Kentucky Murders: A Small Town Murder Mystery (7 page)

“I’ve eaten here five times,” he gently reminded her, smiling and crossing the first two fingers on each hand for good luck so that she would see. “And I wouldn’t kill a fly. Please?”

She looked at him carefully, trying to judge if he was trustworthy and sincere. “You sure are persistent, and it hurts me to see you beg,” she said, turning to deliver a tray of double cheeseburgers and shakes to a booth full of teenagers. She kept glancing back at Zack from across the diner, and he winked back each time. She returned a minute later. “Oh,” she said with a sigh. “Okay, I’ll go out with you.”

“You’ll be glad you agreed, Kate. You’ll enjoy this date more than you think … I promise.”

“Wait a minute. This is just our first date. Let’s take it nice and slow.” She pulled a menu from a metal rack and handed it to a teenage boy seated on a stool farther down the counter. She served him a glass of ice water before returning to Zack.

Kate didn’t seem to be used to fast-paced life like Detroit, where he had grown up. Zack figured he shouldn’t try to push her too fast, but he couldn’t seem to help himself. He’d never begged a girl for a date until meeting Kate, but with her it didn’t matter. He knew that he would do just about anythin
g


“What were you daydreaming about?” she asked. Leaning across the counter in front of him, she said, “I’ve been standing here for half a minute and you didn’t even see me.”

“Sorry,” he said. “Sometimes I drift off into my own world. As a kid in school, it got me into trouble more than once. Next time, just poke me.”

She laughed quietly.

“I was just thinking of our date,” he said, which wasn’t exactly the truth. “I want to take you out of town for a few hours. See something new for a change. How about joining me for a candlelit dinner at a nice restaurant in Cincinnati?”

Her mouth and eyes opened wide. “Cincinnati? That is a forty-five minute drive. You want to go there just to take me out for dinner?”

“We could add a show.”

“You’re going to have to give me a minute.” She shook her head while she thought about it, moving back down the counter to take the teenager’s order.

A few minutes later, back in front of him, she said, “This is a small town, Zack.” She spoke slowly, explaining tactfully. “We don’t usually make forty-five minute drives just for dinner.”

“Kate,” he said in a soft tone that imitated hers. “Where I’m from, it takes more than forty-five minutes to drive to work, and that’s in bumper-to-bumper traffic. So, what do you say to Friday night?” He took a sip of his coffee, almost burning himself on the hot liquid while nervously keeping his eyes on her, waiting for her answer.

Her head tilted slightly to the side as she considered his proposal. “I don’t know why,” she said, “but I can’t seem to say no to you.”

Zack grinned and pumped a triumphant fist in the air. “
Yes
!”

“Is it okay if you pick me up at seven o’clock?” Kate asked.

“Sure, it’s a date!”

---

By Friday morning, Zack had his work route down fairly well. He located orders in the warehouse that the other driver had stacked and tagged, and delivered them to the printer/slotter or to other machines. He quickly learned how fast the machines consumed the stacks of corrugated cardboard, and he judged when to bring in the next load.

He looked forward to his first paycheck that afternoon. His small, personal stash was almost gone. At least his rent was paid until the end of July. He wouldn’t have to pay again until next payday.

That same day he sat eating lunch with Max in the break room. Zack looked over at the smiling, lumbering hulk of a man sitting across from him. It didn’t surprise him that they’d become friends in the short time they’d worked together. They were both outsiders in Michaeltown, and they naturally bonded instantly. Sure, Max had lived there all his life, but he had never fit in. People either ignored Max because he was different and maybe a bit frightening, or they made fun of him.

He looked at Max sitting across from him. “Well, how is work going today?” asked Zack.

After a several second pause, the answer came: “Max doing good.” He spoke, hesitantly and bluntly as usual, without looking at Zack.

“You know, I think I like this place more every day.” Zack bit into his salami sandwich. His great mood was influenced by Kate’s decision to go out with him. “And you know what?” He reached over and slapped Max playfully on the shoulder. “I have my first date with Kate tonight. What do you think of that, old buddy?”

Max looked up from his Hostess cherry pie. “Kate pretty. Nice, too.” This time, he looked at Zack as he spoke, and he gave him a small, timid smile.

“Oh, I see. You do get around after all. Don’t you?” Max’s face turned red. “You watch yourself. Kate’s my territory now.” Zack smiled and held out his hand.

Max slowly grabbed his hand and they shook their agreement. He tilted his head and giggled.

Suddenly, Max’s smile faded, and his gaze dropped back down to his pie.

“What’
s
?” Zack didn’t finish the question, but turned to see who’d just come into the room.

A scruffy group of men had entered. Zack leaned over to Max and whispered softly, “What’s wrong? Who are they?” Max didn’t look up.

“Well, looky here,” came a man’s malicious voice from behind Zack. The rest of the room instantly fell silent, but Zack didn’t turn around. “The dummy has found a playmate. Why don’t you introduce us to your new playmate, Maxie, baby?”

Max kept quiet, with his eyes and head lowered submissively and his shoulders rounded. Zack turned slowly in his chair to face the speaker. He’d seen this guy around the factory, along with his pack of filthy, angry followers, who were now standing behind him at his heels like a pack of dogs. “Can I help you?” asked Zack mildly.

“You sure as hell can.” The others laughed on cue at his mocking tone of voice. “We want to know all about the new boy in town. We’ve seen you around the past week, but now that you and Max have joined up, we’re taking bets on whether or not you’re a retard, too.” The room broke out in laughter.

He waited until the noise quieted before he spoke. “My name is Zack Taylor,” he said simply. He knew when to stay out of a fight, and, after adding up the numbers, this was one of those times.

“Zack? That sure is a
perdy
name. Well, Zack, I’m Tommy Ray.” He pointed at Zack. “Around here, what I say goes. Do you understand me?”

“Whatever you say,” said Zack. He paused, gave a mock salute, and then added, “Sir.” Smiling, he stood up. “Come on, Max. It’s time to go back to work.”

Chapter 14

Promptly at 6:55, Zack arrived at Kate’s house, parked along the curb, and walked up to the old, wooden garden gate. He paused and glanced at the neat rows of flowers and shrubs along the white picket fence, which needed a fresh coat of paint. Zack thought of Mrs. Wilson. She would know exactly what shrubs and flowers these were. To Zack, they were just pretty flowers. If they’d been something easy like daisies or roses, he might have recognized them.

The day had been overcast, not giving the sun a chance to break through and heat things up, so now the evening was little cooler than normal and more comfortable. Zack saw some gray clouds in the west, but he didn’t think that it would rain unless heavier, darker clouds rolled in. That would be all he needed. He didn’t want rain to spoil their first date.

He opened the latch and went through the gate, walked up the flower-lined path, and rang the doorbell. “Just a minute,” came a woman’s pleasant voice from inside. It didn’t sound like Kate’s; maybe it was her mother’s voice. “I’m coming,” she called, as she hurried toward the door.

An attractive woman stepped up to the door. She patted her salt and pepper hair with one hand and pushed open the screen door with the other. “You must be Zack. Come in, please.”

Looking at her mother, Zack pictured Kate in thirty years. Not bad at all. In fact, she looked nice, he thought. He tended to look at women that way. If they were young, he wondered what they would look like when they got older; if older, he’d imagine what they had looked like when they were young. He could see that Kate’s mother at twenty-three had probably closely resembled Kate.

After showing him into the living room, Mrs. Jenkins offered him a soft drink, which Zack accepted politely. Kate wasn’t quite ready, she told him. “I’ll be right back.” She turned to go off toward what was probably the kitchen. Over her shoulder she said, “Kate will be down in a few minutes.”

“Okay,” he said, sitting down on the couch. The room was typical American colonial style with a traditional plaid couch with wooden arms, a wood coffee table, and two older, overstuffed recliners. The furniture, of course, was angled toward the TV, which was in the corner near the fireplace.

When she returned and handed him a glass with ice and Coke, he asked, “Is Mr. Jenkins home?”

“No, I’m sorry. Tonight is his bowling night. He will be sorry he missed you.”

She asked Zack questions about how and why he’d come to Michaeltown, his new job, and his family. She was sorry to hear that his parents had died. She and Zack got along quite naturally, talking easily.

“You don’t mind if I take Kate to Cincinnati for dinner, do you?” asked Zack.

“Oh, she told me all about it. She’s a grown woman, and I respect any decision she makes. You two have a good time.”

Zack turned as Kate stepped through the archway and into the living room. His eyes widened. This was his first look at her in something other than her waitress uniform. She looked even better than he’d imagined.

Looking down at her short black skirt and white ruffled blouse, she asked, “It this okay for where we’re going?”

“I think you look fine,” Zack said. “In fac
t
”

“You look beautiful, dear,” her mother said, smiling, finishing Zack’s sentence for him.

---

A little over an hour later, they entered downtown Cincinnati. Kate had kept quiet for most of the drive into town. Now she looked back and forth along the city streets, and she leaned forward, looking up as they passed skyscrapers. She didn’t want to miss anything.

Zack found a parking spot along the street, and they walked half a block to a traditional Italian restaurant with red-checkered tablecloths and Chianti bottles holding lit candles that dripped multicolored melted wax down their sides. As they followed the hostess to their table at the center of the room, Kate eyed the well-dressed couples sitting at the other tables and strolling arm-in-arm along the sidewalk outside the window. They ordered a red wine that tasted a little bitter to Kate, but what did she know about wine?

“So, Kate, what do you think?”

“Not bad,” she said smiling and scanning the room. She looked over the menu. “I can’t even pronounce the names of most of these foods.”

Zack laughed. “You’re lucky we didn’t go to a French restaurant. Just remember spaghetti or lasagna, and you’ll be okay.”

They ate pasta covered in rich, creamy sauces with spicy meats, onions, and mushrooms. Kate’s taste buds savored the experience. Her second glass of wine tasted better. Maybe the first one had loosened her up a little, or maybe the combination of the wine with the food made the difference. They talked and joked and even tasted each other’s food. Zack shared his life story with her, about living and working in the big city of Detroit, and she talked about her quiet life at home and her job at the diner. She didn’t stop smiling all night long.

“Tonight was like a dream,” she said, as they strolled back toward the car.

“You mean you’ve never been out to dinner at a nice restaurant before?” She felt him reach for and gently take her hand in his.

“In my world, a special dinner means going to the all-you-can-eat Chinese buffet in Compton on a Saturday night.” She turned, bringing their hands up and gazing at them. “This is just like you see in a romantic movie.”

The food, wine, atmosphere, and company had all been like a dream. Kate chalked their first date up as a great success. They decided to skip the movie when they realized how late it had gotten.

---

Zack and Kate were both quiet for most of the trip back to Michaeltown. They took delight in the evening’s events and seemed to feel relaxed in each other’s silence. She lit a cigarette, and then snuffed it out after two puffs.

Finally, Kate turned to him, saying, “Zack, that was the best time I think I’ve ever had on a date. I feel like I’ve just seen the real world for the first time. I felt like a princess back there. Does that sound silly?” She looked over at Zack, and when he shook his head no, she continued. “When you spend your whole life in a small, secluded town where you know everybody, I don’t know, I guess you quit trying hard. It’s like being in jail. You feel like there’s no escape, so why bother. Oh, I guess some people leave, but most women get married, buy a house down the street from their parents, and raise kids. I’m not saying that’s bad, bu
t
I don’t know what I want. It’s hard to explain.”