by Tim Myers
Greg added, “It’s a three-and-a-half-carat Russian Alexandrite stone set in Mexican gold. It’s worth a small fortune.”
Denise said, “It’s more than that. It’s my engagement ring.”
Alex said, “I’m sorry, I didn’t see it when I was cleaning yesterday. I don’t know how to tell you this, but we had some other folks stay in that room last night.”
“Oh, no.” Denise looked shattered.
Alex said, “Let’s go upstairs and check anyway. We might have missed it.”
“I can’t believe it’s gone,” Denise said.
Greg tried to comfort his wife. “It’s probably still up there, Honey. We’ll find it.”
Alex had his doubts, but he kept them to himself. He grabbed his master key and they went upstairs. Thirty minutes later they’d torn the room apart, but still no ring.
Alex was about to admit it was a lost cause when he saw something glittering on an old iron filigree hanging on the wall that served as a curtain stay. He walked over, and to his amazement, it was indeed the missing ring.
Denise hugged him when he presented it to her. “You’re a genius. Where was it?”
Alex showed the couple where it had been. Denise said, “I remember now. I took it off to take a bath, then Greg, you called me from the other room. I put it there so I wouldn’t forget it, if you can believe that.”
Greg smiled. “Sure, blame the husband, take the easy way out.”
Alex surveyed the mess they’d created and said, “It’s getting too late to drive anywhere and the room’s free for the night. Let me get this cleaned up and you’re welcome to spend the night here, with my compliments.”
Denise said, “We’d love to, but friends are expecting us in Charlotte tonight. We’ll stay and help clean up before we go, though.”
Alex shook his head. “I can handle this. Why don’t you two go ahead? And enjoy the rest of your vacation.”
“Oh, we will,” Denise said happily. “And we’re even going to come back next year.”
Greg said, “Thanks, Alex. I can’t tell you how much this means to us.”
Elise showed up as Greg and Denise were leaving.
“What happened?” she asked.
“Denise lost her engagement ring, but the panic is over. We found it.”
She followed Alex back upstairs, and they had the room back in neat order in no time.
Elise said, “There’s never a dull moment around here, is there? Good night.”
“Good night,” Alex answered, though he had hoped their late night proximity would ease some of the discomfort between them.
No such luck.
It appeared that the damage they’d done was irreversible.
Chapter 14
“Well, the celebrity arrives,” Elise said as Alex walked into the lobby the next morning.
“What are you talking about?” Alex asked.
She showed him the newspaper, and he was appalled to see that Logan, that newshound, had used two of the shots he’d taken in the auditorium. Side by side, there were photos of Tracy fainted dead away in Conner’s arms, and then one with the hanged dummy leering down at them. Alex was in one corner of the first photo, reaching a hand out to Tracy.
Blast it all! “I can’t believe he’d stoop to this kind of journalism,” Alex said.
Elise said, “The caption’s almost as bad as the photographs are.”
Alex looked at the bold headlines and felt his face grow hot.
It said, fainting candidate needs different kind of support in screaming black letters.
Oh, no. Alex couldn’t believe the part the newspaper was playing in destroying the last shred of hope for Tracy’s campaign.
“Listen, she was the victim here,” Alex said.
“Don’t you think I realize that, Alex? Everybody who matters knows that Tracy had every right to be frightened. Still, the picture of her passed out in Conner’s arms isn’t going to help matters. Elkton Falls is a pretty conservative place.”
“What about Conner? It could hurt him too, couldn’t it?”
Elise shook her head. “It’s pretty obvious the paper’s backing him. The story implies that he was just caring for his ex-wife in her time of need. It makes Tracy look like some kind of weakling, though not in words that are obvious. No, they’ve done a masterful job.”
Alex said, “I won’t stand for it. There’s got to be something I can do.”
The phone rang, and Alex grabbed it.
Mir was on the other end. “Hey. Alex. That press coverage was pretty bad, wasn’t it?”
“You saw the paper,” Alex said.
“Man, everybody in Elkton Falls saw it. I was over at Buck’s for breakfast. You wouldn’t believe the buzzing. It sounded like somebody let a hive loose in there.”
“Are the reactions all bad?” Alex asked already afraid he knew the answer.
“Not from what I heard. Sounds to me like folks are pretty evenly split. I don’t think the newspaper fooled them, or swayed anybody at all. The kudzu vine had already spread the truth about the real story about the mannequin, and folks are pretty riled up about the newspaper painting Tracy so badly. It actually might have helped her, to be honest with you. Nobody likes a bully.”
Alex said, “That’s the best news I’ve heard all day. Keep your ears open, would you?”
“I can’t help myself,” he said before hanging up.
Elise asked, “Who was that?”
“Mor was reporting in from the diner. Seems the smear might have backfired. Tracy’s still in the running.”
Elise nodded. “I’m glad to hear it. Now I’d better get started on Dual. And Alex,” she added, her voice trailing off.
“Yes?” he asked.
“I know you want to rake the newspaper editors and the photographer who took those pictures over the coals, but don’t. We don’t need any more bad publicity for the inn, do we?” Her words were softened with a smile.
“I promise, I’ll do my best to be good.”
“That’s the spirit,” she said.
Another crisis averted, he thought to himself as he started cleaning up after the breakfast bar.
But Alex knew the day was still young, and there was a lot more time for mischief before the sun set.
Alex was checking over the guest register, wondering how they were going to keep the inn full now that they were back to full capacity. Advertising was a necessary evil, since his word-of-mouth trade wasn’t enough to keep them fully booked, but it was a part of the job Alex really didn’t care for. It was frustrating knowing that part of his budget for ads was wasted. If he was being honest with himself, what really bothered him was that he couldn’t know for sure which ads worked and which didn’t, even using the suite number ploy on the return address. Truth be told, most folks forgot to include his carefully disguised tracking information when they made their reservations.
Lenora approached with a sketchbook under one arm and asked, “Why the frown, Alex?”
“Nothing, it’s just the innkeeper’s scourge; paperwork,” he said, trying to ease the tension in his face.
She nodded. “What you need is some fresh air. How about a thirty-minute break so I can make a few quick sketches?”
“You’re relentless, you know that, don’t you?”
Lenora smiled softly. “When it’s important to me, I certainly can be.”
Alex shrugged. “Okay, but I can only give you fifteen minutes. I mean it, that’s it.”
“I’ll gladly take whatever I can get,” she said.
Alex thought about tracking Elise down to tell her where he would be, but he finally decided he was just too embarrassed to admit that he’d be away from his duties so he could model.
He settled for a sign on the desk that said, ‘Back Soon,’ and they went outside.
“Where would you like to do this, the top of the lighthouse?” he asked.
“Not today. The light should be perfect at Bear Rocks for our session.”
“Suits me,” Alex said. Bear Rocks was a part of Winston land, an outcropping of granite worn away by erosion, leaving shoots, slides, and passageways through the rocks. Next to the lighthouse, it was his favorite place on earth. How he was to have both at his doorstep, even luckier that he owned them. It was time yet again for him to his blessings. He had his health, his family land, and friends he cared about.
Lenora broke into his thoughts. “You’re quiet today. Anything I can help you with? I’m told I’m easy to talk to.”
“No, everything’s fine,” he said as they cut through die path that connected Bear Rocks to the lighthouse and inn area. Alex owed its neatly sculpted condition to an amateur landscapes a man who had transformed the grounds of Hatteras West into a garden spot, and Alex missed the man’s deft touch with a pair of pruning shears. He knew that it wouldn’t be long before the wildness of the place began to grow back.
“You and Elise are having your own problems, aren’t you?” Lenora asked. Her question was soft, but the inflection showed she cared about his answer.
“I guess we were both expecting too much,” he admitted. Usually it was other people who opened up to Alex, but this woman had an empathy in her that startled him. After she had him posed on Mamma Bear, one of his favorite formations that formed a cradle for the warming sun, Alex found himself telling Lenora all about his history with Elise. There was none of that foolishness about keeping deadly still, and Alex found himself forgetting that he was even posing, he was so engrossed in telling her all that had transpired between him and Elise since she’d first come to Hatteras West in the back of Sheriff Armstrong’s squad car looking for work as a maid.
Finally, as Lenora put a last stroke onto the paper, she said. “Alex, it’s difficult changing a relationship once it’s established, but there’s one thing you must remember.”
“What’s that?” he asked.
“It’s not impossible. You just have to be patient.”
He nodded. “That’s what Elise has been telling me, but I’m beginning to have my doubts.”
She laughed. “Doubts are for the weak of heart, Alex, and you’re certainly not that. Sometimes it’s hard for a man of action to simply wait.”
Lenora sketched some more, then said, “Your mayor certainly likes to tour Elkton Falls, doesn’t he?”
“Yeah, Grady’s been everywhere lately. Why, where did you see him?”
“Just yesterday I was out at your pond sketching some waterfowl, and I saw him deep in conversation with another man. I didn’t recognize him until I saw today’s paper. I believe it was Conner Shook, and from the look of things at the pond, the two of them weren’t exactly getting along.”
Alex said, “Conner could make a teddy bear mad.”
“The mayor was not happy, I can agree with that. He seemed intimidated.”
Alex said, “I bet I know why. Grady promised to stay out of the mayoral race, but it sounds as though Conner’s putting pressure on him for an endorsement. Tracy told me he probably would once he took over the nomination.”
“That’s why I stay away from the political world,” Lenora said as she pondered adding a line, then put her charcoal down. “It is a field of endeavor founded on confrontation.”
Alex glanced at his watch and said, “We’ve been out here almost an hour! I can’t believe how quickly the time passed.”
“So you’ll pose for me again before I leave?”
Alex smiled. “I can’t believe you’d want me to, after talking your ears off like that.”
“I enjoy listening,” she said.
“Can I have a peek?” Alex asked, gesturing to the paper.
She held it away from him. “When I’m finished, perhaps.”
Alex laughed. “Okay, I won’t try to see it. You know, you should really try to get Elise to pose for you. She’s more suited to be a model than I am.”
Lenora shook her head. “Beauty is not the goal of my work, Alex. I look for character in my subjects.”
“Hey, she’s got plenty of that, too,” Alex said.
Lenora shook her head gently. “You are my model, Alex. One subject at a time is all I care to focus on.”
“Whatever you say.”
They walked inside together, a closeness in their bond that hadn’t been there before. Alex was amazed by how at ease he’d felt sharing his feelings with a perfect stranger.
Elise was waiting by the front desk, the sign in her hands and a frown on her pursed lips.
“Alex, where have you been? Soon means less than an hour to me.”
Alex said, “Sorry, we got carried away out on Bear Rocks.”
Lenora said, “Thank you again, Alex. Until next time.”
After she was gone, Elise said, “What did she mean by that?”
“It’s nothing. She just wants me to pose again. So what’s so urgent?”
Elise said, “You’ve got to do something about Mor and Emma. She called again while you were gone. Alex, she’s frantic about the situation. She’s afraid she’s going to lose him if they don’t patch this up soon.”
“What can I do?” Alex asked. “I’ve talked to him once and it didn’t do any good at all. Besides, you know I hate to meddle.”
“You care about your friends, don’t you?”
“Elise, that’s not fair. You know I do.”
‘Then we’ve got to do something, Alex.”
He said, “I can talk to him again, but I can’t imagine it will change his mind.”
Elise said, “This calls for more than talk. We need to take some kind of action.”
Alex thought about it a few moments, then said, “You’re not going to stop pestering me until I do something, are you?”
Elise smiled grimly. “I like to think of it as being persistent.”
“But you’re not giving up,” he pushed.
“No,” she said firmly. “I believe in my heart that the two of them belong together.”
Alex said, “It doesn’t matter what either one of us thinks, it’s how they feel that counts.”
She started to rebut when he held up a hand. “Let me finish. If I promise to get them in the same room to give them a chance to talk this out, will you let me butt out if it doesn’t work?”
She answered him with a brief hug. “I promise. Thanks, Alex.”
After she pulled away, he said, “It’s against my better judgment, but you’re welcome.”
He had an idea, but he still wasn’t sure it was any of his business trying to get Emma and Mor back together.
At least if it didn’t work, he’d be done with his “counselor” duties.
Alex knew it didn’t take a genius to figure out how to get Mor out to Hatteras West. There was always something going wrong that needed the handyman’s attention, though Alex prided himself on his own ability to fix a great many of the problems that popped up. Emma was an eager participant in the scheme, so she wouldn’t have to be tricked into coming to the inn.
No. the real problem was bringing the two of them together without rousing Mor’s suspicions that this was nothing more than a ploy to get them back together. And as much Alex liked Emma, he didn’t want to jeopardize his friendship with Mor. Losing him would be, in a very real sense, like losing a brother.
It had to be something big enough to get Mor’s immediate attention, and yet not be too expensive to repair. After all, they were back on a tight budget at the Hatteras West Inn since the money from the emerald sale was finally gone.
With a sigh, Alex looked at his brand-new boiler, picked up a wrench to give it a rap, then realized he couldn’t bring himself to do it. The lure was going to have to be something else.
Alex looked around the utility room, trying to spot a piece of nonessential equipment he could sabotage to get his friend out to the site in a hurry.
The fuse box would be the perfect diversion. Alex studied the penciled chart beside the box, found the fuse for the outside lights, then screwed the ancient round fuse
out of the socket and substituted it with a blown fuse from the trash can near the door. He made it a point to substitute a smaller-amp fuse than needed. Mor would come out, spot the problem with the undersized fuse, and fix it, saving Alex an expensive bill he couldn’t afford and giving Emma the chance to make peace.
After that, it was going to be in their hands.
He didn’t want to play marriage counselor any more than he wanted to run for mayor.
Chapter 15
Mor tossed the burnt fuse up and down in his hand and said, “What did you do, change this fuse in the dark? It’s undersized, no wonder it kept blowing on you.”
Alex had left it up to Elise to get Emma out to the inn, but the woman hadn’t shown up yet, and to Alex’s surprise, Mor had run right out. It looked as if his careful plan was about to fall apart.
Alex said, “Sorry I dragged you out for nothing. Do you have time for a game of backgammon before you go?”
Mor shook his head. “I’d love to, but with Les gone, it feels like I’m covering seven counties. I just happened to be over at Amy’s shop working on one of her torches, that’s the only reason you got me when you did. That timber-frame studio she had built is really sweet.”
Amy Lang was Elkton Falls’ local arts crowd unto herself, supporting herself with her sculptures, and taking welding jobs on the side when her cash ran low. She also happened to be one of Alex’s closest neighbors, as the crow flew.
Well, he’d done his part in getting the split couple back
together. “Thanks for coming out,” Alex said as he followed Mor to the equipment room door.
Emma was blocking the doorway, a stern look on her face. “Mor Pendleton, we need to talk.”
“You’ve said enough lately, don’t you think?” Mor asked. “Now step aside.”
Emma was large enough to nearly fill the doorway, and if she was intent on staying there, Alex doubted Mor was willing to move her. She appeared to agree though, and Alex slipped past her. But before Mor could follow, she blocked the way again. “You I’m not done with.”
“Woman, stand aside,” Mor said, the edge hard in his voice.