Derby Divas (Zoe Donovan Mystery) by Kathi Daley

hundred men and women who have entered their cars in the show and all have agreed that the show should go on,” Willa announced. “The only event scheduled for today is the classic car parade. It will be held as planned. We’re waiting to make a decision as to whether we should continue with the derby. The qualifying rounds are scheduled for tomorrow. We’re in the process of interviewing all of the participants. Boomer is definitely out, but most of the others seem willing to compete. We still need to track down Pepper and Dezee.”
    “Neither Pepper nor Dezee were at the race,” I informed the group.
    “I did think it odd that Pepper hadn’t been there,” Levi shared. “Pepper was closer to Pandora than anyone. You’d think she’d come out for the big race.”
    N ot only did Pepper work for Pandora as a bookkeeper for her repair shop but she traveled with her to all of the car shows she participated in as well. The pair seemed to have forged a strong friendship over the years.
    “Perhaps Pepper and Dezee stayed behind to keep an eye on the cars,” Dad suggested.
    It was common practice for each team to assign someone to watch the cars when they were n’t being used. As unfortunate as it may seem, tampering to rig races and other events was not as uncommon as one would like to believe.
    “ I’m sure they’ll show up,” Hazel said.
    “Either way , it would be great if you could let me know whether the derby is a go or not as soon as you come to a decision,” I told them. If the derby was going to take place with at least two fewer drivers, I was going to need to rework the groups.
    “Has anyone heard what happened?” Levi asked. “Salinger was pretty closemouthed at the scene. Pandora was a more than competent driver, but it looked like she simply lost control of her car.”
    “We don ’t have any news yet, I’m afraid,” Willa verified. “I’m sure Sheriff Salinger will fill us in once he knows anything.”
    “I feel like this is all my fault,” I confided to Levi after Willa adjourned the meeting.
    “Your fault? How can it be your fault?”
    “I should have done more to stop them and I didn’t.”
    “Boomer and Pandora are adults and therefore responsible for their own decisions,” Levi pointed out. “From what you told me, you did try to warn them of the inherent danger, and they chose to race anyway. They’re professional drivers who know what they’re doing.”
    “Pandora is dead,” I said.
    “That’s true .” Levi sighed. “I know you feel bad and I do too, but I honestly don’t know what you could have done to stop them.”
    “I could have told Salinger.”
    “Maybe. And maybe if you had, Pandora would be alive, but what would more likely have occurred is that Salinger would have blown you off like he always does.”
    “Yeah, maybe.”
    “I know you feel responsible, but don’t beat yourself up over this,” Levi counseled. “There’s nothing you can do at this point to change the outcome of this very tragic event.”
     
    After Levi left, I called Zak, who informed me that he’d taken Scooter, Bella, and Charlie to the beach. They’d packed a picnic and planned to make a day of it. I really wanted to talk to Zak about my feelings about the race, but I didn’t think the timing was quite right and I didn’t want to ruin his day with Scooter.
    I then called Jeremy , who assured me that he had everything under control if I wanted to take the day off after the harrowing experience.
    I considered my options. On one hand, it would be fun to join Zak, Scooter, and the dogs at the beach. Zak and I had had virtually no time together since the awkward moment when he proposed and I froze, and I felt that it was necessary to our future relationship to clear the air. Zak had assured me that we were fine and that he understood my hesitation, but honestly, I was less than certain that fine defined his true feelings on the subject.
    Of course , Zak and I wouldn’t really be