Santa's Posse (8 page)

She received the
warning loud and clear.  From Lynne before, from Grace at the movie theater, and
now Jill.  Don’t hurt Miles.

*** 

Kellie checked her
watch.  It was already five after twelve, and her eleven-thirty appointment
appeared in no hurry to leave.  In fact, the older man, with graying hair and
intense blue eyes, appeared intent on remaining beside her in the massive
retail space, pointing out every defect he could find.   

“Mr. Barnes, could
you give me a minute?” she asked him. 

He nodded and
began pacing the space for the umpteenth time. 

Kellie hurriedly
called her office.  “Jill, it’s me.  Can you reach Miles for me and tell him
I’m running late?”

“I can try,” she
said doubtfully.  “But, I don’t have his number.  Do you want me to call 911
and have a dispatcher reach him?”

“No.  Don’t do
that.  You know what, never mind.  I’ll figure something out.”

She flipped her
phone closed and strode across the room to speak to her prospective renter. 
“Uh, Mr. Barnes, it’s after noon.  I don’t suppose you’d care to join me for
lunch?”

The man’s eyes
widened with surprise, and he broke out in a grin.  “Why, that would be nice.”  

“Have you had a
chance to visit our beautiful food court, with its extensive offering of
restaurants?” she asked, starting off in that direction and relieved when he
followed.

“Not yet,” he
said.

“Well, we’ll
remedy that right now,” she told him cheerfully.

She led the way to
the food court, where she promptly spied Miles waiting for her by the deli.  He
wasn’t alone, but was surrounded by several deputies.  They appeared deeply
engrossed in spirited conversation. 

Kellie turned to
her guest.  “What looks good to you?” she asked.  She gestured toward the
deli.  “The deli is excellent, if you have an appetite for a sandwich.”

He shook his head
briskly.  “I was thinking the menu at that Japanese restaurant looks awfully
tempting,” he said, directing her to it.

“Oh, yes, the food
is excellent.”  She glanced back at Miles distractedly and then back to her
guest.  “Mr. Barnes, could you excuse me for just a moment?  I’ll be right
back.  I promise.”

She hurried off
toward Miles.  She reached him breathless, and smiling apologetically.  Before
she could speak, he introduced her to the deputies standing nearby.  She smiled
politely during the introductions, but then quickly grasped his arm and pulled
him away from the group.  He eyed her questioningly, as did his friends.

“I’m so sorry,”
she said in a rush.  “My eleven-thirty is still here, and frankly, I don’t see
any indication that he plans to leave any time soon.  I managed to lure him to
the food court, so I could tell you.  I’m sorry about…”

He smiled with
understanding.  “It’s okay.  Important meeting?”

She nodded.  “He’s
looking at renting the large retail space upstairs by ‘Donut Hole.’”

“Well, great,” he
said.  “Good luck.  We’ll talk later then.”

She nodded, smiled
apologetically, and hurried back to her guest. 

Mr. Barnes dawdled
over his meal, and she had difficulty refraining from checking her watch.  She
had a one-thirty meeting, which also involved a potential renter. 

When he asked for
another look at the retail space, she plastered a smile on her face. 
“Certainly,” she told him.

Back at the upper
mall location, she answered the same series of questions the man had asked
earlier.  She wondered, did he ever plan to leave? 

To her surprise,
Miles strode into the space as she was once again discussing the merits of the
retail space and the mall itself.  He extended a hand to her guest.  “I’m Miles
Blake.”

Mr. Barnes
accepted his outstretched hand and then eyed him curiously.  “Are you a mall
cop?”

Miles forced back
the smile that tugged at his lips.  “In a manner of speaking,” he said.  He
nodded toward Kellie.  “Miss Sanders tells me you’re considering renting this space.”

He nodded. 
“Considering it, but I’m also considering another location, as well.”

Kellie glanced at
him curiously.  He hadn’t mentioned that.  She realized she should have
implemented a harder sales pitch, and would have, had she not been thinking
about Miles and their lunch date.  Apparently, Miles decided to extol the
site’s virtues for her.

“You can’t go
wrong with this location,” he told Mr. Barnes.  “As you know, this is the
largest mall in Southwest Washington.  Despite our struggling economy, this
particular mall has sustained a steady upswing in sales on the whole—a real
feat in this economy,” he added.  “There aren’t very many retail spaces
available of this size.  In fact, you’ll probably find this is the largest
available locally.  And I assure you, it’s going to go fast.”

“Is that so?” Mr.
Barnes said, stroking his chin thoughtfully.  “Do you have any advice for me
from a law enforcement standpoint?”

“Actually, there
is.  I don’t know if Kellie has told you, but the sheriff’s office has a
precinct on-site, from which our deputies respond to calls both here and in the
community.”

“I imagine that
gives your vendors an added sense of security,” the man observed.

“Absolutely,” Kellie
cut in.  “Commander Blake here oversees a system at the precinct called Mall
Watch, whereby his deputies can keep a sharp eye on the goings on at the mall.”

Mr. Barnes nodded
approvingly.  “That’s good to know,” he mused.  “In-store theft is a huge
problem for retailers, as you well know,” he directed to Miles.

He nodded.  “We
can’t guarantee you won’t experience theft, but, we can assure you we’ll do a
better job of both preventing it and catching any perpetrators.”

Suddenly, the man
thrust his hand out to him.  “You’ve given me a lot to think about, Commander.” 
He turned to Kellie.  “You, too, Miss Sanders.”  He checked his watch.  “I have
to go, but I’ll call you tomorrow afternoon with my answer.”

“I look forward to
hearing from you,” she told him.

When he left the
space and was no longer in sight, she turned toward Miles.  “Sorry about
lunch.  And thanks for stopping by.  I think you may have sold him on this
place.”

“I’m sure you’d
already done that.”

She frowned.  Had
she?  She didn’t think so.  She had been more preoccupied with worry over
standing him up, than tending to her guest and his myriad questions.  Not good,
she thought.  Not good at all.

Kellie didn’t see
Miles during the remainder of the week, nor did she see much of him the
following week.  She wondered about his absence, but wondered more about the
vague sense of disappointment she felt each day that passed without the two at
least exchanging a hello in the mall corridors. 

She realized she
hardly knew him, and had only spent a matter of hours with him.  Hours together
didn’t equate to a relationship, which was just as well, because she didn’t
want one.  At least that’s what she continued to tell herself.    

Just the same, she
found herself thinking about him at the oddest moments, and Jill wasn’t above
speculating one day as the two sat in Kellie’s office, going over the workload
for the upcoming week.  “Thinking about Miles, aren’t you?”   

“I am not!” she
exclaimed, aghast.

“Oh, you are too. 
You’re only human, for Pete’s sakes.”

“He must be busy,”
she observed neutrally, but Jill wasn’t fooled by her attempt to sound
nonchalant.

She smiled
triumphantly.  “Okay, I’m going to put you out of your misery, since you’re
probably over there thinking he isn’t interested in you, which couldn’t be further
from the truth.”

“
What
?” Kellie
said, shaking her head in puzzlement.

“The man’s busy,
that’s for sure,” she said.  “A little bird told me…”

“A little bird?” Kellie
repeated with an exasperated sigh.  “Just exactly where is this little bird and
does it happen to nest at this mall?”

Jill waved off the
question.  “Anyway … a little bird told me that Miles is bogged down with some
big work thing.  Commander business is my guess.”

“Commander
business, eh?”

“Well, yes, the
man has responsibilities, you know.”

“Don’t we all,” she
said with a sigh. 

“Stop worrying
about that Barnes fellow,” Jill said, leaning forward to pat her on the arm. 
“You know he’ll be back.  He said he’d call soon.”

“He said he’d have
an answer for me last week,” she reminded her.

“It’s a big
decision,” she pointed out.  “He doesn’t want to make a mistake.  This is a
tough economy, and he’s understandably cautious.”

She sighed.  “I
know you’re right.”

“And on a positive
note, you managed to rent out that downstairs space, beside the arcade.”

Kellie smiled.  “I
count that a minor miracle.  I wonder how the owners of the perfume shop are
going to feel when they realize they’ll be listening to that infernal racket
coming from the arcade eleven hours a day.”

Jill winced, and
did an impression of the noise.  “Beep, beep, beep, kaboom!  Didn’t mention
that
to them, did ya?” she said with a smile.

“No, I didn’t, but
they have ears,” she said in her defense.

“Anyway, TGIF.  Any
big plans for the weekend?”

Kellie shook her
head.  “No.  You?”

The older woman
smiled widely.  “Going to the coast with George,” she declared.  “There’s a
sandcastle building contest this weekend.  We’re taking his youngest
granddaughter with us.  She’s six and as cute as she can be.”

“Oh, that sounds
like fun,” Kellie said wistfully.  “I haven’t been to the beach for so long.”

“Well, then, you
should come with us.”

Kellie grinned
widely.  She and Jill had become good friends in only a few short weeks, and
she truly appreciated the invitation.  “Thank you so much for asking, but…”

“What?” Jill
prompted.  “Plans with Miles, per chance?”

“No,” she scoffed. 
“Plans to unpack the rest of my boxes.  I can’t put it off much longer.  I seem
to have misplaced a couple boxes containing my fall and winter wardrobes, and
considering how cold it’s getting outside, I’d better find those clothes soon.”

“That, or you
could go shopping,” Jill said, gesturing toward the mall outside the office
doors.  “Could be fun.”

“Could be
expensive,” she said.  “But, no, I’d better stick close to home and get busy. 
Maybe I’ll see if Daniel is available to help me finish off the boxes once and
for all.”

“I’m sure Miles
would be happy to help,” Jill said cheerfully.

“I’m sure he has
chores of his own to deal with.”  She glanced at her watch.  “One hour until
freedom.  Hey, do you want a treat?  I’ve been craving a chocolate marshmallow cookie
since lunchtime.”

Jill patted her midsection. 
“Trying to watch my weight,” she informed.  “Besides, I can’t wait to get to
the beach and fill up on seafood.”

“That does sound
good.  Sure you don’t want a cookie?”

“I’m sure.”

“Be right back
then.”

She hurried to the
cookie store, only a stone’s throw from the mall’s executive offices.  She
purchased half a dozen cookies, and then detoured to the large, empty retail
space nearby.  If only Mr. Barnes would call…

“Where
does
she put it?” a male voice inquired.

She glanced up and
met Miles eyes, noting they were sparkling with humor. 

“Put what?” she
said.

He laughed.  “Just
can’t get over how you manage to stay so slim when you always have a cookie in
your mouth.”

“Nervous energy,”
she said succinctly, and then nodded at the empty store space in front of her.

“Jill tells me Mr.
Barnes hasn’t called you yet.  I thought we had him in the bag.”

“You and me both,”
she muttered, but then roused herself.  “Jill tells
me
you’ve been
busy.”

He sighed loudly. 
“Yeah, I have.  Hey, do you have a minute?  There’s something I need to talk to
you about.”

“Sure.  My
office?”

“I could use a cup
of coffee.  Food court?” he suggested.

Soon the couple
sat in the food court, once again at a table overlooking the southern mall
parking lot.  Kellie noticed Miles seemed preoccupied as he stared out at the
lot.  When she passed him a cookie, he startled, and then grinned sheepishly. 
“Thanks.”

She watched him
expectantly.  “What was it you needed to discuss?”

“I wanted to give
you a heads-up on some problems we’ve been experiencing lately.  You may have
already heard…”

She shook her
head.  “Heard what?”

“We’ve had a rash
of car prowls in the nearby neighborhoods for several months now, and for the
last week or so, we’ve taken a dozen or so reports relating to car prowls right
here in our mall parking lots.”

Her eyes widened. 
She hadn’t heard.  “Wow.  No.  It’s the first I’ve heard.  Any idea who’s
responsible?”

He shook his
head.  “Probably kids,” he said with a sigh.  “Anyway, I’ve been in constant
contact with mall security, and my guys are keeping their eyes open too.”  He
sighed again.  “Whoever these guys are, they’re getting bolder.  Yesterday, a
mall patron happened upon one of them as the kid was breaking into his car. 
The man started yelling and the kid turned on him, ready to fight.”

Kellie gasped and
Miles nodded.  “We really need to get a handle on this, and unfortunately, with
the holiday retail season fast approaching, I’m afraid it’s only going to get
worse.”

“I’ll need to meet
with mall security,” she mused.  “I understand from my predecessor that he
always stepped up security around the holidays.  Maybe it’s time.”

“Couldn’t hurt,”
Miles agreed.  “It’s a heck of a time for me to be out of town…”  His words
dwindled and he raked a hand through his hair.