One Woman's Junk

by J. B. Lynn

  “I have a date to get ready for,” Beatrice announced. “I don’t see any point in continuing to argue with you.”

  “So you do like him,” Winnie crowed.

  Beatrice hesitated and then nodded. “Yeah, I guess I do.”

  What she didn’t tell her sister was that she was also using Ash so that she could finally figure out what was on the memory card.

  43

  Amanda blinked back tears as she stalked away from One Woman’s Junk. She could barely control the emotions welling up inside her. She was angry. She was scared. She was sad. But most of all, she was confused. What had Letty gotten herself into?

  She became aware that Rupert had fallen into step beside her. If he’d been in corporeal form, she would have shoved him away.

  “You shouldn’t let her get to you like that,” he advised.

  “You shouldn’t speak unless spoken to,” she griped back. “I don’t need your advice on how to deal with my sisters.”

  “Fair enough,” Rupert said. “Letty was not a thief.”

  “I know.”

  “So then why are you so upset?” he asked.

  Amanda threw her hands up into the air. “Everything is wrong, Letty’s dead. I’m fighting with my sisters. My life is a train wreck.”

  “A train wreck?”

  Amanda flopped down on a nearby bus stop bench. “I’m newly divorced and I don’t have a job because I worked at his office.” She closed her eyes and put her head in her hands.

  “That’s rough.”

  “That’s impossible,” she muttered. “Friends are choosing sides. Neighbors are gossiping. Everything I thought we’d built is just…gone.” She snapped her fingers for emphasis.

  “So what are you going to do?”

  “I thought I could start over here, but now I’ve got Beatrice talking about Letty suffering from foul play and Winnie is worried our godmother was a thief. I don’t know what to think anymore. What do you think I should do?”

  “About what?” another man asked.

  Startled, Amanda looked up. Detective Tom Keller was standing a yard away, considering her carefully. She wondered how much of the one-sided conversation he’d overheard.

  Heat flushed her skin, and she looked away. “Why are you here?”

  “I’m doing what I said I would,” the detective replied calmly.

  Amanda shook her head. “People don’t just do what they say.”

  He sat down on the seat beside her. “I’m trying to do the right thing.”

  “People don’t do the right thing.” She hated the bitterness she heard in her voice, but he seemed unfazed by it.

  Keller spoke slowly, seeming to choose his words with care. “Well, as part of my job, I must admit that I see a lot of people like that. But I choose to believe that there are good people in the world. Don’t you?”

  Amanda shrugged.

  He leaned closer, searching her expression. “You can’t let past pains poison your present…or future.”

  For a split second, she had the distinct impression he’d peered into her soul, and she didn’t know whether that was a beautiful or terrifying idea. Unnerved, she quickly looked away

  “Anyway, I’m following up on what I said I would do. My shift ended ten minutes ago. I was going to, unofficially, of course, go to Red Bug Slough, where Letty was found. I thought maybe you’d want to come along.”

  Amanda considered the offer for a moment. She really did want to know what had happened to Letty. She nodded slowly. “Just let me tell my sisters where I’m headed.”

  Keller nodded. “Okay.” They walked back toward the shops together. Amanda went into One Woman’s Junk and the detective continued on to PerC Up.

  Amanda quickly told Winnie and Beatrice where she was going, didn’t wait to hear what their comments would be, and rushed right back out of the store. She was just in time to see Piper hugging Tom tightly.

  Disappointment welled up within her. “Some people aren’t who they appear to be,” she muttered under her breath.

  44

  Beatrice’s date with Ash was pretty uneventful. As promised, he took her to an electronics retailer. There, a teenage employee helped her find a memory card reader in the darkest depths of the store, while acting like she was a living dinosaur for wanting it.

  Now all she would need was access to a computer. Ash, though obviously curious by her choice of purchase, didn’t ask any questions.

  He seemed to be intent on keeping everything low key, seeing as they had had the strain of the night before.

  Also, because he was going to be working the next day on the art installation, they’d only had one drink, as she’d requested. Then, he took her back to the shop.

  “I had a good time,” she said with a smile as he rolled her up to the door of One Woman’s Junk.

  She desperately wanted him to kiss her, but he hadn’t been giving any signals that that was his intention.

  “I did, too,” he said with an easy smile.

  The dog ran up to the door and yipped once, as if urging her to come inside.

  “We always seem to have an audience,” Ash said, giving the dog a sidelong glance.

  Beatrice chuckled ruefully. “Honestly, that’s not too unusual with my family.”

  Ash nodded. “You’re lucky you have them. They were really worried about you last night.”

  “I know, but sometimes it feels like they treat me like I’m still ten,” she began to complain. “It probably never even occurred to them that I might have had a good reason for going out.”

  “Did you?”

  “I told you I was worried about Rena.” She wished she could explain more, tell him about the vision she’d had of the girl, but she knew that wasn’t a good idea.

  “You have a good heart, Bea.”

  The warmth in his voice made her want to live up to that belief in her.

  “I’ve got a busy day tomorrow, so I’m going to say goodnight.”

  She nodded, looking away so that he wouldn’t see how unhappy she was that their date was coming to an end.

  “Sweet dreams.” With that, he pulled open the door of One Woman’s Junk and allowed her to roll herself inside.

  “I won’t be around tomorrow, but I’ll see you the next day,” he said.

  She nodded, swallowing down the disappointment that arose in her when she realized she wasn’t going to get a goodnight kiss. He walked away, leaving her alone in the shop. The dog jumped in her lap and yipped.

  “Muffin?”

  The dog growled.

  “Cookie?”

  The dog growled again.

  “Well, we’re going to have to give you a name at some point, whether you like it or not,” she told him.

  The dog cocked his head to the side and whined softly.

  There was a knock at the door behind her, startling her.

  She spun the wheelchair round, hoping that it was Ash returning for a kiss.

  Unfortunately, it wasn’t him. Rena stood there waiting.

  Beatrice motioned for her to enter. “Come in,” she called. The teenager opened the door and strolled in, her backpack, with its colored tassle, as always, thrown over her shoulder.

  “You came back,” Beatrice said.

  “You threatened to come find me,” Rena replied dryly.

  Beatrice chuckled. “Let’s get you set up for the night.”

  A moment later, Amanda descended from upstairs. “You’re home.”

  Beatrice paused for a moment, wondering if this really was home.

  “Did you ask her yet?” Amanda asked.

  Beatrice shook her head.

  “Ask me what?” Rena asked distrustfully.

  Beatrice focused on her and smiled gently. “Can you tell me where you got the Prissy purse?”

  “I didn’t steal it,” Rena said defensively.

  Beatrice nodded. “I know that. But you said you were the one that gave it to Letty, and we’re trying to figure out where you
got it from.”

  “I cruise the nicer neighborhoods on garbage night,” she said.

  “I’m not following,” Amanda said.

  “People put their garbage out the night before for pick-up,” Rena explained. “And people, especially rich people, put out a lot of junk that’s not really junk, like that purse. That’s how I find most of my stuff that Letty sold,” Rena said. “So, I’m not stealing it. They were throwing it out anyway.”

  Beatrice nodded. “Of course you’re not. You’re saving room in the landfills,” she said with a smile.

  “Letty used to say that all the time,” Rena said.

  “Do you remember where you found the purse?” Amanda asked.

  Rena shook her head. “It was at one of the apartment buildings downtown,” she said. “You know, the high-rises that go for, like, millions of dollars. They throw out some really good stuff.”

  Beatrice nodded, realizing that there would be no way to track down how the purse had gotten into the trash.

  “It doesn’t make sense that Amber Axelrod would accuse Letty of stealing it if she’d already thrown it out herself,” Pim yelled across the room where she’d left him on the bookshelf.

  Although she agreed with the sheep, Bea ignored him.

  “I didn’t mean to cause trouble for Letty.” Rena hung her head.

  “You didn’t,” Beatrice assured her. “You’re not responsible for what Amber Axelrod did.”

  “But now the police think she was a thief,” Rena said sadly.

  Amanda cleared her throat. “Actually, I don’t think that’s what Detective Keller is thinking at all.”

  Beatrice whipped her head around. Something in her sister’s tone told her that she knew more than she just said.

  Amanda studiously avoided making eye contact with Beatrice.

  Beatrice wasn’t sure if that was because she didn’t want to say anything further in front of Rena, or because she was keeping a secret of her own.

  Considering she had a bag that contained a memory card reader on her lap, Beatrice probably wasn’t one to fault somebody else for keeping secrets.

  45

  Beatrice desperately wanted to know what Amanda had found out from Detective Keller, and she desperately wanted to find out what was on the memory card, but with Rena sleeping a few feet away, she couldn’t do either.

  As a result, she had a restless night, her mind playing over all the possibilities. Thankfully, it was a busy morning, and everyone was up early, so she could get some answers.

  Rena quickly dashed out because she was helping Ash set up the installation.

  As soon as Amanda came downstairs, Beatrice pinned her with a look. “Okay, spill. Tell me what you found out.”

  Amanda shook her head. “Not before coffee.”

  “Fine, is Winnie coming?”

  “I don’t think so,” Amanda said. “She’s busy sketching and the dog is busy supervising. I think he’s growing on her.”

  Beatrice nodded. “Okay, then let’s go.” Amanda rolled her down toward PerC Up.

  On the way, they passed Ash and Rena loading the kinetic frame machine into his truck.

  “Good luck,” Beatrice called.

  Ash gave her a thumbs-up.

  Since the sky looked like it was going to rain, they decided to sit inside the shop. Amanda parked Beatrice at the table where the wheelchair fit best, and went up to get their food.

  Bea flinched as she saw Beth, the birdbath lady, enter the shop and take a place in line behind Amanda. She wanted to warn her sister that trouble was standing right behind her. But there was no way to do it without drawing unnecessary attention.

  She gripped the table in front of her, which steadied her nerves a bit, and watched them carefully, waiting to see if the woman was going to behave badly.

  While she observed them, her mind wandered back to the purse. She believed Rena when she said she hadn’t stolen it, but that made Beatrice wonder why Amber Axelrod had filed a report with the police. Maybe it was her memory card in the lining and that was why she had been so desperate to retrieve it.

  She’d have to figure out a way to use the shop’s computer without anyone seeing her, the sooner the better. She needed to find out what was on the memory card.

  Amanda returned to the table bearing a couple of cups of coffee, completely unaware that the ranting woman was in her vicinity.

  Bea decided not to bring it to her attention, in the hopes the other woman would leave without making another scene.

  “Piper will bring breakfast out in a second,” Amanda said as she settled into the seat opposite Beatrice.

  “So what did the detective say?” Bea asked.

  Amanda glanced around to see if anybody was listening, but no one was paying the slightest bit of attention to them. She leaned closer and confided in a whisper, “He took me to where Letty was found. That’s kind of a pretty place.”

  Beatrice nodded. “It’s not the best place to visit when you’re in a wheelchair.”

  “But I agree with you, it’s not the kind of place Letty would normally go,” Amanda said.

  “Too many trees,” the sisters said in unison.

  They chuckled and both fell silent for a moment.

  Bea remembered how insistent Letty had been about there being no trees on the property in New York. She’d claimed it was because she hated raking leaves, but that hadn’t explained why, even in the heat of summer, she’d always shied away from the areas of the nearby park that provided shade.

  Amanda cleared her throat. “Anyway, the detective led me to the spot where the person had claimed to have found Letty. He thought it unlikely that she tripped and fell backwards.” She fiddled nervously with her coffee cup spoon as she made the revelation.

  Beatrice sucked in a breath. “He really said that?”

  Amanda shrugged.

  Bea squinted at her. “Is this like when you said he had a search warrant and it was really a takeout menu?”

  “Okay, maybe he simply agreed with my insistence that it doesn’t make sense that someone would trip over a root and fall backwards.”

  “Huh,” Beatrice murmured, watching out of the corner of her eye as Beth Friggate left the shop without incident.

  Piper arrived carrying a plate with a couple of warmed soufflés and a blueberry muffin. “Be careful,” she warned. “The soufflés are really hot.” She bustled away to take care of other customers.

  Beatrice was starving so she reached for the muffin first. The moment she touched it, the world tilted.

  Once again, she saw the undulating skull and cross bones filling her vision.

  And then it was over. Her hand stung and she snatched it back, cradling it against her chest.

  “Sorry,” Amanda said. “I smacked your hand because you were doing that space out thing.

  “I saw the skull and cross bones again,” Beatrice said. “It must be important.”

  Amanda nodded. “It feels like there are a lot of things that are important that we don’t understand.”

  “Maybe we need to talk to Harmony,” Beatrice suggested.

  As though she had been summoned, Harmony drifted into the store sporting a t-shirt that featured peace signs in hearts.

  Beatrice waved her over excitedly. “We were just talking about you.”

  Harmony looked from Amanda to Beatrice, an inquiring expression on her face. “Can I get you a coffee or something?” Amanda offered.

  Harmony nodded. “Tea. Piper knows my regular order.”

  Amanda jumped up and got behind the other waiting customers.

  "I don't suppose you know why Letty was at Red Bug Slough," Bea asked the patchouli-scented woman.

  Harmony turned away, but not before Bea saw a guilty expression flash across her face.

  "You DO know," Bea gasped. "You have to tell me."

  Harmony turned back slowly to face her. "She told me she was going there," she began She clasped her hands together and seemed to be choosing h
er words with extra care.

  "Why?" Bea prodded.

  "Margo told her to go," Harmony admitted.

  "Who's Margo?"

  "Margo Stark." Harmony pulled her hair back away from her face with both hands. "The town’s favorite psychic."

  Bea slumped back in her chair. Whatever answer she'd been expecting to receive, it certainly hadn't been that Letty had been sent to the nature preserve by a psychic.

  "Letty was pretty nervous about it," Harmony continued. "You know how she felt about trees."

  Bea nodded. Her godmother's tree phobia was well-known. "Did she say why this Stark woman told her to go?"

  Harmony shook her head sadly. "I was so upset that she’d gone to Margo for advice instead of me. I should have gone with her."

  Her voice was so laden with regret that Bea found herself asking, "Did she want you to?"

  "No. I only know she went there because of what Margo said because she left me a voicemail message asking me to keep an eye out for any packages that might be left outside her door since they were predicting rain that day."

  Remembering the clouds from her vision, Bea asked, "Did it?"

  "I don't remember," Harmony admitted, shifting her weight from one side to the other. “I do remember my arthritis was bothering me, so it might have.”

  Remembering her manners, Bea waved at the empty seat. “Sit, please.”

  Harmony sat down and looked at Beatrice. She glanced down at the ring on Beatrice’s finger. “How can I help you?”

  Beatrice decided to just go with the most recent episode. “Whenever I try to eat here,” she told the other woman, “I have a vision of a skull and cross bones. A pirate’s flag.”

  Harmony sat back in her seat, crossed her arms over her chest, and considered the revelation carefully.

  “Do you have it when you eat anywhere else?” she asked.

  Beatrice shook her head.

  “Interesting,” Harmony mused. “You’ve heard of Gasparilla?”

  “I have. But that doesn’t take place here?”

  Harmony shook her head. “But some people believe that the spirit of the plundering pirate Gaspar spreads out over the state. Maybe you’re seeing his flag.”