Page 64 of Rest In Pink

Molly shrugged. “Eat your waffles. You cannot save everybody.”

I cut into a golden waffle and used the sharp end of the triangle to break the deep yellow egg yolk so I could dab all the crispy into the rich. Sugar and savory, hot and crunchy,GOD,I love food.

Molly finished first since she had a head start, so she sipped her coffee and said, “I didn’t find out much. Somebody set a fire at the Shady Rest and Thacker died of smoke inhalation. Definitely arson, and everybody was looking at Jeff Weiss, the guy who owned the place, but he’s off the hook because he sold it last week. No insurance payoff.”

“Somebody bought the Shady Rest?” That somehow seemed more consequential than Thomas Thacker being dead, which was awful of me. “Who bought it?”

Molly shrugged over her waffles. “Nobody knows.”

“That’s not good.” I frowned and stabbed my egg with waffle again. “And that’s what? The third fire?”

“First the factory, then the museum, and now the motor court,” Molly said. “We got ourselves a serial arsonist.”

“There you are,” Belinda Roarke, official town gossip and horrible person, said, planting herself beside the booth.

“So, tell us what you know about the fire?” I said to head her off.

“It’s arson,” she said, almost breathless. “And that Thacker creep died of smoke inhalation, not burns. Everybody thought Jerry Weiss did it for the insurance money, but he says he sold the place last week to some corporation, so it wasn’t him. That’s all I know. Oh, except Jerry says that the rep for the corporation who sealed the deal was a really cute, young Black girl who said she was a lawyer, but he found that hard to believe.”

“Since Jerry thinks all women are dim bulb baby incubators,” I said, “I don’t find it hard to believe that he found it hard to believe. What corporation bought it?”

“I didn’t get that,” Belinda said. “But I am just dying to ask you who that gorgeous tall Black woman is, the one Vince Cooper took home with him to the Big Chef this morning.” She smiled, trying to plant a spike.

Bitch.“I believe that would be Raina Still, a CSI from Cincy,” I said. “She and Vince were in the Rangers together. She’s very accomplished and he thinks the world of her.”

“Go away, now, Belinda,” Molly said, an edge to her voice I’d never heard before.

Belinda blinked.

“You’re a gossip vampire, Belinda,” Molly said, andIblinked. “And your favorite gossip is the kind that hurts somebody. You missed the mark here, Liz doesn’t care. Go sink your teeth into somebody else.”

Actually, I cared a little, but I wasn’t going to let Belinda see that. Okay, it mattered a little, but only when I was tired and vulnerable and not thinking straight—

Belinda drew herself up. “There’s no need to be rude.”

“There’s every need,” Molly said. “If we’re not rude, you’ll stick around poisoning the air. Go away.”

Belinda blinked again, not sure, I think, that Molly had said that. Actually, I wasn’t sure she’d said that. Molly is the nice sister.

I gave her a WTF? look, and she said, “Shoo,” to Belinda.

Belinda turned and left.

“So, we’ve made another enemy,” I said.

“No, she was always the enemy,” Molly said. “Is Vince cheating on you?”

“He can’t cheat, we’re not exclusive. Perfectly free to see other people.”

Molly squinched up her face. “No.”

“Yes,” I said, and then the door opened and with perfect timing Raina came in, followed by Vince, and Belinda nearly twitched herself into orgasmic delight two tables over.

Raina stopped at the table and said, “Can we join you?” but Vince just slid in beside me, nudging me over with his hip.

“Hello, Magnolia,” he said. “Is that good?”

He was looking at my plate with food lust, so I cut him a piece of waffle and fed it to him, and he said, “Yes, that is,” and took my fork as Molly scooted over and Rain slid in next to her.

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