Chapter Twenty-One
For two days straight, suppliers and construction crews made a mess of his property. An elaborate tent for the nuptials, hand-crafted with artisanal wood, decorated his field. Close to school going back in, not many guests trolled around the resort that weekend. Walking past the huge construction site, Levi headed for the barn.
“Things are certainly busy, no?” Fernando greeted him at the horse enclosure.
“For some more than others.” While the wedding was scheduled for tomorrow, Levi had no idea if the pop star and tech genius would get married or not. Evidently a power struggle threatened to tear apart her career. “Fernando, I need a favor.”
“Why can I do for you, Mr. Scott?”
Levi dug in his pocket and pulled out two keys. “These are to the storage facility. I’m going to need a couple of your guys go into two units. One morning shift around 10:00 AM, another at 6:00 PM, and a last one around 11:00 PM. I’ll pay overtime for the late shift.”
“Will they be getting anything out?”
“The first crew needs to drop off a piano from my house, the second group a couch.”
Fernando took the key, a bit confused, but he nodded his head with each instruction.
“The guys can take some boxes, but every shift must go into the second unit.” He then gave him the other key. “I need them to take pictures of the contents from different angles, but that’s it.”
“Okay, it’s slow enough for me to spare a few guys. Do you mind me asking why the pictures in the second unit?”
“It’s just to verify to the owner that we’ve been there,” he lied. “If the guys have any trouble, call me immediately.”
“Okay.” Fernando shrugged, clearly confused, but he didn’t ask any more questions.
Levi headed to the main entrance. With all the chaos, he wanted to check things out around the property.
Once he got past the construction and down the field, he rounded the corner smack dab into the mayor’s council. They stood huddled outside the resort entrance.
“Levi,” Taylor said, breaking away from the group, “I’m glad I found you.” She ran on her functional heels to catch up with him.
Since he couldn’t say the same, he smiled politely. “What’s up?”
“We’re here for the mayor’s council meeting,” she explained, falling in line with his steps to the parking lot. “And the girl at the desk said the conference room was booked.”
Indefinitely, Levi wanted to tell her. “We have a lot going on. We called your office to tell them we could no longer accommodate the meetings.” Levi conveniently left off the part about stomping Dale a new mud hole if saw him anywhere near his property, again.
“We never got that phone call.” She tried to maintain her professionalism, but a vein in her forehead showed him different. “This is very disappointing.” Taking out her phone, she punched at her screen.
“Sorry.” He threw out the halfhearted apology before he made a move to his truck.
“Is there another room we can use? Maybe comp us a suite? This is your screw-up, after all.”
“Everything is booked,” he lied. “Maybe you guys can try the coffee shop, or Betty’s Bakery … it’s usually dead around this time of day.”
Wes stepped out of the front entrance, surrounded by his groomsmen as Dale stalked out of the double doors behind them. Shoving the wedding party aside, he pointed at Levi.
“What’s your problem?” The over-manicured idiot’s face twisted in rage. In way above his head with the rest of the town, a petition made the rounds to relieve Dale of his contract with the city. The moron must have needed someone to take out the brunt of his frustration on.
Happy to oblige, Levi waited for him to get closer.
“From where I’m standing, I don’t have one.” Levi chuckled. “But you, on the other hand, I heard it’s not looking so good…” It may have been childish to poke at him, but he didn’t care.
“Tell me to my face.”
“Don’t threaten me with a good time.” He rolled up his sleeves, in anticipation of beating Dale Neman to a pulp.
“Hey, hey!” Greg tried to get between them, but Dale slipped past him and swung. Levi dodged his fist and came back with a right hook to Dale’s face.
When he moved in with his left, Greg stepped in front of him. “Get out of the way,” he hissed at one of his oldest friends.
“Shit, man!” Levi itched to hit the smug son of a bitch again.
“It was a cheap shot,” Dale growled. “This isn’t over.” He cradled his chin before he shrugged off any help.
“What the hell’s gotten into you?” Greg glared at him with disgust before he and the rest of his team followed behind the town’s stand-in mayor.
In the long run, it may cost him money, but Levi didn’t feel bad about hitting Dale.
“You’ve got some balls, man.” Wes stepped in next to him.
“Nah, wish fulfilment, that’s all. What are you guys up to?”
“We’re looking to get into something. Got any suggestions?”
In need to blow off steam, the light bulb went off in his head. “What do you think about ATVs?”
A strong chorus of cheers from the groomsmen agreed with his pick. He jerked his thumb toward the garage. “Follow me.”
****
Goosebay Lake’s property gave them the opportunity to shoot up and down the hillside of the underdeveloped part of their land with no interference.
A good rush, Levi used the speed of the machine to clear his mind. Miles from the main resort, he pulled over and took in the hilltop view of St. Geneva. The day slipped away at a quick clip. Light twinkles from downtown stores shone beneath the fog.
“This place is great. Cayden’s description didn’t do it justice.” Wes joined him on the edge of the hill.
“Shouldn’t you be spending this time with your fiancée?”
“Yeah, Cayden’s kinda got her on lockdown.”
“How does that work?”
“Deny’s publicist has been taking advantage of her, so Cayden’s trying to work it out.”
“Think she can?” Levi asked, as he ran his hand over the dry brush.
“Business wise, I believe in all things Cayden.” Wes stepped down the hill. “They were both raised by their grandparents but in completely different ways. After their parents died in a plane crash, Deny and her brother were spoiled beyond belief. Cayden, on the other hand, was treated like a miniature adult.”
Levi knew very little about how Cayden grew up. Bits and pieces but nothing concrete. He waited for him to continue.
“Teddy and Deny were a handful. Too old to keep them in line, their grandparents shipped them to boarding school. It didn’t help much … they got kicked out more than they attended.”
“Bad seeds?” he asked. Between Mom and Dad, he never got the chance try that crap.
“Yeah, but in a good-hearted, naughty way. Cayden, on the other hand, was at the opposite end of the spectrum.” Not sure where the tech guru wanted to go, Levi followed him over a mound. “Her grandfather kept her close. Cayden spent almost all of her childhood in an office. He taught her everything, even how to fire the employees she had grown to love as family.”
“Shit,” Levi muttered. He had no clue what she went through. That damn near bordered on child abuse.
“Yeah. She got a little reprieve with the twins in the summer, but not much.”
“I guess that’s why Cayden picked Chesterfield, huh? She wanted the same experience?” Levi inquired.
“Maybe. They were like the three musketeers, but even now, she’s the only adult.” Wes skidded to a stop. “I thought that’s what I saw…”
Levi joined him and glanced over the edge. His missing black and white pony lay on its side, covered in flies. Blood stained the ground near the animal’s throat. From where he stood, it appeared to be cut, but he couldn’t be positive until he got a closer look.
“Did it get out of the barn?” Wes asked.
The smell of death touched his nose. It probably would have hit him a lot sooner, but the breeze drifted in the opposite direction. “Not by herself, no,” Levi admitted. “Do me a favor and don’t mention this to Cayden.”
“She won’t hear it from me,” Wes promised before they got closer. “If nothing else, this place is exciting.”