She watched him carefully.
He walked straight to Mr. Rune’s table and started speaking and gesturing with his hands. The way he talked, in a kind of a slow whine, made it difficult for Willow to hear.
The blender mixing the frap didn’t help her hearing abilities either. She turned the blender off and filled the glass, topped it off with whipped cream, and a drizzle of chocolate and caramel, stuck a straw in it then took it to Mitch who was already setting up. She couldn’t help it if Mr. Rune’s table was near the stage, could she?
She had no idea Clyde knew Mr. Rune. None whatsoever. She was close enough to hear the words “money, cheated, never again,” and “you’ll pay.” Hmm…wonder what happened between the two of them?
Clyde left right after speaking with the author. Mr. Rune went back to his writing like nothing had happened. Maybe this time she was wrong. Maybe Clyde hadn’t brought trouble with him.
Mitch finished setting up and a few minutes later Mr. Rune ordered another coffee, although this time, it was to go. He knew it was about to get loud and, well, loud wasn’t the writer’s style. He gathered up his belongings and put them in his leather brief case then took his coffee and left. She wouldn’t see him until after the ice cream festival. She had tried to talk him into participating but he muttered something about deadlines, rewrites, and time, then shook his head and stalked off, obviously in a mood. She had thought perhaps having a famous writer’s name attached to the ice cream festival would bring in some much needed income for the town.
The other writer in town, Jasper Cliffhanger, volunteered to help. Willow was glad for the help, but, because the writer wasn’t well known he wasn’t going to attract a crowd like Huxley Rune would have. Oh well, you can’t have it all.
6:30. 30 minutes until show time. She opened the glass partition and one of her part timers helped her rearrange the tables and chairs, making sure there was plenty of room for all who wanted to attend.
Willow was surprised to see Clyde return. He ordered a chocolate milk shake, found a table, and waited for the fun to begin.
Karaoke was in full swing. Willow had brought in two of her part timers and Janie, her best friend, who normally worked the morning shift to help with the crowd. Business was booming. She finally felt like she was starting to become part of the town. Last month’s fiasco with the chili cook-off almost sent her packing.
She smiled as three teen age girls took the stage. The music started up and all three of them were giggling. As the music they chose filled the room, Clyde flew up out of his chair in a rage. He took long strides and approached the stage. He was shaking his head and telling them he didn’t like the song they were singing. This time Willow got involved.
“Clyde, leave the girls alone.”
“This isn’t an appropriate song. They have to stop singing this song.”
Willow recognized the song as an upbeat song sung by the Dixie Chicks. Apparently some people still harbored bitterness over the chicks’ political position they took years ago. “Clyde, the girls aren’t making a political statement. They are just singing a fun song about a guy named Earl. Leave them alone.”
He walked back to his table, complaining as he went. “They shouldn’t sing this song. It’s not right. This is an American celebration.”
Willow understood. Back in the day she hadn’t been pleased about the route the singing group took in expressing their opinions either. In fact, she threw away the cds she owned of theirs. But, years had passed and she’d learned you have to forgive and move on or the bitterness would eat you up. Besides, the Earl song was fun. It even made her smile.
As soon as she was behind the counter, the loud pounding music came to an abrupt halt. The entire system had stopped working. She scanned the room and found Clyde on his hands and knees by the electrical outlet. She blew out an aggravated breath then confronted Clyde.
“Clyde, you are done here. You are not welcome in my shop. You are banned.”
He started to protest. “That is a bad song. You shouldn’t let them sing that song. Earl Rune had to die. It’s a bad song.”
Willow thought she heard him wrong. “Clyde, did you say the song is about Earl Rune? Mr. Rune’s first name is Huxley, not Earl. Okay? The song isn’t about Mr. Rune. The song is just pretend. Someone made it up. It’s not about anyone in particular.” She paused to see if he was listening to her. “You need to go home, Clyde. We’ll talk tomorrow to see if you are banned. I don’t want to ban you but you can’t be doing things like that. It isn’t polite.”
“Earl Rune had to die. Earl Rune had to die.” He muttered as he left the coffee shop.
COPYRIGHT INFO
©2015 by Lilly York
lillyyork.com
All rights reserved.
This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means without prior written permission of the author or publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law.
Cover Design: Jonna Feavel
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Illustrations: Ben Gerhards
Interior Layout: Daniel Mawhinney
40daypublishing.com
Published by: Wide Awake Books
wideawakebooks.com
Also available in print publication
The following is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are fictitious or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, to factual events or to businesses is coincidental and unintentional.
Author Bio
Lilly York? (aka Darlene Shortridge, author of Contemporary Christian Fiction) How about Lilly Belle; a mis-plant northerner, living in a southern world. Southern charm is lost among late nights with a two year old granddaughter, heat flashes competing with hell, copious re-runs of Murder She Wrote with Jessica Fletcher catching the bad guy, and a vivid imagination keeping insanity at bay.
In both humor and mystery, Lilly draws inspiration from terrible twos, a 24 year old daughter who questions her sanity, a son who constantly spews bad puns, and a husband who has selective hearing. Though, that’s perfectly alright with her, because what can you love more than a good laugh and a family so dysfunctional they almost seem functional?
To stay informed on the whereabouts and goings-on of the Willow Crier Cozy Mystery Characters as well as upcoming releases, recipes and maybe a clue or two, join Lilly’s e-mail club by going to…
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