The Cajun Wolf - Murder Most Foul
by Nicholas Hall
Epilogue
Copyright © 2019 – Nicholas Hall
"But keep the wolf far thence, that's foe to men,
For with his nails he'll dig them up again."
(John Webster)
Marcello Giordano's obituary, was simple and short (succinct as Eric preferred to say). It stated his date of birth and death, predeceased by his parents, three brothers, his wife Delores, a son, Demarco; a grandson, Marcus, and is survived by daughter–in-law Rebecca, grandson, David, and granddaughter, Lindsey, and several unnamed nephews and nieces.
Marcello was cremated, causing Evan to chuckle, "I'd be willing to bet many a glass was hoisted and there was great rejoicing knowing so many secrets went up in smoke."
Private interment services were held. The family expressed their desire any memorials be made to local LGBTQ organizations or to those supporting and providing opportunities and education for children of color.
The one phrase in his obituary David scoffed at, was "Mr. Giordano died peacefully in his sleep at his summer home on Remote Lake in Northern Minnesota."
"That's not true," he complained to his mother.
"Better to say that and let people believe it rather than tell them the truth and really cause people to wonder what happened, if you know what I mean."
David knew very well what she meant, but was uncertain how she knew.
"Besides," she continued, "It's the right thing to do."
When Marcello failed to come to breakfast that morning, a housekeeper went to investigate. She found him quite dead in his bed. Security was summoned, security called 911, alerted Rebecca, David, and Lindsey, and stood watch over the body to ensure nothing was disturbed.
The first officer on the scene was Sheriff's Deputy Diondre Carlson followed soon after by Detective Jerry Haven. Since it was an unattended death, an autopsy was ordered to determine the cause of death. The coroner determined Marcello's death was caused by a massive heart attack complicated by severe cirrhosis of the liver. The report also noted he'd been treated for heart disease for several years and taking medication for it.
David, lounging up against Chase, on the couch, and Lindsey, snugged tight in Henri's arms sitting on the floor, waited in the great room of the lodge for Rebecca.
"Any idea why you Mom wanted to see us?"
"Not certain," David replied, hoping it wasn't a "guess what? We're moving," announcement.
Rebecca walked into the room, holding onto Franklin's arm, both seemed more than pleased to be in each other's company. Following them were the two relatively new employees, the security guard and the grounds/maintenance person. David and Lindsey were slowly developing and improving their wolf scents. They tensed as they identified the two employees as Lycanthropes. Chase and Henri, somewhat surprised as well, since now they could put a face to the scents Franklin informed them they'd encountered earlier in the summer, night after night when making their amorous visits to David and Lindsey.
"Please, relax, David and Lindsey," smiled Rebecca hoping to relieve the tension she could see in their faces. "I have several announcements to make. First, we're not moving; this place seems like home to all of us and especially to me since it reminds me of my home where I grew up in Maine."
David breathed a sigh of relief, knowing even if the decision had been to move, he couldn't leave Chase, ever. It would've been heart-breaking to his mother and he really didn't want to have to do that.
"Secondly, Franklin and I are to be married in September. I hope you, David and Lindsey, will welcome him into our family and accept him as the father you never really had. I've never really had a husband, a soul mate who loved me and I truly loved in return. I couldn't ask for more than Franklin to be my husband."
David and Linsey were ecstatic, leaping to their feet, giving their mother hugs and kisses, and a little more reserved toward Franklin but he still got a hug. They'd seen how their mother suffered all these years and wanted only the best for her.
"Third, I'd like to introduce my older brother, David, the person who you thought was the grounds/maintenance person and who you're named after," pointing to her son, "and his husband Steve Granger, the security guard. Franklin arranged for them to be placed here to protect us until the situation could be normalized."
"But how…..?" Lindsey questioned since she sort of knew her mother had family somewhere.
Her Uncle David answered for his sister.
"As you may not know, your Mom's communication with others outside of here was strongly controlled by your grandfather. She'd tried contacting family, but her letters were never received, stopped before they were mailed. She finally was able to have a loyal housekeeper send a letter for her. Rebecca addressed it to Steve at his family's address since she didn't know where we were. She requested my help and I replied through Franklin."
Franklin and Steve were well acquainted. Steve was one of the adjunct instructors Franklin had while in training.
"It appeared Steve and I worked for the same organization Franklin does, only in different parts of the country. We were pleased when we discovered an old friend of ours, Jerry Haven also worked, although semi-retired now, in this part of the country as well. It was a natural and we were eager to come here to help. After all, it's my sister, right?"
"They are going to be living here with us for a while," Rebecca explained, "there's plenty of room and it'll be nice to have family, real family, around."
David was puzzled how this was going to work out, werewolves and humans living together. Rebecca saw the concerns in his face. When his brows furrowed and his lips sort of pursed to the side, she knew he was trying to work something out in his head in order to make sense of it. She alleviated his concern and provided the solution as well.
"The new moon is next Wednesday. I invite all of you to be here to help me celebrate my new life; the life my brother and my children and I chose voluntarily. Needless to say, there's going to be a few changes on our part of Remote Lake."
The End
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or locales is entirely coincidental or used in a fictional content.
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