by J. B. Lynn
“Piper, who owns PerC Up, was telling me about that,” the detective said. “She’s pretty upset about the whole thing.”
“You two are close?” Amanda asked, despite her best intentions. She’d seen firsthand in the coffee shop how Piper lit up around the man.
“We are,” he replied, not offering an explanation. “It sounds like your godmother was quite the character. Did she always run such a…” He trailed off, his gaze skimming the eclectic offerings of the shop. He didn’t see Rupert, who was standing right in front of him. “…an interesting place?”
Amanda shook her head. “No, Letty had a boring secretarial job that she hated for most of my life. I’m surprised you didn’t know her, since you and Piper are so close.”
She regretted adding the “so close” when he glanced over at her. She hadn’t meant to sound jealous. She had no reason to be jealous. She didn’t even know the man and she certainly didn’t find him attractive. Not in the least. “I mean, since you frequent Piper’s shop,” she explained hurriedly.
“I used to work the night shift,” the detective explained. “Piper closes at six.”
Amanda nodded.
“So what brought Letty here?” Keller brought the conversation back on track while skimming a row of books that were piled up for sale in the back corner of the room.
“I think she only kept the office job because she was being responsible. My parents died when I was ten,” she found herself elaborating.
Keller glanced over at her. “That must have been hard on you.”
Amanda nodded, unsure of why she was sharing her life story. She wondered whether he had used some kind of detective mind control on her. “Letty took us in, my sisters and me,” she explained. “I was ten, but my youngest sister, Bea, the one in the wheelchair, was just a few months old.”
Keller stopped his searching so that he could give her his full attention. “That must have been hard on everybody.”
Amanda nodded. “Anyway, I think Letty put her life on hold for twenty years, more than twenty years, so that she could raise us all. After that, she wanted to get away from the winters of upstate New York.”
“I can understand that,” the detective said, returning to his search. “The Suncoast holds a lot of appeal to a lot of people.”
“Letty was always into recycling, reusing, re-loving, as she used to call it,” Amanda said. “In that respect, opening the shop, it wasn’t that much of a stretch. I know when she first opened, she stocked it with all of her own treasures that she had brought down from the north.”
“I do appreciate a woman with a plan,” the detective said. He riffled through the display of pocketbooks. “I’m not even sure I’d know this thing if I saw it,” he admitted. “I’m not much of a fashion guy.”
“I don’t understand why this person; what did you say her name was?”
“Amber Axelrod.” His tone indicated he wasn’t a fan of the woman.
“I don’t understand why she’d accuse Letty of theft. My aunt was a little weird, maybe a little out there, but she wasn’t a thief.”
“I understand,” Keller said. “I’m just doing my job. Speaking of weird, have you met Harmony yet?”
Amanda nodded, gritting her teeth. Her blood pressure began to rise at the mention of the other woman.
“I understand she was a good friend of your godmother,” the detective said, unaware Amanda was about to lose her temper all over again.
“I don’t believe that,” Amanda spat out.
The detective turned to her, his eyebrows raised. “Why not?”
“She said something,” Amanda said cryptically.
“She, who?” he asked.
“Harmony.”
“What did she say?”
Amanda shook her head. “It was a lie.”
The detective arched his eyebrows and tilted his head, waiting for her to explain what she meant.
“She said that Letty had her secrets,” Amanda said. “You’d have to have known Letty to know that that was a lie. Letty was an open book.”
“Even open books can have hidden messages in them,” Keller replied.
18
Beatrice was tired by the time her evening was over. She enjoyed Ash’s company immensely, had been entertained by a lot of his stories, and enjoyed watching the sunset with him, but it had been a long day.
Still, she was hoping to end the night with a goodnight kiss, but as he rolled her wheelchair up to One Woman’s Junk, she saw that her sisters were sitting in the shop, lights on, waiting for her.
She felt like a teenager coming home past curfew and a familiar resentment simmered in her gut.
“I had a good time,” Ash said with a smile. “Maybe we can do it again?”
“I’d like that,” Beatrice said. She tilted her head in the direction of her sisters, who were trying to pretend they weren’t actually watching what was going on outside the store. “We have an audience.”
Ash nodded. “I noticed. It’s sweet how you guys look out for each other.”
Beatrice considered that for a moment, the fact that her sisters and her gave off the illusion that they looked out for each other. “Not really,” she said. Because of their age difference, her sisters had often grudgingly looked after her, but she didn’t feel like they looked out for her. Not the way she wanted them to anyway. They spent most of their time trying to get her to conform to their standards instead of supporting her desires.
Ash raised his eyebrows. He looked toward her sisters and waved at them. They waved back.
“They sure do seem concerned about you,” Ash said. “Maybe it’s time for you to re-think your relationship with one another.”
With that, he opened the door, causing the bell over the door to jangle. With his other hand, he pushed her inside. “Have a good night, ladies,” he said.
Before Beatrice realized what he was doing, he bent and pressed a quick kiss to the top of her head. “I’ll see you soon,” he murmured. His breath tickled her ear, causing her to shiver.
“Did you have a good time?” Amanda asked when Ash was no longer in earshot.
“I did,” Beatrice said. “I had him take me to where Letty collapsed.”
Moving past Beatrice, Winnie locked the door. “That’s a macabre choice. Why there?”
“It was something Sandy had said,” Beatrice explained. “We all know what a beach person Letty was, and Sandy mentioned it was strange she had been at this park. It’s not beachy. It’s got all of these huge trees dripping with Spanish moss.”
Winnie shrugged. “Who knows why Letty did half the things she did?”
“But don’t you think it’s odd?” Beatrice pushed, remembering the anxious image she had of Letty in the park.
“Different,” Amanda agreed. “But Winnie’s right, Letty was always doing the unexpected.”
With that, Winnie began to turn off the lights. “I don’t know about you, but I’m exhausted.”
“I’ll help Bea,” Amanda promised. “You go up to bed.”
Nodding, Winnie waved at her sisters and climbed the stairs to the living quarters above the shop.
Amanda smiled at Beatrice. “He’s a nice guy?”
“Too nice for me.” She noticed that someone had reset up the cot for her outside of the dressing area. She wheeled her chair toward it.
Amanda’s eyebrows shot up. “What do you mean, too nice for you?”
Beatrice shrugged. “I don’t really do nice guys. They’re not my type.”
“Maybe you should give a nice guy a chance,” Amanda suggested mildly.
Beatrice tilted her head. She managed to bite her tongue and not ask Amanda what she knew about successful relationships, considering that her ex had cheated on her.
As she helped Beatrice get changed for the night, Amanda said, “Things got a little weird here.”
“What do you mean?”
“That detective came back, claiming to have a search warrant,” Amanda explained
.
“Claiming?”
“Okay, maybe he didn’t actually say he had one. I just assumed…”
Bea raised her eyebrows.
“It was a takeout menu,” Amanda admitted huffily, “but he claimed he could get a real one.”
“So what did you do?”
“I let him go through the whole place.”
Beatrice didn’t ask if he’d found what he was looking for since she had taken the Prissy purse out of the shop.
“I knew Letty had nothing to hide. I told him that she would never have taken the purse,” Amanda complained. “But he just kept saying he was doing his job.”
“He was,” Beatrice pointed out. She didn’t mention that Letty had, in fact, been in possession of the purse.
By the time Beatrice was ready for bed, Amanda had calmed down a little.
“Thank you, Amanda.” Bea smiled up at her older sister. “I know that taking care of me on top of everything that’s going on hasn’t been easy. I appreciate you.”
Amanda blinked, surprised by the acknowledgment. “It’s nothing.”
“I really am grateful,” Beatrice told her, reaching out and grabbing her hand. A strange spark of electricity, like a massive static shock, flowed between them.
The sisters jumped apart. “We still must be charged from the lightning.” Amanda laughed, rubbing her hands together. “Is there anything else that you need?”
Beatrice shook her head. “I’m good.”
“Then I’m going to go to bed, too.” Amanda smiled at her, then walked up the stairs to the living area above the shop.
Beatrice sat in the chair, beside the cot, waiting. She listened carefully to the sounds overhead. The murmuring of Amanda and Winnie’s voices, the creaking of the floorboards, she thought they’d never end.
When the lights upstairs finally went out, and the noises ceased, she pulled out the denim purse. Carefully, she removed the stolen bag. “I don’t understand,” she muttered under her breath.
“You’re handling hot goods,” Pim, the sheep, told her.
Beatrice pulled the figure out of the denim purse and held it in her palm. She looked the little black sheep in the eye. “You are not talking to me.”
“Of course, I am,” the toy replied. “I am the great and mighty Pim.”
“Did you need something, Bea?” Amanda called from upstairs.
She was so startled, Beatrice dropped the sheep.
He landed on the cot with an “oommff.”
“No,” she yelled back. “Just talking to myself. Sorry.”
“Sweet dreams,” Amanda wished her.
Bea took a deep breath, trying to calm herself.
Pim said something, but since his face was pressed into the blanket, she couldn’t make out his words.
“I’m cracking up,” she muttered under her breath. The lightning had obviously fried her brain.
The figure continued speaking. Hand trembling, she slowly reached out and flipped him over.
“That’s better,” the figure declared. “I know this is probably a shock…”
“What? That I’ve lost my grip on reality?” Beatrice asked. She had to fight back the urge to descend into hysterical laughter. She slapped her hand over her mouth to make sure no sound escaped her.
“You’ve always been able to talk to things,” the sheep guessed. “I’d bet that Letty even knew that.”
Hand over her mouth, Beatrice shook her head.
“Are you telling me that when you were younger, you never stole anything and told your godmother the thing told you to do it?” Disbelief dripped from the black sheep’s tone.
Beatrice slowly lowered her hand from her mouth. “Of course, I did,” she said. “But Letty never believed me.”
“Maybe she thought that you’d be better off; after all, that’s why most people don’t tap into their powers.”
“Powers?” Beatrice whispered.
19
The next morning, Beatrice found herself alone in the shop after Amanda declared the responsible thing to do would be to take the dog to find out it if was microchipped. It was, she’d lectured, their responsibility to see if he belonged to someone.
Winnie had gone to PerC Up to pick up breakfast.
Beatrice was staring at the purse when she heard the knock at the door. She hurried to stuff it in the denim bag before turning to see who was there.
Harmony, the woman that smelled like she bathed in patchouli, was standing there, smiling and waving.
Beatrice rolled herself over and unlocked the door so that she could enter.
“Good morning,” Harmony said with a smile. “I saw that your sister went out, so I thought we might be able to talk.”
“Sure,” Beatrice said. “Let’s just close the door behind you so that no customers wander in.”
She rolled her way back to the cash register and pointed to the velvet-covered chair outside the dressing rooms. “Why don’t you have a seat?”
“Thank you.” Harmony settled into the seat and looked around for a long moment. Finally, her gaze settled on Beatrice.
She looked from her face, to her hand, and then back to her face.
“What happened?” Harmony asked.
Beatrice stared at her. “I’m sorry?”
“What happened when you put on the ring?”
“Nothing.” It wasn’t a lie. Nothing had happened when she’d put the ring on. Things had only started getting strange after they’d been to the beach.
Harmony cocked her head to the side. “I don’t believe you.”
Beatrice tensed, wondering what this strange woman knew. “I don’t know what you mean.”
Harmony shook her head. “I sensed it the moment we touched hands yesterday. There’s a power flowing through you.”
Beatrice frowned at the mention of power again. She was unsure what to do. She desperately wanted to confide in someone about the visions she was having, but she didn’t want someone to think she was insane, either. Everyone already thought she was crazy in a reckless sense, nobody needed to know she was bona fide nuts.
“You can tell me,” Harmony said. “I was a good friend of Letty. We had many talks about the items.”
“Items?” Beatrice asked.
“The crystal jewelry,” Harmony explained. “We were both convinced they had some kind of powers. We could sense them, but neither of us were able to tap into them. You have, though, haven’t you?”
Beatrice fiddled with the moss agate ring. “You know we were struck by lightning?”
“So I heard. They say it’s a miracle you all survived,” Harmony said in a tone that revealed she didn’t think it was a miracle.
“What do you think happened?” Beatrice asked curiously.
“Were you all wearing what Letty bequeathed you?” Harmony asked.
“Yes.”
Harmony nodded. “If the crystals have the powers that Letty and I suspected, they obviously protected you, but the lightning may have also magnified your abilities.”
Beatrice looked away, unsure of where to go with the conversation. It sounded kind of crazy. Still, she asked, “What kind of powers did you think they had?”
Harmony shrugged. “Vibrational energies that most people can’t harness. But you…you and your sisters, Letty was convinced you’d be able to use them for good.”
Beatrice nodded slowly. “The first time we met, when we shook hands, I saw Letty at the beach,” she confessed on a whisper.
Harmony nodded her encouragement.
“She was so happy,” Beatrice said with a smile at the memory. “I mean, I know she loved the beach, but I never saw her at Siesta Key, but then, I had this… vision.”
Harmony nodded. “That makes sense. We went there together often.”
“She seemed happy, but there was this relentless pounding sound in the background. I—”
“The drum circle,” Harmony interrupted eagerly. “We went almost every Sunday night. Drumming and then
ice cream, it was our routine.”
Encouraged by the other woman’s validation, Bea confided, “That’s not the only vision I’ve had.”
Before she could explain any further, the bell over the door jangled and Winnie breezed in, carrying a cardboard tray of coffee cups and pastries.
“Oh, hi,” Winnie said as she noticed Harmony.
“This is Harmony, Letty’s friend,” Beatrice said as introduction. “This is my sister, Winnie.”
Harmony got to her feet and extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Winnie.”
Winnie put down the tray and they shook.
Beatrice watched carefully, gauging Harmony’s reaction.
From the slightly self-satisfied smile that stretched across the lips of the older woman, Beatrice got the impression she had sensed something about her sister, also.
“Is Mr. Perkins trying to evict you, also?” Winnie asked, oblivious to the conversation Beatrice and Harmony had just been having.
Harmony nodded. “He wants to sell the land to condo developers.”
“That’s what Piper told me,” Winnie said, frowning. “She seemed to think that Letty was the biggest hurdle for Mr. Perkins to get around.”
Harmony nodded. “Letty had a five-year lease, that means she still had another three years on it. It was practically unbreakable.”
Winnie nodded. “What about the rest of you?”
“Except for Matt,” Harmony said sadly, “we’re all on year-to-year leases.”
“That’s not the best business sense,” Winnie muttered.
Harmony shrugged. “Sometimes beggars can’t be choosers. Retail real estate goes for a premium in this town.”
Before the conversation could continue, the bell jangled over the door again and Amanda marched in, carrying the dog. “What kind of responsible pet owner doesn’t chip their pet?” she demanded to know.
“So, can we keep him?” Beatrice asked hopefully.
Amanda focused on Harmony and frowned.
Before Amanda could even say anything, Winnie interjected. “We were just having a conversation with Harmony about lease lengths. She seems to have some pretty good insight into what Letty’s business sense was.”