Murder of a Bookstore Babe

Blowing out an exasperated breath, Skye dragged herself out of the Chevy and trudged up the sidewalk. She wasn’t surprised that her family was inside her house instead of waiting on the front porch. Her mother had a key, and although she was supposed to use it only for emergencies, May would definitely classify her quest for the most recent buzz as urgent.

As Skye stepped through the front door, the smell of roast beef and the hum of chatter greeted her. She crept forward and peeked into the kitchen. The men were gathered around the table, while May and Trixie bustled from stove to refrigerator to cupboard. Bingo, Skye’s black cat, gazed at her from beside his food bowl. He nudged it in her direction, and when she made no move to fill it, he meowed unhappily.

Bingo’s mew drew May’s attention to Skye, and her shriek alerted the others. In the blink of an eye, they all descended on Skye like shoppers on a Black Friday door-buster sale item.

Skye braced herself for the onslaught. May won the race, which was nothing short of remarkable considering that Trixie was twenty-five years younger and had come in third in the Stanley County marathon a few weeks ago.

“Are you all right?” May swept Skye into a hug, pulled her into the room, and whirled her around, all the while talking so fast she nearly stuttered. “What kept you so long? What happened? Who died?”

Skye stood still and let her mother fuss. When May worked herself up to this state, she resembled an overly caffeinated telemarketer, and there was nothing you could do but let her get through her spiel.

The others gathered around them, and Skye spotted Loretta Steiner grinning at her from the doorway. She was Skye’s sorority sister, sometimes her attorney, and possibly her future sister-in-law. At six feet tall, with coal black hair and mahogany skin, she looked like royalty from some exotic land, a queen wearing Manolo Blahnik sandals and a Cartier ruby pendant.

Loretta found Skye’s family vastly entertaining and didn’t try to hide her enjoyment. Skye wondered whether she’d still be as amused if she and Vince became engaged and Loretta replaced Skye as the target of May’s attention.

Skye’s father, Jed, interrupted her thoughts by awkwardly patting her shoulder. “You okay?” His faded brown eyes peered anxiously from his tanned, leathery face.

“I’m fine, Dad.” Skye kissed Jed’s cheek, hugged her mom, and led the brigade back toward the table. “Wally and I had to wait for the crime scene techs to finish. Then we talked to the owners. I don’t think they know what happened yet. Kayla Hines was the victim.” Since the next of kin had been notified, Wally had said it was okay to reveal who had died.

There was a split second of silence while everyone absorbed the information; then Uncle Charlie said, “I knew those new people were going to be nothing but trouble from the minute I met them. He’s some old hippie still ‘scarred’ by the war, and she thinks she’s so freaking green, she might as well be Kermit the Frog.”

Charlie was an imposing figure, weighing in at more than three hundred pounds and standing six feet tall. He was also opinionated, manipulative, and he disliked change. But he would do anything for May, whom he thought of as a daughter, or Vince and Skye, whom he considered his grandchildren.

“Really, Uncle Charlie.” Skye blew a curl out of her eyes. “Trying to conserve our natural resources is a good thing, and Orlando fought for this country and doesn’t deserve to be called names.”

He harrumphed but didn’t argue. After a moment, he, Jed, Vince, and Loretta sat down, and May and Trixie went back to the stove. As soon as everyone was settled, they all started talking and asking questions at once. Skye’s head was spinning, and she swayed, unable to focus on what anyone was saying. She felt like she might pass out.

Suddenly, Loretta put her fingers in her mouth and let out a piercing whistle. Everyone fell abruptly silent, and Loretta said, “People, give her a chance to talk.” She turned to Skye. “Start at the beginning and tell us what happened. Don’t leave anything out.”

Charlie and May frowned, but Vince and Trixie nodded. Jed shoved back his John Deere gimme cap and scratched his head, his expression hard to read.

May said, “Is that the way to behave in front of your maybe, I hope, future mother-in-law?”

“Sorry.” Loretta’s expression was neutral. “Too many years dealing with unruly clients, I guess.” She turned her head toward Skye and winked. “So . . . ?”

Skye walked over to the fridge and retrieved a can of Diet Coke. After popping the top and taking a healthy swallow, she described her day, skipping her coffee with Simon. She ended by saying, “Which means, it looks as if the store was robbed, and poor Kayla was unfortunately in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

“What aren’t you telling us?” May aimed her laser-like truth-finding glare at Skye.

“Nothing that’s relevant to the situation.” Skye could have kicked herself. Why had she added those last five words?