Chapter Four
February 13th. 2009© 2009 Kimberly Fish
Chapter Four
Lacy was torn. Visions of Inga tying Henry to the recliner and slowly torturing him were vivid in her mind. But, he’d not really done anything worthy of a Stephen King chapter, so should she rescue Henry? Maybe she stood there a moment longer than she needed, because Inga started to shoo her out of the living room.
“Now you just go on and get,” Inga said, one hand on Henry’s waist, the other swishing through the air to suggest to Lacy what she might be too deaf to understand. “I’ll be fine. Don’t you worry none about me. I’ve got me some company and it’s been too long since a healthy, young man came sniffing around my door. I’m gonna have me a good time.”
Lacy’s hand covered her mouth. She laughed, but tried to keep it quiet. Henry looked as if being stuck here, with Inga, was a fate worse than death. Let him suffer, she thought. He’d been planning to back-stab her out of an antiques deal anyway. He deserved no less than Inga’s affection.
Her spirit warred with her mind and though she was justified in walking out the door, she just couldn’t do it. Henry might drive her nuts with his patronizing attitude, but he had bought the dining room suit for an outrageous sum and so far the only thing he’d done was look at Inga’s property, which was definitely not for sale, so . . . she decided. . . maybe. . . quite possibly, she should rescue him. Eventually.
Lacy moved toward the front door with a bounce to her step. “Alright then, victory goes to the spoiler, or some such thing. I’ll come back in a while with plenty of oatmeal, since I know Inga, that’s your favorite.”
“I want barbecue. Pork ribs and beans. Lots of beans.”
Lacy couldn’t help grinning. “If you insist, Inga. Beans. Lots and lots of beans. How about Cole slaw? Cabbage might clean out your system. Oh wait, that’s why you’re eating the oatmeal. How silly of me,” she said opening the door. Glancing over her shoulder she saw Inga with her arms around Henry’s waist in what she’d best describe as a wrestler’s hold. “Well, I guess I’ll be off. Don’t know when I can get back out here. Since Henry could drive through the mud, maybe I can too. If I don’t get stuck. Ya’ll be sure and keep an eye out for me, pretty please.”
Inga sighed. “No rush, girl.”
Henry was stoic, she’d give him that. Despite the panic lines around his eyes, he wasn’t begging for mercy. Lacy glanced at her watch. “The only thing is, Inga, Henry has an appointment with Brad and Kali this evening.” She folded her arms across her chest. “Kali, now that’s she in that condition, kind of falls apart when things don’t go her way. And if she’s made something special for dinner, in Henry’s honor, then she’s going to cry if he doesn’t show up tonight.”
Inga’s arms dropped and she slapped her palms on either side of her cheeks. “That girl is pregnant! Oh, my word, how exciting. I tell you, she’s the hardest working little thing, if God’s blessed them with a baby, then don’t stand in the way.”
Lacy knew she’d have to apologize many times over for ‘letting the cat out of the bag’, but people were going to find out soon as the baby bump was getting more obvious. Besides, Kali liked Henry. She’d want to rescue him too. “So maybe, Inga, Henry should come with me now. How about if I send Michael back this afternoon with some grocery sacks? Maybe he’ll stay and watch NASCAR with you.”
Inga brushed her hand through the air. “Nah, Michael smells bad. Hygiene is important to me and I don’t think that deputy appreciates how sensitive women are to cow dung on boots.”
And to think Lacy broke up with him because he didn’t meet all the qualifications on her ‘potential husband list’. Maybe she needed to re-write the list. She’d always assumed hygiene was an implied qualification. Or maybe she needed to pay more attention to men’s footwear. “Henry,” she said redirecting her gaze to the man inching toward the front door. “You’re welcome to stay here as long as you like. But, Brad’s firing up the grill about six. Kali was talking about dinner on the patio, which at this time of year, is a real treat. Don’t be late.”
“Oh, I’m coming. Right now, even. I’ve got to make some phone calls on Kali’s behalf. I have some friends with a major grocery chain who should consider her cheeses.”
“That’s nice of you.”
Henry moved to stand beside Lacy at the door. “And, of course, there’s still that sales training you and I were going to cover today.”
Lacy’s humor evaporated. “I’m not taking classes from you.”
“Sure you are because you’ve just blown Acquisitions 101.”
Before Lacy could fire back a response, Inga interrupted. “If you two love birds are going to keep this up could you please take it outside? I’ve got a sick headache, probably from a lack of protein. Maybe if I had some barbecue, I’d feel better.”
“Barbecue, right,” Lacy said through clenched teeth. “I’ll send you some soon.”
“That’s a good girl,” Inga said collapsing into her recliner. “You’ve always been one of my favorites. Right after Kali. She brings me cheese.”
Lacy almost closed Henry in the house with Inga. He stuck his shoe in the way and slid out before Lacy jerked the door closed.
“Well that was certainly interesting,” he said brushing dust from his hands.
Lacy’s stopped on the porch. “I don’t know why I saved you. You’re the most obnoxious man I know.”
“Now is that anyway to talk to someone who’s practically giving you several thousand dollars?”
Lacy put her hands on her hips. “Oh, please. Do not throw the dining room suit up into my face. You made that purchase without any involvement from me.”
“I’m not talking about a table and chairs. I’m talking about pottery and candle sticks. Good stuff that will fetch a big sum because it’s in pristine condition.
Lacy stared into his eyes. There had to be a ghost laughing behind the long lashes. She remembered the boxes outside the laundry room. Inga’s treasures. All that time in the house and she’d not once asked to see the pewter. “You couldn’t have gotten here long before I did, how did you have time to evaluate the value of her pottery?”
Henry leaned close, too close for objectivity. “It only takes a second to recognize quality.”
“You’re that good, are you?”
“Experience is a wonderful teacher.”
She was beginning to lose track of what they were talking about. “You’re just trying to weasel in and become my mentor. Well, I’ve told you before I don’t need your kind of instruction.”
Henry moved even closer. “Oh, I think you do.”
“I do not.”
“Do too.”
“I, uh,” Henry stood so close she could feel his breath on her lips. Her stomach flip-flopped. “I’m doing just fine on my own,” she said.
Henry drew something from his pocket. Without breaking eye contact with Lacy, he reached down, lifted her hand and placed something in her palm. He wrapped her fingers around the cold metal. With his hand closed over hers, he brushed his lips near her ear and whispered, “If you’re doing so well, how come I got the key to Inga’s storage unit.”
The key’s imprint burned her palm. “What storage unit?”
Henry stepped back, but didn’t release her hand. “The one where Inga said she keeps the really good stuff.”
Lacy’s nerves started misfiring. Confusion, agitation and something that felt oddly like fascination had turned her insides to mush. She closed her eyelids to clear her mind then opened them to refocus. She looked at her hand. Peeling off Henry’s fingers, she opened her palm. There sat, just as shiny as a new key could appear, the testimony to failure as an antiques dealer. “I had no idea there was more.”
Henry didn’t gloat. He wrapped his hand around her elbow and moved her down the porch steps. “Don’t feel bad. Most people only tell you about the valuable treasures hidden off somewhere after you prove yourself with their junk. That’s why it’s always a good idea to pay close attention to their initial offerings. If they have a quality dining room suit, there’s bound to be art or china packed away somewhere.”
“But, how . . .did you get her to confess to you. She just met you an hour ago.”
Henry stopped next to the four-wheeler. As a breeze blew a strand of Lacy’s hair onto her cheek, he reached up to brush it away, his hand lingering near her ear. “I played my two best cards right up front.”
“And they were?”
“First, I reminded her one of her best friends was my client in Dallas,” he said putting sunglasses over his face. “And second, I told her I worked for you.”
Lacy was so rattled by his touch she almost missed his explanation. “You do not work for me.”
“Maybe I should have said we’re exploring the idea of working together.”
“We’re not doing that either.”
Henry sighed. “Then you leave me no choice,” he said whipping the key from her palm.
“Hey!”
“If you’re not going to be reasonable about this, I’m going to have to make things difficult. Now I have the key and you probably know every storage facility between here and Austin, we have to work together to find the rest of Inga’s antiques.”
“Why would I want to do that,” she asked even as a vision of pottery and pewter danced in her head.
“Because that house,” he pointed to the limestone beauty. “was built for more than just candlesticks. Someone knew there were big pieces of furniture to be displayed on those walls and we’re just the sort of people to find it.”
To be continued.