Read Charmed to death: an Ophelia and Abby mystery for Free Online

buddy. "This meeting isn't about whether Dudley has flies or how much time he spends in Iowa. It's about the impact this facility will have on our community."
    Abby shot to her feet. "You're right. We do need to know the impact." Turning her head, she looked straight at Kyle. "Can you tell us, Mr. Kyle, how you plan to get rid of the twenty million gallons of raw sewage your hogs will produce in a year."
    "We'll inject the manure into the cropland, enriching the soil," Kyle said.
    "What cropland?" Abby asked, arching an eyebrow.
    The smug look returned to Kyle's face. "You've seen the maps, Mrs. McDonald. You know what fields we'll use."
    Abby squared her shoulders and gave Kyle a piercing look. "Yes, I have, Mr. Kyle, but have you? If you have, you know that those fields are considered at high risk for erosion. Any chemical, natural or synthetic, will wash down into the stream every time it rains, polluting not only the stream but the river it drains into."
    "Yeah," hollered one of Harley's boys. "Instead of shit rolling downhill, the shit flows downstream."
    A chorus of "Yeah" and "That's right" erupted throughout the room.
    "Now, now," said the supervisor, waving his hands at the crowd. "Everybody settle down. Mrs. McDonald here has a valid concern. One I'm sure the Department of Natural Resources will take into consideration before they approve PP International's permit to build."
    "It's more than a valid concern," Abby said, turning her eyes from Kyle to the county supervisor. "We intend to prove PP International's facility will pollute the water beyond the DNR's guidelines if they use the fields specified. And without those fields, PP International doesn't have enough cropland set aside to handle the manure from their facility. The DNR will have to reject their permit."
    The room went silent and a shiver of fear tickled up my spine. Abby had issued a challenge, and from the look on Kyle's face, he didn't like it. He was a powerful man, working for a powerful company. Abby was a senior citizen running a greenhouse. And there'd been rumors about what had happened in other towns to people who'd crossed PP International. I didn't want Abby to be one of those "people." Worry squeezed at me while I skimmed the faces of Abby's neighbors. Who would support Abby if trouble came? Or would she face it alone? Was that what Gus meant when he said, "Bad's coming."
    The stranger in the back of the room caught my eye and winked.
    "Excuse me," he called out, stepping forward. "Will the DNR also take into consideration the Clean Air Bill pending before the state legislature?"
    Hmm, maybe Abby had an unknown ally? The pressure in my chest eased.
    "Maybe you'd like to answer that question, Mr. Saunders?" the stranger continued.
    Saunders shifted his weight from side to side, squirming in his seat. "Ahh, the DNR can't consider the bill, because it hasn't passed yet."
    "The bill hasn't passed because it's held up in committee. Right, Mr. Saunders?" asked the stranger.
    "Ahh, well…" His eyes darted toward Kyle, but Kyle ignored him. Saunders cleared his throat and straightened in his chair. Looking out over the crowd, he folded his hands on the table and tried to look earnest. "I can assure everyone we'll examine the bill closely. The health of our citizens is of utmost importance. But we must be careful that the bill isn't so restrictive that our most important resource, the family farm, is put in jeopardy," he said and gave the crowd a sanctimonious smile.
    Nobody cheered at his statement and a look of disappointment crossed Saunders's face. Too bad , I thought sarcastically, that same line worked so well during his campaign . I dismissed Saunders and turned back to the stranger.
    He gave me a slight nod and stepped back into the crowd.
    The meeting soon ended after Abby fired her salvo at Kyle. People again gathered in clusters, talking. Dudley Kyle and group beat a hasty retreat out the door without speaking to anyone. Score one for