Seeing Trouble Read Free Page B

How’s the realty business treating you these days?
    Violet : ( Her grin twists at the corners. ) I’d be better off selling encyclopedias. Thanks for the coffee ( she sips from the steaming cup ).
    Me : How many houses have you sold so far?
    Violet : A big, fat zero.
    Me : How long have you been working for Calamity Jane Realty?
    Violet : Two and a half months. And in that time, I haven’t had a single bite. I’ve shown a handful of clients a vacation house or two, but nobody has signed any offer letters. And if I don’t land a deal soon, I’m going to be out on my ass.
    Me : What do you mean?
    Violet : Jane, the owner, took me on as a favor to my Aunt Zoe with the deal that I had to make a sale within the first three months or she’d have to let me go. She can’t afford to carry me if I’m not bringing in any money.
    Me : What will you do if she lets you go?
    Violet : I don’t know. I could try to get my old job back, but I don’t want to work with those jerks at the car dealership any more. And I hate being tied to that place for five days a week, plus every other weekend. Being a Realtor has been so much more freeing. I can have lunch with my kids in the park, or take them to doctor’s appointments in the middle of the day. They seem so much happier since we moved out of Rapid City.
    Me : You’re living with your Aunt currently, right?
    Violet : Unfortunately.
    Me : Don’t you get along with her?
    Violet : Oh, yes, Aunt Zoe is wonderful. She’s happy to share her house with me and the kids—at least that’s what she keeps telling me. It’s just that I hate mooching off her so much. She lets us stay in her house for free. She won’t even take money for a portion of the bills. The most I can do to repay her is keep the cupboards full, which is getting harder and harder with Layne’s ever growing stomach.
    Me : Is Zoe retired?
    Violet : No, she owns and runs the art gallery just up the street. She creates her own glass designs and sells them for an insanely cheap price. She could get four times as much if she wanted, but she insists that her art is for the average American pocketbook. She says there is more money in selling to the masses than the elite, especially in Deadwood, although she does have this deal going right now with an art gallery in Denver. The gallery’s owner visited Deadwood last year and stopped in at Zoe’s place. He was so impressed with her work that he wants to display and sell her stuff in his gallery. She’s hard pressed right now to finish the last four pieces of the twenty he requested by the end of this month.
    Me : I’ll have to go check out her gallery while I’m in town. So, tell me about your kids.
    Violet : (She smiles and grabs her purse, pulling a couple of pictures from her wallet.) This is Adelynn—but she insists on being called Addy. (She shows me a picture of an adorable little blonde holding up what looks like a long, green ribbon toward the camera.)
    Me : She likes ribbons?
    Violet : Ribbons? ( She looks down at the picture. ) Oh no, that’s a dead snake.
    Me : Eww.
    Violet : Yeah, I know. She’s really into animals—alive and dead. She wants to be a veterinarian when she grows up. Aunt Zoe thinks Addy should be a taxidermist since she has no problem handling dead things. ( She holds another picture out .) And this is Layne, Addy’s twin brother.
    Me : Twins, huh? (I stare down at the picture of another cute face surrounded by dark blond hair. The boy has Violet’s hazel eyes.)
    Violet : Yep, born a few minutes apart. Addy came first, so she considers herself Layne’s “older” sister. She takes care of Layne, from picking out his clothes some days to making his lunch for school every morning. Not that Layne likes her choice in clothes or healthy foods.
    Me : And what does Layne like to do when he’s not in school?
    Violet : ( She stuffs the pictures back into her purse .) This summer, he’s learning Spanish with Mona.
    Me : Really?
    Violet : Yes.