by Jenna Harte
“When was the last time you saw Mrs. Naylor?” He looked at Aggie when he asked.
“I saw her last week at our coupon group. It was at Lani’s house.” Aggie nodded toward Lani.
“Me too,” Gwen chimed in. Gwen would have been striking even without the severe dark bob with purple tips. She was about six feet tall and not afraid to say what she meant.
“I ran into her at the nursery two days ago,” Lani stated. Of all of us, Lani was the most attractive, with her exotic cat-shaped green eyes, caramel skin that hinted at her mix-raced parentage, and her million-watt smile. I was sure she could have been a model if she wanted. Instead, she stayed in Jefferson Grove, marrying her high school sweetheart, Dwayne, and working in the sheriff’s department were Dwayne was a deputy.
“I saw her two days ago. She was helping me with my coupons.” I’d already said this to him, but it couldn’t hurt to remind him.
“And you, Mrs. Danner?”
Vivie flinched. “Me . . . ah . . . last week at the coupon group. Just like Aggie and Gwen.”
“I was there too.” Tracy’s sideways glance at Vivie made me wonder if she knew Vivie had taken the coupon binders.
“You all are sure about that?” Sergeant Scowl asked all of us, but his beady eyes stayed on Vivie.
No one said a word, as we all looked at one another.
“Sophie was there today,” Vivie blurted out.
Really? She was going throw me under the bus when I knew she had Marla’s binders in her car?
“I’ve already taken Ms. Parker’s statement.” He looked at each of us and then returned his gaze onto Vivie. “And you Mrs. Danner. Are you sure the last time you saw Mrs. Naylor was last week?”
Vivie shot me a look and shifted on her feet. “Yes, sir.”
“Because we have a witness that suggests you were there today.”
All eyes turned to Vivie. Her lips trembled. “They must be mistaken.”
“Nevertheless, I’d like to have you come down to the sheriff’s office and answer a few questions.”
The stares of disbelief turned into gapping mouths. Except for Vivie, who turned on me. “You called the cops on me?”
“No.”
“I didn’t kill her, Sophie. You hate me so much you turned me in.”
“Why would you think Ms. Parker was our witness?” Sergeant Scowl’s piercing eyes locked on Vivie.
“Vivie, maybe you should keep your mouth shut and call a lawyer,” Tracy said. Tracy was older than me, my brother Will’s age. She was a rounder, duller version of Vivie. She was pretty, more so now that she was wearing more make-up and having her hair done. I supposed that was for Randy’s sake.
Sergeant Davis turned his signature scowl on me. “Why would she think you called the cops?”
Ugh. Vivie was in the hot seat, but I didn’t want to be the one to reveal Vivie’s secret. What would the coupon group think? The town? I had lost friends and some respect because my father’s illegal activities, who’s side would people take if it was found that I’d narced on Vivie?
I shrugged. “Vivie doesn’t like me.” I hoped I couldn’t be arrested for lying. Although, that wasn’t a lie. She really didn’t like me. Could I be arrested for withholding information?
“Who said they saw her? Maybe they were lying,” Tracy said.
“That’s easy enough to ferret out. All Mrs. Danner has to do is tell us what she knows.”
“I don’t know anything.” She backed away from Sergeant Scowl.
He took a step closer. “It’s in your best interest to talk to me Mrs. Danner.”
She shook her head and stepped back again. Sergeant Scowl stepped closer, this time putting himself next to the passenger side of Vivie’s car. “Your response is making me suspicious.”
“You should talk to him,” I advised Vivie. “He’s like a dog with a bone. He won’t let it go.”
He shot me a glare. As he turned his attention back to Vivie, he did a double take toward the window of Vivie’s front seat. “What are those?” He tapped his knuckle against the door window.
Vivie swallowed. “Nothing.”
He turned to me. “Do you know what those are?”
I closed my eyes not wanting to answer him.
“How about any of you?” he asked.
“They’re just my coupons,” Vivie blurted.
Aggie and Gwen moved forward to look into Vivie’s car.
“Ah lordie.” Aggie gasped.
Gwen shot a look at Vivie.
“I take by your reaction that these aren’t Mrs. Danner’s binders.”
The two women stood back, apparently feeling the same way I did; they didn’t want to out Vivie.
“Oh, for goodness sake.” Tracy muscled her way through the women to the car and peeked into the window. Her head jerked up. “Oh my God, Vivie. Did you kill Marla?”
Chapter Five
Vivie went with Sergeant Scowl, although not quietly. She started by shouting insults at me for getting her arrested.
“You’re not under arrest.” Sergeant Scowl’s voice was surprisingly calm considering the state Vivie was working herself into. I suppose he was used to people protesting being taken to the sheriff’s station.
She started yelling that I was jealous of her couponing skills when Sergeant Scowl told her he had to take the coupon binders. Eventually, she started yelling at Tracy for not doing anything, and at Sergeant Scowl for embarrassing her in front of the neighborhood. Seriously, no one would have noticed though if Vivie hadn’t been making a scene.
We all stood on the sidewalk and watched as Sergeant Scowl drove off with Vivie fuming in the back seat.
“Let’s go inside ladies,” Aggie said. “We don’t need the whole neighborhood knowing our business.”
Aggie, Gwen and Lani started up first. I waited a moment to gather my bearings. When I finally turned to go up, Tracy grabbed my arm with the same force Vivie had.
I pulled my arm away and rubbed at the red marks she left. “What?”
“Why would you do that to her?” Tracy stepped closer to me, invading my space.
“I didn’t do anything to Vivie.”
“She’s in the coupon group. We should be helping her. Looking out for her. She needs her friends.”
I’m not sure what Tracy was thinking. Even on the best days, no one would have confused Vivie and me as being friends.
“I didn’t do anything to her, Tracy. I found Marla and called for help. Vivie is the one that stole Marla’s coupons instead of calling the police. And you’re the one that revealed that they were Marla’s binders to Davis.”
Tracy huffed out a breath. “She wouldn’t have done that to you, Sophie.”
“Are you kidding? She told him I’d seen Marla today.”
“She needs us to look after her.”
I should have simply walked away, but I was annoyed that Tracy was blaming me, and believed I owed Vivie something. I thought I’d test that theory out. “So, you think I should look out for Vivie?”
“Yes.”
“Do you think I should also tell her what you and Randy are doing behind her back? That would be looking after her, wouldn’t it?”
Tracy jerked back. The shock on her face gave away at what I’d only suspected before. Tracy was sleeping with her sister’s husband. She quickly recovered. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Girls, are you coming in or not?” Aggie called from the doorway of her house.
I hitched my coupon binder strap up and turned to go inside.
“There’s nothing to tell,” Tracy hissed at me as I headed up the walk.
I shrugged. “Whatever.
“Tracy, why are you still here? Shouldn’t you call Randy?” Aggie asked.
Tracy’s eyes bugged out. “W
hy would I call him?”
Aggie looked to me in confusion and then back at Tracy. “Because your sister has just been carted off by the police. I think you should let her husband know.”
“Oh, yeah. Right.” Tracy gave me the death stare before she turned to leave.
I ignored her. I passed Aggie and headed to the dining table where Gwen and Lani were seated. I unloaded my binder on the table and sat, blowing out a breath. Gwen and Lani had confused, dazed expressions on their faces, suggesting they were feeling as discombobulated as I was.
“Well, that was something.” Aggie sat in her chair across from me.
“Do you think she did it?” Gwen asked.
“No.” Aggie and Lani said at once without much conviction behind it.
“What do you think, Sophie?” Lani turned to me.
“We all know what Sophie thinks.” Gwen interrupted before I could speak.
“What do you mean?” I didn’t like the tone Gwen had used.
“You don’t like Vivie. You two snipe at each other all the time. You’re biased. Plus, you brought the police to arrest her.”
I couldn’t deny I had a bias that leaned toward disliking Vivie, but that didn’t mean I thought she was a murderer. “I work really hard to ignore Vivie. If we snipe, it’s because she starts it.” The statement came out sounding childish, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t true. I never initiated things with Vivie.
“That’s true.” Lani nodded.
“And, I didn’t bring the police to arrest her. Vivie is in trouble because instead of calling the police when she found Marla, she stole her binders.” It boggled my mind how Vivie’s actions were my fault. “Sergeant Davis is investigating so of course he’d come talk to us.”
“Don’t get upset Sophie.” Lani patted my hand, her exotic green eyes offering sympathy.
“That’s right. We don’t know as much about dealing with the police as you do.” Aggie stood. “Anyone want a drink?”
“Before couponing?” Gwen looked hopeful. Aggie never allowed alcohol before the coupons were exchanged.
“I think maybe we should pass on couponing tonight, under the circumstances. First, poor Marla and now Vivie.” Aggie opened the door to her buffet and pulled out a bottle of bourbon.
“I’d like a drink.” I wasn’t much of a drinker, but the events of day called for one.
Aggie went to the kitchen and brought back a pitcher of lemonade and glasses. A few minutes later, we all had lemonade spiked with bourbon. The alcohol did offer a welcomed dulling effect of the senses.
“What do you think will happen to Vivie?” Gwen asked after taking a sip of her drink.
Everyone at the table looked at me for a response. Sure, I’d been investigated by the FBI and the sheriff’s department, but that didn’t make me Columbo. “I guess Davis will ask her a bunch of questions.”
“It doesn’t look good that she had the binders.” Lani played with the condensation on the side of her glass.
“So, you think she’ll be arrested?” Gwen’s eyes widened.
“I think they’d require more proof. Her fingerprints will be there, as will all of ours,” I said.
Aggie and Lani’s eyes rounded to match Gwen’s.
“You said there would have been a lot of blood, Lani. Maybe they’ll look at her clothes too,” I explained.
“She would have had time to change.” Lani finally took a sip of her drink. “So, he’ll probably search her house.”
“I wonder where she dumped them?” Gwen finished of her drink.
“Now Gwen, I doubt Vivie killed Marla. She had no reason to. I’m sure Sergeant Davis will realize that and let her go.” Aggie reached for the bourbon bottle and topped off her drink. Gwen pushed her glass toward Aggie.
“You planning on spending the night, ‘cause you can’t drive home if you’re all boozed up.”
“Just a tad more,” Gwen said.
Lani covered her glass when Aggie offered to top hers off too. “Hopefully Randy will get her lawyer and she’ll be out soon.”
“What was that little tête-à-tête with Tracy?” Aggie offered the bottle to me.
I shook my head to the drink. “She was blaming me like Vivie did.” There was no reason to tell the group about Tracy and Randy’s affair. Randy was my boss and I wanted to keep my job. Maybe now that Tracy knew that I was on to them, they’d stop canoodling and I wouldn’t have to worry about if I had a duty or not to tell Vivie.
Chapter Six
Wednesdays were busy for me. It was my shopping day and it was back to work in the evenings at the Booty Burgo. The job wasn’t as bad as it used to be for several reasons. One of the biggest was that I was no longer a waitress, which meant I didn’t have to wear the wench uniform that AJ liked to much. Now that I was a bartender, I could wear shorts and a t-shirt. Not that my boss, Randy, wouldn’t prefer that I wore the barely-there outfit. Not that my boss, Randy, wouldn’t prefer that I wear the barely-there outfit. And it was possible I’d get more tips if I did, although Aunt Rose was right, people didn’t need my boobs in their face.
Because I worked from five until closing, I liked to sleep in on the days I worked. I required all my wits about me to deal with some of the ruffians who frequented the Booty Burgo. It was easier to keep my cool if I wasn’t tired.
Unfortunately for me, my phone rang early that morning. Normally I’d have ignored it, except the ringtone was Beyoncé’s Run the World, which I’d assigned to Lani.
I reached over with my hand blindly patting the arm of the hide-away until it landed on my phone.
“Hullo.” I kept my eyes closed. Maybe the call would be short and I could sleep some more.
“Vivie’s in jail.”
“Huh?” I’ll be honest, waking up to news about Vivie wasn’t how I want to start my day.
“She’s in jail. Sophie? Are you awake?”
“Yes, yes.” I dug the heel of my palm into one eye socket and scooted up to a sit. “Was she arrested?”
“No. Just detained.”
“Because of the coupons?”
“Probably. There was a footprint at the scene and they think it matches her shoe.”
That got my attention. I was near Marla’s body. What if I got blood on my shoe? “Did they take her clothes too.”
“Yes.”
“I thought you said it would be messy. She didn’t have any blood on her.”
“She wouldn’t have worn bloody clothes to coupon group.”
“Oh, right.” I shook my head of sleep fog.
“They’re searching her house for the clothes. Her mother is all in a tizzy, but at least Randy and Tracy got the kids to Vivie’s mother before the sheriff’s deputies arrived.”
I nearly asked why Tracy was at Randy’s early in the morning. Were they that daring that Tracy would sleep with Randy in the bed he shared with Vivie?
Instead, I asked, “I could have blood on my shoe. Will that make me suspect again too?”
“Except she was there before you and confirms Marla was dead.” The line was quiet for a moment. “Do you think she did it?” Lani’s voice was low, as if she didn’t want the universe to know of her suspicion.
“To be honest, I find it hard to believe. I suppose anything is possible.”
“Why would she do it?”
“I don’t know.” I thought for a moment. The only time I ever saw Vivie really mad was when she thought Randy was cheating on her. I knew Randy was cheating with Tracy, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have other women. However, I couldn’t imagine he’d ever met Marla, and I’m not sure she was his type. She wasn’t ugly, and in fact, if she tried a little bit, she could have been pretty. She was quiet and plain, and I’m sure Randy wouldn’t have noticed her.
“To be honest, I think Vivie could get violent, but it would be mo
re likely she’d castrate Randy. I don’t see her killing anyone.”
Lani laughed. “He is a hound dog. I don’t know how you work for him.”
“We stay out of each other’s way.”
“Oh hey . . . I’ve gotta go. Work calls,” Lani said.
“Keep me posted on the case if you can.”
“Will do.”
I tossed my phone on the bed, flopped back, covered my eyes with my arm. Unfortunately, I was too awake to go back to sleep. So, I got up and did my regular morning routine; wash, dress, close up the hide-away-bed, and clean up my room. Since it was a shop day, I pulled out my coupons and my phone to make my list.
In Virginia, students are required to take a personal finance class before they graduate. I think they should add couponing to the curriculum. Using coupons seems straight forward; 50 cents off of $4.00 equals $3.50. However, to really maximize savings, there are a boatload of hoops you have to jump through. So, I started jumping.
First, I checked the sales circular through my phone web browser for the grocery store to see what was on sale. From there, I had to match the coupons I had to the items on sale. More often than not, I didn’t have coupons for what’s on sale. Today, wasn’t any different.
Next, I looked at the special store deals, such as “Buy 5 and save 5” where if I bought five of the items on the list, I could save $5.00. It was a good deal if there were any items I wanted. Today, I found four items, and if I doubled up on one of them, I’d save $5.
Finally, I opened my sales apps, which made me think of poor Marla who was supposed to teach me how to best use phone apps to save. What a way to die; with her own coupon shears jabbed in the neck.
I shook my head to get the image of her and all that blood out of my brain. Vivie was a vile person, but I couldn’t imagine her getting in such a rage that she’d stab Marla. It made me think that the murder had to have been a spur of the moment thing. It didn’t seem plausible someone would make a plan to go to Marla’s, find the scissors, and stab her. The question was, who would be at her house that would get so mad they’d kill her?