Digging for Dirt (Heavenly Highland Inn Cozy Mystery Book 9)

by Cindy Bell

  “Blake, come in. Watch your step, the carpet is very wet. And please, just call me Vicky.”

  Blake nodded and stepped in carefully. Vicky had liked him immediately when she interviewed him. She had interviewed him because they needed someone urgently and Sarah had the day off because her little boy, Ethan, had a Parents’ Day at school. Blake was only working at the inn a couple of days a week, because he was studying horticulture. He was very shy, but extremely polite and seemed quite mature.

  “I need you to go down to the storage unit in the basement and bring up as many fans as you can find, please. We’ve had a bit of a problem here and we need to get the banquet hall in shape in time for dinner tonight. Okay?” She smiled at him.

  “Basement, fans, fast.” Blake nodded with each word he spoke. “You’ve got it.”

  “As quick as you can. You can ask some other staff for help if you need it. If you see Monica, send her in with a laundry cart, please.” Vicky bundled up all of the wet tablecloths.

  “Right away!” Blake ducked back out of the banquet hall. A minute later Monica arrived pushing a laundry cart. She rolled it right up to Vicky. Vicky tossed the tablecloths into the cart.

  “Thanks, Monica. Listen, when you wash them one has some kind of stain. If it doesn’t come clean we’ll need to replace it. Okay?” She met Monica’s eyes to be sure that she understood. Monica had been with them for some time, but Vicky had noticed lately that she seemed sleepy and distracted. Vicky assumed there might be some personal issues going on at home.

  “Yes, I’ll watch for it. Any idea how this happened?” Monica glanced up at the broken sprinkler.

  Vicky frowned guiltily. She didn’t want to mention the fact that she was fairly certain that it was her fault.

  “I hope the plumber can tell us exactly how it happened.” She looked up at the sprinkler. “I don’t think it could have happened without something knocking into it.”

  “Do you think someone on the staff did it?” Monica spoke in a dramatic whisper. Vicky pursed her lips briefly. She didn’t like gossip, especially when it involved the inn’s employees, but she understood that Monica was just trying to get some idea of what had happened.

  “No, I really don’t think so.” She swallowed back what she was really suspecting. She knew that she would have to admit the truth to Sarah, but she didn’t want the entire staff knowing that she had done something so foolish. Recently, Vicky had hosted an indoor wedding reception in the banquet hall. She had gone a bit overboard with the decorations. She thought it was very likely that she had hit the sprinkler head with something as she hung it or carried it past. She hoped it wasn’t the case, but she couldn’t really think of any other explanation.

  Chapter 3

  As Vicky waited for the plumber to arrive, she tried not to focus on her mistake. Instead she did her best to fix it. She pushed the dining tables up against one wall so that the carpet would have a better chance of drying. She opened the door that led to the patio and opened all of the windows. It wasn’t the warmest day, but she hoped that it would help, at least a little. Blake brought in several fans on a cart. He began lining them up and plugging them in. Vicky soon realized there weren’t enough sockets for all of the fans they would need.

  “See if we have any extension cords that we can use. We’re going to need a lot of air power.” Vicky sighed. She turned towards the banquet hall doors to help Blake and nearly barreled into a large man. He looked like a bear, not only because of his size, but because of the thick, woolly curls on the top of his head, his long beard and thick, hairy arms. Vicky moved back just before she would have collided with him. “Excuse me, Sir, I didn’t see you there.”

  “It’s quite all right. I’m Benny, the plumber.” He raised a thick eyebrow. “I’m assuming this is where the problem is.”

  “Yes. I sure hope you can fix it, and fast. I’m afraid that the sprinkler might have gotten hit and knocked out of place.” She pointed out the damaged sprinkler.

  “That doesn’t look great.” Benny squinted at it. “Lucky for you I have parts in my van. I’m going to get this fixed up for you no problem.”

  “Great!” Vicky sighed with relief. “Thanks for coming out so quickly.”

  “Oh, trust me, I’m just glad to have some work. Things have been very slow lately.” He offered her a broad smile. Vicky smiled politely in return. She wasn’t sure if she had made the right decision. In her experience plumbers were always in demand. Was Benny such a bad plumber that he didn’t get a lot of work? She hadn’t even checked on his license. It was too late to turn back now, and he had said that he could fix the problem. She gritted her teeth and told herself to stick with it and see how it turned out.

  Vicky watched as Benny lumbered over to the sprinkler. He grabbed one of the chairs that was upholstered in the same off-white material as the tablecloths. Vicky was too horrified to protest as he climbed up onto the chair with his grimy shoes. By the time she found her voice it was too late. Benny was already perched on top of it. The damage was done. He reached up and began tugging at the sprinkler.

  “How did you say this happened?” He looked down at her with a puzzled expression.

  “I guess maybe I banged it with a decoration when I was setting up for a wedding.” Vicky frowned. She felt terribly guilty for causing the trouble.

  “You?” Benny looked down at Vicky with disbelief. “You and what army?”

  “Excuse me?” Vicky frowned. Her willingness to see the humor in the situation was quickly fading.

  “I’m sorry, but unless you were decorating with a sledge hammer there is no way that you could have done this. It’s practically snapped off.” He shook his head. “No, I’d have to say that someone did this on purpose.”

  “You’re sure?” Vicky asked as she looked up at him. “I don’t know why anyone would do such a thing.” She was genuinely confused. It hadn’t occurred to her that someone might have done it on purpose. Perhaps by accident, as she had suspected she had, but to willingly destroy one of the sprinkler heads? Why would anyone want to do that?

  “Oh, I’ve seen it before.” Benny chuckled. “Probably some little upstart bed and breakfast that is trying to empty out the competition.”

  “What do you mean?” Vicky stepped closer to him. She peered up at the damaged sprinkler.

  “I mean, if your guests are forced to flee a flood, then they will find the nearest place to finish out their vacation. I wouldn’t be surprised if that was the reason for this damage. But don’t worry, I can get this piece off and replace it. I’ll only need about an hour.” He tilted his head towards the fans she had lined up. “But I can tell you, it’s going to take a lot longer to dry out the carpet with those tiny things. I’ve got a couple of industrial fans in my van. I’ll bring them in when I finish.”

  “Thanks.” Vicky smiled, but she was troubled. She wondered if Benny could be right. Did someone who owned another inn damage the sprinkler on purpose? If so how did they even get in to do it? She hadn’t heard of any new inns opening in the area, but then because of the popularity of the Heavenly Highland Inn, there hadn’t been much need to keep an eye on the competition.

  As Benny stepped down from the chair to get the part, Vicky stared at the footprints that he left behind. Vicky suddenly knew what had caused the stain on the tablecloth. It had probably been a footprint! She assumed that someone had climbed up on the table to damage the sprinkler. She shuddered at the thought of someone so bent on destruction being in the inn without her knowing it. Was it a staff member? Was it a guest? Was it someone who had slipped in from outside? Her mind spun with the possibilities.

  As the plumber worked on the sprinkler, Vicky did her best to position the fans to dry the carpet as fast as possible. It was hard to focus on fixing the problem, when she was worried about what might happen next. If someone had been determined enough to damage property, would they give up after one attempt?

  Chapter 4

  Ida stopped in her roo
m to check her makeup and hair before she headed off to Roman’s room. She was looking forward to moving into Vicky’s apartment so that she would have a bigger closet. The closet in the guest room she lived in was bursting at the seams. Once she was sure she looked gorgeous enough to meet Roman, she headed down the hall to his room. She noticed a few staff members running back and forth as they attempted to help with the situation in the banquet hall. The eager, young bellboy almost ran right into Ida.

  “Excuse me, I’m so sorry!” He blushed.

  “It’s quite all right. You’re in a rush. Where are you off to?”

  “Oh, I’m collecting fans for the banquet hall.” He looked past her anxiously.

  “The fans are in the basement.” Ida narrowed her eyes. “What are you doing on the third floor?”

  “I got those.” Blake began to walk past her. “I was just checking the storage rooms to see if there were any more.”

  “Oh.” Ida nodded. “Okay, I hope you find some.”

  “Thanks.” Blake hurried past her.

  As Ida neared Roman’s door, she saw Monica wheeling a laundry cart. She waved hello to her, but Monica just stared straight past her. She was moving slowly. Ida noticed because it was a big change from how fast Blake had been moving. Ida assumed the young woman must have something weighing on her mind. Then she saw it. Roman’s room. She was surprised that he didn’t have security at the door, but she knew that he liked to appear as if he was no different to the rest of the population. If he had a security detail he probably kept them at a distance.

  Ida took a deep breath and reminded herself to relax. Then she walked up to the door. She could barely contain her excitement. Carefully, she fluffed her hair to make sure that it was in order. Then she knocked lightly on the door. After a few moments the door opened. Ida stared into the gleaming eyes that she had seen on posters and on television. His slicked back, silver hair made Ida’s heart flutter. His lips parted to reveal a voice as smooth as silk.

  “I’m sorry, I wasn’t expecting anyone.” He frowned as he looked at Ida. “Did we have an appointment?”

  “No, no appointment.” Ida felt flustered now that she was actually face to face with the man she admired so much. “My nieces own the inn and they asked me to offer you a tour of the town, or perhaps just the grounds if you prefer. Your campaign manager can come along as well...”

  “Wow, what a wonderful idea.” He smiled at her. “Are you sure you have enough time to spend it with me?”

  “I’m sure,” Ida said quickly. “I was wondering if you might like to start with a snack at a little café I know very well.”

  “That sounds marvelous! Trevor is in the room across the hall. Let’s see if he wants to join us.” He walked across the hall and knocked twice. No one answered so Roman knocked again. Ida stood behind him. “That’s weird I thought he said he was going to stay in his room to do some work. Maybe he changed his mind.” As he started to turn a slender man who was about six feet tall with light brown hair walked down the hall towards them.

  “There you are,” Roman said.

  “Were you looking for me?” Trevor asked. “I just decided to duck out and look at the flowers for a bit. Such beauty.”

  “Trevor has a thing for all things natural.” He turned to Ida. “This is Trevor my campaign manager. Trev, this is Ida.” Roman gestured to Ida. Trevor nodded to Ida in acknowledgment. “Ida runs the inn with her nieces, She is going to take me on a tour of the premises and the town. Would you like to join us?”

  “No, thank you.” He shook his head. “I was hoping to go through some plans with you.”

  “Maybe later, Trevor.”

  “We have to go through it sometime.” Trevor’s eyes grew cold.

  “And we will,” Roman said. “Why don’t you do some of your scientific reading.”

  “No, no plant study today.” Trevor smiled slightly. “I need to finish putting together some campaign presentations.”

  “We can discuss them later,” Roman said. “Maybe after we have dinner?”

  “We were going to work over dinner, remember?”

  “You need to relax, Trevor. Work can wait till later.”

  “I would prefer to have an early night, tonight,” Trevor said as he moved a small cardboard box he was holding to his left hand and unlocked the door to his room.

  “Okay, I’ll see you at dinner. Don’t work too hard.”

  “Have fun,” Trevor said dryly before he closed the door.

  “Sorry about that, he loves his work a bit too much.” Roman laughed slightly as he turned towards his room. “Give me a moment and I’ll meet you downstairs. All right?”

  “Great!” Ida couldn’t hide her grin. As she made her way back down to the lobby Ida thought about her boyfriend, Rex. He was away on a long motorcycle ride and she missed him. She was glad that she had the opportunity to show Roman around while Rex was out of town. She was surprised when she had told Rex that Roman was staying there and that she was going to offer to give him a tour that he was just as excited as she was. Apparently, Rex was a fan and like Ida hoped Roman became governor. She herself had a little crush on Roman and even though she would never do anything, as she loved Rex, she still felt a little guilty. She was a little troubled as she reached the lobby. She noticed Sarah was at the front desk with a woman.

  “Freida, I can assure you that we will do our very best to accommodate anything that you need.”

  “Oh good, hon, I don’t like to make a fuss, there’s just a few things that I like a certain way.” The petite, red-haired woman smiled at Sarah. Ida walked towards the front desk at the same moment that Vicky was walking in from the banquet hall.

  “Aunt Ida, it didn’t go well?” Vicky asked.

  “Huh?” Ida nearly jumped at the sound of Vicky’s voice just behind her. “Oh, it went fine actually. I’m taking him into town for a little snack.”

  “That’s great.” Vicky smiled. “I’m glad that you’re getting to enjoy yourself.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Ida asked in a defensive tone. “I won’t be enjoying myself, no enjoying will be going on, this is strictly inn business.”

  Vicky raised an eyebrow at her aunt’s sudden tirade. Normally she would question it, but she had so much on her mind that she decided to let it slide. It had been a rough morning and she didn’t blame her aunt for being on edge.

  “Okay, Aunt Ida, just let me know if you need anything.” Vicky stepped past her towards the front desk. She smiled warmly at the guest who was checking in.

  “Vicky, I’m glad you’re here.” Sarah looked at her sister with a hint of relief. “This is Freida Frans, she’s staying in 310. We need to make sure that she has a few things in her room.”

  “Of course, I’ll get Monica right on it.” Vicky started to turn away. Then suddenly it struck her that the woman’s name was very familiar. She turned back as she recalled just who she was. Freida was well known for writing the most scathing gossip articles. She always seemed to have the scoop on every celebrity and socialite, whether it turned out to be true or not rarely mattered as people loved to read all about the dirt she dug up. Before Vicky could say a word about who she was, Roman Blade stepped out of the elevator and walked towards the front desk. As Roman stepped up beside the front desk, his eyes narrowed. He looked directly at Freida.

  “Well, isn’t it convenient that you’ve chosen to stay here?” He cleared his throat and set his jaw.

  Freida peered in his direction. She scrunched up her nose with disgust. “Had I known that you were staying here, Roman, I would have kept on driving right past.”

  Sarah and Vicky exchanged a look of concern as the sparks flew between the two guests.

  “Are you really going to tell me that you had no idea I was staying here, Freida? You’ve told some whoppers in your time, but this one takes the cake.” He shook his head dismissively.

  “Whoppers?” Freida huffed. “Just because you don’t like the truth doesn’
t make it any less valid. I think that your arrogance is showing again, Roman.”

  “My arrogance? You are practically stalking me, Freida!” Roman exclaimed. “It’s sad really.”

  “I am staying at an inn, not lurking outside your house. Maybe, if you weren’t so self-important, Roman, you would see the real needs of the people.” With that Freida pushed past Roman and began heading for the stairs. Sarah chased after her to show her to her room. Roman watched her go with a seething grimace. Then he turned to look at Vicky and Ida.

  “I apologize, Ladies, please don’t think less of me for my display. That woman is the bane of my existence.” He sighed.

  “No need to apologize, Roman, you’re entitled to your opinion.” Ida offered him her arm. “Maybe I can take your mind off such troubling thoughts.”

  “I would greatly appreciate it.” Roman smiled.

  Vicky studied him as he curved his arm around Ida’s. She was a little taken back by the way he had spoken to Freida. Most politicians were careful about saving face as much as possible. She was sure that he and Freida must have a long history. She nearly got caught up in it, but turned her focus back to the plumber. She had come out to give Sarah an update that the sprinkler had been fixed, but that they had bigger problems. With Sarah gone, and Roman and Ida headed out the front door, Vicky was left to think about just how they were going to handle lunch.

  Chapter 5

  Ida strolled with Roman down the narrow path towards the town square. Roman seemed to be quite pleased by the scenery.

  “To be honest, I haven’t seen so much green in a very long time.” His voice was wistful as he watched a butterfly drift by.

  “It is beautiful here. Just enough country while still being close to quaint little shops and not too far from the city.” Ida smiled. She was enjoying spending her time with Roman and promoting the inn to him. She thought about Rex and how different Roman was from Rex who was burly with plenty of hair. Roman was neat and tidy. She could appreciate that in a man even though she loved Rex’s rugged looks.