A Timely Vision

“There’s no power of attorney or any other legal document listed at the Dare County Courthouse for either of the sisters.” He sniffed in a righteous way. “Jerry told me so.”

“I’m sorry, Chuck.” I managed a small smile. “Jerry’s wrong. He’s about to find that out. Maybe you should break the bad news to him before I give it to the media.”

He stared at me as though trying to decide if I were telling the truth. “I don’t want to tell you what to do, Mayor, but I’d be careful if I were you. Jerry isn’t a good man to cross.”

“Is that a threat?” Kevin asked from the doorway.

Chuck backed down right away. He thrust his hands into his pockets. “I’m just saying.”

“Thanks for the warning.” I opened the front door. “Good night, Chuck.”

“It won’t get any easier,” Kevin warned when Chuck was gone. “At least not for the next couple days. You should probably plan to be with someone all the time.”

Tim came up behind him, a wide grin plastered on his face. “I could spend the night, if that would help.”

Chuck was the last disturbance at the house before everyone, including Tim, went home. Once the coffee and the blueberry cobbler were gone, the conversation had more lulls than talk. It had been another long day, and Tuesday didn’t promise to be any better.

I stayed up late watching a romantic spy film on TV, thinking they might make a movie out of my part in this whole affair with Miss Mildred. Tuesday morning dawned warm and clear with no portent of the day’s activities to come.

I got up, showered, and dressed in black shorts and a black tank top. I’d decided to avoid bright colors for a while, reasoning that they might make me an easier target.

Gramps had left me a note on the table saying that he’d gone to help Mary Lou get ready for Turtle Rescue Day. He reminded me to be careful and said he’d see me later.

I was too nervous to eat. I crammed a Pop-Tart into my purse and started out the door. I paused a moment, hand on the doorknob, wondering what was on the other side. I don’t usually get feelings of dread over my decisions, but I had a moment of deep anxiety about what I’d causally offered to do. Making myself a target for killers had seemed like a good idea at the time. Now, I wasn’t so sure.

But then I took hold of myself and stuck a small can of Gramps’s pepper spray next to the Pop-Tart package in my purse. He kept a case of the stuff in the garage. I had never used it before, although he’d taught me how when I was a teenager and insisted I carry it on dates.

Feeling better, I opened the front door and almost walked into Kevin. His fist was outstretched to knock on the door.

“Good morning!” I was surprised and pleased to see him there. “Gramps is gone for the day.” It was the first thing that entered my mind. After I’d said it, I regretted it. I probably sounded kind of lame to him.

“Good morning. I’m not here to see your grandfather. I’m here to collect my painting assistant.”

“I can give you a couple of hours this evening after I close Missing Pieces,” I offered. “I have to lead tai chi at the park this morning before I open. It’s a mayor thing.”

“That’s okay. Later is good. I’ll walk over to the park with you.”

I locked the door behind me, realizing with a smile why he was really here. “You’re my bodyguard, right? You said someone should be with me.”

He laughed as we walked down the drive to Duck Road. “I didn’t mean to cause that problem with Tim last night. Did you have trouble getting him to go home?”

“Not at all,” I assured him. “Tim offers to spend the night all the time. It goes along with proposing. He and Shayla must’ve broken up again.”

“Short relationship.”

“Yeah. Anyway, I appreciate you worrying about me. But do you really think anyone will try to take me out right here on Duck Road?”

“Miss Elizabeth was right in the heart of Duck when they took her out.”

I thought about that as we walked in the early morning sunshine. A few cars passed us, but traffic was still light. “That’s kind of ominous, don’t you think?”

“It’s the truth,” he said. “You shouldn’t take this lightly.”

“All right. I guess I appreciate your help, then.”

He nodded, and we continued down the road. A few people passed and blew their horns, waving as they went by. Friends, or friends of friends, all citizens of Duck. I’d never felt uneasy here until Miss Elizabeth’s murder. It struck me that Duck was changing with the increase in tourists and the march of time. The town had changed many times before. Why had I thought it would always remain the way I wanted it to be?

Much to my surprise, the park was packed when we arrived. Normally, only ten or fifteen people come out to do tai chi. I’m not the instructor, Andy Martin is, but I show up a couple times a month to boost morale. A few town council members do the same thing. It’s like making an appearance at the VFW dance or the community auction.