by Jana DeLeon
Ida Belle and Gertie were silent when they sat, but I could tell they were both bursting to ask me about what had happened with Carter and Harrison. I didn’t make them wait.
“I gave my official notice to Morrow while Harrison was here,” I said. “He accepted and allowed my time served here in Sinful to count as the month I gave him. I did a debriefing with Harrison last night, but there will be some follow-up, I’m sure. I have some paperwork to attend to in DC, so I’ll be headed back there in a couple weeks probably. But it’s official. I’m regular people.”
Gertie jumped up from her chair, whooping and hopping. Ida Belle grinned so hard I was afraid she’d strained something. When Gertie finally ran out of breath—about five seconds into the whooping and hopping—she flopped back into the chair and drew in a big breath.
“We were afraid you’d change your mind,” she said.
I nodded. “So was Carter. I won’t lie, there was a moment, when I was waiting for Ahmad to enter the room, that I thought ‘this is where I belong.’ But it didn’t last. And it wasn’t real. It was just my body and mind returning to the one thing I know more than anything else. One day, that won’t be the case. I’m looking forward to that.”
Ida Belle nodded. “Sometimes I dream about Vietnam. They’re so vivid that I wake up confused that I’m not on a cot. And I feel this ache…not because I want to be there again, but because it was the place where my emotions ran so high. Where every little thing I did and said could be life or death. I think sometimes I miss the intensity—the way a junkie does a fix—but not enough to want to relive it.”
“Well, I’ve found there’s no shortage of life-or-death decisions right here in Sinful,” I said, “so although it won’t be at all like what I’m used to, I think I’ll manage not to be bored. At least most of the time.”
“You’re staying!” Gertie jumped up from her chair again and grabbed me around my shoulder, doing round two of the hopping thing. Ida Belle and I couldn’t help laughing.
“You know you’re welcome at my place,” Ida Belle said. “As long as you want. Hell, you can make it permanent.”
“Mine too,” Gertie said.
“I appreciate it,” I said, “and I might have to take you up on the offer, but I’m working on something that looks promising.”
Gertie sucked in a breath. “You’re going to buy Carl’s house and live next to Celia!”
“Good Lord no!” I said. “Living next to Ronald is enough of a trial. I asked Morrow to talk to Sandy-Sue about selling me this house.”
“You want to buy Marge’s house?” Gertie asked.
“Why not?” I said. “It’s a great place and I’m comfortable here. Merlin likes it and it comes with a stash of weapons better than what I have back at my condo in DC. I don’t figure Sandy-Sue ever plans on living here, which means she’d be selling anyway. Might as well save the Realtor commission and the hassle and sell to me.”
“And does Morrow think she’ll go for it?” Ida Belle asked.
“He’s pretty sure she will and if she isn’t sure, he says he can convince her. Especially as it will be a cash offer, at market, for everything. So no boxes for her to pack, no attics for her to clear. She was never close to Marge anyway, so it’s not like anything here has sentimental value. It’s not a sure thing, but I think it looks good. And if it doesn’t work out, then I’ll figure out something else.”
Gertie sniffed. “I think you living in Marge’s house would be perfect. I think it’s exactly what Marge would want. I wish she’d been able to meet you. And you her.”
Ida Belle nodded. “Kindred spirits. Maybe that’s why you feel comfortable here. Marge wasn’t your typical woman and neither are you. You have a lot in common. Far more than the one related to her.”
“Well, it’s in the works, so all we can do now is wait and hope,” I said. “But don’t say anything until I know. Not even to Carter. I haven’t had a chance to tell him yet.”
Gertie looked over at Ida Belle and then back at me. “And what about Carter? Did you finally have the talk?”
“We had part of the talk, but I’m guessing that given the nature of our relationship and both our personalities, that talk will be ongoing.”
Ida Belle nodded. “I think it’s smart that you realize that. You and Carter are two intelligent, strong-willed, independent people. I don’t think it will be easy, and there will probably be times you’d rather throw your hands in the air than deal with it, but I think you two are really good together. In fact, I don’t know that there’s a better fit for either of you.”
“So make it work or we both die alone and lonely?” I asked.
“Not necessarily lonely,” Ida Belle said, “but maybe alone. It’s not so bad, mind you.”
“So what are we going to do today?” Gertie asked. “If Fortune’s going to live here, we have shopping to do. I mean, you can’t continue to wear the same couple outfits everywhere. And surely you want your own linens…something your style. Even if you don’t get the house, those things can be taken anywhere.”
Ida Belle gave her a pained look and I could tell she was as enthusiastic about a day of shopping as I was.
“Actually,” I said, “I’d like to address that missing food case again.”
“Really?” Ida Belle said. “Did you think of something new?”
I nodded. “I think I know who did it and I’d like to confront them before Francine puts those cameras up and is forced to do something about what she finds.”
“I thought we’d settled on Cora being the one,” Gertie said.
“And she might be,” I said. “But I’d like to try something.”
Ida Belle nodded. “Great. Let’s go.”
“This early?” Gertie asked.
“Oh yeah,” Ida Belle said. “I forgot.”
“Now is fine,” I said. “We’re going to the café.”
I parked my Jeep on Main Street and we headed for the café. Gertie was practically jumping out of her shoes because I wouldn’t tell her my suspicions on the way over. But I wanted to see if I was right first, and I wanted to test my theory without getting input. I thought the pieces fit together. I wanted to make sure.
“Around back,” I said. “I don’t want to do this in the dining area.”
We headed to the back door and stepped inside, walking past the office and the cooler and into the kitchen. I scanned the room, hoping the person I wanted to speak to was on shift this morning. Then I spotted Jordan rinsing dishes in a huge sink and waved him over when he looked our way. He frowned, but put the dishes down and dried his hands before heading toward us. I motioned for Ida Belle and Gertie to retreat and we all walked out the back door.
“Is something wrong?” Jordan asked as he stepped outside. “Is it my uncle?”
“No,” I said, reassuring him. “Your uncle is fine. But he might not be if he finds out what you’ve been doing.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Francine has noticed food missing from the café. Food that wasn’t sold to diners.”
“I don’t know anything about that,” he said, but I could tell by the way he avoided my gaze that he was lying.
“I think you do, and I think I know why. You’ve been using the food for bait, trying to draw Godzilla into town.”
Gertie’s eyes widened. “Why would you do that?”
“Because of Celia,” I said. “You said he’s having trouble selling his house because Celia lives next door. And until he sells the house, you’re stuck here in Sinful, putting school on hold and shuffling dishes at the café. You overheard Celia’s complaints about the alligator and thought if he harassed her, she might move.”
“So I took some food,” he said. “I was gonna pay Francine back as soon as the house sold, but if I took from my savings now, I wouldn’t be able to afford the next semester, and it’s about to start.” His shoulders slumped. “I got desperate. I know it was stupid.”
“And dangerous,” I s
aid. “What if Godzilla had injured someone? Not to mention someone could have shot him. I don’t think that’s what you want.”
He stared down at the ground, clearly miserable. “No. I guess I didn’t think that far.”
“This doesn’t have to go any further than right here,” I said. “Put the money for the food and an apology in an envelope on Francine’s desk, and don’t ever do it again.” I reached up to squeeze his shoulder. “I’m sorry about school, but you just have to be patient. Someone will come along who wants to buy your uncle’s house. And school will still be there waiting for you when it does.”
He looked up at me and nodded. “Thanks for not telling. It would have killed Uncle Carl, and he’s been so good to me. I didn’t mean to make trouble. Well, at least, not the way I did.” He looked at Gertie. “And I’m sorry I put Godzilla in danger. That wasn’t my intention.”
“That’s okay,” Gertie said. “Nobody got hurt.”
“Maybe Carter,” Jordan said. “Celia probably broke a rib when she fell on him. And he did get those panties in his face.”
“True,” I agreed. “Maybe next time Carter comes in, he gets the biggest piece of pie available? On you?”
“I can do that,” Jordan said. “Thanks again. I better get back to work before the dishes start piling up.”
He headed inside and Ida Belle and Gertie stared at me.
“Spill,” Gertie said. “How did you know it was him? I was certain it was going to be Cora. All that Goody Two-shoeing around. It’s got to be a cover for something.”
“Last night after I talked to Harrison, I went to see Big and Little and clear things with them,” I said. “It was something Big said that started me thinking, and then everything started to fall into place.”
“What did he say?” Ida Belle asked.
“When I offered to pay for the damage to the warehouse, he said he was happy because the shoot-out had prompted the meatpacking plant to relocate and now he’d be able to sell the property for a big profit.”
“And Carl is having trouble selling his house,” Ida Belle said. “That part I get, but you said everything. What else was there?”
“It’s mostly circumstantial,” I said, “but it all made sense. There was the house sale, then the bacon box in Jordan’s neighborhood, and the complaint about something smelling under Celia’s house. Then there was your comment about how the Lowery brothers might have used the bacon for bait.”
“You think Jordan put the stolen meat under Celia’s house to draw Godzilla there?” Gertie asked.
“It’s not completely absurd,” I said. “The bayou isn’t that far away and Godzilla has been spotted roaming the neighborhood more than once.”
“Because that’s where casseroles come from,” Ida Belle said drily.
I nodded. “And remember what Ally said about Celia smelling? I don’t think it was Celia that smelled. It was her purse. I think Jordan dropped food in it when she ate at the café that morning, knowing that he’d already lined the bank behind the shops with bait before coming to work. Remember, he was the one holding the purse after Godzilla chased Celia up the lamppost.”
“He wasn’t retrieving it for Celia,” Gertie said. “He was removing the evidence before Celia found it.”
I nodded. “Celia buying those deer steaks was just a lucky break. Godzilla would have been automatically attracted to the butcher and then she waltzed out the door, smelling of steak and probably bacon. I’m not saying it was all the greatest plan on Jordan’s part, but he’s young and was desperate. So I made a leap and figured I’d just come right out and ask him.”
Ida Belle smiled. “Pretty smart. I’d bet you got it all exactly right.”
“Including your solution,” Gertie said. “He won’t do it again, and Carl is better off never knowing.”
“So if Jordan was the one stealing the food,” Ida Belle said, “I wonder why Cora looked so guilty when we asked her about those bacon-wrapped shrimp.”
“I don’t know,” I said. “Maybe we need to figure that out.”
Gertie grinned. “You’re going to fit in just fine here, Fortune. Wait and see.”
I took in a breath and blew it out. So much stretched before me—permanent housing, employment, so many honest conversations with so many people, and hopefully plenty of challenges. Finding a casserole-eating alligator topped the list at the moment, but otherwise, I had no idea what the future held. But I was sure of one thing.
There would be a lot of laughs along the way.
And it would never be boring.
* * *
What’s in store for Fortune now that she’s a free agent? Look for the next Miss Fortune book, coming later this year.
* * *
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