The Feed Store Floozy (The Penelope Pembroke Cozy Mystery Series) by Judy Nickles Page A

the umbrella and the luckless Wally Powers. Inside, Shana waved from the non-fiction section where she stood shelving books.
    “I’m really curious—what does Miss Maude Pendleton check out to read?”
    “Not hot and spicy, that’s for sure.” Shana giggled. “But she does like mysteries. I try to steer her to something safe.”
    “Safe for her or for you?”
    “For both of us. I saw you go into the feed store. What’s up?”
    “I’m not sure. Did you know Jill Jerome is still around? She’s helping Brice put the shop in order. And she called him ‘darlin’.”
    “Really?”
    “He didn’t introduce us, but she said they went to college together.”
    “Studied for exams together, too, I’m sure.” Shana winked.
    “She didn’t elaborate.”
    “So what’s the latest on the murder?”
    “How should I know? I’m not in the loop. Bradley’s a good cop—keeps his mouth shut.”
    “As he should. I heard somebody knocked the guy in the head.” Shana glanced up as if expecting to be enlightened.
    “Then it had to be a man, don’t you think?”
    “I suppose. Do you think the Bugle will have any details on Wednesday?”
    Penelope shrugged. “If Hal has them, he’ll print them.”
    “I guess we’ll just have to wait and see then.” Shana pushed the empty cart ahead of her and skirted the circulation desk. “Isn’t it about time for the Gray Ghost to turn up again?”
    “He doesn’t have a schedule.”
    “You’re drooping. It’s time for him to come.”
    “Don’t you blessed start on me. I get it from Daddy all the time.”
    Shana widened her eyes, all innocence. “I’m not suggesting anything.”
    “Stuff it, Shana. I think a hot and spicy is exactly what I need right now. Well, maybe just warm and spicy.”
    “You know where they live in here.” Shana handed Penelope a plastic bag. “Fill ‘er up.”

CHAPTER THIRTEEN
     
    Responding to the door chime after lunch the next day, Penelope hoped it wasn’t an overnight guest. Though all the rooms were clean and ready, and she had all the staples for the pre-planned menus, the latest turn of events in Amaryllis had soured her on out-of-towners for the time being. She opened the door and found herself face to face with Jill Jerome.
    “May I come in?” the woman asked, the honey beginning to drip again.
    Penelope unlatched the screen and pushed it open. “Sure. Can I get you a glass of tea?”
    “No, thanks, I just have a minute.” Jill looked around. “This house would make a great setting for a photo shoot.”
    “Thank you—I think.”
    “Let me guess—early 1880s?”
    “Late. It was one of the first permanent structures in Amaryllis after Jeremiah Bowden laid out the town.”
    “Did your family build it?”
    “My grandfather bought it from the first owners. Daddy grew up here, and so did I.”
    “I met your father. Nice old fellow.”
    Penelope swallowed her outrage. Jake was seventy-five, but he was far from an ‘old fellow’. She showed Jill into the parlor and sat down on the loveseat under the bay window. “You wanted to talk to me?” she prompted.
    Jill strode to the fireplace and ran her hand over the carved walnut mantle. “Beautiful,” she murmured. “Yes, actually, I just wanted to tell you that you didn’t see what you thought you saw yesterday.”
    “What did I think I saw?”
    The warm honey turned cool. “Brice and me. I just stayed around to help out an old friend.”
    “I took you at your word.”
    “I wasn’t sure.” She ran her hand over the polished wood again. “I was so upset over what happened to Wally that I didn’t want to go back home right away. I worked for him from time to time, so his death was quite a shock.”
    A shock maybe but not a life-changing event. “Where’s home?”
    “St. Louis originally, but I live in Dallas now.”
    “I’ve been there a couple of times. It’s an interesting place.”
    “I have a studio there, but I travel on assignment a great deal.”
    “It