Fire in the Vineyard

by Christa Polkinhorn

  A door opened at his parents’ house next to his. He saw the silhouette of someone standing on the patio, then heard a cough. It was his father. Matthew stepped back into the shadow of the overhanging roof of his home. He didn’t want to talk to anyone right then, least of all to his father.

  On top of feeling like a failure at his job, he now felt like the biggest idiot. Getting a girl pregnant with all the birth control methods available, who had heard of such a thing? And it had to happen to him. Just another reason for his father to doubt him and his abilities.

  Matthew massaged his throbbing forehead. “Calm down,” he murmured. After all, it wasn’t certain yet that he was the father. It didn’t make sense. Would Marcia consider an abortion? He doubted it; she came from a good Catholic family. If it was true, if it was in fact his child, he would just have to deal with it, one way or another. Tears flooded his eyes.

  “Please, God, help,” he whispered. “What am I going to do?”

  Chapter 11

  “Matt, my office, please.” Robert hollered across the hallway.

  “What now?” he heard Matthew grumble. His son had been in a bad mood all day, blowing up at one of the workers, which was unusual. If Matt did blow up occasionally, it was at him, but he’d always treated members of the staff kindly.

  “What’s bugging you?” Robert asked as Matthew approached him with a gloomy face.

  Matthew waved his hand dismissively. “Nothing. Just tired. Didn’t sleep well last night.”

  “It’s not going to take long,” Robert said. “Where is Romero? Oh, here he is. Come on in.”

  Romero stepped into the office and gave Robert and Matthew a friendly smile.

  “Why don’t you guys sit down?” Robert motioned at the chairs. “I know it’s late, but this is kind of important.”

  “What’s the matter?” Matthew asked. He rubbed his eyes and suppressed a yawn.

  “One of the workers alerted me to the fact that bottles of the Cabernet seem to be missing. Do you guys know anything about it?”

  Romero and Matthew looked at each other.

  “No,” Matthew said.

  Romero’s facial expression darkened. He shook his head.

  Robert glanced at a piece of paper on his desk. “He pulled some of the bottles and noticed that there seemed to be fewer boxes. He alerted Ken. Ken checked the paperwork and the inventory, and it looks like sixty bottles are missing.”

  “Gee, that’s … odd.” Matthew scratched his dark curly hair. “Could it be that they were misplaced? Remember we recently moved bottles to the new storage facility?”

  Robert shrugged. “It’s possible. I’m not alarmed yet. Anyway, what I would like you to do is search the property while I’m gone, and also double-check if any of the other varietals are missing.”

  “Where are you going again?” Matthew snapped.

  Robert glared at him. He was getting tired of his son’s moods. “What the fuck is wrong with you? I’m going to Chicago to visit some of our best clients. It’s called customer support, in case you forgot. It’s something you need to learn, too, if you want to go on selling wine. Next time, you come along.”

  Matthew’s face turned dark red. “I apologize. Don’t mind me. I got up on the wrong side of bed this morning.”

  “All right. Apology accepted. So, you guys are clear about what to do?”

  “Yes,” Romero said. “I’ll go and check again. The bottles must be somewhere. I know I checked the inventory of the Cabs before I went on vacation, because I took care of the five hundred for the Marriott Hotel. At that time, all the bottles were there.”

  “Then they must have been moved or misplaced while you were away,” Robert said to Romero. He knew that the manager had taken time off to take his sick daughter to a new clinic.

  Romero nodded.

  “How is Nora?” Robert asked.

  Romero shrugged. “Not bad. The new treatment seems to help.”

  “Good,” Robert said. “Keep me up to date and let me know if you need help.”

  “Thanks,” Romero said in a low voice.

  “What if we don’t find the bottles?” Matthew asked.

  “Well, there are several possibilities,” Robert said. “Maybe there is some mistake in the paperwork, although I doubt it. Ken is a very meticulous accountant.” He paused. “Or—and I don’t want to believe this—somebody stole the wine.”

  “Jesus, you don’t think …?” Matthew stared at him. “One of the employees?”

  “I don’t want to believe anything right now. Too early. Keep it quiet for the time being. I don’t want to alert anyone. But do sporadic checks from now on. Write down anything unusual? Okay?”

  Romero cleared his throat. “I’ll definitely keep an eye open.”

  “Me, too, of course,” Matthew said.

  “Okay, that’s it for the time being,” Robert said. “Don’t worry. I still think the wine has been misplaced.”

  Romero and Matthew stood up and walked toward the door. Robert thought about having a talk with Matthew, but his son was gone too fast. Instead, he turned to his manager.

  “Romero?” Romero turned around and Robert motioned him to close the door and sit down again. Robert faced his friend and long-time employee. “As I said, I still hope the bottles will be found. But if not … and I hate to think about them being stolen, but you never know.” He hesitated. “Just between you and me, can you think of anybody … you’ve known most of the people here for a long time, my family and the long-time employees. Can you think of anybody who’d steal wine?”

  “Your family? You couldn’t possibly think they would steal wine?”

  “No, probably not.” Robert sighed. “You know what’s wrong with Matt? Why is he in such a crappy mood?”

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know.” Romero looked at him puzzled.

  Why am I asking my manager what’s wrong with my son? “Never mind. What about the employees? Do you think any of them would be capable of stealing wine?”

  “None of the old-timers. The newer ones … I don’t know them well enough.”

  “What about Adam? You know, the kid who works here for the summer?”

  “He seems like a nice person. I wouldn’t think… Look, I really don’t know.”

  Robert sensed he was making his manager very uncomfortable. Romero wouldn’t want to accuse anybody without just cause. “I’m sorry,” Robert said. “I shouldn’t even ask you this. Let’s forget it. Just keep your eyes open.”

  “Certainly,” Romero said quietly and glanced at his watch.

  “Sorry to keep you. It’s much too late. Juanita is going to wonder what happened to you.”

  Romero gave a quick smile. “She isn’t home. She and Nora went to visit her family.”

  “Oh, I see. Right. Well, Janice is out as well. So what are you doing for dinner? Wanna go and grab a bite?”

  “Sorry, I can’t tonight. Some other time perhaps?”

  Robert nodded. “Okay. Good. See you after I get back from Chicago.”

  He didn’t let on that he was disappointed. Romero and he had been friends for many years and had quite often gone out for dinner or drinks after work. This year, however, Romero had turned down almost every suggestion they do something together as friends, saying that he had other plans or was busy at home. Robert wondered if he had said or done anything to offend Romero, which would explain the increasing distance. He couldn’t think of anything and their working relationship had always been cordial and didn’t seem to have changed. Perhaps he read too much into Romero’s behavior toward him. He knew that Romero was worried about his family and his daughter. He seemed to have aged and didn’t look good. Robert decided to have a talk with him once he returned. There must be something Robert could do to help them.

  He got up and stood next to the window, gazing at the large stretches of vineyards along the hills below the house. As peaceful and calm as the scenery looked, Robert couldn't help but feel uneasy, as if something dar
k was hiding underneath the veneer of beauty.

  He hated the nagging suspicion that what happened on the estate wasn’t simply a misplacement, that the wine bottles were stolen. But what was the purpose? Drinking the wine? More likely, selling it. The sale of stolen wine was a crime, plain and simple.

  And there was the problem with Matthew. Their relationship seemed to be deteriorating. Matt and he had occasionally butted heads before. They were too similar, both strong-willed. A strong will wasn’t a bad character trait in the business. His son, however, was resisting him all the time. After all, Robert was the one with the experience. Matt was a newbie. He was supposed to learn from his father rather than work against him. Had it been a mistake to take him into the business?

  Robert shook his head, grabbed some papers he wanted to take with him and shoved them into his briefcase. Time to go home and pack.

  Chapter 12

  “I’ll get it,” Julietta called when she heard a knock on the door. Sofia was in the nursery getting little Henry up after his afternoon nap. Julietta was surprised to see Robert standing outside. She invited him in, and he followed her into the living room.

  “Would you like something to drink?” she asked him. “Coffee? We also have some homemade lemonade.”

  “No, thank you. I just wanted to ask you a few questions.” He sounded serious, even worried.

  “Okay. Go ahead,” Julietta sat on the couch and pointed at an easy chair.

  Robert, however, remained standing. He shoved his hands into the front pockets of his jeans and glanced around the living room, then cleared his throat. “How well do you know Adam Winter? Are you two dating?”

  Julietta was puzzled, not so much by Robert’s question but by the curt, almost hostile tone. “Yes, we go out together. Why?”

  “Well, I don’t want to worry you. Adam looks like a nice guy.” Robert gave a quick smile and continued in a friendlier tone. “I’m just a little concerned because his uncle is a criminal. George Winter worked for the government and took bribes from vintners and winemakers in exchange for permits. A friend of mine and I found out about it and got him fired. As Adam told us, his uncle gave the family some wine from our estate. I cannot imagine him buying wine from us. We’re not exactly friends. So if he didn’t buy it, where did he get the wine? As you know bottles of Cabernet Sauvignon disappeared from our estate.”

  “I heard about the wine disappearing. But what do you mean, Uncle Robert?” Julietta asked. “You think Adam’s uncle stole the wine?”

  “Not he himself. I’m sure we’d have seen him, had he been on the estate. But perhaps someone he knew.”

  “You mean … Adam?” Julietta was stunned. “There is no way … I don’t think he even knows where the wine is stored.”

  “Didn’t you show him the storage facility when you gave him the tour initially?” Robert asked.

  Julietta hesitated. “Yes, I did show him the building, but we didn’t go inside … wait, that’s not true. Ken went inside, checking something, so we took a peek. But Adam didn’t give any indication he was investigating the wine or anything like that.” Julietta’s heart beat faster. She felt she was betraying Adam, although she was just being honest.

  “Still, he knows where the wine is kept,” Robert said. “The keys to the storage facility are on a hook in Ken’s office where Adam works. He could easily take the keys and wait until after work or go there at night and remove a few bottles of wine at a time.”

  “Wouldn’t somebody notice that the keys are missing?” Julietta asked.

  “Not necessarily. Employees take them all the time when they need to fill an order,” Robert said.

  “That means anybody else could’ve taken the keys,” Julietta said. “Not just Adam.”

  “True, and I’m not accusing him. I’m just concerned because of his background and connection to his uncle. It’s just a strange coincidence that Adam asked you for a job at the winery when he realized you were related to me.” He held up his hands, when Julietta began to protest.

  “Look, I’m not saying Adam did anything wrong. I’m just a little uneasy, that’s all. And I don’t want you to get hurt,” Robert added.

  “Adam doesn’t even like his uncle,” Julietta said.

  Robert nodded. “Yes, maybe I’m just being paranoid with all the stuff that’s been going on lately, the misplaced or, possibly, stolen wine. Just be vigilant. I still hope we’ll find the wine eventually.” He smiled and turned toward Sofia, who had stepped into the living room, carrying little Henry.

  “Hey, little man,” Robert greeted Henry. He took him into his arms and tickled his chin. The baby, all excited, kicked with his short legs and gave a little shriek.

  “I heard what you said about Adam,” Sofia told Robert. “Do you really think he has something to do with the disappearing wine?”

  Robert bounced Henry gently on his hip. “As I said, I don’t know. I just wanted to let Julietta know about George Winter.” He turned to Julietta. “Has Adam ever talked about his uncle?”

  Julietta shook her head. “He just told me that his uncle gave them a bottle of wine as a present for his father’s birthday, you know the same thing he told you in the tasting room. Since then we haven’t talked about him. I don’t think the two families, I mean his uncle and Adam’s family, are close at all.”

  Robert nodded. “Just be careful. If you notice anything suspicious, I hope you’ll let me know.”

  “Of course, why would I hide it from you?” Julietta was getting upset that Robert might think she would keep something important from him.

  In the meantime, little Henry wanted attention. He wiggled in Robert’s arms, rubbed his eyes, and started to cry.

  “He’s hungry. I’m going to feed him,” Sofia said.

  Robert handed her the baby and gently touched the little boy’s cheek. Henry looked at him with big, tear-filled eyes, then gave a quick smile and started to cry again.

  “See you later, Robert,” Sofia said. She carried the child back to the nursery.

  After Robert had left, Julietta went into the nursery and watched as Sofia fed the baby. Robert’s suspicions saddened her. “I just don’t believe Adam has anything to do with it. Robert is wrong. He makes me feel like he blames me for something.”

  “I don’t think he blames you,” Sofia said. “I think he’s worried. And he can be abrupt sometimes.”

  Julietta nodded. “It just makes me feel unhappy. I really like Adam. I can’t imagine him having an ulterior motive when he asked me for a job at the estate. He seems so open and honest.”

  “But you haven’t known him that long yet.”

  “No, but don’t you think I’d notice if he just pretended to like me?”

  “I’m sure, you’re right,” Sofia said.

  Julietta stared at her. “You don’t think Robert is right … or do you?”

  “No … I don’t know Adam very well, but he seems like a nice guy.” Sofia touched Julietta’s arm. “But I don’t want you to get hurt either. Don’t rush into a close relationship. Take it slow.”

  “You don’t sound very encouraging,” Julietta said sadly. “Well, classes are going to start soon again. We’ll both be busy next quarter, and Adam is going to do an internship out of town. So we probably won’t see that much of each other next term.”

  “Well, I really hope things work out with Adam and you. I like him.”

  “Yeah, I do, too. But all this talk about the stolen or misplaced wine and his criminal uncle is not very encouraging. I hope they’ll find the wine or who took it fast.”

  “I hope so, too,” Sofia said. “I hate when something like this happens. It makes everybody suspicious and really pollutes the atmosphere.”

  Chapter 13

  “Coming, coming, little troublemaker.” Nicholas groaned, as he got up. Two-month old Henry had started to cry at the crack of dawn, demanding breakfast.

  Sofia rolled over and yawned, then sat up in bed and glanced out the window. The earl
y daylight covered the landscape with a purplish hue. A slight morning breeze shook the top of the wisteria vine in front of the house. She pulled off her T-shirt and got ready to breastfeed their baby. For the past couple of weeks, Henry had slept through the night occasionally, which gave the parents a short time of peace. He was, however, up early in the mornings.

  “Our own human alarm clock,” Nicholas called him. He went to pick up the little boy and put him on the bed next to Sofia, who proceeded to feed him. Yawning loudly, Nicholas went to shower and dress.

  Sofia enjoyed this first relaxing feeding time. She kissed Henry, who sucked and grunted. The scent of freshly brewed coffee mingling with the sweet baby smell brought a smile to Sofia’s face.

  A while later, Nicholas opened the door and brought in a cup, putting it on the nightstand next to Sofia. He picked up Henry who had almost fallen asleep and carried him around to burp him. After changing his diaper, he brought him back and put him next to Sofia again. He kissed them both.

  “Thanks, honey, you’re such a great daddy.” Sofia took a sip of coffee, enjoying the invigorating, slightly bitter taste.

  Nicholas grinned. “Okay, you two lazy bums, Daddy is off to work.”

  “I’ll join you later,” Sofia called after him. Nicholas left for his early morning walk through the vineyards.

  With Henry sleeping again, Sofia allowed herself to doze for ten more minutes. Then she got up, put the little boy back into his crib, and went to take a shower. She wanted to join Nicholas and Martin in the vineyards. As much as she enjoyed her new role of mother, she didn’t want to give up her work at the winery. Besides, they needed the money, having made a somewhat rash decision to buy a new house. The mortgage turned out to be more of a burden than they had anticipated. Fortunately, Sofia still had her freelance writing job for a culinary magazine that brought in some extra cash.

  Nicholas had initially suggested they hire a nanny part-time, but the whole family had protested that it wasn’t necessary, that enough people would help take care of little Henry, the newest member of the Segantino clan. Janice and Maria and even Matthew and Martin volunteered. During vacation and on weekends, Julietta helped out and so did Nadia, Nicholas and Matthew’s younger sister, when she was home from UC Davis. Even her aunt, Emma, her father’s sister who lived in Santa Monica, came up and spent a few days, spoiling her great-nephew.