Apple of My Eye (Tiger's Eye Mystery #7) - Alyssa Day Page 0,39

debts?" I pushed my plate away, not hungry anymore. "Still. Even if all of that is true—and it's just wild speculation at this point, I get that, but even if it's all true, what reason would he have to be chopping off fingers and sending me presents? That makes no sense at all."

"The kind of person who would chop off fingers isn't necessarily the kind of person who makes sense in the way normal people would understand," he pointed out, his eyes darkening. "The things I've seen… Tess. There are evil people in the world. You are too good to ever understand that kind of person."

I glanced out the window and saw Andy. He walked in, scanned the room, and saw us. He paid Lorraine for a big carryout bag and then headed over to our table.

"Tess, Jack."

"Deputy Kelly," Jack said. "Any news?"

Andy shook his head. "No, and it's damn frustrating." He looked around at the people seated nearby, who were all watching us in case there was a hint of gossip, and then he took a chair from an empty table and brought it to ours and sat down.

"No fingerprints on the candy wrappers," he said quietly. "Not even partials. Whoever it was must have been wearing gloves."

I debated telling him my suspicions about Pastor Nash, but Jack, who evidently knew what I was thinking about, shook his head. He was probably right. A fondness for peppermint candy is a very slim clue when you're accusing a beloved town pastor of being a finger-chopping-off stalker.

Jack frowned. "Any luck finding Ann Feeney?"

"Not yet. We're talking to everybody who knew her. Her roommate said she had a date one night that she never returned from. The problem is, nobody seems to know who she was dating."

"I find that hard to believe," I said. "Friends always know who you're dating. Even if they don't entirely approve, they hear about it."

Jack raised an eyebrow, and I realized I'd given away more than I meant to. Anyway, it was true.

Andy was shaking his head, though. "They're not that kind of roommates. Just sharing the rent and didn't interact all that much. The roommate was usually at work or out with her boyfriend, and she said Ann was off doing her own thing too."

I sighed. "I hope you find her soon, and she's okay."

Both of them looked at me.

"I know, I know. She will be missing a finger. But that's a whole lot better than dead."

"We're doing our best, Tess," Andy said. Then he stood. "I need to get going. I dropped off our donation for the festival raffles at the church on my way here. The Ladies' Society was busy working away on the booths and putting baskets together, and they offered me coffee and donuts, so I've already been away from the office too long. I'll see you later."

"Good luck, Andy," I said impulsively. I knew it bothered him a lot when innocent people were harmed or in trouble. Sometimes I thought he was too nice to be in law enforcement.

He nodded and left. Jack started in on his fourth burger, and I grabbed my purse and put money on the table for my lunch.

"Jack, I need to get going. Call me if you find out anything about Brig. Either way, I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"After goat yoga?" The gleam in his eyes said he wasn't going to let it go until he found out the truth, but I just smiled, pretended not to hear him, and headed for the door, wondering if I should take the stealth spy team of Eleanor and Lorraine over to spy on Pastor Nash after we staked out Mr. Oliver.

When I got to my car, I leaned my head on my steering wheel and sat there for a long minute. When had my life turned into amputated body parts, spy missions, and goat yoga?

Would I ever just be normal?

On the other hand, ordinary women didn't get to go to Atlantis for dinner.

I smiled and started the car.

11

I'm happy to report that I had a nice, ordinary afternoon. No mysterious, magical items came in for pawn, no threatening or odd or otherwise suspicious customers darkened my doorstep.

It was great.

Eleanor texted me three times after she left at two, and all of them were about the impending stakeout.

Tess, what should I wear?

Tess, I don't have any black clothes except the dress I wear to funerals, but I can't crouch in bushes wearing my good funeral dress.

Tess, do you