by Eve Fisher
The four headed into the casino proper. People were at every machine, lights were flashing, the beeps and blips sounding. As they walked down the endless aisles, Kate looked as carefully as she could at every tall, white-haired man they passed. In this crowd, there were quite a few. Renee trotted along, a few steps ahead, slowing down occasionally to peer at someone but always moving on. At one station, an elderly lady about Renee’s size suddenly jumped up and down as her machine exploded in a flurry of lights and music.
“I won!” the woman cried. “I won!”
A crowd gathered, among them another nondescript man with a cell phone and something else clipped to his belt. Security, Kate thought, proud of herself for recognizing the equipment. She glanced over at Renee, who had stopped to watch along with everyone else.
“I wonder how much she won,” Kate said to Renee.
Renee looked away but not before Kate had seen the wide-eyed look on her face. Kate sighed as they all went on again. The place was huge. How would they find anybody in there?
They turned down a long aisle of penny slots, and Kate tried to focus and keep from letting the blinking lights distract her. As they neared the end of the row, she heard a voice she recognized coming from around the corner.
“It’s perfectly fine, I tell you,” a man said. “It’s my wife’s credit card. She’s in the ladies room. She’ll be back in a minute.”
Before Kate realized what was going on, Renee had whirled around and yelled, “Junius Lawson! You skunk!”
The white-haired man froze just long enough for Renee to set her shoulder bag on the floor and hiss, “Sic ’em, Kisses!”
Kate watched, too astounded to move, as Kisses leaped out of the shoulder bag and went charging through the myriad feet, straight toward Junius. Junius snatched something out of the hostess’ hand and started walking away from them as swiftly as he could.
“Dad?” Matt called. He glanced at Joe and said, “You cover long, and I’ll cover short.” Then he started barreling his way through the crowd after Junius. “Dad!”
Joe lowered his head and started moving off toward one side in a long arc through the crowd to intercept Junius.
“Mr. Bly!” cried the hostess.
“Go get ’em, Kisses!” Renee hollered, tottering on her pink high heels, her shoulder bag dangling from one hand as she shoved people out of her way with the other.
“Dad!”
Kate found herself shoving her way through the crowd as well, trying to keep an eye on Junius as he ducked and dodged his way toward the front of the casino. The trouble was, there were so many people, and so many other white-haired men. It would be easy to lose him. Kate rammed into someone and apologized as she kept moving.
“Junius Lawson! You come right back here!” Renee bawled. “Kisses! Kisses!”
In the midst of all the other noise, Kate could hear the yapping of the little dog she knew so well. She prayed that no one would step on him.
“Dad!”
Kate pushed through another knot of people. In front of her, a man in a white shirt, with something clipped to his belt, was holding a cell phone to his mouth. “Security alert. Security alert. Number 902 headed toward main entrance.”
Kate pushed her way forward. Number 902 had to be Junius. Up ahead she could see Matt plowing through the crowd, and over to her right, Joe was determinedly homing in on a tall, white-haired figure. Someone’s purse smacked Kate across the chest. Ahead of her, Renee’s stiff blond curls were coming undone, her ankles were bowing, but she was still going, still determined, still furious, and still at full volume.
“Junius Lawson! You rotten snake!”
Joe, within arm’s length, lunged at Junius, and as Junius staggered backward to evade him, a dog’s anguished yelp filled the air. Renee leaped forward with the cry and claws of a tigress. Kate jumped after her and watched as Renee sprang off the floor and landed on Junius, dropping him to the floor.
“You lying thief! You heartless coward! You—”
Kate snatched Kisses from the floor and held him to her chest. Kisses wheezed and shivered as a host of white-shirted security men appeared and grappled with the two figures on the floor.
A moment later, Renee came up in the arms of one of them. She took a deep breath and shook herself free.
“Well, there’s the perp,” she said, straightening her clothes. “Haul him away.”
“Number 902 apprehended by the Lucky Sevens,” said one security man standing next to Joe, who was bent over, wheezing from his exertions.
“Kisses? Where’s my Kisses?” Renee cried.
“I’ve got him, Renee,” Kate said, holding up the Chihuahua.
“Oh, my Little Umpkins,” Renee crooned, taking him from Kate. “Is Mama’s Little Umpkins hurt?”
“He’s fine, Renee,” Kate assured her.
“No thanks to him,” Renee said, glaring at Junius.
“Are you all right, Joe?” Kate asked.
Joe nodded.
“This is a huge mistake,” Junius said to the security man holding him. He was breathing hard. He gestured toward Renee and said, “This...this woman has been stalking me. And I was trying to get away from her.”
“Liar,” Renee said with withering disdain. “You gave me stolen presents. You’ve been stealing from everybody!”
“Including an Amanda Bly?” John Henderson had arrived and was looking over the credit card that had been taken from Junius’ hand.
“Yes,” Kate said, coming forward. “He stole that card from an elderly lady in Tennessee.”
Junius looked around, his face changing from exasperation with Renee to rueful regret and embarrassment as his gaze shifted to Kate and Joe, and ending up in cold anger when he saw Matt.
Matt’s eyes looked like a whipped puppy’s as he said, sadly, “I couldn’t let you get away with it again, Dad.”
“Mr. Matthews...sorry, Mr. Lawson,” Henderson said. “I’m afraid we’re going to have to hold you until the sheriff gets here.”
“On what charge?” Junius asked disdainfully.
“Stolen credit card.”
Junius snorted.
Henderson turned to Renee, who was still quivering with anger. “Do you have any charges to file, ma’am?”
“I most certainly do. This man stole this ring”—she took off the tiny silver ring with turquoise settings—“from a friend of mine and gave it to me. And he...” Renee stopped and, looking around, caught her breath.
“I understand,” Henderson said soothingly. “It’s a little too public out here. We’ll need to get statements from all of you, so if you would come back to my office. Sheriff Granville should be here any minute.” Henderson nodded to the security man holding Junius, and he started dragging the older man away.
“You can’t hold me like this!” Junius cried. “I’m innocent, I tell you!”
As they followed Henderson, Junius, and the rest of the security personnel, Renee dropped back slightly until she was even with Kate as they neared the customer-service desk.
“Come with me,” she whispered to Kate, and then, taking Kate’s arm, she called aloud to Henderson, “We’ll be right there!” as she pulled Kate into the ladies’ room.
Inside, Renee was about to say something else, but she saw herself in the mirror and gasped, “My land! I look like a mud fence with briars in it!”
Setting her shoulder bag on the counter, she dug around Kisses for various items. She pulled out a comb and began working on her stiff curls. Kate simply waited.
After Renee had pulled out a lipstick, she glanced at Kate in the mirror and asked boldly, “How much do you think I should tell this Sheriff Granville?”
“Everything,” Kate said.
Renee stopped in midlip and looked at her beseechingly.
“You’ve got to, Renee. If he gave you any other presents, or if you made any investments...”
Suddenly Renee’s eyes were wet. She set down her lipstick and blinked the tears back. “I
was...I was such a fool!”
“Oh, Renee.” Kate put her arm around Renee, who turned her head into Kate’s shoulder and sobbed for a moment. “It’s all right. It’s not your fault.”
“I know that,” Renee said, pulling back and fumbling for a tissue. She wiped her eyes carefully as she said, “It was that skunk, Junius. Doing me a favor. Double my money. Hah!” She threw the tissue away. “Do I really have to tell them?”
“Well,” Kate said, “they’re probably going to find out anyway. I’m not sure about the—”
Renee interrupted. “Do you think he got any money from Amanda?”
“I have no idea,” Kate said. “But I think he was definitely buttering her up to get money out of her. That’s his pattern. He gave Ada presents too, you know. And the more proof that’s provided, the more likely a jury will believe he’s guilty.”
“Believe he’s guilty?” Renee exclaimed. “He is guilty! Guilty as sin! If I thought for one minute that he’d get off—” She picked up her shoulder bag. “I’ll tell that sheriff everything, all right,” she said. “Come on, Kate. Don’t dawdle.”
Chapter Seventeen
When Kate woke up the next morning, she stared in disbelief at a clock that said ten thirty. She scrambled out of bed, pulled on her bathrobe, and padded to the kitchen, where she found Paul talking on the telephone.
“Oh, I agree. Providential. Yes, I certainly will tell her as soon as she gets up.” He winked at Kate as she poured herself a cup of coffee from the brimming pot. “No. No problem. I’ll let her know.” He hung up the phone, put an arm around Kate, and kissed her. “Good morning, sleepyhead.”
She kissed him back. “Good morning. Almost afternoon. Why didn’t you wake me up earlier? Who was that on the phone?”
“You didn’t get in until two,” Paul replied. “Toast?”
Kate nodded.
“That was Dot Bagley.” Paul put two slices of whole-wheat bread in the toaster. “She was calling to make sure you were fine and to see if I could fill her in on all the news. She was the tenth call this morning.”
Kate looked at him wide-eyed over her coffee cup.
“The jungle drums are pounding all over town.” Paul leaned over and kissed the top of her head. “I’m just thankful you’re home safe.”
“But not alone,” Kate reminded him. “I had Joe and Matt with me.”
“And Renee,” Paul added.
“Yes, well, that wasn’t my idea.”
“I’m sure.” Paul put the toast on a plate and handed it to Kate. “Eat up,” he said as she started buttering. “You’re going to need your strength. I have a feeling that everyone in the Faith Freezer Program is either going to call or come by to hear the saga straight from the horse’s mouth.”
Kate groaned and took a big bite of toast. “I’ve got to get dressed,” she said swallowing. “Have you heard from Matt?”
Paul shook his head.
“How’s Amanda?”
“Just fine,” Paul said. “Sheriff Roberts filled her in last night.”
“How did she take it?” Kate asked, taking a large swallow of coffee.
“Quietly furious at Junius. And quietly proud of Joe being part of the posse.” He winked at Kate. “There might be a thaw coming.”
“Maybe.” Kate grinned. “I can’t believe I slept so late!”
“Finish your toast.”
“It’ll be lunchtime soon.” She looked at Paul. “How about if we go down to the Country Diner?”
He nodded. “Sure. I’ll buy you lunch.”
“It’s a deal.” Kate took a last sip of coffee and ran off to get showered and dressed.
THE COUNTRY DINER was packed. When Kate and Paul walked in, they were hit with a volley of questions.
“Did Junius really try to steal a car?” asked Martha Sinclair.
“Did he really try to make a run for it?” asked Morty Robertson.
“Did someone say something about a gun?” Gail Carson, the local Realtor, asked.
“I heard he had thousands of dollars on him, all stolen from the bank!” Roberta Grant exclaimed.
“He didn’t steal a thing from the bank,” Georgia Cline snapped. “He stole it from Ada Blount.”
“But that was ages ago. He’d have spent all that,” Martha objected.
“Jennifer McCarthy wants to do an interview with you,” Gail added, holding up her cell phone. “She’s on the phone now if you have time.”
Kate gasped, then she realized that the barrage of questions weren’t aimed at her but at Renee Lambert, who was sitting in state at the counter, Kisses in her arms.
“Maybe later, Gail,” Renee said. “But, of course, you know my Kisses was the hero of the day. He chased down that thief in the middle of the casino. You should have seen him, my brave Little Umpkins!”
Kisses sneezed.
LuAnne came up to Paul and Kate. “If you want a table, I think there’s a back booth available,” she said quietly.
Kate shrunk back. This wasn’t what she had in mind. “How long has Renee been here?” she asked.
“All morning. She’s in hog heaven.” LuAnne made a face. “How much of it’s true?”
“Junius is in jail,” Kate whispered back. “And she did Kisses on him.”
LuAnne sniffed. “Well, that’s something.” Her tone held a hint of hostility.
Some healing needs to take place here, Kate thought.
Paul looked at Kate and said, “LuAnne, I think we’re going to go somewhere quieter today.”
LuAnne nodded.
“Of course, I never trusted that man for a minute,” Renee said loudly as Paul and Kate crept back outside.
“Back home?” Kate asked.
Paul shook his head. “I know a quiet place where you can get a pretty good hamburger. Come on,” he said, opening the pickup door for her.
Paul drove to Barnhill Street and turned left. When they crossed the railroad tracks, Kate asked, “Where are we going?”
“The Dew Drop Inn.” Paul laughed as Kate raised an eyebrow. “Trust me. It’s not bad.”
There were only a couple of cars outside the old roadhouse, assuring Kate that it would be a quiet lunch.
She followed Paul inside and heard two men talking.
“Peyton Manning,” said one.
“Steve Young,” said the other.
When her eyes had adjusted to the dim light, she saw that Matt Lawson was talking with that huge man who ran the place, Bo Twist.
Matt shook his head. “Peyton Manning broke Steve Young’s passer rating.”
“That’s only single season, not career,” Bo replied.
“But,” Matt said, “Peyton Manning has the most touchdown passes, most career passes—”
“No, consecutive-season passes,” Bo interrupted.
“Let the games begin.” Paul grinned.
“Hey, Pastor!” Bo called. “Where’s the rest of the band?”
“Just me and the wife today,” Paul said. “We wanted a quiet lunch.”
“Well, you sure weren’t the only people with that idea. Matt here said the diner was a regular circus today.”
Matt shifted uncomfortably in his chair.
“How are you doing, Matt?” Paul asked.
Matt shrugged. “Okay.”
“Why don’t you folks sit with Matt, and I’ll get us all some lunch,” Bo said blandly.
“Do you mind?” Kate asked Matt.
“No,” Matt said, glancing briefly at Bo. “Please. Sit down.”
“What to drink?” Bo asked. “I’ve got coffee and some sweet tea on tap.”
“Tea,” Kate said as they sat down.
“Coffee,” said Paul.
“Be right back.” Bo lumbered off, the floorboards creaking under his feet.
“I didn’t know you two knew each other, Matt,” Paul said.
“Huh? Who?” Matt asked, looking at Kate, bewildered.
“Bo Twist,” Paul added.
“Oh. Yeah.
We met at one of the high-school football games last fall. He likes football a lot, like me.”
Paul nodded.
“And I also help him with his investments.” Matt drank some coffee. “Yeah. He and I...we talk every once in a while.”
“That’s good, Matt. I’m glad to hear it,” Paul said.
Kate was amazed at the friendships that could spark between such different people.
“Here you go,” Bo said, coming back with their drinks. “Now me and Matt were gonna have hamburgers and fries. Sound good to you two?”
Paul and Kate both nodded.
“I’ll just slap a couple more burgers on the grill, then,” he said and went off again.
“You didn’t have to work today, Matt?” Paul asked, stirring a little packet of sugar into his coffee.
“When I got home last night, I called the bank and left a message on the answering machine that I would be in late today so I could sleep in.” He lowered his head. “I didn’t want to go straight in and face people.”
Bo returned with platters, three of them bearing a hamburger and a huge mound of french fries. The fourth, with two hamburgers on it and an even larger mound of fries, was his.
“Dig in, folks. Oh, and if you’d like to say grace”—Bo looked straight at Paul—“go right ahead. I won’t mind.”
Paul suppressed a smile and said a blessing, then everyone began eating. The hamburgers were delicious, juicy but not greasy, and the fries were perfect.
“I’m glad you’uns came on out here,” Bo said, picking up the last hamburger on his plate. “I know this boy here’s been going through a lot, what with watchin’ his daddy being arrested and all.”
Kate almost gasped at the casual way he said it.
Matt hung his head. “And now it’s all over town,” he said.
“I know,” Bo said, “but you’re worryin’ way too much.” Then he turned to Paul and Kate. “He’s got some cockamamy idea that this is gonna reflect on him in a bad way. I figure maybe you can talk some sense into him.”
Matt looked around, his eyes like a puppy’s again. “I like my job. I like Copper Mill. It’s quiet. And there aren’t too many people. I don’t want to have to leave.”
“You don’t have to go anywhere,” Kate exclaimed.
“It’s not you that’s in trouble,” Paul pointed out. “It’s your father.”