When Rachel, Paulina, and Jake Jr arrived at the cottage on Saturday, a pretty young woman opened the door. Rachel was startled; was this Carl's Significant Other? He was not a man to do without feminine company for long, and he had always preferred younger women -

"Hello, I'm Paulina McKinnon, and this is Jake Jr. We've come to play with the twins."

"How do you do? I'm Debra Cullen, the childrens' nanny." They shook hands.

Rachel felt like a prize idiot. Debra! Of course! She should have known! She had expected someone older - and plainer.

"Rachel Cory." she said, holding out her own hand, "We spoke on the telephone."

"How do you do? I'm afraid nobody is home, except the baby. Mr Hutchins said he was taking the boys toboganning in the park. I don't know where, but it can't be far away - they walked."

"Whitney Park," said Paulina, "It's just a couple of blocks over."

"Shall we walk over there and see?" said Rachel.

"Hi!" Frankie's car pulled up just as they were leaving the house. "Charlie had other plans, but here's Marcello."

"The more the merrier, I’m sure." said Rachel.

At the park, they found Carl and the boys pulling the tobogann up the hill. "Hello!" he said, "You're just in time."

"Want a ride on the tobogann, Jay-Jay?" said Paulina.

"Yes!"

"I think there's room for everyone, if we squeeze tight." said Carl.

"I'd forgotten how much fun this is!" said Rachel, after their first downhill run.

'Sometimes, simple pleasures are the best." said Carl.

After an hour or so, Paulina said, "I think Jake Jr has had enough fun in the snow for now, and I need a bathroom, so we’ll head back to the house."

"Yes, it's time we all went home for hot chocolate." said Carl.

"Oh Grandpa, can't me and Steven stay here?" said Kirkland.

"Steven and I." Carl corrected.

"I'll look after Kirk." said Steven.

"I can look after myself!" Kirkland protested.

"Very well," said Carl, "But you lads be home by the time the streetlights come on!"

"To tell the truth," he said, as they led the four toddlers back to the cottage, "I'm nervous every time I let the lads out of my sight, but I can't keep them on a leash."

"Sometimes it's hard to find the balance between protecting your children and smothering them." said Rachel.

At the cottage, Debra said, "Clara is asleep, Mr Hutchins."

"Thank you, Debra. That will be all for today. You run along home."

Once the Twins, Jake Jr and Marcello had been peeled out of their boots and snowsuits, the adults took off their coats as well. Carl was wearing the purple FOXY GRANDPA sweatshirt under his parka.

Paulina raised her eyebrows: "I wouldn't have thought that was really your style."

Carl looked down at it. "I found it - here." he said, "I think it was going to be my Christmas present. Wearing it - something Ryan chose - something he touched - it makes me feel connected to him, somehow."

It hadn't occurred to Rachel to ask questions about the shirt. She felt vaguely ashamed of herself, as though she had been insensitive.

"Hot chocolate or coffee?" asked Carl.

"Hot chocolate, please." said Paulina.

"Same for me." said Frankie,.

"And me." said Rachel.

"Hot chocolate all around, then." Carl made it the old-fashioned way, with milk, although he did microwave it. "Wonderful invention, the microwave." he said, dropping marshmallows into the hot drinks, and opening a bag of cookies.

"Well, we should hit the road," said Frankie, after they had finished the drinks. "C'mon Marcello. Let's get you back into that snowsuit."

"Come back soon." Carl said, "You've always welcome."

"We will - OH!" She got her Twilight Zone look. "Something is going to happen."

"Nothing too bad, I hope."

"You need to beware of - of - it's something to do with Grant Harrison."

"There needs no ghost, come from the grave, to tell us this." said Carl. "But I thank you for the warning."

Just then the front door opened, and two snowmen tottered in..

"You lads go back outside and brush most of that snow off yourselves and onto the porch." said Carl. "I don't want you melting all over the rug."

As the boys obeyed, Paulina looked out the window. "Wow! It's really coming down out there."

"Yes, we really had better go, before it gets worse." said Frankie.

As they were getting their coats, the boys came back inside. "You're leaving? Won't you stay for supper, Grandma?" said Steven.

"It's Pizza Night!" said Kirkland.

Carl looked embarassed. "I give them healthy, well-balanced meals six nights of the week," he said, "but on Saturday nights, I let them have what they like."

"Hey, even God was entitled to a night off!" said Rachel. "Well, I guess I can stay a while."

****

"That was good!" Rachel said later, "I don't think I've had Greek Pizza before."

"Pizza is capable of infinite variations on the theme of sauce, cheese and toppings." said Carl.

"As long as the crust isn't soggy." said Steven.

"It really is snowing very hard." Carl said, "Perhaps you should spend the night here."

Snow was falling so thickly that Rachel could barely see the streetlight.

"Thank you but - no, I can't. I'll drive carefully."

"Call us as soon as you get home, so we shan't have to picture you stuck in a snowbank." said Carl, as he helped her on with her coat.

"Don't worry about me."

"Can't help it." said Carl.

****

Early next morning:

"It was the maid who found him." the building manager told Gary Sinclair."I suppose you'll want to talk to her. She's in my office."

Gary looked down at the corpse spawled on the carpet; he had been shot twice, at close range; one bullet in the chest, and the other in the head.

"Looks like somebody wanted to be sure he was dead." he muttered.

"His name is - "

"Grant Harrison." said Gary.

****

Joe Carlino was the detective in charge.

"At least we won't have any shortage of suspects." he said, "It's not a question of who wanted Harrison dead, but of who didn't."

"Joe!" said Gary, "The lady across the hall saw somebody entering this suite last night. Mrs Cavendish - Detective Carlino."

"You saw somebody, Ma'am?"

"Yes!" she said, "I'd been visiting my sister, and I got home a few minutes after eleven. As I got off the elevator, I saw a man opening the door of Mr Harrison's suite."

"What, you mean he had a key?"

"All the maintenance staff have passkeys."

"He was a maintenance man?"

"Yes. At least, I thought he was." said Mrs Cavendish, "He wore a dark blue coverall, the way they do, and he opened the door by himself, so -"

"If he was opening the door, he had his back to you." Joe pointed out, "Did you see his face?"

"No, but he shouldn't be hard to find." she said, "There can't be that many men in Bay City with such a long grey ponytail!"