Shop and Let Die by Kelly McClymer

say, but I admired her discretion.
    “ Oh no. Anna is going to
be beside herself.” I told Deb about finding the folded-up flyer in
Anna’s pocket. I didn’t mention the mystery shopping connection,
though, for the same reason Deb was being evasive.
    “ I’ve never seen the
captain so rattled. Pretty nervy, striking in the daytime — his
victims always seem to park close, but not in
line-of-sight.”
    “ That leaves me out. I
usually have to park a mile away, especially this time of
year.”
    “ Molly.” She sounded stern
and cop-like. “Keep on alert. Shopping is like catnip to this
freak, and you shop for a living. The victim was a—”
    I held up my hand to stop
her from saying it aloud, in public. “Then you’ll be happy to know
my next destination is the job fair at the university.”
    “ Good. Get a nice safe
office job. Leave the mystery shopping to those who’ve taken
karate.”
    I looked around, but no
one had noticed her comment, least of all the barista who had made
me the coffee that was fifteen degrees cooler than it should have
been. Good. Deb could wear her uniform for her work, but I needed
an invisibility cloak to be good at mine.
     
    My target at the job fair was the booth of a big corporation
I will not name, for many reasons, not the least of which is a
non-disclosure agreement.
    They were easy to spot,
with the six foot high visual display. Point to them. The
literature available on the table in front of them was neatly
stacked. Another point.
    No trash littered the
table. They were on a roll — until I approached and neither person
at the table bothered to look at me, or smile. The woman wore a
neatly tailored dark blue suit and an expensive haircut, but her
eyes were trained on the booth next to hers, where a tall,
unbelievably handsome man was in the midst of recruiting a
prospect.
    My mystery shopping
experience helped me avoid gaping at the man, as well. I shrugged.
Life was unfair sometimes, and there were a few people who got way
too much in the looks, charm, and persona department. This guy
would have won the role of James Bond hands down, if he were an
actor, just on the chisel of his jaw.
    I looked away, but stopped
short of interfering with the woman’s enjoyment of the view from
her table. How often does anyone stumble across that kind of eye
candy in one lifetime?
    I turned my attention to
the young man at the table. He was dressed like a typical college
student, and he was focused on his smart phone. Playing a game.
Hamster Drop. I recognized it as one of the games I had to pry
Ryan’s fingers from so that he’d get his homework done.
    It used to be the game
system could be locked away for special occasions, but now with
smart phones and tablets, there’s always a game ready to distract
and mesmerize. When I do a shop now, I often see a “Please put your
phone away while you order,” sign at the cash register. You
wouldn’t think people would need a sign to know that.
    I hovered over one of the
expensive glossy pamphlets, waiting to be greeted. Time slowed to a
crawl as I tried to pretend I didn’t mind just standing there while
the seconds ticked, ticked, ticked.
    The points flew away, one
by one, until, at last, as instructed, I made the first move. I
picked up a pamphlet and slid it across the table to the young man.
“Is this a good place to work?”
    He didn’t look up from his
game. “As good as any.”
    “ What’s your salary
range?” I persisted, following my script and wondering if the young
man’s t-shirt was something that should go into my report. It said
“kcuf ffo” in an elaborate scrawling print, and then asked, “Have
you looked in a mirror today?”
    At that, he paused his
game and looked up at the professional woman. “Mom, can you stop
gawking at that Fed and answer this lady’s question?”
    I saw the way the word Mom
broke the connection between her eyes and the good-looking man’s
profile. Instant, visceral, and abrupt.
    Fed, huh?