Suddenly Brad’s radar was up. Someone must have been staying there since he and Marie were there two years ago. He continued his investigation and found that nothing was broken or missing. But Brad was sure someone had moved some of the chairs around the kitchen table. There were a few minor things different in the bedroom as well.
He checked around the grounds but didn’t see anything else unusual. There were faint tire tracks in the dirt driveway. But it was impossible to figure out how long they’ve been there. The other cabins were all empty. Except for the tracks in his driveway, it looked like no one had visited the tiny community in years.
After half an hour of checking Brad was wondering what to make of it. Maybe there was a simple explanation. Did Marie come here and forgot to tell him? It was hard to believe that. He was sure that if she was here she would have mentioned it to him. But he had to believe that someone was here. If a squatter broke in why wasn’t a window broke? Or a door forced open? Why wasn’t the fireplace dirty or the counter top? Why was nothing that much out of place?
Certainly if roughnecks invaded place they’d have left it a mess and wouldn’t take care to put everything back in it proper place. The shower curtain was nearly in the right place, just not pushed all the way to the side of the bath tub. Whoever had been there had taken time to make sure the cabin looked untouched. It was only because of his fastidious nature that Brad knew exactly how he left it.
For some strange reason he decided not to tell Marie. He wasn’t normally a suspicious person but something didn’t add up. He didn’t know why he felt like that. He trusted his wife. He loved and trusted her for decades. But it was just too strange an occurrence to eliminate the possibility that she had some knowledge about this and wasn’t telling him. If he confronted her now, he didn’t want it to sound like he didn’t trust her. Since it was just a hunch, he need more information before asking her about it.
After that strange visit Brad went to the electronics store and purchased an expensive set of high definition surveillance cameras. He mounted them in discrete locations, one to view the porch area, one in the living room that would also view the kitchen. The last one was placed in the bedroom, pointed so it could see into the bathroom if the door was open.
Without telling Marie his plans, Brad began driving to the cabin each weekend to check the recordings. Since he could drive to the cabin and back in two hours, it was easy to give his wife some trivial excuse about his absence. Actually she was gone more than he was, shopping or visiting friends. She also spent a lot of time at the health spa she joined last year. She started a rigorous exercise program resulting in losing almost fifteen pounds and toning up her slim figure. Brad had to admit that she did look good for her age.
The video cameras were motion activated. So the first two times he went to the cabin there was nothing recorded. He was beginning to think he was just wasting his time checking them. But on the third visit the cameras had data. He was so curious who was breaking in, he downloaded them right away and began to view them at the kitchen table before leaving for home.