Two for Flinching

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Book: Two for Flinching by Todd Morgan Read Free Book Online
Authors: Todd Morgan
Tags: dixie mafia, crime and mystery, beason camp
ever do it out here on the deck?”
    I felt my face warm. “Why are you here,
Madison?”
    “I was sitting at home all alone and wanted
to get out of the house.”
    “Why are you here? ”
    She sucked on the cigarette, the corners of
her mouth mischievously twitching. “Didn’t Amber tell you? We’ve
always gone for the same type of man. In high school, we used to
trade boyfriends.”
    “That must have made for some interesting
conversations.”
    “Oh yes,” she informed me, “it was great. It
really cut down on time wasted.”
    “Time wasted?”
    “On which guy was a dud and which one could
make you squeal.”
    I drank some of my beer. A lot of it,
actually. “How did you know where I lived?”
    “Duh. You live next door to my sister. I
thought you were a detective.”
    It was too cold to be outside and I hadn’t
put on a jacket. The moon and stars were hidden behind the clouds.
Blondie chased after something, then tromped up the deck to lick
Madison’s hand.
    “I’ve heard about that couch. What do you
say? I’ll do my best to keep the squealing to a minimum.”
    Those damn Hogan women.
    “No promises, though.”

 
     
     
    Chapter Fifteen
     
     
    Hannah Strange’s beauty shop was tucked in
the corner of a fairly small shopping center. Or centre as the sign
said. A two chair shop, Hannah was working on an elderly woman, the
other beautician sitting in her chair reading a magazine. The blue
haired lady said, “Beason Camp.”
    “Mrs. Washburn.”
    “How’s your daddy?”
    “Busy as a one legged man in a…butt kicking
contest.”
    “How about your momma?”
    I shook my head. Hannah walked around the
chair. “Clete die yet?”
    “Not as far as I know.”
    She circled me, professionally appraising my
head of hair. “He still charging ten dollars a cut?”
    “He was two weeks ago.”
    Hanna nodded sadly. “Price is about right.
Let me finish with Mrs. Washburn and I’ll see what I can do to fix
it.”
    “Actually,” I said, “I need to talk to
Mary.”
    Mary reluctantly put down her magazine and
rose from the chair. She was young, in her mid-twenties, her hair
sprayed in what must have passed for stylish angles.
    Hanna said, “You finally leave that butcher
of a barbershop and won’t let me cut your hair?”
    “Not until you put one of those striped poles
out front,” I said. “I need to talk to her. I don’t need a
haircut.”
    Hannah shrugged. “If you say so.”
    Mary said, “I don’t have an appointment for
another hour. Is it okay if I talk to your boyfriend?”
    Hannah rolled her eyes. “Make sure you use
protection.”
    Mrs. Washburn giggled.
    I winked at them both and Mary and I went
outside. It was another cold, grey, day and I pulled the leather
jacket tighter. Starbucks had reached our small corner of
civilization, though, our town of forty thousand was underserved
with only two locations. We pushed into one and after a little time
explaining what I wanted, I got a black coffee. Mary ordered a
cocoa mocha soy latte or something. I paid and we took a high two
topper.
    “You don’t look surprised to see me.”
    “Steven told me you might be around.”
    “He tell you I was looking for Amber?”
    “Yeah.”
    I waited. She sipped from her laden
concoction. “You have any idea where I should look?”
    “No.”
    “When was the last time you talked to
her?”
    “Last Wednesday.”
    “She ever mention her and Steven having
problems?”
    “No.”
    “Anything about taking a trip?”
    “No.”
    I was missing something. “How long have you
been friends?”
    “A year? Year and a half?”
    “Where did you meet?”
    “The restaurant. I was waiting tables while I
was working on my beautician’s degree.”
    “Got to be pretty good friends?”
    “I guess.”
    “How often did you get together?”
    “Uh.” She thought about it. “We didn’t have a
regular thing. We’d just, you know, call each other once in a
while. Hang out at the restaurant.”
    “You talked to

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