Pretty, Hip, & Venomous

by Madison Johns

  The girl’s eyes widened. “Don’t remind me. I’ve never been so frightened in my life.”

  “So you were working that day?”

  “Yes, and I never expected anything like that to happen in Redwater. It’s really not that kind of place.”

  “Robberies can happen anywhere,” Eleanor pointed out and then took a huge slurp of her drink.

  “Can you tell us what happened?” Kimberly asked.

  “Why are you so interested?”

  “I live in this town and I’d like to keep an eye out for the perp.”

  “That’s short for perpetrator,” Eleanor added. “We’re sort of crime show buffs.”

  “Me too until I was in the middle of a real crime.”

  “Can you tell us how it went down?” Agnes asked as she spied the name Meadow on the girl’s uniform nametag.

  “It was in the middle of the afternoon last Monday when I was doing a cigarette count for the next shift. A man wearing a clown mask came in the door waving a gun in my face. He demanded I hand over all the cash in the register,” she sniffled. “But I had less than fifty in the drawer. We drop money throughout the shift into the floor safe and I can’t open it. It’s a time lock, for exactly nine in the morning, and not even the manager can open it any earlier. And a deputy is always present when the safe is opened and follows the manager to do a bank drop.”

  “That’s a good procedure,” Eleanor said.

  “If only it would keep a thief away. There’s a sign on the door that states that not over fifty dollars is in the register.”

  “Whoever robbed the place was desperate,” Kimberly said. “And you said you never saw his face?”

  “I never said the robber was a man. The truth is that I couldn’t tell either way.”

  “I have the feeling you were so frightened that you didn’t take in details,” Agnes said softly. “Who could blame you when you went through such a horrible ordeal?”

  “I’m glad someone understands that. Deputy Danworth accused me of setting the entire thing up.”

  Kimberly gasped. “Why would he do that?”

  “I don’t know. I’m a struggling single mother. I would never do anything like that -- steal I mean.”

  “I wouldn’t let Danworth worry you,” Kimberly began. “He’s accused me of crimes just because I happened to be close to the scene at the time.”

  Meadow leaned across the counter. “I’m so glad to hear that I’m not the only one who has had trouble with the deputy.”

  “So about what time did the robbery happen?” Agnes asked.

  “About three o’clock in the afternoon. My replacement was late, otherwise two people would have been in the store.”

  “What about a manager?”

  “He was only here in the morning to open the safe and make his bank deposit.”

  “I hope you’re not bothered by our questions,” Kimberly said. “You see, the thing is that Milly Clark was poisoned at the bingo. Did you know her?”

  “That name doesn’t sound familiar at all.”

  “Well, we were told that Milly reported that she saw Kane Keegan leaving the Pit Stop.”

  “The deputy mentioned as much, but I don’t believe Kane would do that to me. He knows how important this job is to me.”

  Agnes held a breath for a long moment. “Why would that matter?”

  “Because I’ve been dating Kane for the past few months. He would never rob a store or gas station. He’s the kindest man I’ve ever known.”

  “So Danworth did question you about Kane?”

  “Yes, and I can’t believe anyone would try to finger him like that. He was here filling up his car right before the robbery.”

  “So Milly couldn’t have seen Kane after the robbery leaving the Pit Stop,” Agnes said.

  “Not if he left beforehand,” Eleanor said.

  “I can’t understand why Danworth would jump to a conclusion about that, or why Milly would tell the deputy about Kane,” Kimberly said.

  “It would give Kane plenty of motive to want Milly out of the way,” Eleanor offered.

  “No, I won’t believe it!” Meadow exclaimed. “The person who robbed the store was taller than Kane by at least a foot. Whoever killed that old bat must have been someone else.”

  “I thought you didn’t know Milly.” Eleanor said with narrowing eyes.

  “I don’t, but everyone knows only old people go to bingo.”

  Agnes held Eleanor back. “Actually that’s not true,” Kimberly said. “I happened to be at that bingo.”

  “I wasn’t trying to offend anyone, but I’ll go to bat for Kane any day.”

  “That’s understandable,” Agnes said. “How often do you work?”

  “I’m normally here forty hours a week, but it will be about fifty after the last clerk quit.”

  “I don’t suppose you’d mind telling us the other clerk’s name?” Kimberly asked.

  “Gladly. Samantha Ubla. I had to pull a double when she refused to come to work after the robbery.”

  “Do you have any idea how we’d be able to get ahold of her?”

  “She works at the coffee shop in town now. It’s right across the street from Starbucks.”

  “Thank you, Meadow.”

  “Promise me you’ll clear Kane’s name.”

  “We’ll do our best,” Kimberly said.

  “Look, we’re searching for a killer,” Eleanor sighed.

  “And I gave you information instead of telling you to get out.”

  “She has a point.” Kimberly said. “We’ll need the name of your manager as well.”

  “Christopher will be here in the morning.”

  “Thank you, Meadow.”

  “I hope you know we have more important things to do than to find out who robbed the Pit Stop,” Eleanor said when they walked outside. “That has nothing to do with Milly’s death.”

  “We won’t know that for sure until we speak to Kane,” Kimberly countered. “It’s good to know the manager’s name to do some cross-checking.”

  “And the former employee might have something to add,” Agnes added. “I just hope that we’re not wasting our time and we get some kind of lead to further our investigation,” Agnes said.

  Kimberly tapped her fingernails on the counter at the coffee shop because the young woman working the counter was too busy talking to a co-worker. She was thick, with shoulder-length black hair and heavily-lined eyes.

  Eleanor flopped her heavy purse on the counter and proceeded to riffle though her purse, dropping quarters to get her attention.

  “Excuse me!” Eleanor shouted. “Can we get some service over here?”

  The woman strutted over and knitted her brow. “You don’t need to shout!”

  Agnes read her name tag. “Hello, Samantha. I didn’t know you worked here now. I was wondering why I hadn’t seen you at the Pit Stop."

  Samantha narrowed her eyes as they fell on Kimberly. “You’re the model. Kimberly Steele. My sister uses the Pretty and Pregnant line for expecting mothers and hasn’t had one stretch mark.”

  “It works wonderfully for me too. I wouldn’t have backed something that didn’t do what it was supposed to do.”

  “Whatever you want is on the house.”

  “Oh, I couldn’t let you do that.”

  “Is that what happened at the Pit Stop?” Eleanor asked. “Did you give away freebies there too?”

  Kimberly covered Eleanor’s hand with hers. “Don’t let grandmother bother you.” Kimberly spoke from one side of her raised palm. “She’s so excitable at times.”

  “I am not!” Eleanor protested.

  “Why don’t I take a seat with grandmother,” Agnes offered. “And you can order us chai tea lattes.”

  Kimberly shrugged once Agnes and Eleanor took a seat. “Make that three chai teas when you get the chance. I didn’t know you worked for the Pit Stop. Meadow was always working when I came in for one of those Starburst slushes. I’m glad Christopher fin
ally decided to offer that flavor.”

  “Yes, it’s quite popular.”

  Samantha moved to make the drinks, but still close enough to speak to. “I bet you decided to quit after the robbery.” Kimberly shuddered. “I still can’t believe something like that could happen in Redwater. Of course, plenty of tourists pass by the area.”

  “You’re right about that, but there’s no telling who robbed the place. I’m just glad I wasn’t working that day. I was supposed to, but I got a flat tire and didn’t have a spare. Christopher didn’t even give me a chance to explain when he canned me.”

  “What a horrible thing to do. Meadow mentioned that Deputy Danworth accused her of setting up the robbery.” Kimberly sighed. “If I had a quarter for every time he did that to me I’d own this town.”

  “Well, it might have something to do with that boyfriend of hers. He was always hanging around in the store whenever Meadow worked.”

  “I can’t imagine Christopher cared for that.”

  “No, but he’s such a jerk. I mean, I thought he was a good boss at one time until he fired me. He even sent the cops to my house. Apparently just because I didn’t show up to work that day meant I was in on the robbery.”

  “I can’t imagine you doing anything like that. But do you think Meadow would really cover for Kane if he robbed the place?”

  “Why are you bringing up Kane?”

  “They say Milly Clark reported that she spotted Kane leaving the scene of the crime.”

  “It doesn’t surprise me that someone would have seen him leaving the scene, but I doubt it could have been at the same time of the robbery.”

  “How can you be so sure?” Kimberly asked as she paid for the lattes.

  “Because Kane was here in the coffee shop that day.”

  Kimberly’s face lit up. “Really?”

  “Yes. He has to hang out somewhere since his mother threw him out of the house.”

  “Well, she bailed him out from what I overheard. My grandmother takes on charity cases … or I mean bails people out of jail when they don’t have any family. She was quite shocked to learn his mother had bailed him out.”

  “He couldn’t have been arrested for the robbery.”

  “Who knows with Deputy Danworth? He accused me of being involved with Milly Clark’s death. I was at the bingo the day she keeled over.”

  “How awful,” Samantha said without emotion.

  “You must have some idea of where his mother lives.”

  “She lives on the same road as the dump.” Samantha wrinkled her nose. “The only house on that road.”

  “Their nostrils must be ruined, don’t you think?”

  “Who knows, but if it was my mother’s place I’d be happy to have been thrown out.”

  “It’s been real nice talking to you, Samantha. I could drop off a few test kits of the new Pretty and Pregnant line for your sister if you’d like.”

  Samantha positively beamed. “That would be great! I’m so glad you came in today. I’ve been working all day by myself. It gets pretty boring.”

  Kimberly breathed in the chai tea and smiled. “If I like the latte I’ll make sure to mention the coffee house on my blog. Although I’m quite certain people will complain about what a pregnant woman should drink, or say, or just about anything else they can come up with.”

  “Isn’t that the truth? If I hadn’t been stuck at the tire place so long the day of the robbery I’d have people saying I was the one who robbed the gas station.”

  “Well, it’s better to have an alibi than not to have one.”

  Kimberly sat the lattes down on the table. Before she had the chance to open her mouth, Eleanor said, “We heard every word. I’m glad I was able to be of so much help as your addle-brained grandmother.”

  “And don’t forget, she likes to bail random people out of jail.”

  “You know, the ones who don’t have family,” Agnes said with a wink.

  Chapter Eleven

  Eleanor plugged her nose. “What is that smell?”

  “We’re near the town dump,” Agnes reminded Eleanor for the tenth time.

  “I should have stayed back at the cabin.”

  “We’ll be there soon enough, I promise.”

  “Or the chalet,” Kimberly offered. “I think we could all use a good shower after this.”

  As if the smell wasn’t bad enough, the dirt road contained more ruts than an abandoned parking lot.

  The driveway was at least asphalt, which surprised Agnes, as did the two-story house that loomed ahead of them. It was a recently-constructed brick house that overlooked a pond covered with vegetation.

  She braked hard, and a well-dressed woman walked out to the porch, her blue slacks and silky button-down shirt blowing in the slight breeze.

  Kimberly smiled as she led the way. “Are you Mrs. Keegan?”

  “Please tell me my son isn’t responsible for that baby.”

  Kimberly smiled. “Not at all. We’re here to talk to Kane about something else.”

  “Well, he’s not here. I threw him out a few months ago.”

  “It’s no wonder the cops think him capable of robbing the Pit Stop gas station,” Agnes said.

  “I don’t understand what you mean by that.”

  “Desperate people do desperate things,” Eleanor said. “But we were told you bailed out your son recently.”

  “Would you care to come in for a cup of tea?” Mrs. Keegan asked.

  “I don’t think we have that much time,” Agnes said, giving Kimberly’s arm a firm grip. “If you could send out Kane we’d appreciate it.”

  “And for the second time, he’s not here. I didn’t bail him out of jail. Someone else must have.”

  “Do you really have that bad of a relationship with your son?” Eleanor asked.

  “He’s been in his fair share of trouble. What kind a person doesn’t pay a simple traffic ticket? I’ll tell you who, someone who isn’t living at my house.”

  “A little motherly advice,” Eleanor began, “I didn’t have a good relationship with my son and he tried to put me into a nursing home the first chance he had. Thankfully Agnes here was able to help me out of the mess. Anyway, he still doesn’t speak to me and I’m all alone in the world, with only my friends for company.”

  “Save your speech for church. It’s time for some tough love. Kane needs to learn how the real world works.”

  “Does he have a roof over his head at least?” Agnes asked.

  “I have no doubt he’ll land on his feet, just like his father did.”

  “Milly Clark reported seeing your son leaving the Pit Stop near the time it was robbed.”

  “Milly? You mean the woman who died at that bingo?”

  “Yes, why?”

  “Well, at least she can’t railroad my son into jail now.”

  “Not that you care, since you’re not speaking to him,” Eleanor said as she led the way back to the car.

  “You probably can find Kane at First Baptist. The leader of the youth group has taken an interest in my son.”

  “I don’t think we need to go to church on Sunday,” Eleanor offered. “We’ve been at First Baptist going on three times now.”

  “That was for investigating, not listening to a sermon.”

  “I can’t believe we missed him here the last time,” Kimberly said.

  “I still can’t help but wonder why Danworth told us Kane was bailed out by his mother.”

  “He might not have known. I mean, Danworth doesn’t work in the jail,” Agnes said. “From the looks of it, he’s the man in charge of the murder investigation.”

  “Are we planning to go to bingo Friday if we don’t find out who killed Milly?” Kimberly asked. “There might be another attempt on someone else’s life.”

  “Speaking of which, we need to find out if the fire set at the cabin we rented was intentionally set.”

  “Let’s head over to the church,” Kimberly suggested. “We won’t be able to catc
h up with the manager of the Pit Stop until morning.”

  “I still can’t believe how cold Kane’s mother sounded,” Eleanor mused. “If only I could go back.”

  “You can’t, but I was impressed that you made such an effort, Eleanor,” Agnes said.

  They walked into the church parking lot, where items on tables were being boxed. Rosa sat in a chair, a clipboard and pen in hand. As each item was wrapped she checked it off the list.

  “I hope you did well with your sale,” Agnes said.

  Rosa glanced up. “Well enough to help out a few college-aged members of the congregation.”

  “I don’t suppose you know if Kane Keegan is here? We were told his mother bailed him out of jail. She directed us here.”

  Rosa shook her head. “I had hoped the woman would have softened up by now. My son gave one of the ladies here at the church the money to bail him out.”

  “Are they here now?” Kimberly asked.

  “No, they just left to take a run to the dump. They’ll be back shortly.”

  “We could have passed them, for all we know.” Eleanor chuckled. “Your son is a good man giving Kane a place to stay. Bailing someone out of jail is a big deal.”

  “Mark will get his money back at Kane’s court date.”

  “Oh, and here I thought he only had to pay a ticket,” Kimberly said.

  “It’s a little more complicated. Kane absconded instead of showing up for his court date for his last driving on a suspended license charge. Mark will straighten him out. He has a way of working with young men. If Mark sees potential in Kane, he’ll turn him around.”

  “Is Kane living with your son?”

  “I can’t say with any certainty if Kane will be staying with Mark or here at the church. There’s a little apartment in the basement,” Rosa explained.

  “I would think with Mark would be better. I believe a church isn’t a place where someone should sleep unless during a boring sermon.” Eleanor snickered. “We’ll be to church on Sunday.”

  “I’ll look forward to seeing you then. If you’ll excuse me, I need to finish my inventory.”

  Agnes, Eleanor and Kimberly walked to a picnic table under a tree that offered plenty of shade and privacy.