Grapes of Death (5 page)

“How long do you think it will take for the ME to finish?” she asked Jackson as he pulled the cruiser into a space at the front of the house.

“That depends on how backed up they are, but I'm hoping to hear something by the end of the week or the first of next week at the latest.”

“I can see by your face that you aren't expecting good news. You really don't think this was accidental, do you?”

“At this point I have more questions than answers.” He turned to her, a calculating look on his face. “But I'm not going to jump to any conclusions yet, and I don't think you should either. Speculating before all the facts are in is pointless. It's better to just wait and see what the ME finds and what else turns up at the scene, and then go from there.”

Although Elise agreed that this was sound advice, it was easier said than done.

After Jackson spoke to her mother and left, the rest of her afternoon seemed to drag by, and it was impossible to put Edmond's death completely out of her mind.

Stuart had called her cell phone several times during the course of the day, and she let it go to voicemail each time. She was pretty sure he was wondering about the weekend and the party they were supposed to attend in Dallas on Friday. To leave town even for the weekend in light of what had happened seemed inappropriate and somehow disrespectful. Stuart would be disappointed, but she knew he'd understand once she explained.

She tried to do some work to occupy her mind, but it was a losing battle. She ended up knocking off early. By the time she got home she felt like she'd been through the wringer. All she wanted was a nice cool shower to wash off the stickiness of the day, and a bit of quiet.

That was not to be.

She hadn't been home ten measly minutes when her home phone rang. She thought about letting the machine pick it up, but in the end she answered.

“Well, finally! Elise, where have you been?” Stuart asked, concern coloring his voice. “I've been calling your cell all day long. I was really starting to worry. Are you all right?”

“I'm sorry, Stuart. I've had a really rotten day. I know I should have called you earlier, but with so much happening, I just got caught up. We had a death in the family.”

“What? Oh my God! Who?”

Elise sighed, not feeling up to a rehash of the entire event but knowing there was no way around it. “Uncle Edmond, my dad's only brother, was found dead on the property by some of the workers this morning.”

“Oh, darling, I'm so sorry.” Stuart cleared his throat on the other end of the line. “Uh, not to speak ill of the dead, but wasn't he the slightly unpleasant man I met during my first visit at the beginning of the year?”

Elise rubbed the spot just above her left eye that had begun to pound and wondered if this heinous day would ever end. “Yes. That was Uncle Edmond, may he rest in peace.”

“Do you need me to come down and be with you, for support? I would have to rearrange a few things, but it's doable. I can be in Delphine by tomorrow afternoon.”

“No!” she blurted before she could stop herself. The last thing she wanted or needed now was Stuart hovering over her like a mother hen. Plus the fact that she hadn't even mentioned his job proposal to the family yet. If he said something about it in their presence, the result could be disastrous.

Especially now.

The guilt she felt over what she was sure was an inappropriate reaction to her boyfriend's attempt at kindness and support had her softening her response. “I mean, that's really thoughtful of you, Stuart. But there are so many details the family will need to attend to in the next week or so, and I'll be neck deep in those arrangements. Plus, I wouldn't want you to take time away from your work to baby-sit me. I'll be fine, really.”

“All right,” he said after a moment of uncomfortable silence. “But if you change your mind, you just have to ask, and I'll come.”

“Thank you, sweetie. I'll keep that in mind.”

She spent the next forty-five minutes filling Stuart in on how it had all gone down. He had been very understanding, agreeing that she shouldn't leave her family in this time of loss for something as silly as a dinner party, which made her feel worse in light of her reaction to his offer of support. By the time she hung up, her head was throbbing like a bass drum.

Turning, she caught sight of Chunk studying her from the Papasan chair.

“Don't start with me, mister. You don't even like Stuart, and you know it. Having him here right now is not in either of our best interests. Besides, this whole situation is going to get very ugly before it's finished, I just know it.”

Five

Though the week may
have started off with a bang, the remainder of it flew by without further incident, and given the circumstances, seemed to end on a whimper.

Like the rest of the family, Elise tried to put her uncle's disturbing sudden death out of her mind. They had yet to hear anything from the Travis County Medical Examiner, and she was trying to stay optimistic. As Jackson had put it, to worry about the outcome was pointless. But nothing could be done and no arrangements could be made pending the ME's ruling. Until then, Uncle Edmond couldn't be laid to rest and they were all in a state of limbo, but it was funny how the oddest little thing brought it to mind when you were the least prepared.

Like the paystubs and gambling markers that she'd pilfered from Edmond's house and kept stumbling across every time she opened her purse. Sooner rather than later, she'd have to mention them to the rest of the family. At the very least she should have discussed them with Ross by now, but she'd been waiting for the right moment.

So she'd tried not to think about the situation for most of the week, preferring to concentrate on her hybrids. The latest batch was coming along well, and she hoped to have starts ready for transplant by the first of the month. The young vines would replace the rows Carlos and his crew would remove as soon as Jackson cleared the area where Edmond's body was found.

In time, her hybrids would produce a stellar grape, giving River Bend a leg up in the market. Drought- and disease-resistant, their predecessors were already in the ground at the south end of the vineyard and would hopefully yield a unique grape for an exceptional wine within the next couple of years.

Until that time, she was holding the specifics of her process very close to the vest. Even Stuart had jokingly called her paranoid when she refused to give him details.

Maybe she
was
being paranoid, but she wasn't about to have all her hard work and innovation stolen before seeing it come to fruition. It wasn't that she was worried Stuart would steal from her, but all it would take is one slip at the wrong time to the wrong person and she could potentially lose everything she'd worked toward.

As Friday rolled around, Elise was ready for some major R&R. With all that had happened, combined with having to wait on the ME's office, it had been quite the stressful week. She and C.C. had plans that night with several other women for a girl's night out. Elise intended on leaving work early and was just about to pack it in when Ross swung into the greenhouse.

“You're still here?” he asked. “I was sure you'd be gone by now.”

“I was just about ready to head home and change clothes. I take it you're knocking off early today too?”

“Yep. I'm beat. I needed a break to get my circulation moving again. I've been sitting in one place looking at rows of figures all friggin' day.” He rubbed his eyes and then stretched. “What are your plans for the weekend? Anything fun? I have nothing waiting for me but more work when I get home. Some of us do have to earn a living, you know.”

“Awww, poor baby,” she said with a sympathetic pout. “I'm meeting the girls for dinner at Toucan's on Main at six thirty.”

“Mmm, Toucan's. I'm jealous.”

Ross practically salivated with the words, which made her giggle. “I know, I can hardly wait, myself. Just thinking about it actually makes my mouth water. And I hear Rueben has added some new sculptures.”

Toucan's was Elise's favorite Mexican restaurant and within walking distance of her apartment. They served incredible food, and the owner was a neon artist who displayed his amazing sculptures throughout the restaurant.

“Man, I wish I could afford one of his pieces. But Caroline would kill me, and I don't know where we'd put it,” Ross said with a laugh.

“Hey, you should have Sancia come over and sit with the boys. Bring Caroline and come have dinner with grown-ups for a change. We're heading down the block to the Dew Drop after dinner for drinks.”

Friday nights at the Dew Drop Inn were usually a hoot and always packed. It was technically a private club, with Bastrop being a semi-dry county. But for a dollar a year you could buy a membership, and it was all good.

“When was the last time you guys had a night out?” she asked with a stern look.

Ross blew out a breath. “I can honestly say I don't remember the last time Caroline and I went out
without
the boys, and that's a sad statement.” He shook his head and appeared a little woeful. “But don't tempt me. With the balloon payment coming due and a few other considerations, I've got tons to get done. I'm going to have a tough time working tonight knowing y'all will be eating spectacular food and partying it up while I'm going cross-eyed with numbers.”

Elise laughed at that and then decided that maybe this was the time to tell Ross what she had hidden in her purse. “Ross, there's something I've been meaning to discuss with you about my visit to Uncle Edmond's the day before he was found. I made a disturbing discovery that I—”

“Daddy!” The name was shouted from the doorway in unison cherub voices, interrupting Elise before she could get any further. Turning, she watched Ross's two boys race toward them with Caroline strolling in behind.

“Hey, guys.” His wife greeted them with a smile. “We were on our way back from the bus and thought we'd take a detour through the greenhouse.”

Elise gave an inward sigh.
There goes my opportunity to spill the beans,
she thought. Not that she didn't trust Caroline, but she really wanted to talk through what she'd found with Ross before going to the rest of the family. That Edmond had been working for Henry Kohler, a direct competitor of River Bend, was a big deal. There was no telling how many ways her uncle may have compromised their security, and she needed some uninterrupted, private time with her brother to talk about her findings.

“Now, what were you saying about a discovery, sis?” Ross asked after a few minutes of chit-chat.

“You know what? It can wait until later. Besides, I need to get home and change clothes.” She grabbed Caleb, Ross's youngest son, and had him giggling as she made loud, slobbery, smacking noises against his neck. “But first, I need to gobble me up some boy!”

Toucan's was crowded when Elise and the group arrived. They ended up waiting for thirty minutes for a table but knew it would be worth the time spent.

“El, I was so sorry to hear about your uncle,” Brenda Peterson said once the waitress had seated them and taken their drink orders. “I heard he drowned and was found right there on the property. Is that true?”

“Actually, we're not sure what happened just yet.” Elise sighed and resigned herself to repeating the story one more time, a story which was rapidly becoming tiresome. “It did look that way when he was found, but we won't know the exact cause of death until the medical examiner is finished with the autopsy.”

Miranda Rollins cocked an eyebrow. “I thought they only did an autopsy when the circumstances were questionable—and
not
accidental.”

“I'm not sure about that, but there were some inconsistencies,” Elise admitted, trying to skirt the issue.

“What kind of inconsistencies?” Tina Babcock asked. It was an innocent enough question, but it had every woman at the table perking up and tuning in.

“It looked as if he may have hit his head on something before going into the water.”

“Looked like he hit his head on something? Or someone bashed him on the head
with
something?” Miranda asked with a smirk.

“Geez, Miranda.” C.C. whipped around and gave the voluptuous blonde an evil eye. “What the hell kind of question is that? Elise loses a family member and you're looking for ghoulish juice to spread around town?”

“I'm just saying.” Miranda sat back and folded her arms over her ample chest. “Besides, that kind of
ghoulish juice
is already out there and being spread around without my help.”

C.C. glowered at the woman. “Yeah? Well, how about we don't hitch ourselves to the gossip bandwagon just yet.”

Elise put up a hand in the direction of both women. “Ladies, ladies—and I do use the term loosely—let's not come to blows right here in the restaurant, okay?”

The waitress picked that moment to come back to the table with their drink orders, and nobody said a word while she handed them out.

Elise jumped back in the moment the girl walked away. “Okay, I know there are all sorts of rumors flying around town about Uncle Edmond's death, but I think C.C. is right. I don't want to add to the conjecture. In any case, I prefer to wait until the ME makes a ruling.”

C.C. made a squeamish face. “And
I
think that's really all the talk about death I want to hear for one evening. Can't we just have a nice dinner and gossip about fun stuff? Like what kind of gaudy mess Deana Wilkinson will dream up to torture her bridesmaids with on her wedding day?”

Elise laughed along with the rest of the women but was secretly relieved when the conversation moved on. There would be a whole lot more talk if the ME ruled her uncle's death anything other than accidental. With the mayor's daughter getting married at Lodge Merlot next weekend, gaudy mess or not, the negative publicity of a homicide would be devastating. She didn't even want to
think
about what that would mean for her family or River Bend, but she knew it wouldn't be good.

The rest of dinner passed with great food and pleasant conversation, the subject of Edmond's demise forgotten, at least for the mo-
ment. The girls walked down the street and through the door at the Dew Drop Inn at twenty after eight. They were seated with drinks in their hands and tequila poppers on the table ten minutes after that.

The band was already playing their first set of the night and C.C. had to shout over the music to be heard. “Here's to a night out with good friends.” She banged her shot glass on the table and downed her popper with the toast. Grimacing, she licked her lips and declared, “We so need to do this more often, girls.”

“Amen, sista!” Miranda called out, as in turn they each banged their glasses on the table, downing the first shots of the evening.

“Ack!” Elise made a face and chased her popper with a gulp of her beer, as if it would miraculously rid her of the lingering taste of tequila. Poppers were
not
her choice in drinks.

Tina laughed and shouted, “Geez, El, you're such a wimp.”

“Why? Because I prefer a good Merlot to shooters and beer? Hello! I've grown up on a vineyard. It's in my blood.”

“You can have your fancy Merlot,” Miranda said over the music with a shake of her golden curls. “I'll take shooters, beer, and the sight of so many fine-looking cowboys in snug-fitting jeans any day of the week.”

“Mmm, girl, you know I'm with you on that!” C.C. chimed in just as the band ended the current song. “It's a dang shame that we're the only two unattached women at the table, but someone's got to pick up the slack.”

Miranda gave an exaggerated sigh. “Yep, we'll just have to carry on.”

Just then C.C. sat up a little straighter and stared through the crowd toward the door. “Yes, Ma'am! Speaking of fine-looking cowboys in snug jeans …”

They all turned and followed her gaze, watching Jackson and Jeff Turney, Tina's fiancé, make their way down the bar.

“Okay, that's not fair,” Tina complained. “How can I drool over other men with Jeff here to watch?”

“Can't,” Brenda stated with a wry grin. “That's what you get for being in a relationship.”

Elise's pulse jumped at the sight of Jackson in civilian clothes. He did indeed fill out a pair of jeans with exceptional style, she noted.

“I'm telling you, I could eat Jackson Landry up with a spoon,” Miranda drawled.

C.C. hooked a thumb over her shoulder. “Get in line, sweetheart.”

“Yes, it's a damn shame that he's taken, girls.” Elise wrinkled her nose. “Although, how Maelene McKinney got her hooks into him in the first place, I will never understand.”

“You mean
was
taken, don't you?” Brenda asked with a twinkle in her emerald-green eyes.

“
What
?”

C.C. gave her a sad look. “Uh, El, he and Maelene called it quits over a month ago. Where've you been?”

“How do you know that?” Elise demanded to know. Jackson was single again? The air in the bar suddenly seemed thin, and she found it difficult to catch her breath.

“Sweetie, he's your brother's best friend. How is it that
you
didn't know that?” C.C. slapped a hand to her forehead. “Oh, wait. You've been busy with what's-his-name. That's right.”

“Very funny,” Elise said, watching Jackson flirt with just about every female he came across as he and Jeff headed toward their table. “And I wish you'd quit calling Stuart that. I don't know why you don't like him; you don't even know him.”

“Honey, I don't have anything against Stewie, per se, other than the fact that the
few
times I've met him, he seemed terribly stuffy and pretentious, that is. That's also the point, El. He's been here, what? Three or four times? With each visit I got the impression he felt he was slumming it in the sticks, and that he couldn't wait to get back to the big city.” C.C. slung an arm around Elise's shoulder and spoke quietly into her ear as the two men arrived at the table. “I'm sure he's very nice and I'm probably judging him harshly. I just don't think he's the guy for you, that's all. But that's another conversation for another night.”