After leaving the bank, I called Vance. "Hey, have you seen Dippy anywhere this morning?"
“Chippy Dippy?”
“That’s the one.”
"Um, no?"
"Molly at the bank told me he had been dating Amber. Did you know that?"
"I did not."
"It sounds like they had a rough breakup."
"Rough enough for him to want to kill her?"
"I don't know. Dippy always seems a bit odd to me. I guess I wouldn't be completely shocked if he went off the deep end."
"I wouldn't either."
"Do you want to do a background check on him, and I'll see if I can track him down?"
"Okay, but be careful. Don't go down any dark alleys with him and the ice cream cart."
"Don't worry. I won't. I've seen enough horror films to know when I should run in the opposite direction."
“Well, that's a relief," Vance chuckled.
"Oh, there was one other thing. I can't believe I didn't tell you this first. I must have too much information swirling in my brain. Clemmie called me this morning. Guess who else has a prison record. Terry Dawes."
"That's not surprising."
"That's what I said. Do you want to see if he has a connection to Kellan?"
"I'll see what I can find. Right now, I have a call in to a friend in Jacksonville. Trying to see what he can tell me about Kellan and who he ratted out."
"Let me know if you find anything out about Kellan or Dippy. I’ll catch up with you in a little bit."
"Sounds good.”
But before I could track down Dippy, I had to pay my best friend a visit.
I knocked on Misty's front door and patiently waited for her to answer. The house was quiet, and her blinds were shut, but her car was there.
"Misty? I can see your car in the garage. I know your home, and Vicki told me you called in. Hurry up and answer the door so I know you're okay."
After a moment, I heard the dead bolt slide back, and Misty opened her door. I have never seen my best friend look so disheveled. She hadn't brushed her hair. She had no makeup on. And she was wearing a dirty T-shirt and a pair of pajama pants.
"Happy now?" she replied dryly.
"No. What is going on? Are you sick?" I knew Vicki said Misty was nursing a broken heart, but maybe she was wrong.
"No, I'm not sick. I’m depressed." Misty walked away from the door and implied for me to follow her.
"Is it because of Daniel?"
"Don't even say his name." Misty plopped on the couch and pulled a blanket over her head. "I feel like such an idiot." Her muffled voice came through the fleece.
"Did he actually break up with you?"
"No, but does it matter? He's going to."
"Misty, listen to yourself. If it were me acting like this, you would lecture me up one side and down the other. You would tell me to quit being ridiculous, call my boyfriend, and make sure everything was okay."
"I can't. I know he will break up with me, and I already feel awful. I just can't deal with it right now."
"All because of one prediction?"
"I don't know."
"I think you do."
I gave Misty a moment to think.
"No, I guess it's not just one prediction. How am I supposed to compete with him and his lifestyle? Do you know how many fans are obsessed with him? Women throw themselves at him all the time. It was fun and exciting at first, but now, I don't know. I'm not a rock-star, party girl. I hate to say it, but I want to settle down and plant roots and all the things I never thought I wanted. But I do want it, and if I'm being honest, I want it with Daniel."
"But?"
"But I don't think he wants it with me. I don't know anymore."
I sat back in the chair, pleased that Misty was finally being honest with herself. All Amelia's prediction did was give her the catalyst to re-examine her feelings.
"Okay, that may be true, but I think you're doing Daniel and your relationship with him a disservice by running away from him. You’re better than that. Stronger than that. Nobody likes having tough conversations, but you've never run away from them before."
Misty flopped the blanket off of her head. "Since when did you become so smart?"
"Since my best friend made me examine my feelings and reconnect with Vance, remember? It's not easy being honest with yourself, but the alternative is far worse.”
“So now, what do I do?”
"Talk to Daniel."
"And if I'm not ready for that?"
“Stop being such a downer, and let’s go do something fun.”
“Like what?”
“Like catch a killer.”
Misty and I found Dippy pushing his ice cream cart around the high school parking lot. "Hey, Dippy, what's going on?"
The sandy-haired and freckle-faced man looked down at his fitness tracker. “Nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-seven, nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-eight, nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine, ten thousand. Whew! A new afternoon record. Getting my steps in between lunch hours.” Dippy was wearing a white button-up shirt tucked into a pair of pressed khakis. A red bow tie and pair of sneakers completed his look.
"Wow, that's great, Dippy,” I remarked.
"Yeah, good job," Misty added, giving me a strange look.
"And pushing the ice cream cart, too. That has to count extra,” I added.
"That's what I said, but my tracker doesn't have an ice cream cart accessory. No matter how often I email the manufacturer and request it as an added feature, they just won't do it.”
Neither Misty nor I knew what to say to that.
Thankfully, Dippy pressed on. "What can I get for you guys? This week's feature is Bicentennial Blueberry. I still have quite a bit left over from the weekend."
"Oh, no ice cream for me,” I said.
"I'm good,” Misty added.
“No ice cream?” Dippy looked confused.
“Afraid not. I was wondering if you had a minute to talk about Amber."
"Why, what have you heard? Did she tell you to come talk to me?" Dippy’s face immediately lit up.
"Not exactly."
His expression shifted from joy to sorrow. "Oh, figures. I thought she would come to her senses by now. I'm quite the catch, you know." Dippy cocked his head in admiration.
I couldn’t fault his self-esteem, but that led me to think of something else. If Dippy thought Amber sent us, then he didn't know she was injured.
"When's the last time you spoke to Amber?" I asked.
"Saturday. She told me that if I didn't quit threatening her, she would have me arrested,” Dippy nodded.
“And why were you threatening her?" Misty asked.
"I wasn't! I tried telling her it wasn't me, but she didn't believe me."
Misty and I shared a look. "Did Amber say how you were threatening her?" I asked.
"She said something about a creepy note but didn't go into details. Would you tell her it wasn't me if you talk to her? I really don't want to get arrested."
There was no easy way to tell Dippy about Amber, but he had to know. I needed to break the news gently. "I can try to tell her, but the thing is, Amber was in an accident."
All the blood drained from Dippy’s face. "Accident?" At least, I think that's what he said. His mouth formed the word accident, but hardly any sound came out. "Is she okay? Where is she? I have to go to her. She might need my help." Dippy left the ice cream cart in the middle of the parking lot and started power walking away from it.
"Dippy, hang on!” Misty and I jogged to catch up. “Amber’s at the hospital. The accident happened yesterday. She’s already out of surgery and resting. The sheriff is with her.”
"I don't care who's with her. I need to see her. Until then, I won’t be able to calm down. Watch my cart for me, will you?"
“Um, is there someplace we can store it?" I asked.
"Take it to the cafeteria. Ask Mrs. Mueller if she can store it in the freezer," Dippy said as he continued to power walk away from us.
"You said this was going to be fun," Misty said as she started to push the ice cream cart toward the sidewalk.
"What do you mean? This is fun. Look, I got you free ice cream." Misty looked at me like I was just as nutty as Dippy. “Come on. There might even be waffle cones.”