Jarillo Sunset

by Constance Bretes

After she hung up from talking to Anita, she called Don Stillwater to apprise him of the situation.

  “Stillwater Realty,” Danica said.

  “Hi, Danica. This is Char. I need to speak to Don right away.”

  “Okay, he’s in, I’ll get him to the phone.”

  “Yes, Char.” Don’s voice came on the other end.

  “Mr. Stillwater, I’m at this house I told you about that had been foreclosed on and the bank wanted me to take a look at.”

  “Yes, what about it?” Don asked in his no-nonsense demeanor.

  “Well, there’s a dead body in the house. The sheriff is here now.”

  “Oh, holy crap, you’ve got to be kidding me,” Don said. “Who discovered the body? You?”

  “Yes, and it’s been there for a while. It was quite a gruesome sight,” Char added, shivering again.

  “Do what you have to do with the sheriff and then get the hell out of there,” Don said.

  “Okay, I will.”

  The medical examiner’s investigator arrived in the medical examiner’s van. The sheriff came back to the car and motioned for Char to roll the window down. “Do you recognize the individual?” he asked her again.

  Char shook her head.

  “Are you sure?”

  “Yes,” Char answered with one eyebrow raised.

  “What is your name, and what is your purpose for being here?” the sheriff asked.

  As Char begin speaking, a deputy came up along the other side of the car and started taking notes.

  “My name is Char Johnson, and I work as a realtor at Stillwater Realty. This house was foreclosed on, and the bank—American One Banking—asked me to go through the house and see what all had to be done to it in order to put it on the market to sell it. I stopped by the bank today, picked up the keys, and came here. I could smell something funky when I got to the door, and when I opened the door, the smell got worse. I walked across the living room to the dining room, and that was when I saw the body lying there.”

  “Ma’am, what time were you at American One Bank?” the deputy asked.

  “I was there about three o’clock this afternoon.” Char wrinkled her nose and put her fingers to both side of the bridge. She felt a headache coming on.

  “What time did you arrive here at the house?” the deputy asked.

  “I got here about three-thirty.” Char looked at her watch.

  “Did you touch the body, or anything in the house?” the deputy asked.

  “What? Oh hell no, I didn’t touch the body. And I didn’t touch anything in the house except the door when I opened it.”

  “Do you know the names of the people that were in the house when it was foreclosed on?” The sheriff looked down at Char.

  “No, but Anita Bakerfield, at American One Banking, will have that information.”

  “Which branch would she be at?” the deputy asked.

  “The one downtown,” Char replied. “Do you know what he died of?”

  “No, the body was too decomposed to make a guess. It will have to be taken to the morgue, and hopefully they’ll be able to identify the victim,” the sheriff said, then added, “I will need to have your name, address, and phone numbers in case we have more questions to ask you.”

  Char gave the deputy her business card, and her personal cellphone number and home address.

  The sheriff, the deputy, and Char all watched as the medical examiner’s investigator brought the body out in a body bag and loaded the gurney into the van and left the scene. Char hadn’t realized until then that hordes of people had surrounded the area and were gawking and talking about what was going on.

  Chapter 5

  Vincent decided to wear a black leather blazer with black dress pants, and his Native American breastplate along with black boots. He was wondering for the umpteenth time if he should just call Char and cancel. However, he would confess to no one that he really was looking forward to being with her tonight.

  Vincent arrived at Char’s apartment and knocked. Char opened the door and smiled at him. “Hi, Vincent. Come on in. I just have to grab my purse and I’ll be ready to go.”

  “Okay.”

  It was a good thing she was talking, otherwise he would have just stood there gawking at her. She had a beautiful dress on. It definitely showed the contours of her body. She had matching orange stilettos, and her hair was back in a French braid again, with a pretty flower barrette on one side.

  He looked around her apartment and saw that she liked elegant but simple things. Her furniture was soft black leather and consisted of one couch and one recliner, with two end tables and a long table in front of the couch. A lamp sat on each end table. She had a small, flat screen television, and a couple of plants in front of the sliding glass door that went out onto a patio porch. There was a desk in the corner with a computer on it and files folders neatly stacked beside it. A large abstract painting of black, gray, and white hung on the wall above her couch. There was a small dining area with a table and two chairs. He couldn’t see the kitchen or the bathroom and bedroom, but he figured they were probably simple but elegant also.

  * * * *

  As Char came down the hallway toward Vincent, her heart quickened and she was struck again by how handsome he was. He had on a beautiful suit, and a Native American breastplate.

  “You look really good in that suit,” Char said.

  “Thank you,” he said appreciatively. “You look lovely in that dress.”

  Char smiled. “Thank you. Well, I’m ready if you are.”

  “Okay, let’s go.” Vincent opened the door to her apartment and they stepped into the hallway.

  They walked to the parking lot and got into Vincent’s SUV. As he backed out, he asked, “How was your week?”

  Char pressed her lips together as she thought about how to answer the question. She didn’t want to start harping on all the problems she had at work. “It went okay. I got two listings this week, plus I may have made a sale. I’m taking a man to look at the house across the street from you on Monday.”

  “That was fast,” Vincent remarked.

  “Yeah, I think it’s a good sign. I ran into him a few days ago at the grocery store. He was looking at homes in the housing magazine and I struck up a conversation with him.”

  “You go out after your clients like that?” Vincent asked, looking at her sideways.

  “Yeah, sometimes you have to. With all the pressure that’s on me right now, I get them any way I can.”

  “From what I understand, the housing market isn’t doing very good right now.” Vincent turned down the main road to downtown Jarillo.

  “It isn’t, and that adds to the stress,” Char said as she thought about the pressure she was under with her boss telling her she may lose her job.

  Vincent pulled into the church parking lot.

  “Wow, I guess you were right. The whole town is here,” Char said as she looked around the packed parking lot. “Are these people well-known around here?”

  “Yeah.” He looked at her surprised. “You don’t know whose wedding it is?”

  “Um, no, you didn’t tell me.”

  “Jennifer Summers and Jake Ackerson.” Vincent winked.

  “What! As in Jennifer Summers the pop recording artist?” Char said.

  “The one and the same.” Vincent grinned.

  “Oh, how cool is that? I’m seeing the wedding of a popular recording artist!”

  “I’m surprised you didn’t know. Everyone in Jarillo knows about the wedding,” Vincent said as he maneuvered the SUV into a parking space.

  “Most everything I do, I do in Hobbs. I don’t come to Jarillo much, and I don’t really pay much attention to the town itself. Although I suppose I should since I seem to be picking up clients here.”

  “It’s all over the tabloids,” Vincent said quietly.

  “I don’t read the tabloids.”

  “It was in the newspaper.”

  “I must have missed it. However, I lov
e Jennifer Summers,” Char replied. “I have several of her CDs.”

  “She has a wonderful voice.”

  They got out and walked side by side to the church. Jarillo Baptist Church was an old stone structure with a steeple and an old bell at the top of the steeple. The church looked like it was built around the early 1900s and had limited seating. It had a choir loft area behind the pulpit, and a baptismal tub behind the choir loft. There was also an organ, a piano, keyboards, and room for various other instruments.

  A man who was dressed in a black, long-tail tuxedo with a Native American breastplate walked up to Vincent and shook his hand. “Hey Vince, how’s it going?” he asked as he looked over at Char.

  “Going good. How are you doing?” Vincent asked.

  “Nervous as hell. Oops, excuse me,” he said as he looked around to see where the minister was. “But otherwise doing real good.” He smiled sheepishly. “Who’s your date?”

  “Char, this is Jake, the groom. Jake, meet Char Johnson.”

  “Nice to meet you, Char.” Jake shook her hand.

  “Likewise. I didn’t realize I was coming to your wedding until we got here,” Char said excitedly.

  “Really? How long have you two known each other?” Jake asked, amused.

  “We just met last week,” Vincent explained. “I stopped and fixed her flat tire, and she wanted to return the favor so she agreed to come with me today.”

  Jake gave Vincent a knowing, rakish smile and then excused himself when an older gentleman motioned for him to come over.

  Another man walked up to them. He was also dressed in a black, long-tail tuxedo with a Native American breastplate. “You’ve been keeping this one hidden from us,” he said to Vincent as he looked Char over.

  “I just met her last week,” Vincent said, smiling.

  “Aren’t you going to introduce us?” he asked.

  “I don’t know if I should,” Vincent said. “Where are your wife and kid?”

  He smiled. “Sitting down in the pews.”

  Vincent let out a sigh. “Okay, Calvin, this is Char Johnson. Char, this is Jake’s best man, Calvin Hathaway. He’s very much married,” Vincent added with great emphasis.

  Char and Calvin both laughed.

  “Are you ready to be seated?” Calvin asked Vincent and Char.

  “Yeah, we’re ready,” Vincent said.

  Calvin offered Char his arm and walked her down to the fourth row with Vincent following. They sat down and Char whispered over to Vincent, “This ought to be really spectacular. I bet Jennifer will be a beautiful bride.”

  “I’m sure she will be.”

  “So how do you know Jennifer Summers and Jake Ackerson?” Char asked.

  “I play bass for the band White Sands, and Jake is the drummer and leader of the band. Jennifer used to sing for the band about five or six years ago before she went on to become a big star.”

  “Wow, and what, did she come back to Jake?” Char asked with stars in her eyes, hoping it was like a fairy-tale wedding.

  “She came back to settle her parents’ estate. While she was here, she and Jake rekindled their relationship and now they’re getting married.”

  “How romantic.”

  Another couple were seated behind Vincent and Char. Vincent turned around and introduced them. “Char, this is my sister Debbie, and Bruce Spinner. Bruce also plays in the band.”

  Char held out her hand to shake Bruce’s. “Nice to meet both of you,” Char said and smiled.

  “Likewise,” Bruce replied, returning the smile.

  Char noticed that Debbie was pregnant and asked her.

  “When are you due?”

  “In another month.”

  “It must be so exciting. Do you know the sex of the baby or do you want to be surprised?”

  “I wanted to wait, but at the last ultrasound the technician made a mistake and said that ‘she’ was doing great.” Debbie smiled.

  “I could tell by the picture of the ultrasound that she was a girl,” Vincent said, smiling teasingly.

  “Oh, you could not.” Debbie laughed.

  The music began to change, and the minister came up to the center of the pulpit. Then Jake and Calvin came and stood on the right side of the pulpit. The piano started the march for the maid of honor. After she reached the pulpit, she stepped over to the left and the piano went into the wedding march. Everyone stood up and turned to watch the bride and the older man who was giving her away. They walked down the aisle with her hand on his arm.

  “Wow, she’s gorgeous,” Char whispered to Vincent.

  Jennifer was wearing a beautiful sequin and pearl white wedding dress. She had a long, lacy train behind her. Her blonde hair had highlights, and she had soft curls down her back. She had on a princess-like tiara with lace over the front and back of her. The neckline of the dress was low, the sheer netting covered up to her neck where there was a nice lacy ribbon that went around her neck.

  The minister asked who was giving the bride away in marriage and the older man stated that he was. The minister began by talking about the sanctity of marriage and what it meant in God’s eyes. After he was finished, a woman stepped forward and sang a love song. While she was singing, Jake leaned over as if he was whispering little love nothings in Jennifer’s ears.

  Finally, the vocalist was finished and the minister did the wedding vows and then pronounced them husband and wife. The minister told Jake that he could kiss the bride, and he lifted her veil and took her in his arms and kissed her.

  After the ceremony, the bride and groom walked down the aisle to the back of the church. The ushers asked the people to stay in their seats as the bride and groom were going to come back down and greet everyone.

  The photographer who had been snapping photos throughout the ceremony got set up to take pictures of the bride and groom as they greeted the guests. When they got to Vincent and Char’s row, Char stood up along with Vincent, and walked to them. She shook hands with Jake and said to Jennifer, “You are even more beautiful than any of the pictures that have been taken of you.”

  Jennifer smiled. “Thank you.”

  Vincent shook Jake’s hand and then stepped over to Jennifer and kissed her cheek.

  Jennifer threw her arms around Vincent’s neck and told him, “Thank you for coming to our wedding and for your support through the years. You’re a wonderful, dear friend.”

  Vincent smiled and said somberly, “You’re welcome.”

  * * * *

  Char and Vincent walked down the aisle toward the back of the church.

  Calvin hollered out to them. “Hey Vincent, are you headed to the VFW?”

  “Yeah, why?” Vincent asked.

  “We’re gonna be tied up here for a bit with pictures, and I just wanted to see if you can keep an eye on things until we get there.”

  “Sure,” Vincent said.

  Vincent and Char walked over to the VFW, which was a couple of doors down from the church. They headed toward the reception area. It was decorated with white and red roses. Some people had already arrived and were having a drink and eating hors d’oeuvres.

  There were eight foot-long tables in rows along both sides of the room, and the bride and groom, best man and matron of honor were to be seated at the head table at the front and center. Char and Vincent found a place to sit about four rows down the left side, and Vincent asked, “Do you want a drink?”

  Char intertwined her fingers and thought for a second. “Yes, I’d like a strawberry wine cooler if they have it.” She smiled up at him.

  “Okay. If you want something to eat, help yourself to the hors d’oeuvres while I get the drinks.”

  “Okay.” Char got up and walked to the table and looked over the food. She picked a few vegetables and put them on a plate, along with some cheese and crackers, and then made her way back to the table.

  Vincent returned shortly with a strawberry wine cooler for Char and a scotch and water for himself. He went over and grabbed some vege
tables then took a seat across the table from Char.

  “Do you have another kind of day job?” Char asked Vincent. She was glad that he sat across from her. That way she could have his undivided attention.

  “Yes, I tend bar at the Apache White Eagle Casino from four AM until ten AM.” Vincent took a bite of a carrot.

  “Where do you play with the band?” Char asked. “I didn’t know there were a lot of places in this side of the state that you could play in.”

  “We play mostly at Apache White Eagle. We have a standing gig with the casino to play there every weekend unless we get to play at a different place or they have a big star come in. Jake, our band leader and today’s groom, is also CEO at the casino. The casino has alcoves there, as well as a music theatre. Since Jennifer’s been back, we’ve been using the music theatre at least one night a week and also going across the state to other casinos and venues.”

  Char took a few minutes to digest the information. She immediately thought of her dad and his addiction to gambling. She remarked casually, “I’ll have to go to the casino and listen to you guys play.” Char looked into Vincent’s eyes. There was something in his eyes that made her think he was reluctant to either encourage her or discourage her from coming to the casino.

  “You’re more than welcome to come and see us play. You can let one of the security people that stand along the sides of the alcoves and the theatre stage know you’re there with me and they will come and ask if you can come back. We have an area where we can go and rest during our fifteen minute break.” Vincent asked Char, “How long have you been in real estate?”

  “Seven years. I started in Michigan, and came to New Mexico about two and a half years ago. I got hired at Stillwater Realty and moved here.”

  “From Michigan, huh? Why such a big move?” Vincent asked.

  “Michigan is still going through a single state recession, and when the bottom dropped out of the housing market, it hit Michigan really hard. There just wasn’t any work, and since my income is based on a percentage of sales, it hit my pocketbook pretty hard.”

  “Are you doing good here?”

  “I’m doing okay. I get about two homes a week to list, if that. But it’s much better than it was in Michigan. The thing is though, I have worked really, really hard to get the business that I do get. The competition is so bad at Stillwater right now, it’s a dog-eat-dog environment.”