Death Waxed Over - Tim Myers [65]
“We’re not open yet,” I said as I walked to the front of the shop.
Jubal looked startled to see me as I opened the door for him. “Good, I’m glad I caught you in. I’m so sorry to bother you,” he said. “I just need a minute of your time.”
I unlocked the door and stepped aside. “Come on in, Jubal. I thought it was just another overenthusiastic candle-maker.”
He tried to smile, and almost made it. “Do you get many of those?”
“We have our share. What can I do for you? Wait a second, it’s about what happened yesterday, isn’t it? Sorry I never got back to you. I didn’t hang up on you. The phone slipped off my shoulder, and by the time I retrieved it, I got overwhelmed with customers and forgot all about our conversation.”
“Please, there’s no need to explain. I must admit, you left me curious with that cryptic comment of yours. Are you truly close to something?”
I admitted, “I’m beginning to think it was wishful thinking. Sorry about that. I didn’t mean to get your hopes up.”
Jubal didn’t look upset at all. “It’s no problem, really. We both just want to know what really happened to Gretel.”
“So if you’re not here for an apology, what brings you out to River’s Edge?”
“I wanted you to know Flickering Lights is shutting down.”
Though I couldn’t say the news of my chief competition closing upset me, I did feel bad for Jubal. “How did that happen?”
“They finally managed to track Hans down, and he wants the shop closed as soon as possible. He’s even letting the franchise revert, but since Gretel paid in full for an exclusivity clause, the candle shop won’t be back to haunt you later. Evidently I’ve been given free reign to liquidate any way I see fit. If you can imagine, he’s not even coming to Micah’s Ridge to handle the estate. There was something too pressing in South America that he couldn’t leave, he told me.” Jubal shook his head. “Hans never was all that concerned with details.” He paused, then added, “I suppose I shouldn’t complain. Since Gretel left me out of the list of beneficiaries, Hans is allowing me to keep the proceeds of the liquidation, as long as I do it quickly.”
I’d been curious about that since Markum and I had uncovered the fact of his absence in Gretel’s will, and this was the perfect time to satisfy my curiosity. “Why did she neglect you, do you suppose?”
Jubal said, “Don’t look so surprised, Harrison, I knew Gretel’s intent, and heartily endorsed it. Ten years ago I found myself in a predicament, one that required an immediate and generous cash transfusion. I never would have asked Gretel for help, but she got wind of it and bailed me out. That’s one of the reasons I came down to be with her, actually. I never thanked her as well as I should have.”
“I’m sure she knew you were grateful,” I said, happy to have at least that point solved.
Jubal said, “The reason I’m here is that I was wondering if you might be interested in buying my supplies. In fact, I can make you a good deal, less than wholesale, if you take the entire inventory off my hands immediately.”
“I should tell you that you’d make more if you took a few weeks and had a ‘Going Out of Business’ sale. I’m not sure if I could do better than what you’d make that way.”
Jubal idly spun a ring on his left hand. “I appreciate your candor, but it appears I’m being forced to evacuate the premises in forty-eight hours. There’s really no time to do it properly, and truth be told, as charming as your little town is, I can’t say I’ll be sorry to go. Bad memories and all that, you understand.”
“Completely,” I said. “How about this? I’ll come by this evening and look over your stock. Then tomorrow I can get together with Eve and we’ll have a figure for you by noon. I can’t promise even fair market value, but I should be able to come up with something.”
Jubal pumped my hand. “That’s all I can ask. I appreciate your promptness in this. I’ll see you this evening, then.”
Heather was standing at the door when I let Jubal out.
She had Esme in her arms, and Jubal stepped a few paces back when he saw her. “I love cats, but unfortunately