The Buried Treasure on Route 66: A Nancy Keene Mystery
Page 6
“You should talk, Nancy. I saw you hanging out with that cute new boy who just transferred here.”
“We’re just friends.”
“Every girl in school has the hots for him.”
Nancy says, “He’s shy. I don’t think he likes it if girls come on too strong.”
“You get all the guys,” Beth pouts.
“Alright, you two. Let’s talk about these brochures,” Nancy reminds them.
Beth says, “I think you should go to Manhattan. I would love to see how Don Draper lives.”
“He’s a made-up character,” Hannah says.
“But he sure looks good in a suit,” her friend replies.
Nancy says, “I just finished watching last season of “Mad Men”, and I think Don Draper is back to being a womanizer again.”
“But, why would he do that if he has that wonderful Megan.”
Hannah says, “Reality check. It’s a series on TV and not a girl’s fantasy come true, Beth.”
Nancy says, “Well, I do love the fashions on that show. I’ve been thinking about sewing a hip hugger mini-skirt and a ‘poor boy’ sweater to go with it.”
Her friend Hannah says, “What’s a ‘poor boy sweater’?”
Nancy grabs her iPhone and searches for a picture of Twiggy. “Here she is,” she tells her friends. “See, she has a ‘poor boy’ sweater on with her mini-skirt.”
“Oh, Nancy,” Beth says. “Will you make me a mini-skirt too? I may even get some white go-go boots to go with it.”
“Sure. We’re both the same size, so it should be easy for me to sew another one for you.”
Hannah tells Nancy, “I think you should have another one of your famous costume parties. We could all come wearing 60’s clothes.”
Nancy warms up to the idea and says, “Yeah. I could dust off my grandfather’s old turntable and play some of his Beatles albums.”
Beth says, “We could have a name-that-tune contest.”
Nancy says, “And I could demonstrate how to make tie-dyed t-shirts.”
“Okay,” Nancy’s friends say, sounding slightly less enthusiastic.
Nancy is on a roll: “We could have a hula-hoop contest. Or maybe do the limbo.”
“The what?” Hannah asks.
Before Nancy can answer, Beth says, “And you could invite that new boy who likes you. I’d love to bob for apples with him.”
Nancy says, “That’s it! We’ll have a Halloween party with a 1960’s theme. That would be awesome.”
“Love it!” both her friends say.
“Okay, ladies,” Nancy says, “back to my dream vacation.”
Nancy then tells her friends that she wants to go to New Orleans. “Just think,” she tells them, “the land of jambalaya, jazz, plantations and riverboats.”
“Moonlight and magnolias,” Beth says dreamily.
Hannah says, “I’d like to take a row boat out in the bayous and search from alligators.”
“Yuck,” Beth says. “Give me vampire Bill Compton and creepy graveyards.”
“You’ve been watching a lot of TV lately: you’ve mentioned both “Mad Men” and “True Blood” all in a matter of 15 minutes,” Hannah says.
“I just think Vampire Bill is sexy,” Beth says.
“Isn’t he a little too old for you?” Hannah asks.
“Okay, you two. Enough already. Which one: Manhattan or New Orleans?”
Beth says, “Manhattan,” and Hannah says, “New Orleans.”
“I’ll take New Orleans,” Nancy’s father says as he pokes his head into the bedroom.
“Dad, I hope you didn’t hear all of our conversation?”
“No. I just happened to come in on the part about how sexy Vampire Bill is.”
“How embarrassing,” Beth says.
“Let’s go to New Orleans,” he says to his daughter.
“Yay! “That’s my choice too!”
Hannah says, “You guys are so lucky. I’ve always wanted to go there.”
“Well,” Nancy’s father says, “why don’t you ask your parents if you can come too?”
“Gee, I don’t know Mr. Keene,” Hannah says. “We don’t want to cut in on your quality time with Nancy--“
Beth cuts off her friend’s speech by saying, “We’d love to go, sir.”
He says, “Nancy wouldn’t be happy without the two of you anyway.”
Nancy claps her hands and says, “Laissez les bon temps rouler!”
“What does that mean?” Beth says.
“You’ll find out when we get there.”
###
Travel with Nancy as she goes to Lake Wobegon:
Nancy Keene, a teenage sleuth, longs for the change in seasons since she and her father moved to Santa Ana, California from their home in upstate New York. She talks her father into taking a pilgrimage to Minnesota in search of fall foliage and Lake Wobegon and, while there, they end up as members of a search party when a bachelor farmer goes missing.
Excerpt From:
The Missing Bachelor Farmer: A Nancy Keene Mystery.
Available Now At Your Favorite On-Line Bookstore
Chapter One
Nancy Keene and her father are sitting in their backyard painting headstones for Halloween decorations. Nancy, a blue-eyed/blonde-haired fifteen year old, has found some good epitaphs to paint onto the headstones. She’s currently painting the words:
Here lies Les Moore
Shot in the head with a 44
No Les, No more.
They live in Orange County, California and it is 90 degrees outside with Santa Ana winds that are blowing leaves into their swimming pool. There are brush fires in the foothills nearby and the wind is blowing ashes down on them as they paint.
“Oh, look Dad. It’s impossible to paint with these ashes sticking to the headstones.”
Her father, Drew, a prominent attorney downtown, tells her, “I think we’re going to have to go inside to continue our painting, honey.”
They gather up the headstones, paint, and brushes and go into their kitchen to lay everything out on the table. Nancy gathers up some newspapers to put on and underneath the table to prevent paint from dripping onto their floor.
“You know, Dad, it’s really hard to get into the spirit of the season when it’s this hot outside. I wish we still lived in the Adirondacks. Remember how beautiful the autumn was there?”
“I know what you mean. I’m sorry we had to move. There were just too many memories of your mother in our New York house. It was too hard for me to stay there after her death.”
“I understand, Dad. We had to move on, didn’t we?”
“Are you not happy here in Santa Ana?”
“Oh, Dad. Don’t worry about me. I’ll get used to it.”
“You’ve met some nice friends here. I’m sure you’ll all have fun at your Halloween party.”
“You’re right Dad. Listen to me complaining. I’m the luckiest girl in the world!” she says and walks over to him to give him a big hug. “Let’s listen to A Prairie Home Companion. That always cheers us up.”
They continue their painting project indoors and laugh at all of Garrison Keillor’s jokes. When the “News from Lake Wobegon” portion of the radio show comes on, Nancy and her father stop what they’re doing and sit quietly in their front room listening and hanging on to each word.
Garrison talks about Pastor Liz, Dorothy’s caramel rolls, The Sidetrack Tap, The Chatterbox Café, and the bachelor farmers. When the monologue is over, Nancy decides to light some cinnamon candles that she bought at Bath and Body Shop. She turns on the faux fireplace and tries to feel cozy inside. “Let’s go get some Pumpkin Spice Lattes, Dad. You can teach me how to drive, now that I got my learner’s permit.”
“Speaking of you driving,” her father says, “I’ve been looking at a blue vintage roadster that a friend of mine is selling. I think you’ll like it. It’s a real classic.”
“Great! When can I see it?”
“When y
ou turn sixteen.”
“Will your friend be willing to wait that long?”
“Yes. He owes me a favor.”
“Awesome,” Nancy says.
Nancy and her father head out to Starbucks, with Nancy in the driver’s seat. She manages to back out of their driveway okay, but has trouble getting used to the clutch and shifting. The drive back home is a little easier.
When she and her father are sipping their lattes in front of their faux fireplace, Nancy asks, “Dad, wouldn’t it be great to go to Lake Wobegon?”
“It’s an imaginary place.”
“Big duh, Dad. I’m serious. Maybe there really are some places like the Chatterbox Café. Wouldn’t it be fun to go find out?”
“Well--it might be fun to try.”
“That’s the spirit, Dad!”
“I’ll see if I can make some time off in my court calendar later in the month.”
“Can we please go before the fall leaves all come down from the trees?”
“Honey, what will you do about school?”
“My teachers will understand. They’ll see it as a great opportunity for me to write a travelogue. I could read it to the class.”
“I don’t know if they’ll let you do that. I’ll call the principal and see what he says. Let’s get you through this Halloween party you’re planning first, okay?”
“Awesome, Dad. I knew you’d understand.”
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