Chapter 9

The next morning it took Matti a few seconds to figure out what had woken him up. It was obviously early, and a quick check of his wristwatch showed him it was only 7:30. He soon decided that it was probably the smell of coffee brewing that had done it. For a further few seconds he couldn’t understand how that could be, but that confusion soon cleared when he remembered that Dawn had spent the night with him at the camp. He was dressed in no more than a minute, and another few seconds allowed him to run a comb through his hair, brush his teeth, and check out his face in a mirror. He quickly decided he was sufficiently presentable.

Dawn was pouring herself a cup of coffee when he walked into the kitchen, and she immediately grabbed another mug when she saw him. “Good morning, Matti. I hope you don’t mind that I made myself at home. I think the need for a cup of coffee first thing in the morning is hardwired into my DNA. Are you joining me?”

“Yes, please, Dawn. I never turn down a strong cup of coffee. Just black for me.”

They sat at opposite ends of the table, and there was no further conversation until they each had taken a sip of the hot brew.

“I can’t remember when I’ve slept as soundly as I did last night, Matti. It must’ve been all the fresh air that I got yesterday. If that’s the reason, I should sleep even better tonight.”

“Yes, that might be the case. I’m sure that John and Emily will want to make the most of their day out here. We could end up pretty busy. We’ll have a couple of hours before they get here, though, and if you’d like, we could go for a little hike up to the top of the hill behind the camp.”

Matti’s suggestion was quickly accepted by Dawn, and by 8:30 they were approaching the top of the hill. A spectacular view of the lake as it extended off into the distance lay right in front of them.

“This is a wonderful view, Matti. I’m so glad I brought my camera with me.” Dawn took a number of scenic photos before putting the camera in timer mode and placing it on a convenient boulder so that they could have a photo of the two of them with the camp and bay in the background. The picture showed them standing comfortably shoulder to shoulder.

They took a longer route back, and had just arrived when a late-model, dark blue pickup truck stopped beside the camp. Introductions were made, and after Matti pointed out the sauna, boathouse, and storage shed, they all went into the camp where a quick tour of the layout took place. While the two women stayed in the camp to have a cup of coffee and freshen up, Matti and John went to set the boat up for their planned fishing excursion. Matti added a second motor to the transom, this one a much smaller one capable of moving the boat at the slow speeds necessary for trolling, and got a spare minnow bucket for John to use.

In just a few minutes they were on the water, and Matti was explaining the latest fishing lesson to Dawn. Trolling was much simpler, amounting to nothing more than letting 50 or more feet of line, with the bait attached, trail in the water as the boat moved slowly through promising areas. It was simpler and safer than having four people trying to cast from the same boat. Matti had his fish finder operating, and pointed out two schools of fish that they passed over. At the second school both Dawn and John got strikes, and two nice pickerel were soon on the stringers. Just a few minutes later first Emily, and then Dawn caught fish. By noon everyone had at least one on a stringer, and the women had out-counted the men. It was on that note that they broke for lunch, with the two women hurrying to the camp to get it started, while the men took care of the fish.

After a simple lunch of soup, sandwiches and fresh fruit salad, the group headed back to the lake. Fishing formed only a part of the agenda, as Matti used the speed and power of his larger Yamaha outboard motor to tour the main body of the lake. The east end had a number of scattered camps, as well as a small Provincial Park with a public boat launch. There were so many meandering bays and good fishing spots that not many of the boats plying the waters of this end of the lake ever made it to the west end of the lake, where Matti’s camp was located. That end of the lake had been closed for further private development of camps a number of years earlier, but the camp that Matti’s parents had built was grandfathered in.

Later, when they had returned to the west end of the lake, they cruised past the small island where the remains of the crashed plane were clearly visible. Emily Forbes had wanted to see it, after hearing about it from news reports and her husband’s description. At Dawn’s suggestion they also made a stop at the big island where the ill-fated plane clipped the trees that brought it down. She made the lighthearted suggestion that they might find the missing bag of cash that was claimed to have been on the plane.

Matti went along with Dawn’s request, so that none of the others would have any cause to question his reluctance. He did let everyone know that, although it wasn’t obvious from the shoreline, the island was heavily treed, with a lot of downed trees and brush to bar their way. Within fifteen minutes the others could relate positively to Matti’s description, and they beat a hasty retreat from the mosquitoes and black flies they encountered in the shaded forest. The phantom black bag remained undiscovered, but their short hike did provide them with a very different impression of nature when compared to the area surrounding Matti’s camp. Over the years all of the brush and debris in that area had been cleared away, and even the detritus of rotting trees and stumps had been raked away.

With their grand tour of the lake complete, and their short foray into the wilds of the big island having been quickly aborted, they returned to their primary interest - fishing. By five o’clock they had reached their limit, both in the sense that they had no interest in sitting in a boat for any longer, and that they had all reached their legal limit for the number of fish in their possession. It was a happy group that stowed away their fishing equipment for the remainder of the day.

This time the two women relaxed on lawn chairs while the two men quickly filleted and cleaned up the remains of the fish. Matti’s white bucket was now two thirds full with the remains of the fish, and Dawn quickly suggested that Matti should empty it after supper, so that John and Emily could watch the show the scavengers might provide. She had told Emily about what happened the last time, and Emily wanted the chance to see nature in its raw form for herself. Matti quickly agreed.

There was now a large platter of fresh pickerel fillets ready for their supper, and Matti and John told the women to sit down and enjoy themselves for a change. The men were going to prepare supper.

“Well, guys, that was a really good supper.” Emily was speaking for herself, but Dawn very quickly added her agreement. All four of them were sitting around the table, fully sated by the meal the men had prepared. A few french fries, one piece of fish, and a small serving of coleslaw were all that remained of the food they had sat down to.

After Matti had provided everyone with either a cup of tea, or coffee, depending on their personal tastes, he sat down and asked John, “I’ve been wondering if you’ve heard anything more about the shootout between those two bikers, and the cartel people. I didn’t notice anything in the news before we came out here, and Dawn said she hadn’t seen anything on any of the news feeds they get at their station.”

John thought for a moment before answering, “I did read a draft of a press release that will be coming out early next week, so I guess I’m not giving too much away when I tell you this. So far, none of our detachments in Eastern Ontario has found any evidence of this shootout that Bert Fontaine described to you. No bodies, no drugs, and not even any evidence of where it may have happened. Since Fontaine didn’t specify where it all took place, we’ll have to wait until something gets reported, or until an informant fills us in. There is a report that the president of the Peterborough chapter, one Dave Carter, hasn’t been seen in the last week. A number of members of the same chapter of the Wolverines Motorcycle Club have been holed up in their clubhouse, so our thinking is that something definitely has happened.”

John paused, and before he continued he turned to face Dawn. “I know you’re a reporter, but I would really appreciate it if you don’t quote any of this information before it’s released on Monday. I probably should’ve asked you that before I said anything. I don’t think I’d get in much trouble, but I’m sure I would hear about it.”

Dawn quickly agreed, and then smiled at John and added, “Mind you, I guess you’ll owe me one. Maybe someday I’ll ask for a bit of background color, or an explanation of some facet of a case. We’re just out here having fun, and I left my reporter hat at home this weekend.”

Matti laughed and said, “I think you mean your blue jacket, don’t you? It seems to be a trademark of yours.” Dawn laughed in agreement, after which Matti asked John, “Those three schemers sure paid a price for their decision to rip off the Diegos cartel, and their own club. All three of them are dead now. No more Scooby Dugan, Jiggs Carter, or Dog Fontaine. They all paid the ultimate price for their scheming and betrayal.”

John looked curiously at Matti and said, “Where did you hear Fontaine’s nickname, Matti. I hadn’t got to that part of the story yet. Unless you heard it from him, and forgot to mention it.”

“I guess I must’ve just read your mind, John.” He paused long enough to give John the chance to think he wasn’t pulling his leg, before he continued. “No, actually Dawn mentioned that to me. I guess you’re not the only source in the OPP.”

Dawn looked a little shocked as she reacted to having all three of the others at the table looking her way. She quickly said, “Yes ... I do ... I have a ... contact in the OPP I sometimes get information from.”

There wasn’t much more for John to add, now that Matti and Dawn had made their little additions to the conversation. They almost immediately dropped the subject when Emily suggested that the women clear the table and wash the dishes. In the end the men assisted them, so that they could get back outside. Emily and Dawn still wanted to see the show that the birds would give them when Matti delivered their smorgasbord.