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FRIDAY MORNING
After a breakfast of the last of Ben’s croissants, I headed for the office to ask about water. Carl said to go into town, but I was a little leery of him this morning. I know I heard his voice during the argument.
It was a warm morning, with little cloud cover and no breeze. Victor was wearing a little doggie T-shirt with I’m Doggone Awesome written on it. I’d tried to put sunscreen on his exposed head and tail, but he was having none of that.
He wiggled and squirmed so much, I thought he was going to fall off the bed. Then he licked off what I had managed to get on him.
I just gave up. He was willing to wear his baseball cap, but I hated that it didn’t match his T-shirt.
And the special dog-safe sunscreen had cost eighty dollars!
The air was still and dry, feeling far warmer than was comfortable already. I shuddered to think what it would be like by noon. Maybe we should stay in town for lunch.
Using my rollator and walking carefully, I made it to the steel shed that housed the office in one piece. The door was blocked open with a broken cinder block, and I could hear a deep, male voice from within.
I lifted my hand to knock at the door frame as he started cursing. I wanted to cover my ears; a lady shouldn’t listen to such vulgar language. But...
We needed the water; we’d expected to be able to hook up the sink to water on-site. Plus, I was curious. Who could he be talking to like that?
When he paused for breath, I knocked lightly at the door. I could see his bare back and was not impressed. It was even furrier than I like men’s chests to be.
He spun around to face me and his front was no more appealing. I know some people like what the gay community call bears, but this was too much for me. Give me a clear view of the muscles any day.
“I don’t give a freaking poopie if it costs you extra, I’m not paying more than we agreed. Now do your damned job.” Except he didn’t say freaking. Or poopie.
The look in his eyes as he glared at me made me want to run, and I felt sorry for whoever was on the other end of the phone.
“Good morning, I just—” He put up a hand to stop me as he shouted threats down the phone line and slammed the receiver into the cradle of the old phone.
“Why are you still here?”
I stuttered for a second but was too proud to show how much he unnerved me. So, I smiled, leaning on the door-frame, hoping to look relaxed and harmless.
“Good morning, I just need directions to the nearest town. We need fresh water.”
I shut my mouth before I said too much. Men like this always made me talk too much, a nervous habit I wanted to break.
“Turn left.” He turned his back again, tapping on his cell phone. That seemed to be the sum total of his directions.
I walked slowly back to the trailer. Maybe it was time to swallow my pride and leave. But it was the Friday of a long weekend; could we still find another place to go?
Maybe Lucia could find something online.
***
I SPOTTED THE MYSTERY woman headed across the lot toward the office and waved. She utterly ignored me. Well, I had better things to do with my time anyway. Her loss—I’m a fabulous conversationalist.
But curiosity burned in my chest. Who is she, why does she keep coming here, why is she so angry?
I knocked briefly and opened the RV door. Lucia was waiting, already dressed in a pair of denim shorts and a Mexican-inspired blouse. Rope-wrapped wedge sandals completed her outfit. She looked cute and happy.
Jaqi, however, was still in her nightie. Her braids were shoved into a ponytail and she had no makeup on. The last time I’d seen her like this, she was in the frenzy of a new story.
Oh no, this is bad; my brain itched.
“Jaqi, you’re not ready.”
She just shrugged. “I’m good here. You guys go. Get more wine.” She didn’t even look up from her laptop.
“Jaqi, I thought you wanted to pack up and move—”
She shook her head. I glanced at Luci again, who reached for the car keys.
“Sweetie, we’re taking your car, okay?”
Jaqi just nodded absentmindedly. She had a lovely, Crimson Camry, and I had no issue with riding in it. I turned the air conditioner on and adjusted my black leather seat. Even the passenger seat was fully decked out.
We turned left and hoped for the best, but the grunt had been right. The rural road soon turned into a main thoroughfare with apartment buildings on one side and the Nation River on the other.
We passed some boys fishing off the side of the bridge as the river turned to skirt the town. The setting looked like one of those old Norman Rockwell prints. Just upstreet I could see the bright yellow sign for a grocery store.
We grabbed a couple of five-gallon jugs of water, and I decided to get a smaller jug and a pump spout for my vardo. It would be nice not to have to get water from the RV for a late-night cuppa tea.
The checkout clerk pointed us in the direction of the liquor store, and we picked up more wine and some cream liqueur for our evening coffee.
Then we stopped by a little pizza parlor for a take-out lunch. It was a local shop with an obviously home-made sauce. Nothing from a chain could smell that delicious.
Even with it packed in the trunk, we could smell the pizza. Despite having brunch only couple of hours ago, I was starving, it smelled that good.
Since about all we’d talked about on the drive in was getting lost, we chatted on the way home, enjoying the scenery.
Still, I had a burning question. What was Jaqi writing with such fervor?
“She has an idea for a murder at a broken trailer park. Just like where we are, but we have no murder.”
A chill ran down my back, and I sternly told myself that this was why Jaqi would want to stay here now. She was in the throes of creativity and would resist moving—with the solidity of a mountain.
And I definitely did not have any kind of premonition.
Nothing.
Nope.
None.
***
WE ARRIVED TO WITNESS a shoving match and more yelling. Good grief, do these people do nothing but argue? Why would you camp here if this happens all the time?
It was so harsh on your mellow.
All the regular players were there, including Carl. See, I knew he was involved. And that woman stood there, way too close to him. Good thing I didn’t care.
We carried the pizza and the smaller purchases into the RV. The water could wait until after lunch. I nipped over to my vardo and took Victor out for a tinkle, then brought him with me to the RV for lunch. He had kibble, not pizza. All I needed was for him to poof garlic farts under my sheets.
Lucia was right, Jaqi wanted to stay and take notes on all the characters and the setting, with maybe a few snips of dialog. We weren’t going anywhere.
Bye-bye, beach.
***
I DECIDED THAT IT WAS time to have the lemon-garlic chicken I’d prepared and frozen. Add a salad, thick with vegetables, and call it supper. I loved planning ahead.
We had a nice Riesling to pair with it, and I felt better already. An elegant meal was just what we needed. I’d even pull out my new rose-patterned dishes and napkins.
I mixed a shaker of martinis and set it in the freezer to chill. It would be lovely to sip at sunset.
Removing the bags of marinated chicken from the RV’s freezer to thaw, I noted that there was now room for ice cream. Maybe Luci’s up for another trip into town?
I couldn’t hear the neighbors arguing anymore, so either they had packed it in, or they’d taken it indoors. Either way, it was a relief.
The girls sat at the table, drinking iced tea and whispering. I didn’t want to disturb them, but I couldn’t hide in the trailer. After a bit of dithering, I decided to go back to the vardo and read. I’d simply slip past them unnoticed.
“Vee, can you tell Jaqi she needs to take a break? She promised not to work all weekend.”
“Vee, can you remind Luci that—”
I debated racing for the vardo screaming, “You’ll never take me alive,” but the uneven cement was likely to trip me.
“And I’m nearly out of battery power anyway!” cried Jaqi.
“Ladies, I have a suggestion.” They both stopped and stared at me, like they actually did expect me to run instead of answering. “Jaqi says her battery is almost dead. Why don’t we walk over to the river and relax while it recharges and supper thaws?”
I had to raise my voice for the last few words as both started to object. I gave them both a look, I hated raising my voice at them but sometimes a lady must do what is necessary. No matter how unladylike.
They both nodded slowly. So, I went to get Victor a warmer jacket just in case the breeze was cool over by the water.
***
A LITTLE WHILE LATER, we stood by the wide, gentle Nation River.
Bushes covered its banks, along with a tangled but pretty flowering vine resembling miniature pink morning glories. The bees loved it; their gentle happy hum surrounded us. We wandered away from the road, hoping to spot something noteworthy.
Victor kept busy by tangling his leash in every bush and branch, so I unclipped it. How much trouble could he get into?
He raced ahead of us and dove into a thicket. We walked slowly toward him; it was so warm and peaceful here, much more like what I’d expected.
Jaqi and Luci held hands as they walked, so I guess the disagreement was over. Good, I hated it when they fought.
We had found a spot where the grass sloped to the riverbank, and we all sat on the sand with our feet in the water. This was the life. Ice cold martinis would have made it perfect, but I wasn’t going back for them.
Suddenly, I realized I hadn’t seen Victor in a while. He’d been playing in the water, chasing small fish and barking at them, trying to sniff them and getting water up his nose. He was so cute, shaking his head with a surprised look on his little face. Then doing it again.
But he wasn’t there now. Oh, my Lord, had he gone into deeper water and been swept away?
I stood up to look around and call him, but before I could well and truly panic, I heard him whiffle-snorting and growling in the bushes upriver a short way.
Since I was up, I wandered over to see what he’d found. I called him out and he came, happily dragging a dirty sneaker.
I reached for it, but he pretend-growled and shook it. He wanted to play. I didn’t want to touch it, though. Who knew how long it had been here or what was on it? Yuck.
“Here, Vic, I’ll throw it for you.” Luci’s voice came from behind me and Victor picked up the shoe and dropped it at her feet. His little body was dancing in excitement as she bent down to grab it.
She dropped to her knees, ignoring the sneaker. Victor barked at her, high and shrill. I looked down; she was staring into the bushes, her face pale.
No. Absolutely not. No way. Not here. Not again. I bent down to see what held her attention.
I sat down hard on my butt. My hip yelped in pain, but I ignored it. We were staring at a white sock, clearly the one from the sneaker Victor was now happily chewing on.
The sock was on a foot.
The foot was attached to a man.
A pale, still man.
I glanced up at Jaqi, striving to sound normal. This was not happening again. Not on my vacation.
“Jaqi, did you bring your cell?”