Chilled in Chattanooga

The last introduction was Amanda Holbrook. Amanda had short, blonde hair and was a little heavy-handed on the makeup. Kind of reminded me of Tammy Faye. Even with the hefty amount of makeup she was an attractive lady.

“I’m here because my low-down, no good, cheatin’ husband left me high and dry. You wouldn’t think your best friend would stab you in the back, but she did. I’ve been writing for pleasure several years and now it’s time to get serious if I want to find a good job. That’s all I’ve got to say.”

Humm, seems Amanda and I had a lot in common. I thought I’d seek her out when I had a chance and offer her a shoulder to cry on. I remembered how devastated I was when Wade left me and how comforting a kind word could be. Anyway, I figured after I told her what Wade did, she’d know she wasn’t the only one who had a low-down, no good, cheatin’ ex-husband.

A

“I’m going to read your papers and then give suggestions,” she told us. “After I’ve given my opinions, feel free to offer ideas to your fellow writers.” She had quite a few thoughts on each article letting us know we all had room for improvement. Her lecturing wasn’t too bad until she reached George’s paper.

She looked over her half-glasses and began her spiel, “Now, here is how not to write an article.” She held up George’s effort and read it out loud. My face grew hot and I resisted the urge to crawl under the table and it wasn’t even my paper. I couldn’t begin to imagine how George felt. One look at him and I knew he was beyond embarrassed. He’d moved right into furious. His eyes narrowed and I thought I saw smoke coming from his ears.

When I thought it couldn’t get worse – it did. A

CHAPTER FOUR

A fly would’ve had a grand ole’ time with the five mouths that stood agape. I assumed A

A

I retired to my room and ached to snooze for a while, but with Harv holding me to a deadline I decided to work on my article. I reviewed the pictures given to me by people I’d interviewed concerning the murder of Mr. Bobby Lee Ghoston. This was not an old murder – well not in the sense of historic. I don’t know what it is with Harv, but since I’d been working for Georgia by the Way, and unwittingly became involved in three previous murders, he had become fascinated with murder and mayhem. More often than not, murder was my assignment.

I didn’t mind so much, I sort of fancied myself an amateur detective now. Bobby Lee Ghoston was a well-known bootlegger and was rumored to be a member of the Dixie mafia. I decided to run my ideas by A

I passed Tippi “with- an- i” in the hallway outside A

Her features didn’t soften like I’d expected. “I know who you are. You’re that lady who helped solve crimes in Marietta and Tybee Island. You think you’re something and I bet you’re dying to be the teacher’s pet.”

Oh my goodness. Did she just say teacher’s pet? “Uh, no. Not really.”

“I should offer you the professional courtesy to know I wouldn’t mind working for Georgia by the Way myself. I’ve already sent in several manuscripts for consideration and I expect to hear back from Harv any time.” She stopped just long enough to get her breath.

“You might have robbed me from wi

She stared straight into my eyes. It was hard not to be intimidated, but I’d grown in confidence over the past few years thanks to my faith in God and a bit of trial by fire. I stared back. I expected her to back off but she didn’t. I realized how ridiculous we must look and gave in.

“I’m sorry you feel that way Tippi. I’d like to be your friend, but it takes two to tango and I guess you don’t want to dance. If you’ll excuse me I need to meet with A

Tippi raised her chin a little higher and left me to wonder what hit me.

A

“Come in, come in. How might I help you tonight?” She sipped from a cup of hot tea. “Oh, excuse my bad ma

A

“My mother gave that set to me and her mother gave it to her. It’s been in the family for years.” She sat up a little straighter in her chair and gave me her full attention. “Now, let’s talk about you.”

“I’m working on an article for Georgia by the Way, and I wanted your opinion on combining it with the article I need to write for you. It’s about an unsolved murder that happened on Lookout Mountain. I have some pictures and I’d like you to look at them.”

“Yes, it’ll be fine to combine the two. I sure hope the remainder of our time improves the writing of my students.” A

A knock at the door interrupted A

“Ms. Henderson?” The door slowly opened. “I’m Lado

She looked at me accusingly, then offered a show of concern to A

“It’s quite all right,” A

CHAPTER FIVE

A

“Is there anything I can do for you Ms. Henderson?” Lado

“A