The Possum Hollow Hullabaloo (The Penelope Pembroke Cozy Mystery Series)

by Nickles, Judy

  “He will.”

  “Okay. ‘Night, Mother. Oh, by the way, Chief got the order of exhumation for that grave Parnell saw.”

  “You think it’s Yvonne Hadden?”

  “I think we’ve got to find out. Goodnight.”

  “Goodnight, Bradley.”

  “Goodnight, Sam,” Bradley called up the stairs, sounding amused.

  “How did he know you were here?” Penelope hissed at the man standing in the shadows outside her bedroom door.

  “He’s a good cop.”

  “He blessed sure is, and don’t you forget it!” She brushed past him. “Goodnight.”

  ****

  Mary Lynn called the next morning while Penelope and Jake were eating breakfast. “Tonya Cisneros called last night and said not to take the girls to school this morning because she was worried about their father turning up.”

  “How did she know?” Penelope asked, making the instant decision not to share last night’s happenings at the B&B.

  “Either George Harris called her or Brad did. I don’t care. I offered to take them shopping for new clothes, because they don’t have anything except what’s on their backs, and I doubt there’s much more in their house.”

  “Is that a good idea?”

  “Actually, Mrs. Cisneros said to bring them to Little Rock and meet her for lunch.”

  “Uh-oh.”

  “No, she also said she was working on getting Harry and me recertified as foster parents, at least temporarily.”

  “Does that mean the girls are going to be allowed to stay in familiar territory?”

  “I don’t know what it means, but they’re really excited about the shopping trip. I doubt they’ve ever been five miles out of the Hollow, either one of them. I’ve got to stop at the police station and borrow a booster seat for Evie.”

  “Good luck then. I’ll let George know what’s going on.”

  “Thanks, Pen. I’ll call you tonight.”

  “You’ll have to get your own breakfast,” Penelope said to Sam when he walked in the back door. “You should’ve waited to see a man about a dog. Now I’ve got to go to school.”

  He laughed. “See a man about a dog?”

  “That’s what Daddy says you do when you disappear early and stay late.”

  Jake reached for the sports section of the paper. “Good a reason as any, I guess.”

  Sam laughed again. “I’m driving you to school this morning.”

  “Why?”

  “Let’s just say I’m doing a favor for a friend.”

  “You’ve been talking to my son.”

  Sam raised his eyebrows twice in quick succession. “I’ll never tell.”

  “Are you going to stay? If you are, you’ll need a lunch.”

  “I’ll be around.”

  Penelope threw two sandwiches together and added them to her small cooler along with an apple and a baggie of cookies. “I’m ready.”

  Sam bowed low, sweeping his hand toward the door. “Your chariot awaits.”

  ****

  The day looked to be a quiet one until just after lunch when Alana Mueller showed up again. George Harris rolled his eyes as he escorted her into his office. Penelope, watching from the open door of the library, thought she stayed a long time. When she left, George stood in the hall shaking his head.

  “What’s she up to now?” Penelope asked, stepping out of the library.

  “She says she’s going to bring three more people out here with her on Monday and screen all the kids for possible abuse.”

  “You’re kidding!”

  “That’s what she said.”

  “Why, for blessed Pete’s sake?”

  “Beats me. Of course, all I have to do is get the word out, and nobody’ll show up on Monday. But then she’d come back on Tuesday. Better get it over with, I guess.”

  “Can she do that? Talk to the kids without their parents’ permission?”

  “She must think so. ‘Course, they’re not going to tell her anything, but I’m going to call the DA’s office and find out for sure just how far she can go.” He shook his head again and went back to his office.

  ****

  At four o’clock, Sam came back for Penelope. “Where’ve you been all day?” she asked.

  “Around.”

  “You were at the exhumation, weren’t you? Was it Yvonne Hadden?”

  “Her sister identified her from a string of beads around her neck.”

  “Did it look like she’d been…”

  “It wasn’t pretty,” Sam said. “And that’s all I’m going to say.”

  Penelope told him about Alana Mueller’s visit. “George Harris called the DA who called Little Rock to see what was going on. So far he hasn’t called back.”

  “That woman is going to get herself killed if she’s not careful,” Sam said. “She has no idea what a hornet’s nest she’ll stir up out here.”

  “George tried to tell her that.”

  “Monday, huh?”

  “That’s what she said—that she and three more like her would be back on Monday.”

  “Is Monday one of your days?”

  “I’m there Monday, Thursday, and Friday. Shana arranged to have a volunteer at the library on Tuesday mornings so she could come out. Mary Lynn is here Wednesday and Thursday. And Miss Maude comes every day.”

  “She drives herself?”

  “No, she rides out with Pam and Paul Hollis. They teach fifth and sixth grades, and it’s on their way to stop for her.”

  Sam drove in silence until he reached the city limit sign. “I don’t guess you’d consider skipping Monday?”

  “Not without good reason.”

  “I can’t give you one, Nell. Just a hunch.”

  “You ought to share your hunch with George Harris then. He’s responsible for all those kids.”

  “I’ll think about it.” He reached for her hand. “I’ll bet Jake would be up for a beer and a Reuben tonight, what do you think?”

  “Boys night out?”

  “Thought we might make it a threesome.”

  “I’m good with that.”

  He kissed her before she got out of the car at the B&B. “I’ll be back around seven.”

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  “It’s pretty empty for a Friday night,” Penelope remarked as Sam pulled into the parking lot at the Sit-n-Swill.

  “Early yet,” Jake said.

  “It’s after seven, Daddy.”

  “Well, Friday nights are long. They don’t have to get started at dark.” He glanced at Sam who came around to open the car door for Penelope. “By the way, who are you tonight, and why are you here?”

  “Friend of the family from Mississippi,” Sam said easily. “Visiting for the weekend.”

  Penelope wrinkled her nose. “Can’t you do better than that?”

  He landed a quick kiss on her mouth. “Okay, I’m Attila the Hun, and I’ve come to pillage and take booty…” He patted her backside as she stepped out.

  She slapped his hand away. “Not that kind of booty!”

  Jake cackled. “You two are a case, a real case.”

  Mike welcomed them at the door and pointed out their usual table. “Don’t think I’ve met you,” he said to Sam.

  “Sam Billings from Mississippi,” Sam drawled, putting out his hand. “Friend of the family. Just stopped by for the weekend on my way north.”

  “Your first visit to the Sit-n-Swill?”

  Unless you want to count those times he showed up with his biker buddies. Penelope snickered. Jake frowned at her.

  Loretta Lynn’s “Coalminer’s Daughter” started up from the jukebox. “We need some new tunes, I guess,” Mike said.

  “Nah, I like the old ones,” Jake said. “You know what I want.”

  “A Reuben and a beer. What about the rest of you?”

  “I’ll have the same,” Sam said.

  “Club sandwich and a bottle of water,” Penelope said. “And some of those great chips you ord
er in.”

  She noticed Sam seemed to be scanning the sparsely-populated room, with more attention toward the back door than the front. What does he know? Is something going to happen? Surely he wouldn’t have brought Daddy and me here if there was going to be trouble. She tapped her foot to Glenn Campbell’s “Rhinestone Cowboy” and watched a young couple make their way to the empty space reserved for dancing.

  “You going to light the fireplace tonight, Mike?” Jake asked when the owner came back with their order.

  “It’s almost cold enough but not quite,” Mike said.

  “Vincent Ives laying low these days?”

  “I think somebody laid him about as low as he could get,” Mike said. “Millie’s still skittish about getting too close to the fireplace when she’s in here alone.”

  Sam played dumb. “Trouble with the fireplace?”

  “It’s a long story,” Mike said, plopping two bottles of beer on the scarred wooden table. “Get Jake and Penelope to tell it to you.”

  “Funny, Sam,” Penelope said, trying not to move her lips. “Real funny.”

  He winked. “I’m just sorry I missed the bones in the basement.”

  “I bet you are. Your taste runs to bodies.”

  A mask closed off his face. He picked up the beer and took a long swallow.

  Now what did I say? He deals with bodies all the time. I never saw one bother him, even Harvey Hadden propped up on that brass bed in Miss Madeline’s room, with his eyes open and the blood running down his face…Penelope closed her eyes against the memory and eyed her sandwich with distaste.

  Later, she watched Sam stand in front of the jukebox and scan the selections. He dropped in a coin and punched a button. The strains of “Tennessee Waltz” filled the room. “Dance?” he asked, holding out his hand.

  Moving in Sam’s arms was exhilarating—and slightly uncomfortable when she thought of his penchant for suggestive remarks. He folded her hand inside his and rested his chin on top of her head as he maneuvered her expertly around the floor.

  Where did you learn to dance like this? Who did you dance with? Will this be last time you dance with me? Will you remember this night, Sam? I’ll remember so many nights with you. Oh, not like you want to remember them but just being near you…just wanting you and wishing…

  The front door flew open, ushering in a blast of cool air and the large unkempt presence of Jeremiah Hadden. “I want my kids!” he yelled, waving a shotgun in the air before zeroing in on Penelope frozen in Sam’s arms. “You got no right to take my kids! Give ‘em back! Give ‘em back now!” The sound of the gun discharging, followed by a shower of plaster from the ceiling above Penelope, spurred the surprised patrons to action. Three men tackled Jeremiah from behind, but Sam got there first.

  ****

  After Parnell hauled Jeremiah out and off, Rosabel took statements from everyone. Mike declared the Sit-n-Swill closed. “I’ll help you clean up,” Penelope offered. “It was my fault he was in here.”

  “How do you figure?” Mike asked.

  Rosabel tucked her notebook back into her pocket. “Not really,” she said, giving Penelope a look that meant don’t explain. “The damage to your ceiling doesn’t look serious, Mr. Dancer, but I’d recommend calling your insurance agent on Monday.”

  “Yeah, I’ll do that, Officer Deane…Officer Pembroke.”

  She smiled, showing her dimples and a slight blush. “I still use Deane at work.” She tucked her arm through Penelope’s and started for the door. “Sam sticking around awhile?”

  Penelope shrugged. “How should I know?”

  “Brad gave Bert Hadden what-for, so he won’t be bothering you, and I don’t expect we’ll be turning Jeremiah loose anytime soon, at least until the medical report on his wife gets back from Little Rock.”

  “That’s good to know. Mary Lynn will be relieved, too. The social worker let Ellie and Evie come back here for the weekend since…”

  “Right. Brad has to question Ellie about her mother. He’s not looking forward to it.”

  “Poor little girls.”

  “You be careful, Penelope. Jeremiah’s not the only Hadden in Possum Hollow, although he’s probably the only one who’d bother to come to town right now.”

  “We can always hope. Thanks, Rosie. I’ll have something for dinner Sunday if you and Brad want to come by. You can even take it home with you. I know you don’t get much time together at home right now.”

  “Thanks, we just might do that. I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  Penelope went back to the table where Jake and Sam were having another bottle of beer. “On the house,” Jake said, tapping the brown bottle.

  Penelope scanned the empty room. “Did you know this was going to happen, Sam?”

  “If I knew, do you really think I’d have brought you and Mr. Kelley here?”

  “Jake, son. Just Jake.”

  “I suppose not.” Penelope let her eyes meet his briefly, then dropped them. “No, I know you wouldn’t deliberately put Daddy and me in harm’s way.” She tried to smile. “We didn’t finish our dance.”

  “Another time, Nell.” He emptied his bottle and set it down. “Ready to go home?”

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Sam didn’t come to breakfast, and Jake said he hadn’t seen him since the night before. “You two looked good dancing together,” he said, trying to lighten his daughter’s mood.

  “Did we?”

  “Your mother and I loved dancing.”

  “I remember. You used to dance to the phonograph in the foyer sometimes.”

  “Phonograph. Been a while since I heard it called that.”

  Penelope sighed. “There are too many new gadgets these days. Cassettes, CDs, iPods. Who knows what else will come along?”

  “I should be saying that instead of you.”

  “I don’t like things the way they are lately.”

  “Things could change.”

  “Pigs could fly, too. I’m going to Mary Lynn’s and see what the latest is with the girls. You know Bradley has to talk to them about their mother.”

  “That’ll be hard on all of them.” Jake finished his coffee and got up. “I’ll go see what the Toneys are up to.” He leaned down and kissed Penelope’s cheek. “Smile, darlin’. It’s the only way to survive.”

  ****

  Penelope peeked into the den where Ellie and Evie were sprawled on the floor watching cartoons. They wore matching pink flannel pajamas with multi-colored cats tumbling over the pants. “Have you managed to spoil them completely in two days?” she asked Mary Lynn as they sat in the kitchen.

  “They were due, don’t you think?”

  “Has Bradley called?”

  Mary Lynn teared up. “They’re so happy. It’s like they just chucked their whole miserable little lives and settled in here with Harry and me.”

  “He has to do it, Mary Lynn.”

  “I know. I called Tonya Cisneros. She says she wants to be here. Damage control, I guess. Then she’ll probably take them to a shelter or a foster home.”

  “Why? I thought she was trying to get you and Harry recertified as foster parents. This is the perfect place for them, especially with Jeremiah…”

  “Brad told me what happened last night. Having their father locked up indefinitely could make a difference, I guess.” Mary Lynn stirred her coffee, now grown cold. “But if the girls tell Brad that he killed their mother…”

  Penelope poured out the cold coffee and refilled her friend’s cup. “It’ll work out, I just feel it in my bones.”

  “I never realized how empty this house was before.”

  “I guess I never realized how much you and Harry missed having children.”

  ****

  Penelope didn’t see Sam at all on Saturday or Sunday, although she knew he slept in his bed, and the meals she left for him disappeared regularly. Bradley and Rosabel didn’t come for lunch after Mass. Mary Lynn called to say that she and Harry still had the girls. “It’s a day
-to-day thing, according to Tonya.”

  “Well, at least you’re on a first-name basis with her.”

  “She’s not actually Alana Mueller’s supervisor. She was just filling in that day. It seems the absent supervisor is now back and planning to be at the school on Monday. I don’t want to send Ellie back, and Tonya said she wouldn’t even ask if I kept her home. But she’ll have to go back sometime.”

  “Did Bradley come talk to the girls?”

  “Not yet.”

  “Maybe Monday.”

  “Maybe so. I’m just trying to enjoy them while they’re here.”

  George Harris called later in the evening. “The DA’s office got back to me. Technically, they can’t question the children without their parents’ permission, but they can investigate abuse. Will you be here on Monday? Not that I’d blame you if you stayed away.”

  “I’ll be there.”

  “It may get nasty. The children don’t talk to us as much as they should, and they’re not going to talk to strangers.”

  “So what will Alana Mueller and company do? Round them up like cattle, herd them into trucks and take them off?”

  “Who knows?”

  “Well, I’ll be there, George, and so will Miss Maude, I’m sure. Mary Lynn’s keeping Ellie and Evie at home, but you didn’t hear that from me.”

  “I didn’t hear a thing.”

  ****

  Sam showed up for breakfast on Monday morning and dropped his sheets off in the laundry room. “I guess you’re going to the school today.”

  “I guess you’re leaving today.”

  He nodded. “You didn’t answer my question.”

  “Jeremiah Hadden’s locked up, and I can’t let George Harris deal with Alana Mueller and her team of self-styled do-gooders by himself.”

  “Just watch yourself, Nell.”

  She wondered if he didn’t kiss her goodbye later because Jake was sitting there or because he didn’t want to.

  ****

  George Harris squeezed the entire faculty into his office before the buses arrived and told them about the impending visit by the welfare officials. “Keep your cool with them,” he cautioned. “We’re not exactly according to Hoyle out here, and I’d as soon they not get any ideas about reporting us to the State Board of Education. And there’s one more thing. Most of you know about Yvonne Hadden. Well, Jeremiah came into town Friday night and ended up in the pokey, but he’s not the only Hadden in the Hollow. Brad Pembroke called me last night and suggested we keep the doors locked, fire code or not, and have recess in the gym until further notice.”