Nobody's Fool Y'all

23

"What is that little building to the side?" asked Maury.

"It's a garage!" said Lou Edna. "The perfect place to hide your ride if you're running from the law!"

"Or trying to keep your love life hidden from your stay-at-home wife!" added Hadley. "How many love fests do you think this place has held over the years?"

"Too many to count," said Maury.

"Are you going to pull your car inside?" asked Lou Edna.

Hadley had gotten out of the convertible. She put the key into the lock and bent down and grabbed the handle of the garage door. She pulled up. The door was raised easily.

"I don't know," she said. "Look at the size of this thing. I think it was built for Model A's."

"It does look kinda' skinny. I guess when these little things were built, cars were skinny, and folks were smaller. It's really tight. You might scrape off the paint or dent the sides," said Maury.

"I don't think the Chevy will fit," said Hadley.

"Maybe we could grill some hot dogs out here after dark," said Lou Edna. "We could close that door and keep the mosquitoes out."

"And kill ourselves with carbon monoxide?" asked Hadley. "What are you doing Lou Edna?"

"I'm checking this place for hidey holes," she said. "I got a feelin' there's a bottle or two of yum-yum that's Prohibition Era and just lying around waiting for us! Some nice moll left it here for a welcoming present! All we gotta' do is find it!"

"Knock it off," said Hadley.

"I think you should try to park the car in here," said Lou Edna. "You need to get it out of the elements. Maury and I will spot for you."

She was reluctant to park the car in the garage, but the two women persuaded her. As she pulled inside, the walls of the building seemed to waver. Remarkably, they seemed to expand, and the car slid in.

"I could have sworn this thing was too small," Hadley said.

"Optical illusion," said Lou Edna.

"Let's get our luggage and check out our living quarters for the next few days," said Hadley.

"Did you see that pool back there?" asked Maury.

"Yeah," said Hadley. "It looked like that part of the remodeling was finished."

"It did look nice," said Lou Edna. "If they cut the lights off at night, we could all go skinny dipping."

"I don't think the world is quite ready for that," said Hadley.

"This has always been a good location," said Maury. "I'll bet the view from the restaurant is killer."

"Killer is right!" said Lou Edna. "How many dead bodies you think the gangsters stashed on this property? Stick 'em up, you low life. Bang! Haw. Haw."

"Here we go again," said Maury. "I'm sorry I brought it up."

"Can you just imagine," Lou Edna rambled. "Those old stories were something, weren't they?"

"Uh-huh," said Maury. "I think their purpose was to keep us from coming here. But there was that one about that young girl that disappeared and was never found. They say she was murdered but without a body, her killer got away. They say you can see her ghost on the road at midnight on nights when the moon is full. She's beautiful and dressed in black. She stands in the middle of the road and disappears into thin air."

"That story has always been around. I think it's just some adaptation of an urban legend," said Hadley. "But it's fun to imagine what this place was like back then."

"She was some kind of gangster's moll, wasn't she?" asked Maury.

"Yes, she was," said Lou Edna. "Murdered in one of these cottages and vanished into thin air. They claim that her boyfriend buried some jewels and cash he'd robbed from a bank. Spooky, spooky."

"Just how many bags did you pack, girl?" Hadley asked, tugging on a particularly heavy one. "I think they've had babies on the drive up!"

"Stop whining," Lou Edna said. "Just because you can get by packing your stuff in a snack bag, doesn't mean everyone else can. There's beauty products in there. I thought maybe I could give you two a facial while we fritter away the hours up here."

"Oh," said Hadley. "OH! And what were you going to slather on our skin, dear? Concrete? I mean it. Lou, this bag weighs a ton."

"Here," she said, "let me give you a hand. The things that went on in these rooms. I don't know about you guys, but I love the fact that gangsters and their molls stayed here! Just think of all the secrets between the sheets!"

"I'd rather not," said Maury. "I do so hope they do the laundry regularly. I forgot to bring my pillow."

"I can't wait to see the inside of the cottage. I hope the walls are thick. I don't want to hear groaning and thumping all night, do you?"

"Not if it isn't me," said Lou Edna.

"There," said Lou Edna. "All the bags are out of the trunk."

"Now, we only have to lug them inside," said Hadley.

There were two entrances to each suite. One from the outside front door into the room and the other from the enclosed garage. Maury had the room keys, and she opened the door to their room from the garage entry. Maury gasped.

"I guess this really is a work in progress," said Lou Edna. "Is it me, or does the air seem, I dunno . . . closed-off smelling."

"Stale is the word I think you're after," said Hadley. "If I didn't know better, I'd swear it smells like a tomb in here. But my sniffer isn't the greatest since my allergies kicked in."

"I don't know what you two are talking about," said Maury. "The air smells fine. Crisp, clean and mountain-like."

"Looks like circa late 20's or early 30s," said Hadley, on entering the room.

Hadley picked up a pillow and smelled.

"Smells okay," she said. "What's this?"

"It's an envelope," said Maury.

"Right, Sherlock," said Hadley, opening the envelope and pulling out an engraved card. "It's an invitation!"

"To what?" asked Maury.

"A party," said Hadley. "Tonight."

"Party," said Lou Edna. "Now, we're talkin'."

"It's at the restaurant. At midnight. A gangster's ball."