Bonaparte's Belle Read online

  “No,” she said, “it’s just that strange weightiness.” Even as they waited for their meals to arrive, several people got up, as if hurriedly finishing to leave.

  “Was that because of us?”

  “It’s possible,” she said, slowly studying the room and its occupants. “I haven’t really had them get up and leave when I’m here yet, but—because you’re here and an unknown, and of course Ronnie is here—maybe this combo has them jumpy.”

  “You think that’s what it is?”

  “I wouldn’t put it past anybody,” she said. “Most of the town is just sleepy, and people don’t want to be bothered. They just want to go about their daily life without dealing with any of this strife. The fact that it’s come home in a big way makes them uncomfortable. It makes them nervous, and they don’t want anything to do with it.” As they watched, another couple got up, leaving a little bit on their plates, and walked over to the cashier, where they paid hurriedly and walked out. She nodded and said, “Now they are definitely leaving because of the scenario.”

  “Good,” he said. “When bullets fly, fewer people are here to catch a stray one.”

  “Well, bullets flying is one thing,” she said, “but bullets flying inside a restaurant full of people is a whole different story.”

  He spied the waitress coming toward him just then. She carried large platters and looked to be in a hurry. “Here’s dinner,” he said, settling back, as a large platter was put in front of him and another before Angela, as Holly skittered off again. He looked at his food and smiled. “Maybe our money is just as good as everybody else’s here because this looks lovely.”

  “Might be better than everybody else’s, as the owner’s an old friend,” she said easily, “but that doesn’t mean he can handle being too friendly with me.”

  Bonaparte didn’t care how friendly the owner was as long as the steak tasted as good as it looked. He looked over at her ribs and nodded. “Those look damn fine too.”

  She gave him a fat grin. “They are,” she said. “I wasn’t kidding. It really is the best thing on the menu, if you ask me.” She picked up her knife and fork and started separating the ribs. He could see the meat fall off the bone, as he looked down at his steak. His mouth started to water, and he cut in, anticipating that first bite. He had just lifted it and put it in his mouth, when a man interrupted them.

  “So who the hell are you?”

  Bonaparte looked up to see the arrogant asshole from the back booth standing in front of them. His hands on his hips, his legs planted wide apart, almost as if he were a cowboy, heading for a gunfight. Bonaparte smiled and said, “New deputy,” mumbling around his mouthful of food.

  “Yeah, she goes through them pretty fast, doesn’t she?” he said, as he eyed Bonaparte up and down. But a seated Bonaparte was still a hell of a lot taller than most people standing. Angela ignored Ronnie entirely and just continued to eat. “How can you possibly want to work for a woman?” he asked.

  “Got no problem working for a woman,” Bonaparte said. “That’s the job.”

  “Yeah, but there are better jobs,” he said. “This is just, you know, somebody who should be staying home with their kids. Oh, but wait, she doesn’t have any.” He gave a hard laugh. “She hasn’t got a man either. Maybe that’s what your deal is.”

  “I wouldn’t say so,” he said, “and it takes a lot for somebody to actually insult me like that.”

  “Insult intended,” the guy said in a mocking tone. “Enjoy your dinner.” He sneered as he looked at her, and then, with a wave of dismissal, he turned and walked to the front door. As soon as he stepped outside, a sense of peace was in the air, as everybody relaxed again.

  “He really is an asshole, isn’t he?” Bonaparte said, looking at Angela.

  “He sure is,” she muttered. “The thing is, I’m so used to him by now that I wouldn’t ruin my ribs by even talking to him.” She reached down, picked up one of the ribs with her fingers, and quickly slicked the bone clean. He had to laugh because he really appreciated somebody who chose enjoying good food over keeping her hands clean. He knew a lot of people who would have continued to eat the rib with a knife and fork, but then he’d also seen lots of people take a knife and fork to a good burger. And that was just sacrilegious. Bonaparte and Angela enjoyed the rest of their meal in relative peace. Holly came back and filled up their coffee, her smile even brighter.

  When they were done, and Angela got up and walked over to pay, Bonaparte said, “You know that I can pay for my own.”

  “Yeah, I know,” she said, “but I said I would do it, and I will.”

  He let her pay, noting that the bill was fairly reasonable, considering the amount of food they’d gotten.

  As they stepped outside, she said, “So how was it under the microscope?”

  “Interesting,” he said; then he walked beside her and studied the area around them. “I’m used to it actually.”

  “I am too,” she murmured.

  He looked at her with a grin. “We’re a matched set. Now lead the way home.”

  “Maybe,” she said and then nodded toward the parking lot. “Except that we have company, and they’ve been watching us since we stepped out.”

  He nodded. “Yeah, I picked up on the four guys. Who are they?”

  “Ronnie pays local kids to spy on various people,” she murmured.

  “That same guy who was in there?”

  “Him and his brother, yes,” she said. “It’s a toss-up as to who it is at any given time.”

  “They just keeping feelers out or what?”

  “I think so,” she said. “It’s hard to know just what they think they’ll find out.”

  “I find this is all very fascinating. Like it’s the next hot spot outside of Denver or something?”

  “Well, there’s definitely a lot suggesting that may be what they’re working toward. They own a lot of land, and, if they could subdivide it and jump up the prices, or build condos and jump up the prices, they would make a killing.”

  “I suppose,” he said. “You are close to Denver.”

  “We are,” she said cheerfully. “We’re also just far enough away that we’re out of town. And we don’t have to deal with the traffic or the smog it causes.”

  “So, in other words, it’s almost perfect.”

  “Yes. Denver’s within a forty-five-minute commute,” she said, “and, for almost everybody, that’s the sweet spot.”

  “So then, what the brothers are doing here makes sense from a property development point of view.”

  “Maybe so, and, from what Isabel said, the brothers offer a good sum at first, but bring the price down before closing, while running off any serious bidders, so they buy the property dirt cheap, regardless of the true property values,” she said. “Manipulating, threatening, blackmailing—that’s what they do to the property owners, just like what they did to my deputies. Maybe the brothers just sit here in town and work the angles until they make enough, and then they walk away to another unsuspecting town.”

  “It has to be enough of a profit to make it worthwhile,” he said, “and I’m not sure this is.”

  “I think it probably is,” she said. “The property prices here are really cheap when compared to Denver.”

  “Even cheaper if the bad guys are running off any other buyers, then harassing the sellers too.”

  Angela grimaced. “Figures. They are working both sides of the transaction, aren’t they?”

  “Are these guys doing the spying really young?” he asked. “As in teenagers?” He watched as the four spies walked away from them.

  “Pretty much. Two are still in high school, as far as I know. No truancy filings. The other two are dropouts, one was supposed to go to college and then couldn’t get funding,” she said quietly.

  “So they’re at loose ends?” Bonaparte asked.

  “Not a whole lot of work in town,” she said, “and Ronnie pays well.”

  “And I suppose these kids think of themselves as doing the world a service.”

  “I don’t know about that, but they think it’s cool, which makes them cool.”

  “Sure, they do,” he said in disgust. “And he’s preying on that sense of identity they’re so desperate for.”

  “Of course,” she said, with a smile. “Isn’t that how we get everybody to do things they don’t want to do?”

  He shook his head and walked toward the parking lot, where they left the truck.

  “And you’ll talk to them?” she asked, rushing to keep up.

  “Depends on if they talk to me first,” he said casually. “I’m not looking for trouble, but it’s there, if they want it.”

  “I think, between the two of us, we could take all four, don’t you?”

  “Hell, you’re not allowed to cut in on my fun,” he said. “I haven’t had a good dustup in at least two days. All four are mine.” She burst out laughing. Trouble was, he was serious. He looked over and saw that she knew it too.

  She smiled, still chuckling. “You can see I’m used to Levi and his crew.”

  “It’s a good thing you are too.” They got to the parking lot to see that all the guys had scattered on foot in four different directions.

  “Your size really does do that, doesn’t it?” she murmured in surprise.

  “First, I’m male,” he said. “Second, I’m huge and I’m fit. I really don’t like getting pushed around, and it probably shows,” he said. “I can’t stand sluggards and people being disrespectful. Most guys decide that it’s just not worth the battle.”

  “I like that,” she said. “Being tough doesn’t really give me much of an edge.”

  “Basic genetics are against you in that field,” he said. “Seriously I’ve known a lot of women who could handle a ton of shit, and they could take a lot of people, and you’d never know it at first glance. Like Kai, for example,” he said. “She’s at the top of the game, just like Ice. Generally they still get the same flak because they’re attractive women.”

  “It’s quite infuriating,” Angela murmured.

  “Unless you use it to your advantage. The guys never know what’s coming, and that’s something that Ice and Kai both play on. They know perfectly well that nobody expects what they can do, so, when it comes out of left field, these guys are trying to react, and they’re already off their game, in which case, both Kai and Ice can move in for the kill.”

  “That’s very true,” she said, nodding.

  “You just have to change your attitude about it all. Everything in life is attitude,” he said. “You can’t let all this get you down or influence your decision-making.”

  “It’s not a case of getting me down,” she said. “It’s more about trying to figure out just what to do. I want this to stop now, and I want my town to go back to the way it was.”

  “So, using the view of hindsight,” he said carefully, when they were both inside the truck, “can you actually look around this town and see that it ever really was the way you thought it was?”

  She looked at him in surprise. “Ah,” she said, “I see what you’re asking.” She frowned, as she thought about it, and he respected her for at least considering his question. “I don’t think I was ever oblivious to what was going on here,” she said. “I did grow up here, so I’ve always known where the drugs are sold and where the alcohol is accessed by kids,” she said. “I know a lot of those tiny dark corners of trouble and the people who cause it,” she said, “but I’ve never ever known or seen evidence of anything like what’s going on right now.”

  “Well, that’s good,” he said, “because, if it’s new, as you believe, then it hasn’t really had a chance to hide. These guys don’t seem too bothered about hiding anyway. They must figure they have enough money to make everything go away.”

  “Well, they do,” she said. “And sadly that’s the problem. All of it is just going away.”

  “What’s the worst thing that can happen here?” he asked.

  “Well, they can buy up everything, turning it into a massive property development. There wouldn’t be a sheriff since there won’t be any need for it because it’ll all be incorporated into the city itself, or they’ll just install some security force of their own.”

  “Which is probably more likely because then they’ll own the law too,” he said.

  “And that’s what they’re trying to do. Get rid of me, so they can put in their own people.”

  “You’re in an elected position, right?”

  “Yes,” she said, “and I’ve already considered the fact that I may not get re-elected.”

  “It sounds almost likely, given the brothers’ influence right now, doesn’t it?”

  “It does right now,” she said, nodding sadly. “And, if this isn’t what I’ll do, I’ll have to find another way to earn a living.”

  “That’s always hard but not impossible.”

  She nodded, and then there wasn’t a whole lot she could say.

  He considered her for a moment, then started the engine and let it idle. “So tell me how to get to your place.”

  She smiled. “All of this on a first date?” she teased. “Who knew?”

  “Levi knew.” Bonaparte laughed.

  Chapter 4

  “What are you talking about?” Angela asked in surprise. “What did Levi say?”

  Bonaparte chuckled. “I wasn’t even going to say anything, but his good old matchmaking heart is in full swing.”

  She groaned. “He’s been at that for years,” she said, with a heavy sigh. “He can’t just see that I might be perfectly happy being single.”

  “In my experience, the happier married people are, the more they want the rest of the world around them to be happy too. The problem is, they think that you’ll only be happy in the same marital state that they are in.”

  “Which, in this case, is permanently partnered,” she said, with a nod.

  “Permanently partnered?” He smiled, looking at her. “Huh. I haven’t heard that term before, but, yes, that’s exactly what it is.”

  She smiled at him. “But you have kids, so doesn’t that apply to you?”

  “Oh no, I’m divorced,” he said, “and it wasn’t a terribly pleasant one either.”

  “Is there such a thing?” she asked curiously.

  “I have no idea,” he said. “We married young, and I was gone a lot. She didn’t like me being gone. So we separated and got back together a couple times. Then, when she got pregnant, we decided to give it a really good go.” He shook his head. “We did for a while, … and then we didn’t,” he said, with a shrug. “Probably should have walked the first time we separated but …”

  “Hindsight and all that,” she murmured.

  “Well, we were really good friends, and we should have stayed that way,” he said. “I don’t know what happened.”

  “I don’t think you need to do a postmortem on it,” she said. “It’s enough to know that you’re out of the situation now.”

  “Isn’t that the truth?” He followed her directions, as she showed him the way to her place. When they got to the gate, she hopped out, opened it up, and he drove in. He waited on the other side, until she jumped back in again. “No electronics for that gate?”

  “Yes, but I left it in my truck,” she confessed. “And that’s still in the shop.”

  “And when is it supposed to be ready?”

  “It was supposed to be ready today, but it might not be till tomorrow now.”

  “Is this a case where the parts might accidentally go missing?”

  “I hope not,” she said, frowning, “but it has occurred to me that such a thing could happen.”

  “Well, let’s hope not,” he said, as he drove up to the ranch-style home and whistled. “Now this is my kind of a place.”

  “It was my father’s,” she said. “And his father’s before him.” When he looked at her in surprise, she nodded. “When I said I grew up around here, I meant it. My granddad built this house a good one hundred years ago,” she said, with a smile. “He built it for his wife.”

  “Nice. It looks like it’s had a few additions or renovations over the years.”

  “That it has,” she said, with a laugh.

  “Do you have any siblings?”

  “No,” she said, “it’s just me.”

  At the house they quickly hopped out, and he locked up the truck, and they walked to the front door, where she started whistling.

  “Dogs in or out?” he asked.

  “They’re mostly inside during the day,” she said and quickly unlocked the front door. “But I have a dog run and a doggie door for them, so they’re not cooped up all day long. With my job, I can be gone for hours on end.” They stepped inside, to be greeted by three dogs, one a little more standoffish when it saw Bonaparte.

  “It’s okay, Max,” she said, reaching down to gently scratch his ruffled neck. But he growled as he looked at Bonaparte. The big man immediately stilled, dropped to a knee, and held out his hand, giving the dogs as much time as they needed to accept him. The other two were racing all around him, jumping up, trying to make friends, and he was careful to pet them gently, but he kept his eye on the larger dog. “What is he?” he asked.

  “A mutt,” she said. “Max, it’s okay. This is a friend.”

  Max sat down, looked over at Bonaparte, a whine in the back of his throat. Bonaparte immediately stretched his hand out a little farther.

  “It’s all right, buddy. I’m just here to help out.” Almost immediately Max made a decision that Bonaparte was fine and came forward for a greeting. The two got to know each other very well, before Bonaparte slowly stood back up again, then looked around and nodded. “Nice place.”

  “A lot of years of history here,” she said, with a smile. “A lot of good memories for me.”

  “In other words, you’re not planning on leaving anytime soon.”

  “Never, I hope,” she said.

  “If they ask for your property?”

  She walked into the kitchen and put on a pot of coffee.

  “You want more coffee?” he asked curiously, leaning against the kitchen doorjamb.