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“HOW IS YOUR DEAR UNCLE?” Gerdie-Sue, the well-known town gossip and a regular customer of the café asked Dana later that morning.
Dana’s mind was in a tailspin of confusion right now. She didn’t even know if she was coming or going, especially after her meeting with her uncle.
“I heard he just got out on bail, child,” Gerdie-Sue continued, despite Dana’s dazed expression. “Poor thing. Being cooped up in a small cell like that.” She tsked.
“Oh, I’m sorry, Gerdie-Sue. My mind’s somewhere else right now. What were you saying?” Dana packed a box of delicious blueberry cupcakes and fresh pastries for Gerdie-Sue’s order. She couldn’t help but notice the woman’s long manicured nails that matched her bright red outfit.
“You’re uncle’s out on bail, right?”
“Oh, yes. Yes, he’s out on bail, Gerdie-Sue. It’s in the hands of the justice system now. But I know he’s innocent.” She swallowed a hard lump at those words. Did she really know if he was innocent?
Of course, he is. You know that deep down, Dana. Just because things look suspicious, doesn’t mean that’s all to the story. You were a mistaken suspect, too, remember? A little voice echoed in her mind. Was it the voice of reason and wisdom or something else?
Gerdie-Sue took the white box of pastries with a blue ribbon on it and handed Dana her credit card.
“Well, of course he is. Why would he do a thing like that to his poor wife?” Gerdie-Sue’s tone sounded a bit patronizing for Dana’s liking but she just shrugged it off.
Dana swiped the card through the machine for Gerdie-Sue before handing the card back to her. “You’re looking very bright today.”
“Oh, thank you. I just got back from Bea’s Salon, you know. She’s running a special today. You know, for her anniversary? It was packed, girl. Had to wait an hour for my pedi. Everybody goes to Bea’s salon.”
“Bea’s Salon!” Dana smacked her forehead. “Oh, right. Bea had asked if we could do a special delivery for her today. I almost forgot. Thanks for reminding me.”
“No problem, child. I’m sure you’ve got a lot on your mind with all this upset and all. How is dear Mary taking all of this? It’s gonna send her right to the grave it is.”
“Hopefully not anytime soon. She’s handling it all as best as can be.”
“Well, I’ll be off now.” Gerdie-Sue left with her baked goods. Her strong floral perfume scent lingered at the counter after she walked away. That’s Gerdie-Sue for you.
Dana immediately rushed to the back of the kitchen.
“Whoa! What is it, cuz?” Katie said, gathering a tray of cupcakes to refill the front.
“Oh, nothing. I almost forgot, Bea called me up the other day and asked if I could bring a dozen cupcakes to the salon for her anniversary special today. I’d forgotten about it when I heard about Uncle Max. I normally mark these on my calendar.”
“Oh, no. What time does she need the cupcakes? Is it this week’s special. The Blueberry Cream?”
“Yes, it is.”
“We’re out of fresh ones. I’ll need to bake some more.” Inga’s voice was curt.
“Fine, thank you, Inga. I’ll go and call Bea now to let her know I’ll be a little late.”
Dana went to the back of the office and slumped down in the chair trying to catch her breath and get her bearings together. Why was something nudging at her? Something just didn’t make sense. She immediately got on the phone and dialed Bea’s salon.
Just then, a though struck Dana and almost knocked her over.
It was something Gerdie-Sue said. “Everybody goes to Bea’s salon.”
Did that mean...? Could it mean...? That’s it. She couldn’t wait for the cupcakes to be done.
“Everybody goes to Bea’s salon. That must mean that Uncle Max’s late wife must have been a frequent customer, right? Nobody does nails like Bea and from what she heard about Karla, she always looked good from top to bottom and everything else in between.
Let’s hope I’m not wrong about this.