“Humph. And I thought you were supposed to be smart. Your parents ought to demand their tuition money back.”
With that parting shot, she whirred out the door, Charmaine and Chelly rushing behind, sending a final, apologetic glance at the three cousins.
“Damn,” Sylvie said as she closed the door.
“Damned straight,” Neesa said. “That was—”
They heard a roar from outside.
“Oh what the hell now?” Phae asked.
Sylvie peeped out the window. “Jugglers. And clowns. In the street. With a donkey cart.”
Phae took a deep breath and threw her hands in the air.
This was turning out to be a very, very long day.
Chapter 21
AS PHAE WAITED UNDERCOVER BEHIND Trapper’s Tavern, she reflected that the day had indeed been long and exhausting. At two o’clock sharp, the high school band had assembled on the street outside the shop and begun the most horrendous love song concert in the history of time.
She’d hoped that most of the music, if she could call it that, would be muffled since she was inside, but one flimsy wall proved scant protection against the cringe-worthy caterwauling. Phae thought she might never heal from the damage of the band’s tragic rendition of “Let’s Get It On.” Somewhere in heaven, Marvin Gaye wept.
Kent had been correct, however, about the spectators not leaving. The crowd grew steadily throughout the endless concert, which actually lasted less than an hour. Kent must have pulled some strings because by three o’clock, the band was replaced by the excellent high school choir, which helped to staunch the bleeding from everyone’s ear drums.
Phae couldn’t help but be proud of herself for how well she’d handled the situation. She’d remained calm and not lost her temper as person after person entered her shop and cut loose with one corny joke after another.
As for her tiny slip-up in Kent’s arms earlier in the day, she’d never denied that she found him attractive. She wouldn’t waste her time worrying about one failure. Next time, she’d be better prepared for his assault, if there were a next time.
The country music inside Trapper’s Tavern fell silent. Phae peeked around the corner of the building. As usual, only Leon’s and the owner’s vehicles remained in the parking lot. Once again, Phae had counted on her uncle’s pattern of being the last to leave as a crucial part of her night’s plan.
Only a thin sliver of moonlight hung in the black sky, meaning she was forced to rely heavily on her faulty night-vision monocle. She should have thrown the thing away, she thought as she flicked the plastic casing to bring it into focus. At least she wasn’t trying to plant a garden tonight, she thought wryly.
True to his routine, Leon stayed behind after the owner departed. Phae had been amused to note that her uncle had checked to make sure his truck would start before he yelled goodbye.
“Here we go, kitty,” she whispered to the small animal she held in her arms.
With a great, heaving push, she shoved a big piece of tin roofing onto some metal cans, unleashing a tremendous racket in the quiet countryside. She struggled to hold onto the startled cat.
Phae smiled when she heard Leon turn off his truck.
She quickly pitched a rock onto the tin roofing. Shortly, she heard footsteps crunching in the gravel parking lot.
When she saw the glow of Leon’s bouncing flashlight, she ducked around the back of the building.
“Hey!” Leon called out, rounding the side of the bar. “What’s going on back here?”
He clanked around among the junk for a few moments then muttered something about animals.
Phae waited until she was certain he’d decided to return to his truck. Crossing her fingers that she’d be heard over the chirping crickets, cicadas, tree frogs and other night singers, she called out to Leon in a deep, eerie voice, “Leeeonnn Jooooonessss.”
“Huh? Who is that?”
On silent feet, Phae dashed to the other side of the building, rounding the edge just as Leon and his flashlight turned the corner at the back of the bar.
“Whoever you are, you get on out here right now,” he demanded.
“Leeeonnn Jooooonessss.”
“I don’t know what you think you’re up to,” Leon grumbled as he stomped loudly through the undergrowth.
Phae raced to the front of the building then leaned around the corner. Leon’s flashlight bobbed brighter as he approached the side. She took a deep breath.
“MEOWRRRR!” she yelled as she dropped the frantic cat on the ground, waving her arms and flailing her feet to get the cat to run to the rear of the building.
“What the —” Leon yelled.
Like a shot, the cat streaked away, straight past the beam of Leon’s flashlight.
“What the—” Leon yelled again.
Nearly as quick as the cat, Phae sped to Leon’s truck. If he hadn’t reacted as she expected him to, the keys wouldn’t be in the truck and her plan would be dead in the water.
She jumped inside the truck and saw the keys in the ignition. She did a quick fist pump in celebration, then started the truck, flipped on the headlights and slammed the gears into reverse.
Spewing gravel, she roared out onto the road, focusing the headlights on the corner of the bar where she expected her infuriated uncle to appear momentarily. She rolled down her window.
“Hey! You!” Leon shouted as he rounded the corner. “Get out of there! What do you think you’re doing?”
Phae revved the motor and began to back down the road.
Leon chased after her. “You come back here! Get out of my truck!” His face was bright red in the glare of the headlights.
“Come and get me,” Phae murmured as she maintained a steady distance between them.
Just as she’d planned, Leon followed the retreating truck. Glancing between the windshield and the back window, Phae managed to keep her eyes on both the road and her livid uncle. Now, as long as no other cars came along, everything would be perfect.
That was part of the problem in her business, Phae thought as she eased the truck down the road. Too much of he
r success depended on luck. Sure, she could be pretty certain that no cars would be out here at this hour, but she couldn’t be positive. Luck was required, like with the keys being in the truck and the cat running the right way.
She idled in the road while she waited for her uncle to gain more ground. The last thing she wanted was for him to give up. Luck. It had been absent all day at work, but it was definitely on her side tonight.
She yanked off the hot, itchy mask and tossed it onto the seat beside her. She daubed her sweaty brow with her shirtsleeve. It seemed summer would never be over. It was so much easier to do her work in cooler weather.
As Leon came closer, she could see the poor man was gasping for air, even though they’d gone less than half a mile. They still had a way to go before Phae could stop. Her uncle was more out of shape than she’d imagined.
She slowly depressed the accelerator and resumed the odd car chase/retreat.
Luck. A strange thing. One never knew when it would come and when it would—
Phae gasped out loud and her heart jumped in her chest when the passenger door flew open.
Chapter 22
KENT NEARLY LAUGHED WHEN HE saw Phae’s startled expression. Her hands flew upward to cover the dome light.
“Shut the door!” she hissed.
Kent grinned and hopped into the truck, slamming the door behind him.
She gunned the truck’s engine, jerking Kent toward the windshield as they were propelled backward.
“I can’t believe you did that,” she said. “Leon might have seen us!”
“Plus, I nearly scared you to death. Right?”
Kent could make out Phae’s fierce expression in the soft glow of the dashboard lights. He was glad she’d not worn that awful face paint tonight. She was painfully beautiful.
“You didn’t scare me to death,” she said. “But I’m seriously pissed. You have no idea how much trouble I’d be in if he saw me.”
“He didn’t see you. Those headlights are so bright he’s running blind.”
Her face relaxed slightly. “I hope you’re right. But still—what are you doing out here?”