Free Flight Risk (Antiques in Flight) by Nicole Helm

like he was doing the right things.

Chapter Five
    Callie tapped her foot on the tile floor. A buzz of activity swirled around her. Women wrangling children, teenagers in giggling packs, old couples walking slowly just to walk.
    She hated the mall. Hated the continuous hum of noise and the different places and all the bright lights and colors. It was too stimulating, too overwhelming.
    Adding Em’s enthusiastic prom dress talk, Shelby’s creepy alter ego trying her damnedest to be nice, and a trip to the mall was worse than normal. Callie’s foot tapped harder. She wanted to go home, wanted to go to her shop, where she could lose herself in some rock music and the relaxing comfort of banging on metal for a while.
    “Which one do you think she’ll pick?” It had been Em’s suggestion to give Shelby some alone time in the store after their hour of shopping with her. All so Shelby could make her own decision without “feeling any pressure” and then meet them in the food court for lunch.
    “I could give two shits.”
    Em frowned. “Oh, you have to admit it was kind of fun.” Her smile was immediately back in place. “Besides, she was actually considering that bright blue one you picked out. It looked great on her. Who knew you had a knack for this?”
    “I don’t.”
    “Don’t you think she had fun?”
    “I think that kid is up to something.” Callie drummed her fingers on the sticky table in the same cadence of her foot tapping. This whole trip idea had been weird enough, Shelby spending an entire hour and a half being nice to her? That was downright alien invasion material.
    “You’re being paranoid.”
    “She hates me. She has always hated me, and there is absolutely no reason for her to have stopped hating me unless she is up to something.”
    “Maybe she realized—”
    “Nope.” Callie refused to believe Shelby had changed overnight, refused to believe there wasn’t still some of that age-old hostility in Shelby’s responses before she ironed them out with niceties. “She didn’t realize jack. She’s up to something, and I’m going to figure out what it is before I end up shackled in a basement somewhere.”
    Em shook her head, hair bouncing in time. “You’re being ridiculous.”
    Callie didn’t respond, instead watched as Shelby made her way over to them, hanging bag in hand.
    “Which one did you pick?” Em wiggled in excitement.
    Shelby slid into a seat and didn’t make eye contact with either of them. “The blue one.”
    Those were exactly the kinds of reasons Callie couldn’t get over the feeling an ambush was coming. Shelby didn’t actually want their help, and almost seemed regretful and irritated she’d ultimately picked a dress Callie had suggested. Each time Callie tried to bait Shelby into a nasty response, Shelby would almost take it, but then the angry flash would disappear and be replaced by a creepy politeness.
    “Wonderful. Let’s buy you some lunch.”
    Callie studied Shelby’s face, but Shelby worked up a smile. “Sounds good.”
    They went up to the sandwich place and ordered, retreating to the sticky table, food in hand. Though Em managed to keep the conversation flowing all through shopping, as they sat down to eat their food it seemed as if all topics had been exhausted.
    “So.” Shelby offered into the awkward lack of conversation. “Sounds like Trevor is really helping you guys out at AIF.” Shelby bit into her sandwich, looked at Em and then Callie, and then quickly back down at her food when she saw Callie staring at her.
    “He’s been a lifesaver,” Em agreed. “AIF is a lot of work for three people, especially in the spring and summer. Adding one person, especially a volunteer, has helped us immeasurably.”
    Shelby nodded as she chewed and swallowed, but Callie didn’t miss Shelby’s covert attempt to check the time on her cell phone. “I bet you guys wish he could stay and help past September.”
    The picture began to come together in