"Oh, I'd ditch any girlfriend if you gave me a nod." Hollis laughed. "My heart's quite set on you."
"If I wasn't 20 years older than you, I'd consider it." Mrs. Lahey smiled. "Anyway, I'm here about this wretched dog."
"I gathered. But do you think you could possibly talk to Jamie later?" Hollis asked. "Craig and I only have an hour, and we've got some urgent business to discuss."
"About the factory, no doubt," Mrs. Lahey said. "Well, I'll be off, but I'm warning you, Jamie, next time that dog enters my garden, I'll shoot him myself!"
Jamie's face turned red and she was about to say something harsh, when Craig skilfully pulled her inside the house.
"Oh, that woman drives me nuts!" Jamie exclaimed. "I'll end up murdering her one day, Craig."
*****
Chapter 3
After putting Jenny down for her afternoon nap, Craig returned to the dining room, where Jamie was serving Hollis and Bluebell coffee and cookies.
"Well, nice to see Mrs. Lahey's so fond of you." Hollis gave Jamie a shark-like grin.
Jamie colored. "She simply hates me and I can't understand why."
"Oh, it isn't you specifically," Hollis said. "Mrs. Lahey hates everyone with equal measure."
"She doesn't hate you," Jamie said. "In fact, she's downright charmed by you."
"I guess sharks attract sharks," Craig said with a small lift of his lip. That was the closest he'd come to a smile, Bluebell soon found out. Craig Leimbach was an old fashioned man – stern and silent, focussed on working rather than talking. He was fiddling around with Jamie's panda hat, and it looked tiny in his huge hands. The giant of a man seemed almost nervous and Bluebell wondered why.
"So what's the occasion for this visit?" Jamie asked. "What brings you here, Hollis?"
Hollis stretched, gulped down the last of his coffee, and got down to business. "The factory, Jamie," he said. "I've talked to Craig, I've shown him the figures and he agrees with me – you need to sell it before you bankrupt yourself."
Jamie gave Craig a sideways look and he shook his head. "Now Hollis," Craig said. "I've said no such thing. It's Jamie's business, as far as I am concerned, and she needs to decide whether she wants to sell or not."
"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Jamie said, and Bluebell couldn't quite be sure if there was a note of sarcasm in her voice.
Hollis pressed Craig. "But you still agree with me, that if you were in her place, you'd sell."
Craig shrugged. "There are a lot of things I might or might not do, but like I said, Jamie's the boss here. We were doing far worse before, and she's really bought us to new heights."
"Well, Jamie, I've asked you before, and I'll ask you again." Hollis slid a piece of paper across the table. "That's my final offer. Think about what that money could mean to you two. Jack could go off to college debt free, you could buy a boat or a second house."
Jamie took a look at the paper, and Bluebell saw temptation snake its way across her face. It was replaced by determination seconds later, as Jamie shook her head. "No," she said. "Sorry Hollis. I know you really wanted to take over the factory, but I'm just not interested. As far as I'm concerned, the factory is part of the heritage of this town, and I'd like to be the one who makes it a success again."
"You're thinking emotionally, not logically," Hollis said. "This is the third year you've been in the red."
"Only because we've had some weird equipment malfunctions," Jamie said. "If it wasn't for that, we'd be making profits."
"Oh, sure, but what about Boyd?" Hollis asked. "His lawsuit is still pending, isn't it? If he wins, you'd be making losses indefinitely."
Jamie frowned. "Let's not talk about Boyd. He's the last person I want to think about right now."
"Jamie, it's all very well to be idealistic, but in business, you have to be practical," Hollis said. "I was sentimental about a lot of properties I bought initially. I didn't even realize I was being sentimental. I just thought I was doing the "right" thing. Turns out, I never started seeing money until I stopped focussing on right and wrong, and started focussing on cold hard cash."
"I'm sure your method works for you," Jamie said, still carefully polite. "But I'm not selling my factory."
"You have one third ownership with Craig and his cousin Charlie," Hollis pointed out. "Charlie's definitely willing to sell, so it's just you and Craig. Think about it, Craig said he could use the money, you should take his wishes into account too."
Jamie's face turned red yet again as anger clouded her features. "Craig can tell me his wishes himself, thank you very much."
"I'm fine," Craig said simultaneously. "Come on, Hollis, I told you she's the boss."
"Oh, I can see that," Hollis said, a sneer unfolding across his face. "Fine. But I can't promise you won't regret it, Jamie."
Jamie smiled at him, but Bluebell's eyes narrowed. Was that a threat? She wondered. Was Hollis promising retribution?
"I'll show you to the door," Jamie said. "I've got to get going anyway. I promised the Arts Council I'd help with the turnip carving. Jenny was looking forward to doing some herself and I need to show Bluebell around town too."
"We were never properly introduced." Hollis turned his smile onto Bluebell. "You a permanent fixture here, Mrs Bluebell?"
"Ms," Bluebell corrected. "I'm just passing through."
Hollis' eyes brightened as he took in the lack of a wedding ring on her finger. "Fantastic," he said, looking back up at her. "I wonder if I could interest you in dinner tonight? I know a very good restaurant here."
"Oh, I'm fine, thanks." Bluebell smiled dismissively. "I'll be spending time with Jamie."
"Sure?" Hollis held her eyes for a long moment, as she nodded. "All right, I'll be off. Why don't both you and Jamie think over my offers. They're still open… for now."
Bluebell watched as Jamie led Hollis to the door. Craig sat back down, and grabbed two cookies from the plate in front of him. "That man is a menace sometimes," he muttered.
"I thought you're friends?" Bluebell asked.
"We are, which is why it's more difficult on me when he's a menace," Craig said. "Anyway, Jamie tells me you're planning to stay here until the Turnip festival? Are you planning to leave town on the 14th then?"
"Er... yes," Bluebell said. "I'm not exactly sure."
"Oh." A rather cold look came into Craig's eyes as he mulled over the prospect that Bluebell might be an indefinite visitor. Bluebell quickly reassured him, "But I wouldn't want to trouble you or Jamie. I really hope I'm not inconveniencing you by staying over."
"Oh no, it's our pleasure," Craig said. His voice, however, wasn't the least bit warm as he said it. Bluebell's shoulders sank a bit as she considered that she was an unwanted guest. But she had to stay. She had to stay in town until she was sure that no one was planning to harm Jamie.
*****
Chapter 4
Jamie and Bluebell were soon on their way to the turnip carving event. Jenny was still napping at home while her father watched her.
"Craig seems like a... er, nice guy," Bluebell commented, trying to make conversation with Jamie, who seemed lost in thought.
"Hmm?" Jamie blinked, "Oh yes. Craig. Absolutely. Really nice."
Bluebell bit her lip. Clearly, Jamie was too busy thinking about Hollis' offer to reply.
"Do you think I should sell?" Jamie suddenly asked.
"Only if you want to," Bluebell said. "Like Craig said, you're the boss."
"He says that," Jamie said. "But sometimes... I wonder if he really means it. I think he'd like to sell. I think he'd be very happy with the extra money. It could pay off Jack's college loans."
"Does Jack even want to go to college?" Bluebell asked. "He seemed determined not to."
"He doesn't have a choice," Jamie said firmly. "He's a kid, and he'll listen to his parents."
"Right," Bluebell said.
"It really hurts when he calls me a stepmom, you know," Jamie said. "I've been married to Craig a long time
, and I've seen Jack grow into—" She slammed the brakes on the car suddenly, and screeched to a halt, as a man darted to the middle of the road. The car stopped just inches from him, but he stood there with a smile on his face.
"Are you crazy?" Jamie stuck her head out of the window. "You could have been killed!" Then, as if she recognized him, she muttered something that Bluebell didn't catch under her breath.
Walking unsteadily, the man came forward and banged on the hood of the car, making a nasty dent in it. He was unshaven, and had on a stained sweatshirt. His grey eyes looked clouded, as though he'd been drinking. The scariest thing was that he was smiling right at Jamie, despite what had just happened.
"Jamie, you should get out of here right now!" Bluebell exclaimed, feeling scared. "Whoever that man is—"
"It's Boyd." She sighed. "An ex-employee." She rolled up her window hastily as he came around towards her side of the car. He motioned for her to roll down the window, but Jamie accelerated instead, leaving him shaking a fist and yelling at her.
"That was terrifying!" Bluebell said. "Jamie, has he acted this way before?"
"Oh, he made a few threats, sent me some rather sick messages, actually. But Craig spoke to him, and I thought everything was taken care of."
Bluebell shook her head. "Doesn't seem to have been taken care of. I think you should contact the police."
"I would..." Jamie's mouth twisted in a wry smile. "Except that Boyd is the sheriff's younger brother. Henry goes easy on him because of it."
Bluebell's eyes flashed. "Sounds like your town could use a better sheriff!"
"Oh no, Henry's great," Jamie said hastily. "He can't really help it, can he? Every family has a black sheep. I understand his side of it too..."
"So you're just going to let…" Bluebell waved. "…all that go unreported? Guys like that just escalate violence. They have to be nipped in the bud."
Jamie sighed. "I suppose I feel a little guilty. I ruined his life once, I don't want to ruin it again."
"Ruined his life? How?"
"He used to work at the factory," Jamie said. "He'd been working there for ten years, right after he dropped out of high school. When I became his new boss, he resented it. Well, I cut him some slack for a bit, but after a while, he was far too incompetent for me to ignore. I decided to finally fire him when he left the production line unmanned to go for a drink, and wreaked havoc."
"So you very justifiably fired him," Bluebell said.
"Yes, well... I feel bad about it. He was working at the factory for 10 years before I came along. Maybe I should have given him another chance. But he made a huge scene in front of everybody."
"What happened?" Bluebell asked.
"He came in a couple of days later, half-mad, ranting and raving. He barged into the work area and began yelling at me." Jamie shook her head as she remembered. "He called me a lot of names, threatened to have the police on us, said stuff like, ‘It's illegal to fire me just because you're biased!’”
"But you weren't biased," Bluebell said. "He's clearly just a madman."
"Well, he is definitely a little weird. But after that, he hired a lawyer and is attempting to sue us for illegally firing him. Not that I think he has a chance of winning. In the meantime, instead of finding a job, he's gone around drinking more and more, and telling everybody who listens that I ruined his life."
"And part of you believes it!" Bluebell was outraged. "Jamie, you did the right thing, no doubt about it. Anyone who says otherwise is fooling themselves."
"Yes, but firing someone is never pleasant, is it? I'm the direct cause of his misery."
"No. He's the direct cause of his own misery, in this case," Bluebell said. "You aren't some corporate bigwig firing left and right to cut costs. You did the right thing."
"Thanks. But let's not talk about it anymore. I'm getting a headache." Jamie pulled into the parking lot.
"I'm going to insist you take this to the sheriff," Bluebell said. "He can't be allowed to—"
"Maybe after the turnip carving," Jamie said. Then, trying to change the topic, she murmured, "Today must just be a big day for drama. Look at that."
Bluebell looked up to see a huge man who rather resembled Craig - he was just as tall and broad, but where Craig had dark hair and light eyes, this man was blonde with topaz eyes, and a slightly hooked nose. He was leaning on the door of a red convertible, while a girl poked a finger into his chest and yelled at him.
"You think you're such a big man?" she was shouting."You have no idea what I can do!"
"You know them?" Bluebell asked.
"Charlie Leimbach. He's Craig's cousin brother. I told you about him, remember? He owns 1/3rd of our factory," Jamie said. "I'm not very fond of him. Right now, he's in the process of a messy divorce with his wife."
"Ah, so that's the girl who's yelling at him." Bluebell nodded.
"Yep. Tilly Leimbach, well, soon to be ex-Leimbach." Jamie shook her head. "They were the glamor couple of the town just a few months ago. I don't know what happened. Charlie just upped and decided to divorce her one day. Rumor has it that he found another woman. Tilly's furious about it."
"Hmm. Clearly!" Bluebell smiled. "Seems like a lot's going on in your little town. It looked so picturesque on the surface."
"Ah well, you know how it is," Jamie said. "The only way to really get to know a place is to experience its very depths. I've always thought that no matter how they mingle, these nomads who travel the world can't ever get to know a place the way someone who's lived in one town for twenty years can. Sure, it may get boring once in a while, but if you're looking closely, even the most boring of small towns always has something going on under the surface."
Bluebell laughed. "I think I can testify to that," she said. "All too well."
"Well, you need to tell me what you mean." Jamie smiled. "And I promise you, the town isn't without its share of love and kindness. You'll see, the ladies at the turnip carving will be really sweet."
"So do you hollow out the turnips?" Bluebell asked. "What do you do with them after?"
"Oh, we've got a recipe swap going," Jamie said. "You'll see. Dinner will have turnips one way or another for the next two weeks in every house here! Pickled turnips, stir-fried, baked, mixed with salad greens... it's a surprisingly versatile vegetable."
"Just like you, then." Bluebell laughed.
Turnip carving was a lot of fun. Bluebell had only ever carved pumpkins before, and these were easier because of their smaller size. The ladies who were organizing the turnip carving session had almost all brought their kids along, and the kids sat cross-legged on the floor, watched over by their moms as they carved funny faces, spirals and geometric shapes onto the hollowed out turnips. Bluebell was introduced to all of Jamie's friends, who quickly took to her, and included her in their friendly banter.
By the time they left, as Jamie had intended, Bluebell was so tired that she forgot about her insistence that Boyd be reported to the police. They went back to Jamie's house just as the sun had begun to set, and Bluebell helped her old friend make dinner.
After a hearty dinner of chopped steak, green beans and mashed turnips, Bluebell waved goodnight to Craig and Jamie. As she slept that night, Bluebell wondered if she'd been wrong. Perhaps the visions of the town she'd had in her dreams were just a fluke. With the one exception of Boyd, no one else in town seemed capable of murder. Even Boyd, according to Jamie, was just a loser who occasionally acted up, not a serious cause for worry. As for the rest of the town, they were all friendly, nice folk. The ladies at the carving event had all invited Bluebell to drop by for dinner, and had seemed very sincere in their invitations. With a yawn, Bluebell's eyes drooped and then closed.
Perhaps she was wrong. There would be no murder this time. For once, she'd escape the shadow of death that always followed her about.
At least, she hoped she would.
*****
Chapter 5
On the morning of the murder, Bluebell woke up fe
eling exceptionally cheerful. She'd stayed three days in Richtersdale by now, and was quite sure that her worrying over her dreams had all just been silly. The trees around her bloomed orange, though many a branch was bare by now. Dogs yapped merrily as they were walked by their masters, and children rode cycles on the sidewalk, or skated by. Downtown was all chaotic, with people setting up food stalls and decorating each building with turnip lanterns. They weren't lit yet, as it was broad daylight, but even then, the purple lanterns looked extremely pretty as they stood lining each windowsill and door entrance. There was a gigantic banner hung near the town hall, and its gardens had lanterns arranged to create the face of the town founder, Johann Leimbach. The schoolhouse gardens crawled with elementary school kids and strict teachers, all arranging lanterns around it.
In the open field that lay at the very end of main street, men were rolling in numerous tarpaulins mounted on wooden pallets with wheels at the bottom. Bluebell spent some time examining these, though she was baffled as to their function. Then, as the tarpaulins were raised, she saw that they acted as a canvas. Each tarpaulin had a sketch on it in black paint, and little hooks all along the outline, to which hundreds of carved turnips would be attached. When lit up, the sculptures would become flaming amazements.
Jamie had hardly any time to talk to Bluebell, as she was busy all day, rushing from one place to another. Occasionally, Bluebell saw her panda hat as it bobbed along from one spot to another.
"It doesn't have to be perfect, it just has to be good," Jamie was saying to someone as they talked. She was gesticulating at a display above a stall that was only half-done, while the owner shook his head and put his hands on his hips.
Bluebell opted to have a variety of snacks from the various food stalls instead of sitting down to a proper lunch. She had a plate of momos from the Tibetan stall, which were delicious beef and onion dumplings served with a rather too spicy chilly sauce. Following this, she found herself drawn into conversation with a few women she'd previously met, who insisted she try some of their home made apple crumble.
Murder At The Festival: A Witch Cozy Mystery (A Bluebell Knopps Witch Cozy Mystery Book 5) Page 2
