Room at the Inn (Bellingwood #5.5)

by Diane Greenwood Muir

  "What's that in the middle?" Polly asked.

  "I think it was a swimming pool, but the city filled it in."

  "I don't want to be responsible for something like that."

  "We could create a garden, maybe plant a sycamore tree."

  "I'm going to sound like a nerd, but this is really neat."

  "This place has been falling apart for years. It hasn’t been in use since the late seventies. They've had trouble with transients so I don't know it’s like inside. It's probably a horrible mess."

  Polly began to feel the same excitement as when she decided to renovate Sycamore House. She and Henry had so much fun planning and working through the process. He figured out a way to make all of her craziest ideas become reality and she was starting to imagine the possibilities for this building. This was going to be huge, though. It changed everything about what she thought she was doing in Bellingwood. When this was ready, it would mean she ... and Henry ... would be business owners.

  Sycamore House was more an extension of herself than a separate business. Owning a hotel would change all of that. Was she ready to run a hotel? What would Jeff think? He had the hospitality background. Would he think she was nuts?

  "Are you in there?" Henry asked.

  "I'm thinking. Do you mind if I get out and wander around? You go talk to Nate about the car while I explore."

  "Don't you dare go inside any of those rooms. I don't want to worry about you hurting yourself or running into an animal or even a person. Promise?"

  Polly crossed her heart. "I promise. But I am going to look in windows. I want to get a feel for it."

  Before he could say anything else, she unbuckled her seatbelt, leaned across the cab of the truck and kissed him. "I'll be careful." She jumped out of the truck and closed the door, then waited while he drove off. She had forgotten her gloves, so she jammed her hands in her coat pockets and walked the inside of the complex. Peering in the window of the first room, she was struck at how big it was. All of the original furniture was still there. It was hideous stuff, from the nineteen fifties at least. The curtains were still hanging, a horrible brown, orange and green print.

  The dirt pile in the old swimming pool had never been flattened and she wondered if Henry really knew what he was getting into. Polly desperately wanted to get into the caretaker’s house. She walked up a set of rickety steps in the back, praying that they wouldn't give way, and looked in the window. Ancient appliances were still in place. The linoleum covered table looked like one she remembered from some friend's homes when she grew up. She gingerly went back down the steps, knowing that if she hurt herself, Henry wouldn't let her hear the end of it.

  There was a counter in the front room and two round tables. An old sofa faced a fireplace. Metal patio furniture was barely bolted to the cement in front of the main window. The bolts were rusty and when she pushed on the table, it creaked and moaned. There was no reason this place couldn't be renovated into something quaint and wonderful.

  She laughed out loud. "You great, big brat, Henry Sturtz. You give me trouble about rescuing the world and now you ask me to rescue a building. I'm going to make this one hurt!"

  Polly rounded the corner and saw Henry and Nate Mikkels standing over the engine talking to each other. The hood was up and they were both rubbing their hands for warmth as they talked.

  "What did you find?" she called out.

  "Nate says he can fix it. We need to get some parts on Monday. Are you okay with them staying for a couple of nights?"

  "It's fine with me if they aren't in a terrible hurry to move on. How are you going to get it over there?"

  "Aaron has a truck coming to tow it to Nate's garage. I'll take you home and talk to Jose about what we're doing."

  "Are you rescuing a car, Henry Sturtz?" Polly asked.

  Nate looked back and forth between the two of them, with a slight smile.

  "I guess I am," Henry laughed. He shook Nate's hand. "I'll talk to you later, brother. Thanks for helping out with this."

  "I'm glad to do it. I have all the equipment and the tools. I might as well use them for good. See you later, Polly."

  Nate drove away and Polly hopped up into Henry's truck. When he turned it on and the heat surged through the air, she rubbed her hands in front of the vent.

  "So, what do you think of the place?" Henry asked.

  "It has potential, but it's going to take a lot of work. Are you sure you want to rescue this hotel?" she taunted.

  "That's two!" he laughed. "I need to be careful about what I say to you, don't I!"

  "Yes you do," she patted his leg. "If we can make this work, I think it will be fun. Are you ready to be my partner?" Polly batted her eyes at him.

  He removed his gloves and took her cold hand in his warm hands. "I think the idea of being your partner sounds like the greatest adventure in the world."

  "Wow. I was just talking about real estate," she said quietly.

  "So am I. For now. Any partnership with you will be an adventure."

  CHAPTER FOUR

  "Eliseo hasn’t called to tell me the donkeys are here yet. Do you mind if we stop at the Antique Shoppe before going back to Sycamore House?" Polly asked.

  "What are you looking for?"

  "This summer when Sal was here, she fell in love with a little dresser. I wouldn't let her buy it because I couldn't figure out how she was going to get it back to Boston. Since she is driving out for Christmas, I want her to have it."

  Henry turned to go downtown and in a few minutes, he parked in front of the shop. "You go on in. I need to get something at the hardware store."

  The bell hanging on the front door clanged when she opened it and went inside. It smelled like an antique store and she smiled at the man behind the counter. It had been over six months since Sal had seen the dresser and Polly wasn't even sure it would still be here. She walked to where she had last seen it and of course, it was gone. Her heart dropped. She turned around and around, just to make sure it really wasn't there.

  Antique Christmas decorations were scattered throughout the store and Polly stopped to look at an old Santa Claus. She remembered seeing one like it in pictures from her Dad's childhood. The Santa was filled with sawdust and she looked for the Rudolph that was part of the set. Santa had also stood beside a red sleigh. Absentmindedly, she picked him up and carried him with her as she perused the rest of the shop.

  "Could I help you find something?" She was startled by the owner coming up behind her.

  "I was in here several months ago with a friend and there was a lovely little dresser back there," she pointed. "Has it been sold?"

  "Oh no. I moved it over here." He led her the front of the store. If she hadn't been so focused on getting to the back, she would have seen it. "I've had it for quite a while, so I lowered the price."

  "I'll take it!" she said. "And I'll take this Santa Claus, too. My father had one like it when he was a child. The pictures show it with a red sleigh and a Rudolph. You don't have those, do you?"

  "I might have a sleigh, but no Rudolph."

  "That's fine," she said. "I'll just take Santa."

  She ran her hand over the dresser top. She couldn't wait to give it to Sal. Last year, Christmas gifts had been the last thing on her mind. Polly had been so focused on getting the business of Sycamore House going, she hadn't had time to think about it.

  Everything felt different now. This year there were so many people in her life and Christmas was a perfect opportunity to tell them how much they meant to her.

  The bell on the door clanged again and Henry walked in. "Hello, Simon," he said. "Did she find what she was looking for?"

  "It's right here," the man replied. "She’s buying one of my favorite pieces."

  "You say that about everything. It's a wonder you make any money. We all know the only reason you have a shop is because your wife won't let you keep all of these things in your house."

  "You be quiet, young man. Now, are you going to carry t
his for her or will you make me do the heavy lifting?"

  Henry chuckled, "If you take the drawers, Polly, I will carry this to my truck."

  The store owner pulled the three small drawers out and Polly took two. She tucked the Santa under her arm and followed Henry to his truck. They loaded it and when she turned around to thank the owner, he was coming back with a red sleigh in his hand.

  "You need this for Santa Claus. Take it."

  "You don't have to do this," she protested.

  "It's Christmas. Santa needs his sleigh."

  "Thank you very much." She took the sleigh and then reached out to shake his hand. "Merry Christmas!"

  "He's a nice old man," she said to Henry when the truck doors were shut. "He didn't need to give this to me."

  "He was flirting with you, Polly. And if I'm not being too cynical, don't you think you'll buy more from him?"

  "Of course I will!" Then she laughed, "Oh. Of course I will. That was as shrewd as it was nice."

  "He's been in this business a long time. It was a very nice thing that he did, and he ensured that you would be a customer for life."

  When they got back to Sycamore House, Henry carried the dresser into the garage, tucking it up against the wall. Polly slid the bottom drawer in and then the middle drawer while Henry grabbed the last one from the bed of his truck. He handed it to her and when she attempted to slide it in, met with some resistance.

  "I must have these in the wrong order." She shifted them around and when attempting to put a drawer in the top slot, met resistance again. "Or there's something wrong with this."

  Polly pulled the drawer out and looked inside. She couldn't see anything along the sides, but there was something hanging down from the top of the piece. She reached in and tugged on it, feeling it finally give way with a little effort.

  "What do you have there?" Henry asked.

  "It's a package. There's no address on it or anything, but it was stuck to the top of the dresser."

  "Maybe it's advertising from the company who built this."

  "That's probably it," she said and slid the final drawer into place. She grinned to herself as she placed the package on top of the dresser and began to walk toward the door to go inside.

  "Aren't you going to open it?" he asked.

  "You're probably right. It's nothing. It will be fine. I'll just make sure it goes with Sal, too." She did her best not to laugh out loud as she put her hand on the door handle.

  "You don't fool me," Henry said, picking up the package and following her inside. "You are as curious as I am about this."

  "I don't know what you mean. You gave me a perfectly plausible explanation and since I think you're the smartest man in the world, it must be true."

  Henry reached out to take her arm and she pulled away, running for her apartment door. He chased her up the steps, as she ran up and through the bedroom, coming to a lurching stop in her living room. Sylvie and her boys were hovering over Maria Rivera and her child while the baby wailed.

  "What's wrong?" Polly asked.

  "He won't stop crying," Andrew said. "He started after you left and they've done everything. I went down and got Mom."

  "He's got a fever, Polly," Sylvie said. "I think it's pretty high. Do you have a thermometer in your bathroom?"

  "I think so, but if he's sick, we should get him to someone who can help. I don't know anybody in town, do you?"

  Sylvie nodded. "You bet I do. Doctor Mason knows my boys very well. Let me call his office."

  Polly dashed into her bathroom to find the thermometer. She was never sick and didn't know if she could even put her hands on it. And then, there it was, still in the original packaging.

  Cracking the plastic wrapping open as she went back into the living room, she handed it to Sylvie, who knelt beside Maria. The baby squalled and finally Sylvie stood back up. "It's over one hundred and one degrees. He needs to see a doctor."

  She stepped back and pulled out her phone, then walked into the entryway to talk. When she returned, she said to Jose, "You and Maria need to take the baby to a doctor. Polly can get you there and he's waiting for you."

  He spoke to his wife and if they could, her eyes filled with more fear than before. "We have nothing to pay," he stammered.

  "It's not important. The baby needs a doctor. Today. Polly, warm up your truck." When Sylvie began giving orders, Polly knew things would happen. Jose Rivera’s lack of funds and Maria's lack of English couldn't stop that train from rolling forward.

  "My truck is already warm," Henry interrupted. "And there is more room in it. I can take them. Polly, will you go with us?"

  "Sure," she said, setting the package on the table.

  Andrew and Jose left the living room and returned with coats and blankets. It took a few minutes to get the car seat buckled in, but soon everyone was loaded and Henry pulled out of the driveway. Polly was grateful that the medical building was just a couple of blocks away. Between the baby's coughing and crying, she wondered if she would ever be prepared to have children.

  Henry pulled up to the front door and after they were out of the truck, drove off to a parking place. The receptionist smiled in greeting as Polly stepped to her desk. "Is this the family that Sylvie Donovan called about?" she asked.

  "Yes. I'm Polly Giller."

  "Oh, I know who you are," the woman laughed. "My kids loved your Halloween Haunted House. They talked about it for days! I need to get some information from the family, though."

  Polly beckoned to Jose, who was helping his wife and son get comfortable in one of the waiting room chairs and he joined them at the desk. She backed away to give him room to tell their story and stood beside Henry when he came inside.

  "I'm going to be a terrible mother," she whispered. "This freaks me out. The crying, the noise, the worry, the doctor. I don't like it."

  He put his arm around her waist and hugged her tight. "I'm not a big fan either. Any parent who does this several times over and manages to raise their children to adulthood should get a medal."

  "Doctor Mason will see you now," the receptionist said. Jose took the child from his wife and the three of them followed her through a door to the back.

  When she returned to her desk, Polly stepped forward again. "I know they can't afford this, so I want to cover the cost. And let me take care of any medication they need, too."

  The woman waved her off. "Doctor Mason is glad to see people who need him. He won't charge for the office visit. I'll bet this is pneumonia and he'll give them advice and antibiotics. But we'll talk to you before worrying them with any costs."

  "Thank you," Polly said.

  "Aaron didn't expect you to do all of this for them," Henry told her when she sat down beside him.

  "You're right, but what else could I do? They need help."

  "And that's why I love you. It doesn't occur to you to ignore someone who needs help. You just step in and deal with it."

  "Kind of like you and Nate fixing their car?"

  "I guess. Kind of like that."

  She picked up a magazine and idly thumbed through it. After several minutes the door opened again and she saw an older man hold it while Jose and Maria walked through.

  Henry jumped up and said, "I'm going to make sure the truck is warm. I'll be out front in just a minute," and left the office.

  The doctor stopped at the front desk and his receptionist nodded toward Polly. He walked over to her and handed her a slip of paper. "The baby will be fine, but just in case he starts to wheeze or need some help, I've prescribed a nebulizer. The pharmacy has what you need." He touched her shoulder. "Thank you for bringing them in and make sure they stay warm. They shouldn't travel for a few days so the little boy's lungs can heal up." Then he leaned in and said quietly, "I don't believe the heater in their car is working, if I understood him correctly."

  Polly nodded and took the prescription from him. "Thank you for everything."

  "It's my pleasure." He turned back to Jose and Maria. "
Be sure to give him his medication regularly for the next ten days. If he isn't better by Monday, come back and see me."

  "Thank you," Maria said, looking down at her shoes. Her husband shook the doctor's hand and repeated the words.

  Polly saw Henry's truck pull up and touched Maria's elbow, then pointed. The woman smiled at her and held the baby out to Jose so she could put her coat on. After another short trip to Sycamore House, Henry pulled into the garage and Polly shut the door behind them. They got everyone upstairs and the Riveras went back to their room. Maria had dark circles under her eyes and Polly hoped she would sleep. Henry stopped Jose long enough to tell him that he and a friend would fix the car.

  The poor man just kept shaking his head and then shaking Henry's hand. He finally left to join his wife and son.

  "I noticed you didn't tell him you were going to try to fix the car, you told him you would."

  Henry laughed at her, "I learned a lesson from your Star Wars Trek movies. 'Do or do not. There is no try."

  "Star Wars. You know better," she grumbled at him.

  He kissed her on the cheek. "Yes, I do. I also know that saying it wrong makes you crazy. Nate told me there would be no problem getting it running, and I'm confident in his assessment. We'll pick up parts on Monday and it will be good as new."

  "Speaking of that. The doctor said he thought Jose was telling him the heater didn't work in the car. Can you check that out?"

  "I'll tell Nate. I can't imagine driving across the Midwest in December without a working heater. How did they stay warm?"

  "I have no idea," she said. "And don’t be in too much of a hurry to fix it. They need to stay here for a few days to make sure that little Salvador gets better."

  "Got it. Now, if I head over to Nate's, are you going to be okay by yourself around here? Your day has kind of exploded."