No Easy Solution (Crowley County Series Book 1)

by T. E. Killian

  “Is she the director or something?”

  “Yes, Daisy Thomas runs the group home where Bert lives. Didn’t he tell you about her?”

  “Oh, yes, but he just called her Miz Daisy.”

  Betty laughed and placed the basket on a credenza behind her desk.

  When she turned back to him, he was ready. “Betty, could you help me to get to know the things and people around here better?”

  She placed her hands together in her lap and said, “I’ll try. What would you like to know first?”

  “Well, I was going to ask you about Bert, but after spending the last hour with him, I think I know enough about him.”

  She only nodded and smiled, “He’s a real sweetheart isn’t he and a hard worker too.”

  He realized he was expected to say something here. “Yes, he’s a very likable boy.”

  Betty laughed this time. “Would you believe that he’s twenty-seven years old?”

  Gil was shocked. That made Bert only two years younger than him. “But he looks so young.”

  “Yes, to Bert, everyone and everything is nice. So, if you took all the worry and stress off the rest of us, we’d look much younger too.”

  He shook his head. “I can see your point.”

  He tried to remember what he’d wanted to ask her. “Probably the biggest question I have right now is what is going on in this town?”

  At her puzzled look, he plunged on, “Just after I crossed the county line, the sheriff stopped me and warned me, no, threatened me actually, not to be a troublemaker. Then once I made it to town there were signs with, ‘Turner Go Home’ written on them.”

  She frowned and said, “I was hoping you wouldn’t be exposed to all that quite so soon. I can tell you about the sheriff, Floyd McCracken, first, since my Hal is his chief deputy.”

  That shocked Gil and he wasn’t sure what was coming next but was sure glad he hadn’t said anything bad about his first impression of the sheriff.

  She laughed. “Don’t look so worried. Floyd is an okay kind of guy, but as my momma used to say there’s nothing wrong with him that a little ole dose of religion won’t cure.”

  When Gil only waited for more, she continued, “Well, to make a long story short, Bill Dawson was the pastor here before you. Let’s see, he left about a year ago.”

  She seemed to be trying to word her next statement carefully.

  “Oh drat! There’s simply no easy way to say it. I think the man was getting senile. He was seventy-five after all. He got the notion all of a sudden that God wanted him to close down all the bars in town.”

  Gil was still trying to process that when she laughed again. “Well, you can just imagine how well that went over in a redneck town like Crowleyville. Even Floyd was in the fight and they all eventually ran Bill out of town.”

  Now, Gil was beginning to understand. “No wonder there was a ‘Go Home Turner’ sign at a bar I passed on the way into town yesterday.”

  She smiled. “That would be The Early Bird. I’m kinda surprised that Mary Jo would do such a thing though. She tried to stay out of the fight last year. She’s such a sweet little thing. You know she left a good job in Springfield to come back here to take over that bar and raise her little sister when their parents were killed in a boating accident two years ago.”

  Gil went into his office more knowledgeable but possibly even more confused than before about how to start here at this church. And the biggest question was how was he ever going to fit in here with two strikes against him already? No, he was beginning to wonder if the question shouldn’t be did he even want to try?

  * * *

  Gil worked at organizing his office for a couple of hours before he remembered that he hadn’t had a chance to get a haircut before leaving for Crowleyville. He’d meant to do it Saturday but the singles group at his church up there had thrown a going away party for him.

  Now, he decided that would also be a good way to start getting out into the community so he stepped out of his office to stand in front of Betty’s desk.

  “Say, Betty, could you recommend the best place around here for me to get a haircut?”

  She turned away from her computer and smiled up at him. “Oh, that would be Sue Ann’s Salon. It’s downtown across from the courthouse. You can’t miss it. It has a pole out front like the old barber poles but it’s pink and white instead.”

  This was the first time he’d driven since driving the truck from St. Louis. He felt so comfortable and at home in his little Focus.

  He easily found the shop Betty had told him about and parallel parked across the street. He started to walk across the street right there in mid-block, but then he remembered his treatment at the hands of the sheriff yesterday. So he walked half a block down the street, crossed at the crosswalk, and walked back, proud of himself that he’d thought of that.

  When Gil opened the door and took a step into the shop, he was reminded why he preferred barber shops. The smell almost overwhelmed him. Someone was getting a permanent. That almost chased him out the door, but he closed it behind him anyway.

  When the beautician nearest him looked over at him, he thought he might have been better off leaving after all. She turned toward the door with a smile on her face but it was quickly replaced by a scowl when she saw him.

  He took a moment to survey her, as she seemed to be doing a thorough job of it with him. She was tall. He quickly looked down to see that she was wearing flat-heeled shoes. She was as tall as him. He couldn’t help but think she was in the perfect place. A beautiful woman in a beauty shop. She was a natural blond. He could tell by her light complexion and dark blond eyebrows. She had the biggest deep blue eyes.

  But, right now those eyes were glaring at him. It didn’t take him long to figure out which side she’d been on last year.

  She seemed to gain control of her emotions and said, “Would you like a haircut, sir?”

  He wasn’t sure, with her strong southern accent, but she seemed to place unusual emphasis on that last word which had also gained a syllable.”

  “Yes, I would please.” He decided to introduce himself even though he was certain that everyone in town already knew who he was. “I’m Gil Turner, the new pastor at First Baptist Church.”

  She only nodded and said, “Sue Ann Vickers. I hope you don’t mind a little wait. I’m about finished here but I have another appointment in five minutes.”

  He was certain that she did hope he minded. “That’s okay, I’ll wait.”

  “Have a seat then.”

  With that, she turned back to the woman she was working on and ignored him.

  * * *

  Jo was going to run late for her appointment down at Sue Ann’s if she didn’t hurry. Getting Carla off to school for the first day of her junior year had slowed her down this morning.

  Just think. Carla was a junior now. In less than two years, she’d be graduating. Then what? That really scared Jo. On the one hand, she wanted Carla to go to college, but on the other hand, she wasn’t sure how they could afford it.

  She jumped into her minivan. It wasn’t that she didn’t like the van, but she’d had to sell her cherished red Mustang when she moved back here. There was nothing left over from her former life as a travel agent in Springfield. When her parents had died two years before, she’d left the city to come back and take over not only raising her little sister, but also the running of the family bar and grill.

  She knew that if she had it to do over, she’d do the same thing again. Family was important to her. Carla was important to her. True, if she were honest with herself, she’d take Carla with her to Springfield in a minute if she could sell the bar. She knew that wasn’t going to happen any time soon though. Her dad had taken out a second mortgage several years ago to make improvements in the bar. The result had been that, with the recession added in, she had inherited a bar that was worth less than its combined mortgages. So she would have to stick it out.

  She parked behind Sue Ann’
s shop and went in the back way. As soon as she stepped into the shop, her eyes went to the line of chairs against the wall opposite the styling chairs. She immediately noticed the stranger sitting there. He was easily noticeable for being a stranger just by the way he was dressed. For one thing, he wasn’t wearing jeans and a t-shirt. He was wearing dress slacks and shirt and was even wearing a tie. A tie! In Crowleyville? On a Friday?

  He had to be the new preacher at the Baptist church. No one else would dress like that, not even a salesman. Sue Ann had been right, he was about the same height as her tall friend. He also had an unusual shade of light red hair that was parted on the left. Her stray thought was, how did he get away without any noticeable freckles?

  She didn’t know what to do. She sure couldn’t just go up to him and introduce herself? Should she ignore him? No, she couldn’t do that either. So she looked at Sue Ann for help.

  She could see that Sue Ann didn’t want to acknowledge the guy. She had been an almost militant supporter of Jo’s against the former preacher.

  Sue Ann frowned and said, “Jo, this is the new preacher down at the Baptist church.” She turned back to him. “What did you say your name was?”

  “Gil Turner.”

  “Okay, anyway, this here is Mary Jo Early.” She paused for what Jo knew was effect. “She’s the owner of The Early Bird.” Another pause. “The bar and grill on the north side of town.”

  Again, Jo didn’t know whether to just nod or go over and shake his hand. This time, the preacher took the decision away from her. He came quickly to his feet and stepped over to her with his hand out.

  She shook it as he said, “It’s a pleasure to meet you ma’am. I just want you to know that I do not agree with my predecessor’s tactics against your establishment and the other ones in the area. And I’m sorry for any inconvenience that all of that must have caused you.”

  She knew her face had to have shown her shock. Did people really talk that way? She looked at Sue Ann who was struggling to keep from laughing out loud.

  All she could think of to say was, “Thank you.”

  With that, she sat down and he returned to the seat he’d occupied before with several empty chairs between them.

  * * *

  Gil made it back to the church office in one piece and was somewhat surprised yet relieved that he had. He knew that he’d never done anything to that Sue Ann who had cut his hair, but someone needed to tell her that. But it wasn’t going to be him. He’d been afraid to say a word to her for fear she’d scalp him.

  He’d looked carefully in the mirror when she finished trimming his hair, and at least what he could see looked okay. But he wanted to make sure. So when he walked into Betty’s office afterward, he intentionally turned his back to her and said, “Is the back of my hair okay?”

  When she burst out laughing, his stomach sank to his feet.

  “No, Pastor, your hair is okay. It’s just the look that was on your face just now. I take it Sue Ann gave you a hard time.”

  “If looks could kill, I’d be dead.”

  “I’m sorry. I should have warned you. Sue Ann and Mary Jo Early have been best friends forever. I should have known she’d take up for Jo. She always did last year. But you’d think they’d give you a chance to prove yourself.”

  Gil shook his head and fell into a chair in front of Betty’s desk. “The thing that I don’t understand is that the other one you mentioned, the one who owns the bar, was there too. And she treated me okay.”

  Betty nodded and smiled. “Sure she did. Mary Jo is like that. She’s always been one of the sweetest natured persons in town.”

  Gil had just situated himself behind his desk to decide what to do next when a knock sounded on his open door then Richard Dickens flew in and landed on one of the chairs in front of Gil’s desk.

  “I hear you had a run-in with Sue Ann Vickers over to her place this morning.”

  Gil knew his face showed his shock.

  Richard laughed, slapped his knee, and said, “Welcome to Crowleyville. News travels fast around this town. Coming from the big city, you’re going to have to get used to that real fast or it’ll eat you alive.”

  Gil still couldn’t say anything but Richard said, “I feel kinda bad that no one told you about our little battle from last year though. But I thought for sure that the pulpit committee must have told you . . . until today that is. I just talked to one of the members of it and found out they didn’t.”

  Gil knew he should say something so he said, “I guess I’ll just have to try and make the best of the situation and try to show everyone that I’m not like they think I am.”

  He thought for a moment. “I can’t think of any other way to convince them.”

  Richard laughed and slapped his knee again. “I’ll tell you what you’re going to have to do.”

  When Gil gave him a puzzled look, he said, “You’re going to have to make a good impression on Jillian.”

  Gil was beginning to realize that talking with Richard was often circular at best.

  “Jillian? Who’s that?”

  “Jillian Clark. She’s the owner and editor of the local newspaper. I would say that you’re about due for a phone call from her any minute now. She’s going to want to run an article about you in Sunday’s paper.”

  Just then, the phone rang and a few seconds later Betty called out, “Gill that’s Jillian Clark on line one for you.”

  Gil gave Richard a questioning look who just grinned back at Gil and pointed at the phone on the desk. Gil answered it and when he finished he looked back at Richard.

  “How did you know she was going to call?”

  Richard laughed loud and long before he wiped tears from his eyes and said, “Who do you think told me about your little run-in with Sue Ann?”

  Gil didn’t think he’d ever learn how to get along in this strange, no make that weird, environment that he now found himself in.

  “She’ll be here in fifteen minutes.”

  Richard’s face grew serious. “Okay, you need to know how to handle Jillian. I figure you’d just about have to call her a real character.”

  And Gil thought he’d have to add her to a growing list of ‘real characters’ in this town.

  Richard raked a hand through his hair, fiddled with his cap in his lap, and continued, “One thing you need to know for sure. Jillian likes her bourbon and lots of it. So don’t say anything against the bars or drinking. In fact, don’t even let her bring up the subject if you can help it.”

  Gil was still processing that when Richard said, “The best thing you can do is answer her questions as short and careful as you can. In other words, don’t volunteer anything. Oh and for sure, don’t talk about your education. She won’t give you a problem but if she stresses all that education you’ve got in her article, lots of people around here are going to turn you off so fast it’ll make your head spin.”

  “But . . .”

  “I know, Son, you worked hard for all that education and I’m right proud to have a preacher with it.” He paused to look Gil in the eye. “But most folks around here barely made it past high school, and quite a few didn’t even do that. They tend to not trust anyone with a fancy education.”

  Gil still couldn’t think of anything to say.

  “Well, I guess I’d better get outta here so you can clear your mind and get ready for Jillian.”

  He rose from his chair and then turned back. “Oh, and if I was you, I’d lose the tie real quick.” At Gil’s startled look, Richard said, “Most folks around here only think of undertakers or salesmen when they see a tie. And for sure, take it off for Jillian. You might say that she’s sort of a crude person.” He smiled again at Gil’s shocked expression. “She cusses like a sailor and smokes cigars.”

  With that, Richard left Gil’s office with him wondering for the hundredth time in the past two days just what in the world he was doing in this town.

  Once his mind cleared a little, he loosened his tie and pulled
it off. Had he just been put in his place or what? Was Richard merely stating the opinion of others in this town or were those his opinions too? After all, he was a farmer and he did wear bib overalls.

  Well, he’d better get ready for his meeting or interview with the editor. Or was it really going to be more like an interrogation?

  * * *

  As Jo drove back to The Early Bird, she was trying to keep her mind off the episode in Sue Ann’s shop. She made a mental note to talk to Sue Ann about her treatment of the new preacher. Jo had been embarrassed at how shabbily Sue Ann had treated the poor guy. Granted, if you looked up nerd in the dictionary, his picture would be there. Was he actually wearing a tie? Jo hadn’t seen anyone wearing a tie since Springfield, and not really that many even there. She couldn’t remember the last time she’d seen someone wearing a tie in Crowleyville.

  Then it hit her like a ton of bricks. Her parents’ funeral! There had been a few ties there. She shook herself to get that thought out of her mind and bring it back to the present.

  Still, she felt sorry for the new preacher even if he and she would have been on opposite sides in the recent battle to save her bar.

  She had barely turned on the neon “Open” sign in the window and unlocked the door when Jillian Clark came bursting in almost colliding with Jo.

  She wondered what had Jillian on fire so early in the day.

  Jillian climbed up on a bar stool and waited for Jo to get behind the bar. Jillian took off her customary large hat and placed it on the bar, then looked across it at Jo. She couldn’t help but smile at the picture the woman made. Jillian was one of the few grown persons in town who was shorter than Jo and by at least three inches too.

  Before Jo could ask, Jillian called out in her gravelly voice. “I’ll have a Coke real quick Jo. I’m going to interview that new preacher in a few minutes.”

  Jo drew the Coke and placed it in front of Jillian who grabbed it, drained it in one series of gulps, pulled out a dollar bill, and tossed it across the counter. Jo smiled. Jillian was a strange person who sometimes said even stranger things, but she liked her anyway.