Page 31 of Evergreen Desires
Getting the car back had lit him up. That first night, he drove to the corner store just to grab ice cream for all of us, like it was a mini celebration. Sure, he’d borrowed one of the SUVs before, but this was different. His car washis, and I could tell it meant more than just transportation. Even now, as comfortable as he seemed with us, that independence mattered. He was determined not to feel helpless again.
And honestly? I was proud of him.
"I got it," Will hollered from across the greenhouse. While he was closer, I suspected he also wanted to avoid me tracking mud through the office. Despite his laid-back demeanor, Will was meticulous about the office, the supply room, and the harvest room. Come to think of it, just about everything.
"Beau, we need you!" Will called out from the back door of the office. Not a panicked call, but one that sounded like he was caught by surprise.
I dropped my pruning shears and walked toward the office, taking a moment to dunk my feet in the foot wash. If Will was already off-kilter, there was no need to push it.
Chief Mateo was standing in the office with another man I didn't recognize. Mat gave me a look, trying to convey a message I couldn't quite catch.
"Beau, this is Agent Walker from the Liquor and Cannabis Board. He’s here to do a surprise inspection," Will said.
"Okay, that's not an issue," I said, looking at the man and reaching to shake his hand. Then it dawned on me. "I’ve had numerous inspections over the years, both announced and unannounced, but the police have never been involved. What's going on?"
Mat looked at me, giving a slight nod. I needed to work on deciphering his silent messages.
"We’ve had a number of anonymous complaints about Boon Farms. They range from minor infractions to adding additional chemicals to your products to unauthorized people in the growing area," Walker explained.
"I’m sure you’ve seen my past inspections and paperwork audits. They've all been perfect. Not even minor infractions," I replied, feeling defensive.
"I understand and agree. Given the volume of complaints, however, we need to do this. If it’s anything like past ones, I expect to close this without much ado."
"I completely understand. We will cooperate fully. Want to start with the harvest records first, like always?"
"Sure, as good a place as any. I’ll need to interview your employees and access their personnel files as well, and perhaps go over some security footage."
“Well, it’s just the three of us here. I’m the owner, Will’s a part-time partner and full-time employee, and Jake—he’s new, but his paperwork’s all in order. He’s out running errands today. You’re welcome to set up at the conference table over there—I’ll grab the files so you can get started.”
"In the meantime, Will, would you give me the grand tour of your operation here?" Mat asked as the inspector pulled out his laptop and started setting up at the conference table.
As they took their leave, I pulled some hard files from the storage room file cabinet and dropped them by the table. The inspector barely noticed the 4-inch stack of files I set down. "This will get you started. I’ll be back from time to time. The restroom is in the corner. Help yourself to the water in the fridge or coffee from the kitchen. If you need anything, I’ll be in the greenhouse. Just give me a shout."
"Thanks, will do," Walker said, not even looking up from his computer.
"What the hell is going on?" Will asked animatedly as I walked in.
"I just got the call an hour ago and met them at the station,” Mat admitted, his voice a whisper. “He was tight-lipped, but from what I gathered, there were 26 anonymous complaints lodged in the last week. They have to investigate, and the county sheriff referred them to me."
"That ass hat!" I grunted, looking up toward one of the corners of the greenhouse.
"What?" Will jumped, looking over in that direction too.
"The security cameras."
"Wait, you told me you didn’t have security cameras before." Mat scratched his head, looking up to see a camera in the corner. He quickly scanned the room, noticing six easily.
"Well, I don’t have any outside. But I do have them in here. It’s an unofficial requirement to protect against claims of inventory shrinkage or inflation. They mentioned wanting to see the footage."
"So?” Will asked. “They’ve done that before."
"Well, Jake and I had a little... rest break... when we were cloning the plants the other day." I felt the heat rise in my cheeks. I looked away from Mat, avoiding eye contact. "It’s notillegalper se, but I don’t really want that listed in a report anyplace either. It's maybe not the best look for me."
Will’s hand shot up, ready to high-five. "Youdog!"
"Shut up, Will," I growled at him.
"Listen, I get the impression the inspector doesn’t want to be here. Can you paper them?" Mat offered.
