Through the Storm (Bellingwood Book 8)

by Diane Greenwood Muir

"Well, let's not discount this job for her yet. I'm in no hurry. There is still plenty of time before I go south. And sometimes kids need another chance."

  "We already gave her a second chance. It's kind of difficult to think about risking another one."

  "Isn't everyone worth more than one additional chance?" Marie asked softly.

  Polly took a deep breath and smiled. "Sometimes you remind me so much of Mary. Thank you."

  "Well, that's high praise. I know how much you love her. This will work out as it is supposed to. You have to have a little faith."

  "Can I send Henry over to talk to you when he tells me we're finished with her?"

  "Sweetie, who do you think talked Henry through that year he waited for you to realize how much you loved him?"

  "Oh, Marie," Polly laughed. "Was I really that much of a problem?"

  "You were a little stubborn. I just had to tell him that love could be more stubborn than fear." Marie was chuckling on the other end of the phone. "He'll be fine. Just like his dad, he needs a little time to deal with his disappointment, but then he'll stand beside you and do the right thing. Never fear."

  "Thank you for your time this morning," Polly said. "I'm glad I talked to you before I spent energy getting angry."

  "Do you have any idea where she's gone?"

  "I have an idea, but I need to do some research. If I'm right, should I go after her?"

  "Not right now. Let the girl have some space. Tell her that she's welcome to come back and that you know what she's done. She won't be able to confront this without some help from you. Make it okay for her to return and then you can upend her comfortable, self-centered, bratty self. There have to be consequences, but not until she's safe."

  "This is why your kids are so wonderful. Thank you."

  "You're a wonderful young woman, Polly. I'm awfully glad you are part of the family."

  "I love you, Marie."

  "I love you too, sweetheart. Now go figure out where your girl is … and Polly?"

  "Yes?"

  "You don't have to tell Henry about this until you know for sure what is going on. No sense giving him fuel for a fire that doesn't need to burn."

  Polly nodded and grinned. "Thanks, Marie. I'll talk to you later."

  She left the bedroom and pulled the door shut, then went back downstairs and into Jeff's office.

  "Did you find her?" he asked.

  "No. She's gone. I haven't looked, but I'd guess her car is gone too."

  He leaned back in his chair and looked out into the parking lot. "It's not where she usually parks it. So, what are you thinking?"

  "What do you know about Troy Kandle?"

  "The punk kid? He's a peach. They're gone. Don't worry." Then his eyes lit with realization. "You think she went with him?"

  "I do. When did they leave?"

  Jeff shrugged, "I'm not sure. They were supposed to be out of here by noon today and I know they're gone. Rachel has already started cleaning the rooms."

  "Did he give you any clue as to where he was going?"

  "He said something about Minneapolis. But here, his band has a Facebook page. Let's see what that will tell us." Jeff clicked and typed and brought up the band's page.

  Polly growled under her breath when she saw it. He had changed his profile picture to a hand with the middle finger up. The description was not unexpected. "Screw you, Bellingwood. Uptight assholes."

  "Well, there's a five-star review if I've ever seen one," she said.

  "He posted that at eleven o'clock last night. I'm guessing that's when they left."

  "I was sound asleep - didn't even hear her go."

  "Apparently she didn't want you to hear her. What are you going to do?"

  "I'm going to send her a message on Facebook and tell her that she's welcome to come back any time. When and if she does, we'll deal with the consequences at that point."

  "That's kind of open minded."

  "I had a talk with Henry's mom this morning. She's a smart lady. She also reminded me that Jessie is probably panicked about the trial that is supposed to happen in two weeks. That's how long I have to help her get her head on straight or there is going to be a prosecutor who is very upset."

  Jeff had been clicking through things on the band's page. "It looks like they have a couple of gigs in Minneapolis this week and then they're heading for South Dakota before ending up in Omaha."

  "That's close enough to track her down if I have to. Thanks." Polly braced her hands on the armrests of the chair and pushed herself up. "I really didn't want to be a mom, Jeff."

  "This is what happens when you try to help someone who was raised quite differently than you. You are aware that when you take responsibility for Rebecca, you will run into unknowns like this all the time."

  "I suppose you're right. But at least Rebecca has always been confident that her mother loves her."

  "And that's a big deal. Let me know if I can do anything to help you."

  "Thanks. What time do I need to be over at the hotel?"

  "They're coming in between two and four."

  "So one o'clock?"

  "Thanks, Polly. The computers are all hooked up. You shouldn't have any trouble signing them in."

  "I'm on it. No worries." She left and went back into her own office and logged onto Facebook to send a quick message to Jessie. If the girl didn't respond, Polly would take other actions, but she had to start somewhere.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  Running her fingers across the top of the counter, Polly mused that spending time at the hotel was actually quite pleasant. She'd brought a plate of cookies from Sylvie's kitchen, along with several thermoses of coffee and iced tea. They were expecting a group of bikers who were enjoying a week's vacation at wineries in the state, beginning with Secret Woods this evening. Henry's crew still had a few small projects left at the lodge, but the winery had opened its doors just before school started and the boys were giddy with excitement.

  A newspaper article about the damage done to Bellingwood during the tornado and how the vineyard had remained intact garnered some interest. The fact that there had been a death on the property and the victim's wife had been part of the murder had also attracted attention. The Terrible Trio had capitalized on the stories, their grand opening had been a success and so far, they were doing as well as could be expected.

  She sat down in an overstuffed chair to wait. Dark wood on the walls and floor, white stone around the fireplace and heavy pewter sconces on the walls gave the room a Victorian feeling. Henry was planning to add glass fronted bookshelves to several of the walls above the cabinets that were already in place. He and Jeff had designed the lower cabinetry to hide a kitchen space and other storage.

  It would be quite easy to get used to working here every day. Polly leaned back and shut her eyes. This was nice.

  The roar of engines woke her and she jumped out of the chair. Patting her hair and straightening her shirt, she went to the front door and pulled it open, then watched as different colors and makes of motorcycles filled her parking lot. This was what she lived for. There was nothing better than meeting new people and inviting them to be part of her world.

  Helmets and rain gear came off and men and women stretched before coming toward her. The first man to reach her stuck his hand out and said, "I'm Dino, are you the mistress of the castle?"

  Polly chuckled. "I am Polly Giller. Welcome to Bellingwood. Come in and we'll get you all set up."

  He poked his head inside and then called out, "She has cookies and you gotta see this place."

  He followed her to the counter and soon the room filled with people, laughing and chatting while milling around.

  "This is some beautiful work," he said. "Local?"

  "My husband. He and I own Sycamore Inn and he's the cabinet maker."

  "You're a fortunate woman. My wife better not find out about this or I'm going to be ..." he turned and looked around. "Too late. She's taking pictures." He pointed to a blond woman who wa
s snapping pictures of the woodwork. "I'm going to be busy this winter. I can tell." The woman came up to the counter and showed him a picture on her phone, then spun him around so that Polly's face was between their shoulders and snapped a picture.

  "Do you mind if it's on Facebook?" she asked, grinning a wide smile.

  "That's fine," Polly said, chuckling.

  "Your manager said we could have the rooms in the back, facing the woods. Is that still okay?"

  "Absolutely. It looks as if Jeff has everything taken care of here. All I need to do is show you where things are."

  Polly walked back outside with them, around to the back rooms. Two by two and one by one, the rooms filled as people left the crowd following her. At the corner, she pointed to a shelter and said, "Ice machines, pop machines and snacks. Your key will get you inside. If you need anything else, you know how to reach us. We'll be here in a minute."

  "What if we find a dead body?" Dino asked, winking at Polly. His wife just laughed.

  "That's my job," Polly retorted. "But if you do, let me know. I have an in with the Sheriff. Can you think of anything else you need?"

  "Where can we get a good breakfast in the morning?"

  "If you want to come over to Sycamore House, you just need to tell me what time you'll be there so I can get our chef busy. Otherwise, there's a diner up town that serves a great breakfast."

  Dino looked at his wife and she gave a slight shrug. "We'll hit the diner. They won't have a problem with all of us?"

  A dozen more people on a weekday morning probably wouldn't tip them over the edge, so she smiled and said. "How about I call Joe so he knows you might show up."

  "Thanks. Then I think we've got it from here."

  "The main building will be open until eleven if you need anything in there. I'll have coffee on by six tomorrow morning. How does that sound?"

  "That sounds perfect. Thanks, Mrs. Giller."

  She smiled and wondered what Henry would think of being Mr. Giller.

  Polly got back in her truck and checked her phone. There were two texts, the first from Sylvie.

  "I need to scream. Where are you?"

  The second was from Jason. "Is Mom going to kill me?"

  What had happened this time? She called Sylvie.

  "I'm sorry I missed your text. I was busy with guests at the hotel," she said as soon as Sylvie picked up.

  "Polly what am I going to do with him?"

  "With Jason?" It was only a guess, but it seemed like a good guess.

  "That little shit is suspended for a week."

  "He's what?"

  "He got in a fight. He hit two kids and gave one of them a bloody nose. The other one is going to have a black eye. Then when the principal tried to break it up, he flipped him off and told him to go to hell - that it wasn't his fault. Polly, whose kid is this and what's happened to my son?"

  Polly's stomach roiled. She wanted to be sick. What was going on with Jason?

  "Where are you?"

  "I'm driving to Boone to pick him up."

  "Have you talked to him yet? Tried to find out what's going on?"

  "No, the vice principal called me and told me that I could come get him. What am I supposed to say to my own personal rotten kid? I'm so angry right now I want to make him walk back to Bellingwood, but I'm afraid he'd do something stupid. I don't trust him anymore at all."

  "Before you completely freak out on him ..."

  "Don't give me any namby pamby parental, child-raising crap right now. He has no right to touch anyone and absolutely no right to talk to his principal that way. I thought we had this dealt with the last time."

  Polly took a deep breath. Sylvie really didn't want to hear her and that made sense, but Jason wasn't a bully. If he hit someone, they'd worked him up to it.

  "The last time he got into a fight, it was to protect his little brother, right?"

  "Yes, but that wasn't a good reason to fight. I didn't raise my son to use his fists. I raised him to use his head. Polly, he can't turn out like his father. He just can't! What am I going to do if he was born this way and there is nothing I can do to make him better?"

  There wasn't much Polly could say at this point. Sylvie was off the deep end. She'd had so much stress in the last few days and Jason was about to be the recipient of her fury.

  "What are you planning to do?" Polly asked quietly.

  "I don't know!" Sylvie was yelling into the phone. "I'm so far out of my depth right now. I thought I knew my son, but this boy is unrecognizable to me. I'm going to be stuck paying for hospital bills, I just know it. I thought that the last time would be the last time, but it's happened again. What if it keeps happening and he really hurts someone bad. I couldn't stand to have him end up in Eldora.

  Polly hadn't thought about the Boys Training School in Eldora for years. When she was in high school, it was a huge threat that teachers held over a boy's head when he acted out. It was only about forty-five minutes away and one year, the youth group took a day off from school and went over to see what it was like. She wasn't sure if it scared anyone straight, but it certainly gave her something to think about.

  "That's not going to happen, Sylvie, and you know it. You need to get your head on straight. This is your son and you're acting like it's the end of the world." If handling Sylvie with kid gloves wasn't going to startle her into sanity, then Polly figured she'd try a firm hand.

  "Did you just yell at me?"

  "I think so. Did it work?" Polly let out a small chuckle.

  "You're right. I'm embarrassed and I'm worried that he's going to be like his dad. But this isn't about me, is it?"

  "Not at all. There's something going on with Jason and he isn't able to tell you what it is."

  "It's those damned boys he's hanging out with. I'm just sure of it. I don't know how to fix that."

  "Are they older or his age?"

  "Oh, they're older."

  "And you told him last night that his dad was in town."

  Sylvie was quiet, then she said, "Yes. I told him. He didn't say anything and it was late, so I just let him go to bed."

  "He was in a strange house, not knowing what was going to happen, but knowing that you were scared enough to leave your apartment."

  "This is my fault."

  "No, come on. Don't go down that path either. It's not about fault. But I think you need to talk before you wig out on him."

  "But I get to wig out on him soon, right?"

  Polly laughed. She had no idea when she'd turned into the reasonable parental type.

  "I think wigging out is an appropriate measure at some point. Maybe you ought to get him home first."

  "Can I do this at Sycamore House? I'm really not ready to be at the apartment yet."

  "Of course you can. How long is his suspension?"

  "All week."

  "Well, it seems like Eliseo has a dedicated helper for the week. I'm guessing a lot of work will get done at Sycamore House and out on the farm."

  "Okay, I'm pulling into the school. I have to go in and talk to Jason and his counselor. Thanks for talking me down."

  "I love you, Sylvie Donovan. You are a great mom and just because things are a little messy doesn't change that, right?"

  "I'll work on believing that tomorrow, okay?"

  "Okay. I'll see you after a while."

  Polly dropped the phone on the seat beside her. She'd been in her driveway for the last of the conversation. All of this drama with young people was ridiculous. Had someone spiked the water in town? What was it going to take for them to get their heads out of their back ends and take responsibility for life?

  Man, she was frustrated.

  She got out of the truck, slammed the door and went inside. Rachel was in the kitchen when Polly walked through and didn't say anything when she saw the look on her boss's face. Jeff stepped out to say something, took one look at Polly, then grinned and went back into his office.

  "What's up?" she asked.

  "It'll k
eep. Did everything go well over at the hotel?"

  "It was great. Easiest job in the universe. I think they'll be fine."

  "Thanks for doing that."

  Polly went into her office and quickly checked to see if Jessie might have responded. There was nothing. She growled at the computer and sat back in her seat, looking out the window. A strange man came in the front door and her heart sank. It had to be him. This was not what Sylvie needed right now. Before he could get to the office, she darted into Jeff's and shut the door.

  "Call Sylvie, don't let her come here. Tell her that her ex has shown up and she needs to go straight to Eliseo's. I'll call her later."

  She opened the door and, putting on her most pleasant face, went into the main office to greet the man.

  "Hi, can I help you?"

  "I'm looking for Sylvie Donovan." He was a big man and wearing work clothes - jeans and a red shirt under a khaki jacket. He'd taken off his ball cap, exposing thinning brown hair. His voice was low and rough and his hands were calloused and rougher. Not someone she wanted to mess with.

  "She's not here right now. Is there anything I can do for you?"

  "I know she's here. People around town told me where she works." He glanced around the office and started to walk away.

  "But she isn't here today. Can I tell her who is looking for her?"

  "She knows. I know she knows." He stepped out of the main office and looked around some more, trying to get his bearings. "The place is different. Kitchen still back here?" He walked away from Polly.

  "It is, but I've told you that she isn't working here today."

  "Why don't I just look for myself?" He didn't even turn around, just kept walking toward the kitchen with Polly tripping to keep up with him.

  He stopped at the window and peered in, trying to see around the corners of the equipment. Rachel had been bent over, putting pans away under the prep table and let out a small gasp when she stood up and saw him.

  "Can I help you?" she asked, looking desperately at Polly. Polly gave her a slight head shake.

  "I'm looking for Sylvie. Where is she?"

  "Uhh. I don't know. She's not here right now." Rachel's face had turned bright red.

  "Is she coming back?"