The latest installment of this cross-FF story is up. I hope you like it!
The morning broke beautifully and the snow on the ground melted into hundreds of little rivulets heading off to form larger streams of water down Cicely's roads. C.J. had come back to the cabin after the poetry event at the Brick and headed off to bed, exhausted. But after a good night's sleep, she got up bright and early to join Ed at the brick for an early morning breakfast meeting with Maurice. She gathered her notes and walked out to her car.
When she arrived, she saw the two men seated at a table talking to Hollings who served them steaming plates of bacon and omelets. C.J. felt her stomach turn at the smell and decided to settle for some oatmeal and steamed milk. Shelli took her order then rushed to the kitchen to check on some flapjacks Dave prepared for some loggers sitting in the corner.
Maurice had already started his pitch.
"Now envision this Ed," he continued, "A premiere screening of your finished product at the local theater. Red carpet treatment for all the visiting celebrities. And don't forget the paparazzi all lined up waiting for the limousines to arrive."
Ed just nodded.
"We can have a pre-launch event at the convention center," Maurice said, "A select guest list and professional catering from Paris…or Milan…"
"Right," Ed said, still nodding.
C.J. looked at Ed.
"Is this really what you want," she said, "A Hollywood style production?"
He shrugged.
C.J. opened up her folder.
"I think it should be a smaller opening and that you should build an audience," she said, "Less overhead in the beginning. Better for a town this size."
Ed nodded.
"I like her idea Maurice."
Maurice put down his fork.
"It sounds awfully girly to me," he said.
Ed looked at C.J. who folded her arms.
"I've been to a premiere or two," she said, "I know what works and what doesn't."
"Is that so young lady?"
She sipped her juice.
"I think a down-scaled, more casual approach is the best way to promote the film and your town."
Maurice chuckled.
"You do, do you?"
She didn't seem fazed.
"It's better than putting together a fake Hollywood production," she countered, "Doing that just seems cheesy."
Maurice sipped his coffee.
"And where does your level of expertise come from again?"
C.J. shrugged.
"I spent a few years living and working in L.A. and picked up a thing or two like I said."
Maurice leaned back in his chair to think about it.
"I went to a lot of the great premieres and they attract large crowds and media attention," he said.
"True," C.J. conceded, "but maybe that's going to overwhelm the town itself. Cicely's a lot smaller than L.A. or New York City."
Maurice nodded thinking about it.
"I'm trying to build up Cicely slowly," he said, "Sure it's a small town now but picture it in about 10 years from now. Five-star restaurants, top-rate entertainment venues and a museum or two."
C.J. considered that.
"That sounds great, but it's still a ways away."
"I've got a developer who's coming up to discuss Cicely's future with me tomorrow," he said, "Maggie's flying him up from Anchorage."
"She told me about him," C.J. said, "How many of them have you seen?"
Maurice paused.
"Oh a dozen or so," he said, "all with grandiose visions. I just haven't found the right fit yet but I will."
"Maybe," C.J. said, "but this is a very nice town so don't develop it too much or you'll lose what makes it so special."
Ed nodded.
"I'm with her."
Maurice waved his hand.
"A teenaged boy and a pregnant woman," he said, "You're both too filled with hormones to know what you want."
Maurice had grown irritated with the both of them at that point and the breakfast meeting soon ended so C.J. and Ed took off in his truck to do more interviews. As they drove towards the outskirts of town, C.J. just looked out the window at the wooded areas that began where the pavement ended.
"Maurice is a piece of work," she said.
Ed looked at her.
"Oh that's Maurice, don't let him bother you," he said, "He always gets like that."
"He tells everyone what to do," C.J. said, "or he belittles them."
"Maurice just cares about the town," Ed said.
C.J. figured that he really did but he cared as much about profits too. She had seen her fair share of corruption in small towns including one which her childhood friend Julia Martin had tried to save before she died and then there was Lake Utah, where she and Matt had wound up getting trapped inside Murray's car while the town residents pounded it with baseball bats. Still, there was a lot of good in most of the ones she had traveled through.
"I think he does in his own way," C.J. said, watching several deer walk by the side of the road.
"He misses his girlfriend Barbara," Ed said, "She hasn't been by Cicely in a while."
"She's not from around here?"
He shook his head.
"She's a state trooper," he said, "So she just drops by once in a while if there's crime which isn't very often."
C.J. nodded.
"Maybe that explains it," she said, "I do understand what it's like to miss someone."
Ed looked at her.
"Your baby's father."
She looked at him startled but Ed had returned to his omelet.
Maggie landed her plane at Cicely's little air strip and helped Josh unpack his luggage and carry it to the hanger. He looked around him at the wilderness bordering the runway.
"There's some rooms available next to the Brick," Maggie said.
"What's the Brick," Josh asked as they entered the building where Josh planned to rent a car.
"It's a bar and restaurant in the center of town," she said, "Everyone winds up there at some time or another."
"I'll guess I'll start there then," Josh said,
He picked up his car and drove off to look for the Brick. In front of him, a moose wandered in the street looking around. He blinked his eyes and thought, I'm really not in L.A. anymore.
C.J. and Ed interviewed a family that had traced its roots back to the town's founding before heading back on the road.
"Do you think about him a lot," Ed asked, picking up their conversation from earlier that day.
She looked at him, and nodded.
"It's hard not to," she said, "I thought moving might help, not that I don't like it here."
"You loved him."
She looked out the window again.
"Yes I really think I did," she said, "I never told him that."
"Where's he now?"
"He's dead."
"I'm sorry."
She shrugged.
"He was killed just a couple of months ago," she said, "I still miss him."
At that point, the truck listed on the road and C.J. knew that one of the tires had gone flat. Ed pulled the truck over by the side of the road and both of them got out to change the tire. They both got out of the car.
"Where's the spare?"
"I don't have one," Ed said simply.
"It's going to be a little hard to change a flat without one."
He sat on the ground.
"We'll just wait."
She joined him.
"For someone to come by and help us?"
He nodded.
"Exactly."
She wondered how long it would take until someone passed by.
"What was he like?"
She looked up at Ed.
"What do you mean?"
"Was he nice to you," Ed asked.
She smiled.
"I knew him most of my life," she said, "He was my very best friend."
Ed nodded.
"Did he know you were having…"
She shook her head.
"When he died, I didn't know," she said, "I think he would have been excited."
"I didn't know my parents," Ed said, softly.
"You were adopted," she asked.
He nodded.
"I was found in the bushes near the river by some of the tribal leaders," Ed said, "I have a large family now."
She smiled.
"That must be nice," she said, "My parents died when I was young and I didn't have any sisters or brothers. With Houston gone…"
"You'll have a family when your baby's born," Ed said, "and you've got the whole town."
She nodded, feeling her eyes sting with unshed tears.
Josh entered the Brick and looked around. The place was crowded and a young woman, her blond hair tied up in a pony tail moved from table to table carrying an assortment of orders. After she had unloaded the last tray, she saw him and came on over.
"I'm Shelli, your waitress," she said, "Welcome to the Brick."
He smiled.
"I'm Josh," he said, "I flew in this morning with a Maggie O'Connell."
Shelli nodded.
"Yeah, she mentioned you," she said, "How'd your night in Anchorage go?"
He scratched his head wondering how much information Maggie had given the rest of the town about him.
"It went…fine," he said, "Listen, do you know where I can find a Maurice?"
Shelli shrugged.
"You just missed him," she said, "I could give you directions to his house."
"That would be great, thanks," he said, looking around the bar, "You've got a great place here."
"It got written up in the Anchorage newspaper last month," Shelli said, "They sent a guy to take pictures and everything."
Hollings called from the kitchen. She yelled something back.
"I guess I'd better see what's cooking in the kitchen," she said and then flounced off.
She went through the doors and saw Dave and Hollings piling some food on dishes for her to pick up.
"Did the tourist group take off," Hollings said.
"Yeah, and they left decent tips," Shelli said, "And there's a hot looking guy outside looking for Maurice."
Hollings brow furrowed.
"I wonder what for," he said, "I wonder what Maurice is up to now."
"It's probably the developer guy Maggie was talking about yesterday," Shelli said, "She didn't say anything about him being so great looking. Every single girl in Cicely is going to want to put their hooks into him."
"Shelli, that's his blessing or curse not yours."
She picked up some plates.
"I know Hollings," she said, "but I'm not sure he's looking. Maggie told me that he was friendly enough but that he turned her down."
"Maybe he already has a girl at home."
Shelli's face looked doubtful.
"A woman knows these things and I didn't see that either."
Hollings tried to hide his exasperation.
"I'm sure that he doesn't need you helping him manage his social calendar," he said.
Shelli harrumphed.
"I was thinking much smaller than that," she said, "Maybe we could throw him a little welcoming party."
She took the plates and went out in the bar, leaving Hollings there shaking his head.
C.J. and Ed were rescued by one of his neighbors who quickly put a spare tire on his truck to replace the flattened one and they drove back to the Brick to get some sustenance. Shelli looked at them as they entered the bar and sat down at a nearby table.
"Is it busy today," Ed asked, looking around.
Shelli sighed.
"It just never stops," she said, "We had two groups of tourists and two logger crews."
They ordered some food.
"Oh, and Maggie's passenger dropped by looking for Maurice," she said, "but he had already left."
Ed nodded.
"After our production meeting with him."
"He was sure a hunk," Shelli said, with a sigh, "Not that I would leave Hollings or anything but if I did…"
"You'd break his heart," Ed said, simply.
Shelli nodded.
"Oh don't worry Ed," she said, "A gal can just look and besides,"
She put her hand on her burgeoning belly.
"Who's going to want a chick who's knocked up?"
C.J. tried to smile and when Shelli saw her face, her heart sank.
"Oh I didn't mean it that way…"
"I know and I'm not looking," C.J. said, "I'm fully prepared to go on my own at least for a while."
Shelli looked at Ed, shaking her head.
Josh unpacked his suitcase in his room. He placed his clothes in a nearby dresser and hung some things in the closet. The room was simply decorated with furniture and a few ancient pictures hanging on the wall. He reached to the bottom of his carryon and unpacked his handgun, strapping on the holster and putting the gun inside it.
He sat at a nearby table and took some folders out of his bag. Some papers and a photograph of a young woman with dark hair and a smile that would melt even the iciest heart. Opening a couple of the folders, he pulled out papers that needed his signature before being sent back. He didn't know how long he was planning on staying in Cicely but it might be for a while. He had followed a trail for the past couple of weeks and it had led to this small, if somewhat eccentric town in the farthest reach of Alaska.
The rest of the town saw him as a developer, one of a pack of them that descended regularly on a town on the cusp of development such as this one. That would enable him to fit in with the scenery and not really be noticed much while he conducted his mission.
He picked up the photograph and looked at it thoughtfully.
C.J. walked down the streets of the town, after leaving Ed and the Brick. She passed Chris' who was working at his radio station and waved to her from behind the window. Walking into Ruth-Anne's store, she noticed some pickled herrings on the shelf and impulsively picked up a can of them. She had been experiencing these strange cravings for the tiny fish. Probably a normal part of being pregnant, she guessed.
"Those are really good with crackers," Ruth-Anne said from behind the counter, "You should try them."
C.J. smiled.
"I didn't even know I liked herrings until I woke up this morning and had to have some," she said.
"When I was pregnant, I craved kelp," Ruth-Anne said, "I ate sheets and sheets of it for months."
C.J. put several cans of herring and some crackers on the counter.
"Have you been having morning sickness?"
She shook her head.
"I just tire more easily than usual," she said, "but I haven't been feeling too badly like I did in the beginning."
"That's good," Ruth-Anne said, "So how do you like working with Ed?"
"I like it," C.J. said, "Maurice has been trying to influence Ed to change his vision but we've been out interviewing people and it's been fun."
Ruth-Anne made a face.
"Maurice often tries to control what goes on in Cicely," she said, "Most often he doesn't get away with it."
"Ed stood up to him pretty well," C.J. said, "but I can tell Maurice isn't too impressed with young women."
Ruth-Anne chuckled.
"He doesn't think much of older ones either," she said, "There's an exception here and there but I think a woman as bright and educated as yourself should be able to handle him."
"I hope so," C.J. said, "not that I haven't had a lot of practice being an attorney."
Maggie walked in.
"Ruth-Anne, I need some aspirin," she said.
"Top shelf next to the fishing lures," Ruth-Anne said.
"I just got back from an overnight stay in Anchorage and I've got a headache," she said.
Ruth-Anne smiled.
"I saw your passenger earlier at the Brick," she said, "He's gone off to meet with Maurice."
Maggie put some canned goods on the counter.
"He's a land speculator," she said, "Maurice is probably going to have him build a strip mall or movie theater."
Ruth-Anne shrugged.
"It hasn't happened yet," she said, "developers come to Cicely with their dreams but then they leave empty handed."
"He was very handsome in a rugged yet refined way," Maggie said, "Played a mean piano but he went to bed pretty early."
"Maybe he was tired from his travels," Ruth-Anne said.
"I don't know," Maggie said, "He seemed preoccupied, like he had something on his mind."
C.J. half-listened to the discussion, her curiosity picking up but she could never be too careful. Every time she heard of a new arrival, she felt apprehension fill her that it might be someone trying to find her. So far, they had just been tourists or traveling businessmen.
"He'd better be on his game if he doesn't want to get mowed down by Maurice's sales pitch," Ruth-Anne said.
Maurice let Josh into his spacious living room and Josh took in the elaborate interior design. Obviously Maurice had a well padded bank account and most likely, capital in real estate investments. He also liked to hunt and fish judging by the trophies on the wall.
"Would you like a Scotch," Maurice said, "I think we need to celebrate."
"Celebrate what," Josh said, "We haven't signed off on any deal yet."
Maurice poured the glasses.
"No, but I can envision one coming," he said, "I've got a good parcel that I'd like to show you on the edge of town."
Josh took his drink and sipped it slowly.
"I'd like to take a look at it," he said, "But I'm interested in larger sized parcels."
"Oh this one's big," Maurice said, "Large enough for a shopping center."
"I don't do shopping malls," Josh said.
"What do you do?"
"I build affordable housing."
Maurice just stared at him.
"Did I just hear you right?"
Josh nodded.
"Yes you did," he said.
Maurice looked at the younger man like he was crazy.
"We need to expand the commercial enterprises first," Maurice said, "We need to get that done before we build any more houses."
"You can do that Maurice," Josh said, "But it seems to be that as long as I've been in this business that those who aren't millionaires get the short end of the stick."
"That won't happen," Maurice protested, "They just have to pick themselves up by their bootstraps."
Josh smiled.
"Like you did."
"Hell yes, I did," Maurice said, "I started with nearly nothing and got to where I am today through hard work and business acumen."
Josh looked around the room at the splendor.
"Do you have any kids," he asked.
Maurice looked like he had been caught by surprise but he nodded.
"I have a son who's an engineer in South Korea," he said, "I'm very proud of him. And yourself?"
Josh looked at his drink.
"Not yet," he said, "I haven't had the time to meet the right woman and raise a family. I travel too much."
Maurice nodded.
"That can be a problem," he said, "You need to find yourself a piece of land where you can set down some roots."
Josh listened, but he knew he had to stop living this double life first. He had come to Cicely in the furthest corner of the Alaskan wilderness looking for something. At least that's what he had told himself when he packed up his bags and set off. He had been away for several months paying off a debt that he had owed to someone who had saved his life. The only problem was that the world he had returned to was much different than the one he had left and one very important thing was missing. And he was here to try to find it before it was too late.