5 A Bad Egg Read Free Page A

her
children? To be honest, I have a feeling that he’s the one who’s going to need
protection. I personally wouldn’t mind one bit if she pushed that weasel into
oncoming traffic, but it won’t do her kids any good.”
    Moose was
gone before I could stop him, and I wondered if perhaps he was right. Should I
have kept Ellen at the diner where she had something to do instead of sending
her out on her own? No, I stood by my decision. As far as I was concerned, she
needed the peace and quiet of home, not the frenzied activity of the diner.
    That didn’t
keep me from hoping that Moose caught up with her, though. I’d feel better
about everything if my grandfather played guardian angel to someone else for a
change. It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate his thoughtfulness, but sometimes it
could be a little much.
    Things got
busy just then, and I quickly forgot all about Ellen, Gordon, and Moose while I
ran the place single-handedly until reinforcements showed up later in the day.
It was after one before I thought of Gordon Murphy again, and the only reason
he crossed my mind was because his old crony, Sam Jackson, showed up at the
diner looking for blood.
    “Where is
he?” Sam asked as he stormed into the diner. Jackson was a big, hulking man,
and his normal expression was a scowl, but the look on his face at the moment
took that to a completely different level. I had to do something to calm him
down before out customers started fleeing en masse.
    “First, you
need to lower your voice, and second, you’re going to have to be a lot more specific
than that, Sam,” I said.
    He took a
deep breath, let it out slowly, and then he said, “Sorry. I know it’s not your
fault. I heard Gordon Murphy was here.”
    “He was, a
few hours ago, but he’s long gone. Why are you so eager to see him?”
    “He owes me something,
and I mean to get it back.”
    “I don’t
think you’ll have much problem collecting,” I said. “I understand his fiancée
is rich.”
    “This isn’t
about money. It never was. Do you have any idea where he might be?”
    “I can
honestly say that I don’t have a clue,” I replied.
    “Don’t worry.
I’ll find him, and when I do, he’ll be sorry that he ever came back to town.”
    Sam left, and
I had to smile at the thought of him catching up with Ellen’s ex-husband. It
sounded as though Gordon was going to be on the wrong end of bullying this
time, which would be a nice change of pace. I was still thinking about that
when Mitchell Cobb handed me his check, along with a ten-dollar bill.
    “Is it true?”
he asked me as I made change for him.
    “What’s
that?”
    “Is Gordon
Murphy really back in town?”
    “Do you want
to get even with him, too, Mitchell?” I asked. The man was about Ellen’s age,
and a calmer fellow I’d never met. Mitchell was the original ‘Go Along, Get
Along’ guy.
    “He stole
Ellen from me a long time ago,” Mitchell said in a hurt voice. “I asked her to
the prom, and she said yes, but then Gordon swooped in, and I never had a
chance. She’s going to be really upset when she finds out that he’s back.”
    “You don’t
know the half of it,” I said. “He already came in here threatening to take her
kids away from her, and Ellen doesn’t know what she’s going to do. I’m sorry
that she ditched you for the prom. You must have been upset about it.”
    “It wasn’t
her fault,” he said with the hint of a soft smile. “Gordon had that effect on
people back then. He could charm the pants off a rattlesnake, you know?”
    “I don’t
believe that I’ve ever seen a snake wearing pants,” I said, smiling back.
    “You know
what I mean.”
    “I do.”
    “I don’t like
that he’s here again, not one little bit,” Mitchell said.
    “You’re
clearly not the only one upset about it,” I said. “Not many folks seem to be
pleased that he’s back. Have a nice day.”
    “You, too.
Tell Ellen that I’m pulling for her.”
    “I’m sure
she’ll