Crimped To Death

by Tonya Kappes

  Eagerly, Reba didn’t waste time. She opened the first magazine with a smile curling up one corner of her mouth.

  Marlene had brought out the bridal champagne and gave Patsy a glass too. The two of them were getting along swimmingly. Marlene had already sat Patsy at a table and gotten a bead board from the back of the shop and was showing Patsy all the tools she was going to need to create her masterpiece.

  Patsy looked lost and for a second I thought she was going to talk Marlene into making the piece, but I had to keep her here. I needed information about Dr. Russell and his relationship between Charlie and Henry Frisk.

  “I can help if you need me.” I walked up behind them and looked at the bead board. I arranged a few beads sitting there to give Patsy a pattern to work with. “I think you need some Bali beads to give it the dark look you are aiming for.”

  The Bali beads were the more ornamental silver beads. They were also very expensive, but it would compliment her piece to exactly the standards she was used to.

  “These are beautiful too.” The glint in her eye showed me she didn’t care what I put on there and she’d fall in love with it.

  Reba had a question and Marlene rushed over to help her while I started to work on Patsy.

  “Your husband did a great job on my teeth last week.” I looked over her expression with a critical eye to see if she had any reaction.

  “He is a great dentist.” She wrinkled her nose and her shoulders lifted as if an invisible wire connected them. “He will take wonderful care of you.”

  “You know,” I leaned in and whispered so she would think it was just between girl friends, “I had gone to Henry Frisk and he was terrible.”

  “We don’t have to worry about him anymore.” She continued to move the beads around in the ugliest design I had ever seen. “I am wearing a little orange plaid shirt and the most fabulous hat to top it off.”

  “Plus Henry was more concerned about the interior decorating of the office than his clients.” I shook my head and rearranged the beads again. “It is decorated nicely. I wonder who did it?”

  “Buskin’s Designs is doing Kevin’s new office.” She rolled a crystal between her pink tinted fingernails, and with her self-assured confidence she said, “They are okay. But I’d get a different designer if I were you.”

  “I don’t know who is working with you on your husband’s office, but I know that Charlie,” I snapped my fingers together as though I had forgotten her last night.

  “Charlie St. Clair from Buskins?”

  “Yes!” I clapped my hands together. “Bernadine said that she not only did Henry’s office, but she was trying to get her claws into him.”

  Patsy’s eyes flew open. Her mouth dropped. Something flickered in her eyes.

  “And he and Bernadine were going to get back together too.” I nodded my head. “Mmm, hmm.” I shook my head.

  “That’s terrible what happened to him.” Patsy put her hand to her chest. The big diamond on her left hand was bigger than any gem I had in The Beaded Dragonfly. “Kevin and I couldn’t believe it when we heard. You know,” she tugged me closer to her, “since we are girl-friends,” she paused as if she was waiting to confirm.

  My head nodded like it was on a spring.

  “Kevin and Henry had a fight at one of the barn dance meetings over Henry stealing Kevin’s clients.”

  My eyes widened encouraging her to continue.

  “The police even came to our house to ask us about it.” She sucked in a deep breath. “They wanted to know if my Kevin had anything to do with Henry’s murder.”

  “The nerve.” I quipped. “Kevin wouldn’t hurt a fly. Would he?”

  “Never. Gentle, gentle man.” Her eyes darted around the shop and slid back to me. “In fact, that little Charlie tramp even hit on my Kevin.”

  “No.” I took a quick breath as if I was taken by surprise. Which I wasn’t in the least bit.

  She shrugged, a delicate movement that spoke volumes.

  “I’m so sorry. We Divas wouldn’t put up with that.” My brows lifted. “Did you catch them?”

  “No. Carol told me.” Patsy looked away. There were tears in her eyes. “When I asked Kevin about it, he said that I was all he needed and he gave me this.” She shifted the side of her head. The diamond-studded earrings were just as big as the diamond on her finger.

  “Gorgeous.” I smiled. “He loves you so much.”

  Snake. Patsy smiled back and continued to arrange the beads. Did she really believe he wasn’t sleeping with Charlie?

  “If it weren’t for all the evidence against Bernadine Frisk, Kevin and I believed that Charlie might have killed him.”

  “Really?” I didn’t give her eye contact. I kept my fingers busy as though I was really trying to get her a design she was going to love. “Why would you say that?”

  “Kevin told me that he went to Henry’s office before Henry opened to wish him luck.” I leaned in closer to hear her. “He said that he saw her sitting on Henry’s lap in his office chair with her dress unzipped to her waist while Henry was kissing her neck.”

  “What did Henry say to Kev. . .Dr. Russell?” I asked, a little more curious.

  “He didn’t see Kevin. Kevin said he slipped out unseen.” She licked her pink lips. “Do you think Bernadine found out and killed him?”

  “I don’t know. I’m just trying to support her through it.”

  I unrolled a long piece of wire for Patsy. It was probably a good time to take a break from all the Henry talk.

  “This is the wire you are going to string your beads on.” I showed her. “I’m going to have you string a few beads, lay it across your wrist so you can see if you like the design I have here.”

  She leaned over the board. There was satisfaction on her face.

  “This is a crimp bead.” I held the tiny silver cylinder in the palm of my hand. I pointed to the crimp tool. Every time I saw one, I thought of Bernadine. “This is a crimp tool. First you use the second indent to smash the crimp bead like this.” I showed her how I flattened the bead. “Then you have to make a little fold so the clasp will stay in place.” I took the tool and put the flattened crimp bead in the opposite direction, making it fold in half.

  “Oh!” Patsy was excited. “I think I can do that.”

  She picked up a loose piece of wire and strung a crimp bead on it. She used the crimp tool and with a little assistance, she made it perfectly like I taught her.

  “I want you to practice crimping so you can learn how to put on a clasp.” I left a few of the crimp beads and stray wire on her board before I went to check on Reba, who was on her third round of champagne.

  “How is it going?” I asked and picked up the bottle holding it out for Marlene to take.

  “I’m just so confused.” Reba slurred. “I thought I was going to come in here and nail exactly what I wanted.” She held up the magazine. “There are so many choices.” She giggled.

  “Okay.” I looked at the clock and took a deep breath. The Divas were coming soon and I wanted Reba and Patsy gone. “What color are you going to use for your bridesmaids? We can start there.”

  “I’m thinking. . .” She patted her temple with fingertip and slowly pointed it at Patsy and Marlene. “That she’s a bitch.” Reba’s head lowered and hit the table.

  “Shit.” I murmured looking at the passed out Reba. “Marlene?” I called her over.

  “What the hell?” Marlene let out a raspy chuckle.

  “You kept filling up her drink.” My blood pressure rose. I had never had a drunk bride before. “Can you sit here with Reba and act like you are consoling her so I can get Patsy out of here before the Diva meeting?”

  “How is it going?” I looked over Patsy’s shoulder.

  “I’m getting a little better.” She held a couple of the crimped wire strands in the air. Some were good, but most were bad.

  “You are.” I assured her. “I think this is enough for today. What about you come back tomorrow for
your second lesson?”

  “Oh.” There was a grunt of disappointment from her. “I thought we could grab lunch.”

  “I wish.” I rolled my eyes. “I have a full list of clients today. But another time for sure.”

  “Okay. Sounds great.” She stood up and grabbed her clutch. “Don’t let anyone have my beads.”

  “Don’t you worry about that.” I was a little disappointed that I didn’t get any real information from her about Henry and Dr. Russell’s fight. “I did want to tell you that you need to make sure that Carol gives out the toothbrush and mini-toothpaste at the end of each visit to Dr. Russell.”

  “You didn’t get one?” she asked.

  “No. And I needed a new toothbrush too.” That was the only time I got new toothbrushes. Now I had to go buy one.

  “Ugh.” Patsy gave a polite laugh. “If you only knew how many times we have told her to give out the packets.”

  I walked her to the door.

  “In fact, I think I have some of the new packs in the back of my car.” She gestured me to follow her.

  “I’ll be right back.” I told Marlene and walked out of the shop.

  Patsy’s fancy two-door Mercedes coupe was parked right in front of the shop. Her license plate read DR WIFE.

  “I love your license.” I snickered.

  “If you only knew how much I had to keep up my appearance. Being a doctor’s wife isn’t easy.” She pushed a button on her keyfob and the trunk popped open. She looked me up and down. “You have no idea how much I’d like to dress down like you.”

  I wasn’t sure if it was a compliment or not, but I let it roll off of me. The cutest green tote bags filled the back of her car. She grabbed one and handed it to me.

  Dr. Russell’s logo was printed on the front. There was a travel coffee mug, magnet, toothbrush, floss, toothpaste, and mouthwash inside.

  “Wow. This is like Christmas.” I was set.

  “We have a new Keurig coffee machine that is going to be in the lobby for clients.” She smiled. “I’m thrilled Kevin finally listened to me about remodeling his office. He can be an old fogey sometimes.”

  “Thank you so much. I’m glad I waited.” I held the bag in the air and waved her off.

  Chapter Nineteen

  “What are we going to do with her?” I pointed to the passed-out Reba. “Now I’m going to have to give her jewelry to her for free.”

  “No you won’t.” Marlene had that I know what to do look in her eye. “We can come up with her design and tell her that she picked it out before she took a nap. Kind of like Jedi mind tricks.”

  “You have come up with some off beat stuff, but this one takes the cake.” I wasn’t buying into any Jedi crap. I never saw Star Wars, much less knew anything like what Marlene was talking about.

  “Think about it,” Marlene pleaded, rushing around to every bin, picking out all sorts of crazy color combinations. “We can convince her that she was under so much stress that she just is plumb exhausted.”

  “Hmm…” The idea was crazy, but it just might work. “We could do a simple silver and clear design mostly made up of some of the antiqued bone beads.” They would match Reba’s vintage dress with the look of lace provided on the beads. Plus there was a focal oval design with a flower inset on it that would match perfectly.

  As if on cue, Marlene grabbed a few of the beads and quickly got to work on a basic, but simply beautiful pair of earrings that any bride would want to wear.

  While Marlene worked, I put Dr. Russell’s client pack behind the counter and got out the Diva’s bead boards. If they were going to be here, they might as well keep their hands busy while their mouths were talking. We were all working on a friendship bracelet made up of a few Bali rondelles and round sterling silver six millimeters between. I had gotten each of us a “D” charm and our initials put on the back. We are the original Divas and I wanted to make sure we all had a fun way to show it.

  One-by-one, they trickled in. Bernadine was the first, packing all the goodies that Charlie had sent to Second Cup.

  “What are you doing? Trying to sabotage us all?” I asked, giving her a frown as Ginger walked in behind her.

  “I can’t believe it. I trusted that girl.” Bernadine jabbed her fist in the air. “Was she that insecure to think Henry really wanted me over her?”

  Suddenly Bernadine started to cry.

  Ginger rushed over to her and put her arms around her as more Divas filed in.

  “Do you really think he wasn’t sincere the night he died?” Ginger asked knowing how much Bernadine was still in love with Henry Frisk even though he was an ass.

  “He talked a good talk, but he always did.” Bernadine took a tissue from Agnes Pearl.

  “They all do, honey.” Agnes tsked and adjusted her turban of choice for the meeting. A hot pink number with a large black feather jutting out the back.

  “Oh,” I remembered. “I found a feather at Henry’s office.”

  “A feather?” Flora’s eye narrowed. “You didn’t say anything about a feather.”

  “What does that have to do with Henry?” Cheri didn’t care about the calories in the muffin she was stuffing in her face.

  “I don’t know.” I picked up one of the pretzel sticks dipped in chocolate that Charlie had given Bernadine and took a bite. “It just seemed really out of place. There weren’t any feather things in his office. Not even a pillow where a feather could float out of.”

  The pretzels were so good, I went back for seconds.

  “It would seem odd since Henry hated birds.” Bernadine gave a little bit of trivia. “Where would it have come from?”

  Agnes Pearl straightened up. “The outside. There are birds all around this city.” She laughed. “One could’ve floated right through the door. Just like on that movie Forrest Gump. There was a feather floating all around him.” She glared. “I never understood that part in the movie.”

  “Anyway, I found it weird.” I shrugged. “Did you figure out anything from the calendar?”

  “No.” Sadness crossed her face. “It’s like code or something.”

  “Agnes,” I got her attention.

  She was hunched over the bead board trying to string a few beads on her friendship bracelet.

  “Did you talk to Bradford?” I was hoping she had quizzed her nephew about seeing Henry and the blonde.

  “Yep. Sure enough it was Charlie.” The lines on her forehead deepened. “He said he had seen them a few times. She was at Henry’s office when Bradford got his teeth cleaned and again when he got his crown put on. Once they were in a compromising position.” She wiggled her brows.

  “That is what Patsy Russell told me too.” I told them her story about Dr. Russell going to see Henry and how Charlie was all up in Henry’s lap. The story only made Bernadine cry more, which made her realize that Henry Frisk only wanted her to believe that he wanted her back because he loved her, not because he didn’t want to pay her anymore.

  “What about you, Cheri? Did you get an appointment with Dr. Russell?” I asked, following up on her task.

  “Yes. Carol told me that they were shutting down the office for a couple weeks for remodel.” She let out a heavy sigh. “I’m sorry I couldn’t get in front of him any sooner.”

  “No problem.” Bernadine gave a small smile of gratitude. “At least you tried.”

  “Ginger.” I looked over at my best friend. “Any more from Joni?”

  “Nope. Still the fact remains, Henry’s office was on the waiting list for the security system,” she said.

  “The bill collector for Buskin’s called me. They said I had to pay Henry’s bill or they were going to sue me.” Bernadine interrupted our round table discussion. She could tell none of us were getting any closer to solving who killed her ex. “Could this week get any worse?”

  Before she could shut her mouth, the bell over the door dinged. Office Kiss walked in and headed straight to Bernadine.

  “Ms. Frisk.” Officer Kiss stoo
d with her legs hip-width apart. She reached behind her and pulled the cuffs off her utility belt. “I’m placing you under the arrest for the murder of Henry Frisk. You have the right. . .”

  Helplessly, the Divas stood there with our mouths open. It didn’t even phase me that Agnes had held her unfinished bracelet in the air and all the beads had tumbled into the Under.

  Bernadine didn’t resist. She stood up and took it like a true lady. Her chin cocked in the air, but there was fire in her eyes.

  “I’ll call Bennie.” Flora wasted no time getting her phone and punching the keyboard for Bennie’s number. When he answered, she talked swift and fast. “He’s on his way to the station. Don’t say a word. He will meet you there.”

  Neither Officer Kiss nor Bernadine said a word as Officer Kiss directed Bernadine out to her squad car and stuck Bernadine in the back. Flora didn’t waste any time getting to her car and peeling off down the road. No doubt in my mind, I knew she was going to beat Bernadine and Bennie to the station.

  This was a day the Divas would not forget. Seeing one of our own in the rear window of a cop car was far from our intentions of the group.

  “Now what?” Agnes Pearl wrung her wrinkled hands together.

  “We wait,” I said.

  “Wait?” Cheri didn’t seem to like my idea.

  “Wait until we hear from Flora. Until we hear all the charges.” In reality, I wasn’t sure what we were supposed to do. “Until then, I’m going to run my shop and continue to hunt for clues to get this thing straightened out.”

  “Don’t forget about the decorating meeting tonight at the barn.” Ginger reminded me.

  I grabbed the floss out of Dr. Russell’s bag and pulled a long piece out, cutting it on the silver tab. Carefully I ran the floss in my back teeth to get the pretzel bits from between them.

  “I’ll be there.” I wasn’t sure why I was going to go there, but I would keep the commitment. “What are we going to do about Charlie?”

  I looked at each of them.

  “What are you going to do about her?” Agnes Pearl lowered her glasses down on the edge of her nose. Her beady eyes peered over them.