reopening.”
“And?” Tori asked, sounding nervous.
“Happy as a pig rolling in poop. She thinks it would add to their bar trade.”
“She might be right.”
“She said things are pretty dead in winter, but mentioned the same as you—ice fishermen, and even better, snowmobilers—help the bottom line.”
The second batch of toast popped up. Tori placed one slice on her plate and doled the other out to Kathy, then sat down at the table.
Kathy spread jam on the toast and cut it into triangles, all the time wrestling with her conscience. Should she mention that old wreck of a house to Tori? She’d never lied to her friend before—not even a lie of omission. “What do you know about that house across the road that’s for sale?”
“It’s a real mess.”
“Was it ever pretty?”
“Not that I remember, why?”
“Noreen said the asking price was only ten grand.”
Tori studied her face. “I hope you’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking.”
“I am,” Kathy admitted.
Tori laughed. “Are you out of your mind?”
“I like to think I’m on a quest for knowledge.”
“To find out it’s a potential money pit and totally unsuitable for a B and B?”
Kathy nodded. “You got it.”
“Shouldn’t you do a feasibility study to see if the area can handle that kind of traffic?”
“Definitely. To tell you the truth, it’s the price that caught my attention. I’ve seen wrecks like that in Batavia for a heck of a lot more money.”
“Yeah, but it would probably take a hundred grand or more to bring it back to a habitable state. It might be better to just find a chunk of land and start building from scratch. And, as much as I’d love it if you were going to be near here, I think you’d do better to find something in Batavia or Rochester.”
“Who goes to Batavia? It’s just a pee stop on the Thruway.”
“The race track is there.”
“That’s about it.” Kathy polished off the last of her toast. “I’m not saying that wreck is the place for me, but I sure wouldn’t mind taking a walk through it. Would you come with me?”
“To be the voice of reason? You bet.”
Kathy decided to change the subject. “The conversation at The Bay Bar was all about the murder.”
“There’s probably not much else to talk about around here,” Tori said reasonably.
“Did the guy who died keep his boat here?”
Tori nodded. “Gramps said it was tied up to the dock, why?”
“The dead guy told one of the bikers that he wasn’t going to take his boat out on the bay at night anymore because strange stuff was happening.”
“Like what?”
She shrugged. “I was wondering about UFOs. Have you ever seen one?”
“No, but I’ve seen shooting stars. Gramps has seen the northern lights, but I never did.”
Kathy looked up at the clock. “You’d better get dressed. I can’t lug that power washer across the street by myself.”
Tori pushed away from the table and got up. “Okay. Thanks for getting them to loan it to us. It’s going to save us half a day of scrubbing. I’ll be back in a minute,” she said and headed out of the kitchen toward the back of the house and her room, with Daisy following close behind.
Kathy kept staring at the hands of the clock. The real estate office probably didn’t open for another hour. Once they got started on power washing the bait shop, she’d suggest they take a break halfway through and then she’d call. Was it possible she could see the place today? She found her gut tightening with anticipation. That house wasn’t likely to be the one she could successfully turn into a gorgeous bed and breakfast, but just what if it was?
CHAPTER 5
The power washing went better than Tori had expected. True to her word, Kathy did know how to use it. Unfortunately, it not only removed the dirt from the paint, but it removed most of the paint from the cinder blocks, too. It was going to take more than one coat to cover them and make the place look
“And?” Tori asked, sounding nervous.
“Happy as a pig rolling in poop. She thinks it would add to their bar trade.”
“She might be right.”
“She said things are pretty dead in winter, but mentioned the same as you—ice fishermen, and even better, snowmobilers—help the bottom line.”
The second batch of toast popped up. Tori placed one slice on her plate and doled the other out to Kathy, then sat down at the table.
Kathy spread jam on the toast and cut it into triangles, all the time wrestling with her conscience. Should she mention that old wreck of a house to Tori? She’d never lied to her friend before—not even a lie of omission. “What do you know about that house across the road that’s for sale?”
“It’s a real mess.”
“Was it ever pretty?”
“Not that I remember, why?”
“Noreen said the asking price was only ten grand.”
Tori studied her face. “I hope you’re not thinking what I think you’re thinking.”
“I am,” Kathy admitted.
Tori laughed. “Are you out of your mind?”
“I like to think I’m on a quest for knowledge.”
“To find out it’s a potential money pit and totally unsuitable for a B and B?”
Kathy nodded. “You got it.”
“Shouldn’t you do a feasibility study to see if the area can handle that kind of traffic?”
“Definitely. To tell you the truth, it’s the price that caught my attention. I’ve seen wrecks like that in Batavia for a heck of a lot more money.”
“Yeah, but it would probably take a hundred grand or more to bring it back to a habitable state. It might be better to just find a chunk of land and start building from scratch. And, as much as I’d love it if you were going to be near here, I think you’d do better to find something in Batavia or Rochester.”
“Who goes to Batavia? It’s just a pee stop on the Thruway.”
“The race track is there.”
“That’s about it.” Kathy polished off the last of her toast. “I’m not saying that wreck is the place for me, but I sure wouldn’t mind taking a walk through it. Would you come with me?”
“To be the voice of reason? You bet.”
Kathy decided to change the subject. “The conversation at The Bay Bar was all about the murder.”
“There’s probably not much else to talk about around here,” Tori said reasonably.
“Did the guy who died keep his boat here?”
Tori nodded. “Gramps said it was tied up to the dock, why?”
“The dead guy told one of the bikers that he wasn’t going to take his boat out on the bay at night anymore because strange stuff was happening.”
“Like what?”
She shrugged. “I was wondering about UFOs. Have you ever seen one?”
“No, but I’ve seen shooting stars. Gramps has seen the northern lights, but I never did.”
Kathy looked up at the clock. “You’d better get dressed. I can’t lug that power washer across the street by myself.”
Tori pushed away from the table and got up. “Okay. Thanks for getting them to loan it to us. It’s going to save us half a day of scrubbing. I’ll be back in a minute,” she said and headed out of the kitchen toward the back of the house and her room, with Daisy following close behind.
Kathy kept staring at the hands of the clock. The real estate office probably didn’t open for another hour. Once they got started on power washing the bait shop, she’d suggest they take a break halfway through and then she’d call. Was it possible she could see the place today? She found her gut tightening with anticipation. That house wasn’t likely to be the one she could successfully turn into a gorgeous bed and breakfast, but just what if it was?
CHAPTER 5
The power washing went better than Tori had expected. True to her word, Kathy did know how to use it. Unfortunately, it not only removed the dirt from the paint, but it removed most of the paint from the cinder blocks, too. It was going to take more than one coat to cover them and make the place look
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