Read Online Grave Concern by Judith Millar - Free Book Online Page A

steaming mug.
    â€œMore autobody shop, I’d say, if we’re talking décor,” said Kate, reviewing the seventies chrome-legged office chairs, the free pharmacy calendar, the depressing dark wood-veneer desk acquired at the Valleyview Goodwill.
    Hille laughed and took another swig.
    Well, Kate thought, at least the plastic surgeon didn’t excise her sense of humour . “So what’s up, Hille? Why so glum at the Pussy Cat Palace? I mean, besides the awful price of those jerseys.”
    â€œYou’ll think it’s ridiculous,” said Hille, and her porcelain face reddened as though photoshopped.
    â€œTry me.”
    â€œGet ready,” said Hille.
    Kate furrowed her brow in such a way as to imply intellectual preparedness.
    â€œOkay, so I don’t know what you’ve heard of my personal history,” Hille half-whispered. “This town is like Facebook on steroids, so I guess enough. Anyway, before I came back here and found Ron, I was with this other guy in the city. Neville and I were together for maybe a year and a half. So, long story short, I really wanted more here ,” said Hille, placing upturned palms under her prodigious plastic breasts and bouncing them up and down. “I’d always been so flat, well, you remember. And Nevvy, he said, anyways , wanted the same thing. It was just very important to me, to my self-esteem, to get it done. So anyways, Nevvy said he’d give me the money, as long as we were still together, like, a year down the line. If we split before then, it was a loan, and I’d have to pay him back. Either money or silicone.”
    Kate gasped.
    Hille’s head shook in emphatic disbelief. “That’s what he said, I swear. Anyways, so I borrowed a few bu-u-u-cks.” Hille broke down again.
    â€œA few?” said Kate quickly, hoping to slide Hille back on track.
    â€œA few-ew thousand.”
    â€œHow many thousand?”
    â€œSix,” said Hille and dropped her head into her hands.
    â€œOuch,” said Kate.
    â€œIt was worth every penny,” Hille said. “Except, well, now.”
    â€œNow?”
    â€œNevvy’s calling in the loan,” said Hille. She knocked back more of the coffee as though it were stone cold.
    â€œAnd you don’t have the dough.”
    Hille cradled her face in her hands. “I could ask Ron, I guess, but he doesn’t know anything about it.”
    â€œThe breasts or the loan?”
    â€œBoth.”
    As hard as Kate found this to swallow, at least on the breast front, she bit her tongue and simply nodded.
    â€œYou’re the only one I’ve told, Kate. You absolutely must not say anything to anyone.”
    â€œNo problem,” said Kate, who couldn’t imagine a suitable setting for passing on a confidence like that, except maybe a comedy club.
    Pleasure is none, if not diversified. The minute Donne’s phrase popped into her head, Kate knew she must not relay it aloud, even accounting for its quite possibly whizzing over Hille’s head. And Kate knew something else. Diversified . Of course! Here was her chance. Here, staring her in the face, was the perfect opportunity for business diversification, her secret plan sparked — coincidence? — by Hille’s Christmas party.
    â€œSo, uh, Hille, honey. It seems to me you’re in a bit of a pickle.”
    â€œNo kidding. The thing is, what can I do? You seem like a sensible person … well, you always were. What should I do , Kate?”
    Hille’s last few words curled up into a whine, and Kate felt a tiny nibble on her hook.
    â€œLook, Hille. I’ve got a small secret myself.”
    Hille’s eyes darted northward. “You do?”
    â€œI don’t tell many people, because it’s not officially included on my business licence. But I know I can trust you .”
    Hille’s earrings fairly rattled.
    â€œI offer advice.”
    Hille’s earrings drooped