NOT What I Was Expecting

by Tallulah Anne Scott

  I patted the chair next to me, “Come, tell us about your evening,” I said sweetly.

  “Absolutely,” said CeCe. “Tell us everything,” she encouraged as she gave me a knowing look. The look, unfortunately, was also caught by Fry.

  “What up, ladies?” he asked eyeing us suspiciously.

  “Nothing,” I answered quickly. “It’s just a beautiful fall night, so we thought we’d enjoy the stars and visit with you. We got you some lemonade.”

  He bought it.

  “Awesome. I was beginning to feel parched. How did things go at the shop today?” Fry wanted to know.

  “Good,” CeCe told him. “It was really busy, but that’s a good thing.”

  “Sweet,” said Fry raising his glass.

  “Sooo . . . ,” CeCe said, and I instantly knew what was coming next.

  I tried to use ESP to send her a Stop, it’s too soon! message.

  “Why don’t you tell us more about Luke?” CeCe continued.

  Oh no! She said it. Crap. Why doesn’t that ESP message stuff ever work? After all, our high school science teacher used to tell us he thought we shared one brain between us.

  Fry had been looking at CeCe but now immediately turned to look at me. “What would you like to know?” he said slyly.

  All of a sudden the ice cubes in my glass became so fascinating, I couldn’t look anywhere else. CeCe stepped in to pry Fry’s unwavering glare off me.

  “Why don’t you tell us more about Luke’s Uncle Barney? You sounded as if you really liked him,” CeCe suggested innocently.

  Yes! Atta girl, CeCe. Don’t jump right into the love life questions.

  “He’s a cool old dude. He was really cool when he was younger, too. He was telling me how he owned a tugboat business. He was a tugboat captain first, which is cool enough, but then he started buying up boats as he could afford them. Like an entrepreneur or something. When he retired and sold all the boats, even he was surprised at how much he made from them. The old dude is living the good life, man. He’s always trying to buy things for Luke, but Luke won’t let him,” Fry laughed and continued. “Luke’s always been an independent cuss.”

  “Has Luke ever been married?” CeCe asked.

  Oh yeah, she subtled like nothing I ever wanted to see.

  “Noooo,” Fry responded, looking over at me again.

  I needed a distraction. There must be a UFO in this night sky somewhere. What was that tune that calls them again?

  “He’s never been married,” Fry maintained. “I’m sure he must have met a lot of babes during his travels with the Peace Corps, but I’ve never heard him mention anyone in particular. To hear him tell it, it was mostly him up to his knees in mud and bugs. Well, mud, bugs, and thugs of all kinds. I would NOT want to have been in some of the situations Luke’s been in. Man, he’s turned into a tough guy. Really knows how to handle himself, you know. He had to, I guess. I really admire the dude. I don’t think I could’ve done it.”

  “But he seems so nice and civilized,” I said without thinking. Fry smiled at me as if I’d just confirmed his suspicions.

  “He is,” Fry assured me. “I’m just saying he knows how to handle himself in uncivilized situations, too. You could definitely do worse. You know what I’m saying?”

  Before I could respond, I looked up and there on the porch was Luke. It was one of those moments where you blink your eyes a few times, because you know you can’t be seeing what you think you’re seeing. Yup, it’s really him. I smiled, but this time he didn’t smile back. He quickly came down the steps with the sisters following behind him. We all stood up as they approached, because the look on his face made it obvious something was wrong.

  We didn’t get the chance to ask, because Mother blurted out, “Luke can’t find Barney. Hasn’t seen him since right after the funeral, and he’s very worried.”

  “I was hoping maybe one of you might have seen him?” Luke asked tensely.

  The worried look on his face was gut wrenching. Without waiting for our response he continued.

  “Fry, can you come help me look for him?” Luke wanted to know.

  “Sure, Luke, it’s no problem,” Fry said and headed toward the porch.

  “Do you want me to drive you, Fry?” CeCe offered. “You know, you were drinking a lot earlier to help my mother.”

  “Yeah, I pretty much sobered up with all the lemonade I’ve been drinking,” Fry told us.

  “Thanks, CeCe, but I’ll drive him to my neighborhood,” Luke told her as he and Fry started to leave. “Uncle Barney’s on foot, so I really need Fry to walk the neighborhood. We’ll cover more ground with the two of us going in different directions.”

  “How can we help?” I offered.

  Luke thought for minute. “I wouldn’t want to send you running around this late, but if you could make some phone calls, just to see if anyone’s seen him, that would be great.”

  “We’ll take care of that,” my mother said. “Don’t worry. If anyone in this town has seen him, we’ll find out. He’ll turn up Luke. Everything’s going to be fine.”

  “Thanks,” Luke said but sounded unconvinced. “I’d just like to find him now.”

  “Would you like to stay for a drink while we make some phone calls?” I asked.

  “I’d like to, but I better not,” he said. “Fry and I need to get moving. There are still some areas I haven’t searched yet.”

  Luke and Fry left, and the sisters immediately started their phone calls. CeCe and I decided to clean up in the kitchen instead of making phone calls. We would no doubt be duplicating the sisters’ calls.

  “Did you see how upset he was?” I asked CeCe.

  “Yeah,” she agreed, “and I could see how hard it hit you. Now you can fully understand how I feel about Deputy Ben.”

  Can I? Hmm.

  The next morning CeCe and I opened the shop as usual.

  “I’m starting the coffee,” CeCe announced and headed straight for the back where the coffee maker lives. We have a small kitchenette across from the dressing rooms equipped with a microwave, refrigerator, toaster oven, and the previously mentioned, all important coffee maker.

  The sun streamed brightly through the front windows of the Big and Blessed shop early each morning. I was feeling very relaxed and contented while I enjoyed the cozy feeling our business gave me, which was unlike me before coffee. I started straightening racks and thinking about how much I love this place. In addition to feeling at home, due to spending afternoons and weekends here while growing up, there was the whole being my own boss thing.

  CeCe and I both had part time jobs throughout our college years, so there wasn’t a day that went by that we didn’t appreciate working without a supervisor. I did have a head honcho or two in my past that I appreciated. A couple of them were pretty cool. However, the bosses that stood out in my memories and still made me cringe were the ones who fell into the categories of extremely eccentric, just plain ignorant/lazy, or pure evil.

  My thoughts were interrupted by the tinkling door bells as customers entered. The two women who entered the shop looked at me expectantly as they stopped just inside the doorway.

  “Welcome to the Big and Blessed shop,” I greeted. “May I help you find something?”

  “You’re Pearl’s daughter, aren’t you? My daughter Melissa is feeling a little depressed, and I thought a new outfit might make her feel better,” the older woman explained.

  I thought they looked familiar when they walked in, but I was having trouble coming up with the names. When she said her daughter’s name, recognition hit me.

  “Melissa? How are you? Remember, we went to high school at the same time, though I think you were a little younger – maybe a grade behind me? Oh, and yes ma’am, I’m Maggie, Pearl’s daughter. Is this the first baby and grandbaby?” I asked carefully.

  “First?” Melissa shrieked. “Try fourth. And my mother is mistaken. I am not a little depressed. I am extremely upset! Do you want to know how old my th
ird child is? 13 months! You know how old my first one is? Four!”

  “Now dear,” her mother interjected. “He’ll be five next month. Melissa loves her children,” she explained turning to me. “She’s just a little, uh, surprised by this pregnancy.”

  “Idiot moron doctor,” Melissa clarified. Then she quoted him, “‘I’m afraid, Mrs. Pentella, you will not be able to have any more children.’” As Melissa mimicked the doctor’s words, a look came into her eyes that did not bode well for the good doctor. “Oh, he’ll be afraid all right, when I go over there and kick his ass!”

  Since I had no idea how to respond to that, I decided getting down to business might be the safe way to go.

  “What kind of outfit are you looking for today? How about a dress? Maybe you would like a nice blouse and pants set?” I asked Melissa, but it was her mother who responded.

  “What about a pair of comfortable pants and a smart looking top? Would you like that, dear?” Melissa’s mother encouraged.

  While her mother and I both looked hopefully at Melissa, her face turned a little pink, her eyes grew moist, and her bottom lip began to quiver.

  “I have to pee,” she announced as she bolted for the back so we wouldn’t see her cry. Or maybe she really did have to pee. What do I know?

  “You go right ahead, dear. Maggie and I will choose some lovely things for you to try on when you get back,” her mother assured her. The last of her mother’s message was yelled toward the closed bathroom door at the rear of the shop.

  “Poor thing,” she confided in a hushed tone. “She just found out she’s pregnant this morning. She went to her family doctor because she couldn’t fit in most of her clothes anymore. She felt she wasn’t eating that much but her stomach was getting bigger, so she was afraid it was a tumor or something. That’s why I brought her here after we found out. Her husband is home with the kids, and she needs to feel she fits something besides her bathrobe. It seemed like a good idea. I’m sorry you are seeing her so upset, but she’s really . . . . ”

  At that moment, there was a loud gasp from the back of the shop near the register, followed by a yelled, “Oh, Mother, look!”

  Neither of us realized Melissa was out of the bathroom until the gasp followed by her beckoning.

  “Isn’t this the most precious thing you ever saw? I spotted it as I went by, but it didn’t hit me until I was in the bathroom. I’ll go back to the bathroom in a minute, but I had to come back out here to see this more closely.” Melissa was holding a pink lace dress and bootie set for a newborn and presenting it to us as if she were displaying the Hope Diamond.

  “This one might be a girl!” Melissa exclaimed with a look of complete joy and awe.

  Her excitement must have been contagious, because her mother and I stood there nodding our heads, clapping our hands, and chanting, “Yes, uh-huh, a girl. It might be a girl. It could definitely be a girl.”

  Melissa carefully put the outfit back where she’d found it, clapped her hands with delight, and returned to the ladies room with a huge smile on her face.

  Her mother turned to me and stated the obvious, “Melissa has three boys.”

  I nodded as if this fact had not occurred to me.

  She went on to explain, “She has hoped for a girl each time, but when she had her sons she was so ecstatic you would think she wanted a boy, only a boy, and nothing but a boy. Now let’s find her some things to try on quickly before her mood changes.”

  As we started collecting outfits, CeCe came out of the back with a smile on her face and coffee on her breath. CeCe and I continued to select possibilities in Melissa’s size, while Melissa’s mom submitted the choices for her approval. Once several outfits had been given the thumbs up, Melissa’s mother paid for them while Melissa apologized profusely for her earlier behavior.

  After we assured her she had nothing to apologize for, made her promise to come see us again, and swore to keep our fingers crossed for a girl, we bid good day to Melissa and her mother.

  CeCe and I had almost all of Melissa’s rejects back on the racks when we turned toward the tinkling door chimes and saw Fry enter. The fact that we weren’t expecting him this early on a Thursday coupled with his troubled demeanor suggested something was wrong.

  “Morning, Fry,” I said tentatively. He didn’t respond. As he stood there barely inside the shop and looked from CeCe to me and back to CeCe again, we each put down the clothes we were hanging and walked toward the doorway.

  When we’d almost reached him, he stopped us with, “He’s dead. Uncle Barney is dead.”

  “Dead?” CeCe asked, unable to process the news any faster than I could, apparently.

  “Oh, no,” I said softly, when I’d found my voice. “We saw him at the funeral yesterday, and he seemed overwhelmed with grief, but to take it this hard? Was this his first attack or had he had trouble with his heart before?”

  I was studying Fry carefully, waiting for his answer, but my mind was also remembering the grieving man I met at the funeral. Then I thought of the nephew who adored him. “Luke must be so sad,” I added, feeling bad for him and his loss.

  Fry took a second to process my questions and comments then responded, “It wasn’t a heart attack, Maggie. Luke and I found him around two this morning. He’d been murdered.”

  CeCe looked as shocked as I felt but recovered her words first. “Murdered? Are you positive? I mean, he did seem pretty shaken at the funeral. Are you sure it wasn’t a heart attack, or stroke, or something like that?”

  Fry took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. He appeared to be summoning the strength to explain, but the details were obviously difficult for him to relive. “When Luke and I found him, he had been strangled with his tie – the one he wore to the funeral.”

  “Maybe it was an accident,” I said hopefully. “His tie might have caught on something and he couldn’t loosen it, and if nobody was around at the time, maybe . . . .”

  “I saw him and trust me – there was nothing natural or accidental about his death.” Although Fry was speaking softly, the intensity behind his words made me stop trying to make sense of a senseless death.

  I needed to be worried about Fry at the moment. CeCe must have been thinking the same thing, because she took Fry by the arm and began leading him to the back of the shop. “Why don’t you sit down, and let me get you some coffee? Have you had anything to eat today? I can make you a sandwich.”

  “Just coffee would be great. Sitting down sounds pretty cool right now, too. Luke and I were at the police station giving our statements for the rest of the night after we found him,” Fry explained.

  Luke. He must be devastated. I flashed to my reaction if my Aunt Shirley had died so unexpectedly and violently. I shook the thought from my mind. It was too awful to think about, yet Luke was living a similar nightmare.

  Fry must have been shocked and exhausted, but his ability to sympathize with someone else’s distress wasn’t dampened. “Luke is pretty shaken,” he said, watching my expression. “But he’s been through this serious loss thing before with his parents, and he’ll be okay.”

  “You should go.”

  “You need to be there for him.”

  CeCe and I spoke at the same time. At least that got us a brief chuckle from Fry.

  “I don’t think we meant that the way it sounded,” I clarified.

  “Finish your coffee, have some more if you want, stay as long as you want. We just meant . . . ,” CeCe encouraged.

  “I didn’t laugh at your rudeness,” Fry said smiling for the first time since he came in the door. “I just found it funny that you both seemed to be inside my head. I came here to let you know what was going on and to ask if you really need me in the shop today. I was thinking, if it’s all right with you, I would kind of hang out with Luke today. Barney was his only family, so there’s nobody to help him with arrangements and everything.”

  “No problem whatsoever,” CeCe agreed.

  “We’ll be fine at the shop
for the next few days, Fry,” I assured him. “Do whatever you need to do, because you’re right. You can’t let Luke go through this alone.” I tried to keep the emotion out of my voice, but the earlier thought of Aunt Shirley combined with the ache I felt for Luke’s loss made it very difficult.

  Apparently, I was unsuccessful since CeCe reached over and patted my arm, while Fry stood up and gave me a hug.

  “You know, Maggie,” Fry confided. “Luke hasn’t been back in town very long and doesn’t have a lot of friends besides me. He spends so much time working he hasn’t had the time to reconnect with anyone from high school except you and CeCe. It would be great if you guys could stop by his place tonight after you close the shop.”

  I studied Fry’s face for a moment, trying to decide if his suggestion was to benefit Luke or me. After considering for a moment I decided it didn’t really matter. Luke needed people to be there for him right now.

  “We could swing by to check on you both, right CeCe?” I asked.

  CeCe replied, “No problem whatsoever.”

  CHAPTER 6

  Fry left to help Luke, while CeCe and I watched the shop. For once, I was thankful for a slow morning. I couldn’t seem to keep my mind on what I was doing. When I threw a customer’s newly purchased blouse into the garbage can and handed her Swear Bear, I knew I’d better pull it together. I just couldn’t stop thinking about Fry, Luke, and his Uncle Barney.

  “CeCe,” I said, “we should probably take some kind of comfort food with us tonight when we go to check on the guys, don’t you think?” I was thinking steak, potatoes, and homemade apple pie. Not that I could make those things, but wouldn’t it be cool if I could and showed up with it. “Maybe you could watch the shop this afternoon, and I could go home and cook?” I wanted to know.

  “All afternoon?” CeCe asked shocked. “What are planning on making?”

  “Do you think the sisters could explain how to make steak, baked potatoes, and homemade apple pie over the phone?” I asked hopefully.

  “Wow,” CeCe said thoughtfully, obviously giving it serious thought. “No.”