24 Hours

“You don’t have time for breakfast.”

She took two vials of insulin and some syringes from the top shelf and put them in her purse. “I want this with me in case Abby’s in trouble. You have a problem with that?”

A strange light flickered in Hickey’s eyes. “No problem. I told you nobody was going to die today.”

“I’m glad to hear it.”

“Let’s go. We’ll take the Expedition.”

Karen picked up her keys and led the way through the pantry and laundry room to the garage. Hickey limped after her. His leg was probably burning like fire. She hoped it was infected.

She hit the UNLOCK button on her key ring, then the garage door opener on the wall. She had the Expedition cranked and in gear by the time Hickey got into the passenger seat. The pneumatic suspension hummed as it adjusted to their weight, and as soon as the garage door retracted to sufficient height, she started backing up.

“Easy,” Hickey said, laying a hand on her arm. “You’re going to have a wreck before we even hit the interstate.”

As Karen pulled her arm away, Stephanie Morgan’s white Lexus crested the top of the hill and blocked her access to the drive. She hit the brakes with a screech.

“Shit.”

“Who is it?” Hickey was already reaching for the gun.

Karen grabbed his wrist. “It’s Stephanie Morgan, the same woman as yesterday.”

“What does she want now?”

“Something about the flower show, I’m sure. I’ll get rid of her.”

“You do that.” He rolled down his window so that he could hear whatever transpired.

Karen got out and started toward the Lexus. Stephanie was already walking toward her, dressed more like a woman going to a cocktail party than to a weekend of volunteer work.

“I just came from the Coliseum,” she said in a tart voice. “I didn’t call because I knew you’d try to blow me off.”

“What is it, Stephanie?”

“The same as yesterday! Only worse. The cattle show people swore they’d be out by this morning and that the whole place would be cleaned up by noon.”

“And?” Karen looked past her, trying to see if either of her kids were in the car. The Lexus looked empty.

“And some redneck has got a pen of calves sitting in the middle of the Coliseum floor. There’s hay and cow manure all over the place!”

“Calm down, Steph. It can’t be that bad.”

“There’s cow shit all over the floor, Karen. I don’t think that’s going to work wonders for a flower show. You’ve got to come down and light a fire under those people. They just won’t take me seriously.”

Karen found that easy to believe. “I can’t come yet, Stephanie. My cousin’s in the car, and he’s got a plane to catch. I’ll get there as soon as I can. You’ll just have to handle it until then.”

“I can’t handle it. I’m maxed out on Zoloft, and even that’s not doing any good. Oh, and I left out the best part. The moving company we contracted to bring in the exhibit tables double-booked this weekend. We have no tables, Karen. No tables.”

Karen tried to look concerned, but she could hardly believe that yesterday she would have given a damn about exhibit tables, flowers, or even cow shit. She had to get Stephanie Morgan off her property and out of harm’s way.

“Listen to me, Steph. Get on the phone and call the football coach at Jackson Academy. His name’s Jim Rizzi. Tell him you’ve got a summer project for his football team and you’ll pay real money. Tell him to get as many players he can down to the convention center with a couple of pickup trucks. Those high school boys can move those tables in half the time it would take a moving company. Okay?”

Stephanie seemed shocked by the simplicity of this solution. “Karen, that’s fantastic. But I don’t know Rizzi at all. And I’m no good at asking people stuff like that. And what about the cows?”

Karen wanted to scream, Who takes you to the bathroom and wipes your behind for you, Stephanie? But the sound of the Expedition’s door stopped her cold. She turned and saw Hickey walking toward them, a concerned look on his face.

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“Oh, hello again, Mr. Hickey,” Stephanie said with a Teflon smile. “I’m sorry to hold you up.”

“Call me Joe, please.”

Karen interposed herself between them. “I told her we have to get right to the airport.”

Hickey looked puzzled; then he smiled. “We are late for my flight. They make you check in so early now.”

Stephanie’s eyes went wide. “I’ve got it! I can run you out to the airport. That way Karen can get right over to the Colisseum. Things are absolutely falling apart over there. You wouldn’t believe it.”

“No,” Karen said quickly. “Joe and I still have some talking to do. The estate things. I told you last night. It can’t wait.”

Hickey looked amused by Karen’s fabrication, but Stephanie’s face darkened, and her voice lost its sorority-girl veneer.

“You’re the chairman of this show, Karen. You volunteered for it. That means it’s your job to-to make sure…”