‘It was a customer searching for something that we didn’t have. I mean, there’s like, nothing in this store that could be called “barf city”,’ Tasha said meekly.
‘Really … ’
‘I swear—’
Carole held up a hand. ‘Forget about that for a moment, Tasha. I need you to think. This is very important. Did the man say anything else? Did he mention his name?’
Tasha’s mind went back to the trash can, but she knew she would be in trouble if her aunt knew that she’d just thrown the message away without giving it to her. And she already knew that she was walking on thin ice with Carole at the moment, by being caught on the phone.
‘No Aunt Carole,’ Tasha said sweetly. ‘I’m sorry, should I have asked? I just thought he was kind of a creep. Hescaredme,’ Tasha said exaggeratedly, hoping that acting terrified would get her off the hook. ‘I mean, this is my first day here. I don’t know what to do in situations like that, you didn’t tell me.’
Carole’s expression changed and softened ever so slightly. ‘I know, you’re right. You wouldn’t have known and you were just going with gut instinct when it comes to dealing with strangers. Just … excuse me for a second, I have to go call Holly. Just keep manning the fort up here, will you?’
Tasha agreed and, as Carole walked away, her niece called after her. ‘Um, Aunt Carole?’
‘Yes Tasha?’
‘Is Holly, like, going to be OK? She’s not in trouble or anything, is she?’
‘I don’t think so sweetheart. At least, I hope not.’
61
Holly’s mouth dropped open when Carole called to tell her what had happened.
‘I tried to chase him down, but it was too late, I lost him. Oh Holly, I’m so sorry that I wasn’t there at the time. If only I had been, this whole thing would have been sorted out by now and—’
‘Carole, it’s not your fault. It’s mine! I should be at work today.’ Damn, she thought, biting her lip. ‘He didn’t leave a name or anything?’
‘No. Tasha practically called the cops on him; she thought he might have been a stalker, poor guy. You know what teenagers can be like.’
‘And he definitely said he was looking for a bracelet. Anything else?’
‘That’s all I got out of Tasha.’
‘So presumably the charm bracelet must belong to his wife, or a girlfriend or whatever … ’
‘I would think so. Tasha would havedefinitelytold me if he’d looked like a cross-dresser,’ Carole laughed.
A giggle escaped Holly’s lips. ‘It’s just so ironic. Here I’ve been working to track down the owner, and now the owner – or her boyfriend or husband or whatever, is looking to track me down.’
‘But how did he know you had the bracelet? Or your name and where you worked?’
Good question, Holly thought. She thought back over the search thus far. She’d started with Lila at the UPS store – who had her details but hadn’t called her back. Next was Tiffany’s, but she definitely hadn’t left her name or any contact information with Samuel, had she? Holly didn’t think so; so the guy couldn’t have traced her back from there. After that, she’d tried to get in touch with Margot Mead via Jessica. Then … Holly remembered where her next port of call had been, and had a brainwave. The gallery. She had left her card with the Italian gallery owner.
‘Did Tasha say what this guy looked like?’
‘All she said was that he was tall, and had dark hair. I wondered if it might have been Nick at first, but then when she mentioned something about the bracelet …’
The gallery owner was tall and dark, but why would he call at the store if he had information to share with her? He had her card and could easily call her cell if he was looking for her.
‘Did he actually say he was looking for a bracelet, or that he had information about one?’ she asked Carole, wondering how reliable Tasha’s memory was.
‘I’m not sure. Hold on, I’ll ask her.’
Holly waited, while Carole went to talk to her niece again. She guessed that she was right; it was probably just the gallery owner after all.
Carole came back on the line. ‘No, Tasha says he was definitelylookingfor a bracelet, because she suggested something about a lost and found. What are you going to do now?’
