But she was already shaking her head. “You can’t put anything new in the crime scene, Tess. Once they’ve cleared the house, you can bring it over. But for now, would you mind just hanging on to it? Put a salt circle around it in your vault or something?”
I remembered Jack suggesting the vault, too. But so much had happened. I’d never gotten around to it.
“Good idea. I’ll do that first thing in the morning. Right now, I’m heading home. Call me if you need me, though, okay?”
“I will.”
I opened my car door, and Susan stopped me with a hand on my arm. “I’m glad you didn’t let me push you away from being my friend.”
“Me, too. Take care of yourself, andcall me, okay?”
She nodded, and I backed down the driveway and made a three-point turn to leave. When I checked left for traffic, movement near the tree line made me pause and take a longer look.
It was Ish.
And he was scowling at me.
19
Tess
When I got home, I tried to call Jack again, but it went straight to voicemail again. I took a shower and cuddled my cat. Uncle Mike had driven Lou home when I was at Susan’s because she loves to visit him but gets nervous if she’s away from home at night. When Lou curled up on the pillow next to me, I said my prayers and asked that Jack and Susan would be safe, and everything would turn out okay.
Then I flopped face-down on my bed and was out. I slept restlessly; tossing and turning and waking up a lot in between nightmares about giant walking zucchinis that chased me around town.
I needed alotof coffee when I woke up.
And there was still no message from Jack.
Lou meowed at me when I gave her breakfast. Apparently, her cat food was not as good as the special roast beef she’d eaten at Aunt Ruby’s.
“Sorry, sweetie. That was a special treat.” I crossed to the fridge for cream for my coffee and pulled out a slice of ham. “But here’s a little ham to top it off.”
Lou, the best cat in the world, weighed exactly what she should, according to my vet in Orlando, so I didn’t worry about giving her the occasional treat. Thinking of that reminded me to get my records transferred to Dr. Charitha’s new practice in town. I liked my vet, but not so much I’d keep driving all the way to Orlando when I liked Charithra, too. Plus, her vet tech Phin and I had been friends since school. The new vet’s Dr. Doolittle gift didn’t hurt, either. I loved the idea she’d have special insights into Lou’s health.
She’d already warned us about pugs and their eagerness to eat everything in sight.
“Pugs can gain too much weight too easily, because they’re so sweet and adorable everyone gives them treats. Please try to stick to her meals with very few treats, okay? And you can give carrots for treats,” she’d told Shelley, who’d brought a notebook to write it all down. My little sister was a very responsible pug owner, and I was proud of her, even though she’d scolded me for sneaking a bit of roast chicken to Pickles once. I’d have to tell her what Otis had said about zucchini, too.
I kissed Lou’s head, stuck a piece of ham in a slice of bread, and ran for the door. I wanted to be early to work today because the paperwork was piling up. It was wonderful to be in a relationship, but I needed to find a balance between spending so much time with Jack and getting my administrative work in shape. Even in Black Cypress County, which didn’t have nearly the number of rules and regulations as other places, business owners still had to file a lot of paperwork. And special charter or no special charter, the IRS would collect their taxes.
When I opened my door, I let out an embarrassing squeaking sound, because Henrietta Quirksley—bank robber, parole violator, and possible murderer—stood on myWelcomemat, one hand up to knock.
“I thought we could have breakfast,” she said cheerfully.
I blinked, wondering if the IRS would accept “held hostage” as an excuse when my quarterly taxes were late.
“I was just on my way to work …”
She pulled open the screen door. “Oh, surely the citizens of Dead End can wait an extra hour to pawn their stuff, right? We have a lot to talk about.”
When she started forward, it was clear I either needed to step back or she would run me over. I sighed and stepped to the side.
“Welcome to my home. Want some coffee?”
She beamed at me. “That would be lovely.”
I gestured to my kitchen, not willing to have a gun-toting criminal walk behind me. Lou fled into the closet in the guest room when she saw us coming. My cat was not a fan of strangers. In this instance, I had to agree with her.
