Always on Duty

by DB McNicol

  Pansy Tucker, her aunt, was the unofficial founder of this unorthodox group - or maybe the unorthodox founder of this unofficial group would be a better description. She sipped her tea and listened to the voices rising above the clatter of dishes and silverware as everyone finished eating and continued sharing their snippets of gossip.

  "Yeah, that fire was something else. The volunteers had their hands full. I heard they brought in the Bradford Fire Department, too. The chief told Tony it was so tough to fight ‘cause of the way it's been built up and added to over the years. That and it had probably been burning for hours before it got seen and called in." This from the gentleman at the end of the table. Tom, Cherie struggled to remember his name, he's married to that tiny lady beside him.

  The oldest person at the table, Bob Rounder spoke up. "Well I heard it was so bad the walls fell smack into the basement. They had to let it burn to the ground."

  "My Jimmy said it was really bad. Worst he'd ever seen since he's been a volunteer." This from a woman who walked over from a neighboring table.

  "Hi Janie. Was Jimmy at the fire?" asked Tom's wife, Edy.

  Before Janie could answer, Ed Williams piped in, "You know this ain't the first fire at The Drop Inn. Back in the 80's and 90's when old Earl owned it, there were a couple of ‘em. Never burned to the ground though and he just kept adding on."

  Kat Daily, the owner and only waitress at Kat's Klondike Kafe, started refilling coffee cups as she listened in on the conversations. "More tea, Pansy?"

  "Sure, but fetch me some more Sweet n' Low, too. Gotta watch my girlish figure." Pansy hefted her more than ample bosoms in her hands, smiling innocently at her table mates.

  Edy looked up from her coffee, "Did you hear about the fire last night, Kat? I can't believe The Drop Inn is gone."

  "I know," answered Kat, looking over her shoulder at her son Danny sitting by the cash register listening to his iPod. "Danny." No response. "DANNY!"

  He pulled out an ear bud, "Yeah?"

  "Turn up the scanner, might hear some more news about the fire."

  Danny reached over and turned the volume up a bit, then went back to his music. Kat turned to Edy's husband, Tom. "You up for another cuppa decaf?"

  "Sure thing. Oh, you got another sugar-free blueberry muffin back there?"

  "Sure do. Been saving it just for you."

  She walked towards the counter where she stored the pastries and wrote a note to pick up more blueberries when she went to town. Bradford was a good fifteen miles away and she liked to make as few trips as possible.

  The conversation around her stopped as the screen door slammed and Ed Williams walked in. "They found a body," he announced. "They found a body in the basement of The Drop Inn."

  The stunned silence only lasted seconds before Ed was barraged with questions. Cherie listened carefully, taking mental notes. What a great newspaper story this could be. Might be the break I need. Since arriving in the area she hadn't had many opportunities to showcase her writing talent as a stringer for the Bradford Era. She continued listening. Maybe I'm finally in the right place at the right time.

  "No, I don't know who it is," Ed shook his head vehemently. "I hope it's not Corey but it could be." Corey Tanner was the manager of The Drop Inn and a member of the KBs.

  "Lord, please don't let it be Corey." Merry Jenkins grabbed Pansy's hand. "You don't think it could be Corey, do you?"

  Pansy sighed, "We need to call Corey. Anyone got his number handy?" She looked around the table and all she saw were sad faces. She turned to her niece, "Cherie, would you run out to the car and get my cell phone please. I think I might have his number."

  Tom was talking with Jeff Duncan, a paramedic at the Bradford Hospital. "You'll have to be our inside man, Jeff, working at the hospital and all. That lady coroner is a tough cookie and I know she won't be givin' any info out to anyone but the police."

  Jeff nodded in agreement, "Mary Allardt can be a bit hard-nosed but she is good at what she does. Hopefully she'll get us some answers and won't have to send the body off to Erie or Pittsburgh for analysis. It'll be weeks before we hear anything."

  Cherie walked back in, handed her aunt a cell phone and sat down with pen and paper. There was too much information being slung around to trust to memory, time to make some notes. "Who is Corey?" she quietly asked her aunt.

  Pansy looked up from her cell phone, "He's one of us. The KBs. Doesn't come every week, though so that doesn't mean anything. He manages The Drop Inn for that scum bag Owen Harper." She shook her head and went back to scrolling through her contacts. "Found it." She pressed call as everyone stopped talking and waited. "Darn it Corey, answer the phone." She looked up, "It's still ringing." She finally closed the phone. "No answer and he still hasn't set up his voicemail. Idiot." She shook her head sorrowfully.

  Bob, Tom and Ed continued their conversation. "Who found the body," asked Bob.

  "One of the volunteers, stumbled right over it. Seems it was stored in an old freezer and when the walls fell it knocked it down. Door fell open and the body dropped right out onto the floor. Said it was right in front of him, gave him quite a fright." He wiped his forehead and continued. "Think it was that new guy, Mike something or another. Lives down on No Name Road, across from Jeff and Sarah."

  Ed pointed towards Jeff who responded. "Yeah, Mike Hilliard. He and his wife Marie moved in a couple of months ago. He's a telecommunications project manager. Travels a bit but when he's home he volunteers for the fire department. Nice folks." He turned to his wife, Sarah. "We need to get them in here for our breakfast meetings." Jeff stood and picked up his ticket. "Well, I'd better mosey on over to the hospital and see what rumors are running around there. I'll catch up with everyone later."

  Kat brought more coffee around and sat down next to Janie, who had grabbed an empty chair. "I can't believe it. First the fire and now a body. What next? A murder? What's happening to our quiet little Klondike?"

  Janie shrugged. "I don't know but surely it isn't murder. Heavens, I'm just hoping it isn't arson. Not that I would put it past Owen. He's such a sleaze bag. Thinks he's God's gift to women, no, to everyone. His smarmy smile just gives me the creeps. I don't know why Eva has stayed with him so long."

  Kat laughed, "I do. She loves the good life. Nice jewelry, expensive clothes, a mansion on the hill and the Country Club. She'll never leave him."

  Cherie continued to make notes, not sure what to make of all this. Arson, adultery, dead bodies - maybe not so different from Tucson after all.

  "Hey Kat, can I get that cup of tea now?"

  Standing, Kat replied, "Sure thing, Pansy. Sorry about that. I got a bit sidetracked."

  Pansy turned back to Merry. "I'm sure it's not Corey. He'd let us know if something happened to him." She laughed as she realized what she had said. "If we're lucky it'll be Harper, would serve him right."

  Everyone laughed nervously, well aware that the body could be their good friend, Corey.

  "So, what do ya'll think now? Arson or accident?" Tom looked around the group. "Me, I still think accident. Especially now, what with the body and all. At least if'n it's Corey. That place has always been a fire trap with bad wiring and a ton of extension cords running things. Bet Corey was working overtime trying to clean things up, he was always doing that. Not that Harper appreciated it." Tom leaned back on the two rear chair legs and immediately got thumped by Edy.

  "If God meant us to sit that way, he'd a given the chair only two legs." Laughter erupted from the table and the tension eased a bit. Cherie chewed on the end of her pen and made some final notes.

  ⚜

  Carrying her cup of coffee, Cherie joined her aunt on one of the rockers on the front porch. The quiet still surprised her at times. Nothing but woods and wildlife. Arizona was more desert and wildlife although living in Tucson was pretty much like any other large city. Traffic and noise, 24/7. That was one reason she loved to visit her favorite town of Sedona. She could hike for miles, enjoying the r
ed rocks scenery, then come into town and get her spiritual fill.

  "So, is this your usual Tuesday morning breakfast club? If so, I need to bring my pen and paper more often." They both laughed.

  "Not really. In fact this is the most excitement we've had since Old Bob got his foot stuck in a trap last hunting season." Pansy shifted in her rocker trying to find a comfortable position. "These old bones just don't sit as well as they used to. Guess I need to give in and get some cushions for these rockers."

  They sat quietly rocking, watching the sun rise higher. Living in the middle of the Allegheny National Forest sure had its advantages. Between the shade of the trees and being "up the hill" from Bradford, the temperatures rarely climbed out of the 80s in the summer. Cherie really liked the area, being a hiking buff, but with her aunt doing so well after her stroke she might not be here much longer. Although she had quit her job in Tucson, she still had 3 months left on her apartment lease. She sighed, no need to make any major decisions. Klondike was proving to be an interesting place, a fire and a dead body, all in one morning.. She started scratching notes, working on her article for the newspaper.

  If you enjoyed this peek into the Klondike Mystery Series, check out the rest of the books on the author’s website. https://dbmcnicol.com

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  About the Author

  Donna B. McNicol is a retired IT professional who started writing fiction after retirement. Her preferred genre is small town mysteries with a dash of romance but she has also tackled children's stories, fantasy and small town romance. In addition, her short stories have been included in several anthologies. She now lives in rural Tennessee with her husband and two Goldendoodles, Cooper and Murphy.

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