by Cindy Bell
“That’s a good thing.” Brenda patted her chest and took a deep breath. “I hope.”
“It is.” Melissa straightened up and grinned. “You’re just going to have to make sure that you can keep up with all of the orders that you have. Good thing I’m around, huh?”
“Yes, it’s a very good thing.” Brenda smiled in return. “Speaking of which, we’d better get another batch going.”
Brenda tried to find her peace with her hands in the dough, but instead her mind wandered to all of the mistakes she’d made on camera. By the time the next batch of donuts was ready, her stomach had twisted into knots.
“Melissa, do you think there’s any way we could stop Alexa from publishing the vlog?” Hot water rushed over her hands as she washed them in the sink.
“Don’t be silly, it’ll be great.” Melissa added more donuts to the display.
Brenda wanted to believe her, but she felt very nervous. She didn’t think it would be great at all.
Chapter 2
Despite Brenda’s apprehension about the interview, the day continued on, busier than she expected. Whenever there weren’t customers waiting for donuts, Brenda gazed out through the front window at the increasing crowd. Despite the numerous people, she picked out Alexa easily. Perhaps the pink streaks made her stand out, but there were many people in the crowd with dyed hair. Something seemed to draw her attention to Alexa no matter where she was in the crowd. Perhaps it was because she never moved alone. When she moved, about five or six other people around her moved as well. She appeared to have a crew that floated around her like a strange cloud. Brenda didn’t have too much time to look out the window, however, as the line at the donut truck continued to be constant throughout the day. They ran through their donuts quickly, and soon Brenda’s mind was on how to keep up with the demand, rather than what Alexa might be up to.
“Melissa, here’s a few more donuts we can put out, but this next batch needs to go on the racks or we’re not going to have any donuts to sell.” Brenda turned to her with a small tray.
“Great, let me get them up there.” Melissa turned towards the window of the truck. “Uh oh, something’s going on out there.” She leaned across the counter to get a closer look at the disturbance in the crowd. “There’s some kind of commotion.”
“Commotion?” Joyce walked up next to her and tried to get a clear view as well. “Everyone seems to be gathering near the entrance. Brenda, you’d better take a look at this.”
“What is it?” Brenda piled some donuts on a tray to cool, then lined up beside Joyce and Melissa. Right away she caught sight of the people gathering near the entrance of the town square. “Are they wearing gas masks?” Her heart began to pound. “What’s going on here?”
“It’s a protest against chemicals and pesticides in our food.” Melissa frowned as she shook her head. “It’s meant to startle you, to make you think. But it doesn’t seem like a wise thing to do in a crowd like this, people might panic.”
“Just like Detective Crackle warned might happen.” Brenda frowned as she took a step back. “He knew there might be a protest, and that it might get out of control. Maybe we should close up for the day.” She began to gather what donuts remained on the display shelves.
“Wait, no we can’t just shut down.” Joyce continued to gaze out through the window. “Brenda, this is a special moment. Anytime people gather together to stand up for something they believe in, that’s something that we should support.”
“But it’s causing all kinds of chaos.” Brenda shook her head as she crossed her arms. “What if someone gets hurt?”
“Chaos can lead to some pretty great things.” Joyce’s soft palm rested on Brenda’s back. “Let them have their say, because when it’s a topic that matters to you, you will want to have your say as well.”
“That’s true.” Brenda took a deep breath. “I guess I’m letting my cautious ‘Mommy brain’ rule.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that, but keep in mind there is one thing I know protesting does.” Joyce smiled as she glanced over at her friend. “It makes people hungry. We’re going to want to stay open.”
“Then I’d better get to making that next batch.” Brenda shot a brief glance in the direction of the crowd, then returned to making the next batch of donuts. As she began to relax into the process, she nearly forgot about the protest.
When a sudden shout pierced through the noise of the crowd, Brenda jumped. She nearly dropped the donut she’d just glazed. “What was that?”
“Uh oh.” Melissa hung out through the window, then reached for the lever that closed it. “We need to shut everything up real fast. Things are getting a little out of control.”
“Here, let me get these out of the way.” Joyce lunged for the display tray while Brenda collected the napkins and other items near the edge of the counter.
“What do you mean, out of control?” Brenda frowned as she looked out through the windshield of the truck. She could see the police surrounding the crowd of protesters. “Someone must have done something out of line.”
“I bet Alexa had something to do with it. I saw her all alone near the front of the crowd just after the violence started and the police started closing in. I wonder if she did something to incite it?” Melissa narrowed her eyes. “She does like to stir things up.”
“You’re sure she was alone?” Brenda met her eyes.
“Yes. Why?” Melissa turned her attention to the crowd again.
“It just seems strange to me, because she had this group of people around her every time I saw her. Are you sure no one else was around her?” Brenda frowned as she saw the police break up the crowd and direct the protestors towards the parking lot.
“I’m sure. I noticed, because she was by herself. I thought about going over to say hello and talk to her about the interview. But we were so busy trying to catch up with the donuts that I didn’t get the chance,” Melissa said.
“Do you see her in the crowd, now?” Brenda did her best to get a good look at the crowd that had begun to surge towards the parking lot. Despite Alexa’s unusual hair, she couldn’t place the woman. Perhaps she had stirred the protestors up into a frenzy, and then bolted before she could face any consequences.
“No, I don’t. But there is an officer heading this way.” Melissa tucked her hair back behind her ears. “You two do the talking, all right?”
“Melissa, are you okay?” Joyce caught her eye as she turned away and noticed she looked nervous.
“I’m fine, thanks, but I think they’re coming to see you.” Melissa headed farther back in the truck. “I’ll start on these dishes.”
Brenda started to question her further, but a sharp knock on the door of the truck drew her attention away. She popped it open to find one of the officers outside.
“Ma’am, we’re asking everyone to close up for the day. It’s the best way to make sure that things calm down.” The officer glanced past her, into the truck and nodded to Joyce.
“Is everything okay out there?” Joyce frowned as she stepped up behind Brenda. “No one got hurt, I hope?”
“No, no one was hurt. But there were a few arguments, punches and some threats. We felt it was time to shut things down. We’re going to stick around until we’re sure that everyone has safely closed up and cleared the area. It’s for everyone’s safety.” The officer shifted his stance a little closer to the door. “You don’t have a problem with that, do you?”
“No, it’s fine.” Brenda forced a smile. “Thanks for your efforts, Officer. We’ll get closed up as quickly as possible.” She gave him a brief wave before she closed the door.
“You handled that well.” Joyce stepped back farther into the truck. “I would have asked a lot more questions.”
“Maybe I should have, but I didn’t want to hold him up.” Brenda looked past Joyce, to Melissa. The water in the sink was up to her elbows. “Melissa, you know you can talk to us about anything that might make you uncomfortable.”
“We’d better get everything cleaned up.” Joyce leaned closer to Brenda and spoke in a softer voice. “Let her be for now.”
Brenda nodded, then began to box up the remaining donuts, while Joyce took care of the cash register. By the time they all left the truck, most of the town square and the surrounding area had cleared out.
“Not that long ago, this place was hopping, now it’s like a ghost town.” Brenda shook her head as she walked with Joyce and Melissa towards the parking lot. “It’s strange how fast things can change.”
“Yes, it is.” Joyce gave her a brief hug, before she broke away to head towards her car. “See you tomorrow, ladies, bright and early!”
“I’ll be here.” Melissa waved to them both and jogged off to her car. She’d only recently gotten it, and though it was an older model, Brenda could see the excitement in the young woman’s eyes every time she saw it. She could recall that special moment when she’d owned her first car. Yes, things certainly did change fast.
The subtle chirping of birds in the trees that lined Brenda’s driveway gave her some sense of calm before she stepped out of the car. Brenda spent a few seconds any chance she could, just listening. Not for anything in particular, but to remind herself that a world existed beyond her thoughts and experiences. She’d spent most of the day making donuts, while the birds in the trees spent their morning just as busy she guessed, but for different reasons with different goals. Inside the house she knew her husband and daughter waited. She could imagine their day. He’d picked her up from school, and probably took her by the ice cream parlor as he always liked to do on Fridays, then spent the afternoon playing board games. It warmed her heart to know that her husband adored spending time with their daughter just as much as she did.
When Brenda stepped inside, she saw Sophie’s book bag tossed near the front door, and her muddy sneakers piled up in the corner. She spotted her light jacket tossed over the back of a chair in the dining room, and a napkin from the ice cream parlor crumpled up on the middle of the table. She snatched it up as she walked past and smiled. Yes, they’d had a wonderful day.
“Where’s my Sophie?” Brenda sang out her words as she walked through the dining room into the kitchen.
“Here we are.” Sophie looked up from the board game on the kitchen table with a wide grin. “Mommy’s home!”
“Thank goodness!” Charlie tossed down the dice in his hand. “Did you know that your daughter cheats?”
“What?” Brenda gasped and laughed at the same time as she slung her arms around her husband’s neck. “That’s not possible.”
“I would never!” Sophie struggled to talk over her giggles.
Brenda let go of the strange events of the afternoon and settled in with her family for a wonderful night. Yes, there was a lot going on in the world, but this was her favorite place to be.
Brenda opened her eyes the next morning to the throb of a dull headache. She winced, turned her face into her pillow, and wished for just a moment that she didn’t have to get out of bed. Then the reason why she needed to get out of bed surfaced in her mind. Donuts on the Move. No, she didn’t always want to get up so early in the morning, but when she remembered why, her enthusiasm always returned. She slid out from under the covers as quietly as she could. Charlie’s snores continued in their regular pattern. She knew that a little later he would wake up and cook breakfast for their daughter. He would read her jokes out of a joke book, and they would both laugh. It was their Saturday morning routine.
One good thing that came out of Brenda working in the donut truck was the time that Charlie and Sophie got to spend together. Since he worked from home a lot of the time, he was generally available for her, and their bond had increased quite a bit. Still, it always tugged at Brenda’s heart to leave the house before her daughter was awake. For so many years she was Sophie’s whole world, now they were discovering what it was like to be apart.
As Brenda headed out the door towards the car, she had to stifle a yawn. She wanted to arrive early so that there would be time to prepare extra donuts. She would often give Joyce a lift to the truck, but it was parked pretty much the same distance from both of their houses at the moment so there was no need.
After the large flow of customers the day before Brenda wanted to be more prepared. As she headed for the town square, she rolled down the window and took a deep breath of the moist pre-dawn air. She did find something magical about being awake when most people were asleep. As if she was part of some secret society that knew the thick quiet of the hour before the sun began to rise.
When Brenda pulled into the parking lot, she noticed a few other people were already there. Still a little bleary-eyed, she headed across the parking lot towards the truck. A loud screech of tires startled her just as she reached the other side. She spun on her heel as she expected to see an out-of-control car. Instead she saw something large hit the ground, and the dust that kicked up from the wildly spinning tires of the car that sped away.
The roar of the engine tore through the thick morning air like a jagged blade. She squinted as she took a few steps towards what had been left behind. Mentally, she became aware of what it was, long before she could psychologically accept what sprawled across the ground. A scream, not unlike the high-pitched sound of a few moments before, drew her out of her shocked state.
No, she wasn’t mistaken. If she had been able to breathe, she might have screamed as well. Instead, she could only stare at the bright pink streaks that trailed through blonde hair, splayed across the ground. The unmoving figure drew the attention of the few people in the parking lot. A hand came into Brenda’s line of vision as someone checked for a pulse. A fruitless endeavor, the hand disappeared, and a voice replaced it.
“She’s dead, I’m pretty sure she’s dead. Someone, call the police!”
The police. The words echoed through Brenda’s mind. She could do better than that, she could call a detective.
Brenda’s trembling grasp threatened to drop her phone as she pulled it out of her purse. She tightened her grip, and managed to select Detective Crackle’s phone number. By the time the call connected, sirens sounded in the distance.
“Hello?” Detective Crackle’s sleep-logged voice mumbled into her ear.
“Detective, it’s Brenda, there’s been an incident at the town square. Someone just left Alexa Vue’s body in the middle of the parking lot. I thought you would want to know.” She tensed as she noticed more cars entering the parking lot. “Someone, stop them from driving through here! Stop them!”
“Brenda, are you okay?” Detective Crackle’s sharp tone cut through her panic.
“Yes, I just don’t want them to drive over any evidence.” She drew a few slow breaths in an attempt to control the panic that swelled within her. “Detective Crackle, are you going to come here?”
“Yes, I’ll be there in just a few minutes. Stay safe, Brenda.” He hung up the phone.
Jarred by his sudden absence, Brenda slid her phone back into her purse and took a quick survey of her surroundings. She noticed Vanessa from Vanessa’s Veggies. From the way she trembled and hugged herself, Brenda guessed that the scream she heard came from her. Kevin from the burger truck stood over Alexa’s body. He seemed to be shooing everyone back from the area. Good idea, she thought, as her head spun again. There were a few other familiar faces, but she couldn’t put names to them at the moment. She also noticed a man she had never seen before. He stood out to her because his tall and broad body looked relaxed amongst the chaos. As the dawn began to break through the heavy morning clouds, the red and blue lights of approaching police cars splashed across the area in a myriad of colors.
Brenda’s mind flashed back to the day before, when Alexa thrust the phone into her face and questioned her in ways that she didn’t expect. The woman was so vibrant, so determined. Someone had cut all of that off. Every little sound in her surroundings se
emed amplified as her senses sought to comprehend what she witnessed. How could this have happened?
Chapter 3
Numb from the shock of the event, Brenda managed to send a quick text to Joyce. She wanted to warn her about what had happened, to hopefully prevent her from experiencing the same shock when she turned up. However, her fingers trembled as she attempted to type, and the final message came out quite strange thanks to autocorrect. She sent another message in an attempt to make herself clearer. As she looked up from the phone, she caught sight of Detective Crackle walking towards her. The tension in his expression caused the lines in his weathered face to deepen. The morning sunlight did nothing to alleviate the dark circles that seemed to be perpetually present under his eyes.
“Brenda, are you okay?” He paused in front of her.
Brenda stared at him for a moment. She knew that the detective had spoken, but had yet to understand what the words meant. After a second passed, the sounds all around her slammed back into her mind, along with a wave of dizziness.
“I’m fine.” She swallowed hard. “At least, I will be.”
“All right.” Detective Crackle placed one hand heavily on her shoulder and looked straight into her eyes. “Just take a deep breath. Count it out with me. One, two, three.” His voice trailed off as he continued to hold her gaze.
Brenda followed his instructions, and realized that she might not have been breathing before he told her to. Of course logically she knew she was, but it sure didn’t seem like it.
“Thanks.” She brushed her hair back over her shoulders and took another deep breath. “I’m sorry, I just don’t know what to make of all of this.”
“You don’t have to know right now.” Detective Crackle pulled out a notepad and pen. “But if you don’t mind, I’d like to pick your brain about what you saw, and heard. You are one of the few witnesses.”