Fire Mountain

by Vickie McKeehan

  “It’s okay. Let them have the body. It won’t keep me from finding the truth.”

  That night around seven, Lando and Gemma drove the Volvo to have dinner at Captain Jack’s. After eating their burgers, the two made a big production about leaving, then parked the car around the corner, slipping back inside through the side door to wait in the storage room. It had metal racks that held all kinds of dry goods, spices, and condiments. Metal bins held flour, cornmeal, and sugar. A commercial freezer took up one corner.

  There was a moment when Gemma started giggling. “We could fool around in here while we wait.”

  “Wouldn’t be the first time, now would it?”

  “So very true, my handsome hubby,” she said, leaning in for a kiss. “What do you suggest we do…?” she looked at her watch. “For forty-five more minutes?”

  He snatched her around the waist and began to nibble her ear. “I bet no one would hear us.”

  Wrapping her arms around his neck, she considered the possibilities. Swaying to imaginary music inside her head, she nuzzled his neck. “Your mom might, though.”

  “No way. She’s busy. The restaurant’s crowded, people talking a mile a minute.” His hands wandered down her back and rested on her…

  Luke opened the door with Lianne at his side. They both stepped in, closed the door behind them to hide there, too.

  “Go away,” Lando directed.

  “No can do. There’s nowhere out there to wait that isn’t considered conspicuous. We don’t want Tiffany to spot us and run.”

  Lando disagreed. “Sure, there is. A comfortable booth. Your car. The restroom.”

  “Your mother needed the booth we were sitting at,” Lianne explained between snickers. “And I’m not hiding in the women’s restroom for that long. Besides, you’ve had two weeks to do that lovey-dovey stuff on your honeymoon.”

  Lando rested his head on Gemma’s forehead and let out a sigh. “Why are people so inconsiderate of others?”

  “Rude is what they are,” she agreed with a laugh. “Get in here,” she told Lianne, motioning for the two of them to get comfortable. “There’s a box of unopened pickles you can sit on.”

  Lianne made a face then took a seat. “Who in their right mind eats pickles?”

  Gemma rolled her eyes toward Lando. “Some people eat them on hot dogs.”

  “You’re kidding? Eww. Isn’t that relish?”

  “Nope. Pickles on hot dogs is an acquired taste,” Lando said, stretching out on top of a large cardboard box containing a supply of paper towels earmarked for the restroom. “So is mustard on fries.”

  “Another Lando Bonner weird food combo,” Gemma said and locked her arms around her body. “I just realized that it’s chilly in here.”

  Luke rummaged through a container of silverware, picking up each fork and knife and studying it. “This stuff has to be twenty years old, left over from the days when we worked here as kids. Jeez, does Mom ever throw anything away? And you’re cold because Mom always keeps this room at fifty degrees. Always. Winter or summer. She won’t put up with a warm storage area or one that’s unorganized and messy.”

  “You might’ve mentioned that before brining me in here because I’m getting cold,” Gemma complained to Lando.

  Lianne huddled in a corner. “Me too. I should’ve brought a sweater. We didn’t think this through very well, did we?”

  “It’s only another thirty minutes before closing. Surely, we can make it till then. Tiffany’s probably already sitting out there in the parking lot.”

  “You brought the recorder, right?” Gemma asked.

  “I did. We’re all set to go. It isn’t every day you deal with extortion.”

  They lasted another half hour before the noise in the main dining room quieted down to a manageable level.

  “I think customers are beginning to head home,” Lianne noted.

  Lydia burst into the room. “Showtime. Tiffany just walked in through the takeout door. She’s sitting at one of the tables in the middle of the room.”

  Lando swung his legs around to the floor. “Where’s Leia?”

  “Still cleaning the grill. That should give you five minutes or so to get into place.”

  Lando tested the recorder, making sure the audio worked. He went out into the hallway first to place the device near Tiffany’s chosen location and where it could pick up her demands.

  Leia spotted him, panic settling in her eyes. She quickly sent up a diversion by knocking over the pans she’d washed. The metal crashed onto the kitchen floor, making a racket. The noise allowed Lando to sneak back into the storage room.

  Lydia made a big show of kissing her daughter goodbye and bidding her goodnight before walking past Tiffany in the dining room and out the front door and into the parking lot.

  Left alone, or what she deemed was alone, Tiffany called out to Leia. “I haven’t got all night. You can clean up later. Don’t keep me waiting like this.”

  Leia dried her hands on a towel, took a deep breath, and headed toward Tiffany’s table.

  “Where’s the money?” Tiffany asked.

  Leia licked her lips. “Here’s the deal. My brothers think it’s a really bad idea for you to keep blackmailing me over something that happened back in high school.”

  “Your brothers? It’s none of their business what I do. I want the fifteen hundred you promised.”

  “It kind of is their business since one of them is the chief of police. He’s really picky about those kinds of things.”

  “What kind of BS are you pulling here? I’ll go straight to Zeb after I leave here if you don’t give me the money.”

  “That’s just it. Lando’s under this weird impression that what you’re doing is breaking the law. So, I’m not gonna be paying you any more money. Not ever. You should probably take the cash I’ve given you so far and go. Leave. Get out of town. I don’t care where, just go.”

  “You should listen to her,” Lando said, stepping out from behind the grill, followed by Luke and Lianne, then Gemma. “If you try to contact Zeb and follow through on your threat to tell him about whatever little incident happened back in high school, I’m afraid I’ll have to arrest you for extortion. Right here, right now. What you’re doing is going against California Penal Code 528. It’s against the law. Are we clear?”

  Tiffany crossed her arms over her chest and stared down all of them. “Extortion? What are you talking about? Your stupid sister gave me a donation to my…charity…to help underprivileged kids. It’s not my fault she didn’t understand the fine print.”

  Gemma was tired of listening to the woman’s BS and pushed her way past Luke and Lianne. “Look, cut your losses. Be glad you got what you got out of Leia and get out of here. We’re taping this whole conversation…because it’s a police undercover sting, which makes it legal.”

  Tiffany finally realized this might be a losing proposition and got to her feet. She raised her hands in surrender. “Fine. Okay. I’m going. I don’t want any trouble. But you people are nuts.”

  Gemma followed Tiffany to the front door. She stepped outside to watch her get into her bright yellow VW bug and screech out of the parking lot. “So that’s who Brandt’s been seeing on the side.”

  Lando wrapped an arm around her waist. “Makes you wonder if she ever interacted with Talia. And if she did…?”

  “Did Tiffany kill the wife?” Gemma finished.

  “That was fun. And such a relief,” Leia said, sauntering up to stand next to Gemma. “You’ll both be happy to know that Zeb and I are spending the weekend at the cabin. Alone. Just to see if we can get our mojo back.”

  “While that does make me happy,” Gemma began. “It’d be a lot better if you told him about Taylor.”

  Leia shook her head. “No way that’s gonna happen. Sue me because I’m a big fat chicken.”

  “Get out of here, go enjoy your time off,” Lando said, making a shooing motion. “Just make sure you straighten things out with Zeb.”
/>   “Yes, sir. You bet. No more drama from me. I promise.”

  Lianne trailed out the front door hand in hand with Luke to hear that last part. “Does she really believe that two weeks before the wedding she’s left behind all the drama in her life? She must be delusional.”

  Gemma leaned her body against Lando’s, resting her head on his shoulder. “Tonight, she does. I guess that’s what counts. We can only hope she’s turned a corner. Come on, let’s go home. It’s been a long first week back from paradise.”

  13

  Gemma wasn’t keen on picking up trash, but as promised, she’d recruited volunteers—from Tully Beacham to Daryl Simmons to Radley Fisk—for a Saturday morning cleanup excursion out to Inez’s property.

  Radley had drafted a handful of his students to help, Coach Simmons had brought his basketball team. The adults seemed eager, the youth not so much. But prodded by their teacher and coach, the kids got to work.

  Gemma took the initiative, pointing out the section of land with the most debris, distributing large trash bags to hold the litter.

  After getting everyone started on removing the big items and loading the stuff into the back of Tully’s pickup truck, she headed back to town to start her shift at Captain Jack’s.

  But before showing up there, she stopped to check up on Duff Northcutt and bring him a care package—a box filled with canned goods, cereal, and fresh beans from her garden. She’d also thrown in a bag of his favorite chocolate covered cherries.

  His place had always been considered rundown, but today it looked tidier than usual. When she knocked on the door, a clean-cut Duff answered. “What’s up with you? I haven’t seen you for ages?”

  “Me? You’re the one who traipsed off to some fancy honeymoon place. Besides, been busy in my garden. Come on in.”

  “How’d you clean the yard up like that?”

  “Billy Gafford’s doing. He showed up one day out of the blue with his truck, hauled off most of the junk. Asked me first, he did. Not a bad sort of guy, after all.”

  “So, you two are friends now? That’s nice. I’m glad you have someone to talk to living way out here. My days get busy, which means sometimes I don’t make it by to drop off your goodies.” She held up the box.

  “Want some coffee?”

  “I wish I had the time.” She explained to him about Inez and the new job.

  “You’re stretched too thin, trying to do too much.”

  “Inez needed help. That’s what neighbors do for each other.”

  “And here you are, checking up on me. I’m fine. Billy comes by regular-like. But he never brings me chocolate.”

  “That’s my job. I need to get moving, though. Lydia will be wondering where I am or worse, thinking she has to do a shift by herself. I don’t want to be in the doghouse with my mother-in-law.”

  “As if. Lydia adores you. Thanks for the care package.”

  “No problem. See you soon.”

  Only fifteen minutes late getting to the restaurant, Gemma got to work. While Lydia operated the grill, Gemma took orders. Rusty at first, it took her a while to get the hang of it again, the rhythm of doing three things at once, keeping her head down and remembering to refill coffee cups and water glasses.

  Never again would she complain about the mayor’s job sitting behind a desk all day. It didn’t take long for her feet to hum and her back to throb in discomfort.

  Meeting and greeting the public took a certain amount of panache, a willingness to put up with loads of ribbing.

  She had to listen to jokes about the mayor having to take on a second job to make ends meet, snide remarks about her getting the orders wrong, and mean-spirited comments from those people who hadn’t voted for her. But all in all, she made it through the lunch rush without slamming anyone’s head into the wall.

  Alex Kedderson brought in his lady friend, a woman from Crescent City, for a breakfast omelet. The two had obviously spent the night together. They canoodled their way through the coffee and orange juice, a typical sign the couple was still in the first days of having red-hot sex.

  She waited on Shaun Emberley who showed up solo. Shaun was a darker-haired blond version of his sister. His big blue eyes conveyed a quick wit and a jovial demeanor. Shaun liked to tell silly jokes and keep people off balance. But today he seemed broody.

  Gemma brought him over a coffee mug and filled it to the brim. “Want breakfast?”

  “An omelet, please, plenty of cheese and onions. Is this a permanent gig? Did something happen at City Hall? Did you get kicked out already?”

  After jotting his order down on her note pad, Gemma gave him a sly smile. “To answer all your questions. No, this isn’t permanent. City Hall is always hopping. And no, I didn’t get kicked out.”

  “Okay. Will you still be singing with Fortitude tonight?”

  “You bet. You should come, bring a date.”

  Shaun looked uncomfortable or maybe sad, it was hard to tell which. Gemma studied the lines on his young face. “What’s wrong?”

  “I can’t talk about it here.”

  Something was definitely off with the man who usually showed a sunny disposition about mostly everything. “Okay. Where then?”

  “I shouldn’t.”

  “Shaun, what’s the matter? You look like the weight of the world is on your shoulders. Is it Ellen?”

  “No, Ellen’s fine. She’s always fine. Nothing much ever gets to her.”

  “Then what is it?”

  He glanced around the crowded dining room. “I can’t. Not here.”

  “Okay. But I’m always available if you need to talk. I’ll get that omelet going for you.” She headed back to the grill and went on with her tasks, circling the room, taking more orders, refilling drinks, bringing out condiments, but still curious about what was bothering Shaun.

  She tried again to get him to talk when she brought his order, but the landscaper refused to say more.

  It bugged her. As the restaurant got busier, she scuttled between the kitchen and dining room, toting an armload of orders and dirty plates. And then on one of those trips, she glanced up to see that Shaun had taken off, leaving his plate clean, and a twenty-dollar bill on the table.

  After her shift ended, even though she wanted to get off her feet, she forced herself to walk through the farmer’s market, stopping at every single local vendor along the route from the restaurant to where she’d left the car. To show her support, she bought locally-grown eggplant she didn’t need and purchased trinkets she didn’t want, wondering if she’d have to do this every single weekend. If that was the case, she’d no doubt go broke in a matter of months.

  Hauling her purchases back to the Volvo, she spotted Shaun leaning up against her car.

  Arms full of bags, he took the keys out of her hand and opened the car door. “Could we go somewhere to talk?”

  “Sure. Where? Wait. I know the perfect place. It’s quiet and no one will bother us.”

  The two started walking toward the chocolate shop. Gemma dangled the keys in the air. “No one can eavesdrop. So, what’s wrong, Shaun? You look like you’ve lost your best friend.”

  “I think I have. It’s about Talia Lewis.”

  A little shocked at that, Gemma didn’t let on. Instead, she turned on the lights and motioned for him to sit down. “I’ll make us some coffee. How’s that sound?” She didn’t wait for an answer but went over to the machine and poured out beans. “I didn’t realize you and Talia were that close.”

  Shaun hung his head. “I didn’t want her marrying that asshole. But no, she only saw the money he pretended to have.” He let out a desolate laugh. “The joke was on her when she discovered he didn’t have a dime of his own.”

  Her heart went out to him as his dilemma began to sink in. “You and Talia dated before she met Brandt?”

  “Oh, yeah. Off and on. But Talia didn’t want a gardener, someone who worked outside all day, someone who toiled with his hands for a living. I wasn’t good enough, d
idn’t make enough money.”

  “But you own your own business.”

  “Half own. I do all right. But it wasn’t enough. It didn’t matter that Ellen and I were doing really well and had been for years. Talia got it in her head that she wanted to marry a Silicon Valley tycoon. And when she met up with Brandt Lewis, she changed. What a joke that became.”

  “I’m so sorry, Shaun. I had no idea. I didn’t know Talia at all. I only knew about her through Leia.”

  “Well, you didn’t miss much. When I first met her, she was a sweetheart, always had a good word for everyone. I did the landscaping on her house when her aunt lived there. Then when Talia moved in after the funeral, she asked for help. I’m the one who ended up picking out every flower and plant in her garden that I thought would suit her. When I first met Talia, she was always self-conscious about her weight. I told her it didn’t matter, that she was beautiful inside and out just the way she was. But it was like she didn’t hear me or didn’t want to. She went on a crazy diet and lost fifty pounds. After that, she became a different person.”

  “How so?”

  “Mean-spirted. She was rude, agitated all the time. Pushy. She rarely smiled. The last time we went out was to listen to Fortitude at Greendeer’s place. That was before you moved back to town when the band only had Lando as the front man.”

  Gemma pushed a fresh cappuccino toward him. “She hadn’t met Brandt yet.”

  “Oh, she’d met him, but only online, not in person. She fell for everything that came out of that guy’s mouth. He reeled her in like a fish on a hook. Those were the days when he could do no wrong.”

  “She broke your heart,” Gemma said, sipping her own latte.

  “I got over it. Or thought I was. That is, until this week when you guys found her dead. When I first heard she’d gone missing, I thought, good for her, she finally wised up and left the guy. But in the back of my mind, there was something that nagged at me. Talia wouldn’t have left because she loved her house and wanted Brandt out of there. She’d asked him to leave a couple of times.”