Stump Speech Murder (28 page)

“What does she say?” Pamela asked Rocky, pulling on his arm in an attempt to get the phone and speak with Angie herself.

“Just a minute,” he whispered to his wife, pushing her hand away.  “Yes, yes,” he spoke into the receiver.  “Just a minute, Ang,” he said into the phone, “let me explain this to your mother.  She’s having a small fit right now.”  He held the receiver down and said, “The national office of Angie’s organization has selected five regional reps to send to Africa for their upcoming campaign.  Angie is one of those five–from all over the country.  Babe, it’s a terrific honor!  She’ll be there for a year . . . .”

“A year!” Pamela shrieked. “A year!  She’s barely been on her own–in an apartment for just a few months–but that’s just across town from us.  How can she possibly get along in a foreign country–let alone another state?”

“She has to start sometime,” he argued, placing a hand calmingly on her shoulder.  “Just a minute.”  He put the receiver back to his mouth.  “Hey, Ang.  Yeah, your Mom is freaking out.  Oh, she worries about you–you know.  Yeah, yeah.  I know, but that’s how mothers are.  You’ll just have to get used to it.”

“She’s not happy about this, is she?” whispered Pamela in his ear.

“Yeah, she appears to be,” he responded back to his wife.  “Sorry, Ang.  She’s chomping at the bit to talk to you.  No, she’ll probably try to talk you out of it.  What?  Me?  Hey, Ang.  I’m for whatever you want to do.  I think it’s a great opportunity!”

“What!” cried Pamela, “Rocky, she’s barely twenty-one!  You surely can’t approve of her gallivanting all over the world all by herself.”

“I don’t get the impression she’ll be by herself,” he added to his wife.  “She’ll be traveling with this group of interns from her foundation, visiting the places in Africa that the foundation supports with its funding.  Gee, Pammie.  It sounds like a wonderful opportunity!”

“Let me talk to her,” she said, grabbing for the phone.  He pulled it away.

“You watch your newscast,” he ordered.  “Hey, Ang,” he said into the phone. “Yeah, I’ll calm her down.  It’ll all be fine.  Don’t worry!  We’re behind you, kiddo!  Okay!  See ya!”  He hung up, glaring at Pamela. 

“I need to speak to Angie,” said Pamela with a scowl.  Rocky glared back.  She tried to grab the phone.

“You’re just acting like a mother,” he warned her.  “Why don’t you calm down a bit, then call her back.  Besides, look!  There’s Hap Brewster!”  Rocky pointed to the TV screen where Hap Brewster appeared in front of a dozen or so microphones.  “Now what?  Don’t tell me he’s going to start in on the poor Grant guy as soon as he gets out of jail?”

“Listen,” Pamela ordered Rocky with a shhh-ing finger to her lips. 

“Fellow Reardonites,” intoned Brewster in the manner she had become accustomed to over the years.  That folksy political style that she found demeaning.  “As you all may know, my primary opponent for this office, James Grant, was recently released from jail–because he had been wrongly accused in his wife’s recent murder.  Wrongly, I add, because of a devious plot created by one of my campaign’s top advisors–Kevin Sturges.  Now, although I did not personally have any knowledge of Mr. Sturges’s machinations in implicating Mr. Grant in his heinous crime, I do feel a personal responsibility that his actions led to Mr. Grant being unfairly detained–his reputation tarnished–if only temporarily.  Now, Mr. Grant is a free man and has announced that he will continue in the campaign against me.  I am glad to hear that this is the case.  Because if he had decided to withdraw, it would have made my decision all the more difficult.  You see, after a serious discussion with my wife Katherine–a very wise woman–I have decided that my political days are over–or at least, should be over.  I have come to recognize Mr. Grant as a person of extreme integrity and capability–and an individual who has surrounded himself with equally fine assistants–unlike myself.  Therefore, I am dropping out of the race.”

Pamela froze–her eyes glued to Brewster’s face.  Her fist reached out and jabbed her husband’s arm.

“I will continue my duties as mayor for the time being,” continued Brewster, “but will work closely with Mr. Grant to assure a seamless transition come November.  Finally, even though it is too late for me to officially remove my name from the ballot, I urge you all to cast your votes for James Grant for mayor–because if elected, I will not serve.”

“Wow!” said Rocky, “I can’t believe the guy just gave up.”

“Me neither,” added Pamela, “I think his wife may have had something to do with it.  She struck me as a very persuasive woman.”

“Sort of like you?” he asked.

“Maybe,” she responded. “Who would have thought that all this would have happened.  Certainly, I never would have considered it back when Joan first dragged me to James’ stump speech at that rally in the park.”

The couple remained quiet.  Eventually, Rocky looked at his wife.

“I suppose you’re going to try to convince Angie to stay here in Reardon and not go to Africa?”

“No, I’m not.”

“What?” he asked.  “I thought you thought she was too young and inexperienced to travel alone.”

“I don’t know, Rocky,” added Pamela, “life is short and we never know what’s around the corner.  Bad things happen right here in Reardon.  We can’t protect her everywhere.  All we can do is just trust that we’ve raised her to be resourceful enough to take care of herself in any circumstance.”

“That’s my girl!” cried Rocky, giving his wife a warm embrace.

“But I don’t have to like it,” she added, tears streaming down her face.  “She is my baby.”

Candide, noticing Pamela sobbing, bounded over to his mistress and began licking her face–his doggie way of expressing concern.  Rocky joined the little dog, embracing his wife warmly.  The little family of three comforted and loved each other–and hugs and face licks abounded.

THE END

Rocky’s Recipes

Stump Speech Stew

1 lb. lean hamburger

1 lb. pk. mixed frozen vegetables

1/4 cup steak sauce

1 cup red cooking wine

4 cups chicken or beef broth

1/4 cup orzo

Sauté hamburger then add remaining ingredients and simmer for at least 30 minutes.

Politician’s Pie
(named so because it’s mostly just a lot of hot air)

4 egg whites

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. vinegar

1 cup sugar

Beat first three ingredients in electric mixer until egg whites are stiff.  Add sugar gradually until glossy.  Form a crust in a greased 10-inch pie pan and bake at 275 degrees for one hour.

When the shell is cool, it may be filled with any of a variety of fillings–pudding, ice cream, berries or other fruits.  Be sure to top with whipped cream.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Stump Speech Murder
is the fourth in the Pamela Barnes acoustic mystery series.  The first,
Sounds of Murder
, represented Patricia Rockwell’s debut novel.

Patricia Rockwell has spent most of her life teaching. Her Bachelors’ and Masters’ degrees are from the University of Nebraska in Speech, and her Ph.D. is from the University of Arizona in Communication. She was on the faculty at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette for thirteen years, retiring in 2007.  Her publications are extensive, with over 20 peer-reviewed articles in scholarly journals, several textbooks, and a research volume published by Edwin Mellen Press. In addition, she served for eight years as editor of the
Louisiana Communication Journal
. Her research focuses primarily on deception, sarcasm, and vocal cues.  Dr. Rockwell is presently living in Aurora, Illinois, with her husband Milt, also a retired educator. The couple has two adult children.