Read When Bobbie Sang the Blues for Free Online Page B

through the kitchen door.
    Bobbie grabbed a nitroglycerin pill while Jack continued picking them up off the floor and putting them back in the medicine bottle. Christy glanced back at Eddie and Roseann and saw Dan had Eddie by the arm.
    “You can leave quietly, or I can take you down right now,” Dan said, his face set in a firm line. No one who heard him could doubt he meant it, even though he spoke in a low, controlled voice. He towered over Eddie, who visibly backed down.
    “We’re going.” Eddie said. He jerked his arm free from Dan’s grip.
    “I’ll just come along with you,” Dan said. “I want to see the taillights of your vehicle so we know you’re gone.”
    Eddie’s face flushed with anger, but Roseann tugged his hand. “Eddie, please. You’re embarrassing me.”
    At her high-pitched plea, Eddie looked at her, took a deep breath, and nodded. In his tight jeans, he looked slightly bowlegged as he walked up the aisle. Dan, good as his word, followed them through the front door.
    Christy knelt beside Bobbie. “Are you okay?”
    Pale and trembling, Bobbie nodded and took another sip of water.
    Jack was busy replacing pills in the bottle, then handed it to her. “Now that you have your medicine, I’m going after that bozo.”
    Bobbie grabbed his arm. “No, Jack. Let him go. He’s caused enough trouble.”
    “Well, I’m going to be sure he doesn’t cause any more.” He patted her hand, then turned and hurried toward the door.

    Tony Panada sat at a table in a darkened corner, quietly enjoying the scene. His eyes lingered on the small blonde whose songs seemed to mesmerize the crowd. Bobbie Bodine had become a woman of interest. She’d stolen the idiot’s money and run off, and now the hot-tempered Eddie had caught up with her.
    Oh well. She should have known better than to get involved with that character.
    Tony ignored the talk around him, tilting his head back tostudy the ceiling as he tried to remember something. Had there been a vacuum cleaner in that unit?

    Christy watched Bobbie strain to hold back the tears and regain control. “Come on,” she said. “Let’s go home.”
    Bobbie shook her head. “I’m going to the rest room to freshen up. I promised to sing again after the break. I’ll forget about him once I start singing.” She grabbed her handbag and rushed to the ladies’ room.
    The people at the adjoining tables began talking again, relaxing as the band struck up a happy tune. Christy stared after her aunt, torn between following Bobbie or going outside to be sure there was no trouble. She reached in her purse and removed her cell phone, holding it by her side as she walked quickly toward the door. She would call Deputy Arnold if Eddie hadn’t left.
    When she stepped outside, Dan stood at the bottom of the steps. Jack ran alongside Eddie’s white truck, yelling, “You stay away from her or I’ll kill you!”
    Christy gasped. She had never seen Jack in such a rage. His face was blood red, and his hands were balled in fists. “Jack! Come back!” she hollered.
    Two couples crossing the parking lot heard Jack’s threat and stopped to stare at him as the white truck roared into the street and headed west.
    “Come on, Jack.” Dan walked over to clamp a hand on the older mans shoulder. “They’re gone for good. I let him know he’d be very sorry if he ever came near Bobbie again. Or Christy,” he added, looking across at her.
    As her eyes locked with his, she felt the tension of the evening begin to dissolve. “Thanks for helping out,” she said to him.
    “No problem.”
    She looked at Jack, who had begun to calm down.
    “Bobbie told me he used to get rough with her,” he explained. “She’s afraid of him, but I told her not to worry. I’d see to it that little punk got run out of town.”
    A soft, bluesy song broke the tension, and Bobbie’s voice filled the night. Jack listened for a moment, then shook his head. “Christy, your aunt’s the most amazing woman