Kee Patterbee - Hannah Starvling 02 - The Gourmet Who Kept Diamonds in the Kitchen (2 page)

Chapter 2

After landing, everyone exited the plane and made their way to the small airport’s lobby. Hannah made her call to the hotel and within a short time, a white van pulled up outside. The driver got out and introduced himself as Serizawa Kamo. “You can call me Ducky, if you like. Everyone does,” he said, as he gathered their baggage and loaded them. Hannah made a quick mental list of him.
Mid to late twenties
.
Average height. Broad, square face. Not athletic. Brown hair. Deep brown eyes. Asian descent
.
North American dialect. No underlying accent.

After getting in the vehicle, everyone settled in for a
ten minute ride to the hotel.  As they drove into the town, the elder Starvlings found themselves amazed at the beauty. The streets were well maintained. The buildings appeared as if they were straight out of an undetermined prior time. Making their way through the small town, they found banners and street signs announcing the festival. When Papa Jay inquired about it, Hannah explained that it was the town’s largest event.

“Over 100,000 people attend e
ach year.”

She also told them about the hotel
where they would stay.

“
It’s in a huge, old historic establishment called the Hotel Victoria. The whole thing sits right on the river. Papa Jay, I made sure our rooms overlook the water,” Hannah announced.

“
Thank you, Sweetness.”

“
Ooh,” Gran cooed, “sounds romantic, if you find someone to snuggle up to.” The elder peered over at Hannah as she nestled up next to Papa Jay. He leaned down for a quick kiss.

Hannah raised one eyebrow and gave an incredulous glare. Her grandparent
’s interaction was cute. Yet, she was well aware of her Gran’s subtle dig about not being involved. She decided to inform them about Hym, even though she was unsure if, or when, he would get the chance to come. She considered springing this information on them at the last minute a bad idea. Her best option required telling them outright.

“
I have something to tell you,” she said, “both of you.”

Both Papa Jay and Gran produced looks of concern. Gran reached out and placed her hand over her granddaughters.
“Oh, dear, is everything okay?”

Hannah let out a breath.
“Everything is fine, but I need to tell you that someone else is coming to join us.” Papa Jay and Gran’s expression changed from concern to quizzical. Hannah squirmed. “A man.”

One of Papa Jay
’s eyebrows shot up as he gave a slight frown. A broad smile rolled across Gran’s face. “A man? Who? Buster? Oh, I always liked him. So handsome.”

“
Yeah, but dumb as a rock. That boy’s going to be big someday. Mark my word. Eat you out of house and home kind of big.”

Gran punched her husband in the arm.
“Oh, hush you. He might be your grand son-in-law.”

“
NO! No. Heavens no. It’s not Buster,” Hannah said, throwing her hands forward in a halting gesture.

“
Oh,” Gran said. A hint of disappointment rang in her voice.

“
His name is Hym.”

“
Him?” piped in Papa Jay. “He doesn’t have a name?”

“
No. I mean, yes.” Hannah paused and gathered her senses. “His name is Hym. Short for Hymnal. Hymnal Miles. He’s a police officer.”

Gran shook her finger in the air, remembering.
“Wait. That’s the policeman from… from--”

“
Zebulon,” Hannah informed.

Papa Jay pulled his lips tight and tucked in the corner of his mouth. He peered at Hannah.
“Didn’t someone shoot him?”

“
Not dead.”

“
Not yet.”

“
Papa Jay!”

“
Just saying.”

Gran popped Papa Jay hard on the thigh.

“Oww. All I’m saying is that he better watch himself around Sweetness.” Papa Jay glanced over at Hannah. “Is he a gentleman?”

“
He is.”

“
Where is your gentleman friend going to stay, Hannah?” Gran asked.

“
He will be on the same floor with us all. I booked him in his own room. But he called right before we left. Work may delay him, if he makes the trip at all.”

Papa Jay turned to peer out the car window.
“Hmm. The noncommittal type, eh.”

“
Well, when you work in law enforcement, duty comes first. He learned it in the military. Like you, Papa Jay.”

The ol
d man turned enough to peer at his granddaughter out of one eye. “What branch?”

“
Army.”

“
Specialty?”

“
Ranger.”             

Papa Jay nodded.
“Good enough. He can come.”

Hannah rolled her eyes.

“Oh. I hope he makes it. I so want to meet him,” Gran announced with excitement. “What’s he like? How old is he? Is he handsome? Does he look like Clint Eastwood? You always had a thing for guys who look like Clint Eastwood.”

Hannah looked over at her grandfather and smirked.
“No, Gran. You did.”

Gran straightened a little and looked over at Papa Jay.
“I don’t see it.”

Hannah chuckled before giving her grandmother a serious stare.
“First, he’s like all men. I’m just getting to know him. Second, he’s forty one. Third, he’s worth looking at.  Last, he looks like himself. Before you start planning a wedding, or naming your grandchildren, we are not a couple. Yet. We like each other, but we’ve not spent a ton of time together. So keep that in your little scheming mind, please.”

Gran gave an indignant smile and replied,
“I’ll know when I lay eyes on him if he is the one. I can tell these things.” She relaxed a bit, grinned, and added, “It’s past time I got some great-grandbabies.”

“
Can you meet him first?”

Both gave Hannah an incredulous
stare.

“
Well, moving on. After we get checked in, I need to catch up with Elias. I’ve left several messages, but I guess he hasn’t picked them up.”

“
You sound worried,” Gran said.

“
Well, he is detail oriented, so it isn’t normal not to get a call back. His wife is pregnant. There have been some issues, so I guess I’m a little worried. I must be getting paranoid in my old age.” She smiled and bumped shoulders with her Gran.

Hannah explained that Elias Babel arrived in Gresham several days earlier. Before she left Twilight, Elias
’ wife called with their hotel room information. In a cheerful voice, she relayed that he wanted to catch up and meet with her grandparents once again. “I’m looking forward to meeting y’all,” the young mother-to-be said in a thick, southern drawl.

As she recalled the conversation, Hannah found Babel to be sweet. No hint of jealousy presented itself on her part, even though her husband and Hannah once dated for a time in Paris years earlier. Elias
’ call to Hannah earlier in the week, his eagerness to meet up, and now the ignoring of her calls gave Hannah pause. Logic told her that it was nothing to be concerned about yet. Her instinct screamed otherwise. She needed to make sure to please herself.

As they pulled
to a stop, Ducky announced, “Welcome to the historic Hotel Victoria.”

Hannah assessed the hotel and area. This accounted for her fifth time here. Still, the stunning beauty and massive grounds of the establishment impressed her. She looked over at her grandparents, whose wide eyes and slack jaws spoke volumes. “Over 450 guest rooms,” she informed them, “22 event rooms, four restaurants, and about anything else you want.”

“
Fancy,” Papa Jay offered. “How much is this setting you back, Sweetness? I can put this on our card.”

“
Nothing, Papa Jay, they wanted me bad for judging. This is part of the deal. Two extra rooms for the weekend, all inclusive.”

While taking
in the façade of the building and surveying the interior of the lobby, Papa Jay said, “Must have wanted you pretty bad.”

Before exiting the vehicle, the young driver turned to Hannah.
“Ms. Starvling? I hope you don’t mind me asking, but are you going to be creating for this event?”

Taken aback, Hannah smiled.
“You know me?”

“
Well, yeah, I’m sure pretty much everyone at the festival does. You’ve turned up in magazines and the net a lot. You’re part of Food Critic’s feature this month. Top Culinary Consultants.”

The man
’s knowledge of her intrigued Hannah. “You read Food Critic?” she said in a slight, disbelieving tone.

“
Yes, ma’am. I like Louie Woolridge’s stuff in particular. You met him, didn’t you?”

“
He’s a friend,” Hannah said with a relaxed smile.

The driver nodded.
“Wow, is he coming?”

“
I’m afraid not. He took some personal time.”

“
Ah, well, I’m hoping to attend the same school as you. That’s why I’m doing this.” He pointed around the van. “I work here and the show, saving money until next year. If all goes well, I’ll be in Paris at that point.” As he exited the vehicle, Ducky added, “If you or your family needs anything, ring the desk. I’ll be glad to do it.”

“
Thank you. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Ducky
made his way to the back and unloaded the luggage with the help of a porter. A yellow Lamborghini pulled in behind and a handsome man stepped out. He tossed the valet his keys and turned. As they made eye contact, Hannah charted him out.
Early forties. Crystalline blue eyes. Well kempt blond hair. Charming smile. Handsome. Fit.

His eyes focused on the Victorian style top hat
covering Hannah’s blonde, shoulder length hair before he gave an appreciative smile and headed into the lobby.

“
Now that’s worth checking out.” Gran gasped.

Through the glass door, Hannah watched
as he made his way up to the reception desk.

“
He has a nice butt,” Gran said in an appreciative tone.

“
How about you stop drooling, and let’s get up to the room, Scooby,” Papa Jay said in a terse tone.

“
Yeah, yeah,” Gran responded, never taking her eyes off the man.

As they entered
into the lobby, both Papa Jay and Hannah overheard Gran exclaim, “Jealous.”

“
That woman’s going to leave you for a nice butt someday,” Hannah observed.

Papa Jay shrugged his shoulders.
“Well, she’s an adult. If she wants to ditch me and marry some ass, who am I to stop her?” He glanced over at his granddaughter and both laughed.

Once inside, Hannah made her way to registration.
As she finished picking up the key cards, a woman stepped up beside her. She noticed the woman’s pregnancy and the fact that her rounded abdomen overwhelmed her figure. Hannah charted the young woman off.
Pretty. Short. Maybe 4’10” to 5’0”. Long auburn hair. Deep blue eyes. Light complexion.
A smile ran across the amateur sleuth’s face. “Janine,” she asked.

The woman turned with a questioning
expression. “Yes?”

Hannah extended her hand.
“Hi. I’m--”

The woman
’s eyes took in Hannah’s hat. An expression of recognition rolled across her face, followed by a broad smile. “Hannah, well hello.” She reached out, took the offered hand, and shook with vigor. “It is such a pleasure to meet you. Elias talks about you all the time. So much that I feel like I know you already.”

“
Oh? Nothing bad I hope.”

“
Heaven’s no. It’s all good. I’m so glad you made the trip.” Janine turned to Gran and Papa Jay and shook their hands as well while again introducing herself. When done, she addressed all. “I came down here to check to see if y’all made it. Lucky I ran into the three of you. Elias called me a bit ago, said he apologizes for not being here when you arrived. He wanted to, but he needed to check on something.” She flipped her hand in the air. “You know how he is. Most likely it has something to do with those mushrooms of his.” Noticing the porter behind them with the Starvling’s luggage, she added, “Oh heavens. Look at me running off at the mouth. I bet you’re tired. Can I walk with you up to your rooms? Ours is along the way up.” She patted her belly.

Hannah and the elder
Starvlings agreed and they took the elevators up. As they waited and rode up, all agreed to meet at 5:30 in the lobby and have dinner.

When the door to the
third floor opened, the Starvlings and the porter stepped out as Janine waved goodbye. When the elevator doors shut, Gran glanced back, then at Hannah.