Read Pushed to the Limit (an Emma Cassidy Mystery Book 2) for Free Online Page B

Faye spun
around so hard her hair quivered, and stomped off, leaving Emma to sigh with
relief. Stacey, still engrossed in the crock pot at the other end of the table,
hadn’t heard a word of the exchange.
    “What a cow,” Jackie muttered, lifting out
a large brooch encrusted with pearls and diamante.
    Emma frowned, caught off guard. For such a
meek and browbeaten creature, Jackie’s remark was unexpected. But then, who
knew what Jackie had gone through? Maybe in the past she’d suffered from busybodies
like Faye.
    “Are you looking for anything in
particular?” Emma asked, deciding to ignore Jackie’s comment.
    “I like old-fashioned jewelry, family mementos,
that kind of thing. Didn’t Stacey give you a box of stuff yesterday?”
    “Yes, I put the smaller items in there.”
Emma pointed at the carton that Jackie had been dipping into.
    “Have you sold much of them?” Jackie asked.
    “I think Faye might have bought a few
things.”
    “That old busybody, you mean?”
    “Yes, Faye Seymour,” Emma said, frowning
slightly.
    Stacey finally moved toward them, the crock
pot still in her hands. “That’s my great-aunt’s brooch.” She nodded at the
pearl and diamante brooch Jackie was holding. “It came to me when my
grandmother died, along with a few other things. I never wore any of them. Not
really my style. I don’t know why I hung onto them, but I’ve finally decided to
let them go. Guess I want a clean slate.”
    Jackie combed through the box before waving
the brooch. “I’ll take this, then. Ten dollars, right?” She reached into the
pocket of her jeans to pull out a small wallet.
    “If I’d known you liked the brooch, I
would’ve given it to you,” Stacey said, frowning a little.
    “That’s okay.” Jackie shrugged as she
handed some crumpled dollar bills to Emma. “You’ve already done so much for
me.”
    Stacey’s face softened. “I don’t feel I’ve
done enough.”
    Jackie carefully pinned the brooch to her
shirt. “How do I look? Pretty silly with these jeans and shirt, huh?”
    “No, of course not. You look gorgeous,” Stacey
said. “And I’m going to buy this crock pot.”
    When Stacey’s transaction was completed, she
and Jackie wandered off to inspect the rest of the yard sale. A steady flow of bargain
hunters kept Emma busy for the next couple of hours. At ten her friend Becky
stopped by with a coffee and cream cheese bagel for her, and offered to mind
the stall while she took a break. Emma gratefully accepted and passed the fanny
pack to Becky.
    “Here’s the receipt book,” she said,
patting the book. “I’ve been trying to record every sale, but sometimes it’s
not possible.”
    Becky shooed her away. “Go and relax.”
    Sipping coffee and nibbling on her bagel, Emma
made a tour of the fairgrounds. There were stalls selling patchwork quilts,
organic produce, flowers and plants. Some stalls were like hers, hawking
miscellaneous household items. She was browsing through a second-hand book
stall when a snippet of conversation drifted to her ears.
    “…I’ve told you before, keep your nose out
of my business.”
    The raw menace in the man’s voice made Emma
glance up. A few yards behind the stall, a man in a linen suit and pale blue
ascot was glaring at Faye who had her back to Emma.
    “I’m not one to tittle-tattle,” Faye
snapped back. Although she wasn’t facing Emma, her rotund figure and defiantly
dyed auburn hair were instantly recognizable. “But you brought this on
yourself. If you kept your vows, you wouldn’t be in this pickle.”
    The man raked his fingers through his long
hair. She knew that dark, degenerate face. Kenneth Bischoff, the councilman
who’d leered at her last night. Who apparently had a secret that Faye had
discovered.
    “You interfering old biddy,” Councilman
Bischoff fumed. “You have no right to stalk me and take pictures of me.”
    “I was on public property. I did nothing
wrong.”
    “I’m warning you.” Bischoff jabbed