“Tallie Graver!” my mom called through the front door of the empty café.
I rolled my eyes at my best friend Gina. “Seriously, it’s like she thinks I can’t hear her unless she’s at full pitch. Do you think she might be going deaf?” I whispered across the table.
“I heard you!” Mom yelled, walking in the front door and standing behind Gina’s chair.
“Then stop yelling, please. Mama Shirley might think there’s a fire or something and come running. I’m just trying to tell Gina about my day while there’s a lull at The Bean. You interrupted my recitation of cleaning the Farraway’s house.”
“You cleaned the Farraway’s? I thought they never let anyone but Bertha do that.” Mom was dangerously close to pulling up another chair and imposing upon my time with Gina. At thirty, I should be allowed some alone-time with my friend, but only if I could get my mother moving along.
“I did, and I would be happy to tell you all about it later. Max said he was really hoping you’d have some snickerdoodles ready for when he and Dad get home from that funeral director convention. And I bet Dad would love some meatloaf. If you have enough time, that is. . .” I let the sentence trail off because I knew it would be like a booster rocket under her keister.
Sure enough, she fluttered her hands and nearly ran out of The Bean There, Done That so fast I was afraid she might trip. Fortunately, she didn’t, and within another thirty seconds she was hightailing it home in her car, probably thinking about how long it would take her to thaw out the ground beef.
Mama Shirley, Gina’s mom, chuckled from the doorway to the back room. “Nicely done.”
“Thanks.” I smiled, wondering what I’d have to make up to get her out of here too.
“No need to shoo me along, Tallie. I see that look in your eyes. I have my own things to do. I’ll leave you with my daughter to have your conversation.”
“Much appreciated,” I said, and Gina chuckled.
“You’re getting better at that.” Gina sipped her cup of black coffee.
I reached for my whoopie pie latte and took a second to inhale the aroma of super-awesome-delish. “It comes in handy. Now, where was I?”
“Farraway’s.”
“Right! So I was cleaning their house and you know how I don’t like to snoop.”
Gina burst into laughter, the little fiend.
I ignored her and repeated myself just to let her know I wasn’t falling for her ridiculousness. “I don’t like to snoop, but I found this really weird picture of Nancy Farraway. Her face was scribbled through so hard that the pen ripped right through the picture. Weird, huh?”
“And I suppose you think she’ll be next?”
“Next to what?” I took a sip of my dream beverage, then licked the foam off of my upper lip.
“Your next case.” Gina tried to hide her smile behind her lifted cup, but her eyes were crinkled and I knew she was laughing at me.
“I don’t have cases. I just help whenever I find something or someone. It’s never on purpose.”
“Right. Sorry. I’ll remember to tell that to Chief Burton next time.”
“There won’t be a next—”
“Tallie, I think you’re going to want to come down to the station.” Burton strode into the empty café with his hand on his gun and a frown on his face. “Nancy Farraway was found face-down in some mop water that was left in the mudroom. I’m told you were the last one to see her.”
“Another day in the life of Tallie Graver,” my best friend said as she snorted into her coffee cup.
Awesome. How was I going to explain this to my fiancé, Max? I’d promised I’d stay out of things. But when the Chief of Police tells you to come down to the station, what’s a girl to do except help where she can. . .
Varnished Without A Trace is the fifth book in the “Tallie Graver” mystery series, released September 29, 2020.
Her number is up . . .
This Christmas, Tallie Graver would like to take a break from running her cleaning business to be with her boyfriend, Max, and enjoy their first holiday together—alone. Instead, she’s stuck keeping her mother and grandmother from duking it out during the town’s annual Christmas Eve bingo game. As for festive spirit, she’ll have to settle for her mean-spirited Aunt Ronda, whose mouth could use some soap.
The night only gets worse after Tallie discovers Ronda’s body. It seems someone cleaned her clock with a can of varnish. While all the evidence points to Ronda’s husband, Tallie doesn’t believe her beloved Uncle Hoagie could do such a dirty deed. Of course, his sudden disappearance doesn’t help his case. If Tallie hopes to clear his name, she’ll need to dig up some dirt to locate the real killer. Otherwise, someone else could get rubbed out . . .
About the author
Misty Simon always wanted to be a storyteller…preferably behind a Muppet. Animal was number one, followed closely by Sherlock Hemlock. Since that dream didn’t come true, she began writing stories to share her world with readers, one laugh at a time. Touching people’s hearts and funny bones are two of her favorite things, and she hopes everyone at least snickers in the right places when reading her books. She loves to hear from readers so drop her a line at misty@mistysimon.com.
All comments are welcomed.
Sounds like another great adventure in the making. Such a fun series!
It is.