Jewels in the Juniper - Dale Mayer Page 0,63

books on that topic.” She led her to a different section that was all about Kelowna.

With a smile, Doreen thanked her and took a look. And, sure enough, there was one on the journalist Bridgeman Solomon’s life. She snatched that book and smiled. “I thought bios were written after people died. It’s hardly fair when you’re still hanging on to the last threads of your life,” she said, “but, hey, this might give me insight into why you ended up doing the kind of work you did.”

With that book in hand, she picked up one of the new releases prominently displayed on a big shelf where she first walked in. It was a good author, and she would enjoy it. She took her two items to the front desk, where she was checked out. She leaned closer to the librarian. “I know I’m relatively new here, but I was just wondering who the two ladies were who were here.”

The librarian smiled. “That was Mrs. Applegate and Mrs. Gundon. They come almost every morning.”

“Ah,” Doreen said. “It sounded like they were gossiping more than looking for books.”

“I think they come here just to do that,” she said. “Both of them have husbands who aren’t very interested in reading, so this is their way of getting out for a bit.”

“You should open a coffee shop inside the library,” Doreen said. “You guys would make a killing.”

“We’re run by the city,” she said, laughing, “so we’re constrained by all sorts of government rules and regulations. A coffee shop is already in the mall, so we can’t compete with them.”

Doreen smiled, then laughed. As she headed outside, she grabbed her notepad and jotted down the names, Applegate and Gundon. Interesting. Too little old gray-haired ladies, gossiping in the library. Doreen frowned as she thought about it, wondering about Mack’s cases. She wished she knew more, but, of course, little old ladies tended to die when they hit the end of the road. There was nothing criminal about any of it.

She headed back to her car, dropped her books on the front seat, and drove home. As she pulled up into the driveway, another vehicle pulled up beside her. Frowning, she got out and walked to the truck parked on her driveway.

A stranger jumped out and gave her a smile. “You must be Doreen,” he said, reaching out a hand.

She smiled. “I am, indeed. And who are you?”

“I work in dispatch,” he said. “I got the word you’re looking for decking materials.”

Chapter 22

Tuesday Midmorning …

Doreen’s eyebrows shot up. “Absolutely,” she said. “What have you got?”

“Mack said you’re looking for decking boards and some more two-by-fours. I’ve also got a gallon of Varathane,” he said. “That stuff is freaking expensive, but I don’t have any more use for it. I did a deck for my mom in Vernon, and she insisted I take all the leftover materials away from her place. So now I’ve got all these extras and no use for them.”

Doreen was delighted as she walked to the back of the truck to see quite a few two-by-fours and like six or eight decking boards. “You know what? At this rate,” she marveled, “I almost have enough to do the job.”

“Good,” he said. “Because we all end up with leftover stuff, and it’s a pain to hold on to or seems wrong to take to the dump. So we can’t do anything but pass them on.” He handed her a gallon that wasn’t quite full but had quite a lot in it.

He said, “That’s the stuff you need to treat the surface of these boards, if you want to. Particularly if you’re putting up railings and stuff.”

She smiled in delight, and then he handed her rollers and a paintbrush.

“Paint, you and I do not get along,” he stated with a grin. “I don’t want to keep these. I don’t want them crowding up my garage. If you want to take that, I’ll grab the wood.”

And, good to his word, he stacked up the two-by-fours atop the decking boards. He must have done this for a living at some point because he took all of them out in one big swoop and put them on his shoulder. Doreen led the way to the side of the house and showed him the rest of what they had collected.

“This is looking mighty fine,” he said. He put down his load and walked around to the backyard, where he could see the big area they had excavated the