"What's going on?" Lacy craned her neck. "Would you stop, please, Holt?"
"Can't you ever stop being in charge, Mayor? Let the police handle it."
"Looks like downtown, in the historic district."
"It is!" Holt immediately wheeled the Jeep toward the old section. He pulled behind the deputy's car, which was parked directly in front of Holt's current renovation project, the Sonoran adobe.
Lacy hopped out quickly. "What is it, Alejandro?" she asked the officer.
"Vandals, Mayor Lacy."
"Vandals!" She started scrambling out of the Jeep.
"Yep. But we caught them." He gestured to his squad car, where two figures huddled together in the back seat. A guy and a girl.
Lacy leaned over and peered inside. "Roman! What the - "
CHAPTER TEN
Roman turned his sullen face away from her, and Lacy could see that he was embarrassed. She didn't know the girl dressed in black with long black hair sitting beside him. A wire mesh over the car windows and between the front and back seats reminded her that they were locked in, and in deep trouble. She straightened and looked, stunned, from the deputy to Holt. "It's Roman," she mouthed and motioned to him.
"Roman!" Holt's expression was one of alarm. "The one who helped me move?"
Lacy nodded.
"How could he?"
"You know these kids?" the deputy asked.
"One of them," she said. "What did they do?"
"Trashed the place."
The deputy accompanied them inside the building with a flashlight. Trash was strewn on the floor. Bold, black-lettered graffiti was spray painted on the walls. There were remains of a small fire in the corner, near a window.
Lacy gasped at the sight.
Holt didn't even try to contain his anger. "This is great! Just damn great! The whole place is a wreck, a filthy mess! And after we cleaned it all out! Look at the spray paint!" He started back outside, but Lacy grabbed his arm.
"Holt, take it easy. We've seen enough. Please, come on. We'll let the police handle this. There isn't anything we can do tonight, anyway."
Reluctantly he agreed. But he raved all the way to her house. "I just can't believe this. Dammit, all our work for nothing."
She reached out and squeezed his hand. "I know. I'm sorry, Holt."
"I don't know when I've been so angry." He jerked the Jeep to a halt in front of her house. "For me, yes. But also for all those people who helped that Saturday. This is a town project. They want it to succeed enough to contribute their time freely. They've shown their support, and I'm sure other groups had planned to help in the future. But now this travesty negates everything we've done. Who'll want to waste their effort working with me now?"
Lacy nodded sympathetically. She wanted to console him, to reach out to him. Yet he didn't want consoling. He needed to vent his anger and contempt at the acts of vandalism toward his work project, something he considered his art. He needed this private explosion. She understood. She only hoped he wouldn't consider his work futile and decide it was time to move on. Move away.
"Don't they have any respect for someone else's property? For someone else's work!"
"Apparently not." She sighed.
"I want vengeance! I want to make those devils suffer for this!"
"Now, Holt, we'll make sure they're sufficiently punished."
"It's really hard when all your work has been destroyed."
"Who knows why in the world they would do such a thing?"
"Who the hell cares about their motives? They should learn responsibility. No more coddling. No more work projects." He shook his fist in the air. "I'd just like fifteen minutes with them, to punch their faces in. They have to clean up the whole damn place and put it back exactly as it was before this destruction."
"Who cares about them?" she repeated. "I do. This is my town and these kids are my responsibility."
"Where are their responsible parents?"
"Would you like to come in for some chamomile tea, to calm down and discuss it?"
"No, I need to go and pick up Sofia. I'm sure she's waiting. . ."
"Better put on your smiley face."
He rubbed his hand over his face. "Yeah. You're right. Can't take this anger to her." He gazed at Lacy in the darkness. "I wouldn't hurt anyone, Lacy. Not those kids. Surely you know me better than that by now. All this has been empty talk. I'm just so damned mad."
"I believe you, Holt. I understand. Believe me, they'll pay."
Holt carried in the heavy string of fresh chilies. Lacy followed with her suitcase. They stood in the doorway, suddenly quiet.
"What a way to end our dream weekend," he said. "With a nightmare."
"This weekend was very special, Holt. The best I've ever had."
"Ever?"
"Yes. You are." Suddenly she felt emotional again and didn't want him to leave her tonight. She put her arms around him and squeezed.
He lifted her face and kissed her, his lips warm and wonderful on hers, conveying the strength of his passion. "When I feel you close, I forget everything, Lacy. And nothing else is important but us."
"Not even the vandalism?"
"Especially not that. Not your infertility. This is just about you and me."
She wanted so desperately to hold to him, to believe him. "When you kiss me like that, I lose myself, too. It's a nice feeling. Holt. But let's not leave Sofia out of this. . . if something develops between us, she has to the our number one consideration."
"And she will be. You know, we should roast those green chilies that we got. How about tomorrow night?"
"You don't have to—"
He hushed her with another breathtaking kiss. "Oh yes. Those chilies must be roasted so they'll peel easily. We'll do it together."
"Holt, I don't think we should —"
"You aren't going to start that mayor stuff again, are you, Ms. Mayor?" He kissed her nose. "You may be my boss, but you don't direct my off-duty activities. You see, I've found this fabulous redhead, and I'm crazy about her. You wouldn't try to keep us apart, would you, boss?"
"Holt, you're impossible." She laughed and pressed her forehead to his chest.
"Tomorrow night. Meet you over the hot chilies."
After he left her, Holt wondered if his reaction to her infertility had been appropriate. He could only be honest with her. He could only show her that he cared for her. More now, after this weekend, than ever.
Even when he picked up Sofia and brought her home and listened to her happy, childish chatter, he couldn't shake the memory of Lacy's sad blue eyes when she was telling him that she couldn't have children. And her tears afterward.
"So, Daddy, I want to bring one of my new friends home after school. We can play right here. She doesn't have a swing set in her backyard."
"You'll have to ask Mrs. Carson."
"She already said yes."
"Okay, it's fine with me, then."
"Oh, thank you. Daddy!" Sofia gave Holt a big hug and kiss on the cheek.
"Can Hanna come over after school for dinner, too?"
"Sure. We'll have to check with her parents and make a play date that includes dinner." Holt smiled at his little daughter. After knowing about Lacy's problem, he looked at Sofia with a renewed appreciation. Some people never had this opportunity, and he had to acknowledge that he was very lucky, indeed, to have this beautiful child.
Now, if he could only convince Lacy that he felt just as lucky to be with her. He had a monumental task before him, bigger than the vandals' mess in the Sonoran adobe, bigger than renovating the entire historic district. But it was one he would tackle with his whole heart.
The next morning, Lacy waited in her office for Holt. They agreed to meet and go to the juvenile hearing together. Why did this incident have to happen now? Holt's work on the district had finally progressed to a point where others could see a beginning, a possibility. He was planning to start working on the entry fountain soon. It would be spectacular. Now he w
ould have to start again with the cleanup.
She had planned on pointing to their on-going, successful projects when requesting future funds. By showing their own bootstrap efforts, Lacy felt that she could persuade more entrepreneurs to invest in Silver Creek's future.
Her deep concern was what this vandalism detour would do to Holt's drive and enthusiasm. Would he quit? Would he become convinced at some point that this town wasn't worth his efforts? Would he decide they didn't appreciate his hard work enough to value it—and him? She shook off the depressing thoughts. Now, more than ever, she wanted him to stay. They needed him. She needed him.
A quick knock on the door interrupted her private angst. "Yes Holt, I'm right there."
A vision in pink coveralls entered, with Holt a few steps behind. "Hi Mayor, I'm June. Remember me?"
Lacy nodded. "You fixed the AC."
"Yep. Well, I'm here to see when you can talk to me and my daddy. He has this property and – "
Lacy interrupted. "Sorry, June, but I don't have time now. Give me a call and set up an appointment."
"Believe me honey, I've tried. You are the most unavailable person I know."
Lacy handed her a card. "I've been really busy. Please give me another call and we'll set a time."
June looked at the card and pressed her lips together. "Can't set a time now, while I'm here?"
Lacy shook her head. "Sorry, I've got a meeting right now with the judge."
June backed out, almost running into Holt. "Oh, excuse me." And the pink vision in coveralls was gone.
Lacy immediately forgot about June and her daddy. "Holt, I wanted to talk to you about something you said last night."
"About us?"
"About the vandals. Roman and his uh, I assume his girlfriend. How you'd like to make them restore the building. Do you mean that?"
"Yes. I would like them to know how much hard work went into the place. They've ruined it."
"There's only one way for them to really know. That's for them to have hands-on experience."
"Right."
"But they would need supervision."
"You mean, from me? Work here?"
She nodded. "Would you be willing to supervise, to help them? Only you know how it really should be done."
"Well, I—" he propped his hands on his hips "—I guess so." He exhaled and thought about it for a minute. "Sure, why not?"
"Without losing your cool with them?" It was a lot to ask of a man as physical as Holt. Yet she knew he wasn't a violent man. "Why don't we mention it to Judge Corona at the hearing? Maybe she'll agree to a cleanup as their punishment. Realistically, we won't get any actual money payment out of them. And putting them in juvenile detention doesn't seem to be the answer in this case. The best punishment is to make them work."
"And maybe they'll learn some appreciation in the process? I doubt it."
"But it's worth a try." Lacy smiled. "You come up with the best solutions, Holt."
"Me? This was your idea."
"But you said it last night."
"The only thing I remember about last night was your kiss. And how much I missed you in my bed."
She nodded curtly. "I think we'd better go. It's almost time for the hearing." She led the way upstairs, where the courtrooms were located. Outside the magistrate's room, Lacy recognized a local attorney.
"Hello, Lewis. Are you here on this juvenile case?"
"Lacy, good to see you," he responded. "I'm the court-appointed lawyer representing the defendants."
She turned to introduced Holt. "Lewis Orlando, I want you to met Holt Henderson. He's the construction engineer on the historical renovation."
Lewis shook hands with Holt. "My pleasure. Was this vandalism on one of the buildings you're remodeling?"
Holt nodded. "We'd just cleaned it out, ready to go to work on the renovation."
Lewis grimaced. "Damned kids. . . "
"Holt has a recommendation that I hope you'll go along with."
"What's that, Lacy?"
"If the judge will agree to probation, we'd like them to be assigned to community service so they can be the ones to clean up their own mess. That may give them a better appreciation of the hard work it took to clean out the building and of the value of others' property."
"Sounds reasonable. I'll see if we can swing it, Lacy. They don't have a record. You know one is a girl. Looks like they got caught before doing something that might produce another kid for the county to take care of." He nodded to them both. "Nice meeting you. Holt. See you in court."
Lacy glanced at Holt and muttered between her teeth. "He's such a jerk."
Holt shook his head and clinched his jaw. "All I say is that if the girl made the mess, she can clean it up, too."
Lacy sighed, thinking that maybe all men had jerk tendencies. "This is a symptom, don't you see?"
Holt shrugged.
They followed Lewis Orlando into the magistrate's room, where the juvenile proceedings would be conducted informally.
As the county attorney presented his case against Roman Barrios and Sherri Vitale, Holt leaned close to Lacy's ear and whispered, "Do you know the girl? What's her story?"
"Don't know her, but I did a little investigating. Sherri's mom died a couple of years ago, leaving her in charge of her four brothers and sisters. There's her father." She nodded to a scruffy man with graying hair. "He's a miner, jobless since the mine closed."
"And who knows for sure about Roman?"
"He said he lives with his aunt. Has a little sis."
Holt furrowed his brow, then turned his attention to the deputy, who was describing to the judge how he caught them.
"Sheriff Meyer instructed me to patrol the historic district more frequently when evidence was found that some vagrants had been sleeping and building fires in one of the empty buildings. So, I drove by regularly, according to his instructions. Just after dark last night, I found these kids climbing out of one of the open windows of the old adobe building. One of them had a can of spray paint stuffed in her coat pocket."
Lacy glanced at Holt with a forlorn expression. The evidence was condemning.
Lewis Orlando, the youth's court-appointed lawyer, stood and faced Judge Corona for his defense. "Since this is the first offense for them, Your Honor, I recommend probation. The mayor suggests that we give the youths some much-needed community service. Make them clean up the spray paint and the garbage they distributed in that building. Perhaps if they do a little work, it'll make them realize how this damage affects this whole town."
Judge Corona nodded and looked over at Lacy. "You agree, Mayor Donahue?"
"Yes, Your Honor. The engineer in charge of the renovation project, Holt Henderson, has already agreed to supervise their work."
Judge Corona squinted at Holt. "That so, Mr. Henderson?"
Holt took a step forward. "Yes, Your Honor. I'll put them on a work detail after school every day."
The judge nodded, then turned her stern attention to the girl's father. "Are you responsible for Sherri Vitale?"
"Yes Ma'am, Your Honor."
The Judge looked around. "Who is responsible for Roman Barrios?"
Silence as everyone looked around.
Roman shuffled his feet and stood. "My aunt was, ah, too sick to come today, Your Honor. But she said to tell everyone it won't happen again. If you'll just let us go."
Judge Corona sighed and shook her head. She obviously didn't believe him, but there was no proof otherwise. "All right then. I want to make sure these two kids report to Mr. Henderson every afternoon after school for the next month. Who will be responsible for Roman?"
Lacy stood. "I will, Your Honor." She gave Roman a glare. "I'll make sure he's there after school."
The judge seemed satisfied and directed her next order to Roman and Sherri. "As your punishment for the crime of vandalism, you are to clean the whole building, the mess you made, including the paint. In addition, you are to carry out whatever other work Mr. Henderso
n has for you for a month. Do you understand?"
The two nodded in agreement.
When the judge was finished with a long warning lecture, Lacy spoke with Sherri’s dad. Holt walked forward to meet with the teens. Considering his earlier rage, he felt very calm now. They would be working toward a decent goal. He would see to it. That was enough compensation for him. "You? Roman? How could you do this? Why?"
Roman shuffled his feet and looked down. "Didn't mean no real harm, man." He shrugged and looked up with a grin, which Holt took to be a defense mechanism. "Didn't have nothing else to do, I guess. But Sherri, she didn't do nothing. Just came along for the ride."
"Nice of you to defend her, but she needs to learn to the hard facts of what might get her in trouble. And that's you, man," Holt said with a hard edge to his voice. "I think you’ve got too much free time on your hands. We won't be worrying about this problem again, because I'm going to see that you stay busy from now on. You'll be so tired when you finish working for me, you'll be glad to go home and fall into bed." He shook hands with Roman, then turned to Sherri and extended his hand.
Under The Desert Sky (Desert Sky Series) Page 12