Free The Begonia Bribe by Alyse Carlson

apologetic gesture, then rushed off. Cam was confused, but didn’t have time to dwell on it.
    * * *
    C am had to get on with her day. Her first stop was a classroom in the library with all the contestants. Nell Norton was nothing if not a genius. She had requested time with the girls, since most of the week would be taken with physical rehearsals, but they would all need breaks from that. Nell wanted to present them with a project and had asked that the pageant schedule give each of them a two-hour block at some point each afternoon for “research” and presentation development.
    Cam was curious about what she had in mind, so she joined at the back of the room.
    Nell showed a short, warm, fuzzy video narrated by a team of endangered animals and then talked briefly about what kids could do in their homes and gardens to lower their carbon footprint. She gave handouts on composting and how much better it was for the earth if everybody grew some of their own fruits and vegetables.
    “Now, I happen to know that the very best ideas come from kids. You don’t have a lifetime of people saying something isn’t possible, so you are more creative and more hopeful. On Friday night, to open the competition, each of you will have three minutes to give an idea, and the best idea will earn a separate scholarship of one thousand dollars that has nothing to do with winning the overall pageant.
    “Three minutes isn’t much time, so all you need to prepare is a statement on why you think it’s needed, and then a description of what you would do. Because I know a lot of you may not know very much about the topics, I’m handing out a list of words that I think might give you good ideas to search, and there is a website with videos that will tell you what we know now so that you don’t suggest something that’s already being done. I’ve also got several of my friends from the Roanoke Garden Society who have volunteered to answer questions.”
    Cam was surprised to hear that and looked behind her to see Neil Patrick, Holden Hobbes, and Mrs. Pemberly.
    Evangeline was there, too, but Cam thought her interest was mere curiosity, like Cam’s had been about what Nell planned for the green project. Cam edged closer for confirmation.
    “Oh, of course I was curious. But honestly,” Evangeline whispered, “I had to get away from the phone. Did you know I’ve been getting crank calls all day?”
    “You have? I wonder if it’s our vandal.”
    “That could be. It’s just heavy breathing, but I needed a break.”
    “Understandable,” Cam said, and looked back to the room.
    Several girls and all the moms had perked up at the prize offer. The whole pageant was only worth $2,500 to the winner and $1,000 to the first runner-up. The winner didn’t even earn a semester’s tuition at most colleges. Cam doubted this group was shooting for community colleges when they finished high school.
    “I better get back to it,” Cam said. She waved as she left the library.
    On her way out, Jake approached her. He looked exhausted, and Cam wondered if he’d really gotten a break.
    “What’s up?” she asked.
    “Well, I just had a witness from the Arts Commission tell me he saw a woman arguing with Telly yesterday morning—he identified Telly from his television show, so he was sure it was him. I wondered if I could get a list from you of who was around related to the pageant yesterday morning.”
    “The pageant?”
    “It’s just to complete the list. I am getting them from the Arts Commission, library, and Patrick Henry, too. You just have the only other set of people . . .”
    Cam felt better when he put it that way. “The pageant didn’t even check in until three, so it would only be staff. Come on up to my office and I can print you a list.”
    “I can’t now. I have too much to do, but if you could have it ready in an hour, I would appreciate it.”
    * * *
    A fter Jake left, Cam went to her office feeling frazzled. She found the