by Kelly Oliver
She wiped her eyes with the backs of her hands, then slid her phone out of her back pocket and tapped in Nick’s number. One nail takes out the other. Her heart was galloping as the phone rang. When he answered, she jabbed the red circle and hung up. The thought of lying in bed next to him, his soft wavy hair and penetrating blue eyes, made it hard to resist calling him back to invite herself over for a proper goodbye.
A knock on the door interrupted her sexy daydreams and she realized her Shamanic burning ritual was still ablaze on the desk. She batted at the fire with a stinky undershirt she had been about to stuff into her duffle bag.
“What are you smoking in there?” She heard a familiar voice outside the attic door. “Let us in and we’ll join you.”
When she opened the door, Amber bounced through carrying a big metal mixing bowl. Lolita followed with a fifth of Jack Daniels in one hand and loaf of black bread in the other.
“What the hell?” Lolita rushed to the desk and tamped at the cinders with the whiskey bottle then beat at it with the loaf of bread. “Are you trying to turn Brentano into a tinderbox?” Lolita surveyed the room, scowling at the pizza boxes, stacks of papers, piles of dirty clothes, and overflowing trash can. “This place is a mess. Everywhere you go, chaos follows.”
“Like life.” Jessica sighed. “You need chaos in your soul to give birth to a dancing star.”
“Are Nietzsche and his dancing stars going to clean up this mess or are you planning to leave it behind for my dad?” Lolita asked.
“Let’s torch the place! That’ll take care of the mess and every nasty vice and evil spirit left in Brentano Hall.” Jessica smiled.
“I brought Twisted Twix.” Amber’s radiant smile lit up the tiny attic. “I got Gary’s recipe. Here, try some.” She peeled plastic wrap off the top of the bowl, then fished in her whale of a purse and pulled out three plastic spoons.
“Thanks but I think I’ll start with my old buddy Jack,” Jessica said raising her eyebrows and pointing toward the bottle in Lolita’s right hand.
“A going away present,” Lolita said, handing her the fifth and then breaking off a piece of dark bread. “I figured I’d slum it with whiskey tonight since you’re leaving in the morning.”
“Did you bring glasses?” Jessica asked.
“Who needs ‘em.” Lolita reached over and unscrewed the cap, and then tossed it onto the pile of trash.
“Okay. Game on.” Jessica took the bottle, chugged a big slug of whiskey, wiped her chin with the back of her hand, and passed it to Amber.
“Guess what?” Amber took a sip from the bottle. “That’s foul,” she said, voice hoarse.
“What?” Lolita asked. “Hey, what about me? Give me that.”
“What?” Amber asked.
“You said guess what, so tell us,” Jessica said.
“Oh yeah. Professor Schmutzig…my dad, left me money for college in his will, and I’m applying to Northwestern to study computer science. Gary is helping me with my application.”
“Getting his recipes, filling out applications together, things are getting serious between you and Gary-the-geek.” Lolita winked.
“What about Jack?” Jessica asked.
“Your Jack or mine?” Amber giggled.
“Either one.”
“I haven’t decided yet. Hand me that one.” Amber took another sip, then scooped out a heaping spoonful of mashed chocolate Cheetos and stuffed it into her mouth. “It’s getting better,” she mumbled with her mouth full.
“So you’re going to get a degree in computer science, become a professional hacker, and turn your twisted Twix episode into a virtue.” Jessica laughed, took another swig from the bottle, and sat down on the floor next to Amber.
“Well you’ve somehow managed to make a virtue out of your obstinacy and gullibility, my Montana friend.” Lolita leaned against the door since the kneeboard walls were too short to lean against.
“What do you mean? Anyway, you’re a fine one to talk, my Russian friend, or should I say Poker Tsarina?” Jessica held out her hand for the bread. Lolita bent down and passed it to her.
“Unfortunately, the detective has put a stop to my game and my income, at least for the time being.” Lolita smiled her sly smile and lit a cigarette.
Jessica’s phone started singing Lana del Rey’s “Honeymoon,” We both know it’s not fashionable for you to love me.”
“It’s Nick.” She felt her face turning scarlet and turned off her phone. “I told him we have to cool it, especially if he’s going to be on my dissertation committee.”
“It was just rebound sex anyway,” Lolita said.
“That’s the best kind.” Amber coiled a snaky lock of hair around her index finger.
“What sex? I’m taking a vow of celibacy until after I get my degree, or at least until the end of the summer.”
“Which ever comes first?” Lolita raised an eyebrow.
“Very funny.”
“Like the whiptail lizard, Cnemidophorus neomexican? It reproduces without sex.” Amber took another spoonful of goop and did a little seated dance as she munched. Sitting cross-legged next to the bowl of sticky salty sickening crunchy goo, Amber and Jessica took turns scooping spoonfuls into their mouths.
“Breeding without sex? Why that’s just the torture without any of the fun.” Jessica took out a Kleenex and wiped some chocolate off of Amber’s forehead. “The only thing I plan to birth is a doctoral dissertation. I’m going to get this damned degree if it splits me open.” Jessica took another slug, and then slammed the whiskey bottle on the floor.
“If determination has a name, it’s Jessica James!” Lolita said, blowing smoke rings, still standing, one black boot up against the door. She bent down, seized the bottle, and raised it into the air. “We make a damned fine team. A toast, to us, the Three Fates: Destiny, Peace, and Order.” She pointed the bottle at Jessica and then at Amber, and took a swig.
“ “More like, Ready, Willing, and Able.” Amber grabbed the bottle.
“It’s my turn with Jack.” Jessica did a downward dog to stand up and tried to snatch the bottle away from Amber.
“Hand him over,” Jessica said, lunging at her friend. “It’s my turn to make a toast.”
Jessica lifted the bottle over her head. “A toast. To the Cowgirl Philosopher, the Hippy Hacker, and the Poker Tsarina.” She tipped up the bottle. After remains of the amber liquid poured into her mouth and dribbled down her chin, she tried to throw the bottle against the wall, but it slipped out of her hand and rolled along the warped floor into a corner.
“Whoa there cowgirl,” Lolita said. “We’d better tuck you in if you’re going to get any sleep before your flight tomorrow.”
“Okay, just prop me in the corner until we’re ready to saddle up. Alpine Vista trailer dump, here I come!” A pang of guilt-ridden love grazed her heart and she realized that after a year in the big city, she was actually looking forward to seeing her mom and those ragged mountains again. She smiled through her hiccups.
“Come on, Amber. We’d better leave the Cowgirl Philosopher to sober up before dawn.”
Jessica stumbled into her friend’s long arms and held her in a tight embrace.
“Get some sleep, sweetie,” Lolita whispered in her ear. “Morning will be here before you know it. I’ll collect you at eight to drive you to the airport.”
On the way out the door, Amber stopped, pulled a small glass vial from her purse, and handed it to Jessica. “Here, take this. It’s milk thistle tincture. It prevents hangovers.”
“Thanks. Love you guys.” Jessica staggered backwards as she shut the door just a little too forcefully. She looked around at her chaotic nest. She wasn’t going to miss living in an attic. She climbed up onto the hard desk and curled into a little ball.
She distracted herself from the creepy noises of the creaky old building by thinking of an episode of Star Trek where Captain Picard lived an entire lifetime in the course of a few hours; instead of a ship’s captain, in an alternate un
iverse, he’d had a family and had grown old playing the flute.
The last two weeks had compressed time and it felt as if she’d lived in this attic forever. Now, her booze soaked mother, Alpine Vista’s tin can homes, and the wilds of Montana seemed to exist in an alternate universe. She hugged herself. She couldn’t wait to get back there. As the dark walls closed in on her and her eyelids grew heavy, she rolled to one side, pulled out her phone, and set the alarm. She didn’t want to miss her flight home.
Please review WOLF on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.com/WOLF-Jessica-James-Mystery-Book-ebook/dp/B06XB97RTP/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535576692&sr=8-1&keywords=kelly+oliver+wolf
About Kelly Oliver
Kelly Oliver is the award-winning, best-selling, author of The Jessica James Mystery Series, including WOLF, COYOTE, FOX, and JACKAL. Her debut novel, WOLF: A Jessica James Mystery, won the Independent Publisher’s Gold Medal for best Thriller/Mystery, was a finalist for the Forward Magazine award for best mystery, and was voted number one Women's Mysteries on Goodreads. Her second novel, COYOTE won a Silver Falchion Award for Best Mystery. And, the third, FOX was a finalist for both the Claymore Award and a Silver Falchion Award. Look for JACKAL soon.
When she’s not writing novels, Kelly is a Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at Vanderbilt University, and the author of fifteen nonfiction books, and over 100 articles, on issues such as the refugee crisis, campus rape, women and the media, animals and the environment. Her latest nonfiction book, Hunting Girls: Sexual Violence from The Hunger Games to Campus Rape won a Choice Magazine Award for Outstanding title. She has published in The New York Times and The Los Angeles Review of Books, and has been featured on ABC news, CSPAN books, the Canadian Broadcasting Network, and various radio programs.
For more information on Kelly, check out her website:
www.kellyoliverbooks.com
COYOTE
(Jessica James Mysteries Book Two)
Silver Falchion Winner
Can a 21-year-old grad student crush Goliath? All eyes on Jessica James, resident badass…
Jessica James, scrappy cowgirl-turned-philosopher, returns home for summer break, only to take on one of the biggest oil companies in the country—and its connections to corruption, sex trafficking, and murder. A murder way too close to home…
Fans who like their female protagonists fierce and fearless will get a real kick out of this one from award winning author, Kelly Oliver.
Praise for COYOTE
"A splendid mystery. Jessica James is a new American original."
-----Jason Miller
“An extraordinary feat…Jessica James is a great modern hero… Coyote is a fun, entertaining thrill ride.”
-----Samuel Marquis
“Coyote is an entertaining, fast, and refreshing mix of murder, greed, philosophy, mystery, and woman power…. very funny yet profoundly dark.”
-----Forward Reviews
"This book kept surprising me… and pulled me into issues of the day while delivering a great story. Highly recommended."
-----3 Books Full
“The novel moves along at a good clip…and this working class protagonist will undoubtedly appeal to readers.”
-----BookLife Prize for Fiction
BUY COYOTE NOW
https://www.amazon.com/COYOTE-Jessica-James-Mystery-Book-ebook/dp/B06XBBM8C1/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535576791&sr=8-1&keywords=kelly+oliver+coyote
Book Club Questions
How does Jessica deal with sexism at the university? How should she have dealt with it?
Discuss the issue of party rape on campus. Is Lolita and Jessica’s revenge against the fraternity boys justified?
Did you guess the killer? If so, how did you know? If not, who did you think killed Wolf?
Do you think Nick and Jessica belong together? They’re both consenting adults. But is there a problem that she is a student and he is a professor?
Who was your favorite character and why?
What did you think of the alternating points of view between Jessica and Dmitry? Which was your favorite and why?
Do you think Dmitry should have left Chicago instead of confronting The Pope once Bratva found him?
Do you think Dmitry should have pursued a career in art or related to his interest in art instead of becoming a janitor?
What did you think of the strong women characters in the novel? What did you think of the relationships between them? Between Lolita and Jessica? Between Jessica and Amber? Between Donnette and Jessica?
Was Alexander a good villain?
Did you learn anything about philosophy or art?
Which was your favorite subplot? The Russian art subplot or the feminist revenge subplot?
Is it important to the plot that Jessica is from Montana and used to be a cowgirl?