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“She called, and she should be by today.”
“When she gets here, please ask her to call me.”
“I will.” Though I didn’t expect Lara to follow through.
Echo pushed in through the doggy door that I’d unlocked now that we were off high defensive alert. He had something dirty in his mouth, and his paws were filthy from having dug again.
Ernst looked out the back window. “What did you do?” He opened the door and stepped onto the back porch.
I ignored him as Echo dropped his prize in front of me. I picked up the old cap. I took it to the sink and started to rinse the dirt off.
Ernst came back in and slammed the door. “What did you do to my trees?”
I turned to him. This had to stop. “I told you I’d take care of them from now on.” I went back to the cap and held it under the water. “I pulled those two sickly ones that you should have replaced years ago.”
“You can’t.”
“I did.” I worked the dirt out of the fabric, and the lettering became clear—Stella Maria. I froze for a moment. “This is Daddy’s sailing cap.” It didn’t make any sense that it would have been out back.
Ernst came over. “No, it isn’t.”
As the water and my fingers did their work, it was even more obviously Daddy’s. “Where did you get this?” I asked Echo, as if he could understand the question.
He went to the door.
I followed. “Show me where you got this.”
“Stop right there,” Ernst yelled.
I turned back to him and screamed.
He held a knife.
Echo barked and lunged.
Ernst caught him with the knife.
“No,” I yelled.
My dog yelped and fell to the floor.
“What the fuck?” I screamed.
Ernst pulled a gun. “Shut the fuck up, right now.”
My heart raced as I scurried to Echo. What would I do if he died?
Echo whimpered as I placed pressure on his bleeding wound.
“Stay. Stay there, boy,” I got out through my sobs. He had to stay down.
Ernst closed the Swiss army knife he always carried and pocketed it with his free hand. “Fucking dog.” He paced back and forth, waving the gun wildly. “Why did he have to go and dig that up?”
Ernst wasn’t making any sense.
My phone rang, and I pulled it from my pocket. My hands were so jittery from the adrenaline that I almost dropped it.
“Don’t answer that. Put it down,” he commanded.
