A Penny for Your Thoughts

by Bess McBride

  “Yeah.”

  “Oh,” she replied nonplussed.

  “Well, I’ve got to get off the phone,” Cliff said. “I’m getting in my car.”

  “Oh, were you out?”

  “Yeah. I had to run to the store.”

  Penny cocked her head. Her first inclination was to say she had been there not too long ago, but then she remembered Matt and the blonde woman and decided to drop the subject.

  “Okay, Cliff. Take care...and thanks for everything.”

  “Well, I’m not sure I’ve done much, but you’re welcome. Good night. Oh, by the way, are you going to any of the Mardi Gras parades?”

  “Yes, I think I’m going to the one in Orange Beach tomorrow night.”

  “Well, you should. They’re usually a lot of fun. Unfortunately, I’ve got work to do, so I can’t make it to that one.”

  “I’m sorry,” Penny murmured.

  “I’ve seen plenty of them. Well, goodnight again, Penny.”

  “Goodnight, Cliff...and thank you again.”

  She closed her phone and turned it off, feeling somehow cut off from Matt by her action. What if he called? She looked at the clock. Ten p.m. Why would he call?

  Penny turned off the light and snuggled back under her covers, willing herself back to sleep. Cliff seemed to have warmed toward her, and she was grateful. He appeared to be coming to terms with Jerry’s loss, though she herself still struggled.

  She bolted upright in bed. Keys! She flicked the lamp on again and hopped out of bed. Where was her purse? Why didn’t she just put that thing in the same place all the time, and then she’d know where it was?

  The kitchen. It was still in the kitchen. She walked out into the darkened living room and grabbed her purse from the kitchen, carrying it with her back to the bedroom. She climbed back into bed and set it on her lap, zipping and unzipping the numerous pockets that she loved so much. A big black canvas thing, it held everything she might ever need.

  She found what she was looking for in a small pocket hidden under a flap. Jerry’s keys. She pulled two small keys out and dangled them before her eyes, studying them with interest. Jerry always kept them attached to his belt by a loop. He didn’t drive, but always took the bus, so she assumed they didn’t belong to a vehicle. At any rate, they were small and in no way resembled any car keys she’d ever seen. One appeared to be a house key, and the other was smaller. She couldn’t imagine what it unlocked.

  Penny closed her hand over the keys. She should have turned the keys over to whoever handled Jerry’s estate. She drew in a sharp breath. The keys bit into her hand as she gripped them tightly. Cliff would have cleared out Jerry’s belongings, wouldn’t he? He was the next of kin.

  She thought back to the funeral and tried to pick Cliff’s face out of the mourners, but she’d been in no shape to memorize faces. In fact, she hadn’t raised her eyes once. Shame and guilt kept her gaze riveted to the ground, and she’d escaped the funeral as soon as possible.

  To think that Cliff had been there, eyeing her, quite possibly hating her brought a knot in her stomach. She opened her hand to look at the keys. She needed to give them to Cliff, though she had no idea how to explain why she’d kept them. Some sort of memorial to Jerry? A constant reminder, as penance, of his death?

  Penny slipped the keys back into her purse and dropped it on the floor beside the bed. She turned out the light and buried herself under the covers, a knot of pain in her throat as she wondered about the relationship between Cliff and Jerry.

  Sleep came, but vivid dreams of the jarring jangle of keys over a phone, followed by a hoarse voice followed her throughout the night.

  ****

  Sunlight streamed in through the windows, burning Penny’s eyelids, and she rolled over and buried her face in the pillow. More than anything in the world, she wanted to talk to someone who loved her...even before she got out of bed.

  She found her phone and stared at it. It was off. With a shake of her fuzzy brain, she pushed a button to turn it on, and dialed her mother’s number.

  “Hello?” Penny relished the sound of her mother’s warm voice.

  “Hi, Mom. How are you?” Penny stretched, the day normalizing itself.

  “Hi, honey. I’m fine. How are you?”

  “Good. It’s Mardi Gras week here.”

  “Oh, really? How fun! Lots of parades I’ll bet.”

  “Yup. I think I’m going to one tonight. But I have to go by myself. I don’t really know anyone here. Don’t you think that’s weird, Mom? I’ve been here two months, and I don’t know anyone.”

  “Well, honey, if I recall, you didn’t go down there on vacation. It’s perfectly understandable if you haven’t been out gallivanting and hitting the bars.”

  “Hitting the bars?” Penny grinned. “Mom! What would you know about that?”

  “Oh, please. As if I didn’t have my day.”

  “No, Mom. No bar hopping.” Penny sighed. “And you’re right. I forgot. I didn’t come down here to meet people, did I?”

  “Not that I heard. But I’m sorry you don’t have anyone to go to the parade with. Is it safe for you to go alone?” Worry made her mother’s voice rise.

  “Oh, yeah. This is Orange Beach, Mom. Not too much crime going on around here.”

  “What about the bank robbery, and the break in of your car, and the phone calls?”

  Penny stiffened. “Well, now that you throw everything in one sentence, it does sound kind of rough down here. But they’re all separate from each other. I’m sure of that.”

  “What about Matt? Can’t he go with you?”

  “I think he’s working. I don’t know. I didn’t ask. I think all the police are working.”

  “Oh!”

  “There was this one guy who asked me, but I don’t think Matt would like it if I went with him.”

  “Oh, so now we care what Matt thinks. It didn’t take you long to fall for him again, Penny.”

  Penny smiled, surprised she didn’t feel the least bit defensive at her mother’s wry tone.

  “No. I didn’t waste any time at all.”

  “Well, take care of yourself, dear. I don’t want you getting hurt again.”

  “I gave out my fair share of hurting, Mom.”

  “Yes, I know you did.” Her mother paused. “Listen, Penny, I got my own strange phone call the other day. I said hello several times, but no one spoke. Then someone hung up.”

  Penny stiffened. “What? Did you check caller ID?”

  “Penelope Brown! Since when did I get caller ID? I’m not signing on for all that new-fangled stuff. There’s nothing wrong with a good old-fashioned answering machine. Anything else is just fluff.”

  Penny snorted. She’d forgotten. Her mother was not a fan of computers or cell phones.

  “Are you still hanging onto that yellow wall phone? Does that thing still work?”

  “Of course it works. I love this phone. The cord extends all the way out from the kitchen to the living room. What’s not to like?”

  “Mom,” Penny groaned.

  “Listen, honey. I’ve got to get going. I promised to meet the girls at the gym this morning, and I’m already running late.”

  “All right, Mom. Have a good workout.”

  “I love you. Bye.”

  Penny heard the click, and she closed her phone and dropped it on the covers. She rolled out of bed and dressed for the beach in shorts and a T-shirt.

  A cup of coffee later, she grabbed her beach bag and headed down to her car to retrieve her chair out of the trunk. She kicked off her shoes as she stepped onto the sugary sand and found a nice spot on the beach to set up camp.

  She had every intention of spending the day reading romance novels and eating chips and dip and sandwiches to her heart’s content. The sun reflected off the white sand, warming the beach and counteracting the cool breeze that blew in off the water. Seagulls flew happily about waiting for tidbits of food from other beachgoers, of whom there were more than u
sual. Visitors had come to town for Mardi Gras, and the beach hummed with activity. The day shone glorious, and Penny felt more relaxed than she had in weeks as she burrowed into her book.

  Some time later, a shadow fell over her pages, and she looked up.

  “Hi, Kevin,” she murmured, shading her eyes to look at him.

  “Morning. How are you?” He remained standing. “I was just taking a walk and thought I’d stop by and say hi.”

  “Well, that’s nice of you. How was breakfast?”

  “What?” Kevin blinked. “Breakfast. With my grandparents! Yeah, it was great. What are you reading there?”

  “Oh, just a romance. I find them relaxing,” Penny blushed.

  “I see. What do they call them? Bodice rippers?” Kevin flashed a bright grin and waggled his eyebrows. “Doesn’t sound too relaxing to me.”

  Penny laughed. “I wouldn’t know about that. This gal,” she waved the paperback aloft, “doesn’t wear a bodice, so there’s not a lot of ripping going on.”

  Kevin chuckled. “I love suspense myself. Can’t get enough of--” He brought himself up short and colored. “I can’t believe I said that. I’m sorry. After what you’ve been through, you know, with the phone calls and stuff.”

  Penny shrugged, the mention of her caller a mere shadow on her otherwise bright day.

  “Don’t worry about it. I didn’t even think of it.” She grinned.

  Kevin’s forehead relaxed, and he gave her a tentative smile. “Well, I’d better get going. So, will I be seeing you down at the parade tonight?” He held up his hands in mock defense. “I know, I know, you’re going by yourself, but I just wanted to know if you’re going. I’m still undecided myself.”

  Penny nodded awkwardly. “I am going, though I don’t know what time.”

  Kevin nodded without rancor. “I hear you should get there early if you want to get parking.” He looked down the beach. “Well, I’ve got to get back. Appointment for granddad, you know. See ya!” He gave her a friendly smile and a brief wave before moving off.

  Penny watched him walk away and fretted. Frankly, she would have appreciated the companionship tonight, but at this point, she did not want to put anything...or anyone...between Matt and her.

  The rest of the day passed without event, and Penny relished the calm. She wished Matt would call--for any reason--but her phone didn’t ring. Perhaps that was a mixed blessing. The inevitable tightening of her throat and upheaval in her stomach when the phone did ring were miserable and seemed likely to remain with her long after her...caller...ceased his horrible threats.

  In late afternoon, with Kevin’s warning to get to the parade route early in mind, she stretched one last time, grabbed her things and returned to her apartment. Completely stuffed with food and hypnotized by the warmth of the sun, she longed to take a nap, but a check of her watch indicated she needed to get to Orange Beach.

  She passed by her bed on the way to take a shower and noticed her phone sitting on top of the quilt. She’d forgotten her phone! What if Matt had called?

  She snatched up the phone. Her eyes widened. Twenty two missed calls? Had there been an emergency? Mom? Travis? With a tremor in her hand, she reviewed the numbers. They were all from a toll free number. A hospital? What if something had happened to Travis? Sweat broke out on Penny’s forehead.

  She called the number, her stomach flipping somersaults as she waited through several rings.

  “Continental Flower Shop,” a smooth female voice answered.

  “What? Who is this?”

  “I’m sorry? This is the Continental Flower Shop. Can I help you?”

  Penny sank down onto the bed. A flower shop? “Someone called me from this number today...twenty two times.”

  “What?”

  Penny repeated herself.

  “Is this some kind of telemarketing? Why would you call this number twenty two times?”

  “Oh, no, ma’am. That can’t be right. We don’t do any telemarketing. Do you have the number right?”

  “Yes. At least I think so.”

  “Well, ma’am, that sounds very odd. We didn’t call you from here. We’re a small flower shop in Bangor, Maine. Do you live here in Bangor?”

  “Maine?”

  “Yes, ma’am.”

  “Okay, I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened. Thanks.” Penny hung up with a sigh of relief. It wasn’t Travis or her mother in a hospital. She studied the numbers again. Surely her stalker hadn’t been up to his old tricks, had he?

  She called her voicemail which announced in a censorial tone that it was full. The first call revealed nothing. Just a minute of silence. Seeing no calls from Matt, her mother or Travis, though it appeared her voicemail was full, Penny shook her head and deleted the rest of the calls. She dropped the phone on the bed and went in to take her shower.

  She emerged from the shower and threw on some jeans and a comfortable short-sleeved blouse, thankful for the comfortable evenings in November on the Gulf Coast. She grabbed her purse and headed down to her car to drive the nine miles along the Gulf Beach Highway to Orange Beach.

  Fifteen minutes later, she parked in a grocery store parking lot along the parade route. Throngs of parade watchers lined the four-lane highway on both sides. Orange barricades and oversized plastic netting blocked people from encroaching on the parade route.

  She found an open spot against the barricade and gaped at the people around her with awe. Boisterous merry goers adorned their heads with colorfully festive masks of elaborate concoctions of feathers, headdresses of red paper crowns banded in gold foil, green and purple striped top hats, and glittering plastic tiaras. One man next to her sported a purple and yellow harlequin hat with huge bells dangling and jangling off the points. The color theme for Mardi Gras appeared to be canary yellow, emerald green and royal purple. Several middle aged women crossed the road in leopard-skin tights with neon pink boas wrapped around their necks.

  Penny contented herself with watching the parade antics for the next hour or so until the start of the parade. As the evening turned into night, the festive mood of anticipation filling the air increased, and Penny absorbed the excitement. She delighted in watching the activity pre-parade as people dashed back and forth across the barricaded highway in search of the “best spot” and others jockeyed for position against the orange plastic netting. She wondered why such extravagant efforts to keep the highway clear were necessary. What did the police expect? That people would run out between the floats? Did the floats drive that fast?

  Twenty minutes later, the crowd grew more animated--if that were possible--as two police cruisers appeared some way down the road to begin the parade in slow motion with flashing blue and red lights followed by several motorcycle units who performed maneuvers in the road.

  Penny leaned forward, as so many of her fellow parade goers did, at the sight of the first float farther down the road--a brilliantly lit rainbow creation featuring a glittering dolphin splashing amidst turquoise waves. It moved slowly toward them. Men in shining satin court jester suits poised above the two levels of the float and tossed sparkling necklaces from the float. Penny ducked as several bright beaded necklaces sailed through the air in her direction until one landed directly on her head with a thump. She grasped it in her hand and stared in stunned surprise as the revelers next to her scrambled on the ground for stray necklaces.

  “Put it on.”

  Penny swung around, startled at the familiar voice near her ear. Matt stood close behind her. He reached one arm over his head and deftly caught a bright red sparkling necklace flying overhead. He slipped it over her head with a grin.

  “You’re supposed to beg for them. Scream as loud as you can, and they’ll throw some your way.”

  “Are you kidding? This is insane,” Penny laughed as another necklace landed at her feet. No slouch to competition, she scrambled to grab the bauble just before the woman next to her took hold of the plastic treasure.

  “It is insane! There’s
no other word to describe it. But it’s fun.” Matt laughed as he caught three necklaces at once. He slipped two over Penny’s neck and dropped one over his head.

  She patted the accumulated finery on her chest. The beaded necklaces were just inexpensive little plastic things, but they were bright, colorful, somehow desirable and gifts from above.

  “I thought you were working,” she shouted above the voices of her neighbors as they screamed for goodies from the floats rolling by.

  “Just a little bit today for setup. Some of our folks are over working this parade, and then they’ll come over to help out with ours. The parade in Gulf Shores is day after tomorrow in the morning. I just needed to see that the guys who volunteered from my unit were set up and in place. I wasn’t sure I could get here, so I didn’t suggest we meet.”

  “Oh! Well, I’m glad you’re here,” she said as she threw a loving look over her shoulder. His bright smile took her breath away. She swung her head forward as several round objects landed at her feet. She dived for them and nabbed two of the three. Her wily harlequin-hatted neighbor snagged the third. Penny came up with two commercially wrapped pastries which she couldn’t quite identify in the dark. She held them up to the glow of the nearby streetlight.

  “What are these?”

  “Moon pies. I have no idea what the significance of the moon pies are, but they’re a Mardi Gras tradition.”

  “Well, they look delicious!” Penny stuffed them in her jacket pocket and continued to reach for treasures flying through the air. The middle-aged lady on her right excelled at screaming, but Penny managed a few attention getting shrieks of her own. She turned a laughing face to Matt.

  “This is great!”

  “It is, isn’t it?” He seemed to be amassing quite a collection of necklaces as he caught those that sailed over Penny’s head. She beamed to see him laughing, and promised herself she would do everything she could to let him know how much she loved him. Right after the parade. He was not going to get away from her this time. She swung around to either block or grab another moon pie.

  She bent to pick up another necklace and heard his phone ringing.