“Mom, Christine called twice while you were in the shower,” Adam said through the bathroom door.
“Okay, honey. Thanks,” Amelia replied. She hoped neither of the kids would feel like a shower tonight, since she was sure she had used all the hot water in her efforts to completely scrub off the residue from the WM dumpster. She was pretty sure she had gotten every bug, germ and cootie off her skin. A healthy dose of honey-and-lavender lotion and a spritz of perfume made her feel like she’d just stepped out of a spa. Her terrycloth robe was a little worn, and a few stains from makeup and spilled sips of coffee graced the front, but Amelia just couldn’t bear to part with it. Fuzzy slippers were the finishing touch.
She felt refreshed and rejuvenated, but what made her feel even better were the sounds from her kitchen.
“It’s your turn, Adam,” Meg instructed.
“Keep an eye on him, Meg,” Dan replied. “I think he’s going to choke on this one. He’s definitely going to choke.”
“Don’t hate,” Adam teased. “I’ve just got the skills is all.”
“You mean skeeze,” Meg replied.
“Hardy-har,” Adam replied over the sound of dice toppling out of a cup. “Oh, yeah. Oh… wait.”
Both Meg and Dan burst out laughing as whatever plan Adam had for squashing their chances at victory had itself been squashed.
“That is just wrong,” Adam complained.
“I think you better just hand over the dice and let me show you how it’s done,” Dan instructed. His deep voice sounded funny when he was conversing with the kids. He never used words like perpetrator, evidence, weapons, or any other cop lingo around them. Dan made a special effort to let Meg and Adam just be themselves. They didn’t have to grow up fast around him.
“What is going on down there? Are you guys giving my baby boy a hard time?”
“They are, Mom!” Adam yelled up the stairs.
“Adam’s just a sore loser, Mom!” Meg added.
Amelia came down the stairs holding her robe tightly around her. As she came into his view, Dan looked at her as if she were wearing a ball gown and had spent four hours primping in the beauty salon.
“Dan brought Yahtzee over for us to play, and Adam stinks at this game,” Meg offered happily.
“I’m afraid Meg is right,” Dan added. “Adam does stink at this game.”
“Well, you guys have ganged up on me. It’s mental warfare, Mom.”
“Now, you two, quit picking on my favorite son.” Amelia pulled Adam to her by the shoulder and stroked his head hard, messing up his hair and making him laugh. “Otherwise, I’ll have to bring down my other son that I’ve kept locked in the attic all these years.”
“I think this game is just about over, anyway,” Dan said as he collected the game pieces and the kids got up from the table.
“Thanks for the game, Dan,” Meg said.
“Yeah, thanks, Dan,” Adam added before skipping over to the basement door and heading down to his lair.
“Adam, can you show me that thing again?” Meg asked her big brother. They had been deep in conversation over the past few days about some computer game or app or something that Amelia had no idea about or interest in.
“Yeah. Come on.” Adam and his sister went down into the darkness that was Adam’s room.
“They’ll be down there for a while.” Amelia smiled. “Sorry for my appearance. I didn’t think you’d make it by tonight.”
“I think you look great,” Dan said, standing up and walking over to Amelia to kiss her on top of the head.
“Would you like coffee?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Dan took a seat. After a few minutes of chatting, he brought up the Danielle Wilcox case. “I don’t think you should keep showing up there,” he said.
“What?” Amelia asked. “Why? What’s happened?”
“Look, I can’t get into all the details, but this case goes a little deeper than we first expected. The clues just aren’t adding up the way they should be, and what we are learning, well, it just might not be the safest place.”
“Are you telling the other food truck guys the same thing?” Amelia asked. “Are you really worried about everyone around, or is it just me? Because as much as I appreciate your concern, I don’t see how I’d be in any more danger than the guys at Burger Rain or Damien’s Hot Dogs.”
“No.” Dan sighed. “Amelia, I haven’t said anything to the other truck drivers because I don’t know them. I don’t know their great kids or the way they look right after a really long shower. That probably isn’t a great comparison, since the guys at those trucks weigh a combined total of two tons. But you know what I mean.”
“I’m just there for Christine. It’s just for this week, although the money is surprisingly good. I may make it part of my route.”
“Promise me you’ll be careful. Don’t tell anyone about the kids or where you live. Don’t wait around too long after everyone has left. Can you promise me that?”
“I can.”
Amelia hated to admit it, but she was a little annoyed by Dan’s pressure. Sure, he had made his feelings known before, but this was getting to be a little bit like John. John? Do I really think that? Is Dan becoming possessive like John had been? Is it only a matter of time before Dan sees me as just an annoying thing in the way of what he wants to do?
Amelia Harley, you stop being so hard on the guy, she thought to herself. After what happened with Tim Casey, why in the world would you get mad at Dan for being concerned?
“It’s a little weird having someone looking out for me,” she confessed.
“How do you think I feel?” Dan replied. “I’m not used to having someone to look out for. Well, I had a goldfish once.”
“And what happened to him?”
“Leviathan? He got too big for his bowl, and I had to set him free in the ocean. He was eating me out of house and home.”
Amelia laughed and asked Dan if he’d like to get in touch with his feminine side and help her with a new recipe she had been kicking around in her head. Before she could promise him first dibs on licking the bowl, Dan had slipped an apron over his head. “Tell me what to do.”
That night, Amelia and Dan created the apple pie crumble cupcake.
“These are great,” Christine mumbled through a mouthful as she stood outside the Pink Cupcake truck the next morning, attempting to pay.
“Your money’s no good here, lady,” Amelia said, waving away the five-dollar bill Christine tried to give her. “Hey, have you heard anything more about what’s going on inside? Any new office gossip that might come in handy?”
Christine looked over her shoulder. As she did, both she and Amelia saw the cage-free-egg lady quickly approaching. Christine shook her head, pretended to be finished with her transaction, and meandered off to the side of the truck.
“Don’t you have any more of the peanut butter and jelly cupcakes?” the woman asked, scanning over the list of daily specials. Her eyes narrowed as if she might have missed them.
“No. I’m sorry. But, please, have a sample of our new apple pie crumble cupcake. Everyone seems to like—”
“That isn’t what I want. I want a peanut butter and jelly cupcake. Well, I guess you lose my business for today.” She was about to walk away but turned on her heel and came back to the window. Amelia smiled, thinking maybe she was going to ask for the sample after all, but that wasn’t it. “I’ve also reported your truck to the State of Oregon’s Department of Agriculture and informed them you use caged eggs. You can expect a phone call.”
Before Amelia even had time to let the words sink into her head, the woman had already stomped away in a huff.
“Did you hear that?” Amelia looked at Lila. “You did, right? I didn’t just hallucinate that?”
“Oh my gosh.” Christine came back up to the truck. “I can’t believe she did that. She’s such a pain.”
Amelia huffed. “Who is that?”
“That’s Joyce Ross. She’s the secretarial manager. It’s because of her I can’t get any extra help.” Christine rolled her eyes and took the last bite of her cupcake. “Her husband is one of the bigwigs on the third floor, so there is no getting around her. She’s here for the duration. My boss, Lena, is terrified of her.”
“What in the world is a secretarial manager?” Lila asked, staring daggers at the woman’s back.
“She’s in charge of the secretarial pool. I’m just glad I don’t work as an assistant, because from the stories I’ve heard, she is a bit—how do I put it—drunk with power.” Amelia offered Christine a napkin, which she took. She wiped her mouth. “Just about nine months ago they hired a girl to be an assistant to the assistants who help the CEO, CFO, Joyce’s husband, all those guys. Well, this girl found out that Joyce’s husband liked Harley-Davidson motorcycles. You’d have to be blind to not know it. He’s got framed posters of them in his office.” Christine rolled her eyes. “Anyway, this girl had a book on motorcycles she didn’t want anymore, so she gave it to him, just in a nice gesture. No harm or malice intended. Joyce had her fired the very next day.”
“Are you sure that was the reason?” Amelia squinted. “Maybe the girl wasn’t any good or talked back or something.”
“No, I’m sure, because I had to give Payroll a detailed list of everything the girl had done for the marketing department for the pay period. That kind of sneakiness only happens when management doesn’t really have a reason to let someone go. They comb through every hour you’ve worked and say, ‘Oh, look, on Tuesday June 8th, you didn’t send a fax and that cost us eight million dollars, so you’re fired.’”
Amelia shook her head.
“I am so glad I don’t work in an office,” Lila said.
“That makes two of us. Was Danielle working at the time this girl was fired?” Amelia folded her arms over her chest. “If Danielle was there and had any input or anything on this other secretary who helped her get fired, maybe revenge on Danielle was the motive.”
“I can’t remember for sure. But it shouldn’t be too hard to find out.”
“Do you know if Mr. Ross has had any flings with any of the women here?” Amelia shook her head. “It’s such a cliché, but it happens all the time.”
“As far as I know, the guy has never done anything. They drive in and park in the garage where all the bosses park their cars. They are always together, except when they’re working. But then again, what do I know? I am here to work. I try to keep my nose out of it all, because it’s never as cut and dried as you think it is.”
“Right,” Amelia mused. “Do you think you could get me the name of the girl who was fired, and maybe an address? It wouldn’t hurt to talk to her.”
“Sure.” Christine looked at her watch. “I gotta run. I won’t see you at break time, because I’m working through in order to leave early. The kids have some school play I have to go to.”
“Don’t you enjoy seeing those?” Amelia joked. “I always liked watching Adam’s cheeks flush red when he had to speak a line or Meg gush with dramatic pauses that would make William Shatner jealous.”
“Yeah, well, my kids like to ad-lib. A lot. And not all of it is appropriate for young viewers.” Christine rolled her eyes and tried not to chuckle. She waved goodbye and left Amelia and Lila alone.
“So, I think I’ll wait for the name of that girl who got fired and check out that angle.” Amelia looked at Lila, who was searching for something on her phone. “What are you looking for?”
“I have a farmer friend who owns a lavender field. I just want to check out this whole Department of Agriculture business. He’ll know who to talk to. But I think it is a safe bet to call B.S. on that Joyce woman’s allegation.”
“I hope you’re right.” Amelia clicked her tongue in annoyance. “I followed every step in order to get my license, and some nonsense like that shouldn’t be a factor. City Hall would have told me, right? And they aren’t caged eggs, for heaven’s sake. They’d be caged chickens. Not eggs.”