Read Online Bed & Breakfast Bedlam (A Logan Dickerson Cozy Mystery Book 1) by Abby L. Vandiver - Free Book Online

know what to do?” Viola
Rose countered back.
    Gus, who could pass for a munchkin, was
short, muscular and seemed to have a permeant scowl on his face. He worked the
flattop grill with skill, donned in a white apron, t-shirt and chef’s skull
cap. And if he was one of the citizens of Oz, Viola Rose was its good witch,
Glenda. She was pink and bedazzled – shiny lips, shiny eyeshadow and shiny
rings on every finger. Even her eyes sparkled when she smiled. Her strawberry
blond hair was teased high into a bouffant and she had several pens sticking
out of it.
    “How long has it been, Miss Vivee?” Viola
Rose asked.
    “Twenty years.”
    “Oh my! Don’t that just beat anything?”
Viola Rose stopped in her tracks. “You venture out after twenty years and you
come to my diner,” She loosed a smile that was as wide as the Mississippi. “Here,
Miss Vivee.” She walked over to a booth that sat in the center of one of the
windows, a purple and pink sign blinking “Open” hanging in the middle of it.
“You sit right here. This was always your favorite booth,” Viola Rose said
patting the table.
    “Now who you got with you? This Bay’s
girlfriend?” Viola Rose said eyeing me.
    “Just because she black don’t mean she’s
dating Bay, Viola Rose. I know lots of black people. She’s an archaeologist,”
Miss Vivee said seemingly proud. “And she consented to having lunch with me.”
    “Don’t put words in my mouth, Miss Vivee,”
Viola Rose said. “I was only asking. Not making any judgments.”
    “Well you ask too many questions,” Miss
Vivee said.
    “You not gonna rile me today, Miss Vivee.
I’m too happy to see you.” Viola Rose pulled a pen out of her hair and an order
pad out of her apron pocket. “So what can I get you ladies?”
    “I’ll have coffee and she’ll have an iced
tea.”
    “I’ll have a Pepsi, please.” I said. “Lots
of ice.”
    “It’s a fountain drink, is that okay with
you?” she asked.
    “Yep,” I said and picked up the menu. “You
want egg salad, Miss Vivee?”
    “Oh my God, no! Why would you think that?”
    “I thought you liked my egg salad, Miss
Vivee.” Viola Rose frowned up her face.
    “Just bring us our drinks, Viola Rose.
Give me a chance to see what else you got.”
    “If you want answers from her,” I leaned
in and lowered my voice after Viola Rose left. “Seems like you’d be a lot nicer
to her.”
    “I’m going to need to you to run over to
Hadley Drug store,” she said ignoring me. “It’s right there on the corner.
See.” She pointed out the window. “I want one of those small notebooks that the
detectives use. You know it has the spiral wire on the top.”
    “I haven’t ordered yet.”
    “Well order. Then go get me a notebook,
please. And three No. 2 pencils. Already sharpened.”
    “Okay,” I said. I sat and perused the menu
for awhile. Everything looked good. I remember Renmar telling me they had good
food here. “What are you having?” I asked Miss Vivee.
    “An egg salad sandwich,” she said
impatiently tapping her fingers on the counter. She hadn’t even looked at her
menu. “Now. You tell me what you want and I’ll tell Viola Rose while you go to
Hadley’s.”
    “Didn’t you just say you didn’t want any
egg salad?”
    “Are you going to tell me what you want so
I can get it ordered for you?”
    Geesh.
    I let out a groan. “Okay. I’ll do a
cheeseburger and French fries.”
    “Okay then. Now go. Shoo. And hurry back.”
    Luckily Hadley’s Drugstore had the
notebook Miss Vivee wanted, but they didn’t sell pencils that were already
sharpened. I considered getting her a mechanical pencil, but when I said who it
was that wanted it to the sales clerk that was helping me, she wouldn’t let me
get one. She said she’d sharpen the pencils for me.
    Miss Vivee controlled people with just the
mention of her name.
    “We should make a list of suspects,” Miss
Vivee said when I got back.
    “That’s a good idea,” I said