She shrugged. “I taught my eighty-six-year-old great-grandma how to shop on eBay.”

I gave Bruce Wayne a conspiratorial look before turning back to face her. “How do you feel about tutoring me and Bruce Wayne?”

She looked confused. “Sure, but not now, right? I want to run out to Tabitha’s before my lunch break is over.”

I glanced up at the clock on the wall. “Neely Kate, it’s barely eleven-thirty. You yourself said your cousin’s best friend doesn’t get up until noon.”

“I know. But it’s going to take us a bit to get where we’re going.”

“And where’s that?”

“Big Thief Hollow.”

“Big Thief Hollow,” Bruce Wayne said, narrowing his eyes. “Ain’t that where—”

Neely Kate grabbed my arm and started to drag me toward the door. “Good thing you haven’t even taken your coat off yet. We need to get going.” She opened the door and kept tugging. “See you later, Bruce Wayne.”

As she continued to drag me down the sidewalk, I wondered if I would have been better off hanging out with Skeeter.

Chapter Ten

“What’s going on, Neely Kate?” I asked as I climbed in the truck.

“Nothing. I just want to get goin’ is all. On account of it will take a good thirty minutes to get there, and I need to get back before my boss figures out I took an extra-long lunch.”

I put the keys in the ignition and turned over the engine. “Try again. Why did Bruce Wayne act like that when you said the name Big Thief Hollow?”

She shrugged. “There’s a bunch of meth- and pot-heads down there.”

“So why did you drag me away when he started to say something?”

“Because Joe did a big bust of Big Thief Hollow last week. He ain’t wastin’ any time lettin’ people know he’s in charge.”

I shook my head in confusion. “I thought the sheriff was in charge.”

“Not really. Not since the whole department got cleaned out. The sheriff has kind of lost his umph, so he’s been lettin’ Joe call all the shots. At least for the time being.”

“So what’s the big secret?” I asked as I drove out of the square. “Why try to keep that from me?”

“Because Joe’s got guys still watching the place from time to time. I wasn’t sure you’d still go if you knew that.”

I thought about it for a moment, trying to decide if it was a reason for us to stay away. “We’re not doing anything illegal. We’re just asking Dolly Parton’s best friend if she knows anything, right?”

“Yeah.”

I sat up straighter as I headed down Highway 82. “And besides, your aunt filed a missing persons report, and if the sheriff won’t do anything about it, how can anyone in the department fault us for doing the job they refuse to do?”

Neely Kate looked indignant. “Yeah, that’s right.”

I just as quickly lost my bravado. “Now tell me why it’s a bad idea to go there.”

“There’s no reason,” she insisted, turning to me to plead her case. “We’re not buying meth or pot, although I have to wonder how much there’s even left to buy after the sheriff’s department burned their pot fields.”

“I thought Daniel Crocker was the big pot dealer in Fenton County.”

“He was until he got arrested. Then his business took a tumble, so other people filled the gaps.”

“Huh.” I couldn’t help but wonder if the person in charge of Big Thief Hollow was the person Skeeter’s guy was supporting.

Neely Kate studied me with her microscope lens vision. When she studied something that closely, she was practically a mind reader. This time was no exception. “What does huh mean?”

I kept my eyes on the road, trying to play it cool. “It’s just that I’ve learned so much since Momma was killed last May. Who knew this whole criminal underworld mess existed right under my nose?”

“Speaking of the criminal underworld . . .”

I tried to suppress a groan. How was I going to keep my morning with Skeeter from her? I knew she wouldn’t approve, and I didn’t want to lie to her. Instead, the heaven above was looking out for me, and Neely Kate’s phone started to play “Wildflower.”

She released a frustrated grunt and answered, “What’s goin’ on?” Her face puckered in disapproval. “Granny, I told you not to raise a ruckus last night.”

I cast an inquisitive look at her. I’d only met her grandma once—at Neely Kate’s wedding—and she was quite a handful.

“Well, you can’t blame him for wanting you to pay for the damage to the doggone raccoon, Granny. It’s been hanging in that lodge for twenty years.” She paused and rolled her eyes. “No! Do not have Reggie go shoot a raccoon to replace it! Let me talk to him, and I’ll see what I can do.” She paused. “No, I’m not bringing you Big Bill’s hot wings tonight. I don’t have time to sit in the Fenton County General Hospital for hours after you claim the indigestion has given you a heart attack. One of these days you’re really gonna have one, and the ambulance drivers are gonna be sorry that they stop for ice cream at the Burger Shack every time they answer one of your calls.”

Neely Kate sighed as she hung up. “She’s gonna be the death of me.”

“I take it there was trouble at bingo last night.”