Candy-Coated Secrets

by Cynthia Hickey

  Hot, dusty, and excited, I restacked the boxes on the top shelf, neater than when I’d found them. I couldn’t take the brown box with me, not wanting to be caught with it. I clutched the papers in my hand. I’d read over them in my room tonight before turning them over to my cousin. I wanted to reassure myself I didn’t grasp at straws, running to my cousin with something that actually was nothing. Another thing for him to laugh at me about.

  The front door of the trailer squeaked. Not again.

  I clicked off the closet light, let the curtain fall into place, and darted into the bathroom. I folded the papers and shoved them into the best hiding place I could think of—my bra—then flushed the toilet. Joe was going to kill me. I was pretty sure stuffing evidence was walking a fine line on breaking the law, but I couldn’t be caught with papers from someone’s closet, could I? I’d look and then return them. My cousin would be none the wiser. It’s not like I broke into Lacey’s home or anything.

  “Who’s there?” a voice said from the opposite side of the door.

  I took a deep breath and stepped out. “Summer Meadows. I needed to use the restroom.” The papers in my cleavage scratched and served as a reminder that I could easily end up with the same fate as Millie and Lacey.

  The bearded man from Sally’s trailer, Grizzly Bob, glared at me. “What are you doing here? Lacey ain’t home.”

  “A man on a golf cart told me I could come in and wait.” I held my breath against his body odor. He smelled strangely similar to cat urine. “Said y’all had an open door policy.”

  “Outsiders don’t get the same treatment as carnies. You git out.” He pointed a stained flannel-covered arm toward the door.

  “No need to be rude.” My breath released in a rush. “I’m going.”

  The man followed me out the front door. I turned and stared into red-rimmed mocha-colored eyes. “You tell Lacey I came by, okay?”

  He glared and gave me the tiniest nod. His eyes flicked to my bosom. Did he know I had something hidden, or was it my own guilty conscience? Surely this old, unwashed caretaker of animals didn’t find me attractive? I flashed my brightest smile and tossed him a wave. “Nice to see you again.”

  Grizzly Bob’s grunt followed as I headed up the alley. My heart thudded a heavy-metal beat, not slowing until I’d passed out of eyesight of the socially inept man. Bursting to share my discovery, I headed for the candy booth.

  Aunt Eunice had marked the last of our product to half price and leaned against the counter, a bored and dazed look on her face. I grabbed her arm and pulled her into a corner.

  “I’ve got something that ought to perk you up.”

  Her eyes widened. “What?”

  I pulled the papers from my hiding place. “Joe mentioned there was more going on here than met the eye. Look what I found in Lacey’s trailer.”

  “Who’s Lacey?” She peered over the crumpled sheets. “Did you steal these?”

  “Lacey is the woman I saw in the car last night. I’m positive.” I held the papers to my chest. “And, no, I didn’t steal them.” Just borrowed. I had every intention of turning them in.

  She grabbed them from my hand. “Joe is going to be furious. And for your information, taking something without asking is stealing. You’re going to have to go back to jail.”

  My heart leaped into my throat. “Here. Never mind, I’ll give them to Joe and confess my stupidity.”

  Aunt Eunice smoothed the sheets flat on the counter. “Whoo-eee! I’m no expert but someone has been taking quite a bit of dough from somewhere. Where did you say you got these?”

  “From Lacey’s trailer. In the closet.” Pride in my investigative skills rose.

  Aunt Eunice shoved the papers at me. “Put them back. I don’t want to go to jail again.”

  “Joe will be so excited about us finding them, he wouldn’t dare arrest us again.” Would he?

  “There was no us in your filching those papers. At least make a copy and put the originals back.”

  “Okay.” I folded the papers and restuffed my bra. If someone did know that Lacey had taken the papers, they’d be looking for them. If they didn’t find the evidence and knew I’d been in her trailer, they’d suspect I had them. For my own safety, I decided I shouldn’t disappoint them. “I’ll go home and scan a copy right now.” What if I was onto something? I couldn’t stop the grin spreading across my face.

  “Don’t forget the Miss Mountain Shadows pageant tonight. You promised to help April with her hair. She passes on her crown. I still say it’s too bad you’re too old.”

  “So you’ve mentioned before.” Pageants weren’t my thing, but it still pained me to know thirty was the magical age of being considered too old to enter. And my birthday wasn’t for a month! I only had April beaten by a couple of months.

  I stood before my full-length mirror and twirled from front to back, side to side. Almost thirty, but I thought I still looked pretty good. Good enough to win some county fair princess title, anyway. But April’s cute blond curls and big sapphire eyes had won last year’s crown. Seemed people preferred that over an unruly auburn mess, highlighted with red or not, and eyes that couldn’t make up their mind whether to be blue or green. Having a voice like an angel probably didn’t hurt either. I wouldn’t have had anything to do for the talent program.

  Aunt Eunice always said vanity was a sin. Now I knew why. It depressed a person.

  I sighed and headed downstairs to the den. The completed scan of the financial documents waited in the printer’s tray. Truly growled from her favorite spot under the desk.

  I whirled and spotted a hairy arm as someone ducked around the corner. Heavy footsteps pounded down the hall. I grabbed Truly as she tried sprinting after the intruder.

  If there was anything I learned from the past summer’s escapades, it was that a person didn’t go chasing people who entered their homes uninvited. And not to leave my cell phone where I couldn’t easily grab it. I’d left mine on the front seat of my car. Again.

  Truly’s sturdy body trembled with her growls. With my foot, I slammed the den door. Once Truly was back on the floor, scratching like mad against the painted wood, I engaged the lock. I knew before I lifted the receiver the house phone wouldn’t be working. Sure enough, the drone of emptiness reached my eardrums.

  Overhead, the scrapes of someone snooping through my bedroom reached me through the ceiling. Glass shattered, and I gnawed my lower lip. He’d better not have broken my new crystal lamp base.

  What was he looking for? Surely he realized I’d have the papers they wanted on me. Why hadn’t he attacked me in the den? While my back was turned? If Truly hadn’t alerted me to his presence, I’d have been at his mercy.

  Maybe he wasn’t searching at all. But hiding. Waiting for me to enter unsuspectingly into their clutches. I could almost feel his icy fingers lock around my neck and shook my head against my overactive imagination. There was no way I would go upstairs until someone stronger, and braver, said the coast was clear.

  Fright tickled at the nape of my neck. It wasn’t the first time someone had paid me an uninvited visit, but it was the first time I’d been alone.

  Okay, God. Here I am again. In trouble. Asking for Your help. My brain is empty. There are no ideas rattling. Sheer panic has driven all thought away. Could You please yell loud and clear what You want me to do?

  The doorknob rattled.

  I hurled myself over the desk, scattering papers. The ledgers! I grabbed the original and the copy, stuffing both down my shirt. The sheets poked upward and scratched at my chin. I reached for the nearest thing to a weapon I could find: a sharp-pointed letter opener shaped like a sword, with a fake jewel-encrusted handle. I might have a chance if the perpetrator got within six inches of me.

  “Go away! I’m armed.”

  “Summer, why’s the door locked?”

  I’d never been so glad to hear my uncle’s voice.

  “There’s someone in the house, Uncle Roy. Someone in a gorilla suit
. You’ve got to get out. Go for help.”

  “I’ll get my gun!” He thundered up the stairs.

  I hugged Truly to me. The papers in my blouse crackled. “Well, girl. That wasn’t exactly the yell from God I’d envisioned, but Uncle Roy is better than nothing. And he’s definitely brave.” Please, God, keep him safe.

  Within minutes, Uncle Roy returned and pounded on the door. “Open up. There ain’t no one here.”

  I placed the dog on the floor and unlocked the door. “Are you sure?” I peered up and down the hall.

  “Of course I’m sure. Checked every room. Your new lamp is broke and things are scattered off your dresser, but I didn’t see a single person. I think they climbed out the window.” Uncle Roy’s eyes narrowed. “What’s in your blouse?”

  “Papers I need to get to Joe.”

  “Couldn’t you think of a better place to carry them? What if the perpetrator decided to go after them? He would’ve mauled you in places that weren’t decent.”

  “It’s the best I could do.” I stuffed my hand down my shirt and withdrew the crumpled copies, keeping the originals safe in my cleavage. A manila folder lay on the desktop and I slid them inside. “The phone line must have been cut. The phone’s dead, and my cell phone is in the car.”

  “I’ll get your phone and call Joe.” Uncle Roy disappeared, and I stepped to the window.

  How had my gorilla friend known I’d be home alone?

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Joe arrived at the house with his usual scowl. I glanced with urgency at my watch. April expected me to arrive at her house in thirty minutes, curling iron in hand. Hopefully, my cousin wouldn’t lecture long enough to make me late. Without a word, Joe held out a hand.

  I handed him the copies. He wiggled his fingers. How’d he know there was more? My gaze switched to Uncle Roy. He lowered his eyes. Traitor.

  “You can’t have the original. I’ve got to put them back.” I crossed my arms.

  “Summer, you’re withholding evidence.”

  “No, I’m not. I gave you the copies.”

  “And someone knows you have them. Give them to me.”

  “Fine.” I pulled the papers out of my brassiere and wished I’d thought to make two copies. How was I supposed to solve this case without evidence? Joe grimaced. “Oh, stop being a baby. Be glad it isn’t July when they’d be damp with sweat.”

  “Lord, take me now.” Joe stuck the original in the folder with the copy. “And have mercy on Ethan when he marries this one.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” I planted my fists on my hips.

  “Exactly what it sounds like. You’re going to run Ethan ragged with your amateur sleuthing. Not to mention gray hairs like you’re giving me. You’re making me a laughingstock at the precinct. Now, a straight answer, please. Where did you find these?”

  “Lacey Love’s trailer.” I held up a hand to stop his protests. “Before you get your dander up, I intended on knocking, but someone drove by and told me to go on in. So I wasn’t trespassing.”

  I decided not to tell him I’d been discovered and run off by Grizzly Bob. “Has anyone reported Lacey missing? I’m certain it was her I saw being held against her will in the car last night.”

  “You don’t know it was against her will. She’s run off with a man before. And yes, her brother just filed a missing persons report.” Joe brushed a hand across his buzz cut. “So, you waltzed into this woman’s trailer and just happened to come across these papers?”

  “Well, no. I nosed through her closet.”

  “Summer—”

  “If I hadn’t, we wouldn’t have this proof.”

  Joe sighed. “Why don’t you go through the academy and get a license? Then you could snoop legally.”

  “That’s a good idea.” I hadn’t thought of that. I’d make a good police officer. Then Joe could be the bad cop to my good one. And I’d get to carry a gun, pepper spray, and one of those cool Tasers.

  “I was joking. I’d have to transfer for sure.”

  “She’s too much of a girlie-girl, and too old,” Uncle Roy piped up. “There ain’t no thirty-year-old rookies.”

  There’s my age again. Why does everyone insist thirty is the magical number for life going downhill? I’d always thought it was forty. Or fifty. Maybe I ought to buy myself a cane before my family stuck me in a retirement home.

  “Is there anything else? I’ve got to get to April’s.” I lifted the curling iron like Norman Bates brandishing a knife in Psycho.

  Joe’s face hardened. “Are you threatening me? With a hair appliance?”

  “It’s either the iron or April if you make me late. Which would you prefer?” I lowered my hand and tilted my head.

  “Go.” He waved me off. “I’ll talk to you later.”

  Free at last, I darted up the stairs, grabbed my purse, then sprinted down and outside to my car. As I drove, I thought about the figures noted on that sheet of paper. One amount had been written in red. Fifty thousand. The amount stolen? Who would benefit the most?

  Any of the carnival workers, I supposed. None of them, in all likelihood, made much money. Eddy Foreman wouldn’t steal from something that would eventually be his, would he? Washington came to mind clouded by the image of a much shorter gorilla. Sally’s boyfriend? Grizzly Bob? I shook my head. Another dead end. Everywhere I turned. I might as well be lost in the maze at the fair for all the progress I’d made.

  I parked in the alley next to Ethan’s truck. Lost in the cloudy details of the case, I shrieked at a rap on the window. “Ethan. You scared me.”

  “Sorry.” He opened the door. “You getting out? April’s pacing the floor waiting on you. You’d think she was entered in the pageant with all the fuss she’s making.”

  I slid from the car and planted a kiss on his lips. “All eyes will still be on her. A woman’s got to look her best.”

  “You look nice.”

  “Thank you.” I ran a hand down the long-sleeved, scoop-necked royal blue dress I’d chosen. “April said as her hairstylist, I couldn’t arrive in jeans.”

  “Why not? You aren’t in the pageant.”

  Did everyone have to remind me?

  Still not having seen April’s gown, I caressed Ethan’s cheek before hurrying inside. April yelled down the stairs that I was late. I checked my watch. Only five minutes. Not bad for me.

  She started in as soon as I stepped inside her bedroom. “I want an updo with tiny wisps falling around my face. There’s baby’s breath on the dresser. You can stick that in anywhere.” She peered at me with narrowed eyes. “You can do this, right? Please say you can. It’s too late to go to a stylist.”

  How hard could it be? A few curls. A bobby pin here and there. Sure. I could do this. Granted, it’s a long time since high school prom. Confident, I plugged in the iron.

  April removed the towel from her damp hair and sat in front of her vanity table. Blond tresses fell to her shoulders. A bit shorter than when we were seniors. Might be harder to pin up. I squirted a generous amount of mousse into my hand.

  “That’s a lot, isn’t it?” April’s worried reflection met mine.

  “You want it to stay, don’t you?” I worked the white mess through her hair, taking care to coat every strand. “Where’s your gown?”

  “In a white garment bag in the closet. Don’t touch it with your messy fingers.”

  I eased the zipper down on the bag. Inside hung a gauzy creation in bubble gum pink. I couldn’t help but compare it to Lacey’s trailer. April always had favored that color. “Is it strapless?”

  “Spaghetti straps. Long with a short train. I’m queen. I’ve got to look the part.”

  At the bottom of the bag lay April’s tiara. A rhinestone-covered crown. With a glance over my shoulder, I plucked it up and placed it on top of my curls. Oh, how I would have loved to possess this jewel.

  “Put it back. I’ve just had it cleaned.”

  With a sigh, I followed her orders. “When did you
get so mean?”

  “When you knocked off a stone the last time you played with it. Come on, time is wasting.”

  “Relax, April.” My fingers kneaded her shoulders. “You’re so tense.”

  “I’m nervous. I’ll be the center of attention.”

  “The new queen will be the center of attention.” The green light glowed on the curling iron and I singed my first strand of hair. I plucked the severed piece from the metal barrel, burning my finger. It was in the back. Maybe she wouldn’t notice. I sniffed. A little singed hair but not too bad. I grabbed a bottle of perfume, sprayed a few squirts, then spun the stool and placed myself between my friend and the mirror.

  “Now who’s being mean?”

  To distract her, I informed April of my discovery in Lacey’s trailer.

  “Wow, Summer. You’re getting good at the mystery thing.”

  “You think?” Before we knew it, her head was a riot of ringlets. I pulled the curls back, securing them with about a million bobby pins, and set to work with the hair freeze spray. Then, with random abandon, I poked in the baby’s breath. I spun April to face the mirror. “Ta da!”

  She bolted to her feet. “Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh.” Tears welled.

  “You like it?”

  “I look like Shirley Temple with weeds growing out of my head. What did you do to me? You’ve ruined me.” She turned to glare. “You did such a good job for the prom.”

  “That was 1995. With the dress and the crown, you’ll be gorgeous.” A bit dated, but gorgeous. I darted to the closet, yanked out the gown, and dropped it at her feet. “Sorry.” I lifted it and proceeded to yank it over her head.

  “Stop. You’ll make my hair worse. I have to step into the gown.” April removed the dress from my clutches. “What is wrong with you? Oh, I should have known better. Look at your hair.”

  “What’s wrong with it?” I surveyed my mane in the mirror.

  “Never mind.” April let her robe fall to the floor and stepped into the gown. She was a vision of loveliness. At least in my opinion.