by Lynn Cahoon
I held the door to the shop open as people filed in, and my eyes caught a movement in the darkened window of The Glass Slipper. A face peered out at us. Marie’s face.
CHAPTER 3
Waving at the last few customers, I locked the door and turned the sign from open to closed. I’d needed the extra hands tonight. Sasha handled preparing the coffee, and Mindy dished up desserts and cleaned tables. Tuesdays were typically slow, but with the holiday season approaching and Marie’s cancelled class, we had more impulse shoppers tonight.
Turning off the lights, I peered at The Glass Slipper across the street. I knew I’d seen Marie watching us earlier. Had the woman been that nervous about working with Mindy that she’d cancelled her class? Or was the near miss with Ted’s Mustang to blame? Either way, I needed to talk to her tomorrow. Mindy deserved a real work experience, with hopefully, a real recommendation when she applied for jobs at the end of the program.
I slipped through my darkened shop and into the back office. Then I grabbed my purse and went through the back door. Greg’s truck was parked in Aunt Jackie’s regular spot. I locked the door, jiggling the knob to make sure it was secure.
Climbing into the truck, I leaned over, gave Greg a kiss, and held up the box filled with cheesecake pumpkin squares. “You got time for some dessert and coffee?”
Greg pulled the truck out into the road. “My time is yours. I turned everything over to Tim, unless something big happens, of course.”
“It must be hell to be so indispensable,” I teased.
He didn’t even look at me. “If something happened at the shop, you would show up. Nothing different than with my job.”
“Except with my job, people don’t break laws, get hurt, or die.” We passed by Esmeralda’s house. Lights blazed out of every window, and a few cars were parked in her driveway. “Is Esmeralda having a séance?”
“I don’t think she calls it that, but yes, she’s doing a group reading.” Greg glanced at the cars in front of his dispatcher’s home. “You know she came in to talk to me before dinner.”
“I thought she was relaying the mayor’s message.” I tore my glaze from the window and toward Greg.
He pulled into my driveway and turned off the engine. “Nope. She wants me to tell you that the lady is worried.”
“The lady?” I picked up the box and slipped out of the truck. I met him on the other side. “What lady is she talking about?”
“I thought you’d know. That’s all she said, then she turned around and went back to the dispatch center. When I walked by to leave, it was like she’d never even spoken to me.” Greg held open the front gate, and we walked up the cobblestone walk I’d put in last month. I was still in love with my creation. Next to the path, Miss Emily’s fairy circle had returned. If I believed in magic, I’d say my friend was blessing my caretaking of her house.
I unlocked the door and flipped on a light. “Not a clue.”
After we’d settled in the kitchen and waited for the coffee to brew, Greg let Emma into the kitchen. My golden retriever had been a housewarming gift from him earlier that year. She still was mostly a puppy and her energy level spiked when she saw both of us in the house. Of course, she gave Greg more attention, teaching me a lesson for working too long of a shift. Normally I was home by noon and the two of us spent the afternoon on the porch reading and napping. Well, I read, and we both napped.
As Emma settled into her bed next to the door and we settled around the table, I tapped my finger on the surface. “Marie Jones stood her intern up this evening. She cancelled her class and everything.”
“The same Marie who almost got smashed by a speeding sports car this afternoon? Maybe she was upset and felt she couldn’t teach. Near-death experiences affect people differently.” Greg sipped his coffee.
“Leave it to you to see the other side of things.” I sighed.
Greg shrugged. “It’s not always the easy answer, sometimes things just are.” He waved a fork at me. “I’d like to give this Ted guy a lecture about safety and speeding in a small town. From what others have told me, the guy was going way too fast.”
“I don’t know, he said she ran out in front of him. He didn’t say he was speeding.” I bit into the pumpkin square. Sadie’s Pies on the Fly was branching out, and this scrumptious tidbit was one of her successful experiments.
“From what I’ve heard from the mayor, this guy’s a piece of work. He probably thinks everyone should just stay out of his way.” Greg finished off one square and grabbed another. “These are great.”
“Sadie’s.” I cocked my head and watched him. “Funny, you didn’t let me dog on Marie for playing the disappearing card tonight, yet you have no sympathy for Ted. Did you dig into his history for the mayor?”
His face reddened just a bit. “After we talked, I figured there might be some fire to all this smoke, so yeah. Let’s just say, you need to never be alone with the guy. He’s got a short fuse when it comes to interactions with women. All kinds of reports filed against him, nothing sticks, though.”
I shook my head. It was typical. As a family law attorney, I’d seen it time after time. Abusers tended to get away with it, mostly because they made their victims too scared to report. “I kind of got that vibe today. I thought Toby was going to shoot him.”
Greg chuckled. “Wouldn’t have been the worst idea.” He took my hand and rubbed his thumb over the top. “Just stay clear, and if you do have to meet, stay in the front of the shop. I’ll feel better about it.”
“Are you telling the mayor what you found?”
“Probably not. Marvin has an underhanded way of using information against people. And I’m not going to be part of his game.” Greg stood and took his cup and plate to the sink, rinsed them, and put them into the dishwasher. He then leaned in to give me a quick kiss. “I’ve got to go. Tomorrow’s going to be a long day. Monthly inventory.”
“How many times do you have to count rifles and flare guns?” I grumbled as I followed him to the door.
“According to the city charter, once a month.” He kissed me again, this time longer, a proper kiss. And one that always made my toes curl.
I watched him stroll to the truck. “Thanks for the ride. And thanks for not bringing the cruiser.”
He waved without looking back.
The next morning, I opened the shop and started with the list of things I hadn’t finished yesterday due to the business meeting. Sometimes I wondered if the liaison job was worth the effort. At first, it had been a way to prove myself to the more settled townspeople. That I was willing to jump in and work for my new home. Now, besides Bill and Darla, I felt I was pulling the plow by myself. I drafted up the minutes and e-mailed them to Amy for inclusion in next week’s council report.
Then, since the coffee run of the morning had slowed, I pulled a new arrival off the mystery shelf and, with a mocha, settled in to read until either Toby showed up for his own shift, or a wandering tourist found my door.
Toby was the first to arrive. I glanced at my watch and as usual, the guy was spot-on time. Not early, not late. Eleven thirty on the dot.
“Hey, boss,” he called as he went behind the counter to wash his hands and don an apron. “Slow morning?” He poured a cup of coffee for himself and came to sit by me.
“Perfect morning.” I held the book so he could see the cover. “Almost finished.”
He leaned back. “You’re the only business owner in town I know who enjoys a slow shift.”
“There’s a reason I take the early shift. I like having time to myself.” I grinned. “So what’s going on with you? We haven’t chatted for days. You got a new love in your life?”
“I’m seeing one of the girls from the cosmetology school. We went to dinner in the city last night after my shift.” The boy blushed down to his roots.
I raised an eyebrow. “Just one?”
He nodded. “Yep. Just one. Look, I know I told you I wasn’t dating anyone, but Elisa is special. I didn�
��t want you to judge.” The bell over the door chimed, and an older couple walked in. Toby jumped up and almost sprinted to the counter. “Duty calls.”
Elisa, huh? I wondered if maybe Toby had actually found the one this time. I put a bookmark to keep my place and picked up my empty cup. Time to check in with Marie. The girl and I were going to have a long talk about responsibility, no matter what Greg had said last night.
I stepped out of the shop and crossed the street, checking for traffic. We didn’t get many cars during the weekdays, which was probably why Marie hadn’t seen Ted yesterday. Most of the tourists parked at the public parking near the end of town, then walked through our small village. My shop was smack-dab in the middle of Main Street, perfect placement for an impulse cup of coffee or frozen treat.
The door of The Glass Slipper stood open. The front of the shop overflowed with small display shelves, each one holding a different type of glass ornament. Currently, Marie had moved the Christmas display closer to the window, but wind chimes and stained-glass pieces held center stage. I stopped to admire a Cinderella-motif stained-glass piece. The large square would be amazing hung over the children’s book section at the shop. I was lost in thought when I heard her voice.
“I love how that piece turned out. I’m almost tempted not to sell it.” Marie stood next to me, looking at the stained glass.
“I’m considering it for the shop. You can feel the fantasy of the story. It’s like walking into the book.” I smiled and turned. “You’re an amazing artist.”
Marie blushed, then shrugged. “I have my moments.” She walked back to the counter. “Before you say anything, I’m sorry about last night.”
“Mindy’s a great person. I think you’ll enjoy working with her.” I jumped into my sales pitch.
“It wasn’t her. I, well, I thought I saw someone I knew.” Marie picked up a glass unicorn and started polishing the imaginary dust off the piece. “It upset me. But it couldn’t be the same person. I mean, he doesn’t even live on this side of the country.”
Could she be talking about Ted? I replayed the scene from yesterday in my head. Had Marie been scared from the near miss, or of the driver of the car? “Look, if you want to talk …”
My words were interrupted by a group of women flowing through the door. Excited chatter filled the small shop.
Marie set the unicorn down. “Sorry, I’ve got a lunch class. I’ll be ready for Mindy on Thursday, no worries.” She glanced at the women already heading to the back of the room. “Did you want anything else?”
Apparently, I’d been dismissed. I shook my head. “I’ll think about the piece.”
I stepped out into the bright sunshine and wondered what had just happened. One moment, Marie seemed ready to talk about her concerns, the next, a cool professional stood in front of me.
At least she’d agreed to take Mindy on Thursday, and that had been my main objective in the discussion. I wasn’t sure the owner of The Glass Slipper would ever be a friend, to me or anyone else in town. But not everyone wanted that kind of relationship. I made a mental note to take her cookies next week. Maybe I needed to reach out more.
The shop was busy when I returned, and I checked in with Toby to make sure he didn’t need help before grabbing my purse and walking home. When he laughed, I took that as my cue and grabbed the almost-finished mystery to take back to the house. Research for the bookstore. Friday night was Aunt Jackie’s Mystery Readers Group and it was my turn to present the new books for the month. I’d like to say I’d read all of them, but usually, I only had time for a couple each month.
Passing City Hall, I considered stopping in to see Amy, my bestie. A red Mustang sat parked in the one visitor spot in front of the building. Greg’s truck sat next to the sports car. Ted must be in visiting with the mayor. I couldn’t take the thought of running into one or the other of the men, not even to see Amy. I’d call her when I got home.
Emma stood waiting at the back door when I unlocked the kitchen door. She whined and I knew she wanted to run. “Let me change and we’ll go.” I unlocked the screen door and grabbed her water dish to fill before we left.
Ten minutes later, we were on the beach. With the waves choppy and the wind cool, we were alone. I unclipped Emma’s leash and we took off, the salt in the air cooling my face as I ran. Seagulls cawed and dived at the waves. One came up with a too large fish for his wingspan, and he didn’t get far before he was beach-bound, a crowd of gull friends circling his windfall.
We hit our turnaround spot and I slowed, letting Emma play in the surf for a few minutes. She loved the beach run. Although she also loved it when we went inland and ran at the state park just a few miles outside of South Cove. I had to face the fact, my dog was a running junkie.
My cell rang as I watched Emma. I picked up, thinking it had to be Greg or Amy. “Hey.”
“Jill? Jill Gardner?” An unfamiliar male voice echoed in my ear. The wind was making it hard to hear.
I cupped my hand around the mouthpiece and talked louder, like that would make it easier for me to hear. “This is Jill.”
“You need to stop meddling. If an intern doesn’t have work, they don’t have work. You can’t take on all of the deadbeats.” The man continued to ramble. Only now I knew whom I was speaking to: Ted Hendricks.
“Actually, I needed both Mindy and Sasha last night. So it was a blessing that The Glass Slipper had unexpectedly closed.” I didn’t mention that the overflow came from the store’s closure and cancelled class.
The other end of the line was quiet.
“Are you done yelling at me?” I quipped. “Because I have other things to do.”
He must have recovered. “You haven’t heard me yell, not yet. Anyway, stop messing with my participants.” The line clicked off before I could respond.
If this was the way he treated all his host business owners, no wonder he had trouble placing people even with the enticement of free labor. No one wanted to work with a jerk belittling them for helping out. After this was over, I was finding out who managed the Work Today program and filing a formal complaint about their program director. My voice alone might not be able to make a difference, but maybe I wasn’t the first to protest.
Emma had chased away the gulls from the half-eaten fish and was nosing around the corpse, trying to decide if she should claim it for dinner. I called her away. I didn’t need my dog smelling like dead fish. Besides, I had a chicken potpie to put in the oven and the rest of the mystery waiting for me at home. Time to check out and relax. I’d leave planning Ted’s demise for tomorrow’s to-do list.
By five, the book was finished and I’d forgotten to take the pie out of the freezer. I’d written up a cute review for the meeting and I’d done a load of laundry. As I slumped into the couch, I wondered if Greg had eaten. I could surprise him with a basket of Lille’s fried chicken and one of Sadie’s pies from the freezer. I put a chocolate silk pie on the counter. I’d call Lille’s before leaving the house and, by six, we’d be having a romantic dinner in Greg’s office.
I let Emma outside and sprinted upstairs, pleased with my impromptu Wednesday date plans.
Carrie helped me pack the woven picnic basket I’d lined with a red-and-white checkered tablecloth. The pie sat at the bottom and I’d slipped in a couple bottles of a locally produced root beer from my stash.
“Greg is going to flip when you come in with this.” Carrie grinned as she tucked the box of chicken on top of the pie and added a tub of mashed potatoes and gravy to the side. “You know this is what he orders probably three days a week when he shows up here for lunch.”
I frowned, looking down at what I’d thought would be the perfect dinner. “Did he come in today?”
She laughed. “Nope. Esmeralda came in and got sandwiches for him and Tim. But I bet even if he had, he’d still love this.” She peered at me as she slipped biscuits into a plastic bag. “Greg’s lucky to have you.”
I blushed. “We’re dating. I’m supposed to
do nice things for him.”
“Yeah, but you wouldn’t believe the way his ex treated him. I mean, when Sherry came in here with him for dinner, you could see her steaming that he hadn’t taken her someplace nice. She even ticked Lille off one day, asking for a sparkling water.”
I grinned, even though I didn’t want to hear Sherry stories. I could see Lille getting upset. “I take it she got tap.”
“And Lille slammed the glass down in front of her. I swear, Greg had to hold them off each other before he got the two of them calmed down.” Carrie smiled at the memory. She folded up the arms of the basket. “Anyway, you’re a peach. Don’t forget that.”
I paid for the food, waved good-bye to Carrie, and walked out of the diner. The basket was heavy now with all the food, and worse, it smelled divine. My stomach grumbled in protest. “One more block,” I whispered. As I came toward City Hall, Greg’s truck sat parked right where I’d seen it earlier. The man hadn’t even left. Inventory days were brutal.
Then I saw the red Mustang, next to the truck. I had to walk past the front of the building to get to the door leading to the police station on the side. An eight-foot chain link blocked my access from this side. Just walk fast, I thought. Maybe he’s still inside with the mayor.
I sped past the truck, but when I got in front of the Mustang, I snuck a peek toward the car. Ted Hendricks sat in the front seat. “Damn,” I muttered, then slipped on a customer service smile and waved with my free hand.
He didn’t wave back.
I leaned closer. Ted’s head was at an odd angle and there was splatter on the windows. I set the basket down on the sidewalk and took a step closer. I pulled my phone out of my pocket and dialed a number.
“Hey, beautiful.” Greg’s voice filled my ear, but my eyes wouldn’t leave the sight in front of me.
“You need to come out front.”
Greg chuckled. “Carrie already told me about the surprise when I called to order dinner. Just come in, the side door is unlocked, and we’ll eat in the break room. I don’t want to lock up the station.”
