Cheryl Harper - A Minute on the Lips

Oscar smoothly pulled out his pad and glided over to the table by the window where a family of four was perusing the menu. Their study shouldn’t take long. At breakfast Jackie was big on the basics: pancakes, biscuits, sausage, bacon and eggs. The only real question was how much food they wanted piled up on the table at one time.

Andi slid in across from Jackie and pulled out her notebook and pen. She used to rely on her memory for all the pertinent details. Then Mark Taylor moved to town and Andi decided she might need her own little notebook.

“So, Jackie, is the diner exactly as you found it this morning when you came in?”

“You mean other than the lineup of criminals sitting at my counter? Yes. I didn’t touch anything.”

“Other than the door and the phone, you didn’t touch anything, right?”

His bushy brows beetled over his nose. “Well, yeah, I had to touch the phone to call your office, didn’t I?”

“And to call Mr. Taylor.” Andi sipped her coffee and watched the color rise in Jackie’s cheeks. He gritted his teeth and nodded curtly.

“What about the trophy case?” Andi asked. “Was it locked when you left last night?”

He stared over his shoulder as if the trophy case would tell him the answer. When he looked back, he was frowning, but he finally nodded. In her book, Andi noted that the case might have been unlocked. He didn’t look certain.

“Was the safe locked? And where do you keep the combination?” Andi watched him think.

“Yes, the safe was locked. I didn’t have the combination written down anywhere I can think of.” He sighed. “But I kept the override key in the top drawer of the desk. Probably wouldn’t have been hard to find if he knew what he was looking for.”

She made a note to check for prints on the key. A savvy robber might expect the key to be hidden in the desk, but it didn’t change her mind that the thief was somebody who knew Jackie pretty well. He had a thing for organization and efficiency.

“And where was Wanda Blankenship when you stopped her?”

He huffed once. “She ran past me while I was unlocking the door. You know she makes laps. When she came by again, I grabbed her and told her to sit right down.”

Andi pursed her lips. “And she did? She sat right down when you told her to?”

Jackie shrugged. “I might have threatened to tell a secret about her if she didn’t stay put.”

Andi paused, her pen ready to add whatever shocking secret Jackie had over Wanda Blankenship, but he picked that moment to clam up. “And what is that secret?”

He shook his head. “Nope. I won’t tell.”

“Listen, Jackie, it’s honorable to keep secrets for people who’ve asked you to, but it might help me to know what Wanda’s hiding. I’m pretty good at keeping secrets, too.”

He frowned. “I might need that secret someday. It’s already helped me once. I’m not giving it up.”

Andi fought the urge to sigh. It was difficult but she managed, barely, to meet his eyes. “And it has nothing to do with this case?”

“Can’t see how it does, Sheriff.” He met her stare without flinching, and Andi decided to move on.

“Okay, does the restaurant have a back door, Jackie?” This strip of Main Street had been converted to smaller spaces from a large mercantile. Some of them had back entrances and some didn’t.

Jackie shook his head. “No, Sheriff, we use the front door, have to carry trash around the end of the block to the Dumpsters out back.” He pulled out his order pad as the door clanged shut behind new customers. Jackie glanced at them and back at Andi. “It’s a real pain.”

She jotted down his answer. “You mentioned important documents. Like deeds and legal papers...that sort of thing?”

“Yeah, stuff I wanted to keep safe, things that...well, it’s all important but some of it’s...it can’t be replaced.” He made the wrap-it-up gesture. “Just find my property, Sheriff. Fast. Mona’s going to be real upset until you do, and I can’t have that. The twelve gold trophies ought to be a real easy trail to follow.” He pointed over at the new table of customers. “All right if I go now?”

She nodded. And made a note that Wanda wasn’t the only one with some kind of secret. Jackie didn’t want to talk about whatever was in the safe. Andi wrote down his wife’s name and a big question mark.

Figuring she knew how it well it would go, Andi sucked up her frustration before calling over her shoulder, “Oscar, can I talk to you for a second?”

He silently glided over and hovered.

Andi pointed at the seat across from her. “Do you want to sit down?”

There was a minute adjustment of Oscar’s head that might be a refusal. Apparently he preferred to stand.

“Jackie said you arrived after he did this morning. Is that right?” Another infinitesimal adjustment that might be construed as a nod. “What time did you leave yesterday?” Andi waited. This was going to be good.

“Four.” She didn’t know that she’d ever heard Oscar speak, but he had a nice, deep voice.

“Can anyone verify your whereabouts between four and when you arrived this morning?”

Her answer was a small tic that looked like a no but might also be a yes. She sighed. “All right, Oscar, go ahead and get back to work. I’ll track you down if I have any more questions.” And a deep desire to ram my head against the wall. Oscar would have known about the safe and the key, but he had to be smart enough to know he’d be the number-one suspect if something like this happened.

Andi glanced over to see Wanda Blankenship and Mark Taylor in what appeared to be a cozy conversation. Wanda was leaning against him. One tanned, leanly muscled shoulder rested against him. Andi took a deep breath. “Miss Blankenship, can I talk to you for a second? I know you need to be on your way.”

Wanda looked at Andi impatiently before she patted Mark on the back. She leaned forward to whisper something in his ear, and they both laughed at whatever sparkling gem that might be before she slid off the stool. There’s no other word for it. The woman was a slinker. She slunk across the diner toward the booth, and Mark Taylor seemed to appreciate every minute.

Wanda perched gingerly on the seat before she waved at him. Andi noisily flipped the page in her notebook to get Wanda’s attention. “So, Wanda, I understand you were running on your normal circuit this morning when Jackie stopped you.”

Wanda pouted. “Yes, Sheriff, I was running the block around the courthouse square like I do every day. I didn’t notice anyone near this place as I ran, but it was dark when I started. The sun had come up when I saw Jackie unlocking the door.”

Andi nodded. “Why’d you stop when he told you to?”

The question rattled Wanda, who was clearly wondering whether Jackie had given away her secret, but she’d played this game before. She leaned back against the leather of the booth. “I am a good citizen and a business owner myself, of course. If I can help in any way to apprehend criminals who break into the businesses of our fair town, then I am certainly glad to do so. Besides, I didn’t steal anything.” She tilted her head forward. “Where in the world would I hide it?”

Wanda was laying it on pretty thick, which made Andi reconsider how juicy a secret it would be.

“Jackie says you’ve got a secret. He wouldn’t share it. Would you like to? What makes an innocent woman follow Jackie’s orders?”

She widened her doe eyes and fluttered her eyelashes. At this point it had to be natural instinct or just habit. It had no effect on Andi.

One delicate shoulder rose slowly. “Well, Sheriff, I—” she glanced around the diner and back at Mark Taylor before she leaned forward over the table “—depend on Jackie to keep certain habits secret.”