Fall's Killer Vintage by Anna Celeste Burke

Author:Anna Celeste Burke [Burke, Anna Celeste]
Language: eng
Format: E, P, U, B
Published: 2019-11-12T16:00:00+00:00

11 The Lady in Red

“Lily, it’s time to get up.”

“Judy?” I asked, confused as I sat up straight and stretched. “I must have fallen asleep.”

“I brought you some coffee. I was worried when I woke up and couldn’t find you.”

“I’m sorry.” I sipped the coffee and looked out the window. The sun hadn’t fully risen yet, and the morning light was faint. “After I spoke to Austin, I couldn’t sleep, so I came down here to read everything I could find about the Ladera Winery.”

“And what did your handsome cowboy have to say?”

“His dinner partner, Addison Wesley, claimed that Gregory Hampton was well-known as a ‘bad apple.’ No one ever considered him a credible candidate for Trevor Howard’s position. He also said Trevor’s endorsement of Hampton was an indication that he was slipping and needed to retire.”

“Does that mean Trevor was forced into retirement?”

“Addison Wesley was far too cagey to come right out and say such a thing, but that’s what Austin concluded. Maybe Trevor Howard had let his love of wine go too far. If Colin’s right about how much Trevor had to drink, maybe that’s not the only place he turned up tipsy.”

“Maybe too much booze was enough to explain Trevor’s choice of Gregory Hampton as a nominee for the seat he was leaving. I’m not sure Helen Drake was such a good choice, either. What do I know?”

Judy shrugged as she made that comment. I’d been swept up by Helen Drake’s sad story. Perhaps, my desire for Helen Drake’s life to have a ‘happily ever after’ Trevor Howard’s decision to marry her seem romantic.

“Are you suggesting Trevor Howard’s interest in marrying Helen Drake was about business rather than love?”

“No, just the opposite. That family has a twisted streak. I was wondering if Helen was leading Trevor on. Why not marry the old guy and get a whopping chunk of cash to end Ladera Winery’s financial woes now that her son is in charge?” Judy groused.

“If that was the plan, Trevor Howard’s murder was a stroke of bad luck. I haven’t found anything to demonstrate they’re in desperate financial shape, but they can’t be doing well. They’ve had more than their share of bad luck over the years and it’s been costly.”

“The elder Higgins couple died a few months apart. That’s not uncommon, though,” Judy said.

“Not that,” I replied. “I’m talking about blight in the vines, an accident in the brewing room, and this recent fire wasn’t the first. A previous one occurred in the vineyard just as their best crops in years was ready to be harvested. It’s always newsworthy when a winery with an old name like theirs borrows money. Banks have loaned them a ton of money over the past twenty-five years—before, and after, Rodney took over.”

“I’ll admit, that’s a load of trouble, but there are always problems like that in vineyards. Growing grapes is more glamorous, maybe, but farming is a rough, unpredictable way of life. That’s why Lettie tried so hard to give

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