Hope Callaghan - Garden Girls 05 - Eye Spy (5 page)

“Don’t you worry, Ruth.  We’re going to get this mess sorted out in a jiffy so you can get back to work,” she said. 
And I can have my place back,
she thought to herself.

The restaurant wasn’t terribly busy.  Gloria waved to a few of the regulars as she and Ruth wandered to the back.  Ruth kept her head down and avoided eye contact with the diners. 

There was no one in the kitchen but the back screen door was open.  Gloria could hear voices coming from beyond the door.

The women wandered around the side of the butcher block island and out the back door.  Dot was at the picnic table sipping a glass of water.  Ray was seated across from her, his back to the door.  He didn’t see Gloria and Ruth come up, but Dot did. 

She jumped up from the bench seat and scooted around the side of the wooden table.  She wrapped her arms around Ruth and gave her a big hug.  Ruth sniffled one more time before she burst into tears.  She buried her head in her hands. 

Dot patted her shoulder.  “I know just what you’re going through, Ruth,” Dot soothed.  And if anyone did know what Ruth was going through, it was Dot.  It wasn’t long ago that Dot and her husband, Ray, had a diner keel over right inside the restaurant.  The authorities had shut the restaurant down until the investigation was complete and Dot and Ray had been cleared.

“I know, it’s just…” Ruth began to wail again.  Gloria pulled a pack of tissues from her purse and handed one to Ruth. Dot continued to pat Ruth’s back.  She stared at Gloria helplessly.  “I’m sure Gloria’s trying to help, too.” 

Ruth wiped her eyes, then blew her nose into the tissue.  She glanced over at Gloria.  “Yeah, she is.  It’s just hard.”

Gloria was quick to change the subject.  “How’re you doing on going through your things for the yard sale?”

That got Ray’s attention.  His head whipped around.  “Good heavens!  The woman has the garage half-full already.”

Gloria swallowed hard.  With everything Ruth had already brought over and half of Dot’s garage filled with stuff, she was going to run out of room in the barn to store it all!

Dot held up a finger.  “I’ll be right back.”

She disappeared inside the kitchen.  The girls made small talk with Ray until she returned. Dot wandered back out but stayed by the door, one hand still gripping the handle.  “I need to get back to work.  I mentioned the yard sale to Margaret and Lucy and they said they had stuff to get rid of, too!”

Ruth and Gloria wandered back through the restaurant and out the front door.  With one last look of longing towards the post office, Ruth climbed into the van and closed her eyes.  She leaned her head back against the rest.  “Please, God. Let them hurry up with the investigation,” she murmured.

Ruth lifted her head and put the van in reverse.  She started to back into the street.  “Can we stop by my place before heading home?” she asked.

Gloria nodded her head.  “Sure.  No problem.”

Ruth headed opposite of the farm as she drove to her place.  She pulled into her narrow drive and put the van in park. 

“I’ll be right back.” Ruth was out of the van and had slammed the door shut before Gloria could answer.  She shrugged her shoulders.  Guess this must be a quick grab something and go. 

Ruth was gone only a minute.  When she returned, she had a laptop computer tucked under one arm.  Ruth set the computer on the back seat, then settled in behind the wheel. 

“You could’ve just used my computer,” Gloria told her.

Ruth shook her head.  “No. Yours won’t work.  There’s stuff on my laptop that I need.”

Gloria lifted her one eyebrow but didn’t reply.  She couldn’t wait to see what kind of “stuff” that Ruth had on her computer that she couldn’t live without for a few days.

It wasn’t long after they arrived back at the farm that Gloria found out what that “stuff” was.  Ruth made a beeline for the kitchen table.  She set the laptop on top and lifted the lid.  She slid out a chair, plopped down and focused on the screen.   

Gloria hung her keys on the hook.  She took her sweater off and put it on top of the keys. 

Gloria glanced over at the screen that Ruth was studying.  It was a bit blurry so Gloria grabbed her glasses from her purse and slipped them on.  She leaned over Ruth’s shoulder for a closer look.

Her eyes widened when she realized what she was looking at.  It was the inside of the post office!  “Is that what I think it is?”

Ruth was so absorbed in watching the screen, she didn’t notice Gloria was right behind her.  She swung her head around.  “Yeah.  It’s the inside of the post office.”

Gloria narrowed her eyes.  She could see Sharon, the detective, sitting behind the counter.  Seth, the part-time college student, was there, too.  “Is this live?”

Ruth nodded.  “Yeah.  A while back, I installed a little camera up in the corner to keep an eye on the place.”

Gloria frowned.  “Are you sure you’re allowed to do that?  I mean, isn’t that illegal?  Government property and all?”

It was Ruth’s turn to frown.  Apparently, the thought never crossed her mind that it was something she shouldn’t do…. “I only did it because I thought someone was trying to break in a couple months back.”

Gloria still wasn’t convinced.  However, it wasn’t her place to question. 

Ruth tapped the button in the corner and turned up the volume, which didn’t seem to help.  All that could be heard was shuffling and mumbling voices. 

Ruth reached into her purse, which was sitting next to her on the chair.  She pulled out a set of ear buds.  She popped the buds in her ears and plugged the other end in the side socket. 

Gloria left her alone as she and Mally wandered out into the yard.  The errands had taken up a good part of the day.  Soon, it would be time to think about what to have for dinner. 

She grabbed the handrail and made her way down the steps and over to her garden.  She picked up the garden hose and turned the water on.  It was nice to stand there in the solitude and think of nothing more than making sure her thirsty plants got watered.

Mally was on the other side of the garden, over by the strawberry plants.  She watched as the dog tilted her head to the side and nibbled one of the juicy, red treats. 

The first time she caught Mally eating a strawberry, Gloria was concerned that they might be poisonous to animals.  She did a quick research online and found berries were safe for dogs.  Grapes – no. Berries - yes.

Gloria and Mally wandered back inside after the garden was watered. Puddles was curled up on Ruth’s lap, napping. Ruth absentmindedly stroked Puddles.  Her eyes never left the computer screen.

Gloria plucked one of the earbuds from Ruth’s ear and leaned down.  “What do you think about pizza for dinner?” Gloria asked.

Ruth didn’t bother to look up.  She nodded.  “Yeah, sounds great.”

“Maybe we can order a side of chicken wings or something,” Gloria said.

“Sounds great,” Ruth replied.

A mischievous smile spread across Gloria’s face. “We could finish it off with a pile of cow poop for dessert.”

Ruth waved a hand in the air. “Sure.  Whatever you want to eat is fine with me.” She was still glued to the screen.

Gloria grinned.  This was fun!  “Then, we can pull the rocket ship from the barn and fly to the moon!”

“This is your place, Gloria.  We can do whatever you want,” Ruth agreed.

Gloria shook her head and headed to the junk pile in the corner of her counter.  The phone book was on top. 

Pizza was a treat for Gloria.  Something she rarely ordered since she lived alone and a whole pizza was too much, but since Ruth was so agreeable, it sounded perfect to her.

She started to ask Ruth what she wanted on the pizza but changed her mind.  Ruth was so engrossed in the computer screen, she was oblivious to her surroundings.  Gloria lifted the face of her watch and studied the second hand.  It was a full 16 seconds before Ruth even blinked.

The pizza place picked up on the first ring.  “Joe’s Pizzeria,” a male voice said.  Gloria was familiar with Joe’s Pizzeria. Joe’s was a strictly “to-go” pizza place. She didn’t order pizza too often, but she knew the owners, Joe and Camilla Guiseppe. 

Gloria had met the two of them years ago when James was still alive.  They would stop by the farm in search of fresh produce for their pizzas.  Green peppers, onions, tomatoes.  They came every week like clockwork.  Until James died and then they stopped coming.

Gloria wasn’t sure if they felt as if they would bother her with the visits or if his death made them uncomfortable and they didn’t know what to say.  Which was odd since they were at the funeral.  Nonetheless, Gloria still liked them and whenever she was in the mood for pizza, it was the first place she called.

“Is this Joe?”

“Yeah, yeah,” the voice replied.  “Who’s this?”

“It’s Gloria. Gloria Rutherford.”

“Oh. Hey Gloria.  How you doin?” Joe’s voice traveled through the phone.  Warm and friendly.  That was Joe.  And Camilla.

“Good.  I was calling to order a pizza,” she replied.  She glanced over at Ruth, still engrossed in the screen.

“So you got some company tonight, huh?” Joe asked.

“Yep.  Ruth. Ruth from the post office is here.  She’s staying with me for a few days.”

“Oh, yeah.  I heard somethin’ big was going on down at the post office,” he answered.  “So are you working the case?”

Gloria grinned.  “Just a little.  Not too much yet.”  It was on Gloria’s to-do list, though.  First thing in the morning.  Right after she cleaned out the bedrooms upstairs. 

“So what kinda pizza would you like?”

Gloria ordered a large pie with mushroom and ham on one side, pepperoni and extra cheese on the other side.  That way, if Ruth didn’t like any of the toppings, she could peel the pepperoni off and eat it plain.

“Oh, and a side of medium wings with celery and blue cheese,” she decided.  Her mouth began to water at the thought of chicken wings.  Another treat she rarely indulged in since she was alone…

Maybe this Ruth thing wasn’t so bad, after all, she thought.

Before he hung up the phone, Joe told her his new part-time delivery driver, Marty, would be delivering at the house.  “He’s a good kid,” Joe assured her.  “He’s had some hard knocks, though.  Actually, he’s my nephew on Camilla’s side.  He got into a bit of trouble there in the Bronx.  You know, the Bronx in New York.”

“Oh my,” Gloria replied. 

“Nah. Nah.  It’s all good.  He’s on the right track now that he’s livin’ with us,” Joe told her.

Joe already had a whole brood of his own.  “So how many kids you have living in the house, Joe?”

“Ha!” He chuckled.  “Too many.  I gotta put ‘em to work here at the pizza place to earn their keep.  Look, I’m gonna get started on your pizza but it was real nice talkin’ to you, Gloria.”

Gloria hung up the phone and smiled.  Joe and Camilla were good people.  The nephew was in good hands with them.  If anyone could straighten the youngster up, it would be Joe and Camilla.

Gloria left Ruth at the table and headed into the living room.  She grabbed the remote and plopped down in her recliner.  Puddles wandered in from the kitchen and prowled across the room to Gloria’s chair.  The cat hesitated for a fraction of a second before leaping into the chair and Gloria’s lap.  He nudged his head on her arm, demanding to be petted that instant.  “Well, look at who we have here? Did you give up on Ruth?”  Gloria scratched underneath his chin.

The cat purred loudly, circled Gloria’s lap a few times and then settled in.  Mally eyed Puddles, who looked quite comfy on Gloria’s lap.  She wasn’t about to have any of that!  She sat down at the end of the recliner and began to whine. 

“Okay, you too.”  Gloria flipped the lever on the side to lift the footrest – Mally’s signal to climb aboard.  The three of them stayed there until the doorbell chimed, just as the evening news ended.  Gloria started to get up, but then paused.  She wondered if Ruth would answer.

When the doorbell chimed a second time, she knew the answer was “no.”  Then she remembered the earplugs.  She nudged Mally from the footrest and set Puddles on the floor.

She could see a young face at the kitchen door, peering in.  Ruth still didn’t budge.  Even when Gloria opened the door, set the pizza on the table and handed the young man a $20 bill.  “You can keep the change,” she told him. 

“Thanks.”  He grinned and revealed a dimpled chin.  “I better get going.  I got a few more pies to drop off.” He didn’t wait for a reply as he bounded down the steps and back to the beat up pick-up truck that he had left running.

Gloria glanced at the computer screen as she passed by the table on her way to the cupboard to grab a couple paper plates.  The inside of the post office was empty.  She looked at the clock.  That’s because it was closed!

She pulled the ear bud from Ruth’s ear.  “Pizza’s here.”

Ruth jumped.  “Oh, yeah.”  She noticed the pizza box on the table.  “Wow, I didn’t even know it was here.”

She pulled the buds from her ear and closed the lid on the computer. She set both in the chair beside her.

Gloria reached into the fridge and grabbed a Diet Coke.  “Want one?”