With my stuff in hand, I exited through the back door and pulled it shut, making sure it was locked, then headed next door.
When I stepped into the café, the sound of construction had already ceased. The crew was busy packing up.
Waving to several of them, I waded deeper into the building until I found Luke, stowing tools in the pile they’d made under the skeleton of the stairs.
“Hey.”
He glanced back, then smiled. “Hey. I’m just about done.”
“No rush.”
Locking the toolbox, he stood. “I’m glad you say that, because I was wondering if you want to make a pitstop?”
A sultry smile ghosted over my lips. “For strawberry syrup?”
Heat licked in his eyes, but to my surprise, he shook his head. “We can, but I had another place in mind first.”
With a quizzical frown, I tipped my head in question. “Where?”
“Toren’s house.”
“Toren’s—” My frown deepened. “You told me to let Ozzie talk to him and to stay out of it. Why the change of heart?”
“I have questions.”
“I did, too, so what changed?”
“I talked to Kent Morrison and got new information. Did you know Walter Shuman is all about the money?”
I snorted. “Yeah. He hired Miranda Benning to sell his property. That alone tells me he doesn’t have much interest in anything else.”
He chuckled. “Well, even if Ozzie talked to Toren, my conversation with Kent taught me that sometimes it pays to just shoot the breeze with someone. I wouldn’t have learned the detail about Walter’s money-grubbing ways if Kent and I weren’t just chatting.”
“And you want to have a similar conversation with Toren?”
“Yep.”
That was fine by me. “I’m game. Let’s go. You ready?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Taking my hand, he led me through the building to the back door. “Can we swing past your house, so I can drop my truck off? It’s on the way.”
“Sure.” I took a step to the side. “I’ll see you there.”
He nodded and unlocked his truck.
The drive to my house didn’t take long, but it was enough for me to think about what I wanted to ask Toren. In addition to the obvious—where he saw the camp and a physical description of the man—I also wanted to get his impression of the person. What was it about their encounter that set off his internal radar?
I pulled up to the curb past my house and waited while Luke parked directly in front. When we returned later, he would likely pull into the drive behind my garage.
The passenger door opened, and he slid into the seat.
“Where am I going?” I glanced at him.
“Kent said Otter Bay Road. Past the twisted pines on the left.”
I nodded once and put the car in drive. I knew exactly where that was. “Got it.”
Watching my speed, I headed for the edge of town. The streets were still crowded, even though a lot of the stores were closed for the evening. The few restaurants we had were still open, and the day hikers were coming down out of the mountains for supper.
