Coming From Behind Ch. 11-13

"Thanks," he smiled carefully. "I had a talk to your security guy and he told me he saw someone on the TV monitor with what looked like a gas canister, sneaking around the outside of the big building. He has the disc recording of it and I've got a copy to turn over to the inspector when he gets here this morning."

"Can I see it? I'd like to know who would want to burn down our buildings."

"I've got the disc sealed for the inspector, but your security guy has it on his hard drive he told me. He can probably show it to you."

I nodded as Catherine brought the coffee to the table with some cream and sugar as well.

"If it is arson, how long will it be before we can clear the site and go back to work?" I asked.

"Hard to say. We'll be looking for evidence, of course. That can take a few days or longer sometimes. We want to catch this person or persons."

"Understood. I guess I'll have to cross my fingers that it doesn't take too long."

"I will too, Mr. Monahan. My wife and I used to play this course and I was really looking forward to you opening it again. Everything I saw you doing out here looked great. We'll try and get you back in business as soon as possible, I promise."

"Thanks, I really appreciate that."

A half-hour later, Jerry Dahlman knocked on the door and came in.

"Mr. Monahan, the chief said you might want to have a look at the video of what I saw. I've got it on my computer in the trailer."

"Yes ... thanks Jerry. I would."

"There's a pretty decent look at the guy's face in one part, so I'm sure the investigators will have something to go on."

"Let's go," I said, with Scotty and Catherine right behind me.

It was pretty crowded in the little trailer as we huddled around the monitor. Jerry brought up the video from earlier that night and let it run.

"I was just back from doing a tour around the site and grabbing a sandwich from the fridge. I don't think I was away from the monitors for more than two or three minutes. I saw something or someone moving near the big building and I zoomed in on it. I couldn't tell what he was doing, but I was about to call the office when all of a sudden I saw flames coming from the smaller building. He must have turned to look in that direction because I got a decent look at his face then."

Jerry took the mouse and stopped the video at that point, zooming in on the face.

"Well, well," I said with a sigh. "Do you see what I see, Catherine?"

"Oh my God ... that's Norman Fears! He did this?" she asked in wonder.

"Looks like it. I wondered if this might be some of his handiwork. I better get the chief back in here."

I took off out the door and began looking for the fire chief. I spotted him on the other side of the clubhouse giving some of his men instructions.

"Chief ... sorry to interrupt, but I think we've identified the man who set these fires. The video recording clearly shows the face of a man both Catherine and I know."

"All right. I'll let our investigator know to see you first. He should be here by eight this morning."

I looked at my watch. It was coming up four am and that meant a four hour wait. There was nothing I could until then so I headed back to the portable.

"It'll be four hours before the fire investigator gets here. We can show him the video then. When do you get off work, Jerry?"

"I get relieved at six, but I'm going to stick around. I'm sure they'll want to talk to me about this. My boss will be here by then.

"Okay. Scotty, you can head home or stay, whatever you think. There isn't much we can do until this is all settled. I'll call Garth at Wilford and let him know what's happened. He'll have to reorganize his crews. We'll let Brett and James know later on if they don't hear it on the radio."

I stopped and sat down. My head was spinning with the implications of this fire. It wouldn't be just time. No matter how good our insurance was, it was going to add to our costs one way or another. Again, I had that hollow feeling in my gut. I had my head in my hands when I felt two soft arms wrap around me and hold me.

"It's going to be okay, Terry. We'll get past this. Everyone will pitch in and help ... I know they will," she said softly.

I leaned back into her. I wondered what I would be like at this moment if Catherine hadn't been here with me ... not just now after the fire, but all along. It was our first crisis and I needed to clear my head and begin thinking about what to do and when to do it. Unfortunately, most of that was out of my hands until we were given permission to go back to work.

I started to think about all the things that had to be done between now and then that I had absolutely no control over. Insurance for one. How long before there would be a payout. Not soon, I guessed, considering there was no doubt it was arson. I'd need more money until then. Could the remaining part of the clubhouse be saved? Who would look after the demolition and site remediation? Would our contractor still be available to bring the job to completion? Questions upon questions upon questions.

Catherine was the steady one that morning. She sat down and made a list of the people we would have to notify and the changes that would probably have to be made. Little things like the projected opening dates in the promotional brochures. I watched her concentrate as she thought of all the things that might need to be addressed. It was like watching her play in a tournament. Complete focus on her task. I shook my head in admiration. She was the steady one and I was the guy who was lost for what to do.

I poured us both another coffee and she looked up and smiled. She must have seen the concerned look on my face.

"Relax, Terry. This is just like having an unplayable lie. You wait for the official, declare the ball unplayable, then take the ball back along the line of entry and carry on. Yeah ... it costs you a shot or two, but it doesn't mean you lose the game. We'll get past this," she smiled.

I had to believe that. She did, so I had to as well.

Although the Gresham Fire Department responded to the call, the inspector would be provided by the Multnomah County Fire Service. John Bryson arrived promptly at eight that Sunday morning. After a brief conversation with the chief, he headed for our security trailer. I had thought about going over there to hear the conversation but thought better of it. Let him do his job I scolded myself.

A few minutes later, Jerry and the inspector walked the short distance to our trailer and knocked on the open door.

"Come in, please," I said extending my hand. "I'm Terry Monahan and this is my fiancée and administrative assistant, Catherine Walston. Would you like a coffee?"

"I would, thank you. I had to skip my usual Sunday morning breakfast when I got the call from Chief Reiter. Mr. Dahlman tells me you think you can identify the person who might have set this fire."

"Yes, I'm pretty sure we know who it is. We might even know why."

"That would be a big help, provided you can positively identify him. I looked at the video and it was fortunate that our perpetrator gave us a good view of his face."

He pulled a disc from his pocket and passed it to me.

"Why don't we have a look at this together and you can tell me what you believe."

I nodded and slipped the disc into the disc drive on my laptop. I let Jerry set the video to just before he saw the movement. He let it run and pointed out what he saw. Within a few seconds, the flames from the new pro shop lit up the scene and Jerry paused it at that point. He zoomed in on the now lit-up face of the man.

"That man is Norman Fears. He is, or was, a developer who was trying to sell this golf course when he couldn't get a permit to develop the property. We bought it from him after some negotiations. He was trying to make some money that I wasn't prepared to offer. He was pretty upset that he ended up with nothing after his grandiose plans to make a fortune."

"Are you sure that's him?" the inspector asked, looking carefully at both of us.

"Yes," we said in chorus.

"Very well, I'll inform the police and we'll get a warrant for his arrest. If you're right, it will save us a lot of time and effort. I'm sure the District Attorney will want to talk to you as well."

"Assuming he is the man, when would you think we can begin to clean up the site and get back to construction?" I asked.

"We're going to have to conduct a thorough inspection regardless. It's procedure. We'll try and get it released back to you as soon as possible, but I can't venture a date right now."

I nodded, feeling it was going to be a long time seeing our dream come true. I ejected the disc and handed it back to the inspector. He thanked us for our cooperation and left. I was back to feeling like the whole thing was coming apart at the seams. It took every bit of energy out of me.

"Let's go home and get some sleep, Catherine. There isn't any more we can do here."

She nodded and we walked out onto the ground, looking around once more at the still smoldering destruction.

"Terry," I heard from behind me. I turned.

"Delores ... what are you doing here?"

"I heard about the fire. I'm very sorry about this. I understand it was arson."

"Yeah. We just talked to the fire inspector and told him that it was Norman Fears."

"Norman Fears? That creep who was trying to get the development zoning?"

"The same."

"Why?"

I shrugged. "I guess he's a sore loser."

Delores was shaking her head. "What a mess. This is awful. If there's anything I can do please don't hesitate to ask. Everything was going so well ... until this," she said sorrowfully.

"Thanks, Delores. I really appreciate your support. Right now we can't do anything until the fire inspector releases the property back to us. It will make our opening date a good deal later than planned, that's for sure."

"Don't be discouraged, Terry. We'll cut you some slack. Extenuating circumstances and all that. I know you won't take advantage of the situation."

I knew she was referring to the deadline on the portables and I smiled for the first time that morning.

"Thank you, Delores. That does mean a lot."

Catherine took my hand and thanked her too. It was good to have friends when things weren't going well. That was one of the few positive things that had happened today.

The next three weeks were the worst I can remember in a long time. The only things that kept me sane were Catherine and the need to do something. We were on the phone constantly the Monday and Tuesday following the fire. We contacted everyone we could think of, including our parents, of course. Everyone was sympathetic but there was little anyone could do until the fire department gave us an "all clear" to begin to clean up the mess and get going again.

It's times like this, though, that you find our who your friends are. John Fortrand called us Monday morning to assure us that funds would be available on my signature alone if they were required. I thanked him and told him I was grateful for his support. Delores phoned that afternoon and let me know that the committee members were in support of extending the deadline on the portables and would leave it to us to let them know what was required.

I know that was the call that got me thinking more positively. We might not have all our facilities in place, but with a judicious use of portables, we could open the course to play, letting everyone know that the facilities would be along soon. We just couldn't define when "soon" was.

Our contractor, Garth Kramer, reminded me that they did demolition as well as construction and could handle the site clearing. It would make a smoother transition for us and I was happy to tell him that he could consider it a part of the contract.

Our insurance agent, Dave Stevens, assured me that the minute the police and fire department let them know the result of the investigation that the claim would be paid. He also confirmed that part of our policy covered loss of business and we could make a case that the loss of facilities would constitute a legitimate claim. He wasn't the carrier, mind you, just the agent, but he was definitely on our side.

It was almost three weeks later that I had a call from the district attorney's office. Norman Fears had been located and arrested on arson charges. He apparently confessed to the crime almost immediately. There would be no trial, merely a sentencing hearing. The D.A.'s office expected the judge would sentence him to six-to-ten years in the state penitentiary.

Almost immediately the fire and police gave us permission to clear the site and resume construction. It was a month almost to the day after the fire that we got the good news. Our insurance man marveled at the quickness of their decision. He was expecting at least two months and perhaps longer. Unfortunately, the remaining clubhouse structure would have to be removed. There was no saving it according to the insurance company's engineer.

I felt like celebrating but I couldn't find a way to rejoice in the fate of Norman Fears or the work that needed to be done to get us back under way. Garth Kramer estimated that with the site clearance and the resuming of the construction, we were now four months behind our original schedule. That meant we wouldn't have full facilities until the fall, likely November. There was nothing we could do but push ahead with the timing. In a strange twist of fate, we would still meet our deadline to have the portables removed by year end unless some other disaster befell us.

I called a meeting with Scotty, Catherine, Garth, James and Brett to discuss our options. It certainly wasn't a negative meeting. Most of us felt we had escaped with the least possible consequences. True, our opening would really cut into our revenue and membership opportunities. Also true, we couldn't measure how the potential members would feel about temporary and limited facilities during the peak season. We had to hope that they would be understanding.

"I have an idea," Catherine said at one point.

"Let's hear it, I smiled." Her input was always useful and to-the-point.

"I think we should do two things. We should have a model of the new clubhouse and pro shop built and put it on a table for potential members to see. Also, I think we should take a lot of these pictures we have from before and after the fire and post them on a big board so people can relate to what happened and see the progress we've made."

I was about to say something when I heard the loud smack of hands behind me.

"Bloody good, Lass!" I heard Scotty exclaim.

"You took the words right out of my mouth, Scotty," I added.

"Damn good idea" seemed to be the unanimous consensus.

I laughed as I hugged my lady. "Now you know who the brains of this outfit is."

James knew exactly where to get the model built and volunteered to take care of that. We already had computer designed drawings for the buildings and they could be readily and quickly translated into a model. Catherine and Brett would put the photo story together. Brett had been the official picture taker for our project and had plenty for them to choose from.

I was back to my old, optimistic self once more. I guess the problem for me was that this was personal. This resurrection of Bending Willows was a personal ambition, happily shared by several others, especially Catherine. I couldn't compare it to what I used to do to solve big problems when they arose. The ones that challenged me in my old job seemed more abstract. This ... this golf course ... was real and I was the imaginer that got its rebirth started. Yes ... this was personal.

It had started almost as a lark and had turned into something far greater. It had gone from being the fun of playing Norman Fears for the ownership to getting personally involved in the design of the course and buildings. It had gone from convincing a professional golfer that she could be a winner once more as well as a business executive. Hell yes, this was what I knew I should be doing. It might not have been so in the beginning, but it certainly was now and I damn sure wasn't going to let Norman Fears get in the way.

There was only one hurdle left to deal with, our wedding. The church had been selected and booked in June, but we hadn't decided on the location of the reception. I really wanted it to be at Bending Willows but I couldn't think of any practical way that we could achieve that. Between the construction and the temporary facilities, there simply wasn't enough room for it. We had to look for an alternative.

"Eh ... Terry. Can I have a wee word with ye?" Scotty asked me one morning.

"Sure. What can I do for you?" It was seldom that Scotty wanted to speak to me alone.

"Eh ... have ye decided on your wedding reception? The place I mean."

"No," I sighed. "Not yet."

"Eh ... a friend of mine at Oak Grove said he might hae a wee place for ye in their club."

"Oak Grove? That's private, isn't it?"

"Aye. But ... it wuld be a favor to me. We're mates, like."

"How do I go about seeing this place with Catherine? I want her to be happy about it too."

"Aye. Wise to be sure. I can gie him a ring if ye like."

I looked at his serious face and grinned.

"Thank you, Scotty. I'm sure we'd like that very much."

Catherine had been to Gresham to restock the fridge in the portable's kitchenette. We had lunch there almost every day, so it made sense. When she arrived back at Bending Willows, I helped her with the bags and mentioned Scotty's offer.

"That would be great, Terry. I've been to Oak Grove and it's a very lovely clubhouse and facilities. It would be perfect for us. Let's go this afternoon if we can."

I was pleased to see her so enthusiastic and I let Scotty know that she was all for his idea. Within the hour we had an invitation to visit the club and see the facilities that were being offered.

Oak Grove proved to be a cut above the standard we had set for Bending Willows. It was an older established course that had a waiting list for membership and I could immediately see why. Scotty introduced us to his contact and we were shown the reception area that they proposed. Catherine pronounced it perfect and was already asking about the catering. The club would provide that as well.

Our host told us that they were saddened to hear of the destruction of our new buildings and wanted to help us in any way they could. It was my first experience with the kind of kinship the local courses had with each other. We were members of a fraternity rather than competitors. True, competition among the clubs was active and occasionally intense, but in the end they had developed a friendly working relationship among themselves.

The ride back to Gresham was pleasant and upbeat thanks to Scotty's help in solving our one remaining problem. Catherine was happy, and if she was happy, I was happy. In addition, Oak Grove was not too far from the church that had been chosen by Catherine and her mother.

Chapter 13 Bells and Whistles

We were married in St. Mark's Episcopal Church on a beautiful spring Saturday in June. My parents and Catherine's were in attendance, of course. Even though it was my second marriage, I could see the happiness on my mother's face as I stood waiting for my bride. When at last she walked slowly down the aisle arm-in-arm with her beaming father, I realized just how much this meant to both of us.

I had a personal resolve not to allow anything to get in the way of the success of this union. Catherine was embarking on something entirely new for her. She had been an independent woman for some years, living on the road as part of the LPGA tour. This was a big step for her but I never once got the feeling that she had any doubt about her decision to marry me.