by B R Snow
“She’s hanging in there,” Josie said.
“I thought I’d take her out to do her business and then get her back in before I let the rest of the dogs out,” he said. “You know, just so she’s not tempted to join in the horseplay.”
“Good idea,” Josie said, getting to her feet. “You want to go outside, Gabby?”
The Otterhound climbed to her feet and wagged her tail. Sammy opened the door that faced the dog’s play area and bent down to go through it. He called the dog, and she slowly limped her way outside.
“That just breaks my heart,” I said, glancing outside.
“She’s going to be fine,” Josie said. “Did Chef Claire decide to go skiing?”
“Her and Freddie just headed out. She took the dogs with her.”
“She’s a brave woman,” Josie said, shaking her head.
“And she’s wearing the outfit I gave her,” I said.
“Nice. How does it look?”
“Fantastic,” I said. “But it’s really skintight.”
“Freddie’s going to be stepping all over his skis,” Josie said, laughing. “Leftovers tonight?”
“Yeah,” I said. “But let’s eat early. I need to get to the restaurant.”
“For what?”
“I just want to take a look at who Very Friendly is having dinner with. It’s her first date.”
“So, you’re going to do some snooping.”
“Yeah.”
“And there’s no sense doing it on an empty stomach, right?”
“I knew you’d understand.”
Chapter 11
I entered C’s through the kitchen at six-thirty sharp and glanced around. Given the time of year, the restaurant was staffed with a skeleton crew that consisted of a dishwasher, two wait staff, and Charlie, Chef Claire’s sous chef who would be running the kitchen while we were in Cayman. She was chatting and laughing with him and waved when she saw me come in.
“Hey,” I said. “How was skiing?”
“It was great,” Chef Claire said. “Are the dogs still sacked out?”
“They haven’t moved from in front of the fire since they got home,” I said. “Hey, Charlie. How are you doing?”
“Things are good,” he said, pushing his chef’s hat back. “We were just talking about the best way to kill some time.”
“It’s really dead,” Chef Claire said.
“You know, I’ve always wondered why you guys even keep the place open in the winter,” Charlie said.
“It was just something we decided to do,” I said, shrugging. “Actually, it was my mother’s idea.”
“Well, I think it’s a nice thing to do for the folks in town, but you guys must lose your shirt during the winter.”
“We’ve got lots of shirts,” I said, waving it off.
Charlie, bemused, shook his head and checked the status of some steaks under the broiler.
“You don’t mind if I do a little snooping from here in the kitchen, do you?”
“Knock yourself out,” Chef Claire said, prepping a dinner plate. “Who’s the lucky victim tonight?”
“Very Friendly,” I said, stepping back to give one of the wait staff room to hand Chef Claire an order. “Hey, Margot. How was your Christmas?”
“It was great,” she said. “And yours?”
“Almost perfect,” I said. “But Max is in Columbia and couldn’t make it.”
“That’s too bad,” Margot said. “You guys aren’t going to believe the woman in the dining room.”
“What’s she doing?” Chef Claire said.
“Nothing really,” Margot said. “It’s like she’s a three-year-old at Christmas. Bouncing around in her chair, staring wide-eyed at everything. You’d think she’d never been in a restaurant before.”
“She hasn’t,” I said, heading for the two swinging doors that separated the kitchen from the dining room.
“Really?” Margot said.
“Yeah, she doesn’t get out much.”
I glanced through a porthole window into the dining room and saw Very Friendly at a table with a man who had his back to me.
“Suzy,” Chef Claire said. “You need to move.”
“I’ll just be a second,” I said, glancing over my shoulder at her. Then the door swung inward and smacked me hard in the face. I dropped to my knees like I’d been punched.
“Oh, Suzy,” Audrey, our other server, said. “I’m so sorry. Are you okay?”
“Not again. Suzy, that’s the door people use to come into the kitchen. The one on your right is the door to go out,” Chef Claire said, scolding me as she walked over. “How many times do I have to tell you?”
“Obviously at least one more than you did,” I said, holding a hand to my nose. “Geez, that hurts.”
“You’re bleeding,” Chef Claire said, shaking her head. She grabbed a clean dish towel, rinsed it in warm water and pressed it against my nose. “I can’t take you anywhere. Tilt your head back.”
I did, and soon my nosebleed stopped. I dabbed the towel against my nose, then washed my face. I tossed the bloody towel in a bin, then slowly opened the out-door and stepped into the dining room. I headed straight for Very’s table, and when she saw me, she started waving.
“Suzy,” she said. “I was wondering if I’d see you here.”
“Hi, Very,” I said, still waiting to get a look at her date. “Welcome to C’s.”
“What happened to your face?” she said, frowning.
“A door bit me,” I said, then flinched when I saw who she was with. “You?”
“It’s nice to see you, too, Ms. Chandler,” Herman Billows, the representative from 3E, said, frowning as he glanced up at me.
My neurons surged as several questions began to bounce around in my head.
“I’m sorry,” I said, unable to get the frown off my face. “It’s just that when Very told me she was coming here for dinner, I didn’t expect to see you.”
“Isn’t he cute?” Very said, grabbing Herman Billows’ hand.
“Sure, sure,” I said, glancing back and forth at them. “How did you two meet?”
“He reached out to me via a text message, and then we just started chatting,” Very said, squeezing his hand.
“It was pure kismet,” Herman said, wincing as he gently extracted his hand to grab his water glass. “We just hit it off. Imagine my surprise when Very told me she’d never been on a date before.”
“But here we are,” Very said. “You have a beautiful place.”
“Thanks,” I said, rubbing my forehead. “Look, I need to take care of a few things, but I’ll swing by later. And make sure you order dessert. It’s on me.”
“That’s wonderful,” Very said. “Isn’t that sweet of her, Herman?”
“Very.”
“What?”
“No, I meant it was very sweet of her to do that,” Herman said, forcing a smile.
“Oh, of course,” Very said, giggling.
“Enjoy your dinner,” I said. “I’ll see you later.”
I headed for the lounge that was nearly empty and sat down at the bar. Millie, our head bartender, approached and frowned at my face.
“Did you get hit by the kitchen door again?” Millie said.
“Yeah, I really need to start working on that,” I said. “Can I get a glass of Pinot, please?”
Millie poured and placed the glass in front of me. I took a sip, deep in thought. I grabbed my phone and called my mother.
“Hello, darling.”
“Hi, Mom. I’m at C’s, and I think something weird is going on,” I said, taking another sip of wine.
“I’m going to need a bit more,” she said. “Our definitions of weird are quite different.”
“Do you still have the information your friend in Albany sent you about that vein of natural gas they’ve found up here?”
“I do,” she said. “Why?”
“Because Very Friendly is here at the restaurant on her first ever date.”
“Keep talking,” my mother said, laughing. “Maybe those two thoughts will collide at some point.
“You’ll never guess who she’s here with.”
“I’m too tired to play twenty questions, darling.”
“Herman Billows.”
I waited out a long silence.
“Interesting,” she whispered.
“I’m gonna stick with weird.”
“Hang on a sec,” she said.
I heard the rustle of paper, then the sound of her desk chair as she sat down.
“Do you have a map of the area in front of you?” I said.
“I do,” she said.
“The Friendly’s property has natural gas under it, doesn’t it?”
“It sits right in the middle of the vein,” she said. “In fact, the whole property is surrounded by it.”
“Do you know if Billows spoke to Skitch Friendly before he died?”
“I do not,” she said, drumming her fingers on the desk.
“But if he did, is there any chance that Friendly would have agreed to lease his land?” I said, gently rubbing my throbbing nose with my good hand.
“I seriously doubt it,” she said. “The last thing he would have wanted is a bunch of wells and people wandering all over his land. And he obviously wasn’t very interested in money.”
“But now that he’s gone, Billows might get a different answer from his wife or kids, right?”
“You tell me,” my mother said. “You’ve seen the place. Would you live out there with none of the basic amenities?”
“Not a chance,” I said. “And Very has made it clear she’d like to get out of there. How much money would they be looking at?”
“Certainly enough to move if they wanted. This is not good.”
“Does your land along with Rooster’s and the Friendly’s pretty much cover the area where they’ve found the deposit?”
“It does,” she said. “But from what I’m looking at, the Friendly’s land is the centerpiece. If Mr. Billows got his hands on it, they’d be able to sink dozens of wells. I need to call Rooster.”
“Okay,” I said.
“How long are you going to be there?”
“Long enough to get some answers,” I said.
“We’ll be there in about half an hour,” my mother said, then hung up.
I set my phone on the bar and finished my wine. Millie approached and refilled my glass.
“Thanks.”
“Is there a problem?” she said, studying me closely.
“Yeah, I think there might be.”
Chapter 12
I left my second glass of wine untouched and headed back to the dining room. Very was sitting by herself and staring around the room with a huge smile on her face.
“Where’s Herman?”
“He had to take a phone call,” Very said. “Have a seat and keep me company.”
I sat down and tried to formulate an opening question.
“What happened to your hand?” she said.
“Gabby bit me the day we rescued her,” I said, glancing down at the fresh bandage Josie had applied earlier today. “Nineteen stitches.”
“Really?” Very said, frowning. “I don’t think she’s ever done that before.”
“She was just scared,” I said. “She’s actually a sweetheart.”
“Yeah, I guess she is,” Very whispered.
“What’s the matter?”
“I was always a bit jealous of all the attention my father gave her. We stopped by your place after the memorial service today.”
“Yes, Josie told me,” I said. “Your mom is concerned about the puppies.”
“I’m sure she is,” Very said, shrugging. “There’s a lot of money sitting inside that dog at the moment.”
“But you didn’t know your dad had moved the breeding schedule up?”
“I didn’t have a clue,” she said, shaking her head.
“So, how was the memorial service?”
“Quiet. Somber,” she said. “Not many people showed up. Mama said a few words, then Rooster did a quick tribute. That was about it.”
“I’m really sorry about your dad,” I said.
“Yeah, for all his craziness and rules, he was a pretty good guy once you got to know him,” Very said with a sad sigh. “You’re surprised to see me here with Herman, aren’t you?”
“Actually, I’m shocked,” I said. “Small world, huh?”
“Is that your way of getting to the important topic, Suzy?” Very said, grinning at me.
“You know, Very, for a woman who’s spent her life living in the middle of the woods, you’re sharp as a tack.”
“Thank you.”
“So, has Herman floated the idea of leasing your land?”
“He has,” Very said. “He mentioned it just after we sat down.”
“That was quick,” I said.
“He said he wanted to get it out of the way before we got to the really important business,” she said.
“Which would be you and him, right?”
“Of course,” Very said, laughing. “He thinks he’s so smooth. And I imagine his approach does work with a lot of women.”
“But not you?”
“I haven’t decided yet,” Very said. “I want my first boyfriend to be special. And he certainly can take me places and show me things I’ve only dreamt about.”
“I’m waiting for the but,” I said.
“Oh, you caught that. But it’s pretty clear that he’s primarily interested in leasing our land,” she said. “And Papa always told me that if a man wasn’t willing to make me his number one priority, I should run for the hills.”
“That’s pretty good advice,” I said.
“Do as I say, not as I do,” she said, shaking her head. “And it’s not like I ever had a chance to test out his theory. But it looks like that might be changing.”
“Do you think you can get your mother to agree to the lease?”
“I’d be shocked if she didn’t,” Very said. “She’s had a hard life, and without Papa around it’s going to get even harder.”
“I imagine it is,” I said. “Where would you go?”
“I’m pretty sure I can talk Mama into moving to someplace warm,” she said. “I don’t have to tell you what the winters are like around here. Especially when you’re stuck out there.”
“No, you don’t,” I said. “But what about Cooter?”
“Oh, Cooter will never leave,” she said, shaking her head. “As long as he can spend his time hunting and fishing, he won’t care if there’s a gas well parked in the barn.”
“The fracking process can be very damaging to the environment,” I said. “Especially the River.”
“Yes, I’ve been reading about it,” she said.
“And?”
“And it’s definitely something to consider,” she said.
“As is the money, right?”
“I imagine you and I look at money a bit differently, Suzy,” she said, raising an eyebrow at me. “Since you have a lot of it, and I don’t have any.”
“Fair point,” I said, nodding. “And your family is definitely sitting on something that a lot of people would love to get their hands on. Did Herman get a chance to speak with your father before he died?”
“He did,” Very said. “But Papa told Herman to get lost almost before he could even explain what he wanted to talk about.”
“So, your dad did turn him down?”
“In no uncertain terms.”
“I’m so sorry, Very,” Herman said, approaching the table. “That call took way too long.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Very said. “Suzy and I are having a nice chat.”
“I hope she hasn’t been filling your head with stories about what a horrible person I am,” Herman said, grinning. “You know, one of those corporate charlatans.”
“No, she didn’t need to do that,” Very said, casually.
Herman Billows flinch
ed, and I hid my smile. Good for you, girl. I glanced over my shoulder when I heard Margot arrive with their dinners. I got up and glanced at their plates.
“You both went with the ribeye,” I said. “Good call. Enjoy your dinner. And if you’re thinking about the soufflé, you should order them now.”
I headed back into the lounge and sat down in the same seat at the bar. Millie slid the glass of wine I hadn’t touched back in front of me, and I took a sip. I noticed Millie smiling and waving, and looked over my shoulder and saw my mother and Rooster approaching the bar. I got up to greet them, and we headed toward the fireplace and sat down.
“Are they still here?” my mother said, glancing into the dining room.
“They are,” I said. “They just started their entrees.”
“Did you get a chance to talk to Very?” Rooster said, holding two fingers up at Millie.
“I did. Billows stepped out to take a call, so I had about ten minutes alone with her.”
“And?” my mother said.
“She’s more than ready to do the deal,” I said. “And she’s convinced she can get her mother to sign off as well. Wants to move somewhere warm.”
“Can’t blame her for that,” Rooster said. “What about Cooter?”
“She says there’s no way he would ever leave the place,” I said. “Which would work out perfectly for Very and her mom. Cooter would be in his element, and they’d have someone taking care of the place while they’re off walking the beach.”
Millie arrived carrying two steaming snifters of B&B and set them down in front of my mother and Rooster.
“Thanks, Millie,” my mother said, beaming up at her before refocusing on me. “Did she mention any specifics about what Billows is offering?”
“No, I don’t think they’ve gotten that far,” I said. “But Very said he brought it up right after they’d sat down tonight.”
“Billows is about as subtle as a truck, huh?” Rooster said.
“He told her that he wanted to get business out of the way so they could focus on the important stuff. Like their relationship.”
“He’s trying to take advantage of that poor girl’s background?” my mother said, frowning. “The little weasel.”
“That was my first thought. But Very’s already got him pegged,” I said. “It’s strange, but she’s incredibly worldly for someone who’s spent her life living in the woods.”
