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Pete and Marge both looked around, scanning the damage. Thousands of dollars of liquor had been spilled, the bottles broken on the floor. Someone had put a chair into the mirror behind the bar, and an expensive-looking stage light lay on its side with a cracked lens.
“Holy crap,” Pete said. “Did he do this?”
“Sure did,” Sam said, “but that’s the last we’ll say of it. If Harold thinks we tattled on him, God knows what he’ll do to retaliate.”
“Why did he do this?” Marge asked as she grabbed a broom and started sweeping in a corner. “Did you miss a payment? ’Cause that’s why we’re here.” She burst into tears, and the owner of the flower shop came running over and put her arms around Marge.
“What’s wrong?”
Marge shook her head, so everyone looked at Pete. His mouth was in a thin line. Pete told them about Harold’s visit that morning and the threat he made to his family.
“That bastard,” Sam said with vehemence. Everyone agreed.
“How short are you?” a fellow sufferer asked Pete.
“Two thousand. I’ve got the usual five, but since I was late last month, he’s made the new payment seven thousand a month. I’ve already taken out a second mortgage on the house and asked my oldest daughter for a loan. I can’t do this anymore,” he finished, his shoulders slumped in despair.
“Isn’t there someone we can call?” Marge asked. “The FBI or something?”
“Maybe,” the florist said. She was always telling people how she used to be a lawyer, but then it had gotten to her, so she’d moved to Misty Falls and opened a flower shop.
“I don’t want nuttin’ to do with that,” Sam said. “If he finds out…”
“That’s the trouble with all of us. We’re making it easy for him. We’ve got to stand up to him, or he’ll bleed us all dry!” Marge said.
Everyone stared in astonishment at the quiet, soft-spoken Marge. They’d never seen her so mad. One by one, all but Sam agreed.
“We’ve got to do something, but in the meantime, who can help Pete and Marge with some cash?” asked the florist.
“Look,” Sam said. “I’ll cover it, but only if you people promise not to say or do anything.”
Relieved that they wouldn’t be asked to come up with money that they also had a hard time saving, thanks to the sheriff’s practices, the others quickly promised Sam that they wouldn’t say or do anything for now. Pete and Marge followed Sam to the bank and waited outside until he brought them the cash.
Grateful beyond words, Pete and Marge returned to the Double XX and worked hard with the others at cleaning up the mess.
Chapter Nine
Bombshell got in the car, and Charlie and Joann drove her to Merrick’s cabin. When they stopped in front of an ornate iron gate and Charlie punched in a code, she said, “I’ve never heard of a gated cabin before.”
Joann just laughed. “Oh, honey, you’re going to love it. It’s quite the architectural marvel, actually. Which is the reason Mr. Flynn bought it.”
“Nope,” Charlie contradicted his wife. “He bought it because of the creek and the fishing.”
Bombshell let out a small gasp of pleasure as they rounded the curve and she got her first glimpse of the cabin. The only thing remotely cabinesque about the building was the fact that it was made entirely out of pine logs. It looked more like a ski chalet, like something right out of the Swiss Alps. Bombshell wondered how she could know of such things, and yet not remember anything about her life before yesterday.
She shrugged. It didn’t matter. Clearly she was a very lucky and blessed woman. She had a rich and extremely handsome fiancé, and no reason in the world to fret. She’d get her memories back soon enough, and then she’d continue to live what appeared to be a wonderful life.
Merrick met them as they drove up the driveway, and Bombshell’s heart slammed against her chest at the site of him. He was freshly showered, his face smooth, his hair tousled and still damp. He wore tight blue jeans, cowboy boots and a white cotton shirt with the sleeves rolled up. She could see the outlines of his muscled arms and the flat rippling of his stomach through the shirt, but it was those eyes that made her melt. Oh God, she could definitely see why she’d fallen in love with him.
~~*~~
Merrick tried to hide his nerves as he waited for the signal from Joann. When she gave him the thumbs-up, he went to Bombshell’s door and opened it. He’d been talking on the phone with Joann and Charlie, arranging everything while Bombshell slept. There was one more thing he had to do, and he needed Joann to distract Bombshell while he took Charlie around the house to where he’d hidden the shot-up Land Rover, so Charlie could take it in for repairs.
“Welcome, sweetheart,” he said as he helped her out of the car. “Just so you know, this is the first time you’re seeing my cabin, so don’t feel bad if nothing looks familiar.”
“I haven’t been here before?”
“No, darling, we were on the way here when we had the accident.”
