had purchased at Rose Creek Reads. Taking a leave of absence from her position in a Boston legal firm required penny-pinching. Especially when her great-uncle’s glowing descriptions of his small-town law practice had not lived up to his hype. She was going through the savings she had earmarked for this trip faster than expected. Maybe a thriller wasn’t the best choice. The cover of the novel promised a heart-thumping page-turner. Drew brushed shoulder-length black curls away from her face and glanced at the house. Real life was turning into a thriller. Officer Chandler’s shadow passed behind a third-floor window. Drew studied the flier the shop owner had tucked into the book instead. The rose-colored