Lucy settled in front of her laptop with a steaming cup of tea. On the screen, her brother Steve and his wife Molly were in full view via Skype. Steve bounced his one-year-old daughter Tracy on his lap. All three of them had been talking for nearly half an hour and little Tracy was getting cranky.
Lucy had spoken at length about the school, and she had watched in amazement as her niece had walked around the room on chubby, wobbly legs. They had all laughed good-naturedly when she’d finally fallen on her well-padded bum. Clearly, she loved the attention. “Wave bye to Auntie Lucy in Africa,” he said. The little girl was now rubbing her eyes.
“Molly, will you take Tracy?” Steve asked.
Molly quickly gathered the little girl in her arms. “Wave bye-bye,” she said. “Lots of love, Lucy.”
Lucy blew her niece a kiss. “So how’s business, Steve?” She thought she saw Steve hesitate for a moment before answering.
“Okay, you know there’s always something to deal with, but it will be fine, I’m sure.”
Lucy studied her brother’s face. Like her, he was fair. Although not classically handsome, he had a strong open face that invited people to trust him. The two of them had always been close and she could sense he was evading her. “What kind of things are you dealing with?” Her voice was firm.
“Well, we’ve had a problem with the zoning commission. They’re saying that we have to reapply for business rights again.”
“But that’s ridiculous, Steve. Dad’s shop has been there for over thirty years, and the entire block is business, not residential. So what could possibly be the problem?”
“Well, according to the lady from the zoning office, the entire area is zoned for Business category four which means there are limits on what kinds of businesses can operate.”
“So why is this only coming up now after three decades?”
“It turns out,” Steve said and rubbed his forehead the way he always did when he was stressed, “that operating a business such as ours is fine so long as there are no objections from the community.”
“Dad is the backbone of that community!” Lucy seethed. “Think of how as a single parent he helped out so many people from the neighborhood. He raised money for the ice rink and the local hockey team. He was a rotary member. Who could possibly be objecting, and why now?”
Steve’s silence was his answer. Lucy didn’t want to believe that the Palmers could be behind this. Surely not. “So what happens now?”
“So, apparently, it will be another few weeks. The complainants have to put their objections in full to the council and we’ll have some time to respond.” Steve hesitated for a moment. “I really hate to be the bearer of bad news. We’re also being audited again. We just got a notice from the IRS. It’s an unbelievable hassle and such a waste of time. We have to produce every invoice, every financial record from the past five years.”
“But I thought you were audited last year. I remember Dad complaining about it,” Lucy said.
“Yep, we were audited only eleven months ago,” said Steve, shaking his head.
Lucy was speechless. She felt an ache in the pit of her stomach. “It’s got to be them, Steve.” Anger and then fear rose within her.
“Slow down, sis. Let’s not jump to conclusions. This could be a coincidence, and if it’s not, then we need to stay calm.
What had she done? Steve had a family to support and that could be in jeopardy because she’d embarked on revenge.
“Omigod. How can they go after my family?” she moaned, her face in her hands.
“Well, I suppose they feel that in a way, you went after theirs,” Steve said. “Don’t worry. Dad still has a lot of respect in this neighborhood and lots of friends, too. We’ll leverage that if we have to, but for now, we’ll just play the game. There’s nothing we have to worry about in that audit. This business is a hundred percent above board. As for the zoning thing, let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We’ll respond to the objections and I’m sure we’ll get plenty of support.”
“I wish I was closer. I wish there was something I could do to help.”
“I think it’s probably best for you to stay where you are. Try not to worry. Dad’s a tough old bird and he’s been through worse. Now I’ve got to coach seven-year-olds at the hockey rink.”
“Bye, Steve.” Lucy shut her computer. Damn them. Corrupt bastards.
She knew in her bones that this was the work of the Palmers. This was how they behaved. They had power and influence and they used it. She remembered how they could put on a good show. In public, at their charity balls and gala dinners, they appeared to be the very heart of respectability and generosity. All that damn air kissing and flattery—thinking of it made her feel sick. The Palmers were a family with two faces, and they threw out the rulebook whenever it suited them.