Pulp Friction (A Cider Shop Mystery Book 2) by Julie Anne Lindsey

Author:Julie Anne Lindsey [Lindsey, Julie Anne]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kensington Books
Published: 2020-04-27T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fourteen

I jumped inside and pulled the doors shut behind me, heart thundering wildly. Blood whooshed between my ears as I secured the locks with trembling hands, then rushed from light switch to light switch, illuminating the space. Thankfully there weren’t any threats hiding inside.

I peeked around the curtains at each window, searching for signs of a lurker, a vagrant smoker, or worse: a stalker.

No one was in sight. The barn was silent, save my pounding heart, and I had to wonder . . . was I overreacting?

Or had the strange orange glow I’d seen outside my home and again in the woods been a lit cigarette? The idea of someone smoking among the trees near my home or on the mountain had never occurred to me. I rarely saw anyone with a cigarette these days, but now that one had blown against my shoes outside the cider shop, I had to wonder . . . was it possible the butt and strange orange glow were connected?

I wiped sweat from my brow and went behind the bar to put some distance and a barrier between myself and the door. I set my phone on the counter, contemplating. Should I call Colton? 911? The sheriff’s department?

Or was I crazy? Was the butt just litter? It was possible the last few days had been too much for me, and I’d finally gone mad.

I opened a bottle of water from the fridge and took long, cooling gulps. Was it possible a careless driver had flicked a cigarette from his window and the wind had carried it to my feet? How long did cigarettes stay lit if they weren’t snuffed out?

I brought up Colton’s number on my cell phone and imagined what I would say.

I’d like to report a litterbug.

Or maybe, I’d like to report having the sensation something was wrong, followed by the scent of cigarette smoke and the appearance of a butt.

Both seemed silly. And Colton would want more information that I didn’t have.

Did you see anyone near the barn? No.

Did you hear anything unusual? No.

Notice where the butt might’ve come from? No.

I pushed the phone into my pocked and rested my head on the counter. Why was my life like this?

I went back to the window and turned the sign to OPEN, but didn’t unlock the door. If anyone came and tried the door, I’d pretend to have forgotten, then I’d let them inside. As long as the door was locked, a lunatic couldn’t come waltzing in on me while I was alone.

I paced the floor, peeking through the windows every few moments before heading to the stockroom. Counting inventory would keep my mind busy until I decided what to do about the cigarette. Two shelves of baking supplies later, I dialed Colton and waited as the call rang through. Several nerve-racking rings later, the call went to his voicemail.

I considered hanging up, but there was no sense. Caller ID would show him it was me who’d called. “Hey, Colton,” I started as normally as I could.

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