Graves and Goons (A Hocus Pocus Cozy Witch Mystery Series Book 4) by Constance Barker & J. D. Sullivan

Author:Constance Barker & J. D. Sullivan
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Published: 2020-06-19T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 17

Tamara hadn’t exactly planned to stop in at the diner. It’s just that she was starting to feel the lunch hour creeping up on her, and a little pang was growing in her stomach, and then she was rounding the corner and happened to catch a whiff of the diner’s famous apple crumble, evidently freshly baking, and she just couldn’t help herself. She’d never been particularly susceptible to it but you have food at home line of logic, anyway.

However, upon entering the half-full diner, she noticed that the booth in the far corner sat one Reverend Younger sitting across from none other than Joseph Bennett, and it occurred to her that perhaps it was fate, and not apple crumble, that had brought her to this diner at this very moment. The booth closest to theirs was occupied by a group of chatty older women, but a table kitty-corner from the men’s booth was still empty, and Tamara made a beeline for it. She’d never been more grateful for the diner’s seat-yourself policy.

“What’ll it be, hon?” a waitress asked almost as soon as she’d sat down, whipping a menu and out of her apron pocket and handing it to Tamara.

“Oh, uh, a coffee?” Her stomach rumbled, causing her hunger to overtake her customary shyness. “And a Mediterranean wrap. Side salad, raspberry vinaigrette. Apple crumble with ice cream.”

“Hungry, ain’t you?” the waitress chuckled, scribbling down the order and taking back the superfluous menu. “It’ll be out in just a sec.”

“Great, thank you.”

Once the waitress had left her alone, Tamara leaned back in her chair. She had purposefully chosen the seat that faced away from the booth so that she wouldn’t be tempted to watch Joseph Bennett and the Reverend too closely. The last thing she wanted was for them to notice her looking. However, if she listened very carefully, and if the women at the nearest booth weren’t chatting too loudly, she could make out the sound of the two men, speaking in what sounded like urgent whispers, though she couldn’t quite distinguish any of the actual words they were saying. Tamara kept her head faced straight forward, angled vaguely in the direction of the television, which seemed to be playing some kind of car race on mute.

Eventually, the waitress brought her the coffee she’d ordered, and Tamara dressed it up with one cream and two sugars, risking a quick look over her shoulder at the two men. If anything, they seemed even more intently in conversation with each other, their heads bowed more closely together. No onlooker could have mistaken them for two casual friends at lunchtime.

I wish I had thought to spy on them in butterfly form, she said. She could have flitted all around their heads, drinking in every word. But it was too late now, of course--even the most oblivious mundanes would have noticed if she’d changed shape right here, in the middle of a bustling diner over the lunch hour. Unless she went to the bathroom, and changed in there….

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