Corpse Suzette

Reids in the world
to go around.
    But was all that hurt and
anger a danger to society? More specifically, was it a threat to the missing
owner of Emerge—an establishment that symbolized the intolerance that caused
Abigail and others so much pain?
    Savannah slipped into
detective mode and made a quick mental note of Abigail’s whereabouts since she
had arrived. She realized there were numerous holes in Abby’s schedule that
were large enough to allow for mischief.
    But if Abigail had actually
done something to cause Dr. Du Bois to disappear, that would involve far more
than mere mischief. And looking at the woman who was sitting at her table,
eating her biscuits and peach preserves, Savannah found it hard to believe that
Tammy’s cousin was capable of kidnapping. Or worse.
    She decided to talk it over
in detail with Dirk later, when they met at Emerge as planned.
    After a few more unpleasant
exchanges with Abigail, Tammy left the table and walked behind Savannah to the
refrigerator. Pouring herself a glass of apple juice, she shot Savannah a
haunted look. Savannah shrugged. There was only so much she could do. Abigail
might be staying in her house, but she was Tammy’s guest.
    Lucky Tammy.
    “Why don’t you take Abigail
over to the pier today?” she suggested. “Check out the carousel and get your
palms read. Have one of those giant ice cream waffle cones.”
    “Is that what you think I
do all day? Eat?” Abigail snapped while chewing on a biscuit. “Is that why
you’re suggesting stuff like that and feeding me every minute?”
    Savannah slipped the eggs
onto a plate and shoved them in front of Abigail, along with a bowlful of grits
and a platter of bacon and sausages. “I don’t know how much you eat, Abigail,”
she said, “and I don’t give a hoot what you eat. I have a lot more interesting
things to think about on any given day than your dietary habits. I just know
what this kid”—she nodded toward Tammy—“has for breakfast, and I wanted
to spare you eating a bowl of sawdust covered with soy milk. Don’t get your
dander up, sugar. I’d do it for anybody.”
    Abigail’s mouth dropped
open for a moment, then she snapped it closed and smiled.
    She actually smiled , Savannah thought in
wonderment. I got a grin out of her!
    “Well,” Abigail said, “as
long as you’d do it for anybody.”
    “Yeap. Anybody. You ain’t
nearly as special as you think you are, Miss Abigail,” she said with a sweet,
soft tone that sounded in her own ears a lot like Granny Reid. “Leastwise, not
special in that way.”
    Tammy gave a little gasp,
and for a moment, a heavy, awkward silence hung in the air between them.
    Then Abigail threw back her
head and laughed. It was a hearty, throat-roaring laugh that echoed throughout
the house, startling both Savannah and Tammy and the cats, who left their
feeding bowls and raced for the living room.
    When Abigail finally caught
her breath, she studied Savannah for a few long moments and then said, “You’re
a pisser, Savannah. I think I like you.”
    Savannah dumped another
biscuit onto her plate. “Yeah, yeah... well, you don’t know me yet. Wait’ll I
make you my usual, run-of-the-mill Southern fried chicken dinner with all the
fixins. That’ll probably be more of an insult than your system can handle.”
    Abigail’s eyes softened,
and for a moment, Savannah noticed that she really could look pretty. Quite
pretty, in fact. “You go ahead and make that dinner for me, and I won’t take
offense,” Abigail said. “Throw in some old-fashioned cream gravy, and I’ll even
be nice and say ‘Thank you.’”
    “Well now, we don’t have to
go that far. You go straining yourself like that, you might bust somethin’.”
     
    Savannah had driven past
the building site for the new Emerge facilities many times, as it was situated
on a major road that skirted the foothills at the edge of town. Like too many
areas in San Carmelita—in Savannah’s opinion—that section of the city had been
“improved” by chopping down the orange and avocado groves and planting
commercial buildings and condominiums in their stead.
    Savannah missed the
strawberry fields and lemon trees. While a giant office supply store and a
sprawling home improvement center might be handy when you needed an ink
cartridge for your printer or wallpaper and paint, they didn’t smell half as
sweet when warmed by the morning sun.
    But she had to admit that
the new Emerge building was a beauty. Set