The Inconvenient Corpse by Jackie King

Author:Jackie King [King, Jackie]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: Mystery; Thriller & Suspense, Mystery, Cozy, Mystery & Detective, Bed and breakfast accommodations, General, Women Sleuths, Fiction
ISBN: 9781620161180
Amazon: B003SE7L2U
Publisher: Deadly Niche Press
Published: 2010-06-15T05:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

Grace stared at the mustard colored tie draped over her fingers. It was a minute before she could walk to the front of the store.

“Could you tell me where you got this tie?” she asked the clerk.

“That’s not ready to sell.” The clerk peered at the tie over half-lens glasses. “It hasn’t been inventoried and priced.” She cast a longing glance toward her book.

“I just need to know who donated it,” Grace said.

The clerk lowered her book reluctantly. “But I’m not going to tell you. It’s against our rules.”

Grace resisted the urge to grab the woman’s book and use it to smack her. She took a deep breath, and tried again.

“I have no intention of making problems for anyone. It’s hard to explain, but I really need to know about this tie.”

“Sorry, rules are rules.” The woman looked toward the door.

I’ve alarmed her, Grace thought. She’s hoping someone will come in and distract the crazy woman who obsesses over ugly ties. She wanted to scream at the woman. Instead she smiled.

“Of course, rules are rules but aren’t they made to be broken?” Grace intensified her smile. Maybe a little charm would work.

“If I start breaking rules, people might quit donating their used items.” The clerk put a grocery slip in her book to mark her spot and laid it on the counter. “Did you want to buy the shorts?”

So much for charm, Grace thought.

“Yeah. Sure. I’ll take the shorts and the tie. No need to do anything special to it for me.” Grace hoped she had enough cash.

“Oh. Okay.” The clerk glanced down. “I guess that would be okay. Three dollars for the shorts, and ummh, I guess about three would be right for the tie, too.

“How about two for the tie?” Grace pulled a five-dollar bill from her pocket.

“It’s for charity,” the clerk said in a strained tone.

“Five is all I have.” Grace looked at the clerk feeling embarrassed and vulnerable. Being broke sucked, as her son Brand would have said.

The woman’s look softened. She smiled then dropped both items into a used grocery sack. “Five will be fine,” she said. Grace laid her money on the counter and sighed. So much for the coffee and Danish, she thought.

«««»»»

The food market with its lush fruits and vegetables mesmerized Grace. She breathed in the heady fragrance of ripe fruit and fresh cut flowers, fingered Wimberly’s credit card, and flew into a buying frenzy.

She grabbed red bell peppers, flat-leaf Italian parsley, beefsteak tomatoes, and leeks to use in an omelet, reminding herself she needed extra eggs to begin her plan of using mostly egg whites in an attempt to save Theodora from herself.

Wimberly had ordered her to plan for variety so she bought whole-wheat flour with the thought of her mother’s herbed whole-wheat popovers and dried cherries and cranberries for different kinds of muffins. If that isn’t enough variety I can always make Grandma’s chocolate gravy and orange self-rising biscuits, Grace thought. That should different enough even for Wimberly.

She saved the fruit section for last.

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