The Curious Case of the Missing Figurehead: A Novel (A Professor and Mrs. Littlefield Mystery) by Noble Diane

Author:Noble, Diane [Noble, Diane]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Tags: Blue Ridge Mountains, Figurehead, North Carolina, Cozy Mystery, St. Francis of Assisi, Shipwrecks
Publisher: David C. Cook
Published: 2014-08-31T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty

Hyacinth

Hyacinth settled into the space she’d made for herself in the rental truck. She’d tucked some dirt-smudged quilts into place behind the crate that she assumed held the Lady. It was the right size, but then so were others. She fought the urge to drift off. She needed to be awake if someone opened the back of the truck.

She checked the phone she’d lifted off the thief she called Child. It had gone from “no signal” status to zero percent battery power. Frowning, she put it back in her pocket.

The rental truck bounced along the road on its way to heaven only knew where. They stopped for gas; she heard voices outside the truck, the click of the gas cap, and then the flow of gasoline. She held her breath, waiting for one of the men to open the back of the truck to check on its contents.

The problem was, as usual, she needed a ladies’ room. And she was thirsty. And hungry.

She pondered the problem. Even if she could slip out without being seen, there was probably a parking lot to cross. She might be a bit tattered because of all she’d been through, but there was no mistaking her bright curly red hair with magenta streaks; her bright, though wrinkled and dirty, colorful top; and—she sighed—the skinny jeans with rhinestones on the derriere.

She stood, the image of a restroom with running water taunting her. She moved to the door and tried to raise it. It was one of those lift-up types that rolled up into the ceiling of the body, so it would make a lot of noise. The men were likely to notice immediately.

Hyacinth gave the door a quick once-over, mentally measuring how much she’d need to open it in order to slip out. She was a beautifully built woman of a certain size—she never thought of herself as a double-digit number on a clothing tag, only in terms of being beautifully built. Or wonderfully made, if she thought about it in biblical terms.

She was nimble and quick. She could do this. The image of a bathroom became fixated in her mind. Thirst became stronger than caution. She knelt and gently pulled up on the handle, so she wouldn’t make any noise.

It wouldn’t budge. She tried it again. And again. She fell back onto a short stack of moving quilts in dismay. Maybe it was just as well. She still hadn’t solved the dilemma of being seen … and recognized.

She looked down at the quilts, and an idea took root. She grinned and yanked at the handle, harder this time. It moved. She pulled it up just far enough to squeeze through. A gust of fresh air entered the truck, and she breathed it in gratefully.

She dropped to the floor and peered out. The rear of the truck faced a dollar store in the center of a strip mall with half its storefronts boarded up. Rusted grocery carts were scattered in every direction. She smelled fast food, which made her stomach growl but also told her the men might be taking a food break.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.