Page 19 of Red Mountain Burning
Saving himself from splattering, Brooks reached for the lowest hanging fruit of potential conversation. “You guys must be excited to get Emilia back home.” Their daughter, who been away at NYU, was coming home in eight days, and Brooks had agreed to let her apprentice under him for the summer.
“We sure are,” Jake said. “It’s not the same around here without her.”
Brooks nodded, knowing that was true. “I’m looking forward to teaching her a few things. Something tells me she’ll catch on quickly.”
Carmen dropped her chin. “Where did this interest in working for Lacoda come from anyway? Em wanted nothing to do with wine last year.”
Brooks was tempted to ask Carmen the same question. It wasn’t until after Emilia had planned on working at Lacoda that Carmen was suddenly involved.
He put a hand on his desk. “I guess it’s about the only summer job to be had, short of driving all the way into Richland.” Having discussed the topic with Emilia numerous times, he knew much more than he was willing to share right now.
Carmen looked at Jake suspiciously.
“I figured it wasn’t a big deal,” Brooks added, hoping he’d not gotten himself into the middle of a larger family argument. He had run the idea of Emilia working at Lacoda by Jake, who was fine with it, but Brooks wasn’t about to throw Jake under the bus right now.
Abruptly, Jake shifted the conversation. He took Carmen’s hand. Her diamond was larger than Jake’s knuckles. “Why don’t we get your office sorted out? Make sure you have what you need.” He said to Brooks, “Carmen’s going to work on booking some more events and breathe some life into this place. We might even open another day or two of the week.” Right now, they were only open on weekends.
“That’s great,” Brooks replied. He reached for a pack of papers and straightened them pointlessly. “Carm, let me know if you need anything.”
“Thank you so much,” she said in a high-pitched tone that was both too innocent and too upbeat to fit her. Brooks didn’t want to judge, though. At least, she seemed to be trying.
When they’d left, Brooks pinched the bridge of his nose and said to himself, “Holy hell, this could go wrong in so many ways.”
* * *
In the heartof New York, Emilia Forester found an empty bench near the arch in Washington Square and took a seat, setting her backpack down next to her. She wished she could bottle the beauty of Manhattan in May: the mid-seventies warmth, the colorful flowers, and even the people blooming. A smiling couple ate lunch together on the neighboring bench, thick deli sandwiches spilling out of white paper. Near the fountain, a man with red shoes played the slide guitar like he’d been born with it in his hands.
After listening for a while, Emilia drew her phone from her backpack, recorded a minute or so of the man’s performance, and then texted it to Jasper, who was in Boston wrapping up his year at the Berklee School of Music.
I think you should hire him to be in your band.
Jasper texted right back.I like his shoes.
Emilia:Right?
Jasper:How’d your first exam go?Chemistry? I miss you, by the way. Only a few more days!They’d booked the same flight out of Boston.
Emilia:Miss you too. Yeah, Chem. Easy.She typed what was really on her mind.My mom started at Lacoda today. Ugh.
Waiting for him to respond, Emilia put her eyes back on the musician and lost herself in the notes. Eventually, her phone vibrated, and she looked at the screen.
Jasper:At least, you don’t have to go home to a new sister. Not to one-up you or anything, but I think I just crushed you.
Emilia smiled as she typed back to him.Red Mountain = Death Star. I’m caught in her tractor beam.
Jasper:It’s good that we’re in it together.
