by Nora Roberts
At the drugstore, odds were in favor of an old boyfriend who’d come to town to convince Sherry to mend things and then had gone crazy when she’d refused. After all, she’d only been in town a few weeks. A young, pretty girl like that was bound to have left a boyfriend or two back home.
At the post office there was little doubt the killer had been Sherry’s secret lover, and the sex had gotten out of hand. No one named any likely candidates for the secret lover position, but it was a consensus over the stamp buying and certified-letter sending that she’d had one. A woman who looked like that was bound to have a lover. And it was a sure bet he was married, else why had nobody known about him?
This led to the theory that Sherry had threatened to go to his wife, and the ensuing argument had led to violence.
The smart money picked up this theory and ran with it, putting every married man in the area between twenty and sixty on the list of suspects, with the odds favoring a teacher or administrator from Progress High.
But Faith remembered what Tory had said while they’d sat on the grass outside Sherry’s apartment. And she remembered Hope.
It wouldn’t hurt to stop by Southern Comfort and see what Tory had to say about things today.
She stopped by the market first and soberly contemplated the bananas. A few feet away Maxine loaded a bag with apples and sniffled. Faith edged a little closer and picked a bunch of bananas at random.
“Well, hi there, Maxine. You all right, honey?”
Maxine shook her head, blinked back fresh tears that swam into her eyes. “I just can’t seem to function. Wade gave me the day off because I was feeling so sad, but I couldn’t stay home.”
“Maxine, sweetie.”
Faith cursed her faulty internal radar when Boots Mooney guided her shopping cart into produce. She wasn’t in the mood to tangle with Wade’s mother again.
The three carts bumped each other, face-to-face. Boots made cooing noises and handed Maxine a hankie.
“It just keeps hitting me, over and over.” Maxine dabbed at her eyes. “I told Ma I’d do the grocery shopping, and now I can’t think.”
Boots nodded. “I guess we’re all upset about poor Sherry Bellows.”
“I just don’t know how it could happen. I don’t understand it. It’s not supposed to happen here.“
“I know. You shouldn’t be scared.” Sympathetic, Faith rubbed Maxine’s shoulder. “Most people think it was a boyfriend who went crazy.”
“She didn’t have a boyfriend.” Maxine fumbled in her pocket, pulled out a tattered tissue. “She wasn’t seeing anybody at all, but she had a little thing for Wade.”
“Wade?” Faith’s hand froze, as did die expression of compassion on her face. Over Maxine’s bent head her eyes locked with Boots’s.
“She liked to come in and flirt with him. Started out pumping me for information about him. Not obnoxious like,” Maxine added with another sniffle. “But friendly. Interested. You know, was he married, was he seeing someone, that kind of thing.”
Faith dropped her comforting hand. “I see.”
“He’s so good-looking, you know. I had a crush on him myself a while back, so I couldn’t blame her.” Remembering herself, Maxine flushed and peeked above the hankie toward Boots. “Beg your pardon, Miss Boots. Wade, he never—”
“Of course not.” Boots gave Maxine’s back a quick pat. “Why, I’d think there was something wrong with a young woman if she didn’t get herself a crush on my Wade.” Her gaze drifted to Faith again, narrowed. “He’s a wonderful man.”
“Yes’m, he is, so you couldn’t blame Sherry for having an eye for him.”
Really, Faith thought. Couldn’t you really?
“And we got to be friends, Sherry and me,” Maxine went on, comforted by the two sympathetic pairs of ears. “She helped me study sometimes, and we were going to go out and celebrate when the semester was over. Drive down to Charleston, we thought, and go to some clubs. Said she was man-deprived just now. Didn’t mind so much while she’d been getting her degree and starting her career, but she was looking to start dating again.” Maxine wiped her eyes again. “She wanted to get married one day, have a family. We talked about it.”
“I’m sorry,” Boots answered. “I didn’t know you were close.”
“She was just so nice. And she was smart and we had a lot of things in common. She’d worked through college, just like I am. We could talk about clothes and guys and just anything. We both loved dogs. I don’t know what’s going to happen to her poor dog now. I’d take him, but I just can’t.”
She began to weep then, as much for the dog as for her lost friend. “Don’t take on so, Maxine.” Faith’s radar was working now, well enough for her to sense the other shoppers nudging closer to try to catch a few words. “Wade’ll find him a good home. And the chief’ll figure all this out.”
“I feel so sick inside. Just yesterday she was laughing and excited. We had lunch together in the park. She was going to work for Tory Bodeen at the new shop. Least she hoped to. She was making all these plans. It’s just that she was so alive one minute, and the next … I’m just so sad and confused about it.”
“I understand.” Faith knew very well what it was like to be left behind after death. “Honey, you should just go on home. Want me to take you?”
“No, thanks, no. I think I’ll just walk. I keep expecting to see her, coming down the street with Mongo. I just keep expecting that,” Maxine murmured, and scrubbing at tears, walked toward the exit.
“I know,” Faith said quietly, and turned blindly away. She couldn’t explain how much worse it was when you did see the dead, every time you looked in the mirror.
“Here.” Boots held out a second hankie.
“You’re prepared.” Annoyed with herself, Faith took it long enough to stop any damage to her mascara.
“I’m heartsick about that girl, and I barely knew her.” To give Faith a moment to recover, Boots began to select apples. “I came out myself today because I couldn’t think about anything else at home. Poor little Maxine. How much harder is it on her? It was kind of you to offer to take her home.”
“It would’ve gotten me out of marketing duty.”
Boots laid a hand on Faith’s arm until Faith looked at her. “It was kind of you,” she repeated. “It’s a comfort to me to see kindness in the woman my son is in love with. Just as it was to see that little flash of jealousy. All in all, I’m glad I decided to give myself and J.R. a break from our diet and make apple cobbler tonight. You give my best to your mother, and Lilah, won’t you?”
Boots glided away with her apples, leaving Faith frowning after her. “Pretty sharp, aren’t you, Miss Boots, for all your fluttering?” Faith mumbled. “Pretty goddamn sharp.”
Irritated, Faith pushed her cart through produce, plucking up Lilah’s items and wishing she’d skipped the damn market altogether.
She had been jealous. Damn it. Had Wade flirted back? She scowled at the boxes of butter in dairy. Of course he had. He was a man. Very likely he’d considered doing more than flirting. The bastard. How many times had he imagined Sherry naked, fantasized about getting her that way, and then …
Good Christ, what was she doing? Working herself up into a mad on Wade over a dead woman? How petty, how shallow, how horrible could she be?
“Faith?”
“What?” She snapped it out, whirled with a box of Land O Lakes in her hand and a killing glare on her face.
Dwight held up a hand for peace. “Whoa. Sorry.”
“No, I’m sorry. My mind was on something.” Making the effort, she put a bright smile on her face and bent down to the toddler riding in the basket seat. “And aren’t you the handsomest thing? You and Daddy doing the marketing today?”
Luke held up an open box of Oreos. “Got cookies,” he announced, and as his face was already smeared with black, he’d been enjoying them.
“So I see.”
“His mama’s going to scalp me if I don’t clean him up before she sees him
.”
“Faces wash.” But Faith moved strategically out of the reach of chocolate-gunked fingers. “Lissy got you doing the shopping today?”
“She’s not feeling well. Got herself in a state about what happened yesterday. She says she’s afraid to set foot outside the house, and had me checking locks six times last night.”
And wasn’t it just like Lissy Frazier to make it all about her, Faith thought, but nodded sympathetically. “I guess it makes us all a little edgy.”
“She’s a bundle of nerves right now. I’m that worried about her, Faith, seeing as she’s got another month or so before the baby comes. Her mother’s over there, staying with her a while. I figure the Champ and me—” He paused to ruffle Luke’s hair. “We’d take ourselves off for a while. Give her some peace and quiet.”
“Aren’t you the good daddy? Have you heard any more about where things stand?”
“Carl D.’s investigating, and he isn’t sharing a lot. I guess it’s too soon for that. I guess they’ll get the autopsy results soon. Carl D.’s a good man, don’t mean to say otherwise. But this sort of thing …” He trailed off, shook his head. “It’s not what he’s used to dealing with. None of us is.”
“It’s not the first time it’s happened.”
He glanced back, looking blank for a minute, then his eyes clouded. “I’m sorry, Faith, I wasn’t thinking. This must bring back bad memories for you.”
“The memories are always there. I just hope they catch this one, catch him and hang him by his toes and cut off his—”
“Ah—” Lips twisted into a pained smile, Dwight squeezed her arm and rolled his eyes toward his son. “Little ears.”
“Sorry,” she said, as Luke decorated his dandelion puff hair with the best part of an Oreo. “Honey, Lissy’s going to stomp you into the ground till your ears bleed if you bring her boy home in that shape.”
“I oughta get points for bringing home groceries.”
“You get minor points for that, we’re talking major here. For major, try jewelry.”
“Well, you’d know.” Dwight scratched his head. “Actually, I was thinking of hunting her up a present, take her mind off her worries. Thought I’d stop by the drugstore and find some perfume.”
“They haven’t got anything special in there. Old-lady scents mostly. You go by Tory’s place, and you’ll find what you’re looking for. Put a smile back on Lissy’s face.”
Dwight took a good look at Luke, who was now happily coating the red plastic handle of the cart with black Oreo goo. “You think I’m taking this bull calf in that china shop?”
“You got a point there.” The plan that formulated in her mind pleased her very much. “I’ll tell you what we’ll do, Dwight. You give me the money, and I’ll go on in and find something that’ll make you a hero. When you’re done marketing, and scrape a few layers of cookie off your Luke, you just come by, and I’ll run it out to you.”
“Really? You wouldn’t mind?”
“I was going by anyway. Besides, what are friends for?” She held out her hand, palm up.
“Good thing I just went to the bank. I got cash.” Delighted, he took out his wallet, counted bills into her hand. When he stopped, she simply stared balefully at him.
“Cough it up, Dwight. You can’t be a hero for under two hundred.”
“Two hundred? Jesus, Faith, you’ll take all but my last dollar here.”
“Looks like you’ll have to go by the bank again.” She snatched the bills out of his wallet while he winced. “That’ll give me more time to find just the right thing.”
“What about your groceries here?” he called after her.
“Oh.” She waved dismissively. “I’ll come back later on.”
Dwight blew out a breath, put his nearly empty wallet back in his pocket. “I think,” he told his son, “we’ve just been hosed.”
It was perfect, Faith decided. She could go in, pick Tory’s brain, and do a good deed. Then it was only a hop and skip down to Wade’s office. She’d have time to decide whether to punish him for making her imagine him imagining sex with Sherry Bellows.
It couldn’t have worked out better.
This time she took Bee out of the car, snuggling, cooing. “Now, you’re going to be a good girl, aren’t you, so mean old Tory won’t complain. You sit like a sweetheart and I’ll give you a nice chewy bone. That’s Mama’s baby.”
“Don’t you bring that dog in here again.” Instantly Tory was out from behind the counter, ready to block Faith as she came in.
“Oh, stop being so pissy. She’s going to sit right here like a doll baby, aren’t you, Bee honey.” She lifted one of the puppy’s paws, waved it, while they both stared at Faith with equally innocent expressions.
“Damn it, Faith.”
“She’s just good as gold. You watch.” She dug out the bone first, as insurance, then set Bee down, pressing her rump until it hit the floor. “Besides, what kind of welcome is that when I have a mission, and cash,” she said, pulling out the wad of bills.
“If that dog pees on my floor—”
“She’s got too much dignity for that. I’m doing Dwight a little favor. Lissy’s feeling poorly and he wants to cheer her up with a nice present.”
Tory blew out a breath, but she calculated the number of bills Faith was cheerfully waving. “House or body decoration?”
“Body.”
“Let’s have a look.”
“Good thing Dwight ran into me. Men don’t have a clue about such things most of the time, and Lissy’s taste is all in her mouth. And it’s not so keen there.” Faith paused at the display case, lifted her eyebrows. “Was that a snicker?”
“I have too much dignity for that.”
“You ask me, you’ve got too much dignity for your own good. Let’s see that necklace there, the one with the pink topaz and moonstones.”
“You know your rocks.”
“You bet your ass. A woman wants to know if some man’s trying to pass off a peridot as an emerald. This is nice.” She held it up, let the light play over it. “But I think it’s too much metal for her. Really more my style.”
“Is this how you accomplish a mission?”
“I can do more than one thing at a time. Let’s just put this aside here so I can think about it.” She wandered down the case. “You doing all right?”
“Yes.”
“Well, don’t actually try to have a conversation and spoil your record.”
Tory opened her mouth, shut it again, blew out a breath. “I’m all right, a little shaky inside, I guess, but all right. How about you?”
Faith glanced up, smiled thinly. “See, your tongue didn’t turn black and fall out or anything. I’m well enough. Been gathering the gossip as I go. And don’t bother to look down your nose. You’re as interested in what people are saying as I am.”
“I’ve heard what they’re saying. I’ve had considerable traffic in here today. People love to come in and get a look at me, then flap about it all. It’s different for you, Faith, you’re one of them. I’m not. I don’t know why I thought I ever could be.”
“I can’t understand why you’d want to be, but if you do, you just have to stick with it. People get used to you around here. They’d get used to a one-eyed midget with a limp if he lived here long enough.”
“That’s comforting.”
“Let’s see this bracelet. Cade seems to have gotten used to you mighty fast.”
“Pink and blue topaz in silver. Lobster-claw clasp.”
“Very nice, very Lissy. Those earrings there. She’d want them to match. She doesn’t have the imagination for otherwise.”
“Seems odd you taking the time to pick out gifts for her when you don’t appear to like her.”
“Oh, I don’t dislike her.” Faith pursed her lips and considered the earrings. “She’s too silly for me to work up the energy to dislike. Always was. She makes Dwight happy, and I like him. Box these up, and wrap them up pretty. Dwight’ll owe me b
ig. I think I’ll take this necklace for myself. Cheer up my mood.”
“You’re turning into my best customer.” Tory carried the jewelry to her counter. “Hard to figure.”
“You have things I admire in here.” Bee had fallen asleep with the bone in her mouth. Faith stopped long enough to beam at her in adoration. “Plus you seem to be making Cade happy, and I like him even more than I like Dwight.” She leaned on the counter while Tory boxed Lissy’s gifts. “Fact is, you’re sleeping with my brother. I’m sleeping with your cousin.”
“That practically makes us lovers.”
Faith blinked, snorted, then threw back her head and laughed. “Christ, that’s a frightening thought. And here I was wondering if I should consider us being friends.”
“Another frightening thought.”
“Isn’t it? Still, it occurred to me yesterday when we were sitting out there that you and I were probably feeling the same thing, thinking the same thing. Remembering the same thing. That’s a powerful connection.”
Tory tied the cord very carefully, very precisely. “It was very considerate of you to stay with me. I tell myself, often, that it’s better to be alone. But it’s difficult. Sometimes it’s very difficult.”
“I hate to be alone. More than anything else in the world. I am, so often, irritated by my own company.” She caught herself, laughed. “Well, listen to us, having almost an intimate conversation. I’m going to give you Dwight’s nice fresh cash for Lissy’s, but I’ll charge mine.”
Before she could reach into her purse, Tory reached out, laid a hand on hers. Odd, how it had become easier to touch, to be touched, since she’d come back to Progress. “In my life I never had another friend like Hope. I don’t know as any of us ever have friends the way we do as children. But I could use a friend.”
Flustered, Faith stared at her. “I don’t know that I make a particularly good one.”
“I know I haven’t, not since Hope, so that starts us on level ground. I think I’m in love with your brother.” She let out a long, shaky breath, moved her hand to keep it busy. “If it turns out I am, I think it would be nice, for everyone, if you and I could be friends.”