Summer's Indiscretion(Divine Creek Ranch 7)(84)
Grace filled her in on some of the details, and they shot the breeze for a few minutes. To Summer, Leah said, “I sent some customers out your way. They wanted something we didn’t carry.” In an aside whisper, Leah added, “And you and I know there ain’t no way Daddy is gonna let me carry crotchless thong panties in this store. There’s only so far I can push the man, for now anyway.”
Summer smiled recalling the customers mentioning the referral a couple of weeks back and thanked Leah for the mention. Leah reached for the rack and said, “Well these dresses aren’t going to hang themselves. I’d better get…” Summer turned to her when Leah’s words drifted off. Leah was focused on the front of the store, and she looked a little concerned. “Excuse me, ladies. I’ll talk to y’all later.”
Leah threaded her way through the racks in the baby department and cut diagonally across the store toward the front.
“She must have a shoplifter,” Rosemary said casually. She looked up and spoke over Summer’s shoulder. “That’s right, stare all you want. We’re here and we’re not going anywhere.”
Summer turned and caught the evil look directed at Rosemary, Grace, and her and turned back to the girls and said, “Who is that woman? I’ve been getting ugly looks from her since we got here.”
“Her name is Elizabeth Owen. She has a very high opinion of herself and a very low opinion of us. Evidently we’re leading all the eligible bachelors of this fine community astray.”
Something about Rosemary’s words jogged Summer’s memory, and she asked, “What does she do?”
“Far as I know she’s a stay-at-home mom, judging others on high. Supposedly she also leads a Bible study group.” More memories came to mind.
“See you in Bible study…”
Ann Sheridan had told them at O’Reilley’s that the woman who wrote the blog also taught a Bible study class.
Turning to Grace, Summer said, “That’s the one writing the blog, isn’t it? That sounds just like her—”
Boom!
All three of them practically jumped out of their skin.
Chapter Twenty-two
“Holy shit!” Ace looked away from the monitor and at Duke. “Turn up the sound. What just happened?” Ace and Duke were currently sitting in the work van, watching a live feed from Stigall’s security cameras.
The girls had just responded bodily to something that had occurred elsewhere in the store. They were now crouched down in the back corner of the store.
Duke pointed to another monitor and said, “There.”
Ace was out of his seat in a heartbeat. Cool as ever, Duke handed him the wireless earpiece before he even had to ask. He placed it in his ear and grabbed his weapon from its holster. His hearted pounded with worry for Summer, and he found it incredibly difficult to focus on the guy with the sawed-off shotgun holding the store manager at gunpoint.
“Ace, he’s got her backed up against one of the shoe racks at the back of the store. She’s trying to calm him down. This dude looks like he’s a little past the ‘calming’ stage.”
Ace slipped in through the side door that opened into the bed-and-bath department at the rear of the store. Softly he asked, “Have the girls moved?”
Duke replied, “No. they’re staying put for the moment.”
Ace maneuvered around a display and could see the shooter. Several customers ran for the front of the store, and one woman screamed in fright as the man with the gun looked at her and waved the gun in her direction.
To no one in particular he yelled, “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for this bitch and her cheap, fucking father. I did the best work I could, and she fired me. They’ve fired half the people who used to work here or made it near impossible for them to survive.”
Leah held out her hands, trying to calm him. “George, we can talk about this. Please be reasonable. You’re scaring all these people. They haven’t done anything to you—”
“I don’t give a shit about them! All I care about is making you pay. Making this store pay. Maybe after I shoot a few people up no one will come back and they’ll have to close the doors. People don’t like that.”
It was obvious this guy was drunk and half-crazy, spouting off his plans for revenge.
“George, let’s just go in my office and talk about this. You’ve got my attention. Please don’t hurt any of these people.”
Ace moved from rack to rack, trying to maneuver in behind George, but it was difficult to get close with the open aisle behind him. If he jumped him he took a chance on him accidentally shooting someone. George kept yelling at Leah, sounding more and more unstable.