by Melinda Metz
Peggy gave Nate a quick hug as she entered the bungalow. “I’m so sorry about my daughter,” she told him.
“I completely understand how she feels,” Nate answered. “If you were my mom and I heard about what had been happening around here, I’d be worried for you. I don’t know if I’d want you staying here.”
“But it wouldn’t be your choice,” Peggy said. “And it isn’t my daughter’s.”
“You’re staying then?” Gib asked.
“Of course I’m staying. This is where my friends are. That’s the most important thing in the world to me.” Peggy and Janet took seats in the dining room chairs Nate had moved into the living room.
“My sister’s pulling up. We should be able to get started in a minute.” Nate realized her car hadn’t been running rough the way it had last time he’d seen her drive it. He’d been meaning to check the filters and take a look at the vacuum hose to see if it was loose or broken. She must have gotten it together and taken it in to Jiffy Lube.
“Car sounds good,” he commented when she rushed up to the porch.
“Dad took a look at it for me when I dropped off the kids. It was just a clogged filter.”
“I was going to do that.” Even though he’d nagged her to get it checked, he’d known she wouldn’t. It had been on his list of things to take care of. Maybe he should be grateful his father had given him one less thing to worry about, but he found himself feeling resentful. He shouldn’t be able to slip back into his mother’s and sister’s lives so easily.
When Nate finally shut the door, he found that there was an empty seat next to Briony, which made him unreasonably happy. “First of all, I want each of you to know how much I appreciate you being here,” he said as he sat down.
“Stuff it. Let’s get down to business,” Gib cut in.
Well, he’s back to his regular self, Nate thought. Rich and Peggy too. He wanted to do another check on everyone who’d gotten sick, but if the residents here were indicators, they should be doing great.
“I guess that means we’re up.” Max handed a cup of black coffee to Nate. Hope or LeeAnne must have told him that’s what he would want. “Hope and I came up with a plan that hits all the major social media platforms.”
“We set up a Buffer site, so we’ll be able to manage everything as efficiently as possible,” Hope added.
“I’ve been working on some limericks about The Gardens,” Rich announced.
“That’s something I’d like to get video of. Are you comfortable reciting them?” Ruby asked. That got laughs from everyone.
“Try to stop him,” Regina answered, her voice warm with affection.
“Video of any residents who are willing would be great,” Max said. “We’d want to get things like the Wii bowling league and the art class.”
“And just people hanging out, socializing. Oh, and people in the gardens, definitely. They’re so gorgeous.” Hope flashed a smile at Nate.
“They’re really special,” Briony agreed.
“We need to get some positive reviews up as fast as possible,” Max said. “If it’s okay with you, Nate, Hope and I would like to go door-to-door with a laptop and help people do reviews if they’re willing.”
“I don’t know. I don’t want anyone to feel pressured,” Nate answered.
“We could come up with a list of people we know would be willing,” Janet suggested. “We could approach them, and if they give us the okay we could bring the kids in.”
“I can help people go to sites and put up reviews, too,” Regina added.
“That granddaughter of Archie’s is around all the time. She’s going to find out what’s going on,” Gib said.
“She’s as hard to get rid of as a bedbug,” Amelia agreed.
“And even crazier,” Rich said.
“I wouldn’t call her crazy,” Nate protested.
“She was wild-eyed when she saw me wearing that locket,” Peggy said. “She looked like she wanted to rip it off my throat. I tried to explain that it just turned up in my room, but she wouldn’t hear it.”
“And there’s something off about the way she acts around her grandfather. She’s so touchy-feely.” Janet took a bite of her blackberry pie.
“What do you mean?” Nathalie asked.
“If you ever came around, you’d know.” There was a little edge to Gib’s voice, but Nathalie either didn’t notice it or was ignoring it.
“She just doesn’t act like most granddaughters, that’s all,” Janet explained. “And he calls her ‘honeybuns.’ ”
“ ‘Honeybun,’ he said,” Peggy corrected.
“That’s what he claimed, but I heard him say it again. It was definitely ‘honeybuns.’ And that is not normal,” Janet insisted.
“You sure it’s not just because you want him to be calling you ‘honeybuns’?” Rich asked.
“You men don’t like how much attention Archie gets. We all know that. But it’s because he’s so charming. If you were half as charming, maybe you’d get half the attention,” Janet snapped.
“Oh, I’ve seen Rich be charming, on occasion,” Regina said. Janet looked back and forth between her and Rich, eyebrows raised.
“I think we’re getting a little off track,” Nate said.
“I don’t know that that’s true,” Rich replied. “Eliza’s the ringleader. I don’t doubt she suggested people leave those negative reviews you got.”
“I wonder if we could get Archie to do a testimonial for The Gardens,” Hope said. “He’s always saying how happy he is here. That might make people think twice about what Eliza has to say.”
* * *
Mac opened his eyes and stretched. His tummy had been so full after the sardines that he’d needed a nap. He’d been missing way too many naps lately. But now it was time to get back to work. First, he wanted to get back that sparkly for Peggy.
It wasn’t hard to find the scent trail of the woman who had it. She was close. In moments, he reached the house he needed, and slipped through the convenient tear he’d made in the screen around the porch. He followed the sound of the blah-blahs coming from the man who didn’t like Mac.
The man most of the humans called Archie was walking back and forth across the room. If he had a tail, it would be twitching. But he didn’t deserve a tail. The woman, Eliza was her name, lay on the sofa, watching the man. Mac could see the sparkly around her neck. He’d never understand why so many human females seemed to enjoy wearing collars. But humans weren’t sensible. He’d realized that when he still had his kitten fluff.
“Would you sit down? You’re making me crazy with all that pacing.”
“You’d be pacing, too, if you had to sit in a wheelchair every time you went out the door. When am I going to be able to get out of this place?” Archie walked faster.
“I didn’t expect so many people to stand up for Nate at the meeting, not after the food poisoning. But we’re making progress. Just think about the payoff.”
Mac narrowed his eyes, allowing him to gauge the perfect distance for a leap-and-grab maneuver. He took three steps forward, then launched himself onto the arm of the sofa. The woman’s eyes widened in surprise as she discovered him poised above her. He didn’t give her time to move. He looped one paw under the sparkly’s chain, then with a whip-flip it was over her head.
He gave a hiss of irritation as his prize tangled in Eliza’s hair, but it was a minor problem. He grabbed the sparkly between his teeth and gave his head a hard jerk. Eliza cried out as it ripped free, taking a little hair with it.
“Grab him! He’s got my locket. We can’t let anyone see inside it!”
“Why did you keep wearing the damn thing after the last time?” Archie yelled, starting after Mac. Pointless. Mac was way too fast. He made his escape through the tear in the screen before Archie had a chance to get one finger on him. Mac zeroed in on Peggy’s scent and ran toward her with her present.
He heard Archie and Eliza coming after him. Good. A little entertainment. M
ac veered toward a flowering tree close to a house and leapt onto the lowest branch without slowing. From the tree, he jumped to the roof. He heard Archie and Eliza shouting as he made his way from roof to tree to roof, making a game of not letting his feet touch the ground. When he reached the house where he smelled Peggy, he went straight down the chimney. When he popped out into the room, he saw lots of his people, just the way he’d known he would. He’d smelled them too.
“Mac! How did you know to come—Oh, never mind,” Briony blah-blahed loudly.
Ruby, one of the first humans he’d taken charge of, laughed until Mac could smell tears coming from her eyes.
“You rascal. Come over here.” Gib clicked his tongue at Mac.
Mac ignored them all. He needed to complete his mission. He sauntered over to Peggy, raised up on his back legs, and lay the sparkly in her lap. Then he licked his paw and began to wash the soot off his face.
“I don’t believe this!” Max exclaimed.
“He’s truly an exceptional cat,” Briony said as she fished a tissue out of her purse and handed it to Ruby.
“Not the cat. Archie and Eliza! They’re running down the sidewalk!” Max told them.
Nate leapt up and rushed to the window. Briony and the rest of the group followed, clustering around him.
“How’s he running on that sprained ankle?” Gib asked.
It had to be more sabotage. That was the only explanation Nate could come up with for the two of them running over here in a panic.
“Do you think they heard about the meeting?” Regina asked.
“I’m going to find out. Everybody, wait here.” Nate didn’t want a crowd, not until he found out what was going on and decided what needed to be done. He hurried outside, but before he was halfway across the small front lawn, Archie’s knees buckled. Eliza tried to catch him, but he collapsed onto the pavement. She let out a shrill scream that seemed to go on forever.
Nate ran the last few feet and crouched down next to the elderly man, scanning him for signs of a head injury, a fracture, a stroke.
“Do you need us to call nine-one-one?” Briony called.
“Yes! Get them over here.” Usually he’d get The Gardens’ doctor to make an assessment, unless there was an obvious reason for an ambulance. But he didn’t want to take any chances with Archie.
“That’s not necessary,” Eliza said breathlessly. “It’s not necessary,” she repeated, this time loudly enough for Briony to hear.
Nate stared at her. She was so protective of her grandfather. He was surprised she hadn’t already called an ambulance herself. She was probably in shock, not thinking clearly.
“My ankle gave out. There’s no need for the meat wagon,” Archie protested.
His voice was strong. That was something. But Nate wanted to be absolutely sure Archie was okay. He looked over his shoulder at Briony. “Call!”
She nodded, her cell already in her hand.
Nate felt Archie begin to struggle to his feet. “Arch, no. Stay down until the paramedics get here.” He grabbed Archie by the shoulders, but Archie was surprisingly strong. He managed to shake Nate off and stand.
“Damn it, Archie. I told you not to try and get up.” Fear made Nate’s voice sharper than he intended.
“I’m fine,” Archie insisted.
“At least let’s get you inside where you can sit down.” Nate guided one of Archie’s arms around his neck and, keeping his pace slow, started helping Archie over to the house. “What happened?” he asked Eliza, who was helping support Archie’s other side.
“You saw. He just toppled. If he hadn’t hurt his ankle on that machine of yours, it never would have happened.” She glared at him.
“But why were you two running in the first place?” Nate asked.
“That’s not what’s important right now. I want to get my grandfather comfortable,” Eliza snapped. “Not that that’s even possible after what he’s been through.” Together she and Nate maneuvered Archie through the open door and into the living room. They eased him down onto the sofa.
Everyone formed a ragged circle around Archie. Nate didn’t have to remind them to give him air. They were all careful not to crowd him. “What can we do for you?” Janet asked, taking one step forward.
“How about some water?” Nathalie offered. She started toward the kitchen.
“I’ll get it!” Janet hurried off, and Nathalie returned to the group.
Nate caught a flash of movement in his peripheral vision, and a second later Mac soundlessly landed on the back of the sofa. “That cat!” Eliza shrieked. “That horrible cat!” She lurched toward Mac. He hissed, his ears pressed flat against his head.
Briony quickly positioned herself between Eliza and MacGyver. “I know you’re upset, but don’t take it out on Mac.”
“That cat stole my necklace! It was a present from Grandpa. He went chasing after that horrible animal to get it back, even though I begged him not to.” Eliza clasped her hands together, her knuckles whitening. “He could have had a heart attack. He could have broken a hip. Who knows what that fall did to his ankle.” Her voice got higher with every sentence.
“Eliza, why don’t you sit down?” Nate suggested. “You’ve had a—”
A cry from Briony interrupted him. “Mac! No! Don’t!” she yelped.
Too late. Mac had already jumped down onto Archie’s chest.
“Mac won’t hurt him. He likes—” Gib began.
“Get it off him!” Eliza shouted.
Briony and Nate both reached for Mac, but he slipped between their hands. One of his paws shot out and swiped across Archie’s head—taking a chunk of hair and skin with it. Archie let out a bellow.
“Oh, my god. Mac! What did you do?” Nate heard Briony exclaim, horror lacing her voice. He didn’t look at her. He couldn’t stop staring at Archie, his brain trying to process what he was seeing. There was no blood on Archie’s scalp. It was covered with . . . thick blond hair.
“What? What?” Nathalie said. She swallowed hard, but only managed another “what?” Nate knew how she felt. He looked down at Mac. The cat was batting something that sprouted splotchy white hair around the floor.
“Grandpa?” Eliza pressed her hands to her chest in a way that seemed especially theatrical to Nate. What was going on? He felt like he’d walked into the middle of a movie.
Briony took a deep breath, then gingerly picked up the thing Mac was playing with. She held it between two fingers and gave it a tentative shake. “It’s a . . . I think it’s a sort of a wig.”
“A bald cap. Well, partial bald cap, actually,” Ruby said. “Nice quality. Did you use a mold block?” she asked Archie. He blinked rapidly, but didn’t answer. It looked like he was trying to do some processing himself. “You must have. The edges were impressive,” Ruby continued. “And the makeup? Expert. I could get you a job on a movie tomorrow. Except that you’re obviously scum.”
Archie blinked a few more times. He was clearly having trouble assessing the situation too. Suddenly, he sprang to his feet. He took two long strides toward the door, then realized Caleb had positioned himself in front of it and stopped.
Nate had to admit he was really starting to like Caleb. He might even forgive the guy for having sex with Briony while the two of them were engaged.
“Lookin’ pretty spry there, Archie,” Rich commented. “I don’t know about you,” he said to Gib. “But it’s been years since I could move that fast.”
“My knees crack as loud as rifle fire if I try,” Gib answered.
“You’re a fake!” Janet’s face flushed as she glared at Archie.
“And he’s way too young for you, sweetheart,” Eliza told her.
“But you aren’t, are you, honeybuns?” Peggy asked. “You’re his girlfriend.”
How did this make any kind of sense? How would Archie get anything out of pretending to be an old man? Was he hiding from someone? The police?
No, Nate realized. Giving the appearance of an old man had g
iven Archie complete access to The Gardens. He was behind the sabotage. He’d been able to run on his injured ankle because his ankle wasn’t injured. He’d faked it and blamed it on Nate’s equipment. But why? Who was this guy really?
“I think it’s time to take a closer look at the present Mac brought you,” Nate told Peggy. At the sound of his name, Mac began to purr.
“I’m not sure I can open it.” Peggy turned the locket over in her fingers. “My arthritis and the tiny clasp don’t work together.”
“Here, let me.” Briony reached out her hand, and Peggy passed her the necklace.
Nathan shot a glance at Archie. He didn’t look like he was going to try and bulldoze his way past Caleb. He sat slumped on the couch, head in hands, defeated. Eliza now sat beside him, eyes hot as she watched Briony open the locket. She didn’t look defeated. She looked furious.
“What’s in it?” Gib asked, leaning forward.
“A picture of Eliza and one of Archie without his old-guy getup,” Briony answered.
“Hey, I know him!” Ruby exclaimed, looking over Briony’s shoulder. “It’s Kenneth ‘The Closer’ Archer.”
Archie groaned, but didn’t lift his head. “From the bus stop!” LeeAnne exclaimed, staring at him. “The ‘Everything I Touch Turns to Sold’ real estate agent. I can’t believe I didn’t recognize him. I see his smarmy face every time I head toward House of Pies.”
Nate’s body began to tingle, like someone had flipped on an electric current inside him. He walked over to Archie and waited for the man to look up. “You’re the realtor who’s been trying to buy this place.”
“What?” Peggy exclaimed, her dark eyes bright. “You aren’t thinking of selling, are you, Nate?”
“No. He kept sending me emails and letters and leaving messages. I told him no every way I could think of. So, he decided to try and force me to sell by ruining The Gardens’ reputation.”
Archie straightened up. “I made him a great offer on behalf of a client who loves this property,” he told the group, as if he had a chance of getting them on his side. “Any sane person would have jumped at it!”
“He always forgets to say I’m the one who brought the client in,” Eliza said bitterly. “I convinced him we were the agents for the property. The commission could have set me—us—up for life.” She turned to Nate. “And you would never have had to work again.”
