Timberline Trail (23 page)

Chapter 10

Within thirty minutes of Paul’s departure, Tia felt as restless as a cooped
-up dog on a long summer’s day. Jon strode stiffly to his tent, the sounds of metal chests soon clanging angrily as Tia fed the fire and pondered the information Paul had relayed. The gray jays’ chattering and the lift of the wind through the pines and cottonwoods quickly faded from her consciousness as her orderly mind tried to make sense of all she’d learned.

First and foremost was the mystery of why her f
ather had rewritten his will and never told her? That answer proved easy. Tia knew she would have argued to no end about it and her father, though stubborn as an old pot-bellied mule with anyone else, could be dissuaded by Tia.

Her mother, when she’d been alive, used to joke about how Tia could bend Tony Heath to her will and Tia recalled how RK would grumpily scowl at Tia’s manipulations, he himself never having the ability to make his father ever change his mind once it was made up.
Of course, these manipulations were minor in comparison to the fact that Anthony Heath had decided to bequeath his entire fortune to her.

Now the consequences of her father’s actions struck home and no matter how she tried to deny
it, Tia knew she was in serious trouble. Tia suddenly wished she was somewhere else, anywhere else but here and for an instant Jon’s quiet face hovered in her mind’s eye. For two nights at least she’d felt protected and safe, even in the cold and rough interior of the cave, because she’d been certain Jon was trustworthy.

But
who was he really? Part of her saw him as a creator of pictures, just like she was a creator of words; one seeking to capture an instant with his photographs as she did with her stories. But now everything he’d ever done or said became suspect. Tia wanted to bury her head in her hands and weep before the crackling fire, as she now realized just how much Jon and the man she’d thought he was had meant to her. Tia couldn’t appreciate the call of the golden eagles circling majestically overhead or notice the jerkily twitching tail of a long-tailed weasel who ventured near the fire before suddenly scurrying away, so wrapped up was she within her dark thoughts.

Tia struggled to regain her equilibrium; managing to reassure herself that Jon’s motives, no matter how low, had not included injuring her, while Steve...
She growled at how she’d almost been duped by his friendly face and handsome features. Handsome men were a dime a dozen as Paul and Steve, and even Jon, had proven. It was inside that it really counted, as her mother had told her over and over again, and suddenly Tia recalled the homely face of her father with his overly large ears and dark reassuring eyes squinting under thick eyebrows. Tia remembered how he’d always complained about needing to shave twice a day but it had never mattered to her mother who had loved him immensely, kissing that rough face as tenderly as if it were hewn into gold.

That's what she was looking for, the quality of the man inside,
not outside, and suddenly she thought of Paul. Paul's admitted relationship with her uncle now answered so much. Tia recollected how Paul had always paid his own way, and while enjoying her wealth and success had maintained a small and very tastefully decorated apartment near Bel Air as well as a bright red Corvette.

She
remained positive, however, that it was her connections in the art and publishing world that had first interested and attracted him. In fact, he’d shown little interest in any of the workings of Heath Enterprises. Tia had mistaken his friendship for something else and when they’d broken up, she’d automatically assumed, as most woman did, that he’d left her for another woman. She now understood her cousin's aversion to her father. Marilyn hadn't been able to accept her father for what he was, but Tia still trusted and loved her Uncle Jeffery no matter what his choices. She believed he’d never proven to be anything but honest. It was true, however, that the death of her father’s partner had, after all, enabled Jeffery Heath to take control of the company.

Yet
, she argued with herself, Jeffery had always gone out of his way to help others. He’d been the one who had introduced Tia to the editor who’d ended up publishing all of her books. And her uncle, while definitely enjoyed his wealth, certainly didn't flaunt it in the face of others. Uncle Jeffery had never lost his love of working with his hands and Tia remembered a story that had circulated through the family about how her uncle had tried to convince her father to invest in a made-to-order furniture company instead of a computer firm. That love of wood had resulted in the snug cabin she now called home.

But why had her father altered the will
, writing both Jeffery and RK out? If anything, she would have thought her father would have left RK the entire company even considering his odd nature. Eccentric and abrupt, his people skills non-existent, Tia had always tagged her brother as the reclusive innovative genius, content to spend hours in front of his computer working on new hardware and software schemes. RK disliked public appearances; rejecting concerts, movies, and parties as wastes of time. He hadn’t picked up a fiction book since high school and his scorn for the ‘make-believe’ had included anything that had to do with fiction, including her books.

While it was true they’
d never been close, she’d always admired him. At an early age RK had excelled in math and science, startling his teachers with an incredible grasp of concepts far beyond the usual student’s reach. Her father had promoted RK's interests, allowing him the freedom to delve into computers and fiddle with any machine as he strived to figure out how it
worked
. Tia soon classified her brother as the mad-scientist type, who showed little interest in the opposite sex or anything that didn’t directly relate to electronics or computers. While she didn't enjoy similar pursuits, she’d always respected what he'd achieved. However her brother was not so accommodating.

RK had mocked her writing and subsequent
English major, suggesting with an undisguised smirk that she could do far better for herself as a scientist. Their distant relationship had drifted even further apart and while Tia didn’t need her brother's approval she was disappointed she hadn’t warranted his respect. She’d been truly sad years later, when her brother had opted to start his own company after completing his doctorate degree at UC Berkley, that her father hadn’t been the most understanding of parents. Anthony felt his son had somehow betrayed him because he’d promised his father to join Heath Enterprises as the R & D director after achieving his Ph.D.

In a sense it was true; RK's future career with Heath Enterprises had been verbalized between her parents and brother for over ten years, but suddenly in the space of one stormy weekend two years before her mother’s death, RK had crushed all that by defiantly announcing he had his own plans and goals and would not tie himself down
to a company he despised. He’d gone so far as to accuse his parents of neglect, suggesting they’d never really listened to his dreams and had favored his sister over him.

Luckily Tia had been a
way at college that weekend, though tidbits of information about her brother’s clash with her parents had drifted to her via her gentle mother, who’d been truly hurt by her son’s accusations and subsequent departure. Of course, her mother had admitted, Anthony Heath had been single-minded regarding RK's future and demanded a great deal from his equally hard-headed son. Both Tia and her mother felt that if RK would have told his father from the beginning he didn't want to be part of the company, Anthony Heath wouldn't have taken it so hard.

But her father
had
taken it hard, throwing himself into his work with more gusto than he had ever shown before and delegating more authority to Uncle Jeffery and his trusted partner, Andrew Carson, who’d served in Vietnam with him. Anthony also gruffly applauded RK's successes, where he could have easily wished him the worst.

Tia had once hoped that if her brother married and fathered a couple of children he would soften, but that happy event never occurred.
RK cooped himself up more and more in his private office, leaving the running of RK Designs to the capable hands of his vice-president so he could create new and better products for the public. Suddenly Tia wished she knew her brother better and wondered if she could establish a warmer relationship with him. For a moment she missed his serious intense face and squeaky sandals and decided that he, just like Uncle Jeffery and her cousin Marilyn, could never harm her.

Her mind turned to Andrew Carson. If what Paul’s private investigator Kenny had learned about Andrew's death was true, Andrew had placed the co
mpany and her entire family in a precarious position. RK hadn't been the only one who’d wanted to start a new company it seemed. If Andrew had somehow gotten in over his head with his silent partner and been brutally killed as a result, it would at least make some sort of bizarre sense. Before, nothing about his death had seemed logical and her father struggled for months dealing with the police and the LA paper’s accusations which insinuated Anthony Heath had been involved in his partner’s death hoping for financial gain. Tia knew that financial gain had been the farthest thing from her father’s mind at the time.

Tia shook her head sadly over the whole bitter a
ffair and wished her father the best wherever he was. The fact that Andrew had owed Capital Amalgamated Investments over a million dollars still managed to shock her, but her mind adamantly protested against Jon having had anything to with Andrew's murder. She also totally rejected the suggestion from Paul that Jon could have possibly been his silent partner. Tia just wished she could figure out the connection between Andrew, CAI, and her brother's profitable company where Jon’s sister had worked.

What could Jenny Simons have dug up that cost the young accountant her life? A tremendous wave of sadness
washed over her regarding Jon's sister. His image forced his way into her somber thoughts and Tia realized it was his very silence on the matter that broke her heart. Unfortunately Jon’s true agenda remained hidden under his carefully constructed layers of reserve and secrecy. She may have made love to Jon and given herself freely to him, but he had never truly given himself to her. And, until he did, there was no future with him.

Tia headed to the tent where Jon bent over some photos of coastal black bears.
He scowled at her.

"Come up with a plan yet?”

“Not really. I’ve been trying to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and need your help to make sense of it all.”

“So now you believe me?” he snorted.

“What do you mean?”

“That I came up to find out what you knew about my sister and never intended to hurt you.”

Tia hesitated. “Yes, I fully believe that. I also believe you have some crucial information you haven’t related to me.”

Jon flung the lovely photos atop the cot as he struggled for control.
“What if I told you I had some information that could disrupt your whole life? I’ve been stewing in here for the past fifteen minutes debating whether or not to tell you. And, because I care for you, I’m not going to spill any of that information until I’m positive it’s true. You’ve been hurt enough.”

“How convenient!”

“Do you think I enjoy withholding information from you? That I somehow got a thrill out of the expression on your face when your boyfriend related the real reason I’d tracked you down? I know you have difficulty trusting me, but I’m not going to shatter your life until I’m sure about my facts.”

“So that’s it then.
We were a great couple until a few things got in the way; like murder and greed and your inability to tell the truth to someone who really cared about you!”

“Think what you like,” Jon hissed.
“But I’m not going to make any more stupid mistakes so don’t expect any revelations from me. We’ll leave that to your boyfriend Paul!”

“At least he cared enough to
try and help me out!”

“Yeah, I’m sure it was the
goodness
of his heart that propelled him into your forgiving arms!”

Tia
was so angry she didn’t bother to contradict his ludicrous notion. “Just gas up the remaining snowmobile! I’m not going to wait around here for the police. I’m heading back to Timberline myself!”

“I used all my spare gas for Paul’s snowmobile and the other has barely enough to make it to your cabin
, if that.”

“Then I’ll walk if I have to!”

Jon’s teeth clenched as he watched the woman of his dreams storm out of the green canvas tent. He wanted nothing more than to take her in his arms and soothe away her justifiable fears, but caution forced him to allow her furious boots to stomp away. Jon only hoped the information he now withheld and suspected was true would not crush that last remaining kernel of trust she held for others; information that might very well cause her to turn her back on family and friends forever.

There was no way the snowmobile had enough gas to carry the both of them all the way to Timberline, but Jon managed to convince Tia that at least they had a chance.
After a futile attempt to rouse someone on Tory’s walkie-talkie, he took the short cut through the forest and managed to shear off at least two traveling miles. The trip back to her cabin passed like a blur before Tia’s reddened eyes. Jon drove swiftly but deftly through the slushy melting snow, the swish of the ice under the smooth blades of the snowmobile’s front skis evidencing their rapid progress. Their twisty path through the forest remained fairly silent, only punctuated by the cry of a startled marten leaping across the path, his blue-black fur shining in the afternoon light. Jon pointed at the weasel-like animal and Tia gripped his arms to indicate she’d seen the animal.