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“B, calm down,” Heidi urged gently, placing her hands on her oldest sister’s shoulders. “Free is okay, aren’t you, Free?”
“Yes, I am,” Frieda replied, nodding vigorously as she took one of Birgit’s hands.
“And this lovely gentleman−I’m sorry what was your name again?” Heidi continued.
“Regan,” Regan replied with a curt nod to both of them.
“Regan,” Heidi continued, “was there to watch over her. You weren’t going to let anything happen to her, were you?”
Frieda glanced over at Regan as he solemnly shook his head no. “No, ma’am,” he swore.
“Okay then, so we have nothing to be upset about,” Heidi went on. “Come on, B, let’s try to focus on what we have to do next.”
Birgit took in a deep breath as she closed her eyes and then let out a slow exhale. Then, with lightning quick reflexes, she reached out toward her sisters and brought them to her in a crushing hug. A collective “oomph” escaped the trio of tightly banded women, almost making Regan smile.
“I just don’t want anything to happen to the two of you,” Birgit explained, holding them both close. “And I want this to be over.”
“It will be, and soon,” Frieda assured her, delicately untangling herself from Birgit’s tight grasp. “We have a plan.”
“One that doesn’t involve using your sister as a spy,” Regan added.
“A plan,” Birgit echoed, nodding. “Good. I like plans. What are they?”
“Have a seat,” Frieda urged. “It gets a little intense for a while, but we think we have it figured out.”
In a low voice, Frieda explained the plan she and Regan finished during the drive back into town. Birgit was against it at first, stating it was too dangerous, but eventually changed her mind when Regan assured her how much help they were all going to have.
“You forget, it’s not just you and your sisters anymore,” Regan reminded Birgit. “You have nearly a dozen people ready to go to bat for you and help end this. Even without police help, we can do this. All we need is someone who’s not in cahoots with Anita and Jimmy to hear what they’re planning. And then, boom, we have witnesses.”
“But this could ruin our town.” Birgit sighed. “We used to be such a wonderful place.”
“If our town is ruined, it’s because of Anita and Jimmy, not us,” Frieda urged. “Besides, what are we supposed to do? Just let them take our hotel? Our livelihood? Who would they target next if we let them destroy us, B?”
“We can’t let the bullies win,” Heidi added gently, looking from Birgit to Frieda.
Birgit sighed, shook her head, and then shrugged.
“We can’t let bullies win,” she agreed, crossing her arms. “Okay. Explain it to me again.”
ChapterFive
“Regan.”
Regan had known where Jimmy was the moment he’d entered the office of Jansen Marten, but he still had to act surprised. The space was nestled in a five-story office building that was lined floor to roof with windows. Jansen’s office was on the top two stories of the building, and the elegantly-designed reception room had a beautiful view of the mountainscape. When Regan came up on the elevator, he gave his name to the receptionist and quickly scanned the area, determining the likeliest place Jimmy or Jansen were going to appear from.
“Mr. Gall,” Regan greeted, standing up to shake Jimmy’s hand. “Good to see you again.”
“You too, good sir,” Jimmy replied. Regan noted the man’s body language and constitution. He was cordial, but not overly excited or emotional as he was the day before atSarabel’s.Instead, he was calm and collected and a man who gave off the aura that he could be trusted. He was a halfway decent con man, Regan gathered, but definitely not the best he’d ever dealt with.
“Apologies for being early,” Regan went on. “My father always told me that if I wanted to be on time, I needed to be fifteen minutes early. If I wanted to be late, I needed to arrive on time. And if I wanted to miss an opportunity, then I needed to show up late. This meeting, from what you told me yesterday could be very lucrative, and therefore I wanted to make sure I was on time.”
“Your father sounds like a smart man,” Jimmy replied, waving toward two seats.
“We’re not going in?” Regan asked, pretending to be surprised.
Jimmy let out an easy laugh as he sat down.
“Oh, we are,” he assured Regan. “And while I wish everyone had the same philosophy about time as you and your father, it’s unfortunately not the reality.” He paused, leaning in toward Regan to give him a serious look.
