Published: 21 Jul 2025

Konnor was surprised to receive a call from the police at 9:00 the next morning.

“Konnor Meyer here,” he answered. “Is this about Kayla’s death? I thought that was all settled.”

“It is connected in a way. How well do you know Mark Hamer?”

“I’ve never met him, but if I do, he’d better watch out.”

“I take it you’re not friends.”

“That’s the understatement of the year. He raped Kayla, and more than once! He’s really responsible for her death. Someone should kill the son-of-a-bitch!”

“Someone did.”

“Shit! I suppose you think I did it after what I just said.

“Not necessarily. If he’d done that to my girlfriend, I’d feel the same. Can you verify your whereabouts last night between, say, 5:00 and 10:00? Can anyone vouch for you?”

“Probably about 50,000 people, give or take.”

“Please explain.”

“If you watched Channel 9 news at 10:00 you likely saw me in front of the camera at Siever Motors. I was in the group of landscapers who were interviewed live for about two minutes.”

“Oh, as part of the open house to celebrate the new look of the dealership?”

“Yup. I was with those guys from just before five until this morning because we all slept over at the acreage.”

“That’s good enough for me. Since you have an iron-clad alibi, I won’t bother you again. I doubt you’d have the money or the connections to hire a hitman.

“Can you think of anyone else who might have had a motive?”

“I would imagine there are a lot of people who didn’t like him because of the things he did, but I don’t know anyone who would actually do him in.”

“Not even Kayla’s father?”

“Kurt is a reasonable and gentle man. I absolutely can’t dream of him doing that.”

“Okay. Thanks. I don’t think I’ll have reason to contact you again.

“Have a good day. Bye.”

“Bye”

Konnor thought all morning about what the policeman had said. He truly didn’t believe that Kurt could have killed Mark, though he was someone who had enough reason to. If it were Kurt, Konnor found himself hoping the man would never have to pay for it!

As fall progressed, the days became shorter and colder. Seth was relieved that there wouldn’t be any more lawns to mow for several months to come. It provided a decent summer income, but he had his sights set on bigger things. His project at the car dealership was already bringing him new business for the future. He was grateful that his husband wanted him to devote his energy to designing new projects and getting a good education rather than picking up some kind of short-term retail job to earn a few bucks during the winter.

Konnor and Kayden were interested in taking on jobs of snow removal since Seth had a full plate without them. It would work out well for all of them.

On another front, Jerrod decided he would come back home from the university for the second semester of his freshman year. He would continue to take classes at the junior college and transfer back for his junior and senior years. He sold the idea to his parents as a way of saving money. However, they suspected he was doing it to be closer to Kayden. They had no problem with saving money, whatever his reason was.

Kayden, of course, loved having him nearby. He had feared their budding relationship might die because of being separated, and the lure of all the hot guys on the university campus. Now, it looked like there might be a chance. He knew he was young, but he also knew that he’d met someone who was not only attractive and loving but held similar values and dreams. It was certainly worth investing some time to see if they could make it last.

The obituary of Peter (AKA Peat) Moss caught Justin’s eye when it appeared in the Sunday Gazette. The play on words with his nickname was what made him take notice. However, as he read further, he thought there might be an opportunity for a business deal.

From something the heirs said in an interview on the next page about their sire’s death, it appeared that Peat’s children had no interest in continuing to run Haushofer Nursery. It would be on the market as soon as the estate was settled.

The settlement came quickly because Peter had gotten all his things in order when his cancer was first diagnosed. Within a month, the nursery was listed for sale.

The property was located on the edge of the city not far from the junior college and a public-school complex. A developer immediately contacted the family in hopes of acquiring the site for luxury condos. Those plans had to be scrapped when the city wouldn’t approve the permit for multi-family buildings in that section of town.

It was at that point that Justin got into the action. He had the money to buy it, and he felt it might be a good spot for his young husband to build his business. There were already a number of trees, shrubs, and perennials in stock for landscaping, and there was an office and a small shop not far from the greenhouses.

On the far west side of the property there was a little Tudor style house where grandmother, Grendel Haushofer had lived. Unoccupied for several years, it needed to be razed or repaired. Seth saw it as an asset that could be turned into a place for some of his friends to live.

Konnor wasn’t dating anyone so soon after Kayla’s death, but he might be back on the market by spring. In the meantime, Jerrod and Kayden were hoping to find a place where they could try living together. This could be an opportunity for all of them.

So, Justin put a fairly low bid on the entire parcel. He figured that he could come up another $5,000 without any trouble and was surprised when the heirs jumped at the deal. They were willing to sell to him for his original bid because he wouldn’t be turning it into a housing development. It amused Justin that it was sort of Deja Vue, considering that he had acquired his acreage at a decent price for a similar reason. In this case, the family was thrilled to know Grandma’s house would also survive.

Just before Christmas, Justin and Seth took possession. Almost immediately, all the young men put their spare time and energy into restoring the house. Konnor, Kayden, and Jerrod would be sharing it at a bargain price when it was finished.

Although the inside of the house wasn’t all restored as it would be in the future, the outside looked good. With a large wreath on the front door and electric candles in all the windows facing the street, it looked festive.

Before Peat’s death, Haushofer nursery had ordered live fir trees and wreaths for the holiday season. With the decorations on the house acting as a drawing card, the guys had good sales. Justin worked on his job from the office so he could be available when the others were in classes. Thus, the shop was covered for 12 hours a day in the time before Christmas. In fact, the last of the trees were sold on Christmas Eve Day, so nothing had to be turned into mulch.

Konnor and Kayden’s parents were so appreciative of what Justin and Seth had done for their sons, that they hosted Christmas dinner. It was a blessing for the boys since they hadn’t had much leisure time to prepare for it.

The young guys all went to the acreage to sleep at the end of the day. No one asked about the room assignments.

Part of the breaktime was spent working on the Haushofer house. There wasn’t much in the way of business after Christmas, but usually one guy would stay in the office in case there were customers. A few people did come in to purchase things like flowerpots and the like. Some were already looking for seeds to plant in the spring.

Justin hosted a New Year’s Eve party at the acreage which included a sleepover. There would be a bit of drinking, and he didn’t want anyone out on the road because of that.

Konnor had been invited to a coed party in town and wouldn’t be coming out to sleep. He said he would stay in the house by the nursery unless he got a better offer. Kayden hoped his brother would get laid. Konnor was still grieving Kayla’s death, and Kayden thought he needed some diversion.

January didn’t see much snow that year. It was enough to make a little money, but didn’t take up a lot of time. Most of the spare time the young dudes had was devoted to repairing and painting inside the house at the nursery. They wanted to have it ready for occupancy in the spring. Kayden would be graduating this year and was excited over the prospect of moving in with his boyfriend. They would be attending junior college together in the fall. Jerrod was planning to commute to the university in his junior year so that they could remain together. Kayden was thrilled.

Activity picked up at the nursery in February. Konnor was allowed to use the smaller greenhouse to start seedlings for his organic garden and root some cuttings from houseplants. He was excused from paying rent because he started plants in the larger unit to sell to the public when it was time for spring plating.

Since Seth had kept the contracts that Haushofer’s had with suppliers, there would be a lot of fresh roses for Valentine’s Day. That was another moneymaker, it also let new and returning customers become acquainted with the products the nursery would carry. The young men all took turns staffing it around their various studies.

Konnor happened to be on duty when a pretty young lady came in to see what kind of houseplants they had in stock.

“I’m sorry that we don’t have a lot. Are you looking for a flowering plant or something in the way of greenery?”

“Probably something leafy that doesn’t require a lot of care. My grandma has given me African Violets and they don’t do very well for me. She has to rescue them and bring them back to health. She says I have a brown thumb.”

“I might have the solution. I have some starts of Chinese Evergreens. They look a little like peace lilies and survive well even when neglected. My grandmother received some cuttings from the mother of a student when she first started teaching. That was 60 years ago and now everyone in the clan has at least one or two. We refer to it as the ‘family plant.’ The huge one in their living room got unwieldy, so they gave it up for cuttings so I could sell them here.”

“Hmmm. Let’s see them and maybe I can buy a pot and some soil to get them going,” she said. “I’m trying to find something to cheer up my life since I broke up with my boyfriend.”

“That’s tough,” Konnor nodded. “I lost someone this year, so I have a bit of empathy. I’m so sorry that you’ve been hurt.

“My name is Konnor, like it says on my nametag. May I ask yours?”

“Sure, I’m Dana. And thanks for your kind words.”

“Here they are,” Konnor said as they entered the smaller greenhouse.

“They’re already rooted, so they can be planted right away. You’ll need to keep them well-watered in the beginning as they adapt to the soil. I root them in vermiculite instead of water alone. That way their roots develop better to adapt to soil.”

Dana picked out a blue ceramic pot from the ones Konnor recommended. Then, he added potting soil and planted them for her. When he was finished, he put them in a clear plastic bag and stapled the top shut.

“This will protect it from the cold on the way home,” he said.

Then, he wrote out the bill for the pot.

“You forgot to charge me for the plant!” Dana explained.

“It’s a gift to help you feel better. Here’s something else,” he grinned, and he took one long-stemmed rose from the cooler and placed it in a small vase.

“Happy Valentine’s Day!”

Dana left happier than when she’d arrived. She would come back again to buy spring flowers for Grandma’s birthday in April. This guy was cool.

Konnor kicked himself for not getting Dana’s phone number or even her last name. He found himself thinking about her and wished he could see her again. He had more or less given up when he was startled at the beginning of his art appreciation class by someone asking him a question.

“Is this seat reserved for anyone?” Dana asked.

“Yeah, I’m saving it for you!

“Where did you come from?”

“I was told that the stork brought me, and I’ve lived in this city ever since,” she joked.

“Smart stork,” Konnor replied. But, like how did you happen to find me?”

“When I was at your shop, I thought I knew you from somewhere. Most of my classes are small, so I had ruled out school. But today I saw you come in. Since this is a huge lecture class, it suddenly hit me that we’ve been in the same room all term and didn’t know it.”

“That’s so cool. I’ve been wanting to talk with you again. I think we have a number of things in common. I wish I had time to go to the student union after class, but it’s my day to staff the shop again.”

“Would it be okay if I came there? I promise I won’t monopolize your time.”

“It would be great. I’d love company. You can tag along while I tend the plants. We have a bell that alerts us when someone comes into the shop, so I don’t have to stay there every minute. There are also a number of security cameras. I can show you around the operation when we don’t have any customers to wait on.”

“Great! I’d love to know more about what you do.”

March saw a flurry of activities and contractors began landscaping around the new houses they were building. Other individuals who were eager to purchase annuals and perennials for their gardens came into the shop to buy. Seth was pleased. The nursery was beginning to pay for itself already. And people took the time to look at the photos he had displayed of the work he’d done at the Buick dealer and the acreage. It looked like he would have all the jobs he could handle in the coming summer.

A flurry of a different kind occurred on a Thursday in March as well. Many people were caught off guard when a storm from the West veered to a more northerly direction after crossing into Nebraska. It started with freezing rain which made streets treacherous. Fortunately, it didn’t begin until after public school students were already safe at home.

Konnor was on duty in the shop that day, and Dana was with him. It was the third time she’d joined him after class. During those visits, they’d discussed some their problems and dreams, though they didn’t go into detail. Each time, they’d felt more comfortable with each other, and had ended up with a better outlook on life in general.

Today, they were in the larger green house when the freezing precipitation began to pound on the glass roof.

“Wow! That sounds bad. Is the glass likely to break?” Dana asked.

“It will probably be okay. It’s a lot stronger than ordinary window glass. It’s been through worse.”

“I suppose I should go to the apartment while it’s possible.”

“I don’t think that would be a good idea. You’re welcome to stay until it’s over. Let’s take a look at your car.”

From the shop window, they could see that Dana’s windshield was already coated with ice. It had cooled just enough to keep it from melting off.

“What will we do?” Dana worried. “We can’t stay here all night.”

“I’ll get an umbrella from the closet, and we can make a run for the house.”

“Whoa, this is nice! Who lives here?”

“Currently, it’s two other guys and me. I hope they made it home already. From the wet rug on the porch, I’m guessing they are.”

“Kayden and Jerrod, are you here?”

“Yeah, we slid in about five minutes ago. We nearly ran off the road twice. It’s a mess.”

“Guys, this is Dana, the girl I was telling you about.

“Dana, this is my brother, Kayden, and this is Jerrod his boyfriend.”

They greeted one another and then the younger boys started a blaze in the fireplace to help stave off the gloom. The house soon took on an aura of comfort from the wood fire and the aroma of dinner.

It was Konnor’s night to cook. Luckily, he had planned to make a stew which would easily be enough to feed everyone. He’d prepared the veggies ahead of time and kept them in water, so it wouldn’t be long before he could begin the cooking process.

After browning the meat in the Dutch oven, he added wine, broth, and seasonings. About an hour later, he added the veggies. While those were cooking, the boys were making a salad and setting the table

Dana helped where she could, but mostly stayed out of the way because the guys had it all under control. By 6:20, they were seated around the kitchen table digging in.

“I’m impressed!” Dana exclaimed, as they were cleaning up after dinner.

“You guys really know your way around the kitchen. Do you always eat like this?”

“No, sometimes we make something fancy and sometimes we eat leftovers on the run. You caught us at a good time,” Kayden said. “Jerrod and I aren’t as proficient as Konnor is.”

“It’s getting worse out there with flurries and wind,” Konnor observed. “You’ll have to bunk with us tonight. And before you think I’m hitting on you; we have a small room with a trundle bed for guests.”

“Thank you. I’ll text my roommate, so she won’t worry about me. I should have done it earlier. I’d better do the same with Grandma.

Konnor loaned Dana a T-shirt and boxers to sleep in. He felt kind of embarrassed to make the offer, but Dana seemed to appreciate it. She had been concerned about sleeping in her clothes. She welcomed his kindness.

All schools in the area were closed on Friday. The sun came out in the morning and a warm southerly breeze began to melt the ice and snow. By late afternoon, the roads were mostly plowed.

Dana almost hated to go back to her apartment.

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