For the Birds: Rose Gardner Investigations #2 (Rose Gardner Investigatons)

by Denise Grover Swank

  “The way you said that has me worried.”

  Neely Kate grinned. “Oh, ye of little faith.” She grabbed the pocket knife and peeled off the sticker, then plopped the knife onto the conveyor belt.

  I squatted to grab one of the dumbbells while Neely Kate unloaded the rest. It was awkward bending over with a dog in my purse, and Muffy was getting more nervous. She wasn’t used to being cooped up in such tight confines. She started moving around in the bag, releasing little whines. I was rubbing her head comfortingly when Jeanne turned her attention to me.

  Everything about Jeanne Putnam was thin and brittle—from her stringy, dull brown hair to her spindly arms and rail-thin body. She looked like she was in her thirties and had been living hard.

  She gave me a long, cold stare. “You ain’t supposed to have a dog in here.”

  This did not bode well. “I know,” I said, giving her a bright smile “But I haven’t let her out of the bag, and I’m checkin’ out, so we’ll be out of here in no time.”

  She gave a slow shake of her head and started scanning things. She picked up the package of zip ties. “This is an odd assortment of things. Whatcha plannin’ on doin’ with it?”

  I hadn’t formed a plan to ease her into questioning, so I decided to be honest. “Protectin’ myself the next time someone tries to kidnap me.”

  Her head jerked up and her eyes held mine. “Is that some kind of sick joke?”

  “No. Jeanne. I think the same guys who kidnapped Scooter kidnapped me last night.”

  Her body stiffened and she took a step back. “You’re full of shit,” she said, then flung an arm toward me. “You’re standin’ in front of me now.”

  “I’m not foolin’ you. I promise. I was wondering if we could ask you some questions about Scooter.”

  A wild look filled her eyes.

  I took a step closer and lowered my voice. “I’m friends with Skeeter Malcolm. I’m lookin’ for his brother.” Sure, I was trying to distance myself from him, but Jeanne had to know Scooter’s brother would want to find him. It seemed like it would buy me some credibility.

  “He didn’t say nothin’ about you,” she sneered.

  “You’ve talked to him?”

  “’Course I talked to him. He had me dragged down to the pool hall.”

  “When?”

  “The day after it happened. Some guy showed up and took me over there.”

  “But you didn’t tell them that you saw Scooter taken until last night. Why?”

  Jeanne shook her head and picked up one of the dumbbells and scanned it.

  “Jeanne,” Neely Kate said, “we want to help you.”

  Jeanne’s face jerked up with an angry glare. “You don’t want to help me. You’re just like that asshole in the pool hall.”

  “Skeeter?” she asked.

  “No, the other one.”

  She gasped. “Jed?”

  I understood her surprise. I’d never seen Jed be rude to a woman.

  “No, that big guy. The one who looks like a tank. The one who took me over there.”

  “Merv?” Neely Kate asked, her eyes narrowing.

  Fear filled Jeanne’s eyes. “I don’t want to talk about it no more.”

  “Jeanne,” I pleaded. “We want the same thing you do. We want to find Scooter and bring him home safe.”

  When she didn’t say anything, Neely Kate said, “I had a run-in with Merv last week. When you saw him, did he have a bruised face from his busted nose?”

  She gave a quick nod as she picked up the pocket knife.

  “I’m the one who gave it to him.”

  Jeanne jerked her gaze up again, giving her a skeptical look.

  “It’s true. He and I had a disagreement. He shoved me against the wall and tried to choke me, but I fought him off. I busted his nose and broke his hand.”

  “So?” she said with a sneer.

  “I’m not scared to stand up to Merv, and I’ll stand up to him for you. Just tell us what you know.”

  “He called me a liar! He thinks I’m working with some guy named Reynolds.” Tears filled her eyes. “He thinks I let that man take my Scooter.”

  “What did he say?”

  She twisted the pocket knife around in her hand. “There’s no price tag on this.”

  “Jeanne,” I said. “What did Merv say?”

  She shook her head. “I can’t talk about this here.”

  “Can we talk to you when you get off?” I asked.

  She pressed her lips together.

  “Please?” I asked. “I know other people are hurtin’ over Scooter too. Skeeter. Bruce Wayne.”

  She glanced up at Bruce Wayne’s name.

  “He said Scooter has made some new friends that he doesn’t know. He thought you might be able to help us.”

  Hope filled her eyes, but it quickly fled. “How do I know I can trust you?”

  “I guess you don’t,” Neely Kate said. “But all three of us want to find Scooter, and none of us trust Merv. That last one alone should make me and Rose more trustworthy.”

  She looked into Neely Kate’s eyes. “Okay.”

  Neely Kate reached over and grabbed her hand. “We’ll help you. I promise.”

  The two women exchanged glances for several seconds before Neely Kate released her and dug a card out of her purse. “I’m Neely Kate and this is my business card. Text me when you get off, and we’ll meet somewhere. Okay?”

  Jeanne glanced down at the pink card in her hand and nodded. “Okay, Neely Kate.”

  Pink? Our landscaping business cards were white with blue lettering, which meant she’d had her own cards made.

  I shot a glare to my best friend. There was no way in Hades I was going with that name. Besides, we were supposed to be working under Kermit the Hermit. But then again, with this case we weren’t.

  Jeanne waved the pocket knife. “I need to get a price check on this.”

  Neely Kate waved. “That’s okay. We don’t need it.”

  “What? Yes, I do,” I said, practically lunging over the conveyor belt. “Get a price check!”

  Jeanne looked less than thrilled, but she picked up her phone and called Sporting Goods.

  Muffy was already agitated, and she saw her chance for escape when I leaned forward. She hopped onto the conveyor belt, which suddenly turned into a treadmill for my dog. Her little legs ran to keep up, and she looked at me with a desperate expression that clearly telegraphed Help! But my cart was in the way. I gave it a good shove, ramming it into the endcap in the process, and sent a hundred plastic bobble heads of President Bill Clinton and Governor Mike Huckabee, which had both been clearance-priced to forty-nine cents, flying all over the floor.

  “Oh, my word!” I shouted as I scooped Muffy into my arms. “I’m so sorry!”

  But Muffy wasn’t having any part of being cuddled. She released a huge stinker of a fart and took advantage of my gagging to try to wiggle free.

  “No, Muffy!” I tried to put her back into my purse, but she’d had enough. She leapt out of my arms onto the floor and took off running, veering toward the next aisle.

  Well, crappy doodles.

  “Muffy!” I shimmied between the cart and the candy display and stood at the back of the aisle, looking left—the direction she’d run.

  “Oh, my stars and garters!” Neely Kate said. “Where’d she go?”

  I shook my head. “I don’t know.”

  Then I saw her furry butt as she backed out of an aisle with her teeth clamped on someone’s pants. She dug her back feet in and tugged, but whoever she had a grip on dragged her back out of sight. My mouth dropped in shock. Surely that wasn’t Muffy. She’d never do such a thing, but how many little white, wiry-haired dogs were hanging out in Walmart?

  “Muffy’s attackin’ someone!”

  “What?” Neely Kate shouted.

  I took off running, trying to figure out a logical reason for Muffy to do such a thing. She’d only ever reacted that way with bad guys.
/>   “Get off me!” an elderly woman shouted, waving at Muffy with a baguette. “Go away.”

  I froze, certain I recognized the voice. “Miss Mildred?”

  Chapter 17

  She stood upright but kept her back to me. “You must be mistaken. Would you please remove your dog?” Her voice had an odd high pitch to it, which seemed unnatural, and there was a scarf tied around her head and neck.

  Muffy continued tugging at her leg.

  Neely Kate came to a skidding stop at the end of the aisle and her eyes widened. “Miss Mildred? What in heaven’s name are you doin’ with all those baked goods?”

  Sure enough, her cart was half full of cakes, packages of cookies, a half dozen cupcakes, two pies, and a few loaves of bread. “Are you opening a bakery?”

  She turned around and glared at me . . . or at least I thought so based on the set of her jaw. She was wearing sunglasses that completely concealed her eyes.

  What in the world was she up to?

  She turned around and grabbed hold of the cart. “That’s none of your daggum business.”

  “Are you wearing a disguise?” Neely Kate asked.

  She didn’t answer, but I realized Neely Kate was right. How else could she go out and buy all these prepackaged baked goods? If anyone in the garden club caught her, she’d likely be expelled.

  “What are you really up to?” I asked.

  “None of your business.”

  I caught Neely Kate’s eye, and she looked just as worried as I felt. I bent down and pried Muffy off Miss Mildred’s pant leg. When I stood, Muffy released a soft whine.

  “Miss Mildred,” I said. “Are you okay?”

  “I was okay until your dog attacked me! How’d that mongrel get inside this store? I’m going to call security.”

  I ran my hand over Muffy’s head as she intently stared at my elderly neighbor. Muffy knew something was up too.

  A woman wearing a blue vest walked over, shooting a glare at Muffy. “Dogs aren’t allowed in the store.”

  Miss Mildred turned to the manager. “Her flea-infested dog attacked me.”

  “Muffy does not have fleas,” I protested, holding her closer.

  The manager frowned. “We’re gonna need you to leave.”

  “I’ll pay for my things and go.”

  The manager gave me a grim look. “Just don’t cause any more trouble.”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  Jeanne was still holding the pocket knife, staring in wide-eyed disbelief when I carried Muffy back to the checkout lane.

  “Still no price,” she said, sounding rattled. I wasn’t surprised. There were four carts backing up behind my empty one, not to mention there was a huge cleanup needed at the end of her aisle.

  “Let’s just pay for the rest of these things and go,” Neely Kate said.

  “No. The pocket knife was the most important thing,” I protested.

  “I’m sure Witt has one you can use.”

  Which meant I would once again be relying on someone else to take care of me. “No. I’m buying this one.” But before I’d finished my sentence, Muffy started growling and wiggling in my arms. “Muffy. It’s okay, gir—”

  She jumped out of my arms again, growling as she bolted toward the front door.

  “Muffy!”

  I took off after her and heard Neely Kate say, “Sorry, Jeanne. We won’t be needin’ any of that!” before she sprinted after me.

  I burst through the automatic doors and shouted, “Muffy!”

  She’d made it halfway across the parking lot when a car door slammed. Seconds later, a car peeled out of a parking space and headed toward the back of the parking lot with Muffy in fast pursuit.

  “Muffy!” I shouted in a stern voice. “Come!”

  She stopped in her tracks and glanced back at me before turning to watch the speeding car.

  She was growling, and I was scared she was going to take off after it again, but she just released a loud bark before trotting back to me and Neely Kate.

  “What do you make of that?” Neely Kate asked.

  “She didn’t like something about him.”

  “Did you see who it was?”

  I shook my head. “He was a blur, but it was definitely a guy—dark hair, dark T-shirt, jeans . . .”

  “You just described half the men in the county,” she said in a dry tone. “But Muffy sure didn’t like him.”

  That was exactly what had me worried. “I need to get my gun.”

  Neely Kate shot me a look of surprise.

  “For all we know that guy was here to kidnap me again. I need to be prepared.” I turned around and started to head back inside. “I need that pocket knife.”

  She grabbed my arm and stopped me. “Rose. Maybe you should hide out for a few days. Maybe stay with Skeeter or even leave town.”

  I stared at her in disbelief. “One minute you’re pushin’ me on Levi, and the next you’re shovin’ me back toward James. We can’t have it both ways, Neely Kate.”

  “I know,” she said with fear in her eyes. “I’m scared.”

  “I’m not hidin’. I spent the first twenty-four years of my life hidin’, and I’m done.” I took a breath. I needed to focus on the task at hand. “Someone tried to kidnap me last night, and I can’t help thinking they were about to try it again.”

  “Maybe we should tell Joe.”

  I considered it for a moment before shaking my head. “He’d lock me up and throw away the key to hide me. I need to keep lookin’ for Scooter. And the parrot . . .” My voice dropped off when I saw Miss Mildred walk out with her cart full of pastries. “What in the world do you think she’s up to?”

  Neely Kate followed my gaze. “Committing suicide by sugar overload?”

  “No. She’s too ornery for that.”

  “Maybe we should follow her and make sure she’s okay,” Neely Kate said. “If she’s as out of it as she’s acting, she’s liable to drive to New Orleans before she figures out she took a wrong turn.”

  She had a point. “Okay, but then I want to go home and get my gun.” Too bad we hadn’t found out when Jeanne got off work.

  “Deal.”

  Miss Mildred tossed her multiple bags into the trunk of her car and pushed her shopping cart into the corral.

  “What is she doin’?” Neely Kate asked in disbelief. “She tossed those cakes and pies and everything in her trunk like they were dirty laundry.”

  “Maybe she’s on a medication that makes her confused.”

  “That’s the only explanation I can think of that makes sense.”

  We got in the truck and followed her from far enough away that she wouldn’t notice unless she was looking.

  When she turned down her street, I stayed on the cross street—there were no other cars, thankfully—and watched her park in the driveway. Miss Mildred grabbed the bags out of the trunk and headed straight to her backyard instead of the front door, something else that was uncharacteristic of her.

  Now I knew something weird was going on.

  “Maybe we should call Joe and have him take her to get a psych evaluation,” I said.

  “Let’s see what she’s up to first.”

  I turned down her street and parked one house away.

  “No need to sneak around,” Neely Kate said. “I’m flat-out worried enough to risk tickin’ her off.”

  “Agreed.” I hooked up Muffy’s leash to make sure she didn’t run away again. After we got out, Neely Kate, Muffy, and I circled around the side of Miss Mildred’s house.

  I gasped when I saw the heavily landscaped yard. I hadn’t been back here in years, and while I knew that Miss Mildred’s position as president of the Henryetta Garden Club had inspired her to always try and one-up her friends, I was shocked it had gone this far. The yard was broken up into segments and bursting with roses and hydrangeas and other flowers. The only places not festooned with flowers were the stepping stone paths leading through the flower beds and the fountain of a man and a dog in the
middle of the yard. There was no sign of Miss Mildred, but she’d set the Walmart bags down on the back porch.

  I started to turn to Neely Kate to see what she made of that when I realized the fountain statue looked remarkably like Miss Mildred’s deceased husband. He was standing next to his old hunting dog and holding a welding torch close to his leg. Water shot out of the end where the flame would have been, then collected in the basin he was standing in. Two things grabbed my attention: One, the unfortunate placement of the torch made it look like he was peeing, and two, the stream of water was falling short and landing on the dog’s head.

  Miss Mildred emerged from her back door with an armload of plates and hobbled down the steps, still wearing the scarf and sunglasses. I grabbed Neely Kate’s arm and dragged her behind a large bush closer to the corner of the house.

  Miss Mildred set the plates out on her small patio table. I counted ten before she had them all laid out.

  “Do you think she’s havin’ a garden party?” Neely Kate whispered.

  “No way. She’d cut off her arm before servin’ her guests Walmart baked goods.”

  The elderly woman grabbed one of the bags and dumped the contents in the middle of the table, one of the cakes landing upside down in its container.

  “She’s lost it,” Neely Kate murmured.

  I’d been reserving my final judgment, but then I heard her mumbling, “I didn’t know what you liked, so I got you all kinds of goodies.”

  Who was she talking to?

  She kept talking as she put a small serving of everything she’d bought on the plates, looking up in the sky every so often while she held a hand to her forehead to shield her eyes.

  When she finished, she clapped her hands together once and said, “Okay, come and get it.”

  I glanced back at Neely Kate and pushed out a sigh. “I think we should call Joe and have her evaluated.”

  She’d pulled out her phone, presumably about to make the call, when Muffy released a bark.

  I squatted next to her. “Shh!”

  But it was too late. Miss Mildred turned in our direction holding a cake knife in her hand. “Who’s over there?”

  I stood and walked out, holding Muffy’s leash in my hand. “Hey, Miss Mildred.”

  She took a step backward, bumping into the table. “You here to finish the job?”