Catharine Bramkamp - Real Estate Diva 04 - Trash Out (27 page)

The Grove? 

“W
e could marry on the stage next to the lake, and the guests can stand around the
perimeter
of the water
and the reception can be at the lodge.  It would be fun.  Or
we could stage the whole thing
a
t
the camp.” He mused.

“Only one problem.  I have women friends.
Oh yes, and I too am a woman. And they don’t allow women at the Bohemian Grove, I know, I read about it
,
so
it
must be true.
”

“Oh, we’d do it off season, like in June.  Or something.” He trailed off, embroiled in difficulties of his own making.  “Okay, we can just have it at the
club in
the City.
”

I
had only
nodded and
changed the subject
. 
At the time, my
own plans were not top of mind. 

I glanced around
the patio
out of self
-
defense
.
I liked knowing
where the Furies were at all times, that way they could
n’t
sneak up and surprise me.  I checked my watch.  Two more hours and this whole miserable thing would be over.  It cheered me
to
no end.
I
spotted
Kathleen and Claire
standing together in the corner farthest from me.
  They should be seated at the head table.  I headed over to chastise them.
They were
almost hidden behind the forest
of
unfurled
patio
umbrellas.
The
profusion of open umbrellas, like a Christo
installation
,
made it difficult to see who was here or who was missing with just a quick glance.

The Furies were cornered by what I assumed was a well meaning relative,
who
, as we all know, are the deadliest guests at an event like this.

I moved instinctively towards the two women.  Kathleen looked elegant and aloof, Claire
looked earthy
and
harassed
.

“So when are you two going to tie the knot?”  The small woman’s
malevolent
eyes glittered as she looked to first one sister, then the other.

“Ummm.” Was the
dubious
response from
Claire.

“We enjoy our freedom
,
”
p
arroted Kathleen
in a
well-rehearsed
line
.

I moved
closer to
the
tiny
group.  Kathleen’s mouth was set in a grim line and Claire sported one of those pa
inful smiles that spoke volumes
to me, but was lost on her
inquisitor
.
 
Claire
clutched a red napkin
wadded into a tight ball.  Kathleen gripped the stem of her
empty wine glass. They had been ambushed before
they
could
even
sit down for lunch.

“You should have children,” the woman pre
ssed through the silence. “They
are such a comfort in your old age.  My Henry has been just gold to me. Did I tell you he paid for a cruise for
me and all the grandchildren
?  We went to Alaska, it was just lovely, you don’t even have to fly, you can drive to Seattle and board from there.”

“Alaska is lovely
,
”
I interjected.  “I think it’s the salmon we love
best
.  Have you tried the smoked salmon?
It’s part of the salad
and they are serving right now.  Let’s
get you a good seat shall we?
”  I deftly took
the woman
by her fragile arm and
steered
her away from
Patrick’s sisters
.  I did not look
back;
it was up to them to make themselves scare
.

I delivered the tiny
but deadly
woman
to
a table of
guests
who
greeted her with at least some familiarity. I
took a deep breath and
plunged back into
the
remaining
crowd, the members of whom were certainly not drinking enough because they weren’t cheerful enough.  Come on,
a
wedding shower is the happy
time
.
A
funeral
wake is depressing and
a
baby shower is just scary.  So be happy
,
I silently ordered everyone.

I drank as much wine as I dared
.
I could spend the night here if need be, so I wasn’t worried.  But before I could achieve even a buzz,
and well before I could find
a place to sit
,
Claire
dashed up
and gripped my arm.

“There is a man at the door
,
”
s
he hissed.
“He isn’t
supposed
to be here, it’s for ladies only.”

“I’m sure he’s not here to crash the party.”  She didn’t know very much about men if she thought the average man would voluntarily enter any kind of even
t
glutted
with a hundred women
determined against all odds to be cheerful
. 

Jose from
Prophesy Estates hovered
in the driveway
. Claire had shut the door in the poor man’s face. 

“Hi, what’s up?” I stepped out
and joined him outside the huge doors that lead directly to the patio.
When
the temporary
foreman of a winery leaves
the facility during
crush
,
it’s not
to deliver
good news. 

“I
’
m so sor
ry to interrupt.” His handsome face was pale in the high
sunshine
.
“
There’s been an accident at the winery and this was the closest address.”  He peered around at the colorful groups of women in the central courtyard.
S
ilver and crystal glinted in the afternoon sunshine. It was like a picture in Town and Country magazine
;
not anchored in reality one little bit.

“Is,
”
h
e glanced down at a card in his hand. “Ben Stone here?”

“No, no he’s not.  May I help you?  I’m his
fiancé
.”

As if that gave me automatic authority over all Ben’s doings, comings and goings.  It was an odd
thought;
I’d be mingling my life
with
his, my stuff with his. All his books would be mine.  All his problems would be mine.
  All his ill
-
advised investments would be mine.
All his projects – mine.
We’d have to discuss that.  But I was already in
deep,
I may as well go all the way.

Jose nodded as if Ben’s
fiancé
was indeed a good enough substitute.   “Can you come with me?”

“Cer
t
ainly not
,
”
I protested.  “I have this shower to do.” 

Emily slipped through the door.  “What’s wrong?”

“I need to go down to the winery.”
  Again. Jeez.

She wave
d
me away.  “Go, I’ll be here.
The entrée is just being served, this will take at least an hour, plus it will take another hour for Carrie to
get through all those gifts, poor girl.
Do you have any idea what these women brought?  Silver serving platters, y
ou can’t even put them in the dishwasher
. 
Another woman
revealed
she gave Carrie a
silver
samovar
,
just
wait till she opens that,
so practical for the modern
couple
. Who are these people?”

I hugged the protesting hostess and
hitch
ed
a ride with
Jose in one of the winery
trucks
,
the colors and name of the winery emblazoned on the door.

I was suddenly free
,
albeit hungry. But I would miss at least an hour of
oohing
and ahhing over material goods that I knew wouldn’t interest
the recipient
one bit.
Gifts at a shower like this
were far more about
competition
with the other guests than helping a
young woman set up house
.  

Jose was tight lipped as he raced the truck
down
the hill from Emily’s and turned quickly to the Prophesy Estates driveway.  It was
two thirty,
the tasting room
was
supposed
to be closed, but three cars were parked in the public lot.  As I entered the back of the winery I heard
loud laughter
from the tasting room
.  It
echoed
to the back. Jose shooed away a
couple
of young visitors
clutching their wine glasses and
staggering
in the direction of
the stacked barrels
in
the back.

“We just want to see how’s it’s all done
,”
h
e
hiccupped.

“Magic
,
”
Jose
waved his hands to block their passage
.  “All wine is magic, go try the dessert wine now, you’ll love it.”

He rolled his eyes and hustled me through the back
,
past the red stained stemmer crusher
. 
Men
hosed
the cement floor pushing hills of stems, seeds and skins into
gaping
drains.
The liquid was dark, almost black. What kind of grape made that color?
The long stemmer crusher was silent, covered in
purple
sticky
juice and seeds.

“Where?”

“The office.”  He pointed the way
.

Ben’s old desk still dominated the office. It didn’t look
as if
Beth had made any inroads through the troublesome paperwork.
Piles of forms, half filled in with blue
ball point
pen, fluttered as I entered the room.
 
A soft couch stood in one corner, I hadn’t noticed it before, but that was because it was so familiar, another piece in the Ben Stone collection. 
An
inert bundle perched
unsteadily
on
the cushions.
It
was covered
with
a
n
old blanket and for good measure a canvass tarp.  Blood streaked through blond curls
that tumbled over the rough edges of the tarp.
Blood
seep
ed
through the canvas.

“My god.”  I automatically pulled out my phone.

“No need, I already called.  She’s unconscious
,
but breathing
.”
Jose said behind me.

I’ve seen worse, but that didn’t make me immune
to pain and blood
, anyone’s
pain or blood
.
Jose and I stood silent for a full minute before he spoke again.

“She fell into the stemmer crusher.”

I
immediately
visualized
the huge
stainless steel
screw
-
like apparatus that would do a James Bond villain proud. It was built to tumble and
divide the
grapes from their stems
. It could also just as effectively separate
a hand from an arm, a foot from a leg. I shuddered
and swallowed a sudden lump in my throat
.