Between Lost and Found by Shelly Stratton

Author:Shelly Stratton [Stratton, Shelly]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington
Published: 2017-06-20T04:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 15

“Connie,” a voice shouted from the other side of the polka-dot-print dressing room curtain. The sound of rustling crinoline and clanging hangers soon followed. “Coooonniiiie!”

Connie paused from assembling jewelry in the display case, a task that she had hoped would keep her busy and help her block out the reverberation of helicopters flying nearby. But she couldn’t keep from hearing the distant whomp, whomp, whomp—even when she turned up the volume of her iPod dock and the song, “Somethin’ Bad,” filled the shop.

No one else seemed to hear the noise, not over the sound of the country music and the festival shouts two blocks down.

“I think it’s all in your head, honey,” one of her frequent customers had said yesterday, gazing at her with an uneasiness that made Connie briefly question if she was, indeed, slowly going crazy.

But it’s not in my head, she thought hours later. She could hear the helicopters, and she couldn’t ignore them. Nor could she help wondering and worrying no matter how hard she tried.

Are they looking for Bill? Is that what I’m hearing? Have they found him yet?

She sat aside the turquoise bracelet she was holding and glanced over her shoulder. “What is it, Peg?”

“I don’t know what’s wrong. Maybe it’s the cut or the fabric, but this gown won’t fit me!”

“We can try another one,” Connie called back as she walked across the store toward the clothing racks several feet away. She rifled through a series of hangers filled with dresses she planned to show at the festival fashion show, pausing to examine the tags.

Is he still alive? Dear God, is he wandering around all alone out there?

“Maybe this one will work,” she muttered, removing one dress from the rack—a purple lace number with an elastic waist. She walked back toward the dressing room and eased the curtain aside. She held the dress aloft for Peg to examine.

“All right, I’ll try it,” Peg muttered with a resigned sigh. “I just wanna look nice, you know? If I’m going to be up there on that stage modeling in front of the whole town, I don’t want to look silly.”

“Uh-huh.” Connie walked back to the jewelry counter.

Bill’s not senile and lost. I don’t care what the cops say, Connie thought as she adjusted a gold pendant on a faux-velvet neck stand. Just because he talks to a dead woman doesn’t mean he’s crazy. Something bad happened to him out there. I can feel it!

“Did I tell you that I did pageants when I was a little girl?” Peg piped from the other side of the curtain. “I even won a few crowns. I was Little Miss Sparkle 1984. It’s been years since I’ve done anything like this, though.”

“Uh-huh,” Connie murmured again, barely paying attention as Peg rambled.

Whomp, whomp, whomp, whomp.

The sound was getting louder now. Connie gazed out of the shop window. Were the helicopters closer, or was it her imagination? Connie swore she could felt the shockwave of the helicopter blades vibrate in the shop’s hardwood floor and in every bone in her body.

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