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One thing others did that the Kings hadn’t was include images of themselves in the promotional materials. I was accustomed to glossy pictures of the owners standing in the vineyards, cupping clusters of grapes in odd poses that were supposed to look candid but ended up looking like they were in deep conversation with the fruit. At least it gave me some idea of who I would be talking to when I showed up.
The King Vineyard, not so much. An internet search came up with almost nothing, just a smattering of very old reviews and a couple of articles about the slow fall of the once beautiful land. There was also an obituary for the older generation of Kings, which made it all sad again. None of it showed any of the younger men who had taken over.
Which was why I ended up roaming around, approaching everybody I came upon to start narrowing down the population in hopes of finding Kane King. I’d already met two volunteers, three construction workers, a produce delivery driver, a linen company driver, and a man named Duncan, who seemed to be the basic catchall for the vineyard.
Finally, I saw a man who was in conversation with one of the volunteers. That seemed promising, and I walked up to him.
“Hello,” I said. “I’m Danica Peters. Are you Kane King?”
The man looked at me, and I got a quick reminder of what it felt like in high school when one of the popular guys glanced across the hallway and I wondered for the rest of the day if he was actually looking at me or if I’d just gotten caught in the crosshairs.
He shook his lovely head. “No. I’m Derek King, Kane’s brother. I’m the chef in the restaurant.”
“Ah,” I said. “I’m looking for Kane.”
“Yes, I got that. I actually haven’t seen him in the last few hours. You might want to check down closer near the wine dungeon.”
“Thank you,” I said.
I marched through the vineyard again and came upon another highly attractive man. He looked like he might be coming from the direction of the wine storage building, so I decided to take a chance. Just like with Derek, I walked right up to him. He was even more attractive and offered me a slight smile when I got up to him.
“Good morning,” he said. “Something I can help you with?”
“Would you happen to be Kane King?” I asked.
He shook his head and chuckled a little. “Nope. That would be my brother. I’m Cameron. And you are?”
“Danica Peters.” I held out my hand. “I’m here for an inspection.”
He shook it and gave a knowing nod. “You’re here for the grapes.”
That was one way of putting it, I supposed. I was definitely there to inspect the grapes, but the way he said it sounded like I was ready to pop open my trunk and fill it up.
“Yes, I’ve been trying to find Kane so we can do his inspection.”
“He should be around soon,” Cameron said. “He likes to walk the vineyard in the mornings, and sometimes he gets in his head and loses track of time.”
After so many visits to the various establishments, I should have gotten used to the eccentric grape people, but I wasn’t all the way there yet. I liked to run on a tight schedule and do things according to the book. Kane apparently did not.
“We had an appointment,” I pointed out.
I wasn’t sure exactly what I thought that would do. He couldn’t just snap his fingers and have his brother appear. It just meant I had to be the one to wait around.
“I’m sorry about that. He can be a bit of a challenge sometimes. Hard to get through to. Unless you’re a grape,” Cameron said, laughing a little. “Then he’s all about you.”
I was not amused. I was also not a grape.
“Is there somewhere I could look for him?”
“Come with me,” Cameron offered. “I’ll bring you to the office. He might be there handling paperwork. If not, he’ll end up there shortly.”
We got to the office, and Cameron brought me to a waiting area. I sat down, but anxious energy brought me to my feet again. He was already late, and now I was being asked to wait some more. It was putting me on edge.
The longer I had to wait for him, the less time we actually had to do what I was there to do. That meant I would feel rushed or would have to put tasks aside for the next day. I didn’t want to do that because it would throw off my schedule moving forward. This was why I had a schedule in the first place. So I knew what I was supposed to be doing and when I was supposed to be doing it. It was a clear, straightforward method.
