Up Shute Creek: Rose Gardner Investigation #4

by Denise Grover Swank

  “First, yeah, Violet and the kids are movin’ in, and while you offered to move in with Jed so I can sleep in your room, I selfishly don’t want you to do that.”

  She turned to me in surprise.

  “I see you two together. I know what you and Jed have is magical. You don’t throw that kind of love away.” My throat tightened. “I know I’m on borrowed time with you, and I hate that I might be the one holding you back from fully committing to him. You deserve better than my selfishness. You both do.”

  “Oh, Rose.”

  “So I want you to know that while I’m setting you free, I’m not kickin’ you out. I’m trusting that you and I will still be as close as ever. If you want to leave tomorrow, you have my blessin’. And if you want to stay two more years, I’ll love every minute of it.” I grabbed her hand and squeezed tight. “I’ve never loved anyone like I love you, but I won’t let my own selfishness interfere with your happiness, because you deserve every bit of the love Jed Carlisle has for you.”

  “Oh, Rose…”

  We sat like that for nearly a minute, Neely Kate staring out the windshield while I stared at her and clung to her hand.

  “I’m scared to commit to him,” she said, so quiet I could barely hear her. “He seems too good to be true.”

  “I understand why you feel that way, but Jed Carlisle is one of the most loyal, devoted men I know. And I’ve known him longer than you,” I said with a soft laugh. “So that makes me an expert.”

  She turned to me, fear contorting her face. “It’s just all happenin’ so fast. Jed was crawlin’ at a snail’s pace and now it feels like he’s sprintin’.”

  “You take it whatever speed you want,” I said in a firm tone. “He’ll respect your decision. He loves you, Neely Kate. He’ll wait for you. But just make sure you’re not stallin’ because you don’t think you deserve him, because, trust me, you do.”

  She nodded.

  “Now,” I said, pulling my hand from hers and straightening my back. “Now let’s go to the hair salon and florist. Maybe we’ll get some information to help us.”

  We really needed to find out who had been hurting Sarah.

  Chapter 21

  We decided to visit the florist first. Neely Kate said we’d be more likely to get information—aka gossip—at the hair salon if we went a little later.

  “How do you want to play this?” I asked. “Just ask or use our covers?”

  She turned off the engine and rolled her eyes. “That’s the silliest question I ever heard, Beth Ann.”

  “Covers it is. I take it you have a plan?”

  “Just follow my lead,” she said as she opened the car door.

  I quickly hopped out to keep up. “Why can’t you ever share these crazy schemes before you jump into them?”

  She laughed. “Where’s the fun in that?”

  She opened the door to the florist, the bell clanging to announce our entrance.

  The shop was small and not all that different than the stock we kept in the nursery—houseplants and greenery and various knickknacks that made great last-minute gift items. The front of the shop was quiet, but I could see there was quite a bit of activity in the back as they assembled arrangements for delivery.

  “I’ll be right with you,” a woman called out to us.

  “At least give me a hint about what you’re plannin’,” I whispered.

  She gave me an ornery grin, but it quickly morphed into irritation as she turned to face the approaching woman.

  “Can I help you?” the woman asked sweetly. She looked to be in her thirties. Her long dark hair was pulled up into a loose bun, and an apron that said Bless Your Heart covered most of her pale blue T-shirt and jeans.

  “I certainly hope so,” Neely Kate said in a snippy tone. “I need to know who’s been sendin’ me flowers.”

  The woman’s face wrinkled in confusion. “You don’t like gettin’ flowers?” She turned to me wide-eyed. “Who doesn’t like flowers?”

  I wasn’t sure how to play this, so I gave her a shrug.

  “I love flowers,” Neely Kate snarled. “I just don’t like gettin’ flowers from Digger.”

  “Who?” the poor woman asked, taking a step backward.

  “My ex-boyfriend, Digger.” She took a breath, acting like she was struggling to calm down. “Yesterday, I came back from a two-week whirlwind romantic holiday with my new boyfriend, Ricky. I showed up at work, lookin’ forward to showing the girls at the office all my beach pics, and what do I find on the counter of the breakroom?” Neely Kate demanded as though she was deeply insulted. “A dried-up bouquet of flowers! That’s what!”

  “Oh dear.” The florist clasped her hands together. “Was it supposed to be a dried flower arrangement?”

  “No, it wasn’t supposed to be a dried flower arrangement!” Neely Kate snapped. “It was supposed to be live, I’m guessin’, but that’s not the point!”

  “Then what is the point?” the florist asked. She cast a pleading look at me.

  “The point—” Neely Kate leaned forward. “What’s your name?”

  “Rhonda.”

  “The point, Rhonda, is that I was all aglow after two weeks of sweet, sweet lovemakin’ with my new man, and I come back to that dried-up arrangement!” Neely Kate tilted her head to the side and, with a look of contemplation, added, “Which I guess is an accurate representation of my relationship with Digger.”

  “Are you unhappy with the arrangement?” Rhonda asked, trying to get to the root of the problem.

  “Of course I’m unhappy with the arrangement!” Neely Kate snapped. “It was like lookin’ into my past!”

  “What’s Digger’s last name?” Rhonda asked as she reached for her computer mouse. “I’ll look up what arrangement he sent you and we’ll remake it.”

  “Digger Malone,” Neely Kate said. “But I suspect I’m not the only woman he’s sent flowers to, so make sure it’s me and not that bitch he cheated on me with.”

  “And your name is?” Rhonda asked as she clicked on the computer screen.

  “Sarah Freestone. He had them sent to where I work—Knight Dentistry Office.” Neely Kate rested her hand on the counter and stared out the front window with a look of impatience.

  “I’m not seeing anything from a Digger Malone,” Rhonda said as she scanned the screen.

  “Then he must have used his alias,” Neely Kate said, “Conrad Duffy.”

  After clicking around some more, Rhonda shook her head. “I’m sorry. He didn’t send anything either.”

  “Then can you just look up my name?” Neely Kate asked. “It’s Sarah with an H.”

  “Yes, of course, Ms. Freestone,” Rhonda said in a rush as she did more checking. She must have found Sarah’s name because her eyes narrowed before her gaze shot up to Neely Kate. “Those flowers were sent nearly three weeks ago.”

  “So?” Neely Kate asked flippantly. “I wasn’t there when they showed up. I just told you I went on a holiday with my new beau.”

  Rhonda offered her a hesitant smile. “I’m sorry, but we can’t be held responsible if the flowers were sent while you were gone.”

  “So I need to take this up with the guy who had them sent?” Neely Kate asked.

  “Yes.”

  Neely Kate stared at her for several seconds, then asked, “Well? Are you gonna tell me who sent them?”

  “I’m afraid I can’t,” Rhonda said, hunching her shoulders in a defensive stance. “Whoever sent them paid cash and asked to remain anonymous.”

  “Are you kiddin’ me?” Neely Kate practically shouted.

  “Now, Sarah,” I said, finally jumping in. “Poor Rhonda is just doin’ her job.”

  Neely Kate turned to face me, her face red with anger. “This is the epitome of irresponsibility, Beth Ann!”

  I put a reassuring hand on her arm. “I understand your frustration, Sarah, but you’re scarin’ poor Rhonda. It’s like shootin’ the messenger.”

  “I demand to know who s
ent me that monstrosity!” Neely Kate said.

  “It wasn’t a monstrosity when it arrived,” Rhonda said. “It was sent over two and a half weeks ago.”

  “How can you be sure it wasn’t a monstrosity?” Neely Kate asked. “Do you have a photo of it? Because all I’ve been lookin’ at since I got back to work yesterday is a glob of dead flowers!”

  “Do you have a photo of it?” another woman asked as she emerged from the back room.

  “A picture of it?” Neely Kate asked in outrage. “My phone is full of photos of my Ricky’s firm butt and abs on a nude beach.” She scrunched up her nose in disgust. “Why would I take a photo of dried-up things to put next to those?”

  “Uh…” Rhonda stammered.

  “Sarah,” I said. “I think your real issue is with the person who sent the flowers, not with the poor florists who made the arrangement.” I turned to the women. “I realize it’s anonymous, but if you could tell us who sent the arrangement, I think it would really help to give Sarah closure.” I leaned closer and lowered my voice. “And perhaps keep an innocent person from getting his house egged and his clothes thrown into a bonfire.”

  Rhonda’s terrified gaze turned to Neely Kate, whose brows had lifted in challenge.

  “I really don’t know who placed the order,” Rhonda protested.

  “Let me look,” the other woman said as she pushed Rhonda to the side and studied the screen. “The person paid in cash and wrote their own card.”

  “Their?” I asked.

  “There’s no name for the customer. It says, Client asked to remain anonymous.”

  “How often does that happen?” I asked, playing good customer in this charade. “Surely you’d remember something like that.”

  “I definitely would,” the new woman said. “It’s not totally uncommon to have flowers sent anonymously, but we usually keep a record of who sent them. This order was taken by Anita, and she’s off today.”

  “Can you call her at home?” I asked. “This is really important to Sarah.”

  The woman gave Neely Kate a sour look. “Anita took her son up to the Children’s Hospital in Little Rock to have his heart valve checked. I’m not botherin’ her with this nonsense. Her child’s health and his mother’s peace of mind are more important than who sent your nearly three-week-old flower arrangement.”

  “That’s perfectly understandable,” I said reassuringly. “But this wasn’t the only time Sarah got flowers through y’all. There were several occasions. Can you look and see if they were all sent from the same anonymous person? None of them had names attached.”

  “And were those arrangements to your satisfaction?” the second woman asked in a snippy tone.

  Neely Kate tilted her chin down as though looking down her nose at them. “Yes, they were,” she said in a haughty tone.

  I rested my hand on the counter and leaned in even more. “I’m so sorry for Sarah’s display of temper.” I lowered my voice to a whisper. “I think she’s still in love with Digger and this is just her confusion manifestin’ in anger.”

  “Well, tell your friend to manifest her anger somewhere else,” the second woman said. “There’s no need to take her frustrations out on us.”

  Neely Kate gave them a hateful look, then stomped out the door.

  The second woman scanned the screen and said, “The other occasions were also anonymous orders taken by Anita. She usually works the counter in the mornings while Rhonda and I are in the back.”

  “Do you think it would be okay if I come back and talk to Anita tomorrow?” I asked, then quickly added, “I’ll be sure to leave Sarah at home. It’s just that she has a restraining order against Digger, and she can use this in court to show he’s still harrassin’ her.”

  “I thought you said she still loves him,” Rhonda said.

  I grimaced. “What can I say? Sarah’s a conundrum.”

  Rhonda nodded her head in agreement.

  The other woman, who had to be the boss, narrowed her eyes. “You may come back, but if that woman steps foot in here again, I’m callin’ the Sugar Branch police.”

  “Agreed,” I said hastily. “Thank you.”

  I hurried out the door and found Neely Kate several storefronts down the street, pacing in front of an insurance office.

  She glanced up when she saw me. “Did you find out anything else?”

  “Not really. They told me I can go back tomorrow and talk to Anita, but if you show up, they’ll call the Sugar Branch police.”

  Her mouth twisted to the side. “Can’t say I blame them.”

  It hit me that Neely Kate was feelin’ guilty over her performance. This wasn’t the first time we’d tricked people into giving us information, but it was the first time Neely Kate had been downright ugly. “It’s okay, Neely Kate.”

  “Is it?” she asked with wide eyes, and I realized it wasn’t a rhetorical question.

  I leveled my gaze with hers. “Sarah’s countin’ on us to find her, whether she realizes it or not. Whether we find her alive or dead. Her momma needs closure if it’s the latter, and Sarah likely needs savin’ if it’s the former. Sometimes we have to do hard things for the greater good.”

  She nodded but didn’t look entirely convinced by my pep talk.

  “How about I take the lead in the hair salon?” I said, reaching out my hand. “Hand over the paper from yesterday and I’ll deal with that too.”

  Conflict waged on her face, but she found her wallet in her purse and fished out the small square of paper.

  “Sorry if I’m off my game today,” she said as she handed it to me.

  “You mean for being rude to that woman while you were in character?” I retorted as I stuck the paper in my skirt pocket. “You’re a kindhearted person, Neely Kate Rivers. It’s not in your nature to purposely be hateful.”

  When she didn’t say anything, I pulled her into a hug. “Maybe we should take the day off.”

  She jerked backward. “Take the day off? After your speech about how it’s our responsibility to find Sarah?”

  I grabbed her upper arms and kept her in front of me. “Neely Kate. You went through a horrific trauma just days ago. It’s okay to take some time off to recover.”

  “No. You were right about Sarah counting on us. We’re not takin’ the day off.”

  I lifted a brow. “You still need to deal with Mason. We can see if he’ll meet us at the farm and get it over with.”

  “I already gave my statement. He can wait. This is more important.”

  “He’ll think you have something to hide.” I paused. “Do you?”

  “Things in my statement might not be one hundred percent accurate, but the memory’s a faulty thing at times,” she said. “And he won’t presume I’m hiding anything. He’ll presume I’m still pissed at him after he confronted me at the fundraiser dinner Saturday night. I felt like a princess, and he went and ruined it.”

  “I’m sorry,” I said with a frown.

  A door to the insurance office opened behind me, and a woman called out, “Is everything all right? I can’t help but noticin’ y’all keep pacin’ out there, and I wanted to let you know that we won’t bite.”

  I glanced over my shoulder at the middle-aged woman with the kind smile. “My friend here is torn between two car insurance plans. I keep tellin’ her to go all in, but she’s terrible about decision-makin’.”

  “If y’all come in, I can go over it with you.”

  I offered her a warm smile. “That’s so sweet of you, but I think she needs more time. We’ll call and make an appointment when she’s ready.” Then, wrapping an arm around Neely Kate’s upper back, I led her toward the hair salon entrance.

  “Oh, my stars and garters,” Neely Kate said. “I just realized I never got insurance for my car.”

  “We’ll take care of it later,” I said. “Right now, Nancy needs to see how much it costs to get her pink streaks touched up.”

  Chapter 22

  The smell of chemicals hit my
nose as soon as I opened the door to the Cut and Curl, an odor I recognized from years of my mother’s do-it-yourself perms. A woman in thin plastic rollers sat in one of the four chairs in the salon, confirming my suspicions.

  There were four women in the shop—the woman getting a perm and her hairdresser, and an older woman getting her nails filed by a manicurist who looked like she was in her twenties. She looked familiar, likely from our last visit to the Cut and Curl.

  “Hey,” the manicurist said, narrowing her eyes at us. “I think I’ve seen you two before.”

  I’d planned to use our alter egos as an excuse—Neely Kate did need her hair done, after all—but I couldn’t remember whether we’d given her our real names last time. If she remembered them, the lie wouldn’t endear her to us. “Yes,” I said, taking a PI business card out of my purse and putting it on her table. “I’m Rose Gardner and this is Neely Kate Rivers.”

  “I’m Olivia,” the young woman said absently as she picked up the card and looked it over. She lifted her gaze to me. “Are you real private eyes?”

  “Real enough.” Then I put plenty of sweetness into my words. “We’re lookin’ for a missing person—Sarah Freestone. Do any of you happen to know her?”

  Olivia snapped her fingers. “That’s how I know you! You came in here lookin’ for Alaina’s brother, Nikko.”

  I tried not to frown. We’d gone looking for Nikko as part of our search for Neely Kate’s cousin Dolly Parton. We’d found Dolly Parton alive, but Nikko had already been killed. “That’s right. You have a good memory.”

  “That was the most excitin’ thing to happen around here in ages. So you’re lookin’ for a new missin’ person, you said?” She was still filing her client’s nails, but her gaze was locked on me.

  Her client glanced back at us with a worried look.

  “Yeah, Sarah Freestone,” I repeated. “She graduated from Sugar Branch High School a year ago, and up until a few weeks ago, she worked at Dr. Knight’s office. Do you know anything about her?”

  Olivia rolled her eyes as she finished her ministrations on one nail and switched to the next. “This is Sugar Branch. Everybody knows a little something about everybody.”