5 Big Bunny Bump Off (2 page)

The se
cond problem we faced is that the theater group is putting on an Easter play and not a Christmas one, so the character of Jack Frost wasn’t in the original script. But Blakely has money and power and, apparently, some unresolved childhood Jack Frost issues, so Gilda cleverly rewrote the script to accommodate the man who holds the mortgages to most of the businesses in town, including Gilda’s touristy-type shop, Bears and Beavers.

Dad said, “Gilda did a fabulous job of coming up with a script to accommodate Blakely’s tantrum.”

“What did she do?” Mom asked.

“Basically,” I answered, “
it’s a story about how Jack Frost mourns the end of winter and the coming of spring each year, so he comes up with a way to stop spring from coming, creating a sort of endless winter. The play explores a monotonous world, resulting in dramatic changes to everything we know.”

“Sounds awful
.” Mom laughed.

“Tell me about it.” I was already so, so done with snow and cold temperatures.
If I didn’t know that summer was just around the corner, I don’t know what I’d do. “Anyway, the story is about the Easter Bunny and his attempt to find a way to save spring. It’s sort of corny, but it
does
have an Easter theme, and it
does
make Blakely happy, and it even provides for an identifiable theme people can relate to.”

“Who’d they finally get to pl
ay the Easter Bunny?” Dad asked. Frank Valdez, the owner of Outback Hunting and Fishing and the organizer for the outdoor summer camp for underprivileged kids, normally took the part of the Easter Bunny in the annual play and owned his own costume, but when Blakely came on board, he bowed out. I’m not privy to all the details, but the word around town is that Frank and Blakely entered into some sort of business arrangement that ended in a feud reminiscent of the Hatfields and McCoys.

“You
’ll never guess in a million years,” I challenged.

“Pappy
,” Dad said.

“How’d you know?” I wondered. “Gilda just announced it today.
”

“I didn’t know,” Dad admitted. “I just thought of the least likely person to do it and Pappy came to mind. How did Gilda talk him into it?”

“She didn’t. Hazel did.”

Hazel Hampton
, a woman in her early sixties, is the town librarian, a member of the events committee, and the chairperson of the book club Pappy and I belong to. If you ask me, Pappy might be developing feelings toward the friendly woman. He hasn’t dated at all since Grandma died, but during the past few months, I’ve noticed a very gradual change in his reclusive ways. He even played Santa at Christmas, when the “real” Santa was in a car accident and the backup one was murdered.

“You don’t say
?” Dad smiled. “Well, good for her. Is Pappy going to wear the entire outfit?”

“Head and all,” I confirmed.

“This I have to see.” Dad chuckled. “And what part are you playing?”

“I’m firmly planted behind the scenes
, monitoring sets, costumes, and pretty much anything I could volunteer for that wouldn’t require me to set foot on the stage during the performance.”

“That’s too bad
.” Zak laughed. “I’m sure you would have made an adorable Easter egg.”

“In your dreams.” I threw an
eggroll at him.

“It’s funny you should say that,” Dad commented. “Zoe actually
was
an Easter egg in the Easter play when she was five. And you’re right, she was adorable.”

“I’d forgotten all about that,” I
said with a laugh. “Now that I think about it, I do remember the tantrum I threw when I was assigned the role of a pink egg and wanted to be blue.”

“Yeah, you never did like pink as a child.”

“I feel so bad that I missed that.” Mom sat back in her chair, looking down at her hands as a tear rolled down her cheek. “I missed so many precious moments I can never get back. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“Don’t worry
, I’m sure Harper will be asked to be an egg when she’s four or five. It’s a bit of a town tradition,” I said, offering encouragement. Mom had been
very
emotional lately, something I’d pretty much decided to chalk up to pregnancy hormones.

“Do you have pictures of your performance?”
Mom asked.

I looked at Dad. “Do we?”

“Of course. We have pictures of everything.” He turned to look at Mom. “I’ll dig them out for you.” I noticed that Dad was holding Mom’s hand under the table, giving it an occasional squeeze of support. “It’ll be fun to go through them all again. Maybe we can organize them into albums.”

“I’d like that
.” Mom smiled.

“Before I forget to tell you,” Zak turned to me, “I hired a contractor to come out and take a look at your siding.”

“What’s wrong with my siding?” I asked.

“The wood on the back of the boathouse needs to be refinished before it starts to rot. The challenge is to match the natural wood so as not to affect the integrity of the historic structure while using a sturdy enough product to protect
it from the wind and moisture the wall that faces the lake endures every winter.”

While I’ve never been the sort who longs to be taken care of, I was sort of enjoying the fact that I had Zak to worry about stuff like wood siding. I love the little boathouse I converted into living space several years ago
, but I have to be honest and admit that I have no clue whatsoever when it comes to maintenance of the historic building. The converted space is small and generally easy to take care of, with a single room on the bottom floor featuring a living area arranged around huge picture windows overlooking the lake, a mere twenty feet from my back deck. A floor-to-ceiling river-rock fireplace provides warmth and a cozy feel on a cold winter’s day, and thick walls of natural wood keep the little cabin insulated against cool alpine mornings. The kitchen is divided from the living area by a tile counter where I’ve placed bar stools for additional seating. There’s a small bathroom off the kitchen, as well as a sleeping area located in the loft above the kitchen.

“I think I really need to be going,” Mom
said, massaging her lower back.

“I can drop you at Zak’s,” my dad offered.

“That’s okay. I have some work to do and should probably get going myself,” Zak responded.

“Are you sure?” I asked. “It
’s a beautiful night. We could build a fire in the pit out back and have a glass of wine.”

Zak hesitated. “I guess it is a nice night.”

Dad laughed. “I’ll take Madison home. You kids have a nice evening.”

Zak built a fire in the pit on the beach while I poured the wine. The last of the snow had finally melted from the basin
, although there was still quite a bit of it on the mountains. Still, the beach was clear, and with the fire, the chilly spring evening was really quite pleasant. I grabbed a blanket to spread out under the stars, which shone brightly in the clear sky.

“It’s so beautiful out here at night
.” I sighed contently.

“It really is. We should take a trip this summer. I know an island in the
Pacific where the stars look close enough to reach out and touch. It’s a lovely spot, with excellent scuba diving and wide white-sand beaches.”

“It sounds wonderful
, but I’m not sure how long it’s going to be before I can go anywhere,” I reminded Zak. “With Jeremy having a new baby, I won’t be able to count on him to fill in like I have in the past.”

“I’ve been thinking that we need to hire a few more people. Someone to cover
, so that you and Jeremy can take time off, as well as someone to help out with the cleaning and heavier chores.”

“That would be nice,” I admitted. “I’d love to have someone on the premises 24/7
, if we can work it into the budget. We never had a night shift when the county owned the facility, but now that we’re talking on so much wildlife, many of which need monitoring and medical care, it would be helpful to have someone there all the time.”

Zak began running his fingers through my hair
, making it difficult for me to concentrate on the subject at hand. Not only is Zak a large man, at well over six feet four inches in height, but he has big hands that seem to know just how to touch me to cause my entire body to tingle from the top of my head to the bottom of my toes (and everywhere in between).

“You know
, if we built a shed out back and moved the items that are now stored in the room in the back into it, we could convert that room into a bedroom,” Zak suggested. “Maybe we can find a couple of people willing to do a graveyard shift.”

“H
mm.” I closed my eyes and relaxed as Zak’s gentle caress sent tingles to all the best places.

“
The more I consider the idea, the more I like it. Why don’t you go ahead and advertise for three positions: a full-time day position, a graveyard position, and someone who can be flexible and maybe work two nights and three days. I’d like to get people hired and trained before Jeremy’s baby is born so you don’t end up living down there,” Zak instructed.

“
’Kay,” I purred.

“Are you still listening to me?” Zak leaned down and kissed me.

I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him onto the blanket next to me. “Tell me later,” I whispered as his lips found mine and all thoughts of employees and wild animals were replaced by something much more delightful.

“This really couldn’t get any worse,” I groaned as Blakely strutted around the stage with his portly body poured i
nto blue tights and a short white costume styled after the original fairylike Jack Frost. He had on moccasin-type shoes and a pointy hat that draped like a jester’s.

“I thought you were in charge of costumes,” Levi
, the third member of the Zoe, Levi, and Ellie triad, pointed out. The two of us were seated in the community center, watching a rehearsal of the play Gilda had managed to put together after Blakely had forced us to make changes.

“I am
, but Blakely insisted on providing his own. The man actually believes he looks good. He claims to have done quite a bit of research into the classic images of his favorite fantasy character and had a costume custom made to portray what he remembers from his childhood. The problem is that the original Jack Frost was small, thin, and fairylike. Blakely is tall and rotund. I’m flabbergasted they even make tights in his size. Gilda, Hazel, Ellie, and I have all tried to talk to him about designing a costume with pants and a jacket, similar to what Jack Frost wore in the
Santa Clause
movie, but he’s having none of it.”

“Maybe if
someone of the male persuasion had a chat with him . . .” Levi suggested.

“Actually,
Rob made a comment about tights being less than flattering for men, but Blakely insisted that the ‘real’ Jack Frost wore tights, so he would too.”

“This whole thing is bizarre,” Levi admitted. “Blakely is a bank president
, for God’s sake. He understands the importance of having a professional image. I can’t believe he’d even think of prancing around in tights.”

“If you ask me
, Blakely has some sort of Jack Frost obsession left over from his childhood. He keeps making comments about now the ‘real’ Jack Frost would dress or what the ‘real’ Jack Frost would say. Rob and I talked about it, and we both agree Blakely actually seems to think there is a
real
Jack Frost. It’s absurd.”

“It sounds like he’s lost his mind. Do you think he’s dangerous?” Levi wondered.

“Rob doesn’t think so. He minored in psychology in college, so he knows a bit about this stuff, and he seems like a pretty perceptive guy. He thinks Blakely’s obsession is harmless, but to tell you the truth, I’m not so certain. The whole thing gives me the creeps, and with more than eighty percent of the cast being children, I think we should keep an eye on him.”

“I’m surprised Ellie didn’t enlist Rob to be in the play,”
Levi commented as Blakely leapt through the air like some sort of hippo ballerina. “He’s been following her around like a puppy of late.”

“Rob is more of a loving
golden retriever than a puppy,” I broke it to Levi, as Pappy, who wasn’t dressed in costume since this wasn’t even a dress rehearsal, began to enlist the support of the children in his battle to defeat Jack and save spring.

“Either way you slice it
, he’s a dog.”

“Jealous much?”

“I’m not jealous. I’m just not sure that a man who is a good five years older than Ellie, with a young daughter to care for, is right for her. She needs someone more like . . .”

“More like you?”

“Exactly.”

“Ellie loves Hannah
, and she really likes Rob. They have a lot of fun together and he’s very good to her. You really need to learn to like the guy if you want to maintain a relationship with Ellie in the long run.”

Levi turned to look at me.
“You think he’s a long-run kind of guy?”

“Yeah. I do.”
I placed my hand over his arm. “It’s much too early to tell where the relationship will lead, but Rob seems to be a plant-roots, raise-a-family, forever kind of guy, and I think Ellie likes that about him.”

Levi frowned. I felt bad for him
, but when he could have had Ellie, he’d been too busy panting after every blonde with long legs and a big chest. Rob wasn’t as fun as Levi, but he was sweet and loyal, and he seemed to really care about Ellie, which made him okay in my book.

“So where is
your
lapdog today?” Levi asked in a snarky tone.

“Zak is not my lapdog
,” I snapped back.

“Sorry, I guess that was rude. I like Zak. You know I do,
it’s just that . . .” Levi looked toward the stage, where Ellie was explaining to some of the kids where they were supposed to stand.

“Yeah, I get it,” I sympathized. “Zak is out
of town on business, but he should be home this evening. He promised to be back in time to help my dad and mom move into their new place this weekend.”

“Wow. That was fast. How’d they swing it to move in so quickly?”

“Zak knows the guy, and he worked out a deal. I’m pretty sure it consisted of an exchange of money, but we aren’t advertising that to Dad, who is feeling sensitive about the financial aspect of the deal.”

“Makes sense.
Zak is loaded, your mom is loaded, and your dad has busted his butt his whole life, but no matter how hard he works, he’ll never be able to compete.”

“I don’t think it’s a competition.”

“Really? I think for your dad it certainly is. He isn’t the type of guy who wants to be kept.”

Levi had a point. I’d pretty much bought, wrapped, and delivered the idea that Mom and Dad would be a
real
couple once they worked things out, but Mom was born into money and would always be rich, and Dad . . . well, short of winning the lottery, he most likely never would.

“I heard there’s a storm coming in on Sunday. You might want to complete the move on Saturday
, before it hits. I can help if you want.”

“It’s going to rain?” I asked.

“Actually, they’re calling for snow. Up to a foot,” Levi informed me.

“You can’
t be serious.”

“Afraid I am.”

“It’s April.”

Levi looked toward the stage. “Guess you sh
ould have a chat with Jack.”

“
Yeah, I guess I should. A foot of snow is really going to put a damper on Ellie’s grand opening next week.”

“Did she get everything worked out with Blakely?” Levi asked.

“Not really, but she decided to go along with the ridiculous contract and continue forward while their attorneys work out the details.”

For those of you who aren’t aware, Ellie and her mom
, Rosie, recently secured a loan from the Ashton Falls Community Bank, of which Blakely is the president, to open a second location of the extremely popular Rosie’s Café. Ellie has worked for her mother at the main restaurant since she was old enough to do so, and Rosie’d decided it was time for her daughter to have her own place. The location on the pier, near one of the most popular beaches in the area, is priceless. The new building is small, but Ellie had plans to make the most of the space and had been remodeling for the past few months. Shortly after she announced a grand-opening date, she’d learned that there was fine print in the contract she’d signed with the bank that gave Blakely control over management decisions regarding the enterprise. To say that both Ellie and Rosie are less than thrilled about this turn of events is putting it mildly. Zak helped them hire an attorney, but the truth of the matter is, they’d signed what they’d signed.

“I can’t believe Blakely wants input on the menu,” Levi complained. “Seems picky and petty to me.”

“He claims that because the loan is unsecured, he’s taking a big risk on the venture. He feels it’s within his rights to ensure that decisions regarding the establishment that may affect the bottom line are made in the best interest of maintaining a certain profit margin. I know it’s crazy, but the man is smart, and he included wording in the fine print that legally backs up his claim. Looking back, I guess Ellie should have run the loan contract past an attorney before she signed it, but the process took so long, she was just happy to get it finalized.”

“I heard Blakely has been requiring Ellie to bring him samples of every item she intends to include on the menu.”

“You heard right. If the guy continues to be such a huge tool, I can see how her next submission may be arsenic soup.”

“If she wants to off Blakel
y, she might have to wait in line,” Levi commented. “I ran into Walter Gates the other day, and he made a similar comment about wanting the guy gone. I guess things got a little tight over the winter, so he applied for a small line of credit to get him through until the tourism season. He told me that he’s had to make similar requests a few times in the past, when winters have been particularly long or hard and they haven’t had a lot of business at the resort, but this year Blakely handed him a loan agreement with all sorts of strange requirements that sound a lot like what he’s pulling on Ellie.”

“Wouldn’t you think
he’d have enough to do without wanting to have his hands in everyone’s business?”

“It would seem
so, but apparently Blakely is more of a control freak than anyone was giving him credit for.”

“
What did Walter do?” I wondered.

“He took his business elsewhere. I think Blakely’s strange
agreements are going to hurt him now that the word is out about what he’s doing. Walter used to run a lot of money through his bank, but he’s pulled all his deposit accounts as well as his loans.”

Walter Gates owned the largest resort on the lake.
In the summer months, the campground and small cabins were booked to capacity, but during the colder winter months the resort catered to just a few guests willing to stay in the rustic lodge. Not only did Walter own the largest resort on the lake but the largest marina as well. Blakely was an idiot to mess with a man who had the financial means and reputation Walter did.

“Do you think there’s something more going on with Blakely than meets the eye?” I asked.

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t know. The man
has always been a little odd, but it’s only been over the past six months or so that he seems to have completely gone off the deep end. First the strange loans and now the Jack Frost thing. Maybe he’s suffered a mental breakdown of some type.”

“Terrific. That’s just what everyone wants to hear about the person who
’s holding their money. Luckily, I don’t have any discretionary income, so the whole thing doesn’t affect me, but if I did have money, I’d be thinking about taking Walter’s lead and looking for another financial institution.”

“Yeah, especially in this day and age
, when it’s so easy to bank online. It wasn’t that long ago that proximity to your residence was an important feature in a bank, but not so much anymore. Maybe I should start looking for a new home for my meager savings as well.”

“I’m sure Zak has his millions spread around. Maybe you can ask him for
some suggestions.”

“That’s a good idea
, although I try to avoid talking finances with Zak.”

“Why is that?”

I leaned back into my chair as the choir came out onto the stage for the last number. “I don’t know. He has so much of it. I guess the thought of all that money sort of freaks me out, so I try to focus on the things I love about Zak and not the things I would really rather do without.”

“You’d rather Zak didn’t have all that beautiful money?”

“Most of the time,” I admitted.

“If he wasn’t rich
, he couldn’t have bought the Zoo for you,” Levi reminded me.

“True.”

“And he wouldn’t have that spectacular home with the pool and spa you love so much.”

“Maybe. But he wouldn’t be gone all the time
, and he might not have
every
woman in the country panting after him.”

“Perhaps. But then again
, maybe he’d be gone all the time anyway, trying to make a meager living, and maybe his height and rugged good looks alone would still get the female attention you would just as soon didn’t exist.”

“Rugged good looks?” I laughed. “Perhaps it’s not just the women in town
who are crushing on him.”

Levi grinned. “It’s not so much a crush as the fact that we b
abe magnets tend to recognize one another.”

I punched Levi playfully in the arm. “You
’re such a snob.”

“Ouch, that hurt. You’ve got quite an arm for such a tiny thing.” Levi rubbed his arm.
“Want to get a drink when you’re done here? Your treat for abusing me.”

I laughed at Levi’s attempt
to portray the injured party. “Sure, that would be nice.”

“I guess we should ask Ellie as well.”

“Maybe we should.” I grinned.

“What’s with the smile?”

“I can’t smile?” I tried to sound innocent, even though we both knew I was teasing him for his obvious interest in spending some time with Ellie.

Levi frowned. “I’m not sure I like this weirdness that
’s becoming more obvious between the three of us lately. I miss the old us. The us that used to tease one another and fake boxing matches all the time.”