Page 22 of In Cold Blood

Without knowing why Alicia was in possession of it, he was reluctant to tell Kerri about the cabin at that exact moment. She was dealing with enough questions and grief surrounding Luke’s death as it was. He figured he’d wait a day or two, speak with Alicia, and check out the cabin. Perhaps there was a good reason behind it.

Noah shifted the conversation to the kids, hoping to lift her mood.

Right then, headlights washed over the house and the rumble of an engine caught Kerri’s attention. “Oh, that’s Axel.” She got up and set her mug in the sink. “They said they would drop him off.”

“You’re keeping him?”

She gave him a confused look as she passed him. “We haven’t decided yet. We have a kennel here. The problem was Luke was the only one in the Sheriff’s Office that was trained to work with Axel. I mean, he responds to us, but… well, look, it depends on the Sheriff’s Office. With Luke gone, the K-9 unit doesn’t exist so to speak unless they train someone else and they’re not sure they will. Sheriff Roberts felt that it might be a good time to retire Axel as he’s six years old now. They say he only has a few good years left in him as a K-9.” She shook her head. “Besides us, Luke is all that dog has ever known. They were like two peas in a pod.”

She made her way to the side door and flipped on the night light outside. Noah got up and stood in the doorway of the mudroom. It was filled with the kids’ shoes, boots, and some of Luke’s belongings. A couple of his police-issued jackets were hanging up on a hook beside the outdoor wear.

As the door opened, a male deputy stepped into view, holding Axel.

His nails tapped on the ground like rain. He was still wearing a muzzle and pulling on the leash. “Hey, Kerri. Well, here he is.”

Noah noted the name tag.Deputy Hendrix.

The deputy looked at Noah.

“Thanks, Simon,” Kerri said, moving toward him to help.

As soon as Axel saw Noah, he whined and wagged his tail, clawing at the ground to get near him. “Seems you’ve gained a friend,” Hendrix said. “Must think you’re Luke. By the way. My condolences, Luke was a great deputy sheriff and would have been elected for sure.”

Leaning up against the doorframe, he watched as Kerri struggled with the dog to get him to go through a doorway into an area that was used for the kennel. “Come on, Axel. That way!” she bellowed.

The dog kept looking at Noah.

“Here, let me give you a hand,” Hendrix said, thinking he could help. He couldn’t. It was like wrestling a wild bear. Axel refused to take his eyes off Noah. He had every intention of getting close, and hell or high water he would. Like a deep-sea fisherman grappling with a net, Hendrix glanced at Noah as he tried to hold onto Axel. “You think you could give us a hand? It might be easier if…”

As soon as Noah took a step in his direction, Axel stopped pulling as hard. When he was within reach of his muzzle, the dog sniffed him but instead of going nuts as he might have around Luke, he simply relaxed. “Well look at that. That’s quite the reaction,” Hendrix said. “Now if you could have been with us today, that would have been great.”

Noah slipped by them and without any hesitation, Axel followed him into a room where there was a large crate, big enough for the dog to walk around in. It took up most of the room. Kerri opened the latch on the gate and Noah took the leash and led the dog inside. He crouched and stared into his eyes for a second, a moment of hesitation before Noah removed his muzzle. The dog licked his face.

As Noah turned to walk out, the dog followed.

“Oh no, buster, you stay in there,” Hendrix said. “Stay.”

The dog didn’t listen so Noah saidstay.

Immediately, the dog obeyed.

Hendrix stared in amazement.

“Well, dang, I hope for your sake, Kerri, he’s sticking around,” he said, smiling as they closed the gate. “We haven’t been introduced,” Hendrix said, holding out his hand. “Simon Hendrix. A close friend of Luke’s.”

Noah shook it. “Pleased to meet you.”

“All right, well, unless there’s anything else you need, that’s that. Again, Kerri, if you have any trouble with Axel over the next week or two, just let me know.”

“I will do. Thank you.”

“Pleased to meet you, Noah.”

For once, Noah was glad he didn’t say he looked like his brother. Hendrix turned and headed out, leaving them in the mud room. Once he was gone, they returned to the kitchen, listening to the sound of Axel whining.

“Do you have a place to stay? I could make up the spare room.”

“No, it’s fine. I’ve made arrangements. A cabin by the lake.”