Dial Marr for Murder
Page 19
Mrs. Goings’ beautiful dark skin glowed and her pearly white teeth were nearly blinding as she smiled. She took my hand and almost shook my shoulder out of its socket. “Barbara Marr, I am so glad to meet you, honey. Why, I am probably your biggest fan. Vaneshia Goings.”
“Nice to meet you,” I said, eyeing sullen teen behind her. I was pretty sure I’d seen him on television. He was taller than Vaneshia. A knit beanie covered his hair, but he had his mother's eyes.
“This is my son, Robert,” she said, tugging on the boy’s sleeve. “He is about to have a lesson in manners, if you hear what I’m saying. Right?” She gave the kid a harmless smack. “Am I right?”
Robert grumbled. “Yes.”
Vaneshia planted a hand on her hip. “Yes, what, young man?”
“Yes, ma’am,” the kid said to the floor.
“We’re on in thirty seconds, Guy!” someone called out.
Guy took his chair quickly and pointed to each chair as he called out our names. “Ms. Marr, Mr. VanGo, Mrs. Goings.”
Mr. VanGo? This kid was the Vinnie VanGo? “But you can't be more than, what? Twelve? Fifteen?”
Vaneshia answered for him. “He’s seventeen, but he’s always looked young for his age. And he’s a musical genius too. Learned to play piano when he was just four years old, but does he play piano now? Nooooo. He writes nasty, nasty… well I can’t even call them songs… nasty things about nice ladies like you, Barbara Marr.”
Robert Vinnie moaned. “Mama…”
Offstage someone counted down. “We are live in five, four, three, two, one!”
Guy smiled at the camera. “Good afternoon. I’m Guy Mertz, crime reporter for Channel Ten, but today I come to you with an exclusive interview with Barbara Marr, or as many of you know her, Hashtag That Barbara Marr, and two-time Grammy nominee, Vinnie VanGo accompanied by his mother, the lovely Vaneshia Goings.”
Vaneshia practically fell out of her seat she was so excited. She waved to the camera and smiled back at Guy. “Hello, Guy! Thank you for taking my call and having us here. This is a special treat. Better than when I walked the red carpet at the Grammys.”
“Well, that’s quite a compliment, Mrs. Goings. Thank you.” Guy tipped his fedora at the woman.
“Call me Vaneshia.”
“Vaneshia, let's tell the audience why we're here today.”
Vaneshia sat forward in her chair at her cue to start while her son seemed to slink further and further into his. “My friend Kaley called and told me she saw Barbara Marr on television demanding Robert apologize for some song. Well, I hadn’t even heard this song, but when I did…” her eyes rolled all around in their sockets and her head swiveled one way and then the other. “I marched right up to his room and told him he was going to apologize to that nice mother, he was going to do it publicly, and he was going to write a nice song about all mothers in this world.” She slapped the boy’s shoulder. “Didn’t I do that?”
The kid ignored his mother and gazed up at the ceiling.
“Just so we’re all clear,” Guy said, “When you say, Robert, you mean the rapper, Vinnie VanGo, correct?”
“More like, Vinnie Van Show Me the Manners,” Vaneshia answered. “Come on,” she said to her son. “Sit up straight like a man and do what you came here to do.”
Robert Vinnie pushed himself up straight, but he didn’t look me in the eye. “I’m sorry.”
“I’m sorry, what?” his mother said, touching a finger to her ear.
“I’m sorry, Mrs. Marr.”
Vaneshia waggled her finger at him. “That’s not all. Do like we rehearsed and for goodness sakes, look her in the eye. I didn’t raise a coward.”
The boy did as his mother asked, although his eyes took a while to find mine. “I am very sorry for the embarrassment I have caused you, Mrs. Marr. You’re a mother and an upstanding member of your community. You deserve better. I have unpublished the offensive song and today, I have a new one I would like to perform for you on the piano.”
The stage swiveled, making me grasp the arms of my chair. A grand piano appeared and behind it, all of my friends and family. Callie, Bethany, Amber, Howard, Peggy, Roz, my mother, Mama Marr, Colt, and Vikki were all sitting in the studio.
I followed Robert Vinnie and his mother to the piano.
“You are going to love this song,” Vaneshia said. “I helped him write it.” She grabbed me by the shoulder and squeezed me tight. “We mothers have to stick together, am I right?”
“I think you are very right,” I said, smiling.
“By the way,” she added as Robert Vinnie began tickling the ivories. “When this is all done, can I get your autograph?”
THE END
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About the Author
Hello! Karen Cantwell here, saying thank you for reading my book! I like to think of myself as a storyteller, and I hope you found this story both fun and entertaining. In addition to the Barbara Marr Murder Mystery Series, I also write the humorous Sophie Rhodes Ghostly Romance Series as well as many short stories. Please connect with me on Facebook, on twitter, or visit my website, where I list the books in both series by order. While there, you can also sign up for new email newsletter to receive announcements of new book releases. Newsletter subscribers also receive free, subscriber-only stories!!
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Also by Karen Cantwell
Karen's books by series and in order:
The Sophie Rhodes Ghostly Romance Series
Keep Me Ghosted (#1)
Some Like it Haunted (#2)
The Barbara Marr Murder Mysteries Series
Take the Monkeys and Run (#1)
Citizen Insane (#2)
Silenced by the Yams (#3)
Saturday Night Cleaver (#4)
Dead Man Stalking (#5)
Love in Rustic Woods Romantic Comedy Series
Kiss Me, Tate (#1)
Short Stories and Collections:
A Spirited Season, Holiday Tales with a Paranormal Flair
It's a Dunder-Bull Wife, A Barbara Marr Holiday Tale
Bjorn! on the Fourth of July, A Barbara Marr Short Story
Short Stories in Multi-Author Anthologies
Chesapeake Crimes: They Had It Comin’
Chesapeake Crimes: This Job Is Murder
Copyright
Dial Marr for Murder
Copyright © 2017 by Karen Fraunfelder Cantwell
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieva
l system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are entirely the product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual events, locales or persons, living or dead is, coincidental.
Acknowledgments
First and foremost, I want to thank Barbara Marr fans for being so patient while this sixth book in the series struggled to be written and published. Your kindness and understanding have warmed my heart.
Three people in particular have been extremely helpful in pushing this project forward to completion:
My first editor, Maria Schneider. Maria is a fantastic editor, but also a wonderful writer as well. You can learn more about Maria and her books and services at www.BearMountainBooks.com
My second editor, Laura Lucas. Laura is an editor, proofreader, and romance writer. A triple threat! You can learn more about her books and services at Laura Lucas Writes.
Finally, my last proofreader, who also turned about to be an editor with a keen eye too: Emma Cantwell. She doesn’t have a website, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she doesn’t decide to be a writer one day, so be on the lookout!