Hot Enough to Kill
Page 29
Of course. Wait a minute, what was she talking about? "I'm confused." It was a serious understatement.
"I know." Jerry chuckled, then gingerly stood up, leaned over the rail and kissed me, on the lips, right in front of Amy. "But you'll figure it out eventually."
"You take care now, Jolene." Amy smiled sweetly, floated to the door and left the room with a dainty little wave. "I hope we can visit more soon."
While I was trying to make sense of the fact that Jerry had kissed me right in front of Amy, and Amy had acted like all was just peachy, a big hulking thing of flowers came through the door followed by a big hulking thing named Leroy.
He nodded to Jerry, then set the flowers on the shelf by the window and ambled up to the bed. "How ya doing, Jolene?"
Not too well. Not too well at all. If I wasn't confused enough by Jerry and Amy's deal, Leroy pushed me right over the edge. Something was severely out of whack here. I really didn't have the energy to think through the specifics or to say much, so I sighed and let my eyes fall shut. "I'm okay, Leroy. Just tired. Thank you for the flowers."
"Hey," Leroy said, heartily, "it was the least I could do, after all, you saved my butt." He paused for a minute and then laughed--loudly. "Hey, that's kind of funny. Saved my butt. Heh, heh."
I wasn't laughing. I kept my eyes closed and tried to keep that particular image at bay. Nobody seemed to mind my lack of input to the conversation. Leroy just started in telling Jerry about his various in-the-line-of-duty injuries for what was most likely the seventeenth time.
I needed a nap.
"Jolene, honey," Mother said, stepping up to the bed and straightening my pillow. "The kids have already gone back out to the house this morning. They both stayed the night here, you know, but I just called and talked to Sarah. They're on their way back in right now to see you now that you 're awake. You just rest until they get here."
Sarah? My Sarah, and my baby Matt? They were here? For me? I felt the tears well up in my eyes, but I clenched them tight so Mother wouldn't notice.
"I'll be right here if you need me," she said softly. She smoothed the hair back from my forehead just like she had when I was a little girl. It felt really good to be cared for and taken care of for a little while. All this warm fuzzy stuff was kind of nice for a change.
I looked over at Jerry, sitting beside the bed, still holding my hand. It felt so good to have him here with me. In fact, as odd as it sounded, and considering all that had happened--not to mention where we were and why--I figured things weren't all that bad, even for Kickapoo, Texas. It could be worse…
Like Pavlov's dog hearing a bell, I snapped to attention. I knew better than to ever even think those words. Things could always be worse, and around here they invariably they got that way fast. True, we were in a hospital, and I had the sheriff and his second-in-command to guard me, if there was any guarding needed, but I still had this pesky insecure feeling. Even in my debilitated state, I felt on edge, like there was something beyond my control that might blow up at any second. My shoulder twitched reflexively, my eyelids sprung open and my eyes darted around the room. "Mother, where's your purse?"
Conversation stopped and Lucille hurried back to my bedside. "Don't you worry, Jolene. You rest. Everything's just fine and I'll be right here if you need me."
I believed her about that--the being there for me part--I really did. It was certain other topics that raised my doubts, namely an inanimate object she lovingly referred to as her Little Lady. Even under the influence of heavy-duty pain killers, I still broke out in a sweat just thinking about the laser-sighted Glock.
It seemed strange to me that I'd spent forty-three years being this woman's daughter, and yet I hadn't even really known her. Maybe never would. But what I knew--had always known--was that she would protect me, her cub, like the fiercest of sow bears. I just hadn't known exactly how all she'd go about that until now. Having the female geriatric version of Dirty Harry for a mother was almost comforting.
Almost.
"Mother, please don't whack anybody with your purse or do any shooting until tomorrow. I'd really like to get some sleep."
"Why, Jolene, whatever are you talking about?" Lucille said, entirely too sweetly. "You get the silliest notions. Why, when you were little you had the biggest imagination. Suppose that's why you never took to reporting, having to tell just the facts and all. You know, if you'd kept up with that, you'd probably be on television by now, giving the six o'clock news and such. Now that would really be something...."
I smiled and closed my eyes, letting my mother recite her familiar list of could-have-beens, should-have-beens and why-on-earths to herself. It was a sure sign that things were on the road back to normal, or at least as normal as it ever gets in Kickapoo, Texas.
The End
About the Author
Paula Boyd grew up in a small town in Texas that some would say is not unlike her fictional Kickapoo. Her love affair with writing and journalism blossomed when she realized the power of the printed word, particularly when she was called upon to discuss her journalistic decisions with the principal and superintendent of schools. Nevertheless, she attended Midwestern State University where she was news editor for the university newspaper and co-editor of the yearbook until she was stricken with the tragic urge to get married.
After a decade of being away from writing to have three children, the creative side came bursting out and she began writing her first novel in 1993. With only three chapters written, she won a writing contest and was back in the game. That book, as well as the two that followed, didn't make it to print, but she hit her stride in the mystery genre in 1999 when Jolene and Lucille found their way into her life.
Hot Enough to Kill, the first in the Jolene Jackson Mystery Series, is included in the University of Texas Press' Lone Star Sleuths: An Anthology of Texas Crime Fiction. The second title in the series, Dead Man Falls, won the 2001 WILLA Literary Award for Best Original Paperback and the third, Turkey Ranch Road Rage, was published in 2010. Killer Moves continues the adventures.
Paula Boyd and the Jolene Jackson Mystery Books have been featured in magazines such as Redbook, Mountain Living, San Antonio Woman, Romantic Times and Colorado Homes and Living, and in newspapers across the country.
In 2011, Paula turned her attention to the self-help genre, which makes perfect sense, having had to deal with Lucille and her antics.
Writing as Paula Renaye, her acclaimed self-improvement guide, The Hardline Self Help Handbook, has been honored with four National Book Awards. She is a motivational speaker, certified professional coach and frequent “tough love” expert on talk radio shows. She writes regular columns for relationship sites, international online magazines, personal development ezines, and is featured in trade and specialty blogs. Visit http://hardlineselfhelp.com to learn more.
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The Jolene Jackson Mystery Series
Hot Enough to Kill (1999)
Dead Man Falls (2000)
Turkey Ranch Road Rage (2010)
Killer Moves (coming soon)
http://paulaboyd.com
paula@paulaboyd.com
info@diomobooks.com
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
About the Author
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