Give Em Pumpkin To Talk About (Pumpkin Patch Mysteries Book 1) (7 page)

“That’s because you couldn’t find it until the grass was cut.” He led the way down a well-worn path.

“I think I could’ve found it. I was down there enough as a kid. Did you swim there?”

“Of course. There was nothing like it after a hot day working. Still isn’t.”

She followed him down the narrow trail that led through the trees to the edge of the river. The oaks were heavy with green leaves that were just starting to change to gold and red. The scent of the pines was pleasant in the hot sun. Large pine cones hung from their boughs.

“You know, this property has the longest river frontage in the county. People have started using the river for canoeing and other watersports the last few years.”

“What about all the rocks?” One of the things she’d loved about the river was the rocks that stuck out of the shallow water. She’d climbed across them, going from bank to bank many times. Sometimes in the spring there was flooding. Otherwise it was a perfect place to swim and play.

“They don’t seem to mind the rocks,” he said.

Sarah saw the river as they came around the last of the heavy forest that protected it. It was as she remembered—even the thick rope swing with two knots in it was still there.

“This is exactly like I remember.” She gave the rope a tug. “I don’t know how I ever managed to swing out on this and drop into the water without killing myself.”

“It’s the big pool in the middle.” He pointed toward the only deep water between the smooth gray rocks. “Did you know there’s a county marker in the middle of the river? It’s been there since the county was first mapped in the early 1800s.”

“No.” She couldn’t believe there was anything here she’d missed. “Where?”

“Follow me.” He grinned and started walking along the riverbank.

Sarah followed on the brown mud. Her new boots would never be the same, but she kept her jeans clean by rolling up the cuffs.

“How did you find it?” she asked.

“Surveyors. Everyone has been looking at the county boundaries to make sure they’re getting their fair share of taxes.”

“Which side are we on?”

“We’re still in the same county. Nothing in Misty River changed. The line moved between the counties a few miles down from here on the highway, but we weren’t involved.”

Jack pointed to a massive boulder in the middle of the river. Water tumbled around it creating mini falls on each side.

“It’s right there on the other side of the big rock,” he told her. “You have to go out there to see it.”

She frowned. “You could’ve mentioned that. Falling in the water trying to see the county marker wouldn’t be a good thing right now.”

“That’s probably true. I didn’t think about that part since I wasn’t worried about falling in.”

Sarah looked again, wanting to see the marker. She might never be here again. “Okay. I’m not as sure-footed as I used to be, but I can probably stay out of the water. You go first. If you fall in, I’ll go a different way.”

He agreed and started across the rocks that made a bridge to the boulder. His long legs made it look easy to jump from stone to stone, going around the side of the small waterfall.

“Come on,” he called. “Or did you just want me to take a picture for you?”

“No. I’m coming.” She started out on the first rock and reached the second easily enough to feel more confident in the adventure. She wasn’t sure why she wanted to see an old county marker in the river, but it appealed to that little girl in her soul that had never turned down a challenge.

Sarah reached the spot where she had to jump across the waterfall beside the boulder. She managed to clear it, but getting around the massive rock was difficult.

“Here.” He put out his hand. “Let me help you.”

She grabbed his warm hand and got halfway across the gray rock before she lost her balance and dropped into the pool that was fed by the dual waterfalls. She came up sputtering, forgetting how cold the river was except in the heat of summer. It wasn’t deep—her feet touched the bottom. River water ran off her clothes.

“Don’t you dare laugh,” she warned him.

“What? You actually found the perfect spot to view the county marker. Look right here.”

There was a three-foot stone that stuck straight out of the dark water. A county name was etched into the sides that faced each river bank as well as the name of the original surveyor and the date.

“Wow. I can’t believe I missed that after all the times I walked up and down these banks.”

As she said it, her cell phone fell out of her pocket into the swirling water.

“Pick it up,” he said. “You can put it in rice and dry it out.”

She retrieved the phone even though she was doubtful about his idea. Shoving it in her pocket, she climbed back on the rocks to get out of the river. There was no way she was going to make her appointment with Mace and his buyer if she had to go back to the hotel and change. She knew before she made the call that her real estate agent might have a heart attack if she had to put it off again.

“Too bad about your appointment.” A smile played over his lips.

Sarah waited for him to join her on the bank. “You did this on purpose, didn’t you? It’s your way of trying to stop the sale. I get it. You don’t want to leave.”

“I didn’t push you in the water.”

“Well, don’t worry. I’ll figure something out.” Her teeth were chattering even though the day was warm.

“Sounds like you need to get out of those clothes.” Even though he didn’t smile, his blue eyes were amused at her discomfort.

“Sure. I bet you’d like that, wouldn’t you? Maybe we should go back to the barn and both take off our clothes.”

“I’m game if you are.”

“It would have to be a lot colder than this.” She stormed up from the edge of the water and followed the path through the trees away from the woods. Moving quickly made her warmer. But her clothes were still full of water, and her boots squished.

She glanced back, halfway across the field past the spring house. There was no sign of Jack. Maybe he took off his clothes and built a fire, hoping she’d return. The man had a lot of nerve for someone who looked like he never bathed and lived in a barn.

Sarah had an idea and let herself in the house. She went upstairs to her mother’s old room, dripping along the way. Her grandparents had always kept it as it had been when she’d moved out. Sarah had slept in that room when she visited. She’d spent a lot of time looking through the old clothes in the closet. There might be something there that she could wear, at least for the meeting.

As she went upstairs, she noticed that the house was a little dusty but not what she’d expect after sixteen years. Jack wasn’t staying in here, but he’d been knocking down cobwebs and keeping up with things. The floors were clean, and the lights hanging from the ceiling had working lightbulbs in them.

Lucky for her, she and her mother were about the same size. Her mother was shorter but that didn’t matter to the black and white dress Sarah pulled out of the cedar chest. She even found underwear and a bra. Her mother still had packrat tendencies—she had to force herself to throw anything away. In this case, it was a good thing.

The dress was okay, if a little short. It was better than her wet clothes. The black shoes she found pinched her toes—her mother’s feet were a size smaller. But it would do for her appointment. She dried her hair and combed it straight back away from her face.

She looked unusual, but she’d do, Sarah decided with a quick glance at herself in the full-length mirror on the back of the bedroom door.

There wasn’t any time to waste. She ran back down the stairs and left for the real estate office. She thought about the rice trick Jack had mentioned but didn’t have any rice to try it. She had a maintenance plan on her phone, but she’d have to go to Suffolk to figure that out. If anyone called, they’d have to wait for updates on what she was doing.

Mace was pacing his small office, one of the few buildings at the crossroads of the two highways that had created Misty River. “I was beginning to worry that you weren’t coming, Ms. Tucker.”

Sarah could hear the sigh of relief in his voice as he shook her hand.

“Sorry,” she said. “I had an accident, and it took longer to get here than I thought.”

“I hope it wasn’t anything serious.” A man possibly in his early forties came out of a side room. He was well-dressed, with black, close-cut hair and a winning smile. “I’m Leland Drake. Let’s do this thing and make some money.”

Chapter Seven

They sat down together at a table by a window that looked out at the parking lot. Dozens of large trucks whizzed by on both highways, going quickly through the intersection, barely noticing the small community. There was a green sign at both sides of the intersection that proudly proclaimed
Misty River
but no population number since the town was unincorporated.

Sarah accepted a cup of coffee from Mace. It was terrible, but at least it was warm. Her hands were still cold from the river.

“I understand how I’m going to make money,” she said to Leland since he’d brought it up. “How are you going to make money?”

“I’ll be happy to share. May I call you Sarah? I feel like I know you. I knew your family years ago.”

“Sure.”

He rubbed his hands together. “Your property is pivotal to my plans. You have the longest river frontage in the county. A new, state-wide Blue Way is in the works. It includes two spots on Misty River. One of them will be on your land—my land—complete with a general store where canoers can purchase what they need. The other spot on the river is on my family’s property near the county line.”

Sarah understood why Jack had taken her to the river. She wasn’t sure what he’d hoped to gain unless it was trying to get her to feel nostalgic before she learned about the plans for the farm.

Misty River was as famous for its gossip as any other small town. She wasn’t hooked into it because she didn’t live there. Jack knew because he heard everything.

Part of her had been hoping that some family wanted the farm because they wanted to live there and raise a family as her grandparents and great-grandparents had. It wasn’t practical, not in this day and age, despite what Mr. Pope had said. She felt sad that no other little girl would visit her family there and experience all the joys she had. On the other hand, at least Leland didn’t want to build condos. She was going to have to take what good she could from this.

“I have the contracts ready right here.” Mace’s lawyer put out three sets of papers and gave each of them a pen with the name of his real estate company on it. “Whenever you’re ready, read through everything. I marked the spaces where you should sign beside your typed names. Then we can all go home happy.”

 “What about the property being the scene of a crime?” Sarah felt she should ask to be honest about the circumstances.

“Not to worry,” the lawyer told her. “Since the buyer has been apprised of the situation, we can go ahead with the deal.”

She was happy that it would be over. She pushed aside her feeling of sadness and loss. The chances were good that Jack was wrong. Wherever her grandparents had gone, they weren’t coming back. She couldn’t stay here to look for them. She had to sign the papers, get her things together, and go home. She could always give the sheriff her information in Richmond if there was anything else he needed to know about Mr. Burris’s death.

“If you see anything that bothers you.” Mace was watching her. “Just let me know. We can move things around if you need more time.”

“But not much more.” Leland winked at her. “I have to get this on the county schedule as soon as possible to be eligible for the available grant money.”

“I understand.” She glanced through the paperwork. It was what she’d expected as far as terms were concerned. “I think this will be a great project for Misty River. It shows growth potential.”

“Exactly what I was thinking.” Leland smiled. “I didn’t expect to see anyone from your family. How are they doing up in Richmond?”

“Everyone is fine, thanks.” No doubt he was the one Mace had spoken of when he said someone had wanted to pay the back taxes and get the land that way.

The front door of the building opened, and a man in jeans and a red plaid shirt glanced around, removing his straw hat.

“Can I help you?” Mace raced to the door to stop the land sale from being interrupted.

“Yeah.” The man in red plaid nodded to Sarah and Leland. “I have a court injunction that’s been filed with the county to stop the sale of Elizabeth and Thomas Denning’s property. Maybe you should take a look at it before you go any farther.”

The man was clearly ill-at-ease being there. That made Sarah curious. Before he could hand the injunction to Mace, she took it and quickly read the document.

“This is crazy.” She looked at the newcomer. “Why are you doing this?”

“Excuse me, ma’am.” The man in red plaid reached to shake her hand. “I’m Trent Waddington. I filed this injunction on behalf of my client, who prefers to remain anonymous.”

Sarah shook his hand. “My grandparents have been missing for much longer than the requisite seven years needed to take over their business affairs as appointed by their sole surviving heir, my mother.”

“That’s true,” Trent agreed. “But there’s the little matter of your grandparents actually being declared legally dead by the state. I couldn’t find a record of that, Ms. Tucker. If you have the paperwork, we can take care of that right now.”

“Excuse me a moment.” Sarah asked to use Mace’s phone in his side office.

She called her mother and asked about the formality that was holding up the deal.

“I’m sure we filed that at the seven-year mark,” her mother said while she spoke to someone in her office. “Let me check that out and get back with you.”

“Quickly, please. I’m standing here with the contract and the buyer.”

“I’ll put Suzi on it right away. I should have an answer in the next five minutes.”

Sarah put down the phone when her mother hung up. Suzi was her personal assistant. Surely the paperwork had been filed.