Meanwhile, he had to think of Eve. As usual, the thought of his tiny stepdaughter made his gut clench. He’d loved her since the moment he’d met her, when he and her mother had started dating. Luckily for all of them, Eve’s human father, Jim, and her mother had remained on civil, almost friendly terms. Rance and Violet had even invited Jim to their wedding.
Now Violet was dead and Eve lay seriously ill in a hospital bed in Houston, silent except for the steady beeping of the machines. Though Jim had taken custody, he’d allowed Rance full visitation. The two men had remained friends, sharing Eve’s love.
She couldn’t die. She wouldn’t die. He wouldn’t let her. The thought strengthened his resolve. Eve was why he’d come here. No matter what, he refused to let her down. He’d do anything for his little girl. Even find a lake monster.
“The story has traveled all over the country. It’s the reason I’m here. You can’t tell me you haven’t heard about it.”
The old man puffed up at that. “Harrumph. I might have heard nonsense, but you won’t catch me discussing it. You want to talk lake monsters, go talk to the witch’s family.”
“The what?”
“You heard me.” Pointing a shaky finger north, the codger grimaced. “Burnett family. Daughter is a witch. I’m sure they’ll be delighted to discuss lake monsters with you.”
And then, while Rance struggled to formulate a reply, the old-timer stomped off, heading across the street toward a restaurant titled Mother Earth’s Café.
As small towns went, Forestwood had a picturesque, holiday-postcard-type of appeal. The brilliant reds and orange of the fall leaves helped. In Houston, where Rance was from, they didn’t have much of an autumn. When the trees did shed their leaves, they just sort of turned yellow and fell off.
He took another glance around him, charmed despite himself. It almost felt as if he’d stepped back in time. Fully restored old buildings lined Main Street, and all of the houses surrounding downtown were large and beautiful and...old. Painted and pretty, but from another era.
Not his thing. Rance grimaced. Give him a sleek modern condo downtown in any large city any day. Much less upkeep, especially for a guy who lived the way he did—constantly on the move in search of the next story. If he were to be perfectly honest, which he usually was, a guy who stayed on the run from his internal demons.
Dramatic, too, he supposed. Guess that was what investigative journalism and losing his family had done to him. Lifting his camera, he snapped a few shots of the street with the beautiful trees in the background. Nice to get a sense of place to go with the story.
His stomach growled, reminding him it had been a while since he’d eaten. What the hell, Mother Earth’s Café sounded as good as anything else. He could go for a juicy hamburger right now.
As soon as he stepped inside, Rance took note of how many diners were crowded into the small room. That might have been due to the restaurant’s relatively tiny size or the fact that he hadn’t noticed any other eating establishments in the immediate vicinity. Whatever the reason, the scent of good food—beef and fried chicken among other things—made his mouth water.
Taking a stool at the lunch counter, he checked out the place’s leftover-from-the-seventies vibe. Perfect. Surely someone in here would have no problem telling him about the region’s very own mythical beast. A local Loch Ness monster would be a great way to attract tourists to this out of the way town. He’d think someone would have gone out of their way to promote it already.
The waitress came over, smiling. “What can I get you today?” she asked, batting her false eyelashes so much he wondered if Forestwood also had a shortage of single men.
He smiled politely back, placing his order for a burger and fries, along with iced tea. If his lack of flirting disappointed her, she didn’t show it. Instead, she jotted down his order, nodded and disappeared. Listening to the hum of chatter and clink of utensils, he decided to wait to ask anyone anything until after he’d eaten.
His food arrived a few minutes later and he dug in. The aroma of the place hadn’t lied. The juicy burger tasted great—one of the best he’d had in years. The fries were perfect, too—crisp and flavored with a hint of seasoning spice. And the tea—sweet tea, without him asking—tasted like it had been made in Atlanta rather than up north.
A meal like this deserved him taking his time. He tried, but hunger had him scarfing it down. He considered it a tribute to the cook that he completely cleaned his plate.
As soon as he’d finished, the waitress reappeared, asking him if he’d saved room for dessert.
“I don’t think so,” he told her, genuinely regretful. “Maybe next time. Listen, I’m wondering if you can tell me how to find the lake monster.”
Just like that, the smile vanished from her pretty face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she said, no longer batting any eyelashes. She thrust a paper at him. “Here’s your check. Pay the cashier on the way out.” And she took off without a backward glance, her shoes making slapping sounds on the linoleum floor.
Stunned, he stared after her. Wow. Two for two. People in this place were awfully defensive about a thing that was supposedly nonexistent.
What about asking the witch’s family? Seriously? This had him shaking his head. They’d admit to the existence of a witch, but not admit the possibility of a giant lizard living in their lake? Made no sense. A witch. Whatever. The man earlier had called them the Burnetts. Maybe he’d have better luck asking around how to find them. He guessed it couldn’t hurt.
After leaving a five for the waitress, he headed toward the cashier. Evidently, word of his questioning had preceded him since the pink-haired woman eyed him warily.
“I’m wondering if you could help me,” he began. She started shaking her head before he even had a chance to finish.
“I don’t know anything,” she answered, taking his ticket and his twenty and giving him back change. Her long fingernails were painted black with white tips.
He couldn’t help but find the way everyone wanted to stonewall him amusing. Did they not realize doing so piqued his interest more than if they’d simply laughed off his questions?
“I haven’t even asked you yet. You have no idea what I’m wanting to know.”
She shrugged, looking anywhere but at him. “Thanks for visiting,” she chirped. “Come again.”
“Where can I find the Burnetts?”
This got her attention. “The Burnetts? Which one?”
“Any one,” he responded.
Clearly unsure of how to react, she met his gaze and swallowed hard. “Are you in town at their invitation?” The way she said it let him know it mattered if he was. Sort of like being invited by royalty.
He wished he could lie, but he refused to start out on that kind of footing, so he shook his head. “No. But I need to ask someone about your local lake monster. You know, the one no one will admit is here. Someone else told me the Burnetts might at least be willing to talk to me.”
Her loud sigh let him know she’d
