Elisabeth Crabtree - Pink Flamingo Hotel 01 - Death by Pink Flamingo (11 page)

Only
Victoria visibly reacted. She jerked up the moment I slapped my knee and looked around sleepily before glancing at her watch and making a guttural sound in the back of her throat.

Gabriel
and Krista, on the other hand, just sat there not saying anything, just watching. Waiting for me to say something else. I blew out my breath in frustration. Obviously, subtlety was not going to work with these two. “Aren’t you the head of the Preservation Society, Mr. Carrera?”

Victoria
began to shake her head, just as Gabriel cleared his throat. “It’s one of my pet projects.”

“
Who told you that Gabriel was involved with the society?” Krista asked sharply.

Gabriel
threw her a chiding look. “It’s okay. It’s not exactly a secret. We just haven’t wanted to broadcast it to everyone.”

Krista shook her head in annoyance.
“Gabriel is very concerned with our town’s heritage.”

A surprised
Victoria snorted before asking, “Since when?”

Krista threw her a dirty look.
“He’s afraid that people might be unwilling to help if his name was associated with the project.”

“That’s no
t exactly surprising,” Victoria said. “Just why do you want that part of the boardwalk, Dad? The truth.”

Gabriel
, instead of being angry with his daughter, spared her an amused glance. “It’s a prime piece of real estate, darling.”

“Ah,
” she said, before leaning her head back against the sofa cushion.

“How exactly did you convince my uncle to make the society a beneficiary
when Sylvia and I die?” I asked.

Gabriel
’s eyes briefly flickered toward Krista.

Victoria
frowned as she looked from her father to me and then back again. “Wait, so if Anna and Sylvia die, you automatically inherit the hotel?”

“
The society has a vested remainder, or in other words, a future interest in the property, yes,” he said. “But I doubt Sylvia or Anna will die anytime soon.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure of that,” Krista said.

My eyes flew wide. “Excuse me?”

Krista’s eyes narrowed
. “You never know what might happen. I didn’t expect Uncle Max to die when he did, but he did. People die unexpectedly all the time. You never know when it’s your time.”

“
Well, that’s a comforting thought,” I muttered. “Still taking bets on whether I’ll eventually kill Sylvia, Krista?”

“
I didn’t come up with that poll,” Krista said. “I just shared it with everyone I knew.”

Gabriel made a face. “Morbid game.”

Victoria wearily shook her head. “I just don’t understand why Max gave them both ownership of the hotel. He had to have known that it would be a bad idea.”

Gabriel coughed. To my
surprise, he looked a bit guilty. “Max loved the hotel. He was very, how should I put it …” He turned his head slightly, looking to Krista for help.

“Crazy,” Krista said, ignoring the look I threw her way.

“Protective,” Gabriel amended diplomatically. “He
was very adamant that the Pink Flamingo be given to someone who would cherish it as much as he had. Out of all of his family members, he felt that you loved the hotel as much as he did. That you thought of the hotel as something special. Something that should be treasured. You were an obvious choice as his heir. In fact there was never any question in your uncle’s mind. He wanted you to have the hotel, but there was also Sylvia to consider. I think he cared for her a great deal, though he didn’t really show it. He said that it wasn’t right to leave her out. She loved the hotel too and had worked there for so many years. Plus there was the relationship between them. He just couldn’t decide between the two of you, so ultimately, he chose to split it in half and give each of you an interest in the property.”

Victoria
’s head leaned back. “Sort of like King Solomon,” she muttered sleepily.

“
It was actually me who suggested that a joint tenancy with right of survivorship might be the best solution,” Gabriel admitted reluctantly.

That got
Victoria’s attention. She lifted her head and tapped me on the arm. Despite her tiredness, her eyes sparkled. “I guess now you know who to thank for that.”

No kidding
. Suddenly wondering just how much my uncle confided in Mr. Carrera, I asked, “He talked to you about his will?”

“Just abit,” he hedged
.
“But really, his attorney could probably talk to you in more detail about your uncle’s thought process.”

“No, please go on,” I said. “You seem to know quite a lot about it.
I didn’t know you two were so close.”

One side of his mouth quirked up.
“Your uncle and I got to know each other rather well before he died. He was a good man. Stubborn too. I had tried to get him to sell the hotel to me but he refused.” He chuckled. “For a few days there, I thought I had him but …” he said with a small shrug and a “c’est la vie,” thrown in for good measure.

“I knew Uncle Max wouldn’t sell,” Krista said softly. “But I was relieved to discover he did consider us when he died.”

“Us?” I asked glancing at her.

Krista blushed. “I mean the
society, of course.”

Victoria
shook her head in amusement at her father. “I can’t believe you’re the one who suggested tying Anna and Sylvia together till death. If I didn’t know better, I’d say you were purposely trying to sabotage them.” She leaned forward and looked her father in the eye. “A few years together and they’ll probably beg you to take the hotel just to get away from each other.”

Gabriel lifted his hands up. “I promise you, I had no ulterior motives. I just made the suggestion. It was Max who decided that they could eventually put aside their differences and work together for the benefit of the hotel.”

Victoria
snorted while her father gave me an indulgent smile. “I wouldn’t worry, Anna. I’m sure everything’s going to be fine. You two will learn to work together.”

“Just out of
curiosity, what do you plan on doing with the hotel when it passes to you?” I asked.

“W
ell, I’m sure that won’t be for a very long time and my heirs will probably be in control by then,” he said, sparing a glance at his daughter, “but if I’m still around, then I’d do whatever’s best for the boardwalk … and the hotel, of course.”

“
Well, what’s best for the boardwalk,” Victoria said, “is for the hotel to remain Anna’s.” She looked over at her father in amusement. “You’re just going to have to move on and find another prime piece of real estate. There’s no way you’re getting the Flamingo. The hotel is beautiful. Guests will be lining up out the door. Anna and Sylvia would be crazy to give it up.”

“
Nonsense. It would be better if they sold it now,” Krista said. “Gabriel’s willing to make a very generous offer.”

“Why?” I asked with a touch of bitterness. “All you have to do is wait for me
and Sylvia to die and then it’s yours lock, stock and barrel, eh, Krista?”

Krista tilted her chin up high and straightened her back.
“I have nothing to do with this.”

Victoria
rolled her eyes.

Even Gabriel gave her a strange look before turning back to me.
“Anna, listen to me,” he said in a fatherly tone of voice. “I want you to do well and if you are determined to run this hotel, then I wish you all the best. I’ll even help you.”

I bit my lip, suddenly unsure of my theory. It seemed so
logical, as I was coming up the elevator. And for one horrifying moment, I seriously entertained the idea that Victoria’s father could be a killer, but I just couldn’t see it. He had a reputation for being a ruthless businessman and I had no doubt that he was determined to get his hands on the hotel, but I couldn’t see him murdering anyone to do it. Personally, I had always known him to be a kind and caring man. A little self-absorbed and egotistical at times, but still he was a good and decent man at heart. One that had always been kind to me. “Thank you, Mr. Carrera.”

“You’re
family, Anna. I watched you grow up. You’re best friends with my daughter, and frankly, I don’t know what I’d do if Krista left me because I mistreated her little cousin.”

I hid a smile.
Since I have long suspected that Krista had a shrine dedicated to Gabriel Carrera secreted away somewhere, I didn’t think he’d have to worry about that.

“There’s no way I could run my business
es without her.” He glanced at Krista with a big grin. “We’d go under in a week.”

Krista
didn’t respond well to his teasing tone. Instead, her scowl deepened. “I’m just looking for a resolution that will make everyone happy and I think selling the hotel would be in everyone’s best interest.”

Shaking her head,
Victoria stood up. “This is a ridiculous conversation. She’s not selling and the hotel is going to be a fantastic success. You’re just out of luck.”

“
I’m not giving up,” Krista declared. “You’ll see that I’m right. You’re taking on too much trouble. I’m only thinking of you, Anna,” she said while throwing a surreptitious glance at her boss. “You should think about your health. The stress will end up killing you. Just wait and see.”

“Oh, don’t worry, my health is my top concern right now,” I said watching my cousin closely, wondering if it was really Krista and not Mr. Carrera who was desperate to get their hands on my hotel.
Was she angry that Uncle Max didn’t leave the hotel to her?
I thought to myself.
Surely not.
Until now, I hadn’t even considered the possibility that Krista cared.
She never expressed any interest in running the hotel. Despite living in town all those years, she only visited Uncle Max occasionally and never once worked at the Flamingo.

No,
I thought
, that’s not it.
If she did care, it had to be due to Gabriel’s interest in the other properties and not because she wanted the hotel for herself.
No wonder he didn’t want to lose her. You couldn’t find a more dedicated employee, that was for sure.

“Well, as entertaining as this
is, it’s almost midnight,” Victoria said wearily. “Some of us do have work in the morning.”

We stood automatically. I waited as father and daughter said their good-byes before issuing one of my own. Krista and
Victoria gave their good-byes as any true frenemies would. An air kiss and a half-hearted sleep well, followed by a slight roll of their eyes as soon as they turned away from one another.

Once the door shut behind us, w
e turned as a group down the hallway toward the elevator. To my surprise, Krista linked her arm through mine as we walked. “I hope Danielle doesn’t cause too much trouble for you.”

“
Me either.” I glanced behind us at Gabriel. “I’m sorry for that little scene she caused last night. I hope it wasn’t too embarrassing.”

“That’
s all right, I’m used to her behavior,” he said with a rueful snort.

“Used to it?” I asked. “I didn’t know you and Danielle knew each other before last night.”

Krista laughed. At least I think it was a laugh. It sounded a bit like a strangled cry mixed with a giggle. “They didn’t. Gabriel just attracts the wrong kind of attention. He’s like a magnet for trouble. I constantly have to pull women off of him.”

“No,” Gabriel said, “
I know Danielle. I met her at your hotel. I ended up hiring her when my housekeeper went on vacation earlier this year.”

“You should have let me handle that, Gabriel,” Krista said tightly. “I told you I’d hire someone.”

“There was no need. I took care of it,” he said chidingly.

“Are you and she …” I paused, wondering how to ask my best friend’s father
tactfully whether he and Danielle were a couple.

Fortunately, he guessed as to what I was trying to ask. “No.”

I felt Krista’s arm relax around mine and the tension that had been building up in her body loosen somewhat.

“Not anymore,” he added
casually.

I quickly moved my arm out of Krista’s before she crushed it and turned around in surprise.
Mr. Carrera and Danielle?
I definitely didn’t see that one coming. I glanced at Krista who looked like she swallowed a lemon. “Does Danielle know that you could inherit the hotel?”

“
Probably, she was around when your uncle and I discussed it. She might have overheard.”

“
That’s interesting,” I said as a thought began to take hold in my mind.

Krista moaned low in her throat. “W
hy? What does that have to do with anything?” she asked as she punched the down button for the elevator with her thumb.

“
I’m just wondering if someone who loves Mr. Carrera might be trying to help him get the hotel sooner than what Uncle Max intended. Take matters in her own hands, so to speak, to help move things along.”