No Shoes, No Shirt, No Spells (Mystic Cafe Series) (24 page)

I hopped out from behind the wheel and made my way to the door. The barbershop pole beckoned me and the
Open
sign blinked in the window. I swallowed the lump in my throat and moved forward. A few men sat around, chatting, but all talk ceased when I walked through the door. You’d think they’d never seen a woman before.

Chapter T
hirty-Four

“
Can I help you? You didn’t come for a cut, did you?” The bald guy with the scissors in his hand didn’t glance up. He looked about as out of place there as I did. He reminded me of a cleaned-up version of a mountain man, except hairless on the top of his head. His dark beard was sprinkled with grey and neatly trimmed. He wore a plaid long sleeve button-down shirt with brown pants.

“
No, I didn’t.” I stayed close to the door. My hand hovered near the knob in case I needed a quick exit.

“
What can I do for you, young lady?” He placed his scissors down and grabbed the little brush, knocking the hair off the guy in the seat who’d just had most of his head shaved.

Talking in front of the other men wasn’t an option. But it felt strange to ask to speak to him in private. The other men would think it out of the ordinary, for sure. Heck, it was out of the ordinary in their world for a woman to set foot in the barbershop.

“
I’m Elly Blair. I took over my grandmother’s café.” I gestured over my shoulder with my thumb, then handed him the little bag of peach pie.

A look of recognition lit up his face when he opened the sack. Thank goodness, because now this awkward situation would be a whole lot easier.

“
I need to speak with you about my grandmother.” I motioned toward the sidewalk.

He nodded. “I’ll be right back, fellas.”

When we stepped outside he asked, “This is about the magic, right?”

“
Yes.” I looked over my shoulder to make sure no one was within earshot. Inside the barbershop, all eyes focused on us. I wasn’t sure what Mr. Hanley would tell them about our conversation, but that was for him to decide; I had enough problems.

“
I heard someone busted out the window on the café and stole your grandmother’s book, well…your book now.”

“
That’s why the organization sent me.”

“
They don’t think I had anything to do with it? ’Cause I’ll tell them a thing or two.” His face and ears grew red. Mr. Hanley had always had a permanent red hue, though, always sweating and appearing as if he’d pop a vein at any moment.

“
No, no.” I waved my hands. “They just wanted to know if you saw anything, or heard anything.”

“
I’m afraid I can’t help you there. But if I hear anything, I’ll let you know. I can’t imagine anyone who’d do such a thing.”

“
Me, either.” I sighed and peered back into the barbershop window. The men remained transfixed. “Yeah okay, thanks anyway. Let me know if you hear anything.”

Mystic Hollow was a small town but obviously, we weren’t immune to lawbreaking. But someone wanted
Mystic Magic
. I guess if they took the book that was one way to get me to stop the magic.

Well, so much for contestant number one. Now on to my next stop and with any luck, it would provide more information than the first. At least I didn’t have to get a haircut.

The hot sun beat down on me as I rushed back to my Mustang. The temperature had spiked already. The asphalt held in the heat, making the area like a giant frying pan. The next location on my list sat between the only dry cleaner in town and a ceramics shop, the kind of place where you get to paint your own hideous creation.

I slipped into the Mustang, shifting as the hot leather burned my skin. The torn piece on the driver’s seat poked my legs as I positioned myself behind the wheel. The air in the vehicle hadn’t spit out cold in ages, but at least the radio still worked.

I parked the car right in front, not a lot of shoppers out at that time of the morning. The Plaid Peacock sign dangled high above the sidewalk—a plaid background and a colorful peacock in shades of lime green, red and blue. A young woman pushing a stroller with one hand and holding onto a toddler crying for ice cream with the other hurried past.
I pushed the old door and stepped inside, relishing the blast of cold air that hit my face. A bell chimed, announcing my entrance. An aroma hit me—a mixture of old building and scented candles—I detected cinnamon, apple and maybe pumpkin. I liked the place instantaneously. It made me feel comfy and hopeful.

“
Welcome to The Plaid Peacock,” a sweet southern voice drifted from behind the counter. The short brown-haired woman shuffled papers, her round face popping up to attention. “Can I help you?”

“
I’m just looking, thanks. I thought I’d check your place out.” I glanced around, pretending interest in a floral arrangement. I wanted to get a sense of how she felt before springing the questions on her.

Homemade folk art signs with lively sayings such as
Home Is Where Your Story Begins
and
It Is What It Is
dotted the walls. Knickknacks lined the many shelves.

“
Aren’t you Elly Blair?” Her rosy cheeks spread to reveal a huge smile.

I furrowed my brow. “Yes, I’m Elly.”

Was there a wanted poster of me already? The magical screw-ups most wanted.

“
I’m Kiki Adams. I heard about you taking over your grandmother’s café.
Let me tell you, lately I’ve had one, okay, ten too many pieces of pie and
ice cream from her place
, not to mention the chocolate. My waist just keeps expanding.”

“
I know how that goes, the pastry is hard to resist.”

Kiki moved right along with her chatter. “I read in one of those celebrity magazines about all those movie stars wearing those fancy girdle underwear things.” She paused for a quick breath, then continued, “I heard even Oprah wears them. Now, I don’t know where all the extra fat is squished to, but I digress.”

I bit my lip to suppress my laughter.

She looked at me with a dead-serious expression. “I ask you, where the heck does it go to? I mean, for heaven’s sake, where does the fat go when wearing that torture device?”

I shrugged, but she didn’t slow down.

She waved her hands in the air. “Anyhoo, I decided to try and find some of that fancy underwear and give it a test run. But of course, there’s none to be found in Mystic Hollow. I couldn’t find even one store that sells it. So I drove all the way to Louisville for a pair and, I swear, I think the darn thing is made from discarded car tires.”

Biting my tongue no longer worked. My snicker escaped, but Kiki didn’t slow down.

“
Of course, I’m a tad bit vain, and I opted to get the extra-small size.”

My eyes widened as I looked at her round waist.

“
Honey, I swear this pair would have been tight on a flea. Why didn’t I get the hippopotamus size that was more fitting to my girth?”

I giggled.

“
If I could have flipped my belly fat around to the back, I’d have a great J. Lo booty thing going on. Well, let me tell you, if there’d been a camera in that dressing room, I’d be on my way to Disney World or somewhere as winner of
America’s Funniest Home Videos
. I pushed and pulled. I rammed and crammed until every bit of extra me was tucked in. I had to have the check-out lady cut the tags off right there in line, ’cause there was no escaping.”

I leaned against the counter, waiting for the outcome of this little yarn. Sure, I was wasting time when I should have been questioning others, but I had a feeling Kiki wasn’t letting me out of the store without finishing her story first.

“
I’m downright stupid, because I failed to think ahead of the time when I actually would have to take the vise off my body to pee. Wouldn’t you know, right after the store I had to go pee? So what did I do? I stopped to eat at Taco Bell and rolled myself off to the ladies’ room. Lord have mercy on my soul, extricating myself from that thing was like stripping off about ten layers of human skin from my body. I believe I actually exposed raw bones in the peeling process. I’m not lying, would I make this up?”

I shook my head.

“
It was a wonder I didn’t go flipping and flopping and flying through the air like a balloon that’s been blown up and suddenly let go of.”

“
That’s quite a dilemma.”

“
I think I should redesign these suckers. I could make a million dollars by making them crotchless, or by making a detachable flap. But let me tell you, if you need any patches to repair your car tires or hot air balloon, I can cut up that sucker and send some your way.”

Listening to her story was exhausting. I needed a glass of water and a place to sit down.

“
Kiki, I’ve never heard a story quite like that.”

She snickered. “Well, I’m full of them. Let me know when you want to hear more.” Her expression turned serious. “I heard about what happened to you regarding the magic, and let me just say it’s terrible. I can only imagine how you must feel.” She paused to catch her breath again. “How are you holding up?”

Word sure spread quickly with the magical folks. It was like being on the cover of some sleazy tabloid.

“
Thank you, Kiki. I’m doing okay. Things are working out okay.” I diverted my eyes, looking around the store.

“
Does your grandmother know?”

“
No, not exactly.” Grandma probably knew, but she always had wanted me to deal with problems myself. She said it made for a strong character.

“
Tell me what you’re looking for, darlin’.”

Kiki
had cool grandmother written all over her. The one everyone always wondered what it would be like to have. The kind of grandmother who’d hop on a motorcycle, then go home and bake a batch of chocolate chip cookies. Her black mini-skirt and tights combination revealed legs like a twenty-year-old’s. The dark blouse she wore matched perfectly.

“
I’m not sure. I suppose I’ll know it when I see it. I really love everything in your store. It’s so charming.” I was stalling; coming right out with the question was my best option, so why was I looking at knickknacks?

“
Thank you. Aren’t you precious?”

I picked up a candle. “These are great.”

“
Those candles are locally made, you know.” She pushed buttons on her calculator.

“
Really?” I picked up another one, taking a long sniff.

"You’re not here for candles though, are you?"

I stared at her for a beat, then shook my head. “No. No, I’m not.”

“
Well, spit it out, dear. What’s the matter?”

“
The National Organization of Magic sent me.”

“
Okay. Is this about Imelda?”

“
Not exactly. The café was broken into. The
Mystic Magic
book is missing. I’m just trying to figure out who did it. Someone who knew about the magic had to take it.”

“
I’m so sorry to hear that. Your grandmother will be devastated.”

I didn’t need to be reminded of that right now. “I’m afraid I can’t be of much help. I came here really early to work on stock. I drove past the café, but I didn’t look over. Sorry to say I was messing with the radio.”

“
Oh well, I was given a list of people to ask. I’m very sorry if I bothered you.”

“
You’re no bother. I just wish I could help. There is one thing,” she said
while
tousling her hair
.
“Henry, the town drunk, has been known to slip into stores with unlocked windows. But I doubt he’d ever do something like break a window or steal. He’d never hurt a fly.”

“
You’re right, I don’t think he’d hurt a fly. I met him already.” But he had mentioned the book. He’d seen Grandma Imelda with it and it had made an obvious impression on him, but enough to steal it? And what would his motive have been?

“
He’s a smart man and very charming, even more so when he’s sober,” Kiki said.

“
What happened to him? How’d he come to live in the hotel?”

“
His wife died several years ago and he’s never been the same. He sold their home and moved into the hotel. He lives off his retirement money. Money for his room and money to drink on, that’s all he needs.”

“
That’s a tragic story.” We stood in silence for a few seconds, then I said, “Thanks again for helping.”

“
Wish I could do more.”

After contemplating Kiki
’s words for a few seconds, I snapped out of my reverie and selected a few candles for myself—cinnamon, lavender vanilla, and blackberry, then handed Kiki the candles.

“
Would you happen to have another one of those iron candleholders over there in the display window?” I asked.

“
Isn’t it lovely? As a
matter of fact, you’re in luck.
I did order a few more. The shipment should be here any day now.”

“
Well, I want one, so I’ll check back. You’ll be seeing more of me, Kiki. These candles smell wonderful.
I’ll take these three.
” I took another whiff
before handing her cash for my purchase
.