his round cheeks succumbing to gravity.
I glanced over at the nearby news crew. The cameraman was shooting Daphne on her own, with B-Mart in the background. I turned my back so my face wouldn’t be in the shot.
I could hear Daphne saying, “Oh my gosh, this is such a scandal! The owners of this gas station claim they had no knowledge of the contamination, but word on the street is that the elderly couple is at the heart of a chemical manufacturing scandal, and have ties to the underworld. Wait. Cut that. Start over. What does underworld mean? Is that a cult thing, like with devils?”
I snuck a look over at Dion. “Can you believe this three-ring circus?”
“Unfortunately, yes. This is exactly the sort of thing the whole town gets excited about.” He kept his eyes on the numbers displaying on the gas pump. “Did you ever find that friend you were looking for?”
“She was up a tree. Thanks for asking.” I finished refueling and hung the nozzle back on the pump. “See you around.”
“Don’t forget to use that free drink voucher.”
I promised I would then slid back into my car before Daphne and her news crew could ask me for a word-on-the-street interview.
My friends emerged from the store at the same time as the other couple. By the look of Jessica’s hand motions, she was describing to the other girl how she’d climbed a tree the night before. Della, who looked barely older than a teenager, threw back her head to laugh.
Christopher got back into the passenger seat and Jessica slid into the back.
Breathlessly, Jessica said, “Christopher, did you tell her yet? Did you?”
He answered tersely, “I’ve been in the car a millisecond.”
Jessica grabbed the back of my seat and shook it. “We’re all going up to the same resort! Della says they have a karaoke system in the recreation room. I’m going to pick out some songs right now, and then Della’s going to sing a duet with me tonight. Awesome, right?”
“Is that girl a friend of yours?” I adjusted the rearview mirror and watched as the three of them fought over who was driving and who’d be sitting in which seat.
Jessica answered, “Not a good friend, but Della hosts the karaoke nights at the Fox and Hound, and she’s so good. Stormy, you have to hear her sing. She’s totally commanding when she’s on the stage, and her voice is amazing. You have to hear her.” She shook my seat again for emphasis.
The Beetle pulled up beside us, horn honking, all occupants waving frantically. Della was at the wheel, taking a picture with one hand and steering with the other. She hit the gas and zoomed out of the parking lot, still honking.
“Colorful bunch,” I commented.
Christopher pressed a cold root beer into my hand. “Don’t be cranky. We’ll have so much fun it will feel like two days. Short ones. I bet by the end, you won’t want to leave.”
I stared after the green Beetle. “I thought your cousin’s lodge wasn’t open to the public yet.”
“It’s not,” he said. “Those must be his wife’s friends. Butch and Marie live in Seattle, but she’s originally from Misty Falls. Her maiden name was Schwartz before she became a Fairchild. Do you remember going to school with her?”
“The name doesn’t ring a bell, but if she’s in her forties like Butch, we might not have crossed paths.”
Jessica shook my seat again, like an excited kid. “Marie Fairchild! I know who that is. She had a cooking show, Marie’s Cozy Kitchen. Such a shame she got cancelled. Marie just needed one big moment to open up, to demonstrate some emotion, some personality, some… anything , but it never happened. I guess she was too shy to be on TV.”
“Speaking of not being on TV…” I hit the gas pedal and got us out of the parking lot before Daphne and the local news crew could descend upon us.
The sun shone brightly overhead, making the weather feel more like spring than late February. The snow I’d predicted, based on the fairy rings
I glanced over at the nearby news crew. The cameraman was shooting Daphne on her own, with B-Mart in the background. I turned my back so my face wouldn’t be in the shot.
I could hear Daphne saying, “Oh my gosh, this is such a scandal! The owners of this gas station claim they had no knowledge of the contamination, but word on the street is that the elderly couple is at the heart of a chemical manufacturing scandal, and have ties to the underworld. Wait. Cut that. Start over. What does underworld mean? Is that a cult thing, like with devils?”
I snuck a look over at Dion. “Can you believe this three-ring circus?”
“Unfortunately, yes. This is exactly the sort of thing the whole town gets excited about.” He kept his eyes on the numbers displaying on the gas pump. “Did you ever find that friend you were looking for?”
“She was up a tree. Thanks for asking.” I finished refueling and hung the nozzle back on the pump. “See you around.”
“Don’t forget to use that free drink voucher.”
I promised I would then slid back into my car before Daphne and her news crew could ask me for a word-on-the-street interview.
My friends emerged from the store at the same time as the other couple. By the look of Jessica’s hand motions, she was describing to the other girl how she’d climbed a tree the night before. Della, who looked barely older than a teenager, threw back her head to laugh.
Christopher got back into the passenger seat and Jessica slid into the back.
Breathlessly, Jessica said, “Christopher, did you tell her yet? Did you?”
He answered tersely, “I’ve been in the car a millisecond.”
Jessica grabbed the back of my seat and shook it. “We’re all going up to the same resort! Della says they have a karaoke system in the recreation room. I’m going to pick out some songs right now, and then Della’s going to sing a duet with me tonight. Awesome, right?”
“Is that girl a friend of yours?” I adjusted the rearview mirror and watched as the three of them fought over who was driving and who’d be sitting in which seat.
Jessica answered, “Not a good friend, but Della hosts the karaoke nights at the Fox and Hound, and she’s so good. Stormy, you have to hear her sing. She’s totally commanding when she’s on the stage, and her voice is amazing. You have to hear her.” She shook my seat again for emphasis.
The Beetle pulled up beside us, horn honking, all occupants waving frantically. Della was at the wheel, taking a picture with one hand and steering with the other. She hit the gas and zoomed out of the parking lot, still honking.
“Colorful bunch,” I commented.
Christopher pressed a cold root beer into my hand. “Don’t be cranky. We’ll have so much fun it will feel like two days. Short ones. I bet by the end, you won’t want to leave.”
I stared after the green Beetle. “I thought your cousin’s lodge wasn’t open to the public yet.”
“It’s not,” he said. “Those must be his wife’s friends. Butch and Marie live in Seattle, but she’s originally from Misty Falls. Her maiden name was Schwartz before she became a Fairchild. Do you remember going to school with her?”
“The name doesn’t ring a bell, but if she’s in her forties like Butch, we might not have crossed paths.”
Jessica shook my seat again, like an excited kid. “Marie Fairchild! I know who that is. She had a cooking show, Marie’s Cozy Kitchen. Such a shame she got cancelled. Marie just needed one big moment to open up, to demonstrate some emotion, some personality, some… anything , but it never happened. I guess she was too shy to be on TV.”
“Speaking of not being on TV…” I hit the gas pedal and got us out of the parking lot before Daphne and the local news crew could descend upon us.
The sun shone brightly overhead, making the weather feel more like spring than late February. The snow I’d predicted, based on the fairy rings
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