Page 26 of A Spot of Tea
She pointed to a red star she’d made on the map. “This was the first time he cleaned out the ATMs, too. That was when he started making more money. A comment from one of the news stories piqued my interest.”
“A news story from back when he did it?”
“Yeah. One of the employees they interviewed said the guy had to be a bank employee. He knew too much of the lingo and seemed to know his way around.”
Joey shifted in his seat. Now that was interesting. “Why did they decide this robbery was done by the same guy?”
“The pattern, I guess. Hitting all these branches, getting in and out quickly. Working alone.”
“Interesting. Is that where we’ll start, then? In Portland?”
“I wish we could get an employee list,” she said with a groan. “That would make it so much easier.”
“I’ll just ring up Stacy, our favorite ATF agent, and ask her for a list.”
“Better you than me,” Eliza said, then paused. “You know, sometimes websites have a directory. You can look at all the employees, maybe even use a function to see previous lists…”
“You’re thinking this guy got fired?”
“Fired or laid off, maybe? How bold would you have to be to keep working at the bank you’re robbing?”
“He could be one of those shy, introverted bank robbers.”
“Yeah, sure.” She took a bite of a cookie, chewing slowly. “These are supposed to be softer.”
“They’re perfect,” he said, picking up his third. “And yes, there are shy bank robbers. There was that guy who only handed notes and never spoke during robberies. When he got caught, he said he was funding a charity.”
“You believed him?”
Joey frowned. “Don’t you?”
She sighed. “I don’t trust anyone anymore.”
“Not even me?” He regretted saying it as soon as it was out of his mouth.
She grinned. “No, I trust you, Joey. Enough to put my life in your hands when we take to the skies.”
The last bite of cookie got caught in his throat. Maybe they were a touch dry. Too much powdered sugar on top.
Or maybe it was time he told her more about his past and what had brought him here.
“Should I not trust you?” she asked.
If she hadn’t figured it out by now, what was the point in ruining their fun?
“Ha. No, you should.” He forced a smile. “I’m honored.”
Eleven
Their plan was to leave at sunrise. Eliza didn’t mind the early hour. Her best bakes were usually done at dawn, and she found the solitude comforting.
Today, however, felt different. The quiet left her thoughts in a jumble, looping around robberies, facts about the robber, interviews she’d read, and of course, what she’d said to Joey.
She had the urge to wake Granny just to fill the silence.
That wouldn’t help, though. Granny would have questions, and Eliza didn’t want to lie, so instead, she washed her face, dabbed on a touch of makeup, and slipped downstairs.
In the kitchen, she debated if her churning stomach could handle breakfast. On the one hand, eating might cause an embarrassing bout of motion sickness on the plane. On the other hand, she’d already fainted at one bank. She wasn’t about to do it again.
