“That’s . . . incredible. In every sense of the word.”
“It amazes me every day that it works like it does. It didn’t start out the way it is now. We tried to help more than we actually did help. It took a while to really build the global community that pays attention to us now. We learned we had to go back and show people our successes, show we were making a difference. It was hard because we didn’t have the resources we have now, the clout or the knowledge about how to get in to the places we needed to get to, with the equipment needed to broadcast. Back then it was me and Dom, and some locals with a camera and an old laptop we could use to upload the grainy footage we shot. These days we have satellite links and can broadcast live from some pretty amazing locations that are otherwise completely cut off. I’ve got Jon manning the computer part and Peli making the camera magic happen.”
“So, I’ve seen,” she said. “You make even an endangered fern seem exciting.”
“What do you mean?” he deadpanned. “They are exciting.”
She laughed.
“I’m really glad you’ll have a chance to meet my crew. We’re family in a different way from yours, but they’re like my Hannah, Vivi, and Avery.”
Chey smiled. “I’m glad, too.” And she was. The more she understood his world, the more she wanted to know. “In all honesty, what do you think our chances are? Of swaying the council to our side?”
“Your town is tight knit in the best of ways. Folks coming together like they did today will be a big part of this situation getting resolved in a way that helps everyone.”
“Everyone except Hammond and the council members who are apparently looking to enhance their personal bottom line separate and apart from what the town gets out of it,” she said. “Frankly, that’s the part that worries me most. Vivi didn’t reveal what Hammond said to her, but if she forced him off that boat, it had to have been pretty bad. He’s not striking me as someone who will be easily thwarted, and that humiliation had to have doubled his determination. Tripled it.”
Wyatt nodded. “Most likely, but the way I see it, if we push hard enough, they’ll cave. They’ll be just fine without more money. They have plenty. And they’ll make more, no doubt. Just not selling out Blue Hollow Falls to do it. If Vivi’s lead pans out as she seems to think it will, we’ll really hit the ground running. That helps, too.”
Chey looked down into her mug, thinking about her talk with Vivi earlier.
“What is it?”
She let out a short sigh. “I’m still not so sure about Vivi’s contact. I mean, I trust that if she says he’ll come through, he will. Whether he’s a developer, or a money guy, I don’t know. I do know that she never makes blind promises. She has a long list of interesting connections from her colorful and amazing life. She’s pretty well-off herself, and has been for decades, so her social circles could include virtually anybody. I’m just—”
“Worried she’s biting off more than she can chew? Or biting off something she shouldn’t?”
“Exactly.”
“She definitely wasn’t one hundred percent thrilled to be putting this plan into motion, or any percent. That much was clear.”
Chey agreed. “She’s doing it for us, and it’s clearly requiring some kind of sacrifice on her part, which I hate. I talked with her a bit about it earlier while you were out in the stables with Bailey and Tory, but she’s keeping it close to the vest. I get the impression that he’s someone from her past. Someone who meant more to her than a casual acquaintance or business contact.” She smiled at him, but it was bittersweet. “Maybe something along the lines of what happened with us, only my guess is a lot more complicated.”
“Maybe we should go ahead and get a backup in place. Dom has a few names on a tentative list. We haven’t reached out, but we could. Not only because this seems to be an emotionally charged situation for her but, given the tight time frame, you may not want the whole caboodle riding on a tenuous personal situation.”
“That too. I mean, mostly I’m worried for her, but yes, given the timetable, there’s no room for a do-over.”
“Let me talk to Dom first thing in the morning. Early morning here will be early afternoon where he is, so he’ll have had some time to make calls.”
“I really appreciate that. I honestly don’t know what else to do with the Vivi situation. I mean, she’s an adult, making her own choices, and I know how I’d feel if someone tried to step in and tell me what I should or shouldn’t do.”
“Do you think she’s putting herself in danger?”
Chey lifted a shoulder. “Physically? I’d like to think not.” She smiled. “I did tell her to take her umbrella.”
Wyatt smiled at that, but Chey could see the idea worried him, too.
“You don’t think she might be putting herself in any kind of financial danger, do you? Business, property? Doesn’t have to mean cash.”
Chey’s eyes widened briefly. “I didn’t even think about that.” She shook her head. “But no, I get the feeling it’s more an emotional minefield.”
“What time is the meeting?”
“Eleven tomorrow morning. She didn’t say where, but my guess is it won’t be here or in town. Probably down in Turtle Springs.”
“What’s the nearest actual city? Somewhere a guy on the scale of what we’d need might be more likely to do business?”
“Valley View. That’s just it, though. I doubt this is someone from around here. Vivi spent most of her adult life in New York. She retired after Harold died.”
Wyatt sent her a questioning look.
“The love of her life.” Chey lifted a hand from her mug. “Well, maybe he’s better characterized as the disappointment of her life. It’s a long story and, I’m afraid, not mine to tell. Suffice it to say it was that loss she was grieving when the four of us met.” She gestured to the house they sat in. “He’s the reason we have all of this.” She smiled, her thoughts both sad and filled with affection. “Vivi had retired from the New York Broadway scene and moved to DC, where she immediately got involved with consulting on costume design for the Folger Theater and the National Ballet Company. I don’t think she ever really planned to stop working, but she just couldn’t be in New York any longer.” Chey took a sip of coffee, shook her head. “She loves the city, but there were too many sad memories, among other things. I completely understand that. But a new town, new challenges, fresh faces, wasn’t helping. She knew he’d left her this place, but she’d never come out to see it, or deal with it. She just couldn’t. But after the four of us met and grew close, eventually, she did.”
“Fate, kismet, or a combination of the two,” he said.
“Something like that.” Chey leaned back against the pillows, the memories making her smile deepen. “It started as a joke. The fearsome foursome do lavender farming. I mean, it was funny and silly and not a little insane. But in support, we all traveled out here together when Vivi came to see the place for the first time. And, suddenly, though we pretended we were still joking . . . seeing it changed everything. We were each so drawn to this place.” She sighed. “We were all at crossroads in our lives, and it felt like the perfect escape. The perfect spot to start over. I don’t think any one of us would have done it alone. I know Vivi wouldn’t have. It was a bigger change of pace and scenery for the three of them than for me, but it was still a huge change for all of us, being in this together. Still, what did we have to lose, really?”