Free Jessica Beck - Donut Shop 17 - Old Fashioned Crooks by Jessica Beck Page B

message.
    “Suzanne, we
don’t have a sheriff,” Grace said as my humor fell flat.
    “We both know
that I meant chief of police.   Apparently,
Chief Martin has officially stepped down, or he will tomorrow at eight AM, and
George has already hired someone to take his place.”
    “Is it Jake?”
    “No,” I said.
    A hopeful look
shot through her gaze.   “Stephen?”
    “Again, no.”
    “Who is it,
then?”
    “Some guy named
Alex Tyler,” I replied.   “He’s been
working in Granite Meadows, but come tomorrow morning, he’s going to be our
problem.”
    “What’s he like?”
Grace asked me.
    “Well, to begin
with, he told me that our time as unofficial investigators was about to be over.”
    My best friend
looked surprised by the news.   “He
can’t do that, can he?”
    “Evidently he
can.”
    “Don’t
worry.   George will step up for us,”
Grace said confidently.
    “Grace, the man
was standing right there when Chief Tyler read me the riot act, and so was my
stepfather.   Neither one of them
lifted a finger in our defense.   It
looks as though we’re about to be out of business.”
    “Suzanne, we
can’t just take this lying down.   We
have to fight back.”
    I shook my head
as I answered, “What are we supposed to do?   He’s going to be the one in charge
around here.   He told the mayor
right in front of me that George could fire him, but he couldn’t tell him what
to do, and our old friend agreed with him.”
    “That doesn’t
sound like George, letting this guy just roll over us like that,” Grace said.
    “Whether we like
it or not, I have to grudgingly admit that he’s got a point.”
    “Chief Tyler?”
Grace asked me incredulously.
    “No, of course
not.   I’m talking about George.   He hired this man to run the department,
so he can’t very well dictate terms to him.”
    “So then we’re
just giving up?” Grace asked as she stared hard at me.
    “Not on your
life.   We have two more suspects to
speak with, and until tomorrow morning, we can do whatever we choose to without
asking anyone for permission.”
    “Then what are we
waiting for?” Grace asked as she jumped up.   “Let’s get cracking.”

 
    “What did you
uncover about Amanda and Denny?” I asked as I joined her at my Jeep.
    “Apparently
Amanda works at an auto repair shop in Union Square.”
    “She’s a mechanic?”
I asked her, startled by the thought of it.
    “No, not that
there would be anything wrong with it if she were.”
    “Of course
not.   What does she do there, then?”
    “She’s the office
manager,” Grace said, and then she frowned slightly.   “In all honesty, I don’t know who
actually owns the place.   There are
some shell companies holding the incorporation papers, but I couldn’t figure
out where they ultimately led.”
    “Maybe we’ll ask
her when we see her,” I suggested.
    “We can always try,
but I doubt that she’ll tell us, not after someone went to so much trouble to
hide the fact on paper.”
    “How about
Denny?” I asked.
    “I found out that
he lives in Union Square, too, but I still can’t figure out what he does for a
living.   From what I’ve been able to
gather, he makes his money in the shadows, much like Rick Hastings did.”
    “How have these
men been able to make a living?”
    “From what I’ve
been able to gather, it’s mostly been from extortion, gambling, and other shady
activities,” Grace said.
    “Boy, Emma sure
knows how to pick them, doesn’t she?”
    “Don’t be too
hard on her.   At least she has her
youth as an excuse.   I’ve dated more
than my share of bad men in the past, and what’s more, I’m old enough to know
better.”
    I knew that Grace
had endured a string of bad boyfriends over the years, but I wasn’t about to
find fault with her.   She’d always
followed her heart instead of her head, even though it had led her down more
than her share of dead ends in the past.   “You’ve found a good guy now though,