Page 20 of Tempting Frey
Frey nodded.
“To whom?”
Jesse scratched his ear. “He doesn’t know.”
I looked from one man to the other. “How’s that possible?”
Frey sank onto the edge of his desk, and the wood creaked under his weight. He looked so tired. Hadn’t he slept?
“Hughes was approached by a law firm from the city a few months ago. They gave him an offer on the land. At first, he thought it was a scam, so he ignored it. But then the offer increased, and he eventually caved.”
“I worked with him for the whole day yesterday,” I said. “We even spoke about the town’s planning. He didn’t mention anything.”
“The buyer wanted to remain anonymous. Hughes wasn’t allowed to tell anyone about it until the deal was finalized. Hecame by my house last night, clutching his hat in his hands, and spilled the beans.”
“Traitor,” Jesse mumbled.
Frey flashed him a look. “The money will send all his grandkids to college, Jesse. In his place, you’d sell for half the price.”
Jesse gave him a sour grimace.
“So we don’t know who it belongs to?” I asked. “There has to be a name on the deed.”
“It’s a trust. No names. Someone bought thirty acres of forest that reaches into the middle of Beauville, and we have no idea who they are and what they want to do with it.”
Right then, a ringing tone came through the closed door. Jesse looked at me as if it were my job to go pick up the phone. When I didn’t move, he sighed ostentatiously and shuffled to the door.
“Thank you, Jesse. I’ll update Oliver,” Frey said.
The door closed, and I was alone with Frey.
He exhaled through his nostrils, and it felt as if he was once again avoiding looking at me. He could be so irritating. I folded my arms over my chest, holding on to my composure.
“Why are you so angry about this?” I asked.
My direct question visibly startled him. His eyes flickered to mine. “We could have a ten-story concrete monstrosity built in town by next spring.”
“That’s not how it works.” I lifted a finger. “One, we can require information about who is behind the trust that purchased the land. They can’t remain anonymous forever. And two, while the current zoning doesn’t specify any purpose for that area, we decide what’ll happen in the part that’s within the town’s limits.”
Frey scrunched his eyebrows together. “It’s the part that’s right outside that worries me.”
“We work with the county and push for regulations.”
“These people have a trust and a law firm buying stuff for them, Oliver. They must have their fingers everywhere. The county never gave a damn about us, and they sure won’t help us against a bunch of developers with their pockets full of cash.”
I suppressed a groan. “You don’t even know they’re developers.”
Frey threw his hands up in the air. “Who else?”
“Even if they are, developer is not a bad word, you know. They’re not all greedy villains wanting to turn cutesy mountain towns into rubble. They’re in it for business, and they want good business. We can work with them and convince them to build what will bring the most benefits to Beauville.”
He pushed off the desk and stepped closer to me until he seemed to loom above me. “Workwith them?Are you crazy?”
“Of course!” Now it was my turn to wave my arms. “Have you read the strategy I wrote?”
“Yes. Even the email you sent in the middle of the night.”
I ignored the poke. “This could be a good thing, Frey. We have to revise the zoning, especially for that area, as soon as possible. I’ll call Mr. Masterson and ask him to meet with us while he’s in Beauville. We need to prepare. The new owners will have to come clean about who they are and what they want, and when they do, we’ll have a bulletproof plan ready.”
