“Yeah.” And she had, she always did. She dreamily redressed as Lemi finished tying up the chubby—and by now, the quite sated—Mrs. Buluski. “Me too,” Lemi confessed. “She’s a wild one.”
They loaded dead husband and live wife into the white step van, then returned to the quiet house. Zyra turned on all the gas burners on the stove and blew out the pilots. Lemi set the timer.
“I like you better as a brunette,” he said.
As they drove away, off into crystal darkness, the thought replayed in Zyra’s mind.
— | — | —
CHAPTER TEN
“A touch of class,” Lee remarked. He lit the candles on the bay table by the west window, which offered a long view of the forest. Vera had decided to combine their evening staff meeting with dinner. “Don’t know what the hell we’re going to eat, though,” Lee went on. “Today me and Dan B. ran a stock check.”
“How’s it look?” Vera asked.
“Like we’re gonna be starving till The Inn opens. Nothing but dry goods and condiments.”
Vera hadn’t considered this. They couldn’t live on bread crumbs and salt. “We’ll be getting some shipments in soon. Until then we’ll have to rough it.”
Donna poured iced tea that she’d prepared from the service bar. “There’s no liquor inventory, either,” she said. “We might have a hard time finding a decent distributor this far out in the sticks.”
“Shit, you mean there’s no beer in this joint?” Lee asked, glancing worriedly at his beer belly.
“I’m working on it,” Vera said. “I think I got a deal with the company that services Waynesville. Their list looks pretty good.” Start-ups were always a hassle. Many distributors were slow, and many unreliable. Trial and error was the only way you found out who was good.
“Dan B. to the rescue,” the big chef announced. He lumbered out from the kitchen, bearing a large tray.
Lee smirked. “What are we having? Pine nuts and tomato paste?”
“Try eighteen-ounce Australian lobster tails,” Dan B. answered, and set the tray before them. A delectable aroma rose.
Donna nearly squealed in delight. “I don’t think we’ll have any problem roughing it on these.”
“I found ten cases of them in one of the walk-in freezers. A lot of langoustines and king crab back there too. There’s also a hundred pounds of frozen Greenwich shrimp we can use for stock base and toppings.”
Dan B. had thawed the tails, split them, and broiled them atop their shells with a pinch of spice. “Dig in, gang,” Vera said. The tails were delicious, moist and tender despite their size. When they were finished, Vera got on with business. “What I need first is a gauge of everyone’s impressions so far. Donna?”
“I don’t anticipate any problems from my end. I’m still as excited about all this as ever.’’
“Good. Lee?”
“I could use a beer, but other than that I’ve never had it so good. All my gear in the back is quality stuff. I’ll be able to handle rushes
