You're Busting My Nuptials (Tizzy/Ridge Trilogy Book 2) (32 page)

“What?”

“Whatever naughty little thought you’re having about my
gun
.”

“I can’t imagine what you’re talking about,” she said, wide-eyed and innocent. She turned to leave. “When I’m done at the cemetery, I’ll meet you downtown.”

“Good. I’ll take Gracie with me and maybe by the time you arrive, we’ll be finished with the rides.”

“Don’t let her eat a bunch of junk, okay?”

“I won’t,” Ridge said and grinned.

“I’m serious, Ridge. If she eats a lot of candy then spins and twirls, she may get sick. I’m warning you.”

“Okay. Are Rayann and Synola going with you?”

“Yeah, what a trio we make, Barbie, an angel and a hooker.”

“Colton is your security guy tonight, so stay close to him.”

Gracie came bounding into the room in full princess regalia. “My crown keeps falling,” she said, tugging at the tiara which had slipped and hung on her ear.

Tizzy crooked her finger toward Gracie. “Come with me.”

A few minutes later, Gracie emerged from the bathroom with the crown rubber-banded to a thin ponytail on each side of her head.

“It’s not coming off now.” Gracie shook her head as fast as she could.

“Your momma is a genius. Give her some sugar and let’s go.” Ridge lifted Gracie up to kiss Tizzy, took one for him, and called over his shoulder. “We’ll see you later.”

~~*~~

Given the events from the last couple of days,
Ridge couldn’t help but be paranoid. He parked his car next to the police cruiser at the station, clicked the locks, and took Gracie inside.

Rita sat at the desk, dressed in overalls and a bright blue shirt printed with pumpkins. She glanced up, wiped brownie crumbs from her mouth, and took a quick drink of orange soda. “Well, come in, Superman, and Princess Grace!”

Gracie giggled. “You’re a farmer.”

“Yes, I am,” Rita said. “You want some candy?”

Gracie held out her bucket and Rita dropped in a couple of pieces.

“Save it for later, please,” Ridge said to Gracie, then spoke to Rita. “I’m leaving my car here, if you don’t mind.”

“Not a bit.”

“Thanks.” Ridge took Gracie by the hand, closed the door behind him and walked toward City Park. Along the way, he paid close attention to his surroundings. Even though daylight was just beginning to fade, street lights were already lit. The storm from the night before had moved on, but cool temperatures lingered, leaving the air crisp and clean.

Downtown was alive with adults and kids in costumes. They strolled, played carney games, and gathered candy from local merchants.

By the time they reached the park, he’d counted five black SUVs parked on adjacent streets and called Rita to run the tags through the system.

He spied Bubba and Jinx standing by the ticket booth. Jinx held out his palm and Bubba placed a twenty in it. “Are you kidding me?” Ridge said to Bubba. “You bet money I’d wear the tights?”

“Sorry, man. I thought you would.”

Gracie wrapped her arms around Jinx’s leg. “Can we ride the cars?” she squealed.

He lifted her into the air and spun. “You betcha. But can I talk to your daddy first?”

“No, I want to ride now.”

Before, Ridge could intercede on Jin
x’s behalf, Dan’s wife Amanda and their two kids walked up. “You wanna ride the merry-go-round with us?” Amanda asked Gracie.

“Yeah!”

“We’ll walk with you,” Ridge said, not wanting Gracie out of his sight.

Ridge scanned the grounds and lowered hi
s voice. “You notice anything?”

Jinx stuck his hands in his pockets. “Yeah, clowns.”

Bubba nodded in agreement. “I’ve counted at least a dozen, or maybe I’m counting the same ones over and over. Hell, a lot of them look identical.”

The hair on the back of Ridge’s neck prickled the way it always did when he was on to something. “I don’t like this situation.”

Jinx cast a glance past Ridge. “Those two dudes in the suits look suspicious. They’re either the Blues Brothers or mafia men.”

Ridge fixed his gaze on them and they walked away.

“I thought you were going to put the case on the back burner, but I understand you checked out Dick and Harry’s port-a-potty business,” Jinx said.

“Yeah, I talked with the secretary. She claims the day Tawny’s body was discovered, her bosses hit the trail. They call in to check on how things are going, but she hasn’t seen them in days.”

“Do the math,” Jinx said. “Two guys helped Gwynn take you and there are two of them. Let me guess, they own a black SUV.”

Ridge rocked back on his heels. “Yeah, and get this, Harry dated Tawny, so I think he’s our mystery man.”

“The one who picked her up after work?”

Ridge made a mental note of another clown. “That would be the one.”

Gracie waved to Ridge as she climbed on the carousel. She chose a black beauty, scooted forward in the saddle, and grabbed the pole. The music played and the horses began to move. The first time Gracie came around, she had her hands in the air.

Ridge winced and shouted to her. “Gracie! Hold on!”

She ignored him and flapped her arms like a bird.

Jinx and Bubba followed as Ridge moved closer. “What the hell is she doing? Why isn’t she holding on?” Ridge took a few more steps and yelled again.

Gracie leaned back and spoke over her shoulder.

“Is she talking to me?” Ridge mumbled into thin air.

Jinx shook his head. “It looks like she’s talking to someone behind her, but nobody’s there.”

Ridge closed his eyes and bit his lip. “
Jesus
. I don’t believe this.”

“What?” Bubba asked.

Ridge sent his gaze around the grounds again before he answered Bubba’s question. “She has someone riding with her alright. That’s why she’s sitting so far up in the saddle and not holding on. Boone’s behind her.”

Bubba cupped his ear. “Come again. I thought you said Boone was riding the merry-go-round.”

“That’s what he said,” Jinx answered.

Bubba scratched his head. “You’re kiddin’ me, right?”

The music stopped and Ridge walked to get Gracie. He lifted her off the stallion. “Is your first daddy here?”

Gracie shook her head. “Not anymore. He had to go home.”

A clown tying balloon animals approached and handed one to Gracie.

When Bozo walked away, Bubba looked at Ridge. “Is he the same one from a minute ago, or different?”

Ridge shrugged. “Beats me.”

“This is the perfect environment for something to go down,” Jinx
pointed out.

Ridge darted his eyes back and forth. “You’re right. We need to roundup all the clowns. Any suggestions?”

“Yeah, I got one that’s worth a try,” Jinx offered, and pulled out his notebook and pen. Before he could say anything else, they heard an announcement.

“MAY I HAVE YOUR ATTENTION PLEASE?”

They waited for the broadcast, and Jinx jotted something down and handed the note to Ridge. A hush fell over the crowd. Ridge read the note and nodded.

“Good evening. I’m Walter Engles, and on behalf of the chamber of commerce and beautification committee, I’d like to welcome you to the twenty-sixth Fall Festival. Please bow your heads for a word of prayer.”

The three men lowered their heads, but kept eyes peeled.

“Father God, bless this event and everyone attending. Lord Jesus, we thank you for the rain this past week and the beautiful weather you’ve blessed us with tonight. Almighty God, we ask that you look inside each sinful heart this evening and cleanse it. Remove the evil and anger from those who harbor it. I don’t need to point them out. You know who they are. The jealousy and vanity from those who conceal it. I won’t call names. You know who they are. Those who gossip and have lustful thoughts. You know who we . . . uh . . . they are. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.”

Ridge walked over to Mr. E and handed the note to him. Announce this please,” he said.

Mr. E. nodded.

“I’d like to remind everyone of the bake sale being sponsored by the ladies group, Digging Into Victory and Salvation, better known as the DIVAS, from Jesus the Son of the Living God Spiritual Tabernacle of the Apostle Faith. They have their table set up in front of the bank.”

“One more announcement. At eight o’clock, our local Texas Ranger, Ridge Cooper, will be conducting the Punkin’ Chunkin’ competition at the baseball park. Those wishing to enter need to sign up at the admission gate.”

“Well, that should do it,” Ridge said without much enthusiasm. “If they’re coming for me tonight, they know exactly when and where I’ll be.”

“There are two groups of clowns,” Bubba said. “Some are wearing full make-up and others are wearing rubber masks.”

Ridge nodded. “I say let’s each take a group. Bubba, you watch the rubber masked group. I’ll keep an eye on the made up clowns and Jinx you keep tabs on the Blues Brothers and anyone else who acts suspicious.”

Gracie tugged on Ridge
’s pant leg. “Daddy, I’ll watch the princesses.”

Tizzy wished she could skip the cemetery tour and be downtown with Gracie. Earlier, she noticed the worry lines in Ridge
’s face. He had a right to be concerned. She was. In the last few weeks, she’d been left at the altar, chased by clowns, and witnessed two cars blown up.
Who said life in a small town was dull?

Regardless of where she wanted to be, here she was. Jenkins Cemetery stretched out in front of her, twilight sprinkling through the trees, as the wind kicked at the leaves. A chill crawled up her spine and back down again, more from the past day
’s events than the weather.
So much death,
she thought, and she was involved in all of it.

Tawny. Gwynn. Horace.
Ridge was probably right. She should stick to baking and leave the investigations to someone else.

With a sigh, she buried the thoughts and decided to concentrate on her current assignment. A whip of wind caught her angel wings and they fluttered.

“Lord, you might take flight,” Synola called out from behind her.

Tizzy turned to face her. Synola struggled to walk in four-inch silver heels as they sunk into the soft sand. Rayann wrapped an arm around her waist for support.

“Why did you insist on wearing those spikes?” Tizzy asked, disgust in her voice.

“I can’t wear Zebra spandex without sparkle,” She widened her eyes and nodded toward Rayann. “See how ridiculous tennis shoes look as an accessory to pink chiffon. I swear she’s changing Barbie’s fashion statement into a question.”

“At least I can walk without help,” Rayann said, tightening her hold on Synola.

Tizzy gestured toward a bench. “Okay, you two.
Take it down a notch. Go. Sit.”

Within a few minutes, people started to arrive, some in costumes and others not.

“Oh Lord,” Rayann gasped, blinking her big green eyes at the characters. “Two Dorothy’s’, three cowboys, four clowns . . .”

“And an Elvis in a pear tree,” Synola sang.

Tizzy sat down next to Rayann. “You’ll be okay.”

Synola tried to pry Rayann’s fingers loose. “You’re gonna have to ease up on my arm. You’re cutting off the circulation.”

She cowered behind Synola. “Oh Lord, Lord, Lord,” she squeaked out. “Don’t let those clowns near me. I don’t know which is worse, the two in the rubber masks or the two in full makeup.”

“Get a hold of yourself,” Synola scolded.

“Oh, no. Here comes one,” Rayann gasped.

As the painted happy face moved toward them, Tizzy caught a glimpse of Colton, the security guy, moving quickly to flank their left side. She leaned forward, slid a hand under the hem of her skirt as if rubbing her ankle, unsnapped the holster of her gun, and took a deep breath.

Given the events of the last couple of weeks, she’d decided not to take any chances, even though Ridge warned her to leave the weapon at home.

The clown stopped a few feet away and plastered a big toothy grin across his face. “Hey, Tizzy or should I say, Velvet?” He snorted a laugh. “It’s me, Billy Bob. How’s everything going?”

She snapped the gun back in place and relaxed. Before she could answer, Nana and Om approached. Her grandmother called to her. “Yoo-hoo! Tizzy!” The poodle squirmed free of Nana’s grip. The dog dislodged her doggy Lady Gaga wig and sunglasses, and ran full speed ahead, jumping, growling, and barking at Billy Bob the clown.

In one leaping motion, Billy Bob rose two feet in the air, like a Harrier Jet taking flight, and landed on four inches of bench next to Tizzy. The tips of his oversized shoes rested in her lap.

“GET THE MUTT AWAY FROM ME!” Billy Bob screamed, his voice coming out like a little girls. He teetered back and forth, grabbed the big oak in a bear hug and hung on for dear life.