So instead I just lay there in bed and didn’t move a muscle—as still as a turtle. One thing I’m really good at is pulling all my protruding parts deep inside my shell.
I’ve had a lot of practice.
21
The next morning I woke to the sound of monk parakeets chattering excitedly in the treetops, which could only mean one thing. I had overslept. I jumped up and scrambled for my watch, staring with bleary eyes as I tried to focus on its face, but it was only a little past six o’clock. Sometimes the parakeets conspire to wake me up early, especially if the morning is warmer than normal or there’s an early crowd of lovebugs and dragonfly nymphs to hunt, but a bank of fog was rolling in off the gulf, and the air had enough of a chill to it that I figured something must have startled them.
I stumbled into the bathroom and splashed cold water on my face, taking care not to look at myself in the mirror. I knew I looked like crap, and I didn’t want to see it, so I just stared at the sink while I ran a brush through my hair. Then I got dressed in a clean pair of shorts and T-shirt and slipped a light sweater on just in case the fog lingered around for a while. Then on my way out, I slipped Guidry’s letter into my back pocket.
I felt like I was in a daze all morning, as if the air were thick and syrupy and I had to push my way through it just to get around. I thought about Tanisha and how she always has a smile on her face, but no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t really do it. Plus, I could barely concentrate. I drove all the way over to Tom Hale’s condo and even had my key in the door before I remembered he’d taken Billy Elliot to Lake Okeechobee to visit his brother and wouldn’t be back for a week. Then, driving down to check on a couple of blue Abyssinians whose owners were away on a river cruise, I ran right through a four-way stop sign. Luckily it was early enough that the roads were still deserted, but I eased over to the side of the road to pull myself together.
Detective McKenzie was right. Seeing Mr. Hoskins’s body had apparently thrown me for a loop, and all I wanted to do was go home and crawl back in bed. I knew lack of sleep wasn’t the problem, though. What I needed was a good dose of old-fashioned TLC, and I knew exactly where to find it.
* * *
Judy put a hot cup of coffee in front of me as I slid into the back booth of the diner, and Tanisha threw me her customary wave and smile from the kitchen. Just seeing her face made me feel a little better. Judy plopped down into the booth opposite me and gave me her signature “WTF?” look. I knew right away the word was out.
“Dixie, was it you?”
I tried to look as innocent as possible and took a sip of my coffee.
“Was it me what?”
“Was it you that found him?”
I sighed and nodded. “Yes. The building’s owner hired me to find his cat. I was snooping around in there, and one thing led to another…”
“Oh, Dixie, I’m so sorry.”
I felt a jab in my side and sat up straight. “Why does everybody keep saying that to me?”
“Saying what?”
“That they’re sorry, like they need to treat me like I’m some sort of fragile flower. I didn’t know Hoskins from a hole in the ground! And I’ve seen a dead body before, by the way. If you’ll recall, I used to be a sheriff’s deputy. I’ve seen much worse than that.”
I knew I must have sounded like a mewling baby, but I couldn’t stop myself. The words rushed out of my throat as if they were fleeing a burning building. I could feel people turning toward me and staring.
Judy looked me straight in the eye. “Honey, nobody’s saying you’re a fragile flower. You found a dead guy. Believe it or not, that doesn’t happen every day around here, even to you. And it’s definitely not easy and it’s not good, no matter what you’ve seen or done. In my world, when something bad happens to somebody, like finding a dead body, for instance, we say ‘I’m sorry.’”
I sighed. She was right. I put my coffee down and cradled my head in my hands. “I know. I just don’t like people tiptoeing around me, thinking they have to treat me with kid gloves just because of whatever crap has gone down in the past, acting like I’m some kind of…” I trailed off. I couldn’t think of the right word.
Judy said, “Human being?”
I laughed. “Yeah, that’s it.”
She stood up and headed for the kitchen. “I’m gonna bring you some bacon.”
I brought my fist down on the table triumphantly. “That’s why I’m here!”
Just then, the door of the diner swung open and in walked Ethan, carrying a briefcase and dressed in a tailored suit the color of lightly creamed coffee with a pearlescent teal tie that was almost the exact same color as the booths in the diner.
As he made his way down the aisle, practically every female, not to mention a few non-females, stopped midsentence to watch him pass and then struggled to remember what they were just talking about. As he stopped at my table, a woman across the aisle looked him up and down, mentally trying him on for size as she sprinkled a packet of sugar on her scrambled eggs.
Judy slid my breakfast down on the table, along with a platter of extra-crispy bacon, just as Ethan slid into the booth opposite me. For a second I couldn’t decide which made me feel better, Ethan or the bacon.
Judy winked. “What can I get you, handsome?”
“Nothing for me. I just stopped by to say howdy.”
She fanned herself with her notepad. “Well, thanks, Ethan, that’s so very sweet of you.”
As she sauntered off, Ethan’s smile fell away and he lowered his voice. “What did I tell you on the phone last night?”
I flashed him a face that was half grimace, half disarming cuteness, but he just sat there, waiting for an answer.
“Umm, you said if I found anything weird in the bookstore to call you right away.”
“Yes, that’s exactly what I said. And did you find anything weird?”
“So … you heard.”
He was trying to keep his voice low, but I could tell he was upset. “Dixie, why didn’t you call me?”
“I know. I’m sorry. I should have called you right away. I just didn’t want you to worry about me, and it was late … and I don’t know, I just wanted to go home and go to bed. I should have called you, though. I barely slept all night.”
He put his hands on top of mine. “Dude, I am really sorry that happened to you.”
I looked into his eyes and decided I’d thank Judy later. “Thanks. And don’t call me dude.”
We sat like that for a bit, his hands resting on top of mine. I eyed the plate of steaming bacon not five inches from my fingers, but I didn’t want to ruin the moment.
I sighed. “I just can’t believe it. And I’m so sad for his daughter, too. I can’t even imagine what she must be going through right now.”
He slid my coffee over and took a sip. “Who in the world do you think could have done something like that?”
My mind flashed again to the image of the woman in white disappearing inside the bookstore, but I just shook my head. “No idea. That’s for the detectives to figure out, I guess.”
He turned his head to the window but watched me out of the corner of his eye. “Right.”
I took a deep breath. “Anyway, let’s change the subject. Are we still on for tonight?”
“I’m on if you’re on, but you’ve had a rough couple of days. Maybe it would be better if we stayed home tonight?”
It actually seemed like a good idea, but I didn’t want to be a party pooper.
I shook my head. “No, no, I’ll be fine. But Ethan, listen…”
He raised an eyebrow.
I said, “I have an admission to make. I didn’t open that letter yet. I know I said I would, but I was so beat when I got in last night. I didn’t even brush my teeth. I just went straight to bed.”