The next morning, I showered, ate cereal, drank my coffee and walked to the parking lot. Crap, where’s my truck? Oh yeah, it’s green. I hate it when I forget what I’m driving. Cheri was already in the office because I was five minutes late.
“Morning, Cheri,” I said as I entered the office, and then closed my mouth quick because she was in with a client. Good, someone had to pay the bills around here. The mall didn’t open till ten, so I fiddle-farted around making myself look busy by typing up what I did the day before, played solitaire on the computer and then drove to the mall.
There she was, whatshername, and she actually looked busy checking numbers on a sheet of paper and then looking for the jewelry. I walked over to her, eager to buy a watch. Yay, me. I was right about the jewelry department.
“Can I help you?” she asked, smiling and ready to make a sale.
“Yes. I need to buy my sister a watch, but I’m in a hurry because today is my only day off. I hate it when I don’t have two days off in a row. It almost doesn’t feel like a day off. Know what I mean?” I asked her making eye contact and nodding my head.
“Yes. I know exactly what you mean. I’m lucky to have two days in a row off this week.” She smiled.
Okay great. She has two days off. So which ones, sweetheart, and are you going to see Rick on those days? This was going to take a little discretion.
“You’re so lucky. If I can’t have the weekend off I like Thursday and Friday,” I said smiling looking through the watches.
“Those are nice, but if I can’t have those, I like Monday and Tuesday. Unfortunately, I have Wednesday and Thursday off,” she said making a face and then adding. “But beggars can’t be choosy. Can they?”
“No, but unfortunately I like to beg. If I’m not careful I’m gonna get myself fired,” I said, laughing. “I like this watch. I’ll get it,” I said handing her a large faced watch.
She laughed and took the watch I had picked out to ring up. It was on sale, so it was all good. Now that I knew what days she had off, I planned to park outside her house on those evenings because Rick worked days. With my brother. This was not going to end well.
I walked back to my truck and called Cheri to tell her I was off to the convent.
“Come by here and pick me up. I’ll go with you,” Cheri said.
“I thought you were really busy this time of year.”
“I am, but I can’t pass up watching you talk to a nun with a vow of silence. By the way, leave your gun in the office. I don’t want you to threaten to use it on her.”
“Funny. Ha, ha.” I have only threatened to shoot one nun and that was Sister Angelina, our ninety-year-old Confirmation teacher who kept slapping the palm of my hand with a ruler. “Sister Angelina hitting me wasn’t going to help me remember things any better,” I answered. We went to public schools and went to religion classes on Sunday’s before Mass. I really enjoyed the classes. I didn’t like Sister Angelina. “I swear my children will inherit carpal tunnel syndrome from the number of times that woman slapped my palm.”
“If I remember correctly and I’m sure I do, you told her waving a ruler around wouldn’t help several times,” Cheri said laughing.
“Yeah, I did. But it really didn’t matter how many times I said it, she still waved that ruler around, and I didn’t own a gun at the time.” I laughed, and then imitated Sister Angelina. “Missy, stop holding your hands up like you’re holding a gun. I’ll call your parents and let them take a belt to you.”
Cheri was laughing so hard it took her two tries before she could say, “Then you…then you told her, ‘Uh-uh, you weren’t holding your hand up like you were holding a gun you were telling her she was number one.’ I’m glad you weren’t holding up your middle finger, just your thumb, and index. She would’ve probably thrown holy water on you.”
“Good times,” I paused then asked, “Were you and Cody setting me up? Y’all didn’t seem to get in trouble as much as I did?”
“No, we didn’t have to set you up. You did that all on your own.” She was still laughing and could hardly breathe. She was making gasping sounds.
“Back to the present, I’ll be there in fifteen minutes to get the surveillance gear. I’m getting into that nunnery one way or another.” I disconnected before she could say anything else. You know, something scrutinizing like, ‘What?’