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“As I stated earlier.” She clears her throat. “The pottery kiln had a faulty wire.”
“I’m aware.”
“Since the kiln had been recalled, your insurance claim will not be honored.”
“Wait! What? The kiln had been recalled? I never received any notice about it being recalled.”
“We consulted the manufacturer and they confirmed they notified all registered owners and placed ads in all pottery trade magazines.”
“Pottery trade magazines? I don’t subscribe to any pottery trade magazines.”
“It’s clearly indicated in your insurance policy that in the event an item recalled by the manufacturer is the cause of the damage, the insurance company is not liable to pay the insurance claim.”
“Can you send me this in writing?” I ask since I didn’t understand ninety-five percent of what she said.
“You should receive written confirmation of our conversation in the mail within a few days. If there’s nothing else?” She doesn’t wait for me to respond before wishing me a good day and hanging up.
I resist the temptation to throw my telephone across the room. I slam it on the table instead. This is a disaster of epic proportions. How am I going to rebuild the pottery shed without the insurance money? I have some savings but it’s not enough to buy a new kiln, let alone build a shed.
And I can’t work at the community center forever. I mean I can. They offered me a permanent position as a pottery teacher there. I’m happy to teach some classes but I’m not a teacher. I’m a potter. I need my time at the wheel to create my art unencumbered by students.
What am I going to do?Think, Soleil. Think.
Maybe it’s not as bad as I’m making it out to be. Maybe the shed isn’t completely burned down. Maybe I can rebuild instead of starting over completely. And maybe I’ve lost my mind. No time like the present to find out how deep the trouble I’m in is.
I march outside and stare at the tarp covering the burned out shed. I’ve been told to stay away because of the fire investigation but obviously, the investigation is over if the insurance company is denying my claim.
I grab the tarp and pull. Ugh. This is harder than I thought it would be.
“Can I help you, dear?” Petal asks as she joins me.
“I’ve got this corner,” Feather calls as she grabs hold of the other corner of the tarp.
I glance around me to find all of the gossip gals standing in my backyard.
“What are you doing here?”
“We came to check on you. We heard about what happened with Brody,” Sage says.
As if me discussing my love life with the gossip gals is ever going to happen.
“You weren’t spying on me?” I point to the binoculars around Clove’s neck. “You better put those away before Peace sees them.”
“I’ve been bird watching,” she claims.
I snort. “Bird watching? Is that what we’re calling it these days?”
“I love bird watching,” Cayenne chimes in.
None of the gossip gals have been bird watching a day in their lives. They’ve been snooping on the residents of Winter Falls with those binoculars, but there’s no use arguing with them. Despite their advanced years, none of them have learned to concede an argument even when it’s obvious they’re losing.
“As long as you’re here, can you help me get this tarp off?”
Sage immediately starts ordering everyone around. “Feather you take the far corner. Petal, the closest corner. Cayenne and Clove in the middle.”
I step back and let them do their thing. My back is killing me from sitting at my wheel all day. If they want to do the heavy lifting, they can be my guest.
“One, two, three – heave!” Sage shouts. I wouldn’t be surprised if she pulled a whip out and started cracking it. “And again.”
