Behind the Pine Curtain (18 page)

Kay smiled. “Well, obviously, the one who talks is Tim.”

“Very funny.”

“So, you don’t know your mother’s reaction, huh?”

“No. But I can’t wait.” Jacqueline took a bite of her burger. “I’m actually going out to the mill this afternoon. Uncle Walter is going to give me a tour.”

“No kidding? Well, I guess you should see what you own, right?”

“Right. But Kay, what the hell am I going to do with a lumber company? Not to mention the bank. Keys Industries controls eighty percent of the goddamned bank!”

Kay stared. “I wonder if Rene knows. She walks around like she owns the town, ever since Jonathan became vice president.”

Jacqueline laughed. “Well, if she doesn’t know, I want to be the first to tell her.”

“But really, Jackie, you only have two choices. Keep it or sell it.

Simple.”

“Simple, huh?”

“Although I doubt your Uncle Walter could afford to buy Keys Industries.”

“No. He couldn’t. It’s worth ten times what the sawmill is worth. If I sold, it would be to a large corporation.”

“But you don’t want to do that?”

“I don’t know enough about it, really. Hell, I don’t know anything about it. I need to meet with the managers, the accountants, see how organized everything is. If my father did indeed make all the decisions, the managers may be just as lost as I am.”

“You know, maybe Greg could help you. He’d at least know who the managers are and maybe give you some insight. That is, if you trust him.”

“At this point, he might be the only one I do trust. At least I know him.”

Kay grinned. “And you also know that Rose would kill him if he did anything to go against you.”

“You think so?”

“Of course. Rose cares about you. She also wears the pants in the family.”

“Why am I not surprised?”

The old road to the mill was paved now, but other than that, not much had changed. The road cut right into the forest and she thought it ironic.

All these huge trees growing so close to the mill, standing sentinels, watching as the logging trucks brought in their fallen brethren to meet their fate. Not much had changed, no. That is, not until she saw the mammoth gates blocking her path. Beyond the ten-foot wire fence stood a multitude of buildings. Most, she assumed, were the plants Greg had been describing, as smoke billowed out through massive chimneys.

She frowned, imagining the pollutants being sent into the once clean air of Pine Springs.

She stopped at the gate and waited until the guard walked over.

“May I help you, ma’am?”

“I’m Jacqueline Keys. I have an appointment with Walter Keys.”

The man studied her for a moment then glanced at his clipboard. “You don’t remember me, do you?” he asked as he flipped through the pages.

“Excuse me?”

“I’m Paul Buchanan. I was a few years behind you in school.”

Jacqueline searched her memory, but she couldn’t recall this name or face. “I’m sorry, no. But, it’s been a lot of years.”

“Yeah, it has.”

He stood looking at her, and Jacqueline finally raised an eyebrow. “You going to let me in or what?”

“Oh, sorry. Actually, no, you’re not on the list.”

“I see. But Walter is here?”

“Oh, yeah, he’s here. Came in a couple of hours ago.”

“Good. So, Paul, you want to give him a call or what?”

“Sure. I’ll see if I can find him.”

Jacqueline tried not to be annoyed, either at Uncle Walter or this Paul person. He was just doing his job. But make no mistake, by the time she left today, they would all know who she was.

Jacqueline waited, somewhat patiently, until Paul came back.

“He said for you to go straight to the offices and wait for him there.”

“He said that, huh?”

“Yes, he did.”

“I see. And where might I find Greg Kubiac?”

“Greg? Oh, he’s in the office. Just ask someone, they’ll find him.”

“Thank you, Paul.”

She waited while the electronic gates swung open, then followed the signs to the office. It was a two-story brick structure that looked completely out of place among the other buildings. She saw her father’s parking spot and very nearly used it, but instead, pulled into a visitor’s slot. No need in pissing everybody off the first day. As soon as she opened the car door, noise from the machinery filled the air. Every building seemed to be creaking at the seams and she stood, looking around, seeing men moving from building to building, forklifts carrying unfinished lumber, trucks hauling debris from one plant to the other.

Massive. Again, what the
hell
was she going to do with this?

“Jackie?”

Jacqueline turned, smiling at the friendly face who greeted her. “Greg!

How did you know I was here?”

He walked down the steps to meet her. “Paul called ahead. Said you’d asked about me. You’re supposed to meet Walter?”

“Yes. But I wanted to talk to you about a few things. Maybe here is not a good place.”

“Of course. Come into my office,” he offered.

“No. Maybe here at the mill is not a good place,” she clarified.

“What do you mean?”

“Greg, with my father’s death, I now own Keys Industries, not Walter and not my mother.”

Greg’s eyes widened. “Oh, wow.”

Jacqueline smiled. “Yeah, understatement. So, I’d like to discuss some things with you. In private.”

“Okay, sure.”

They both looked up and saw Walter approaching. “And I’d like to keep it between us, if you know what I mean.”

“I worked for your father, Jackie. Not Walter.”

“Good. Maybe tonight, Kay and I could come over?”

“Oh, Rose would love that. I’ll call her later,” he promised, turning to leave just as Walter walked up.

“Jacqueline, I see you found it.”

“Yes. It’s gotten a lot bigger,” she said as she looked around her.

“Your father’s doing, not mine.” He looked up the steps as the door closed on Greg’s retreating back. “I wasn’t aware you knew Greg.”

“He married Rose Garland.”

“Oh, yes. I’d forgotten how close you and Kay were. Rumor has it you’re actually staying with her.”

“No rumor. I am.”

He nodded. “Well, you want to see the office first or just head on out to the plants?”

“Let’s do the plants. I hate offices.”

“Very well. Be right back. I just need to fetch something for you.”

She shrugged, shielding her eyes against the sun as she looked around.

Jesus, what the hell was she going to do? Maybe she should just sell it and be done with it. Whoever bought it surely wouldn’t lay off workers.

If they could afford to buy it, they would be financially sound. Then it hit her. For the first time, it really hit her. She was now a very wealthy woman. And money always brought problems. She’d learned that from her childhood. People treated you differently. Hell, she’d learned that after her first novel was made into a movie. People she hardly knew were suddenly best friends and the friends she did have acted like she was now a different person.

“Here we go.” Walter handed her a hardhat. At her raised eyebrow, he said, “Regulations.”

“Uh-huh,” she murmured but dutifully put it on. She followed him along the sidewalk and got into the opposite side of a golf cart.

“Your father bought four of these a few years ago. Said he was getting too old to visit the plants on foot.”

Jackie nodded. “Good idea.”

As they neared the first building, Walter pointed. “This is the plywood plant,” he said loudly.

He stopped the golf cart and they both got out, Jackie following him inside. Most of the men ignored them as they moved about, trying to stay out of the way. “I can go over how it all works,” he yelled. “Or just show you around.”

She shook her head, motioning for him to walk on. They walked to the back of the plant, where the finished product was being cut and stacked on pallets, waiting for a forklift to move it. Once outside, the noise subsided somewhat.

“Noisy as hell,” she said.

“Yes. They all are. Everyone wears earplugs inside.” He pointed.

“Fiberboard is over there. And the creosote plant is in the back.”

“Where the black smoke is coming from?”

“Yes.”

“What kind of environmental safeguards are in place?”

“We meet the minimum standards on all the plants,” he said.

She nodded, then pointed to the old mill that she remembered. “The sawmill is practically surrounded.”

“Yeah. But it’s convenient. All of the by-products from the mill go immediately to the plants. In the old days, we’d have to store it and wait on the trucks to pick it up.”

Jacqueline nodded, remembering the huge mounds of sawdust and chips that were piled high around the mill. She was about to ask another question when Walter’s cell phone rang.

“Excuse me,” he said politely, then answered. Jacqueline watched his face, noting the frown. “Yes, she’s here now.” He looked over at her. “I understand, but it appeared to be perfectly legal.”

Ahh. Her mother, no doubt. Jacqueline crossed her arms, not ashamed at all to be listening in on the conversation.

“There’s nothing I can do, Madeline. Talk to your lawyers.” With that, he disconnected and shrugged. “Sorry.”

“She’s heard?”

“Oh, yes. I’ve been avoiding her calls all day.”

“You two never really got along, did you?”

“Not really, no. But now, I don’t have to see her again, do I?”

Jacqueline lowered her head, then looked back up. “Uncle Walter, how do you really feel about all this?”

“Well, the way I look at it, I haven’t lost anything. And honestly, I never expected anything from Nicolas, unless perhaps his share of the sawmill.” Then he smiled. “Thank God Madeline didn’t get it, is all I can say. No offense, Jacqueline. I know she’s still your mother.”

“Well, that’s where you’re wrong. She’s just a stranger to me.”

He shifted nervously. “Me and Joan, well, we couldn’t believe what she did. No one could. Especially Nicolas. It devastated him that he couldn’t stand up to her. You may not know this, but he changed a lot after that. Became a different person, really. More likable, more down to earth. The old Nicolas Keys would never have left one million dollars to the city for a park and library.”

“Well, then perhaps some good came of it all, huh?”

“You know, I’m sure Joan would love for you to come by and visit.

Maybe have dinner with us one night.”

“No offense, Uncle Walter, but it’s been a long time. I’ve changed, too.

Perhaps for now, we should just stick to business.”

“I understand. Of course.” He walked back toward the golf cart and Jacqueline followed. “About that, have you decided what you’re going to do?”

“Do?”

“I mean, with all this. It can run itself for awhile. You were right, Nicolas hired good men. Some are local, but most not. But, bottom line, it’s going to need direction. There has to be someone to defer to when questions arise. And they will, trust me.”

“The sensible part of me says to sell it and be on my way. But the stubborn part says to stay and piss my mother off.”

He laughed heartily, bending over at the waist. She finally joined in, not really intending it to be so funny. It was simply the truth.

“Oh, can you imagine the talk in town? It would kill her, I think.”

“Well, that’s not my intention.”

“Paybacks?”

She grinned. “Perhaps.” Despite her earlier apprehension, she was actually enjoying her time with Walter. He’d mellowed quite a bit. She wondered if he was all that upset that she was here. All these years, he hadn’t had to change a thing, just keep running the sawmill like he always had, only suddenly, he was making a lot more money doing it.

Why should he want the headache of Keys Industries? “Listen, let’s can the rest of the tour. I think I’d like to meet with the managers and see what’s going on and who’s in charge. Or are they deferring questions to you now?”

“No. Nicolas made it clear that I was no part of Keys Industries.”

“I’m sorry. I know you worked closely together.”

“Again, no offense, but he did his thing and I did mine. And I’d have been crazy to buck it, even if I could.”

“What do you mean?”

“He had controlling interests in the sawmill. So, whatever decisions were made, we discussed it, but if it was something he really wanted to do, he didn’t need my approval.”

“But?”

“But, we usually agreed, so there were few problems. When he first got the idea for the plants, I thought he was crazy. But, he used his own money to finance them so I didn’t really have a say. When he wanted to build them here, on sawmill land, I couldn’t say no. He was majority owner.”

“But you were compensated?”

“Yes. Keys Industries paid Pine Springs Lumber, which in turn, paid me.”

Jacqueline shook her head. Uncle Walter, bless his heart, really didn’t have a clue. Because her father owned sixty percent of the sawmill, Keys Industries only paid out forty percent of the normal cost, yet yielded one hundred percent of the profit. Her father was actually a very smart man. Even she, with little business sense, could see that.

“Since you already know Greg, I’ll let him introduce you around. I can’t promise that everyone is here, though. Their schedules vary and some work from home at times. Greg will know.”

“What exactly is Greg’s position?”

“Started out running the computers. Not that I know a whole lot about that. I mean, I’ve got one in my office, and I know how to check my email, that’s about it. But your father liked him, and Greg’s pretty smart.

But exactly what he does? I don’t know. I only know he’s got his nose in a computer all day long.”

Jacqueline paused as she walked around the golf cart, sticking out her hand to shake her uncle’s. “Thank you for the tour. I appreciate it.”

“No problem. And I’m sorry about the thing at the gate. I completely forgot to tell Paul you’d be coming by.”

Jacqueline stared at him, trying to see if he was lying or not. What better way to put her in her place than to have the gates closed to her?

But no, he seemed completely sincere. “It’s okay. I’ll be in touch. We will, no doubt, have a lot to discuss.”