by Lynn Cahoon
The lady at the desk nodded, then typed some keys. “We show she’s been admitted, are you family?”
“I’m her niece.” I looked at Harrold who shrugged.
“You go ahead. I’ll wait out here.” He walked over to the coffeepot and poured himself a small Styrofoam cup. Coffee spilt over his hand as he raised the cup shakily to his mouth.
I followed him and patted his arm. “I’ll come let you know what’s going on as soon as they tell me.”
Then I followed the greeter who stood waiting to take me back into the treatment rooms. The swinging doors led us to a hallway so white it made me nauseous. The hall was wide enough for two or three stretchers to race toward the next door. The woman turned in front of me and motioned toward a door. “She’s in there.”
I walked in and the sight of Aunt Jackie lying on a hospital bed made my head spin. Greg stood at the foot of the bed. They stopped talking when they saw me.
“What are you doing here? You should be relieving Sasha at the shop in a few minutes. She has to pay extra if she’s late picking up Olivia, you know.” My aunt waved me out of the room with her hand. “Go on. I’m just fine. Greg said he’ll drive me back when they finish with my wrap.”
“You thought I wouldn’t come? The bone’s not broken?” I aimed the question to Greg, not trusting that Aunt Jackie would tell me the truth.
“Just a sprain. And a few scrapes. She’s very lucky.” A nurse squeezed in next to me and went to the top of the bed. “And we need to do a tetanus shot since she hasn’t had one for at least several years. Older patients don’t bounce well.”
I could hear my aunt’s sniff at the reference to her age. “I wouldn’t have even fallen except for that horrible motorcycle gang member.” She turned toward Greg. “Who’s on your list of possible suspects?”
Greg patted her hand. “Can’t say I have a list. I wasn’t there to see the guy, remember? I’ll have to check the security cameras to see if we got a good shot.” He paused and looked at me and I saw the ‘this time’ that he didn’t say. Now he believed my description of the larger motorcycle guy. And since the other one was dead, I guess he was thinking about more than Aunt Jackie’s accident.
“So you’re letting her out today?” I watched the nurse take Aunt Jackie’s blood pressure.
She marked something in her chart before answering me. “In about thirty minutes she’ll be on her way home.” The woman frowned at my aunt, “To rest. You need to stay off that foot as much as possible.”
“I’ll bring her home with me.” There was a pull-out couch in the office and even though it wasn’t as nice as my guest room, at least she wouldn’t have to go up and down the stairs. “I’ll drop her off, then go back to her apartment and gather some clothes, then I’ll go back and take over for Sasha. Nick can drop off something from Lille’s when he takes his lunch break.”
I had convinced myself that this might just work, especially if I could keep Emma outside so she wouldn’t knock Aunt Jackie over and break some other part.
Aunt Jackie snapped her fingers to get my attention. “Jill, listen to me. I’ll stay with Harrold.”
I stopped my mental planning and focused on my aunt. “What?”
“I said, I’ll stay with Harrold. I’ve been staying there most nights already.” She leaned her head back on the pillow. “If I ever get out of here, that is.”
“That’s my cue to see if the ortho guy is ready to do your wrap.” The nurse left the room.
I stared at my aunt, unable to formulate words. Not only had she turned down my offer of help as her only relative, she’d just admitted she’d been living with Harrold. Or all but living there.
“Close your mouth dear, it’s not attractive.” Her eyes were still closed but her lips curved into a grin. “We’ve been meaning to tell you, but I guess this is as good of time as any.”
“Tell me what?” This had been a crappy day and I was one announcement away from stopping at the Bakerstown Dairy King for a banana split.
A shoe scrapped the floor behind me and Harrold walked in, the greeter holding back the curtain. “Look who I found.”
Aunt Jackie opened her eyes and smiled as Harrold walked around to the side of the bed and kissed her gently on the lips. He took her hand and squeezed. “Are you all right?”
“A little banged up, but nothing serious.” Aunt Jackie nodded at me. “I believe it’s time to make the announcement.”
“Go ahead.” Harrold dug into his shirt pocket. “I’ve got the hardware right here.”
I watched as he slipped a large diamond ring on my aunt’s left hand. She kissed him then turned to me.
“Harrold and I are getting married.”
Chapter 9
“They hardly know each other.” I ranted as Greg drove me back to South Cove. We’d left my Jeep with Harrold to drive Aunt Jackie back home. “I can’t believe she’s even thinking about marriage again. She dated Uncle Ted for four years before they even got pinned.”
Greg rolled down his window and rested his arm on the open windowsill, not saying anything.
“Are you going to just sit there, or argue with me?” I ran my fingers through my hair three times before I took my hands and put them under my thighs, hoping to keep them from randomly pulling every hair out of my head. “Let’s stop for a milkshake.”
“We already drove past the last drive-in about ten miles ago. We’d have to turn around and I don’t think you want Sasha to be even later in picking up Olivia.” He turned the volume on the stereo down. “Your aunt is a grown woman. She can make her own decisions.”
I sank into the truck’s seat defeated. I knew this might happen someday, but now? My emotions were all jumbled. “She looked so happy. The two of them were just beaming at each other like teenagers who decided to go to the prom. Don’t you think it’s too soon?”
Greg didn’t answer for a few minutes then as he drove past the turn off for The Castle, he shrugged. “You’re not going to like what I’m about to say.”
“Go ahead, I don’t think today can get worse.” I studied the coastline, knowing that I needed to get Emma out there to run. That would help burn off these feelings. Running cleared my mind. The problems didn’t go away, but they seemed more solvable after the activity.
“They don’t have a lot of time to waste.” Greg was right and his words hit me hard. I didn’t like thinking about my aunt’s age or the number of years we had left.
The truck slowed as we turned a corner and saw The Coastal Inn parking lot filled with news vans. Greg turned on his blinker and maneuvered the truck into the crowded lot. “Sorry, honey. I’ve got to see what’s happening. Hopefully it’s just a slow news day.”
I dialed the shop as I watched him make his way through the people and into the office.
“Coffee, Books, and More. How can I help you?” Sasha answered after the second ring.
“Hey, it’s Jill. I’m almost in town, but Greg had to stop and check out something. I promise I’ll be there soon.” I watched as several of the local stations tried to get Greg to answer a question as he walked through.
“You must be at the Inn. I’ve been watching the newscasts. Someone has a hostage in one of the rooms.”
I sat up straighter. “You’re kidding, right?”
“I swear. The maid went by a room and saw a woman holding a gun on a man. Now, no one will answer the door in the room.” Sasha murmured something that I couldn’t make out. “Crazy, right?”
I considered my options. If this was true, Greg would be here for hours, dealing with the issues. “I’ll walk into town from here. Just give me a few minutes.”
“No hurry, when I heard about Jackie, I had my mom pick up Olivia and bring her down. I’m good to work until closing. As long as you don’t mind a little girl curled up on your couch reading.” Sasha paused. “Is Jackie all right?”
I thought about the question. My aunt could have been seriously hu
rt, but I was grousing about her love life? I tried to shake the vision of her in that hospital bed out of my head. And then, the look on Harrold’s face when they had arrived at the hospital and only family had been let in to see her. I was acting like a completely spoiled brat. “She’s fine. Luckily nothing’s broken. She does have a bad sprain and will have to be off her feet for a week or so.”
“That’s going to drive her crazy.” Sasha giggled and a grin curled my own lips. Being slowed down was going to make my normally super active aunt just a little nuts. And Harrold got to deal with all of that. I was beginning to feel sorry for the guy just a bit.
I thought about my perfectly timed schedule for the week. “So if you’re okay closing, I’ll check on the truck before I go home and then tomorrow, I’ll work a longer shift and you can come in and close. What time would be good?”
We made plans for Friday and Saturday to cover the store, but I knew I needed help with the food truck for those days since Toby’ time was now going to be limited and I couldn’t leave Nick there alone. This was one of those times we needed a sixth employee. My aunt’s shifts were just one task of the many she handled. I’d worry about the others if and when she told me I needed to step in. First, we needed to get through the weekend.
Greg knocked on my window and I rolled the glass down. “Hey, I’m going to be stuck here for a while.”
“I heard. Who’s been taken hostage?”
Greg ran his hand through his hair, clearly frustrated at the question. “And how did you hear this?”
“Don’t worry, I didn’t go traipsing around your crime scene. Sasha saw it on the news.” I peered at him. “Don’t you trust me at all?”
“It’s not that I don’t trust…” He turned as a reporter shoved a microphone in his face. “Look, I said no comment. If you want an official statement, come by City Hall in an hour and we’ll give a full update.”
The reporter sulked away and Greg turned back to me. “The news got it wrong. There was no hostage situation. Just a family dispute. Nothing serious. No guns, no bloody parts, just a fight.”
I reaffirmed my commitment not to watch the local news programs. If anything big was happening, it would show up on my Facebook feed.
“Of course not, that’s not sexy or even interesting,” Greg continued. Like I said, slow news day. Once they hear my official statement, I bet they won’t even do a retraction after blowing the situation up to this frenzy pitch.” He held out his keys. “I know you have to get back to the shop. Do you want to drive back to your house? I’ll have one of the guys drop me by to pick up the truck.”
I pushed his hand away. “I’ll walk back to town. I can stop and check on Toby and Nick, then just head home. Sasha’s got the shop covered. I need to make some calls and find a warm body for the truck tomorrow. There’s no way I can leave Nick there alone.”
Greg opened my door and swept me into his arms for a quick kiss. “You’re the most understanding girlfriend in the world. You know that right?”
“Glad you noticed.” I squeezed his arms. “Call me tonight. I don’t think I’ll be able to do much on Sunday.”
“There goes Greg’s No-Guilt Sunday,” he complained, but a smile on his lips was echoed by a twinkle in his eyes. “I’m sure you can make it up to me in some small way.”
I slapped his arm. “Go work. I’ve got problems to solve.”
Greg looked over at the police line where the news vans were still parked, and a row of reporters watched us. “Me too.”
As I walked away, I heard the litany of questions barrage Greg as he walked back toward the motel office. Darla said she’d interviewed the office manager. Maybe I should stop by the Inn with a basket of cookies tomorrow and see what she told our local reporter. Yeah, right after I worked a double shift and found someone to work the food truck. No, this was one murder investigation that Greg was going to have to handle all on his own.
I had too many other problems to deal with, including dealing with my aunt’s big news of the day. What was Josh going to say? And for that matter, where was he going that I needed to make bank deposits for him?
Lost in thought, I power-walked the bike path that ran between the motel and the beach. One good thing I thought, I should get my steps in today. The sun was low in the sky, but I could hear the crowd at the beach still going strong. We’d close the truck about six which would give Toby time to run by his place and get a quick shower before clocking in for his evening shift.
The guy had more energy than I did. And I wasn’t going to complain about it today.
“I’m surprised to see you out here.”
I jumped, grabbing my tote and turned toward the beach side where Ivy Corbin was climbing up the stair access to the road. I relaxed my shoulders, but kept my hand on my tote. This woman was starting to ring my warning bells for some reason. Not that I knew or trusted Kathi, but her sister was just enough off-center she made my skin crawl. I looked up and down the road.
“Did you walk all this way?”
“I like the fresh air. I used to walk from the farm all the way into town twice a week when I lived at home. I learned to shop light at the store, and if I was going to the library, paperbacks were my friends.” She fell in step with me. “Are you heading back to town or the party down at the beach?”
“The beach to check on the food truck and then home. I’m about partied out.” I hid a yawn behind the back of my hand. “It’s been a long day.”
Ivy considered me, then glanced over her shoulder. “Did you hear what was happening at that hotel down the road? I swear I’ve never seen so many news trucks.”
“False alarm apparently. That’s where I started walking. My boyfriend is the police detective here in South Cove, so he had to stop to handle the issue.” I could smell the food cooking now. Diamond Lille’s had opened a booth where they were serving gourmet burgers for the festival goers.
“So did you hear what was happening?” Ivy asked the question a second time and I glanced over at her. “Why were the news crews even there? Was there another dead body?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know the details, but I heard it was a family dispute. Probably a husband and wife got into it and the maid overreacted. But who knows.”
“Did you hear about the murder there a few days ago?” Ivy’s voice held an undercurrent of excitement. Was she one of those drama vampires? People who liked it when bad things happened to others? My internal alarm bell was clanging like a fire alarm had gone off. I paused and looked at her, but Ivy was staring back in the direction of the Inn, like she expected someone to come after her.
“Just that some guy died. Nothing exciting.” We were steps away from the parking lot. For a second, I’d considered asking Ivy if she could work while Aunt Jackie was out, but there was something holding me back. For a visitor, the woman was excessively interested in the bad things that were going on in South Cove. Maybe I could talk to Kathi about her. I really needed to hire someone soon. Like, for tomorrow’s shift.
When I reached the food truck, my cell rang. “Sorry, I’ve got to take this.”
Ivy just waved and headed down to the beach, directly to Lille’s burger booth. Maybe she’d already found a job? I sat on a bench on the edge of the parking lot and answered my cell. “Hello?”
“Your aunt wants to talk to you.” Harrold’s voice sounded amused.
“Is she okay?” I kicked myself for leaving the hospital so soon. I should walk back up to the Inn and get Greg’s truck. If he was still there. I glanced at my watch.
Harrold’s voice brought me back to the conversation. “She’s fine, she just wants to make plans for tomorrow.”
“Wait, what?” I realized I was speaking to dead air. Harrold had already passed the phone to my aunt.
“Jill, you’ll need to deal with my shift tonight.” My aunt’s voice sounded normal, no pain or tiredness coming through the phone.
“It’s already handl
ed. You need to rest. I can figure out staffing without your assistance from the hospital bed.” I’d expected to hear from her about staffing, but not until tomorrow at the earliest. Typical Aunt Jackie, wanting to keep her finger in everything.
“I know you’re probably stressing about the festival staffing. We’ve talked and Harrold and I will deal with my shift tomorrow at the shop. I won’t be able to help out on Sunday in the truck, but we were closing the shop anyway, so you should be fine.”
I rolled my eyes, even though she couldn’t see my reaction to her martyr offer. “I can deal with the shop on my own, you don’t have to come in.”
“Now that’s just a lie and you know it. Harrold and I can staff the shop. His son has already agreed to manage The Train Station on Saturday. I’ll stay off my feet and on the couch while Harrold does all the heavy work.” I heard him chuckle in the background.
“I’m being called into servitude,” Harrold called out from Jackie’s bedside.
A grin landed on my lips. “Welcome to my world,” I shouted back, knowing he probably couldn’t hear my response.
“Now, don’t be cute.” My aunt brought me back to reality. “If the festival wasn’t going on, I would stay out of the shop and on the couch reading or watching old movies. I just can’t leave you in a lurch, not now.”
“I could hire someone temporarily.” I still worried about Aunt Jackie pushing herself too hard.
“No need. The doctor said I should be dancing by next weekend. I’ll have Sunday through Tuesday off. Just plan for me to be gone on Wednesday too just in case and deal with tonight’s shift. Other than that, I’ll be there.” My aunt’s words had a finality to them that told me it wouldn’t do any good to argue.
“If you’re sure.” I had to admit, it made my life easier. I watched Ivy chatting up Lille at her booth. If I called around, I might be able to find someone who wanted a few hours, but the summer hiring had already drained the pool of available help in the area. Hiring Ivy was off the table. There was just something that bothered me about Kathi’s sister.
