Part 3 (1/2)
”I ran into a little trouble at the junction last night,” I said, this time including Dwayne. ”I wonder if either of you have noticed anything unusual out here in the past few days?”
Marion's smile faded. Dwayne just looked confused. ”What kind of trouble?” he asked.
”Well, that's the thing,” I admitted. ”I'm really not sure. At first, I thought someone-a man with a limp-had been seriously hurt. Now I'm starting to think it may have been an attempt to hijack my car. Have either of you noticed any strangers hanging around in the past day or two?”
Dwayne shook his head slowly. ”I don't think so. I've been staying with Grandma for a couple months now, but I'm not here all that much.”
Marion gave him a fond smile. ”And when he is here, he's out in that garage, working his fingers to the bone.” She turned back to me and said, ”You know me, Abby. I've never been one to encourage adult children to live at home. I think there's far too much of that going on these days. But sometimes, being with family is exactly what's called for.”
The change of subject surprised me, and I didn't know how to respond, so I tried to gently steer us back. ”I certainly know about that. That's why what happened last night concerns me. If it could happen to me, it could happen to anyone-even you.”
Marion's brows knit in consternation. ”Here in Paradise? What's going on in the world, anyway?” She slid another sugary glance at her grandson and lowered her voice to a stage whisper. ”I guess it's a good thing Dwayne's here with me, isn't it? He's getting a divorce, you know. That wife of his . . .” She rolled her eyes expressively and mouthed, ”sleeping around.”
Afraid she might decide to share details I didn't want- and Dwayne surely wouldn't want me to hear-I tried again to steer the conversation back on track. ”So, does that mean you haven't noticed anything out of the ordinary?”
Marion shook her head. ”No, but then I wouldn't, would I? Like I said, Dwayne's out in the garage most all day long, and I don't drive at night much since my eyesight took a turn for the worse. I don't trust myself to see well enough.”
”That must be frustrating,” I said, ”but you were out this morning. I was out at the junction as you were driving home.”
”Well, I do go out sometimes in the day. I can't take Dwayne away from his work every time I need a gallon of milk. It's hard work starting up a new business.”
Clearly, she wanted me to show an interest in Dwayne and his new enterprise, so I gave up the fight. ”So, you've started your own business?” I asked, prompting him to do his part.
He lifted one shoulder as if to say it was no big deal, but the self-satisfied smile that tugged on his mouth told a different story. ”I've been renovating furniture-secondhand stuff. Stuff people are willing to just throw away. There's a good market for refurbished goods these days.”
”That's terrific,” I said, hoping I sounded enthusiastic enough for Marion. ”Considering how messed up the economy has been the past few years, I'll bet lots of people are eager to pick up quality furniture without having to pay a fortune to get it. I didn't realize you were a carpenter.”
”I wouldn't go that far,” Dwayne mumbled.
”There you go being too modest again,” Marion scolded gently. ”He took cla.s.ses in carpentry, you know. Years ago, but he's always had a talent. His grandfather and I used to encourage him to do something with it, but he was more interested in lazing around with those no-good friends of his.”
Color rushed into Dwayne's pudgy cheeks. ”For G.o.d's sake, Grandma. Do you mind?”
”Well, what's wrong with bragging a little? It's a grandma's right, especially since you never speak up for yourself.”
Dwayne might have been a lump, but the misery in his eyes touched something in me. I'd been embarra.s.sed by relatives more than once, and I firmly believe that n.o.body should have to endure that. ”It sounds like you're doing well,” I said.
He muttered again, and Marion started her chair moving once more.
I tried one last time to get us back on track. ”So neither of you have seen anything unusual. Have you heard of anyone else running into trouble of any kind? Maybe someone's mentioned having a near accident or witnessing one?”
Marion glanced quickly at Dwayne, then shook her head. ”I haven't heard a thing. And if Dwayne had, he would have told me, wouldn't you Dwayne?” He moved a thumb, which apparently meant yes. ”You said you almost ran over some man. Do you know who he was?”
”No, but I wish I did. He was about five four, and it looked like he had a pretty severe limp. Does that sound familiar?”
Marion gave that some thought but eventually shook her head. ”Paradise isn't what it used to be. There are strangers around most of the time now, but I don't remember seeing anyone with a limp. How about you, Dwayne?”
He wagged his head from side to side. ”I haven't seen any strangers since the end of summer.”
”My cousin Karen thinks it might have been an attempted carjacking or . . .” I couldn't bring myself to list the other, much worse possibilities, ”. . . or something.”
Apparently, Dwayne didn't share my problem. ”Or a kidnaping?”
Marion gasped, and her eyes rounded in horror.
”It's possible,” I admitted, wis.h.i.+ng for his grandmother's sake that Dwayne hadn't been quite so frank. ”Although I can't imagine why anyone would want to kidnap me. It's not as if my family has money.”
Dwayne lifted his head and looked straight at me for the first time. ”There's other reasons to s.n.a.t.c.h somebody besides money, you know.”
An involuntary shudder raced up my spine. I had no idea what to make of his comment. Was he warning me or just offering an observation? I'd known Dwayne most of my life, but we'd never been friends. He was just a kid who belonged to a casual friend of my mother's, not someone I knew well.
I shook off the uneasy feeling and kept a smile on my face, mostly because I didn't want him to think he'd frightened me. If that's even what he was trying to do. I wasn't sure what to think anymore.
Marion stopped rocking and glared at Dwayne. ”That's a horrible thing to say, Dwayne. What on earth is wrong with you?”
He shrugged, and a sheepish look crossed his face that made him look all of ten years old. ”It was just a thought, Grandma. I didn't mean anything by it. But you know it's true. There are all kinds of sick people running around in the world today.”
”It might be true,” Marion chided, ”but that doesn't mean you have to say it. You probably frightened poor Abby half to death.”
The irony of the situation wasn't lost on me. Here I was trying to protect Marion, and she was worried about protecting me. I smiled and shook my head. ”I'm fine, Marion. Trust me, that thought crossed my mind long before Dwayne brought it up.”
Marion sighed heavily. ”What's wrong with the world these days? I just don't understand.”
”I'm not sure anyone does.” I stood, convinced there was nothing more either of them could tell me. ”I hope I haven't frightened you by telling you about this, Marion.”
”Me?” Marion looked surprised. ”I'm not fragile, Abby, and I'm not as old as you think. Would you like me to keep my eyes open, just in case? I haven't noticed anyone suspicious lurking about yet, but I haven't been looking, either.”
I could just imagine what Jawarski would say if I dragged an eighty-year-old woman into the middle of something potentially dangerous, so I shook my head quickly. ”No, that's okay. I probably just overreacted. I'm sure it's nothing to worry about.”
Marion struggled to her feet, for the first time showing signs that she was growing older. ”If you say so, Abby.”
I tried to duck the wave of guilt that hit me, but I didn't move quickly enough. I caught Dwayne's eye as I gave Marion a brief hug and tried to elicit a silent promise that he'd look after her. When I walked out the door a few minutes later, I tried hard to believe that he'd given me what I asked for, but all I'd really gotten from my visit was another person to worry about.
Chapter 7.
By the time I was on the road and headed back to Divinity, I started to feel guilty about how long I'd left Karen alone at the shop. Deciding not to put off until tomorrow what I could do today, I detoured to the Paradise Post offices and placed a want ad for help with the sales counter at Divinity. Karen seemed pleased when I told her what I'd done, and the mood around Divinity was so relaxed, I spent the rest of the afternoon making lollipops for the upcoming holiday season.
It didn't take long for the entire shop to fill with the sweet scents of cooking sugar, cinnamon, wintergreen, pina colada, lemon, lime, and orange. By seven that night, I had row after row of gleaming red, yellow, orange, and green lollipops cooling on the granite countertop in the shape of turkeys, pumpkins, autumn leaves, and acorns. I was in the middle of giving myself an enthusiastic pat on the back for a good day's work when the phone rang.
I heard Karen answer. A few seconds later, she looked into the kitchen and said, ”It's for you. Brody wants to know if you're already on your way.”
On my way? My good mood faded as I remembered my promise to meet with Coach Hendrix tonight. What kind of aunt makes a promise one night and completely forgets about it by the next? Not a very good one.