Read Online A Grid For Murder by Casey Mayes - Free Book Online Page B

in his eye.
    “They can do what they want, but I’m going to ask questions, too,” I said flatly. I wasn’t going to let him try to charm me out of doing some digging on my own. I wasn’t wired that way. When something needed to be done, I did it, with no apologies and no excuses.
    “You ask the questions,” he agreed, “but there’s a good chance that unless I go with you, no one’s going to answer any of them.”
    I knew he was right, though I didn’t want to admit it. “When can we get started?”
    He looked at the clock on the wall. “We close in ten minutes. Can you wait that long?”
    “I suppose I can,” I answered.
    “Good enough.”
    As he got up, I asked, “Is there anything I can do right now while you’re waiting around to close?”
    “Savannah, if a broom fits your hand, I wouldn’t mind you sweeping up around the place,” he said.
    I thought he was most likely kidding, but I decided that would be exactly what I would do. I knew myself well enough to know that otherwise I’d just sit there and fret, so why not do something productive in the meantime?
    When I grabbed a broom once we were out front, it clearly confused Lee. “Hey, boss, is she working here now, too?”
    “I don’t know. You’ll have to ask her,” Rob said, as dead serious as he could be.
    “Well, are you?” Lee asked me pointedly.
    “For the moment,” I said.
    He apparently didn’t like my answer. “What does that mean? I’m still the senior clerk around here.”
    Was he seriously concerned about sharing a workspace with me? I looked at the clock over the register and saw that we had three minutes to go before Rob locked up. “Tell you what. I’ll leave when you do.”
    “That’s fine, because I’m not going anywhere,” he said, the resolve strong in his voice.
    “Not even at six?” I asked.
    “Do you mean today?”
    I smiled as brightly as I could at him. “That’s right. I’m what you’d call a temporary, seasonal, part-time employee.”
    He caught my smile, and then said, “Well, that’s all right then. I understand now.”
    “Do you?” Rob asked. “Then would you mind explaining it to me?”
    That just served to confuse the young man even more. “Is there a joke going on here that I’m not getting?”
    “If there is, it probably isn’t very funny,” I said. “I’m just pitching in for a minute today, and then I’m finished and off the payroll. As far as I’m concerned, your job here is safe.”
    “It’s not up to you though, is it?” he asked with a grin.
    “You can come back tomorrow, Lee,” Rob said. “After that, we’ll see.”
    “That’s good enough for me.”
    At six on the nose, Lee couldn’t get out of the hardware store fast enough.
    I turned to Rob as he was balancing out his cash register. “That wasn’t very nice of me, was it?”
    “Lee’s a little too young and a little too earnest to get the full range of your humor, Savannah. He’s a good kid, don’t get me wrong, but he’s got some seasoning to do first.”
    I smiled at him. “I’m not sure if you’re complimenting me, or if that’s meant to be an insult.”
    “I suppose some things in this life must remain a mystery to us all,” he said with a slight smile.
    A minute after I finished sweeping the floor, Rob looked up from the stack of cash on the counter and the register tape. “Good, it balances out on the first try. Lee is coming along nicely.”
    “Do you have big plans for him?”
    “Are you kidding? Someday I’m hoping he’ll take over so I can spend my days fishing.”
    I thought about saying something, and then decided to hold my tongue. After all, it wasn’t any of my business.
    Rob caught my hesitation, though. In some ways, he was just as sharp as my husband was. “What were you going to say, Savannah?”
    “It might not hurt to tell him your plans, if you’re serious about it. He seems a little jumpy about his job, if you ask me.”
    “I appreciate your advice, and I’ll