Looking like scared mice, Anna and Angelina Perez opened the door to their room. Despite the quality clothes Heather bought them in the gift shop, they fidgeted with their hair and couldn't look her in the eye. Heather marched them back into the room for a pep talk. "What's wrong?"
Anna spoke first. "I'm nervous and it's not just because someone may want to harm us. We don't belong here."
Angelina took her turn. "I went to a sorority rush party my second semester in college. Those snobby girls took one look at me and gave me the cold shoulder. I made the fashion mistake of not wearing designer jeans. That’s all it took for me to decide that world wasn’t for me.” She paused. “Not that we’re not grateful for everything you’ve done for us.”
Heather nodded she understood their concerns. "That's why we want you here. You'll hide in plain sight."
Anna continued to wring her hands. "I don't know how to act when we go to that fancy restaurant downstairs."
"It's easy," said Heather. "Pretend everyone is a Teddy bear. When you order, say you'll have the chicken or fish or steak. The server will compliment you on your choice. Remember that everything is charged to the room. Don't worry about a tip, they’ll add it on."
Heather looked them over. "You'll do great if you stand up straight with shoulders back and walk with your chin up. Put your sunglasses on and don't take them off until you get to the restaurant. They keep the lights low in there and we don't want you to trip. Questions?"
Both women wagged their heads.
Heather nodded and opened the door. “We’ll stop at Steve’s room.” She continued the instructions as they walked down the hall. “He and I will get in the elevator first. Pretend you don't know us if anyone else gets on. We'll follow you to the restaurant and I'll be watching to see you leave. I'll be behind you all the way back to your room."
On the elevator ride down, Steve said, "If you two look half as good as you smell, we may have made a mistake in letting you out of your room. Men will want to take you dancing tonight."
"Can we?" asked Angelina.
Anna added, "Not me. Angelina dances like her grandmother. I'm a hazard to men's feet.”
Heather looked at them and frowned. “There’ll be time for fun later. Right now, everyone’s job is to keep you two safe.”
Angelina looked down. “You’re right.”
The elevator dinged, and the door opened. Heather gave last second instructions. "Shoulder's back and imagine everyone’s a Teddy bear."
Steve whispered as they lagged in the hallway. "How do they look?"
"Like they flew in on a private jet."
"Good. I knew they’d be nervous, but I didn't want them caged up all weekend."
They arrived at J's Restaurant and Bar at fifteen minutes before seven. Steve planned it that way so Anna and Angelina would be seated before the Bostonians arrived. Heather settled in a chair that gave her a view of her two charges while also allowing her to see any threat approach.
"Take your own advice," said Steve. "Everyone here is a stuffed animal. That includes your father."
Heather sensed the tension ease from her shoulders as soon as she let them drop.
Anna and Angelina were eating their salads when Allister McBlythe IV and Rebecca McBlythe entered the restaurant. As always, her father wore a dark suit with a burgundy tie. Her mother surprised her by wearing dress slacks and a linen jacket. Also, she'd cut her hair since Heather last saw her at Christmas.
They approached the table. “Mother. Father. I’m glad you were able to join us.”
Steve continued to break the ice by asking, "Were you able to get in a nap, Rebecca?"
"A short one. It was a little hard to sleep with Al's incessant jabbering on the phone."
"I was in the next room," he said in his defense. "Ever since that article came out about the gold mine, I've been doing damage control. I should have listened to Heather."
"Yes dear, you should have.”
It was the first time Heather had ever heard her father come close to an apology. Something was different about her mother, too. The haircut made her look younger and more alive. And slacks instead of a dress at dinner? Unusual, to say the least.
Heather's mother reached out and took her hand. "Al told me you're working on a case here at the hotel. How exciting!"
Heather knew her father's gaze would bore into her, so she looked only at her mother. "Part of it has been taking place here at the hotel, but the deaths occurred at a ranch in the area. I'm also helping Steve with the inheritance that’s tied to the deaths." She purposefully said deaths instead of murders.
"Are you making progress?" asked her father.
Steve answered for her. "We should have everything wrapped up in a couple of days. Of course, we act in coordination with law enforcement. That keeps us out of harm's way."
"Don't be so modest," said Heather's father. "I can tell a man who makes things happen when I meet one. As for Heather, she’s always been prone to run headlong into danger."
"She takes after you," said Steve.
Heather noticed the look on her father's face that mixed puzzlement with incredulity.
"Me? I don't chase after killers."
Steve nodded in agreement. "True, but you swim with the biggest sharks in the financial world every day. I'd say Heather's jobs in law enforcement, and now working with me, are tame compared to what you do."
"He's right, Father," said Heather. "I've been trying to copy you and it's much harder than I ever imagined. Knowing that a decision I make could put a thousand people out of work, or possibly create as many jobs, keeps me awake at night."
Her father's business face seemed to crack. "You have an interesting perspective on business. Do you really think about gains and losses in terms of people and their jobs?"
Heather dipped her head. "Not as much as I should, but yes, I do."
The server arrived to take orders, putting conversation on hold. Heather played it safe and ordered a salad. She wasn't sure how her father would steer the conversation and things might get testy. They had a long history of disagreements, many times at the dinner table.
Silence fell over the table until Heather's mother lifted her chin and said, "Al. It’s time for your mia culpa."
"I suppose it is." Her father cleared his throat and looked Heather straight on. "I came to apologize to you. You were right about the gold mine. I should have listened to you and taken my time in purchasing it. I thought I was too old to get gold fever, but apparently there's no fool like an old one."
Heather didn't know how to respond, so she didn't.
"Go on," said her mother in a firm tone. "Tell her everything."
"Webster turned in his resignation after I signed the contract."
Heather sighed. "Steve told me he would."
Her father sat with mouth hinged open. He cast his gaze to Heather and then to Steve. "How did you know?"
Steve placed his palms on the table. "The only thing I know about gold is there's two crowns on the bottom molars of my teeth, but I like to think I know something about how people act. Heather told me how close you were to Webster. How you trusted him. It must have been a shock when you took the responsibility for the gold mine from him and gave the project to your daughter. Not only that, you gave her carte blanch to decide how much to pay for the acquisition and how to structure the deal. Webster realized then the future didn’t include him at the helm of the company. I worked enough homicide cases to know that hurting people strike back at those who hurt them."
Heather joined in. "At Steve’s suggestion, I did some checking on Webster after you signed the contract. Do you know who he's working for now?"
Her father shook his head. It was as if the words couldn't form in his mouth.
Steve took over. "I had my suspicions of what was going on when Heather said Webster told you there was another company ready to make an offer. Has that company approached you since the story came out in the papers?"
"I've had several companies make inquiries. The numbers they're talking about are hundreds of millions less than what we paid, but the one Webster told me about is the most attractive."
Heather leaned forward. "That's wonderful, Father."
"How could selling for less than half be wonderful?"
"Well… you don't need to sell. You can keep it a while. At least let the smoke clear before selling. If you sell now, you’ll be playing into his hands. Who do you think fed the story to the newspapers?"
Steve leaned back. "Webster not only double-crossed you, I think he intends to do a triple cross. If you sell, the company that will put in the highest bid on the mine will be the one he's working with now. The other companies are a smokescreen."
"Father," said Heather. "There's nothing wrong with the mine. The original drill holes show a good supply of already discovered gold and legitimate veins of untapped ore. It’s apparent Webster made a side deal with the mine owners that they'd get full price, plus save money, for slow production. The reduced mining saved them money and added validity to the newspaper stories."
Her father's eyes opened wide. "Are you sure?"
"Think about it, Father. The reduction in production didn't begin until you considered handing over the purchase of the mine to me. Webster went to the people you bought the mine from and told them how to play the deal."
A light bulb came on in her father's eyes. "Of course. It all makes sense."
"Exactly," said Steve. "Then Webster fed a false story to the press."
Heather added the final bit of information. "All the while, he gave the data my team developed to the company he's working for now. I also found out he's been going long on stock futures for his new company. In fact, he's leveraged up to his eyes."
"How do you know that?"
Heather and Steve both laughed.
"You're forgetting, Heather's the best detective I've ever worked with," said Steve.
"Speaking of," said Heather. "It appears our friends have finished their meal. I need to get them back to their room."
Heather's mother knitted her eyebrows together. "Are you two working the case now?"
"We are," said Heather. "We believe those two women to your left are in danger. We brought them to the resort so I could keep an eye on them."
"I feel like I'm in a movie."
"When they leave, I'll follow them to their room. Do you want to come with me?"
"I most certainly do."
"Now, Rebecca," said Heather's father. "Is that wise?"
"Don't be such a kill-joy. Take off that silly tie and relax."
"They'll be fine," said Steve. "Heather's an excellent shot."
Her father sat upright. "She's armed? Is that legal?"
"It is in Texas," said Heather. "Concealed carry is wonderful."
She glanced and nodded to Anna and Angelina. "Wait till I get up, Mother. We'll pretend we don't know them and follow a discrete distance behind, then close the gap at the last minute and get on the elevator with them. I'll check out their room, then you and I will come back and enjoy a nice dinner."
"Wait," said her father. "I... I don't know how to thank you."
Heather stood, went to her father and bent down to give him a kiss on his cheek and a hug. "Give me back that kiss and hug now and then. That's all I ever wanted from you."
"It's a deal."
Arm in arm, Heather walked with her mother out of the restaurant. They delivered Anna and Angelina without incident and started back toward the elevator, but Heather’s mother had other ideas. “Is your room nearby?”
“Right down the hall. Why?”
“We need to have a mother-daughter talk.”
“Pardon, the mess, Mother.” Heather cleared a chair and sat on the side of the bed. What’s on your mind?”
Her mother looked away at first, but her gaze came back, complete with cloudy eyes. “I promised myself I wouldn’t cry. Now look at me.”
“What’s wrong, Mother? Are you ill? Is it Father?”
Her mother waved a hand to reject her guesses. “We’re both fine physically, but your father made a real hash out of the gold deal. He’s trying to play it off, but tonight is the first time he’s relaxed since last fall.”
Heather considered what had been said and what was left unsaid. “That’s when he put me in charge of it.”
Her mother nodded. “I need to tell you about me and your father.”
Heather swallowed. “You don’t have to.”
“Yes, I do. Our marriage began as more of a merger than anything that resembled love. Two Boston families joined forces to make sure the collective fortunes grew to new heights. A form of love came later, but it still lacks the depth I believe you’re looking for.”
“What are you saying, Mother?”
She stood, walked to the window and looked out. “I’m saying, don’t let your father smother you. Life is short and much of mine has passed doing things that sucked more out of me than I knew.”
Heather nodded. “Does Father know you were going to have this conversation with me?”
Her mother spun around and laughed. “Heaven’s no. He’s only here under duress. I told him I’d demand he sell my stocks and bonds if he didn’t come and apologize to you. Do you realize he never took me on a honeymoon, let alone a vacation? All the travel I did with him was on business.”
Heather hung her head. “I’m sorry. I had no idea it was such an unhappy marriage.”
Her mother came to her, kneeled down and took her hands. “I didn’t say it was unhappy. It’s different, yes, but not unhappy.” She stood. “And I’m committed to making it better with the time we have left together.”
“What can I do to help?”
“That’s hard to answer. Your father isn’t going to change all his spots, but if we work together, we can teach him there’s more to living than meetings and mergers. I think he needs someone to show him how to have fun. That’s why I forced him to come here.”
Heather rose and smiled. “I have two men in my life that I’ll enlist to help.”
They hugged and Heather left the room with a new spring in her step. She had the gold crisis behind her and Jack would arrive tomorrow. Business was one thing, a romantic relationship between the heir to her father’s fortune and a lowly Texas attorney was something else. How would her father react? How do you get a stodgy businessman to have fun?