Page 58 of Dirty Looks

I grunted and hoisted myself into the truck, and then we were off to Prince Frederick.

I’d never actually been to Prince Frederick. There’d been no reason. It was about the same size as Bloody Mary, and it looked the same in a lot of ways. Old houses, big trees, brick-front buildings down Main Street. It was the county seat, which was saying something since every other surrounding town was much smaller. It was an area where people who hated living in the city moved to. A majority of people commuted into Baltimore or DC for work.

Jack looked down at the clock and said, “We’ll check her house first. Maybe we can catch her before she leaves for work.”

Ten minutes later we pulled up in front of a cute white house with vibrant front flower beds and blue shutters.

“Cute,” I said. “Doesn’t look like anything the Lidles would own.

“I’m guessing that’s the point,” Jack said as he parked in front of the house and we walked to the front porch.

“What is she? Eighteen? Nineteen? Even with whoever is helping her this can’t be easy. She moves to a town where she knows no one, new name, no job skills, and she’s made a go of it.”

“Yeah, something must have scared the hell out of her,” Jack said. “We both saw the family she grew up in. What made her leave the comfort of her mother and father’s home?”

Jack knocked on the screen door, and I jumped slightly as a cat appeared in the window next to the door, eyeing us suspiciously.

“I don’t see a car,” he said, leaving the porch and walking to the side of the house. “No one here. Let’s check the landscaping company. It’s less than a ten-minute drive.”

“You think she planted all these flowers herself?” I asked as we got back into the truck.

“Looks like she learned a skill,” he said.

“I would have killed all of these,” I said. “Why don’t my plants ever live?”

“Because you have other skills,” he said, squeezing my hand.

Miss Mossy’s Landscape Design was off the highway. There were two arched greenhouses connected by an open wooden pergola with mountains of hanging baskets in all sizes and colors.

“Don’t even think about it,” Jack said.

“I love hanging baskets. We could get some for the patio now that the rain has stopped.”

“You’ll kill them like you always do.”

“But I want them to live, so that should count for something.”

“I don’t think it does,” he said. “Come on. Let’s find her and get out of here before you make bad decisions.”

There was an older woman under the pergola who was misting all of the baskets. She wore a green apron and jeans and a white T-shirt. Her red hair had probably once been vibrant, but there were white streaks that shimmered throughout the long tail she wore. Her eyes were shaded with a green visor that matched her apron.

“Good morning,” she said, smiling brightly. “Y’all are getting an early start. Doesn’t look like you’re ready for gardening.”

“No, ma’am,” Jack said, giving her his full-watt smile.

She looked at me and said, “Goodness.”

“Tell me about it,” I said. “Try living with him. I never get a thing done.”

“I believe it,” she said. “But I was married to a cop, so I know one when I see one. Any trouble I need to know about? I’m Sharon Mossy. This is my place.”

“No trouble,” Jack said, showing her his badge. “We’re looking for an employee. Emily Lazarus.”

A hard glare came into Sharon’s eyes, and her hand fisted at her hip. “Oh, no,” she said. “That girl is as good as gold. I’m not going to let you come in and mess up the life she’s made. There’s no way she’s done anything wrong.”

“She’s not in trouble,” Jack said.

“Then you need to scoot,” Sharon said.

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