Page 3 of Hargrave Health Kick
“I get that.” Veronica sighed. “My mother had cancer. I studied every nutritional option available to help her overcome the symptoms, if not, the disease.”
It was another no-win, caught-in-the-middle milestone in her life. She still struggled with having done her best even knowing nothing could have changed the outcome. “I remind myself it helped her a little. Me too, by giving me some special time with her.” She marveled that her heart—crushed in the vise of emotion—could still function. “But about Susannah,” she rallied. “What upset her last night?”
“Well, I heard an owl, and then what sounded like an all-star wresting cage match in this area.” She stopped and pointed up to the second floor. “Right under Susannah’s bedroom window.”
“Of all the places for wildlife to get crazy,” Veronica muttered.
“Exactly my thought,” Marley agreed. “At her insistence, I came out with a flashlight and heard something scuttle off into the trees.”
Veronica was confident that the trouble was wildlife related. Any human troublemakers would’ve been caught by the security team. “I’ll go ahead and poke around to see if there’s anything here that might draw more critters in. If I find anything, I’ll handle it.”
“Thank you.”
“No promises, though. Nocturnal critters have their own agenda.”
Marley smiled. “I understand. I’ve been trying to talk her down.”
Veronica sympathized with the assistant. “Just remember it’s not you. My mom had those days. Though physically she hurt more, sometimes I thought maybe my heart would break under the challenge. Take the time to be nice to yourself as well as to her,” Veronica advised.
“Thanks. We appreciate your compassion and understanding. Though only one of us will say so.”
Veronica pulled out her phone and took a couple of pictures and then rooted around behind the landscaping. She recognized signs of a tussle. The mulch was stirred up and a chunk of rabbit tail had been left behind. She wondered if the owl—the most likely culprit—caught the rabbit or had to start the hunt over.
Without much confidence of finding a trail, she walked from the house toward the thick stand of trees that marched along the property line. It was impossible not to remember that whoever had set the fire had tossed the fire extinguisher into those same trees.
She didn’t bother fighting the tremor that skated down her spine. Once it passed, she dialed Nash Billings, their landscaper, to ask for advice. He picked up right away and she heard the dull roar of a mower and leaf blowers in the background.
“Sorry to interrupt,” she began. Quickly, she explained what she could see and texted a picture of the fluffy tail and dislodged mulch.
A moment later, he said, “You’re right. That looks like an owl hunt.”
“But an owl wouldn’t have made any noise heading back into the trees,” she said. “I don’t see obvious tracks.” It was hard to imagine something loud enough to disturb the guests would be light enough not to leave a trail.
“Could have been a snake after the same rabbit,” Nash pointed out.
“Well, there’s an image I’ll need to forget before bedtime.”
“Sorry.” He smothered a chuckle with a cough. “Should I start calling you Indiana Jones?”
“No, thanks.”
Nash laughed outright. “I’m sorry your guest is upset, but there’s not a lot we can do.”
“No problem,” she assured him. “Had to call and ask. I’ll just tamp down this mulch.”
“Sounds good. I haven’t seen any signs of rabbits nesting there, so I suspect last night was just a one-off. Honestly Veronica, with the extra security in that area I’m surprised you’ve got any wildlife activity at all right now.”
“Well, as long as you’re not seeing any signs of a rodent problem, that’s good enough for me today. I appreciate the assist.”
“Sure thing,” he replied. “Have a good one.”
“You too.”
Veronica almost chickened out and texted Marley instead of Susannah with the update. But the chef had askedVeronicato investigate, not the assistant. So once again she leaned into all her professional lessons and let Susannah know there didn’t seem to be a vermin problem to fix. She assured her it had been just a random occurrence. The reply that came back was terse, but not scathing. Veronica counted it a win as she quickly walked back to her car to avoid any further drama with the guests.
Never meet your heroes. She spared one last glance toward the Cove that used to belong to the Hargrave family exclusively.
Not much sense in pouting. She lived on a phenomenal island with a gorgeous public beach. No, she wouldn’t have the privacy, but she’d have the ocean. Besides, privacy right now might give her too much room to indulge in her grumpy mood.
