Chapter 7: The Unexpected

Four days later there had been no reoccurrence of the vandalism and no group had come forward to claim responsibility. Gus and Donald were beginning to write it off as a one-time occurrence. They had left the additional security on, particularly for the weekend. Tatya, the painting contractor, and the insurance company representative had tried to find a way to paint-match the prefinished siding to the repainted area, but were unsuccessful. Each of the six houses would have to be entirely repainted on the outside.

It was Saturday evening and the McLarens and Tatya were sitting on the back deck in the warm evening after enjoying a nice meal.

"I was planning to go over to Vancouver on the weekend after Labour Day," Gus said. "Are you okay with that?" he asked Tatya.

"Yes ... fine. I'll let Mother know," she smiled.

"So, meeting the parent, are you?" Mary grinned.

"Yes, Mother, I am. I have to find out just how badly my reputation has been portrayed."

"I doubt that," Mary said derisively. "Should he be worried, Tatya?"

"Only from me," the young woman laughed as she poked Gus in the ribs.

They had returned to the comfortable state of their relationship that had been in place before Rocco Molinari arrived. They had not, however, resumed intimacy yet. Tatya had told Gus that is was entirely up to him when he thought it was appropriate and she would agree. Gus could feel the pressure building. Although unspoken, Tatya would have consented right from the beginning of their reunion.

For his part, Gus was not yet ready to resume relations with Tatya. Something he couldn't define was holding him back. Was it the trust issue? Perhaps. Whatever it was, he was not prepared to go through another episode like the "Rocco affair" again. He was being cautious and, up to this point, Tatya was not pushing him for anything more.

Tatya left about ten-thirty that evening and Gus climbed the stairs to his apartment, leaving his mother and father wondering what it would take to get the two young people back together.

"At least they're friendly again," Mary said to her husband. "I can feel the warmth from Tatya, but Angus is very cautious. Perhaps this visit to her mother will be a help to heal him. He feels very wounded over Tatya's abandoning him for that terrible man. I hope for his sake he can get past it."

"I hope so, too, dear. She's a very fine young woman and doing a very good job for our firm. I've been wondering what to do about her if they were to marry. Could we have an in-house architect? Could she set up her own practice here? There are already two firms in the valley. Would there be room for another?"

"Oh, so the aloof, hands-off Donald McLaren is plotting the future, is he?" she said, more serious than teasing.

"Just thinking of the possibilities, Mary. I don't see Tatya giving up her career. She's worked too hard to get this far. She has a lot of potential, and I'm wondering if our property development business can take advantage of that."

"I truly hope it's a problem we have to face," Mary said. "That would mean those two were together, where they belong."

Donald nodded agreement as they rose to go inside and prepare for bed.

The phone rang early on Sunday morning in the McLaren home. Donald squinted at the clock radio and saw it was just after five am. He grabbed the receiver and answered.

"Hello?"

"Mr. McLaren? Mr. Donald McLaren?"

"Yes," he answered, wondering who the unfamiliar voice was.

"This is Constable Merzon in Courtenay. There's been an incident at the Granite Ridge property. One of your security guards has been attacked and badly injured. Could you come out to the site, please?"

"Right away, Constable. I'll get my son as well."

"See Corporal Rideout when you get there. He's in charge of the investigation. Let him know you talked to me and who you are."

"Corporal Rideout," Donald repeated. "Okay, I'm on my way."

"Who is it?" Mary asked, now awake.

"One of our security people has been attacked. They want me over there now. I'll call Gus and get moving."

Donald rang Gus's apartment and woke his sleeping son. "Gus, we've got a problem. One of our security people has been attacked and injured. The RCMP are on the scene and want us there. Get ready quickly."

"Yeah, sure, Dad. Give me five minutes."

It was less than five minutes when Gus came running out of the garage and toward his father's truck. The engine was running and the two of them were on the road in seconds.

"What do you know about what happened," Gus asked.

"No more than I've told you. I hope the guy is all right. The constable said he was badly injured, but I don't know how badly or what caused it. He did say he was attacked."

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Gus asked. "Those crazies that vandalized the houses might be responsible?"

"I don't know what to think," his father replied. "Let's wait and see what the police know."

They arrived at the site ten minutes later and saw the flashing lights of several police cars. The two jumped out of the truck and headed toward the first officer they saw.

"I'm looking for Corporal Rideout," Donald said. "I'm Donald McLaren and this is my son, Angus. This is our project."

"We were expecting you. Come with me please," the officer said.

They walked under some yellow police tape and toward one of the previously vandalized houses.

"Corporal, these gentlemen and the McLarens. They were told to see you."

"Thanks," the corporal said and turned to the two men. "We've got a nasty situation on our hands, gentlemen. It appears two or more people came onto the property about four this morning. They were about to spray more houses from what we can determine. One of your security people spotted them and radioed in to his partner who came down to join him right away.

"When he got here, he found his partner on the ground with a head wound. There was no sign of his assailants. He called 911 and reported the injury and we responded within ten minutes. According to the paramedics, he may have a fractured skull and he hadn't regain consciousness when they took him to the hospital."

"Which man was it," Gus asked.

"Frank Rosenberg," the corporal said, consulting his notes.

"That's the new guy, Dad," Gus reported. "Let's go see Cliff."

"I'd rather you didn't," corporal Rideout said. "He's pretty shook up and we haven't been able to get a statement from him yet."

Gus nodded. "Okay. What needs to be done by us?"

"The sun will be up shortly. I'd like you to check out your property and see if any further acts of vandalism have taken place. Please take an officer with you. We don't want to disturb any evidence we might find."

"Okay. I'm going to grab a coffee first, then we'll do the inspection. What do you want to do, Dad?"

"I'm heading for the hospital. I want to find out what Mr. Rosenberg's condition is. I'll talk to you later or call me on my cell if anything else develops."

"Okay, Dad. I'll keep my fingers crossed the guy is going to be okay."

His father nodded before heading back to his truck.

Gus made a pot of coffee and offered some to the officers. Within five minutes, the pot was empty and he made another. He felt something inside him that he'd never felt before. His abdominal muscles were tense, almost vibrating. He felt the onset of a headache. This situation was something neither he nor his father had ever encountered. Who would do such a vicious thing?

Gus and officer Williams were about to leave on an inspection tour when Tatya arrived at the office.

"What's going on, Gus. Why all the police cars?"

"We had one of our security people attacked, Tatya. They've taken him to hospital. He's in serious condition. A possible skull fracture. This officer and I were about to check out the houses to see if any further damage was done."

"I'll come with you. I inspected every one of the houses yesterday, so I'll know if anything is out of place," she said.

The RCMP officer nodded and held the door for her. They left and headed south on foot toward the scene of the attack. The first two homes showed no signs of being damaged. The third home was a different matter.

"Look, Officer Williams," Tatya pointed to the rear of the house. "The basement window is broken and open. I can hear water running too."

"I've got a master key," Gus said to the officer, unlocking the back door. "Holy shit!" he snapped. "They've flooded the place. All the taps have been turned on, I'll bet."

Gus and Tatya went from room to room, turning off the taps in the laundry room, bathrooms and kitchen. Gus checked the basement and turned off the main water supply to the house. But it was too late to prevent significant damage to the home.

Gus quickly ran next door and checked that house. Luckily, nothing was amiss. The next house in line was the same. He systematically checked every house on the street, finding only the original one with damage.

"Looks like our guy interrupted them before they could really cause havoc," Gus told the officer. "Has his employer been notified of the incident?"

"Yes, we contacted them right away. They are assigning a replacement. We'll be investigating this thoroughly. Corporal Rideout said we'd be adding some patrols to the area too."

"Thank you. I'm going to head back to the office, Tatya. I doubt those people will try anything with all the police presence on hand. I guess we'll have to get a clean-up crew for the house and assess the damage. The graffiti was bad enough, but this is way over the top."

"I talked to the corporal," Tatya said. "Mr. Rosenberg is married, has a youngster with another on the way. I hope he's going to be all right. His wife must be worried sick."

"That reminds me," Gus said, pulling out his cell phone. "Dad is at the hospital. I wonder if he knows what Frank's condition is."

The phone rang three times before Donald McLaren answered.

"Dad, it's me. What's the condition of Frank Rosenberg?"

"He's listed as serious. I've just talked to his wife and she'd naturally very upset. Apparently, he hasn't regained consciousness yet and they're talking about keeping him in a coma until they can assess the damage to his head. It's not good, Gus."

"Is there anything we can do for Mrs. Rosenberg?"

"I'm looking after that now. Her parents live here, so she's got some support who can look after their three year old son. I'll make sure that she gets all the help we can give her."

"Good. Thanks, Dad. The situation at the houses is they turned on the all the taps in one house after blocking the drains. We've got a lot of water, but I won't know how much damage until we get the place cleaned up and dried out."

"Okay," Donald sighed. "I'll be back at the office later and we can discuss it. My main concern right now is Frank Rosenberg."

-0-

Frank Rosenberg remained in a coma while the local detachment of the RCMP investigated the crime with the aid of CID from Vancouver. They had some luck when a security camera recorded three people exiting an old VW van two blocks from the jobsite. While the faces of the occupants were indistinct, they were able to make out the license plate on the van.

Three days later, the van was found parked behind a rundown house in Cumberland. Police obtained a warrant and entered the house, arresting three young people; two men and a woman. They were taken to the Courtenay station and interviewed. That same day the three were charged with assault with a deadly weapon, destruction of property, and criminal trespass. Taken along with the three was a lug wrench which was found lying on the floor of the van. Forensics later indicated there was trace evidence of blood on the wrench.

When confronted with the evidence, the three admitted they were an action wing of the International Wilderness Protection Congress. They refused to offer any further information and further refused to obtain legal counsel. The provincial court appointed them one in spite of their protests. A search for the so-called congress turned up nothing. There was no evidence that any such organization existed.

"What do you think will happen to those people?" Mary asked as the foursome sat around the patio table one evening.

"Hard to say," Donald said with a shrug. "Those are pretty serious charges and they've as much as pled guilty. I can't imagine they'll avoid jail time, but in this day and age, I'm not sure of anything. Suing them for civil damages would be a waste of time. They haven't got a pot to pee in or a window to throw it out of."