“Come on, bud,” he said, opening the door. Buttons preceded him onto the porch, sniffing furiously, tail as still as the nonexistent wind.

Andrew walked off the porch, but Buttons continued to sniff around as if latching on to a brand-new scent.

“Man, I wish you could talk.”

Buttons surprised him by looking up and giving a quick, friendly bark.

“I stand corrected. I wish I understood dog.”

The first thing he wanted to see was the side of the house where the picture had fallen off the wall. Hours ago, he had worried that it was the start of worse to come. Would rocks through the windows be next? Was there more than one person out there? Once whoever was out there had access to the house, nothing was off the table. Maybe he’d seen too many home invasion movies, but he wasn’t naive enough to believe that just because he and Kate were up in Maine, crime didn’t exist. Or murder.

At the moment, he was concerned about damage to the house and losing his deposit. If that happened, he would find the person responsible and get the money from them one way or another.

“Come on, Buttons. We don’t care about the porch.”

The dog dutifully followed him, showing he could understand Andrew. There was a chance that dogs were smarter than man.

The kayak was still secured to the roof of the car. He’d meant to take it down to the lake yesterday, but then he’d come home and seen the state Kate was in after doing her mad maid routine again, and he’d seen red.

As he turned the corner of the cottage, it was plain to see what had been thrown at it. A rock the size of Andrew’s chest lay on the ground, the wood of the house splintered from the impact.

“Shit.”

It had hit the side of the house about ten feet up from the ground. Andrew lifted the stone. Christ, it was heavy. Someone would have to be a world-class shot-putter to get it up that high. Or just enormously strong.

Buttons got on his hind legs to sniff the rock.

“Go ahead, buddy, and remember that smell. Next time, you warn us when he’s coming.”

He wasn’t going to leave this rock nearby as ammo if the bastard came again. Andrew walked it down to the lake, huffing and puffing with every step. He went to the end of the dock and dropped it in the water with a tremendous splash. He’d like to have thrown it farther out, but he wasn’t Superman.

The silence draped over the lake was unsettling. Even the birds weren’t out, the overcast skies keeping them asleep in their nests.