Summer Days (Fool's Gold #7)(56)

“Unfortunately, he has a good reputation in the industry,” Annabelle said glumly. “He builds to code, pays a fair wage, takes care of the land while doing it. Blah. Blah. Blah.”

“Just our luck. He’s only a bastard personally.” Charlie sank back in her chair. “This sucks.”

Hopelessness joined Heidi’s sense of betrayal. She should have known Rafe was too good to be true. He was—

“I’ve got it!” Annabelle slapped both hands on the table. “I know what to do.”

Heidi stared at her. “What?”

Annabelle grinned, her green eyes dancing with excitement. “Remember last fall at the casino construction site? They blew away part of the mountain and exposed all that Máa-zib gold? The press came, and they had to stop construction on that part of the site. The museum people investigated.”

“I doubt there’s any Máa-zib gold on the ranch,” Heidi told her. “There’s no mountain.”

“But there are caves.”

Heidi was doubtful. “People have been going in them for decades. They would have found whatever is there.”

“Maybe, maybe not. And maybe there’s more than gold to be found.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Heidi told her.

Annabelle leaned forward and lowered her voice. “Cave paintings. What if there were cave paintings? Priceless, ancient cave paintings?”

Jo brought their burgers. “Anything else?” she asked.

“We’re good,” Charlie told her, then waited until she’d left to speak. “Rafe is still in the planning stages. Finding cave paintings or gold can’t shut down what hasn’t been started.”

“Agreed.” Annabelle picked up a French fry. “But it can buy Heidi time.” The librarian turned to her. “You said you had contacts, so you’re going to start selling your cheese and soap in Asia. If you had an extra three or four months to get that business under way, wouldn’t that help? Could you get more money to pay back May?”

“Maybe,” Heidi said slowly, not confident doing the math in her head. “It might be enough to show the judge I’m serious. I’m not sure how much I’m going to sell, but if I do half as well as I hope, then, yes.”

“The discovery buys time.” Charlie nodded. “I get it. With experts swarming around the ranch, the judge won’t want to rule.” She grinned. “This could work.”

Heidi drew in a breath. “This all sounds really great, but I don’t know if I can do this. It’s lying. Worse. It’s fraud. What happens if the judge finds out? First Glen took two hundred and fifty thousand dollars from May, and now I’m doing this? She’s going to think I come from a family of thieves.”

“All you need is enough time to get the money to pay back May,” Annabelle reminded her. “You’re not taking anything from anyone. You’re keeping what’s yours. Besides, if this brings a few more tourists to the town, all the better.”

Heidi wasn’t sure. The idea didn’t sit right with her, but she wasn’t sure she had an alternative plan. For all she knew, the judge would be so pleased at the thought of Rafe’s construction, she would simply hand the land over. After all, from the town’s point of view, there would be more revenue from his houses than her goats.

“I don’t want to lose my home,” she whispered, her whole body aching. “I can’t. This ranch is what I’ve wanted my whole life.”

“So don’t lose it,” Charlie said. “We’ll help.”

“I can do some research,” Annabelle offered. “Come up with examples of Máa-zib cave paintings. That way, if you want to go through with this, we’ll be ready.”

Heidi sighed. “Thank you. Both of you. I have to think about this. I’m just not sure. I do want to save my home. I have to. But I don’t know that this is the right way.”

“Not to be a bitch or anything, but you’re kind of out of options,” Charlie pointed out.

“I know. Give me a couple of days to think about this.”

She would look for an alternative. If she couldn’t find one, then she would use their plan.

“You think,” Annabelle told her. “I’ll get my thoughts together, and maybe sketch out a few ideas for the cave paintings. The women of the tribe were sophisticated for their time, so we’re talking about a little bit more than stick figures. How are your artistic skills?”

“Not much more than basic. I used to draw, but I haven’t for years.”

“Let’s hope it comes back to you.”

Heidi felt that she’d been living on hope for too long. Waiting and wishing and dreaming. When she’d found out what Glen had done, she’d been so scared they would lose everything. Slowly, after meeting May and Rafe, she’d let down her guard. That had been a mistake. Rafe was ruthless. She saw that now. He would take what he wanted, and he didn’t care who or what got in his way. She would have to be just as strong, just as determined. She’d come too far to lose it all now.

* * *

HEIDI HEADED BACK TO the ranch right after lunch. She was hoping to escape to her room for a couple of hours of private time. She needed to really think her friends’ plan through. She’d always been an honest person, and deceiving the town didn’t sit well with her. But she had a bad feeling that if she trusted in the system to take care of her, she would find herself and her goats out on the street. After all, May was the injured party in all this.