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I
was on my way to the police station when I noticed a car on the right side of the road. As I neared the vehicle, a woman got out and flagged me down. I recognized the woman as Nadine Ostermann, so I swung over to the shoulder behind her car.
She approached my car before I could get out, and I put down my window. “Nadine, what’s wrong?”
“Aw, I don’t know. The thing just stopped on me.”
“Is Harry on his way?” I asked.
“No...um...I can’t get him or HJ to answer their phones. Would you mind giving me a lift home?”
Actually, yes, I do mind...but I can’t tell Nadine that. “Not at all. I hope you don’t care if we make a detour first. I have to drop some food off at the police station.”
“Really? I didn’t think the Down South Café offered delivery services.” Nadine went around to the passenger side of my car.
“Just a second,” I said, getting out and moving the box of food into the back seat. “There you go.” I gave Nadine a tight smile. “We all make exceptions for boyfriends...don’t we?”
She laughed. “We sure do. I remember those good old days of being young and in love.”
“What’re you saying?” I kept my tone light, but I was serious. “You aren’t in love anymore?”
“Oh, sure...but things change as you get older.” Her smile faded. “I miss my youth. Enjoy it while you have it.”
I checked my rearview mirror to make sure nothing was coming before I pulled back onto the road. “Oh, now, you aren’t that old, Nadine.”
“Maybe not...but I’m not that young either.” She adjusted the vent in front of her so the cool air would blow directly into her face. “I’m glad you came along when you did. Harry and HJ wouldn’t have missed me until suppertime.”
“Should we call and have your car towed?” I asked.
“No. I’m positive Harry can fix it.” She turned to look at my profile. “How do you like working with Scott?”
“He’s one of the best servers I’ve ever had. I don’t know how we’d have managed without him while Shelly has been away.” I explained about Shelly’s mom.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Nadine said. “But you’re absolutely right about Scott being a wonderful employee. Anything he sets his mind to, he really gives it his all.”
My mind flashed to the photograph of her and Scott, and I successfully managed not to cringe. Should I change the subject or keep her talking about Scott to see if I can determine how she feels about him? Is it love or merely an affair? Maybe I can even get a confession! So...yeah...keep her talking about Scott.
“Jackie was saying earlier today that all our customers like Scott,” I said.
“Oh, ours do too.” She gave a wistful smile I’d have missed had I not glanced over at her in that instant. “But, then, why wouldn’t they? He’s something else.”
I didn’t answer. What could I have possibly said to that? This time, I did change the subject. “It’s good that you and Harry have HJ there with you. I mean, I know it’s probably sad for all of you that he’s going through a divorce, but it’s—”
“It doesn’t bother me.” Nadine’s voice took on a bitter edge. “I never did like HJ’s wife. She was spoiled and demanding...wanted everything handed to her on a silver platter. She might’ve had HJ fooled, and Harry too, for a while, but I had her figured out from the very beginning.”
“Did they have any children?”
“No. I believe both Harry and HJ were both sad about that initially. Harry would’ve loved to have had a grandbaby running around.” She flicked her wrist. “I said better no child than a child with a woman who’d constantly badmouth you to your own flesh and blood. Besides, HJ is only thirty...and he still has some growing up to do before he even thinks about having a family.”
By then we’d reached the police station. I parked and turned to Nadine. “I won’t be but a minute. Shall I leave the engine running?”
“Oh, no. I’ll go in with you,” she said. “I need to ask the sheriff not to tow my car before Harry can get it running again.”
Nadine insisted on carrying the box of food, saying it was the least she could do since I was being so helpful and all. I clutched my purse to my side, afraid Nadine would somehow figure out that delivering food wasn’t my only purpose in going to the station.
Both Ryan and Sheriff Billings looked startled to see Nadine accompanying me into the office, but they recovered quickly.
“I don’t know what’s in here,” Nadine told them, “but it sure does smell good.”
“I can’t disagree with you on that.” Sheriff Billings took the box from Nadine. “Let me give you a hand with that.”
“Ryan, could I speak with you privately for a moment?” I asked.
“Of course.” He led me down the hallway to the locker room. The lockers were painted blue, and there was a wooden bench against the wall across from them.
“Which one is yours?” I asked.
“Number seven.” He gently took my shoulders and turned me to face him. “What’s she doing here?”
“Her car broke down, and I’m giving her a lift home.”
“What’s wrong with her car?”
“I have no idea. Maybe her tires got dizzy.” I giggled.
He frowned. “What?”
“It’s a joke...I’ll...never mind.”
“Why didn’t she call her husband?” Ryan asked. “Did she call and ask you to take her home?”
“No. I saw her car on the side of the road. She said she tried phoning her husband and her son, but neither answered.” I took the pictures from my purse. “These fell out of one of the cookbooks I bought from Malcolm Pridemore. They aren’t the best photographs I’ve ever seen, but they prove that all the Ostermanns—and Scott—might’ve had a motive for getting rid of Ms. Pridemore.”
Ryan tucked the photos inside his shirt. “We’d better go back out there now, but let’s make our reason for needing privacy look legitimate.”
He kissed me then...a long, passionate kiss that I didn’t want to end.
When we walked back into the office a respectable distance apart, Sheriff Billings said to Ryan, “I hate to say this, son, but that shade of lipstick is not your color.”
I felt my face flush. Ryan was grinning, but his cheeks pinkened as well.
“I am glad your private conversation ended well, though.” Sheriff Billings winked at Nadine. “I don’t know who’d get custody of me if these two were to ever split up.”
“We’d arrange for joint custody,” I said. “Otherwise, you’d starve to death when Molly had to leave town.”
“But the sheriff doesn’t need to worry about that.” Ryan gave me a warm smile, and I could feel my blush deepen.
“All right, we’ve teased Amy enough,” Sheriff Billings said. “Let’s eat.”
“IT’S OBVIOUS HOW MUCH they care about you,” Nadine said, as we drove toward her house.
“I care about them too,” I said, wondering where Nadine was going with this conversation. With someone else, I might’ve thought it was an innocent observation. But Nadine put me on my guard.
“I’m glad it was Sheriff Billings who answered the 9-1-1 call when you and Jackie found Ms. Pridemore. Another officer might’ve found it suspicious...the two of you just happening to find that poor old lady clinging to life like that.”
I tried to keep the anger that sparked inside me from becoming evident when I spoke. “I’m sure any investigating officer would’ve understood right away that Jackie and I had nothing to do with Ms. Pridemore’s condition. If we had, why would we have been trying so hard to save her?”
“Now, there’s no need to get all defensive with me,” Nadine said, with a hoot of laughter. “I was merely saying I wouldn’t have wanted to be in your situation.”
I so wanted to put her out on the side of the road. “Trust me, neither of us relished being in that situation either. It was terrible. I only wish we’d have gotten there in time to help her.”
“There was nothing you could do...nothing anybody could do. I’m surprised she lasted as long as she did, you know, from what the doctors said.”
“What was Ms. Pridemore like?” I asked.
“She was your typical little old woman, I reckon. Ornery, nosy, cheap...”
“It doesn’t sound like there was much love lost between you.” I flipped on my signal light and got ready to turn onto the Pridemore property.
“I guess not,” Nadine said. “I mean, I’m sorry that she died and all, but even in the end, she tried to stick it to us with this lease-to-own business.”
“Really?” I drove up the driveway to the mobile home as far as I could. Harry and HJ’s vehicles prevented me from advancing any further. So...if they were home, why hadn’t they answered their phones?
“...Malcolm Pridemore as the administrator of her estate,” Nadine was saying. “And if he can find any loophole whatsoever, he’ll kick us off this land, and we’ll lose every cent we put into it. Wait and see, it’ll happen. Between you and me, I wish we’d never set eyes on this place.” She opened the door. “Thanks again for the ride, Amy. I appreciate your help.”
“Anytime,” I said.
Ryan called as I was on my way home. “Are you alone?” he asked.
“Yes, I dropped Nadine off just a couple of minutes ago. Funny thing, both Harry and HJ appeared to be home, so I don’t know why Nadine couldn’t reach them.”
Sheriff Billings spoke then. “Amy, you’re on speaker. Nadine probably didn’t even try to reach her husband or her son, and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with her car. I think she wanted to get you alone to find out what you know about Gladys Pridemore’s death and maybe about the estate situation.”
“She did say that Jackie and I were lucky that you were the investigating officer when we found Ms. Pridemore...and that really ticked me off.” I braked for a squirrel racing across the road. “I told Nadine that any law enforcement officer who worked that crime scene would have been able to see that Jackie and I had nothing to do with Ms. Pridemore’s death. If we had, we wouldn’t have been trying to save the woman.”
“What was her reaction to that?” Ryan asked.
“She said that given what the doctors said, she was surprised Ms. Pridemore was able to hang on for as long as she did.”
“You said nothing about the way Gladys Pridemore was murdered, did you?” I could hear the apprehension in Sheriff Billings’ voice.
“Of course not. I didn’t even let on that I knew Ms. Pridemore had been murdered.”
“Good job.” He let out a breath.
“How about the photos?” Ryan asked. “Did you mention them to anyone other than Sheriff Billings and me?”
“Only Jackie. I was especially disappointed about the one with Scott and Nadine. I’d hoped Scott was as nice as he seemed and would continue to fill in for Shelly.” I sighed. “Jackie pointed out that Scott appears to be pushing Nadine away in the photograph, but I’m still concerned about trusting him. I’m thinking of calling and telling him not to come in tomorrow.”
“Don’t do that,” Sheriff Billings said quickly. “I’d prefer you act as if you don’t suspect Scott...or anyone else. Behave as you normally would.”
“But that’s hard,” I said. “Even today, Scott was aware that I was acting differently. I told him it was because the cookbooks Mr. Pridemore brought to the café made me wonder again if Jackie and I could’ve saved Ms. Pridemore had we arrived at the house sooner.”
“What did he say to that?” the sheriff asked.
“His response was pretty much the same as Nadine’s—that we couldn’t have made a difference no matter what.”
“Sheriff, when you and I were discussing this earlier, you indicated Amy should avoid Scott and the Ostermanns,” Ryan said. “Now you want her to keep employing Scott at the café?”
“I do. Unless Shelly comes back or the part-time waitress can cover her shifts, it would look curious for Amy to let Scott go.”
“I agree with Sheriff Billings,” I said. “Besides, we need the help.”
Ryan huffed. “Just don’t get caught alone with him.”
“Or with any of the Ostermanns,” Sheriff Billings added. “And be leery of Malcolm Pridemore too.”
“Why Mr. Pridemore?” I asked. “There weren’t any compromising photographs of him.”
“He might’ve taken those out of the book,” Ryan said.
“What? You think the photos in the cookbook could have been a setup?” On the one hand, I was shocked. But on the other hand, I wondered why I hadn’t thought of it before. I’d assumed I’d lost my naivete back when I’d worked for Lou Lou Holman. Obviously not. “But Mr. Pridemore wasn’t living on the property, and Nadine Ostermann told me he rarely visited. Don’t you think the odds are slim that Gladys Pridemore had any dirt on her brother-in-law?”
“The dirt doesn’t need to be recent to be effective,” Sheriff Billings said. “We simply want you to exercise the utmost caution.”
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