“This year is supposed to put Ravenstone on the map as a major tourist destination again. It isn’t enough to have a unique Main Street anymore. We need to offer experiences. The festivals are pivotal to our survival. And Winston is doing everything he can to kill our chances at making a favorable impression. No one wants a rusty dumpster in their holiday photos. No one wants all that banging and carrying on when they’re eating lunch at the café. No one wants you!” Leon shoved a pudgy finger in Winston’s direction. “You promised us that the work would be completed by now. I should… I should…”
Winston lifted an eyebrow when Leon’s sputtering words collapsed on themselves.
Lily waved Leon’s concerns away. “Don’t be ridiculous, Leon. Winny’s new wine store is going to bring a new clientele to Ravenstone. The kind of people who expect perfection and beauty. The kind with exquisite sensibilities who appreciate new experiences and innovation. Magic like that takes time. Isn’t that right, Winny?” She slid her hand over his forearm and tilted her head in a way I suspected she thought would be coquettish but would just give her a cramp if she kept it up for too long. “You’re going to make us all rich.”
The man in question winced, whether at Lily’s nickname for him or at something else, I couldn’t tell.
“No, Lily, this is important,” Leon said, shouting over the latest round of construction noises from next door. “He’sviolating at least six different municipal bylaws. See, even now, that construction should’ve stopped an hour ago.”
Winston rolled his eyes and tugged out his phone. He tapped on the screen. The banging noises next door stopped.
“Yeah, it’s me,” Winston said into his phone. “I need you to wrap it up tonight. You’re breaking bylaws.” His contractor’s response made him flatten his mouth. “You’re the contractor, you’re responsible for adhering to whatever bylaws Leon’s going on about.” His eyes widened. “You can’t walk off the job… I forbid it.”
Winston pulled his phone from his ear and stared at it in disbelief. Mr. Manicure had been hung up on. Winston shoved out of his seat and glowered at Leon. “Now look at what you’ve done, you old busybody. Jim says he’s walking off the job and won’t be back. If he doesn’t come back, you’ll be hearing from me.”
He stormed out of the room. In the quiet that followed, I heard the front door of the shop open and close.
Leon dropped into his seat and adjusted his sweater vest. “Well, that went better than expected.”
Really? How much worse could it have gone? Bewildered, I glanced around the table to gauge everyone else’s reactions and, of course, my gaze caught on Gideon. He stared at the door Winston had used. Then, as if feeling my eyes on him, he turned and locked gazes with me. His whole demeanor relaxed. He winked at me, and the corner of his mouth kicked up in a crooked smile.
Around us, the others gathered their belongings.
“What are you all doing?” Leon asked.
“The emergency meeting was to talk about Winston. That’s done. So, the meeting’s done.” The air of authority in Gideon’s voice made me shiver. I wasn’t normally attracted to bossy types, but…
Nope. Nuh-uh.I wasn’t going foranytype right now.
Mei, Avery, and Az were the first ones out the door. A moment later, Lily departed on her own. The others followed until only Gideon, Elwood, Leon, and I remained. Leon blinked at the nearly empty room, as if he couldn’t understand what’d happened.
“But… there’s more to discuss,” Leon said. “We didn’t even adjourn.”
“If we haven’t thought of it before now, we don’t need it,” Gideon said firmly.
“Fine, but don’t come to me when things go wrong.” Leon sighed.
Gideon made a very strange noise, almost like a growl. “Have I ever turned to you for answers?”
Leon’s eyes widened. “Oh, uh…”
I opened my mouth to ask about the group’s current social media efforts–since apparently, they were now my responsibility–but Elwood, as if anticipating my thoughts, shook his head discreetly at me.
Leon left a moment later, leaving Elwood, Gideon, and me at the table. I wondered why Gideon had stayed behind when everyone else had left, but once Leon was gone, he stood as well. So much for the fleeting thought that he’d stayed because of me. Had he stuck around to protect us from Leon? That would be a bit odd, right? What would Leon do? Force us to carry on with the meeting without everyone else here?
As soon as the chime on the door quieted, Elwood’s mouse raced out of the corner by the fridge. It scurried with shocking speed straight to Elwood and climbed up his pant leg and shirt until it dove into his pocket. Elwood put his finger in his pocket and wiggled it around, like he was petting the thing. It was a wonder the little beast didn’t bite him.
We were probably lucky that Leon hadn’t seen it. He’d probably call for the whole block to be fumigated. But if Elwood and Gideon had known the mouse was there, that would explain why they’d tossed crumbs over there earlier.
“There, there, George. They’re all gone now,” Elwood crooned. Then the hammering started up again. It sounded as if Winston had lured Jim back to work. “Shh… it’s okay.”
Watching Elwood soothe his mouse was weird. I looked away.
“Oh, no,” I said, pointing at the chair Winston had been sitting in. “He forgot his jacket.”
“I’ll take it over tomorrow,” Gideon said, scooping it from the chair. Then he nodded at us and left, too.
Part of me wanted to follow him. Not in a stalker-ish way, but more like I was a duckling who’d imprinted on him. Which wasn’t a very flattering way to think of myself.
