Page 9 of Dyson (Walsh’s Lair #3)

“Hello.” Tabby was about as pissed off at her brother as she’d ever been. “Is anyone there?”

“Yes, I’m calling about the sale that you’re having.” She said it wasn’t until the next morning. “I wanted to know—”

“Let me cut you off right there. No, I’m not going to go through the pallets and tell you exactly what we have. I’m not going to set aside the best of the lot for you to come by and look over. It’s a sale on pallets. You’ll be picking what you want from the stacked pallets. I can tell you that we have more root vegetables than fruit. Also, there will be no discounts on how many pallets that you take.” The person, a woman, laughed. “I have a lot of work to be done, and I still have to answer calls like this. It said right on the paper not to call until after five.”

“It is after five.” She looked at the big clock on the wall and noticed that it was five-thirty. “I take it you’ve had people calling all day with those exact questions. I wasn’t going to ask but to see if I could come by tonight and buy the entire lot from you.”

“Sight unseen, and you’ll take it all.” She told her that she had a lot of people to feed. “I’m sure you think this might help, but you’d have to use this stuff within the next week. Some of it even less. I’m not going to give you a discount either. I just need it off my docks.”

“Good. I can bet here in…she said in five minutes. More than likely less, but she has to find some hotspots before she can make it there.” She asked her what she was talking about. “Is that going to work for you? I’ll even sign something that says we came an hour later with the trucks—which are on their way to you now. She has cash, like you asked for, to pay you for all of them. Whatever the amount is.”

“I don’t understand. You’re going to come back on me later, aren’t you? Saying that I sold your store some shitty fruits and vegetables. Correct?” The woman, she’d not heard her name, said that she wasn’t very trusting. “You have no idea how untrustful I am. I work with my brother and father, and they do shit like this and leave me to hold the bag. Christ, I need a drink and a vacation.” She thought about what she’d said. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I just said that to you.”

“It’s fine. My colleague should be there now.” A woman was walking towards her as the woman on the phone was talking. “Her name is Amy Walsh. We don’t have a grocery store to use but I’m sure that it would sell. We have two shelters, not including a women’s shelter in the county. There is a shelter too that serves two meals a day that we’re going to donate the things to as well as there are a great many people in our town alone that would benefit greatly by having some fresh vegetables and fruit.”

“I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have been so nasty to you.” The woman told her that it was fine. It sounded like she was having a crappy day. “You have no idea. My brother, Earl, he’s been running the business since our parents went on a cruise. He’s good at it most of the time. We’ve worked together before. But this time, it’s like he keeps getting these hair brained ideals that get me stuck with trying to sort it out. The too old produce? It’s only one of the seven things that he’s done to make me pissy with him. We’re a fresh warehouse, and he bought fish. How the hell do I get rid of seven hundred pounds of salmon. Not to mention the cost of it.” She sat down on the corner of her desk. “My name is Tabitha Reader. I didn’t catch your name if you told me.”

“Emma Walsh.” She thought that she’d heard that name before and knew it when she began talking again. “We’re trying to bring businesses into our little town and surrounding areas so that there will be jobs for everyone that wants them.”

“I don’t suppose you have about five hundred acres for sale, do you? I need to enlarge my footprint, and that’s not happening with where we are now.” She asked her if she was serious. “I believe that I am. I wouldn’t close this warehouse down. There are a lot of locals that take advantage of how fresh things can get to them. But since we do a lot of business in your area and surrounding states, having another, larger place would triple our business so that we don’t have to turn away so many customers.”

“It just so happens that we do have that much land that we can sell, actually, about twice that. There are a lot of farmers going out of business around here due to lack of help. I’m not saying that you’d have no one working for you. However, it would be a great place to have the kind of business that you have. It’s just off a major highway and there are some new hotels going up surrounding the area that would accommodate the drivers when need be.” Emma went on to tell her of the other perks there would be. “I can see this working out for both of us. I won’t have to divide up the land for smaller places and there are enough lands around here that drivers could also benefit from some newer gas stations going in.”

They didn’t talk for long because she wanted to get Amy Walsh taken care of. When she showed her what she had in the way of crates of too-old things that her brother had purchased, she did indeed buy it all. She said that within the next hour, they would have two refrigerator trucks there to take it back to Ohio. And the influx of cash getting it sold off made up for a couple of more of her brother’s mistakes.

“Emma said that you have fish.” She explained how she had salmon that would go bad if they didn’t have a buyer within the next few days. “We’ll take it. All of it. Name your price and we’ll have the local pack help us with getting it into freezers around the county.”

It occurred to her what a pack was. But in all the time that she’d been with Amy, she’d never once seen her on the phone. The two of them had some sort of link going on, and she was nervous about that. Tabby didn’t know why she was nervous, but it was making her especially tense to know that these women were talking to one another, and she wasn’t privy to the conversation that would be about her.

“You’re all right.” Nodding, she told Amy that she thought she would be. “No, I mean, you’re not wrong in that we’re talking about you, but we’re thrilled with your help in this, and it was all good.”

“You read my mind.” She only grinned, and for some reason, that pissed her off. “I’d rather you didn’t do that. What I have in my head is private.”

“I understand, but I wanted to tell you that you’re going to be all right when you go home tonight, too. He’s gone.” Tabby sat down and didn’t know how to ask her if he really was. “Yes. He really is. You were smart to have the locks changed as soon as he was gone and that you took your money out of your bank and put it into another.”

“He was robbing me. Selling things that belonged to me. Taking from my accounts and…I don’t even want to know how you know this, but I’m grateful all the same.” She could feel the tears filling her eyes as she looked at Amy. “Is he really gone? I’m not asking you if he’ll be back, I’m sure that he’ll try something, but he’s not in my house any longer, correct?”

“Yes, I promise you that he’s gone, and the police are there now to make sure he doesn’t return before the locks are changed. I did that for you. I thought that once he got to the bank and found out that you changed things around, he’d go back and try to take something else. Perhaps do some serious damage to your home.” Tabby couldn’t help it. She burst into tears. “I have you. You’re all right.”

With the other woman’s arms around her, she told her everything that had been going on over the last six months. It had been a nightmare when she woke up one morning, and he had moved into her house.

“I’d been out with him a couple of times. Levi had seemed like a decent person, he paid for the meals that we went to. I took him to a couple of functions that I was required to go to. We’d never had sex or anything. Not even a kiss at the door. He was like…I guess I thought of him as a friend more than anything. Then, about eight months ago, he started telling me that he needed money. I didn’t give him any and was going to break off all contact with him. It must have pissed him off because a month later, no more than about six weeks, he moved into my home and was holding my daughter hostage. You have no idea what I had to do in order to get her out of the house and away from him.” When she didn’t say anything but continued to hold her, she finally had to tell someone what had happened. “I pushed my daughter down the stairs. She had on a helmet and I wrapped her up well so that she’d not break anything important like her neck.”

“How old is she?” She told her that she was fourteen. She’d had her when she was sixteen. “I’m assuming that she was all right after you pushed her.”

“Yes, a broken leg. It was her idea. She knew that if she could get away from him, then I could get away too. We’d planned it for a week and when he went out to get pizza, taking my car with him, the two of us did it. She was right. It got her out of the house for a few days, and now he’s gone.” Amy told her that she was proud of the two of them. “You don’t think I’m a monster for making my daughter fall down the stairs and hurting her?”

“A monster? No, I don’t think that at all. You were desperate. I’m assuming that you didn’t involve your parents or brother in what was going on.” She told her that she couldn’t. They’d been so supportive when she’d gotten pregnant that she couldn’t bring them in on something she’d done a second time. “They sound like a good family to have around. And I’m sure that they would have done anything to get you out of the situation, but I don’t know, and it worked. As I said, I’m very proud of the two of you.”

She felt stupid after telling a stranger what she’d done, but it also felt good. Her daughter, Mandy, was going to be released in a couple of days, and after that they were going to live in a hotel for a few days. Neither one of them wanted to stay in the house again. It had somehow been tainted by Levi. Besides, they were both looking forward to being pampered for a few days at a posh hotel.

They did very well today on getting the salmon and the crates sold off. When the trucks pulled into the lots, she was thrilled that one of them was a freezer truck. That way, the salmon would be able to last a bit longer. And it didn’t hurt for it to be slightly frozen for a couple of days, what the trip would take back to their home place.

Tabby sat in her office after everyone else had gone for the day and brought out the map of Ohio. With the exact coordinates, she was able to find where the land was that was for sale. It was just what she said it was, a bit of scrub that would need to be taken care of, but it was the highway that she was most interested in. It looked to be only a short four miles from where they would build their new warehouse. Printing out a copy of the area, she gathered up her things and made her way to the hospital. She needed to see Mandy in the worst sort of way.

There was a police officer outside her door when she got there, and it scared her to no end that Levi had gotten to her daughter. Rushing inside without asking the officer what she was doing there, it was Mandy who she could only think about.

“I called in a couple of favors.” Pausing outside the room before rushing in, she tried to figure out who was speaking to her and how they were doing it. “It’s Amy. I wanted to help you keep Mandy safe. And the favor was something that I could do for you. There will be police there until you’re released. To speak back, all you need to do is think about what you want to say to me. Hopefully, it will be nicer than you were thinking of your brother.” Tabby laughed a little.

“I never thought of that. He might well have gotten her while I was changing the locks.” Amy told her that he’d been arrested for trespassing, but he was going to be able to get out soon. He also made a scene at the bank. “Good. If they can keep him there for a few days, then we can get into a hotel.” Amy told her to go and enjoy her daughter.

“Hey, mom.” She kissed Mandy on her forehead and handed her the things that she’d brought her from the store. “I might get to go home in a couple of days.”

Every time she looked at her, she ached for what she’d done to her only child. She’d actually tossed her down the stairs like she was nothing. Crying with Mandy holding her, she told her again and again how sorry she was. Mandy, of course, thought that she did exactly what was needed and now they were free. They weren’t free, and she was sure that Mandy knew it, but for now, they were able to visit without Levi intruding on their time together. Mandy asked her how work was going.

She told her how she’d been able to get the stuff sold that her uncle Tommy had bought as well as she was one day ahead of the shipments going out tomorrow. Getting permission from the shop owners on the plan for them to get their items one day early had made three companies happy.

“Tommy wasn’t happy that I’d sold it all at once, but he’ll get over it. I think he was just mad because he had to send out notices that the sale wasn’t going to happen. Also, the seafood is gone, too. Dad called about the time I was telling Tommy to not do that again and he agreed with me. Telling Tommy to not do anything like that unless we had a buyer lined up. I don’t know but I think that the Walsh family will buy anything that we can get to them.” Mandy snapped her fingers, telling her what someone named Walsh had sent to her. “My goodness, child. This is nice. A tablet and things for you to read. That’s pretty special for a stranger to give to you.”

“I thought so too, but I didn’t get to see anyone when it was brought. The hospital staff brought it up here.” She showed her the beautiful vase of flowers, too. “It was like she knew that my favorite flowers were daisies and roses.” Tabby was sure that she did know that and a great deal more about the two of them than was necessary for business acquaintances.

After visiting with Mandy, Tabby went by her parent’s home to bring in the mail. Also, she watered her dad’s plants and made sure that there were no leaks anywhere as well as checking the thermostat to make sure the furnace was still working. Just as she was about to leave, a strange car pulled into the driveway. She stayed hidden within the shadows to see who it was.

When someone touched her mind, she nearly screamed. Tabby had never been so happy with the person who told her that it was Amy and that she had her.

“Do you see the little person on the table where you are? He said to tell you that you don’t have to have him touch you, but he’s there to help you.” She looked at the table and didn’t see anything at first. “He’s about four inches tall and is blue. His name is Barber. They pick their own names, so you’d not believe the names that they come up with. One was called Marlon Brando. Like it was all one word. Then—”

“You’re babbling or giving me time to come to grips with my fear.” She told her that it was both. “All right. I’m better.” Then she saw the little man. “I see Barber. Am I dead already?”

“No. Goodness no. He’s there to help you. Let him land on your palm.” She asked Amy if she was sure. “Yes. Once he’s there, no one will see either of you. The man is coming into the house soon. I’ve called the police and said that you were the caller. I want you to stand right where you are so that Barber can keep you safe.”

The front door exploded open and the alarm that was on the whole house began to scream loudly throughout the house. She thought for sure that the man was going to ignore the sounds but almost as soon as he stepped into the dining room where she was, he turned and left. Still, neither she nor her new best friend Barber moved until the police pulled into the driveway.

~*~

Emma was ready to go home and not hire anyone when the two women came and had a seat where she was conducting interviews. Not only did they have a copy of their license, but they also brought her a copy of their certificate from the training center where they got their permission—or whatever it was called to drive the big rigs. They were tandem drivers, they told her.

“My name is Danielle, and this is my sister Shelby Pennebaker. We’ve been driving for the last five years and have done well.” She thought that the two of them could have been models; they were so beautiful. But it seemed to her, too, that they had no desire to be anything but drivers. “My grandda was a driver, my parents were tandem drivers until we were born, then it was just him. After our mom passed away, he’d take us on the road, and we learned a great deal from him.”

“Do you own your own rig?” That was something that she needed to know, and when they said that they did, with a refrigerant hook-up, she wanted to hire them on the spot. But she had a guideline, and she was going to follow it. “How much traveling did you want to do? Or do you just want local?”

“We don’t have a home, so it doesn’t matter where you send us. That’s the reason that we have our own rig so that we’ve had it built for us.” Danielle looked at her sister as they continued. “We don’t need to work. We’ve both been made wealthy by insurance from when our family was alive, and now we find moving around together is all we need.”

“I would think that you’d not like being together like that.” She laughed when they did. “Do you fight a great deal? That’s just me asking. I’ve no brothers or sisters to compare my life with except for a step-sister who is a great deal older than I am.”

“We grew up practically in the back of a rig. We were all we had, and it was considered wrong to have your kids with you when driving. So, we learned very quickly to get along no matter what, and we do the same now. Not that we don’t have our differences, but we don’t have fights like a lot of drivers with their tandem drivers have.”

She could see that they were close, and for some reason, she trusted that they would do a good job for them when they were overseeing the warehouse products that they were planning on getting. The fruits and vegetables that they got earlier in the week had given them a boost like they’d not thought of, and they were going to try and do the same again and again.

After the two of them left, Emma only had three more people to interview. She didn’t want to but she had said that she’d knock these interviews out of the way so that they could get started on a few other projects that they had going on. She’d been by the pack yesterday and was happy that they’d been able to use nearly everything that had been purchased from Tabby. And they’d been able to make forty-four pies and put them into the freezer for when they needed them. It had worked out beautifully for a great many people.

When she got home, she was happy to see that Dyson was there. Even though he was on his office phone, she did go in and kiss him in greeting. Her grandda was in the kitchen having a light lunch with the cook and having a great time.

“I was just telling Beth here that I’d like to have some of that salmon she has in the freezer. That’s my favorite dish, as you well know.” She said that she did know that and wouldn’t mind some at all. “I tried to explain to her how you cook it, but I messed it all up. If you could tell her, I’d be thrilled beyond anything about it. It’s about the best that I’ve ever eaten.”

After telling Beth how it was cooked, her grandda wandered off to go in the backyard. He loved spending time there, and with Darling still behind bars with her daughter, it was easier for him to get around town, too. Her grandda would be one hundred years old in a couple of months, and he was getting around better than he had in the last five years. She loved this magic for him so very much.

After dinner, all of them enjoying the fresh salmon, they decided that the weather was just perfect for them to go into town and get some dessert. Grandda and Dyson loved banana splits and she had herself a malt. That was what she loved more than just plain ice cream in a bowl. However, she didn’t care for shakes. The tastes weren’t the same.

“I have me a little job. That little girl, Amy hired me to wander around town when the weather is good and listen to what people are needing. She sure did, with the rest of you fellers, make a good dent in people going hungry this year. Those vegetables surely did fill a lot of bellies and freezers this year. And you getting anyone that could afford it a freezer at cost sure has made them people love what’s going on in their town.” Emma said that she’d noticed too that a great many more people are volunteering at the pack house to help separate out of the foods. “Yeah, I saw that too. And letting people come and get what they wanted was good to do. I know that the women’s shelter was the happiest of the groups that I’ve ever seen.”

They were planning a clothing drive in the next couple of weeks. It wasn’t just for the children of the town so much as to have a shop set up where people could come and get what they needed—adults to children. The Walsh family had purchased two washer and dryer sets so that they could clean up everything that was brought in. She was having the time of her life helping with so many projects around town and into the county.

“Did Amy tell you about the near robbery of Tabby’s parents’ home? It was a couple of nights ago. The robber had noticed that the family car wasn’t moving, and he decided that when Tabby was there, he’d go in and get her to open the safe if there was any. She was lucky that Amy had a connection with her or there is no telling what might have happened.” Dyson said that she had a faerie now that watched over her and her daughter, who is home from the hospital now. They’re staying in one of the larger hotel chains until they sell their home. I’m not sure what that’s about, but she might be moving this way.”

“That’s great. Maybe she’s the mate of one of the other brothers.” Dyson said he was joking, but Emma had been thinking the same thing. Then there was the Pennebaker women. They were both single and moving to this area as well. She told them about the two of them. “Twins, huh? Well, that would be awesome. To have all these pretty women around for the others…not that it would matter to them, I don’t think. Believe it or not, I think that Edgar is really looking forward to having a mate. He isn’t even looking for himself a house yet so that they can pick it out together.”

“I don’t think that Sidney is looking for a mate. I believe that he feels like he’s going to be alone for the rest of his life. He is a great man, and I have no idea why he’d think that, but that’s what he’s been saying for a few weeks now. He’ll just be the best uncle to all the kids we have.” All three of them got a kick out of that. Of the six boys, as they were called, Sidney was the biggest flirt and had the most fun with women all the time. “When he gets his mate I think he’s going to be hit hard with the love that they create. He’s going to be a good father, too, to whoever comes along.”

“I agree. That boy, he’s a good one. Any woman and some men would consider themselves lucky to have such a person in their corner.” Grandda saw a friend of his coming out of the store and left them there. He really was having a grand time doing his little job for the community.

Hand in hand, Dyson walked home with her. She told him about the interviews that she’d done, and he asked her questions about the twins. They were looking for people with their own rigs so they’d not have to put out that kind of money.

However they were going to have trailers to have around so that they could pick things up quickly and have them delivered where they needed to be. Purchasing ten large freezers for the foundation had helped a great deal, and they were hoping to keep them filled up for anything that came along. Amy was helping with that and Layla was in charge of where things were to be taken to.

So far, the only room they had that much space in was the pack house. Fowler was making sure that they were being well compensated for their help and that of the storage as well. They even shared the food that they got with them for their time. They had been contacted by two other food and storage warehouses to get leftovers, and Emma thought that it was wonderful. No more wasted food like they had before.

“It broke my heart to know that they would just toss the food out when it got to be too old to sell. Tabby told me that most of the time, the stuff is good-looking, too. It’s just that when you calculated the time it took to have it loaded on a truck and then delivered to the store, it was too late for them to get it out on the floor for a very long time.” Dyson said he’d not thought of that, the store turnover. “She said that there are a lot of things that have to be calculated into selling fruit especially. If it’s too ripe when it’s loaded on the truck the first time, it might well be rotten when it gets to them even.”

“Something to think about the next time we’re in a store. You know, how long it’s been on a truck from first being picked.” He shook his head. “Isn’t it funny how you never thought of these kinds of things before, but now that you know about it, it’s all you can think about.”

“I know.” They were nearly home when grandda called. He was going to be playing chess with some buddies of his and would be home late. He also told them that someone was going to be bringing him home. She loved that old man and was happy to see him out and about with springs in his steps.