Knitting bag slung over one broad shoulder, EV directed her long legs down the path toward town. Chilled November air turned each breath into a cloud of vapor as she picked up her pace from a frost-crunching walk to a slow jog. Delicate shards of frozen dew lay like powdered fairy dust over every blade of grass, every tree branch. When the sun broke through the scud of high clouds, it turned the world into a white, glittering glory that both dazzled the eye and made her thankful she had decided to walk.
Her town, Ponderosa Pines, was a place of beauty in every season. Well, maybe not mud season—the two or three weeks when spring thaw turned rich soil wet and sloppy. Right now, on the cusp of winter, these days where the town lay under a coating of sparkling ice crystals always touched something in her. She’d traveled plenty, but had yet to find any view comparable to watching the seasons dress this small town in colors from spring greens so tender they made her jaw ache, to today’s diamond-dressed white.
Honestly, the timing for this trip couldn’t have been worse. After two months of relative chaos, her life still wasn’t completely back to normal—and wouldn’t be until the investigation into Remy Vincent’s activities was finally concluded. What he had hoped to gain with his blackmail scheme, she couldn’t understand. Most crimes, according to every good mystery book, were committed for one of three reasons; love, money, or revenge. On that point, EV fully concurred.
Of the three, love was the wild card, often intertwined with the other two. Given Remy’s extended absence, money had seemed the most likely motivator until a thorough investigation proved none of the three parties involved—Gilmore, Ponderosa Pines, or Remy—stood to gain anything in a monetary sense.
Boasting just over the minimum number of residents to qualify for town status, some 560 souls called Ponderosa Pines home. That number included pets and farm animals. From its humble beginnings as a commune in the sixties, one thing never changed—the dedication of every resident to living gently on the land. By town charter, each home or business must be constructed using a portion of recycled materials, and must also satisfy elevated codes for energy efficiency.
To the novice eye, homes built from alternative means—cordwood, rammed earth, straw bales, recycled tires, and even underground bunkers—looked like a crazy collection of rustic backwoods junk. However, underneath the town’s simple exterior beat the heart of innovation. Cutting edge solar and wind technology powered the entire town with plenty to spare, but not enough to become a cash cow worth exploiting.
That left revenge. On a whole town, though?
Pondering that question, EV hit the end of the trail. A quick glance showed Dalton’s truck in its customary spot in front of the small office he currently shared with Nate. She’d forgotten about him. Now that Chloe and Nate had finally gotten out of their own way and become an item, he was the weakest link in the gossip chain to Dalton.
In the rush to get this whole thing over with, EV stepped into the office without preamble. She’d no more than cleared the door when a triangle of folded paper bounced off her chest. Startled, she looked up to see sheepish grins mirrored on the faces of two grown men who’d been playing paper football during their working day.
“Don’t let me interrupt the playoffs,” her gaze fell on Dalton. “I can see this is more important than answering your phone.”
The size of the office left little room for guest seating; EV was too keyed up to sit anyway, so she remained just inside the door, shifting from one foot to the other.
Dalton reached over to pluck a rice-filled plastic zipper bag from the shelf next to his desk. He shook the bag to reveal his phone amid the white grains. “My phone got wet.” From the way his eyes landed everywhere but on hers, she assumed there was a longer, and probably unflattering story to go along with the bald statement.
He didn’t offer details, so she blurted out in a rush, “I wanted to tell you I’m going to Lila’s wedding. I’m sure Nate already told you.” She glowered at the man in question, “but I wanted you to hear it from me.” Hot blood rushed to her cheeks. She’d rather stick her arm in a bag of rattlesnakes than try to follow the tangled threads of her emotions when it came to Dalton Burnsoll. Right now, she couldn’t remember which one of them had suggested putting their relationship on hold for the time being.
“Thank you for letting me know.” The words sounded stilted and stupid to Dalton, but they were the best he could do at the moment, so he turned the conversation to the work aspect. “Nate will be in constant contact; I’ll stay here to hold down the fort and tug what few lines we have on Remy. If I don’t see you again before you leave...” Dalton stood, reached to give her a hug, but halfway there thought better of it and lamely patted her arm instead. He cleared his throat to finish the statement, but nothing came out.
“I’ll let you get back to work, then.” EV injected a healthy dose of sarcasm into the word, but softened the rebuke with a tentative smile. With a few notable exceptions, Ponderosa Pines was pretty quiet from a law enforcement standpoint. Dalton could easily handle things while they were gone.
* * *
Late to knitting group after her detour into Awkwardville with Dalton, EV took a seat beside Chloe, whose nimble fingers worked a flashing set of needles to produce stitch after perfect stitch. It was enough to make EV want to stab her own eye out. Chloe smirked when EV pulled the elephant gray blob of inexpertly rendered work from her bag. “Laugh it up, Missy, but this is going to be your Christmas present.” EV muttered.
“What’s it supposed to be?”
