Sweet Mystery (8 page)

“I’d like to prove Pawpaw Vincent didn’t take
that money, too. But that ain’t gonna happen.”

“Maybe not, but I’ve got to try. It’s the one
thing I can do for Daddy. But it’s going to take money. A good bit
of it.”

Andrew threw another rock. “So you want to
sell out.” It was a statement that sounded more like an
accusation.

“Don’t put it like that, for goodness sake.”
Rae did indeed feel like a sell-out; a traitor to the Dalcours.

“Darcy Jove is in on this,” Andrew spat out,
as though it were a nasty taste in his mouth. “You know that?”

Rae did not answer him for a moment. “Yeah,
St. Cyr told me. He’s a minor partner. But Simon will own the
land.”

“What do you think of him?” Andrew glanced at
her.

“He seems... sincere.” Rae tried to identify
the feeling his name brought on. “He could have lied about
Darcy.”

Simon St. Cyr was the kind of man that
definitely made an impression on women, thought Rae, remembering
the shape of his lips, smooth like dark taffy. He had a way of
crossing his arms when considering something, which accentuated
that broad chest. And those big hands… The skin was dry with a few
rough spots on the palm. He was a man who worked with his hands.
What would it feel like to have him touch her skin?

“Oh no! Don’t tell me you’ve got the hots for
Simon St. Cyr!” Andrew slapped his forehead.

Rae punched his arm. “Don’t be crude.”

“Of course, the fact that Toya is his ex-wife
and still dyin’ to get him back in her bed don’t have a thing to do
with it.” Andrew gave her a pointed look. “Right?”

“They were married? Well, well.” Rae smiled
as she gazed at the scenery without seeing it. “Isn’t that
fascinating?

Andrew’s brows came together. “Now look here,
don’t go startin’ nothin’ with Toya.”

Rae put on an innocent face. “Why, whatever
do you mean?”

“I should have kept my big mouth shut about
Toya wantin’ him so bad. Now you’re gonna go after the guy just to
drive her up the wall.”

She grinned. “Gee, I hadn’t thought of that.
That would be a nice bit of lagniappe. But, seriously, Andy, I
don’t think selling even most of the land would have bothered Daddy
if it meant we could keep the dance hall open and clear Pawpaw
Vincent’s name.”

“What if Pawpaw Vincent stole the money?”
Andrew asked in a quiet voice.

“A few minutes ago, you said he didn’t do
it.”

“No, I said it was strange how he got away
with havin’ that kind of money to spread around. They might have
been able to hide out all these years.” Andrew tugged out clumps of
grass. He would not meet her gaze.

“No, it doesn’t make sense.” Rae stood up.
“I’m going to look into finding out the truth. You think about this
land deal. I’m meeting St. Cyr again Friday.”

Andrew stood to face her, wearing a fatherly
frown of censure. “Raenette Marie Dalcour...”

“Hey, it was his idea, not mine. He wants to
give me a better idea of his plans.” Rae lifted a shoulder. “Can I
help it if the man also wants to treat me to lunch?”

Andy shook a forefinger under her nose. “Make
sure that’s the only treat you get.”

“I’m grown, so I’ll thank you to keep your
fat nose outta my business.” Rae brushed his finger aside. “Just
think about the deal, okay?”

“Sure. Be careful. Maybe Mama’s right.”
Andrew gazed out over the water with a troubled expression. “We
oughta let this alone.”

“What are you talking about, Andy?” Rae put a
hand on his arm. His tone sent a small twist of anxiety through
her.

Andrew opened his mouth as if to speak and
then stopped. He put a weak smile on his face. “Nothin’, it’s
nothin’. Well, guess I better get goin’. Bring you some of my fish
after I clean ‘em.”

“Okay,” Rae called after him. Andrew walked
away with his familiar, loping gait.

Rae wondered at Andrew’s strange mood when
they were discussing Pawpaw Vincent. The old scandal seemed to
reach back across the years and give them all the jitters. For the
rest of the day, she thought about her grandfather and Estelle
Jove.

* * *

“Here’s what Kelsey has so far. The first
section is on Raenette Dalcour; the rest is on the others.”

Henry Jove was sat at the desk in his
combination office and library at home. He opened the brown folder
and scanned the first page. “I must say, he’s done quite a lot in a
short period.”

“He’s come through for me before.”

Henry flipped through the pages. “So he has.
Careful we don’t get too cute for our own good, Marius.”

Marius Jove wore a confident half-smile. “I’m
more than careful.”

“See that you are, young man.” Henry eyed him
for a few moments and then went back to reading the file.

Marius, at thirty-four, was two years older
than Darcy, and he was determined to have things his way. Henry was
well aware that the cousins were fiercely competitive. He approved
up to a point, since he believed competition between himself and
his brothers had made them tough. Henry’s father had encouraged it,
and now so did Henry.

“Not much here, except she’s something of a
free spirit. Of course, we could use our connections to make things
happen for her band.” Marius sat down, across from his uncle. “You
know; an offer she can’t refuse.”

“Hmm.” Henry kept reading.

“Maybe offer her the chance to be an opening
act with a big artist or a lucrative recording contract.” Marius
rubbed his chin in reflection. “Yes, that would be hard for her to
let go, based on her file. She’s really into the music thing.”

“That, along with selling the property, just
might do it.” Henry tapped a finger on the desk.

Marius looked at his grandfather. “Of course,
if she sells, you’ll have most of what you want.” He paused to see
Henry’s reaction before going on. “Shouldn’t matter if she stays in
Belle Rose.”

Henry returned his gaze with a look of
intensity. “Yes, it does. I don’t want any of them taking what’s
mine. Lucien was pushing to have Bayou Latte dredged. I won’t have
it!”

“I know. It will affect the water level on
your property further downstream. You’ve told me that.” Marius
shifted in his chair. “Of course, you could take measures–”

“Listen, son, don’t tell me how to handle my
business. This family has made a tidy sum from fishing. Dredging
will affect the water quality.”

“But the environmental studies say it
probably won’t if handled correctly.” Marius drew back, even though
he was sitting a few feet from Henry. The older man glared at
him.

“No Dalcour is going to get in my way ever
again. See to it that she gets out of town.” Henry closed the file.
“I don’t care how.”

“What about her brothers?”

Henry waved a hand. “Andrew is harmless. All
he cares about is fishing and drinking. The older boy would just as
soon never come back here again.” His eyes narrowed. “But Raenette
is different. I want her gone.”

“Darcy might not like that.” Marius raised an
eyebrow at him. “They were close at one time. Maybe he’d like to
renew his acquaintance.”

“What do you mean?” Henry said.

“Yes, Marius. Why don’t you explain.”

Darcy was standing in the door with one hand
in his pants pocket. The expensive suit had a casual style to it;
his shirt open at the collar. Though his posture indicated a
relaxed attitude, there was a glitter of animosity in his light
brown eyes.

Marius did not seem in the least intimidated
by his formidable cousin. “You two had a bad case of love. And
she’s still quite attractive.”

Darcy did not move. “So?”

“So, maybe you figure to catch more flies
with honey, as the old saying goes.” Marius examined his maroon
Edmonds shoes. “And you do have a way of using your charm to
entice.” He put the emphasis on his last words, making them sound
decadent.

Fury flashed across Darcy’s face for an
instant before he recovered. He replaced it with indifference. “At
least you understand the value of charm, though you’ve never quite
been able to use it. Of course, there is value in being behind the
scenes. Someone has to arrange for coffee and donuts.”

“I helped engineer higher profits. Charm and
coasting on the accomplishments of others are your best skills,”
Marius said with a sneer.

“That’s enough.” Henry sat back in his
chair.

“Forget it, errand boy.” Darcy abandoned his
control. “You’ll only get to be third banana, if you’re lucky.”

“You wish. I’ve proven my worth ten times
over. What have you done lately, sweet boy?” Marius spoke in a
taunting voice.

“Why, you–”

Darcy crossed the room with two long steps
and would have slapped Marius had Henry not been faster.

“I said that’s enough!” cried Henry, shoving
the younger man back.

“I’m sick of his insults!” Darcy pointed a
finger at his cousin.

Henry knocked his hand down. “The Joves have
always stood together to benefit this family. Bickering will only
bring you down. Remember that!”

“Yes, Darcy. Try to control yourself.” Marius
straightened his silk tie. He wore a smirk.

“Wipe that arrogant grin off your face, boy!”
Henry snapped at Marius.

“But I–”

Henry cut him off. “Shut up! I spent years
creating profitable businesses, despite what Vincent Dalcour did to
me.” He wore a bitter expression. “I lost more than money to that
man. Your childish fighting makes me sick.”

“You’re right, of course, Grandfather. Sorry,
Marius.” Darcy nodded to his cousin, who gazed at him with a look
of suspicion.

Henry stared at Marius hard. “I expect
whoever takes over as CEO to have guts and brains, and to be able
to keep this family together, Marius – not tear it apart by being
arrogant and unbending.”

Marius blinked as though his grandfather had
hit him with an admonishing blow. “Sorry,” he mumbled to no one in
particular. If the apology was meant for Darcy, it was hard to tell
since Marius did not look at him.

“Well, on to business,” said Darcy, seemingly
undisturbed by his attitude. “Simon seems to at least have Rae
listening to his proposal. Of course, she’d be more open to
recreational use with careful planning.”

Henry nodded. “Good. I feel confident in
Simon’s ability to handle such a delicate negotiation.”

“I could have done just as well. Rae doesn’t
even know me.” Marius sounded a touch petulant that he had been
vetoed as the one to approach Rae.

“Marius, this required careful handling.”
Darcy smiled at him.

“You have a way of irritating people,
Marius.” Henry was blunt. “You’re too impatient to have your own
way. You can’t skip right into bullying people to get what you
want. A good businessman understands hard ball is a last
resort.”

“Yessir.” Marius bristled, but said no
more.

“And be sure you have leverage to force them
into a corner,” Darcy added.

“Exactly,” Henry said, “which we don’t have
with Dalcour. She has nothing to lose by holding onto that land.
She could sell it later to someone else or directly to
Pantheon.”

“But we have the advantage of being able to
get tax breaks for them from the parish and state government. I’ve
let them know that,” Darcy bragged.

“So? We’d still need to offer that, even if
they dealt directly with her.” Henry’s words deflated his
grandson’s puffed-up posture. “No, we must rely on Simon to reason
with her.”

“And when Simon finds out Pantheon plans to
build a waste-treatment plant, not a company making underwear?”
Marius glanced from Darcy to Henry.

Henry stood up. “Won’t matter. He’ll have the
recreation center.”

“What?” Darcy yelped. “Grandfather, I told
Ellis we’d have all that land!”

“Simon will never stand for it. Besides, if
he pulls off a sale with the Dalcours, he deserves to be dealt with
fairly. Your plan requires diggin’ up my woods north of Glaises
Creek. I won’t have it.” Henry stood up.

Darcy faced him. “But Grandfather, be
reasonable. Simon won’t have much choice. Who would want to camp so
close to a treatment plant with the truck traffic and odor?” he
asked.

“You’ll get assurances from Pantheon that it
won’t happen,” Henry said. “Simon is a smart young man who has done
right by me numerous times. This is my chance to pay him back. I’ve
closed on the Aucoin property, which means the plant can be far
away from there.”

Darcy’s jaw muscles worked. “The best thing
to do is to go on with our original plan. That’s what I sold to
Ellis Mouton and the Pantheon people. It’s close to the Grande
River junction, which makes barge traffic shorter from the
Mississippi.”

“I don’t want dredging done. It will affect
our property.” Henry patted his pockets and drew out his car keys.
“Now I’ve got a meeting.”

“Grandfather, be reasonable.” Darcy had
finally lost patience. “I’ve had surveys done and consulted with
the Corps of Engineers–”

Henry drew himself up to his full height and
scowled at him. “The subject is closed, boy. We’ll do things my way
until I retire.”

“But Ellis–”

“I don’t give a damn what you told Ellis
Mouton. No Mouton is going to push me into a deal I don’t want.”
Henry stabbed a finger in the air. “You kissing his butt?”

“Of course not!” Darcy blurted out in a
shocked voice. When Marius cleared his throat loudly, he shot him a
threatening glance.

“Good. You’ve got no business making promises
to Mouton. I don’t care what he dangles in front of you.” Henry
marched out without saying goodbye.

“Grandfather knows you very well,” said
Marius, wearing a sly grin.

“And you well enough to know you’re
incompetent to run Jove Enterprises,” Darcy snapped.

Marius lost the grin. “He hasn’t made that
decision yet.”