miss fortune mystery (ff) - bayou backup

by Mary Hiker

  Fortune stepped in front of me and took a look. “He was here all right,” she said and picked up the rope and mangled spike strip, dangling it in the air by one corner. “Pretty crude job, but obviously effective.”

  “Maybe he was drunk when he made it,” I said and nudged the empty jar with my hiking boot. “Do they drink moonshine around here?”

  Fortune laughed. “A lot.”

  I eyed the glass jar as it rolled under my boot and my body stiffened. A familiar handwritten signature in black marker caught my eye. I carefully picked up the empty jar and studied it closely. The handwriting was shaky as usual, the lettering unmistakable.

  The jar had undoubtedly been signed by Jaw Bone Taylor, one of the more talented local moonshiners in North Carolina’s mountains. The words were written from bottom to top on the side of the jar, the same way Jaw Bone did it on all his liquid creations.

  “This moonshine was made in the area where I live,” I said and showed the signature to Fortune. “In fact, I had to trade a quart of this stuff to an old mountain man to get my search dog.”

  “You bartered moonshine for a dog?” Fortune looked amused.

  I grinned at her. “It’s a perfectly normal transaction where I come from.” I patted my dog on the head.

  “I guess the name Shiner fits perfectly then.” She grinned and took the jar from my hand, holding it with a handkerchief she took from her pocket. She inspected the signature. “So Spike Strip man was in North Carolina or probably knows somebody who has been.”

  I nodded in agreement.

  A slight breeze ruffled the edge of a piece of paper on the grass near my feet. I leaned over, picked it up and felt the blood instantly drain from my face.

  It was an eight by ten, photocopied picture of my Granny’s camper.

  Chapter 5

  “Don’t mention this to Jayne, I don’t want her freaking out on me,” I said as we walked back down the road to the stranded RV. “She functions best in Happy-Go-Lucky Land.”

  “No problem,” Fortune said as she tucked the picture in her pocket, now only walking with a slight limp. “But I’m going to take another look at your camper. Maybe we can figure out who made those spikes.”

  Fortune sent a text message to Gertie at the front end of the camper, instructing her to keep Jayne occupied in deep conversation. Ida Belle met us as we arrived at the rear of the RV, her eyes surveying the area as Fortune gave her a quick update.

  Fortune reached through the open window of her Jeep and pulled out a flashlight. She walked over to the messed up tires, leaned under the camper and turned on the flashlight.

  “You’ve gotta be kidding me,” she said and flipped onto her back, scooting underneath the camper and flashing the light under the rig.

  I held my breath and hoped the rig hadn’t sustained more damage then I originally thought.

  Fortune eventually rolled back out with a small black box in her hand. “Someone’s been tracking you,” she said and handed the GPS tracker to Ida Belle.

  “Or they’d just attached it and planned to start.” Ida Belle said as she studied the make and model of the tracking unit.

  “Wow!” Jayne’s shout from the front of the camper broke the relatively quiet atmosphere. “Wow!”

  Now what?

  I trotted to the front of the RV while the other two ladies hurried behind me.

  We found Jayne leaning against the front of the RV, her eyes were glazed over and her mouth had fallen open. She blurted out, “I sure do like the view around here.”

  I turned to follow her gaze and got knocked with the same jolt of excitement she had, but kept my wits about me. A gorgeous, dark haired guy in uniform walked toward us with a slight smile and casual masculine confidence.

  Jayne was way too obvious with her delight in Sinful’s law enforcement program, but at least she had good taste.

  “Celia must’ve called the law on us, that chicken,” Gertie grumbled.

  The local ladies watched the man approach. “Hey Carter,” they said in unison.

  Carter smiled at our group, but his eyes lingered on Fortune.

  Jayne was dazed and stared at Carter while twirling her hair around her fingers.

  The officer turned toward me, “Are you Madison?”

  I nodded and tried not to look at his strong tanned arms.

  “Do you know who flattened your tires?”

  “Not exactly,” I said and found myself studying the way his dark hair accented his eyes. “But we found some clues down the road.”

  Fortune handed him the picture we found and filled him in on the rest. Carter watched Fortune with the same type of interest that I had toward him. She was one lucky lady.

  Carter finally turned his attention toward me, his eyes serious. “Do you mind if I look in your rig?”

  “He can look in my rig anytime,” Jayne whispered.

  “Go ahead,” I said and fumbled in my pocket for the keys. “Let me unlock it for you.”

  He reached the door and ran his tanned hand along the frame and suddenly raised his arm, signaling us to stay put. “It’s been pried open.”

  Carter reached for his weapon and slowly opened the door. “What in the world?”

  He stepped up into the camper and I poked my head through the door after him. It looked like a tornado had dropped inside the place. All the drawers were pulled out and their contents scattered across the small floor area. Pillows were missing their cases and the couch cushions had been thrown about.

  The RV had been ransacked.

  Chapter 6

  “Where do you want to spend the next couple of nights?” Fortune asked as she looked through the inside of the camper for clues.

  “I planned on sleeping right here in the camper,” I said as I pushed the mattress back in place on the bed. “I’ve got a generator for electricity.”

  “Do you think it’s a good idea?” She looked worried and pushed her hair from her face, eyeing me carefully.

  “I’m not letting some drunk with a pair of spike strips mess up my day,” I said as I re-folded my Grandma’s road map. “My dog will alert me if anyone comes around.”

  Fortune gave Ida Belle a slight look.

  “Can I see that map?” Ida Belle asked.

  She took the map from my hand, leaned forward and spread the large paper across the couch cushions, running her finger along the yellow line. “Why are you taking this route?” she asked with a hint of confusion. “The highway would be a lot faster.”

  “My grandma bought this RV on the internet last week from a guy in North Carolina and needed it delivered to her home in Texas.” I answered, peering over her shoulder. “She asked me to bring it out to her along with my cousin, Jayne, since she hadn’t seen us in a couple years.”

  Ida Belle straightened and turned toward me. “What about this yellow line?”

  “Grandma insisted I take that route. I assumed it was to give Jayne and me a bonding experience traveling across the land.”

  “Speaking of Jayne…” Gertie popped her face through the camper door. “She can bunk over at my place for a couple days. I’ll take her on some fun excursions around the area and we can meet up with you Wednesday morning. ”

  Ida Belle rolled her eyes. “We’ll probably have to meet you at the jail when you two get arrested.”

  “That would be great,” I said and felt a little relieved, not at the idea of bailing my cousin out of jail, but for a couple days of peace. “I’ll meet up with you in town Wednesday morning.”

  Gertie climbed in the camper, “Do you mind if I grab Jayne’s extra set of keys, just in case she needs to get in the camper and you’re not here?”

  “Sure. Go for it. They’re probably in the glove box.”

  Fortune hesitated to leave. “Do you have protection?”

  “I’ve always relied on my hiking knife,” I said and pulled it out of my pocket. “Never had to use it though, most people don’t bother you if there’s a dog around.”
>
  She ran out to her Jeep and returned with a handgun. “Be careful, it’s loaded,” she said and gave me the gun. “Have you ever used one?”

  I nodded.

  She smiled. “Good. If you need to use it, just keep pulling the trigger.”

  I took the gun and laid it on the camper’s kitchenette counter as she headed out the door. I got a strange feeling that it wasn’t registered to any of the people around me.

  Fortune looked over her shoulder on the way out. “Just promise me you’ll make sure you know what you’re shooting at”.

  Chapter 7

  Jayne walked out of Walter’s general store, lifted a medicine bottle to her lips and leaned back as she took a big swig. Her eyes grew wide with surprise and she jolted back upright then bounced forward, sputtering and coughing.

  “Whew, that’s some powerful cough medicine,” she said and wiped her forearm across her mouth. “My throat’s been feeling a little scratchy. I hope I’m not getting sick.”

  A slight twinge of guilt ran through me and I hoped Jayne hadn’t felt abandoned when I left her with Gertie. It went away when Jayne laughed and tossed Shiner a dog cookie she bought from Walter.

  “It’s probably from all the yelling you did at the banana pudding war a couple days ago,” I said and cringed at the memory. “We’re lucky we made it out of there alive.”

  “Either way, this should do the trick.” She lifted the bottle back to her lips, taking a smaller sip. “I bought some cough syrup made by the Sinful Ladies Society.”

  “I didn’t know they had a doctor in their ranks,” I said and helped Jayne hold her shopping bags while we waited for Gertie to come out of the store.

  “I wonder if they’d ever let me join,” Jayne said.

  “Stranger things have happened,” I chuckled as I imagined my cousin hanging out with the ladies of Sinful. “Never lose sight of your dreams.”

  “This is some great cough syrup,” She said and took another dose. “I’m starting to feel better already.”

  A familiar Jeep pulled up and Fortune rolled down the window. Ida Belle leaned forward in the passenger seat and gave a little wave.

  “Madison, have you got a minute?”

  I nodded and asked Jayne to get some more treats for Shiner. She was more than willing and bounded away, waving the twenty dollar bill I gave her up in the air. Shiner sat next to me and watched everything going on around him.

  “Do you have any enemies in this area?” Ida Belle asked with a slight frown.

  “No, I don’t know anyone in this area, except you.” I shrugged. “Well, I guess after Sunday’s fiasco, Celia and her friends probably consider us the enemy.”

  Ida Belle rolled her eyes. “Join the club.”

  Fortune squinted, appearing deep in thought. “But she didn’t meet you until after the camper mishap.”

  “What are you getting at?” I asked her, concern beginning to crawl up my spine.

  Fortune looked me straight in the eye. “Carter found the guy who spiked your tires.”

  “And he’s dead,” Ida Belle finished for her.

  Before I could respond or ask questions, we were interrupted by a huge commotion behind me. Fortune looked over my shoulder and her mouth dropped open. Ida Belle opened the Jeep’s passenger door and jumped out. I spun around and saw a small crowd gathered around Jayne. Most were shouting warnings while a few people shouted encouragement.

  Jayne stood in the middle of the road with her arms raised. Her words slurred together as she shouted, “Don’t worry, I’ve watched every episode of the Gator Tamer, and I know exactly what to do.”

  Ida Belle whipped around, “Is she drunk?”

  “Can’t be, she’s not had anything except cough syrup.” I answered.

  “Sinful Ladies cough syrup?” Fortune asked and gave Ida Belle a sideways glance.

  “That stuff is ten times more powerful than any moonshine they make in the mountains of North Carolina,” Ida Belle said.

  “Oh no,” I said as reality set in. I tried to remember how much of the stuff she’d drunk.

  Jayne tossed the bottle of cough syrup into the air as the group of people backed up. My stomach twisted when I saw a six-foot alligator in front of my cousin. My gut turned to jelly when I saw her approaching the gator on tip toes from behind, clearly about to attempt to jump on its back.

  I called her name and was taking a running step in her direction, just as she jumped.

  Oh No!

  I didn’t know whether to be glad or sad that she didn’t get the loft she anticipated and plopped on the street next to the gator’s tail. Anywhere near the deadly creature was too close. To my horror, she haphazardly rolled over and attempted to grab the alligator’s hind section.

  Thinking fast, a couple of the local guys grabbed her ankles and began pulling her away from the gator, but Jayne reached out and swatted the gator’s tail as the guys dragged her away on her stomach. Needless to say, it didn’t go over too well and the gator turned and snapped, the tip of its huge maw grazing her arm and leaving a pretty big slice.

  The local guys kept pulling her from immediate danger while a middle aged man with dark brown shoulder-length hair and a mild beer belly rushed over to tend to Jayne. The rest of the guys herded the alligator off the road – if you could even call it that.

  “You’re my hero,” Jayne slurred as he helped her get back upright into a sitting position.

  Ida Belle jumped into action and checked the wound. “She’s going to need several stitches and a shot, but she’ll recover.”

  Jayne’s hero wore a beat up t-shirt that sported a logo from the tourist baby gator petting zoo. He was instantly enamored by my cousin. “You’re one brave lady ma’am,” he said and took off his shirt and made a homemade sling for her arm with it.

  “And I love your accent.” Jayne wavered back and forth as she spoke.

  “Love is in the air.” Ida Belle rolled her eyes and patted Jayne’s hero on the back. “We’re going to take her to the hospital now, Jimmy, so you’ll have to wait and court her some other time.”

  “It’s all fun and games until someone gets bit by a gator,” I said and shook my head, hoping that I’d be able to deliver Jayne to Grandma all in one piece.

  Jimmy the Hero gave Jayne a sideways hug and rubbed his bare beer belly. “I’d be happy to take you to pet a baby gator sometime, ma’am.” As he walked over to the gator herding guys, he called over his shoulder, “I’ll keep you safe.”

  Jayne staggered toward the Jeep, her arm wrapped with several t-shirts donated by the chivalrous Sinful men. “Funny, I don’t feel a thing,” she slurred.

  Fortune picked up the empty bottle of SLS cough syrup. “I bet you don’t.”

  Jayne stopped in her tracks and put her hand on my shoulder for balance. “Hey, Madison, my cough is all gone,” she said with a huge smile on her face.

  “Your liver is probably gone too,” I said and grabbed her arm to steady her as I led her to the Jeep.

  We were forced to hear every detail of the best Gator Tamer episodes as Jayne chattered about it non-stop all the way to the hospital. Gertie arrived just as Jayne got signed in to the emergency room and was getting several stitches and treatment to prevent infection.

  “Sorry she got a bottle of the cough syrup on my watch,” Gertie said and hurried to Jayne’s side. “That darned Mother Nature got me – I was stuck in the ladies room.”

  “Hey, Gertie.” Jayne said as her eyes lit up. “I wrestled a gator, you should’ve seen it!”

  Those two sure seemed to be getting along great.

  “Don’t worry ladies, I’ll bring her back to town,” Gertie said as she waved us off. “We’ll meet up with you tomorrow.”

  Fortune stuck her head through the door of Jayne’s room and nodded to the nurse on our way out. “Pump her stomach while you’re at it,” she said and handed the nurse the empty bottle. “Too much cough syrup.”

  Chapter 8

  Shiner lic
ked my face, waking me up from a deep sleep. I must’ve been having another bad dream about the old man and his spike strips. The whole situation with that guy creeped me out and I tossed and turned in the dark camper trying to get back to sleep. I hoped the new tires would arrive soon so I could deliver this RV and get back home to North Carolina.

  The sound of a vehicle racing down the street made my back tense and I instinctively gripped the pocket knife that was in my hand. This week was the first time I’d ever slept with a weapon next to me, and it wasn’t something that was on my bucket list. The vehicle screeched to a stop right next to the camper and I rolled over, grabbed the gun Fortune had lent to me and dropped to the floor.

  Shiner let out a low growl as I made my way to the couch and peeked out the corner of the small window. Fortune’s Jeep sat in the road with the headlights still on and the driver’s door open. The RV door vibrated as a loud banging came from the side of the camper.

  “Madison, get up. We need your dog,” Fortune shouted. She was smart enough not to stand right in front of the door.

  I jumped up and stepped over Shiner to get to the door.

  Fortune didn’t wait for me to get it all the way open. “Gertie and Jayne are missing.”

  “What?”

  “Gertie sent me a text and said they were on their way to my house.” Fortune half pulled me out of the camper. “They never made it and now she’s not answering our texts.”

  I looked toward the Jeep and saw Ida Belle riding shotgun. “Do you have an idea where they were last seen?”

  “Gertie’s text said they’d just gotten back from the hospital.” Fortune followed me back inside the camper. “I assume they were in her garage because her car is still there.”

  “Let’s have Shiner do a search from the garage,” I said and pulled out the kitchenette drawer to retrieve some plastic gallon storage bags. I hoped I would be able to get Jayne to our destination in one piece. It had been one thing after another on this entire trip.

  Shiner’s ears shot up when he heard the word ‘search’. He’d been given that command many times over the past seven years during team training and search missions for lost people of all different ages.