Part 21 (1/2)
”Especially when you've already tried out so many of them,” I said with a smile.
”My, don't you have a mouth on you.”
”It's your fault,” I said. ”I've been reading your greeting cards all afternoon.”
”Perhaps we should limit your exposure then,” she said, adding a smile. ”Have a nice evening, Jennifer.”
”You, too,” I said. Lillian left, but I still had a report to run on my register, and then there was the bank, inventory and supply restocking. It was definitely easier being an employee than an owner, but I didn't mind. Custom Card Creations was mine, and I wouldn't have had it any other way. After I was finished for the night, I decided to walk down to Sara Lynn's shop to see how she was doing, but I was surprised to see the place dark, though it was a night my sister normally stayed open late. Had she finally taken our advice and gone home? Despite what she'd said, I decided to go by and check on her. The only problem was, I still didn't have my car. Getting rides from my family was getting old. I wanted my independence back.
I phoned my brother. ”I need a ride,” I said abruptly.
”I'm fine, Jen, how are you?”
”Sorry,” I said. ”I'm just tired of depending on you for my transportation.”
”Are you at the shop?”
”No,” I said, ”I'm in front of Forever Memories. Sara Lynn closed up early.”
”I know, she called me,” he said.
”Why didn't she tell me, too?”
”Take it easy, Jennifer. She tried calling you, but your phone was busy. She doesn't want to be disturbed, and I'm going to respect that wish.”
”Fine, I'll leave her alone,” I said, not at all happy about the way my sister was acting. ”So, do I get that ride, or not?”
A horn honked nearby, and at first I was annoyed. Then I recognized the sound. I looked over at Bradford, who was behind the wheel of my Gremlin, holding his cell phone. The car's once-broken window was now bright and s.h.i.+ny.
”Hop in,” he said.
”No way. You scoot over. I'm driving.”
He did as I asked, though I could tell it was with reluctance. ”Now I get to drive you around.”
”Just to my office,” he said. ”I'm parked there. I thought you'd like your car back.”
I rubbed the steering wheel. ”You betcha.”
”Hey, Sis, when are you going to get a car that was made in the last twenty years, anyway?”
I stroked the dashboard. ”This car has character,” I said.
”It's a character, all right,” he replied with a grin.
”Don't talk that way about my baby. Did you speak with Reggie Bloom?”
”I did,” Bradford admitted, and from the expression on his face, I could tell it hadn't gone well. ”He wasn't pleased about our conversation.”
”I'm sorry,” I said. ”I should have kept my mouth shut.”
”Actually, you did the right thing. I was about to dismiss him when he started getting belligerent. That just makes me want to dig a little deeper. I didn't like his att.i.tude.”
”Bradford, don't make this personal. He had a right to be defensive.”
My brother shook his head. ”You don't understand. A lot of what I do is based on my gut. There was something that didn't jibe between the way he acted and what he was saying. It's not going to hurt anything to poke around a little.” and what he was saying. It's not going to hurt anything to poke around a little.”
”Just don't poke too hard,” I said. ”I'm living on his mother's goodwill, remember?”
”Speaking of your new place, have you had the locks changed yet? You don't know how many keys are floating around, and I'm willing to bet there are a couple at the main house.”
”I'll speak to Helena,” I said, ”but I can't just change the locks without her permission. Besides, I've got my guardians, remember?”
”If you're relying on Oggie and Nash as your home security system, you might as well leave your door wide open.”
”Okay, as watch cats they're pretty useless, but other than that, they're adorable. I've still got my softball bat, and I know how to use it.”
”Just watch your step, okay?”
”I promise,” I said. I dropped him off at his office, made the bank deposit, and then drove to my new place. Funny, but the day before, I had felt secure living behind a locked gate. That serenity was gone now, knowing that a murderer might have the code himself. Could Reggie have done everything I suspected, or was he just a convenient suspect? If he was guilty, would my brother's questioning make him more cautious, or more reckless? He was a hard man to figure out.
As I got out of the Gremlin, I saw that someone was watching me from the trees.
”h.e.l.lo?” I called out.
”Who's there?” I asked, wis.h.i.+ng I had my bat with me.
Reggie himself stepped out, a cigarette in his lips. ”I've been waiting for you,” he said.
I jammed my keys between my fingers and made a fist in case I had to defend myself. ”What do you want?”
”Did you sic your brother on me?”
He was angry; there was no doubt about that. ”I don't know what you're talking about.” Denial was my best course of action at the moment, at least until I got my bat.
Reggie grunted. ”I think you do.”
I started toward my door. ”Think what you want.”
As I slid the key into the lock, he said from behind me, ”You need to mind your own business.”
”You, too,” I said for some inane reason, as I slipped inside and bolted the door. Bradford's point about the locks. .h.i.t home, so I took a chair and jammed it under the k.n.o.b. n.o.body would be able to get in now, short of breaking the door down.
Oggie and Nash were sitting side by side staring at me when I looked up.
”You two think I'm crazy, don't you?”