Joan Hess - Arly Hanks 08 Read Online Free PDF Page B

cornfield.
    She dint know what to make of them herself, but at least she had her old job back and was smack-dab in the middle of the excitement. "How're y'all?" she asked the five women crammed in the last booth, giving them menus and a right friendly smile. "You just take your time. I'll be back afore too long." The folks in the next booth were expecting something, but Dahlia couldn't recollect what it was, so she went on to the first booth and started stacking up the dishes and utensils. The men acted like they wanted to say something, but she warned 'em off with a frown, slapped down their bill, and headed for the kitchen with her greasy load.
    "I'm out of cherry pie, so there's no point in whining about it, Gilly Jacana," Ruby Bee was telling a customer as Dahlia went past the end of the bar. "I won't argue with you that I should've made twice as many pies. For that matter, I should've printed up maps to Raz's place and sold them for a quarter. Now you either have a piece of carrot cake or put three dollars and seventy-seven cents on the bar and be about your business."
    Gilly Jacana opted to be about his business (which was conveying a truckload of doomed chickens to the poultry-processing plant in Starley City). Ruby Bee was wiping up the corn bread crumbs when a pretty girl of not more than twenty-five slid onto the stool. Her hair was short and dark; her features were perky, her eyes big and watery like a doe's, her puffy lips outlined in pink. Considering the rowdy crowd along the bar, it was remarkable that such a skinny little thing had grabbed an empty stool, Ruby Bee thought as she set aside the dishrag and handed the girl a menu. "We're out of chicken and dressing, but the pot roast is real good."
    "I -- uh, I was wondering about the Flamingo Motel out in back. Where can I find out if there are any rooms available for the next three or four nights?"
    "You just did." Ruby Bee went to the drawer beneath the cash register, selected a key with a plastic tag, and took it back. "You can take number three. It's down at the end, where it's nice and quiet. Get yourself settled in, then come back later and sign the register. Things are mighty hectic at the moment. If they don't ease off before too long, I'll be staggerin' like a buckeyed calf."
    The girl picked up the key and melted into the crowd. A fat, hairy fellow in overalls sat down and began to read the menu. Ruby Bee wasted a minute wondering who the girl was and why she wanted a room, then forgot about it and said, "How 'bout a thick slab of pot roast and some scalloped potatoes, Floyd?"
     
     
    Jim Bob swung open the glass door and smiled broadly at the two women. "Welcome to Jim Bob's SuperSaver Buy-4-Less," he said. "Today in the deli we have a special box lunch for only three dollars and forty-nine cents, plus tax. In it you'll find a ham sandwich, a pickle, potato chips, and two freshly baked oatmeal cookies. Your drinks are extra."
    The older woman had stiff gray hair and a face that reminded Jim Bob of a disgruntled bulldog. "We had lunch earlier," she said. "We stopped here to get directions to the farm with the crop circles. A member of our organization from Farberville called me this morning with the report."
    "We're from Little Rock," the second woman contributed. She fluttered her hand in that general direction, as if Jim Bob could see the skyscrapers above the treetops. He didn't care if they were from another country. He gestured for them to stand aside, gave the details of the box lunch special to a group of teenagers, and considered telling the woman to kiss his ass on account of he wasn't a fool travel agent. However, something she'd said finally clicked, so he went over to them and said to the bulldog, "What organization?"
    "UFORIA. It's an acronym for Unidentified Flying Objects Reported in Arkansas. There are more than a hundred members across the state. I'm Cynthia Dodder, the president, and this is Rosemary Tant, our secretary."
    "And you