“Is there a horse parked outside somewhere?” Eloise said, her cheeks pink and her eyes glassy. Clearly the margaritas were hitting her.
“There is so much that could go wrong with this. But I’m dying to know who it is,” I said. “Maybe it’s my brother.”
Laughter bellowed around the table as Henley held her half-empty glass up. “Cheers to book besties who will stop at nothing to uncover the truth.”
“Yes!” Lulu said as we all clinked our glasses together. “Our new name is the Book Club Outlaws. I’m so here for this.”
We quickly finished our drinks, closed the tab, and stepped outside.
“I don’t have a lot of experience with petty crimes, but don’t we need some kind of disguise?” Eloise asked. “What if there are cameras?”
“I don’t think we have cameras, but my mother is a paranoid woman, so who knows?” Emilia smirked.
“I’ve got it!” Lulu shrieked, her words slurring slightly. We all clearly had a healthy buzz going from the tequila now. “We stop by the drug store, grab a couple pairs of pantyhose, and we pull the pantyhose over our faces before we go inside. We’ll be unrecognizable on camera. And if worst comes to worst and we end up behind bars, Henley can just forget to read us our rights and the whole case will be thrown out for her screwup.”
“I’m one of the criminals, so why would I be reading the rights?” Henley roared with laughter. “Plus, I’m a lawyer, not a police officer.”
“To-mate-oh, po-tat-oh.” Lulu chuckled.
“That makes no sense.” Henley shook her head with a wide grin on her face. “We’re really doing this.”
“I won’t do good in the slammer, guys,” Eloise said, her words slurring even more now, the alcohol clearly working through her system. “I don’t even do that well traveling. I like my routine. My notebooks. Clark. I don’t sleep well without him now.”
“I would totally rock prison life,” Lulu said with a smirk. “I’d tailor the jumpsuit and make it more flattering, add in a headband, and use my DoorDash app for meal delivery.”
“I think I’d actually be fine,” I said. “I’ve slept in barns so many times, and if I can handle sleeping on hay, I’m sure I could survive on a cot.” I put an arm around Emilia as we walked toward theRosewood River Review.
“Well, we better not get locked up because the pickleball finals are coming up soon,” Henley said as we stepped inside the little drug store on the corner. “Easton will lose his shit if we aren’t all there.”
“Keep your heads down so we don’t draw attention,” Lulu said as she grabbed the pantyhose and a bottle of tequila and made her way to the self-checkout.
Once we were back outside, she handed us each a pair of pantyhose to tuck in our pockets until we got there.
“What’s the tequila for?” I asked.
She said, “I sense the wheels are coming off the cart for Eloise, Emilia is getting awfully quiet, and Henley is seconds from having a meltdown about breaking the law. It’s you and me keeping the group together at this point. And do you think Thelma and Louise were sober during their escapades?”
“They’re fictional characters,” Henley said, laughing. “And didn’t they die in the end?”
“They didn’t die,” I insisted. “They drove off the cliff, and no one ever caught them.”
More laughter as we turned the final corner to where the large sign on top of the building read:The Rosewood River Review.
“It’s game time, ladies,” Emilia whispered as we approached the door.
Lulu added, “Everyone take a swig before we pull these pantyhose over our faces and go solve the biggest mystery in Rosewood River. Book Club Outlaws for the win. We’re like the Robin Hood of criminals. We’re doing a good deed.”
“I don’t think any judge will care what our motives were.” Eloise shook her head.
Lulu handed her the bottle first, and she took a long sip before passing it around the group. I winced at how strong it was, and we all made gagging noises.
We then shared a look and pulled the disguises from our pockets and tugged them over our heads.
“Can you tell it’s me?” Emilia asked, her face just inches from mine, which made me laugh.
“I cannot tell it’s you.”
She quickly typed in the code and then shook her head. “Of course it’s still my brother’s birth year. Do these people know that they have two children?”
