Page 43 of A Spot of Tea
“Wow. Okay. Maybe you’ve been talking to Cora too much.”
“Maybe. Now say yes before I change my mind.”
Cora squealed. “Yes! Say yes!”
“Well…”
She didn’t want to miss a chance to spend more time with Joey. They could be hunting for Bigfoot for all she cared. Sunsets always came too quickly…
A smile crept onto her face. “If you insist.”
Their first stop on Monday was in Anacortes. It was one of the later robberies where the thief had cleaned out the ATM. He had hardly interacted with the staff, and they stood no chance of recognizing him – he’d hit the branch on Halloween dressed in a full Darth Vader costume, complete with a glowing lightsaber.
Joey still thought it was worth it to talk to them. “You tend to get information out of people that they didn’t even think of before.”
Eliza looked down at her hands. She was getting more used to flying in the plane, but compliments from him still made her stomach flip. Not that she wanted it to stop…
“I think I got lucky last time. It’s not like I’m doing anything useful with this information. Some of it doesn’t even make sense. Like the teller at the last bank who told me she felt the robber was a pirate in his past life.”
A half-smile crossed his face and he looked at her from the corner of his eye. “You haven’t figured out how to put it all together yet, but I have faith.”
She shook her head and turned to hide her smile. Who knew what would happen? Beneath the plane, the world was open, stretches of blue cut with jagged islands rising in spikes and peaks. It was a different view than from the ferry, but once she had gotten past her terrifying visions of falling into the sea, she loved it just as much.
They landed in Anacortes and caught a ride to the bank. Eliza had tried calling ahead to talk to the manager, but she never got through to him and he didn’t reply to her email.
When they met him in person, it became clear his silence had been intentional.
“Listen here,” he said, eyes narrowed as he barreled out of his office. “I haven’t got time for another enthusiast who wants to play cops and robbers. If you’re customers of the bank and have business here, that’s one thing. If you’re here because you think of yourselves as amateur sleuths, get out or I will call the police.”
He stopped inches away from Joey’s face, staring him in the eye.
“Well then.” Joey gently bowed forward, nearly bumping the manager in the forehead. “I guess you don’t want to hear about our exciting timeshare opportunity, either?”
“Get out! Now!” the man bellowed.
Eliza jumped. “Sorry!”
She rushed outside. If only she could crawl out of her skin and swim back to San Juan Island. Then she’d never have to face Joey or his overinflated faith in her again.
She didn’t have any special skills in talking to people or getting them to open up. She’d gotten lucky and that one lady was really talkative and—
Joey broke the silence. “What a jerk.”
“Yeah.” She bit her lip. “Maybe we should go home. I don’t want him to report us to the ATF.”
“Forget him!” Joey waved a hand. “He’s just crabby. They probably have too many people coming to talk to them because of the reward.”
“Right. Which is exactly what we’re doing.”
“We’re not just in it for the reward,” he said. “We’re also trying to restore your honor.”
She snorted. “My honor? Has it been besmirched?”
“It has been besmirched, Lady Dennet.”
Eliza laughed. “If you’re trying to talk like a Jane Austen character, you’re failing.”
He frowned. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to fix that.”
