Death Waxed Over - Tim Myers [28]
“Tell him it’s Harrison Black from River’s Edge.”
She whispered something into the phone, then said to me, “He’ll be right with you.”
Before she could hang up, Runion came out, cool gray eyes peering out below large black eyebrows. Runion had played football for Micah’s Ridge, had won them their only county title before fading fast at Carolina. He’d come back to town a hero, then gone into the insurance business before heading into real estate. I hadn’t grown up in Micah’s Ridge, so I hadn’t known his history until he’d carefully worked it all into our first conversation. Every third thing out of the man’s mouth was a lie, so I wondered how much of what he said I could believe.
“Harrison, it’s nice of you to drop by. I’ve only got a few minutes—something urgent has come up—but I’ll give you what time I’ve got.” He turned to his secretary and said, “Jeanie, get Hardin on the line in four, then buzz me.”
I walked back into his office and saw Runion’s dream projects decorating his walls. They were all artists’ renditions, since none of them had actually come to fruition.
“So,” he said, “are we ready to work out some kind of deal on River’s Edge? I wish I could offer you the same thing we discussed before, but I’ll have to drop my offer by twenty percent. Times change.”
I smiled, but there was no warmth in it. “If anything, the property’s more valuable now than it was before.”
Runion frowned. “Playing hardball, huh? I might be able to come within five percent of my last offer, but no more.”
I ignored his counteroffer, especially since I had no intention of selling River’s Edge. “I heard you were interested in Gretel Barnett’s place.”
“Now who told you that?”
“You’re not the only one with contacts around Micah’s Ridge. Somebody told me you were pushing her pretty hard.”
Runion held up his hands. “Your source has been lying to you. As a matter of fact, a man called me offering the property last week. Nothing came of it, though. It turns out the place wasn’t his to sell.”
“Who’d you talk to?”
“I didn’t get his name, but when I called Ms. Barnett to follow up, she told me she had no intention of leaving the area. Some crank was having his jollies at my expense, most likely. Now what about River’s Edge?”
I was suddenly tired of the conversation. “You want to know the truth? I just don’t feel good about selling the place.”
Runion said, “Come on, everything’s for sale, if the price is right.” He pointed toward the front office. “Did you see Jeanie out there? She kept saying no to me, too, until I finally wore her down.”
I shook my head. “Sorry, it’s not going to happen.”
I walked out of his office and looked at the secretary. Evidently I wasn’t too successful in hiding my disappointment in what Runion had just told me about her.
She started to say good-bye, then her smile faded as she said, “He’s been bragging about me again, hasn’t he?”
I bit my lip, then said, “I was hoping you were a better judge of character than that. Not that it’s any of my business.”
Without another word to me, she stood up and stormed into his office. “Gregory Runion, if you tell one more lie about me, I’m going to tie a knot in your tail you’ll never get out. I don’t know what fantasy world you’re living in, but I won’t stand for it, do you hear me?”
I left them there arguing, wondering why Runion had come up with such a flimsy response to my question about Gretel’s place. His account of what had happened stretched the boundaries of believability, and I wondered why that surprised me. The man reminded me of the old joke that said the only way you could tell when a lawyer was lying was to see if his lips were moving. I’d trust Gary Cragg first, and the attorney at River’s Edge didn’t have much credibility with me. If Runion was telling the truth, he hadn’t approached Gretel first at all. The idea of a crank call just didn’t resonate with me. But if Runion was after her shop, was it possible her store was part of a bigger purchase? I didn’t know, but at least I knew one way I might be able to find