“I guess you can wait in the car.” Cordelia held out the keys. “But one of these days we’re going to discuss why I’m the one getting stuck doing all the investigating.”
Belinda Sue snatched the keys before she could blink, and the two of them hustled back down the walkway and ran to the car. Shaking her head, Cordelia pushed open the doors to the library and stepped inside.
The familiar scent of books was the first thing that hit her. There was nothing quite like the hardback, paper, glue combo to set her soul at ease. She could hardly believe she hadn’t made the time to visit here yet. She had an abundance of romance paperbacks in her apartment, thanks to Great-Aunt Penelope, but it wasn’t the same as having every genre at your fingertips at once.
She spotted a woman behind the counter, near her age with thick, curly hair, warm brown skin, and a wide smile that crinkled the corners of her eyes.
Cordelia browsed the aisles and soaked in the comforting familiarity of being in a library. If she was back in Dallas, she might’ve been doing this exact thing in a different location. The routine of it soothed her, but that’s all it was. Routine. A nagging little voice at the back of her mind kept reminding her that this wasn’t her home. She didn’t belong here. It unsettled her to realize the only place that really felt like home was the Chickadee.
What did that say about her?
It wasn’t until she’d wandered into the marine biology section that an idea occurred to her. Libraries were the main hubs of both gossip and information in town. Grabbing every book on coral she could find, she brought them up to the desk and greeted a woman with dark curls shaping a round, friendly face. “Hi. I’m sort of new in town, my name is—”
“Cordelia West.” The woman offered her a hand. “You took over the Chickadee when Miss Penelope passed, God rest her soul.”
“That’s right.” Years of living in Dallas had made Cordelia accustomed to anonymity, so it still took a minute when strangers not only knew her name, but her business.
“I’m Martina Ruiz, pleased to meet you.”
“Pleased to meet you too.” Cordelia set her hand on top of the stack of books. “Do you know anyone in town with a saltwater tank? Specifically, who would know what kind of soft corals would be best to keep in them?”
If Martina was surprised by the question, she didn’t let it show. Though Cordelia knew from experience it couldn’t have been the strangest thing she’d been asked this week. “I can’t say I know anyone around here who might. The local pet store doesn’t carry anything that exotic.”
“It was worth a try.” Cordelia glanced up at the ceiling. It had been a while since she’d conversed with like-minded individuals, and she missed talking books. “I actually work at a library in Dallas.”
“You don’t say?” Martina’s wide smile brightened.
Cordelia nodded. “I’m on vacation, but I love it. Or I did, until all those lunatics raised a stink trying to ban books. I can’t say I love them.”
Martina’s expression darkened. “I know a thing or two about that.”
“I figured you would. A small town in Texas can be a toughplace to defend the free flow of information.” Cordelia paused, weighing her next words carefully. “Has any of that calmed down for you since the passing of Pastor Reed-Smythe?”
“Unfortunately not.” Martina’s lips pinched tight as a fiddle string. “The pastor had started the fire and fanned the flames too high. A right hypocrite, seeing as how everyone knew how much time he spent down at the Chickadee. No offense.”
Cordelia held out her hands. “None taken.”
“It was fine for him to use the tithing that paid his salary to step out on his wife, but heaven forbid a child reads a book about two boys kissing. I thought it might let up, but there are plenty of deacons around here who believe the same, or worse.”
“I’m sorry to hear that.” Cordelia rested a hand over Martina’s, feeling a kinship she didn’t experience with many people outside her momma and the chicks. “Stay strong. You’re doing a good thing, protecting books for the next generation.”
Martina gave her a look sad enough to bring a tear to a glass eye. “It’s worth it, even if some days it doesn’t feel like it. Though I’m not the only one in town who has to put up with the deacons. Vinner Mendez over at the Orb has his fair share of issues too.”
“I’ll bet he does.” And the Orb would be the next place they’d be visiting. The more information they could collect, the better.
Cordelia returned her stack to the shelves and left the library. She’d be back though, if only to talk to someone who understood the parts of her that liked the quiet stability of books. She might not have found out anything about where one would acquire palytoxin, but if the pastor and his deacons were hassling people over morality issues, they might have a few more suspects to add to their woefully short list.
Next stop, the Orb.
Chapter Eleven
“OOH,I KNOW THE DEACONS MISS MARTINA IS TALKING ABOUT.”DAISYfluffed her wet curls, slapping them over each other in a makeshift braid, making her look more like a drowned hen with ruffled feathers. “I bet it’s Mack and Dean giving her grief. I’ll talk to them.”
“And say what?” Cordelia asked. “That you’ll quit providing them services if they don’t leave the library alone?”
“As a matter of fact, that’s exactly what I plan on saying.” Daisy gave up on her hair and tied a cloth bandana around the whole thing. “I’m a patron of the arts.”
“Daisy chipped in on the children’s wing of the library when Miss Penelope donated to have that section built.” Belinda Sue’s chest puffed with pride. “And she’s provided over five thousand books to date to the children of this county. She’s a big advocate of literacy.”
