The Case Of The Good-For-Nothing Girlfriend

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“I’m going to walk to town,” Nancy declared as she tossed her things back in her jewelry box. “I’m dying of thirst.”

“I think a nice, cool drink would be refreshing,” Cherry agreed.

“Let’s go, then,” Nancy urged. “My treat.”

Cherry felt badly when she realized that from now on, everything was going to have to be Nancy’s treat. Cherry had spent all her spare change on postcards to send to her parents, clever trinkets fashioned from native rock for her brother Charley, and packages of rock candy for her nurse friends. “Even if Nancy is the reason we’re taking this trip, it still isn’t right that she has to pay for everything,” Cherry thought, vowing that once she got back to her job on the Women’s Psychiatric Ward at Seattle General Hospital, she would save every extra penny until Nancy was paid back in full.

“Or maybe I’ll find a nursing job in Illinois,” she thought dreamily, “and I can pay Nancy back in person!” The last eight days had been the happiest time of Cherry’s life, and Nancy’s, too, she was sure! Cherry decided to wait a little longer before springing her dream on Nancy—the dream of becoming an Illinois nurse! Luckily, she knew there were always plenty of jobs helping unfortunate people wherever she went.

“As soon as this whole horrible murder mess has blown over, and Nancy is back to normal, I can let her in on my secret.” Cherry thought with a smile. Golly, she could hardly wait to see the look on Nancy’s face when she told her the news!

“We’ll stay behind and find Lauren,” Midge and Velma volunteered.

“Thanks, Midge and Velma,” Cherry said. She was touched that her friends had offered to stay behind in the hot, dusty place. “Even though I’m sure they’d rather take a brisk walk to town, they know that Nancy and I want to be alone.”

Before the girls began their walk into town, they changed into comfortable walking shoes. Cherry donned a pair of stylish penny loafers. Nancy chose a pair of leather-soled ballerina slippers. But there was one problem!

“These shoes don’t go with my outfit!” Cherry wailed, looking ruefully at her flared skirt and soft blouse, which was just right for a long car ride, but entirely too fussy for a casual stroll. Nancy saved the day by pulling a matching red and white gingham skirt and blouse ensemble with a wide white belt from her suitcase.

Cherry ran behind a bush to change her costume, and minutes later she and Nancy were ready for their walk to town.

“According to our map, there’s a town called Dust Bin two miles east,” Nancy reported.

“Sounds romantic,” Cherry thought dreamily. “We’ll be back in approximately one hour,” she waved good-bye. As soon as the couple was out of sight, Midge pulled Velma close.

“We’re finally alone,” Midge murmured happily, nuzzling Velma’s neck while stroking her soft dark hair. “I finally get you all to myself.”

Velma blushed. “I thought we were supposed to be looking for Lauren,” she murmured as Midge pulled her toward the car.

“Oh, yeah,” Midge said, all flustered. “I forgot. Stay here,” she said. “I’ll be right back.” Within minutes, Midge had located their young chum. She was not at all surprised to find Lauren standing in the middle of a quarry. And in her hands was a large rock.

“I found a cool rock with a fossil of a crustacean in it!” Lauren called up in delight. “It’s really keen down here—you guys should join me!”

Midge smiled. “Nancy and Cherry went to town to get help. Don’t wander too far off. They’ll be back in an hour,” she called out.

Lauren flashed Midge the okay sign. Midge, convinced that her motherly duty was done, raced back to the car … and to Velma!

She was delighted to see that Velma had assured them some privacy by putting up the top of the convertible and was now stretched out languidly on the wide, soft white leather back seat, using Nancy’s plaid stadium blanket as a pillow.

“This is a great car, don’t you think?” Midge grinned as she kicked off her penny loafers and climbed into the wide back seat. “It’s costly to repair, but, boy oh boy, the back seat sure is big!” She slid one hand under Velma’s snug shell top. “Gosh, Velma, the last few days have been torture!”

“You don’t have to tell me,” Velma replied huskily, hiking up her skirt and slip so she could wrap her legs around Midge’s hips. She ran her hands down the front of Midge’s white, short-sleeved Orlon shirt.

“Oops, there goes a button,” Velma giggled as she wrenched it open. She moaned softly. “You know I can’t stand to go more than a few days without you,” Velma sighed.

Midge pushed up Velma’s top to reveal voluptuous round breasts spilling over the top of her bra.

“Being kidnapped by that evil priest during our last adventure was bad enough, but a whole three days went by without, well …” Velma blushed prettily. “It’s just that every time I’m around you, or even just think of you—” She took Midge’s hand, and slipped it in her panties.

“Cherry was right. I am going to have to burn these pants!” Midge groaned happily.

“Oh, Midge,” Velma breathed.

“Oh, Velma,” Midge groaned.

“Oh—Lauren!” Velma suddenly hollered.

“What?” Midge cried, recoiling as if she had been slapped. She jumped up, hitting her head on the car roof.

Velma turned bright red. “I saw Lauren at the window,” she hurriedly explained. By the time the girls had straightened themselves and tumbled out of the car, Lauren was gone. “Are you sure you saw Lauren at the window?” Midge cried.

“Here’s proof she was here!” Velma cried, pointing to a large gray rock right outside the car door.

“Velma, we’re in Wyoming. There are rocks everywhere,” Midge insisted angrily. But when she took a closer look at the rock, she saw it looked just like the one Lauren had had in the quarry. “That darn Lauren was peeking through the window at us!” she fumed aloud.

“No, I wasn’t,” Lauren declared from her perch on a nearby boulder. She looked like she had been crying! “I was just going to show you my rock, that’s all,” Lauren gulped. “I didn’t see anything, honest.”

Midge blushed. Although she was upset by the turn of events, she wasn’t nearly as upset as she had been a moment ago when she had heard Velma call out another girl’s name!

“Oh, sweetie, don’t cry,” Velma begged as she ran over to the young girl.

“Are you mad at me?” Lauren asked in a quivering voice.

“I could never be mad at you, Lauren,” Velma assured her. She hugged the girl to her soft bosom and kissed her on the forehead. Lauren beamed. “Let’s put all these rocks back in the trunk before the tow truck gets here,” Velma suggested.

Although she would rather have left the cumbersome rocks behind, Midge kept her mouth shut. The truth was, Midge would do just about anything to keep in Velma’s good graces. The gang at the Miraloma Club back home, where Midge and Velma socialized every Friday night, often teased her about her devotion to her girl, but Midge just laughed it off. “The way some of our gang change partners, you’d think we were at a square dance,” Midge often quipped.

She and Velma had known they were destined to be together always since the first day they laid eyes on each other at the women’s penitentiary. Not that they hadn’t had their fights! Midge could remember many a time in the early days when she’d been thrown out of bed and forced to sleep on the stiff, white vinyl sectional sofa.

“But all the bad times are behind us now,” Midge thought with relief.

“Let me do that!” she cried when she saw Velma bending to pick up a rock. If she remembered correctly, some of Lauren’s rocks were pretty heavy, and she didn’t want Velma hurting herself!

CHAPTER 15 (#ulink_563a3685-c2aa-5789-ba9d-49786a36099d)

A Cunning Career Gal (#ulink_563a3685-c2aa-5789-ba9d-49786a36099d)

“There. That’s the last one.” Midge wedged a large, black rock with a glassy surface and jagged, sharp edges, into the trunk. Although the trunk of the 1959 Chrysler was deep and wide, it had taken some doing to squeeze in all their luggage and Lauren’s entire rock collection. “Good thing we don’t have a spare tire; we’d have no place to put it,” Midge joked. “Golly, Lauren, how the heck did you fit these in here the first time?”

But the girl wasn’t listening. She was busy fretting over her rocks. “I know there’s one missing,” she said. “I don’t see my sample of cobaltite anywhere! One, two, three—”

Midge snapped the trunk shut and locked it. She pocketed the keys. “Lauren, you have dozens of rocks in there. What on earth is your mother going to say when you come home with all of these?”

“My mother has a rock garden,” Lauren explained.

“I thought you said you live in a high-rise apartment in downtown San Francisco,” Midge quizzed her.

A funny look came over Lauren’s face. She thrust her hands into the deep pockets of her worn, dirty overalls and stalked away.

“What did I say?” Midge turned to Velma. “What’s up with her, anyway?”

“She was really embarrassed earlier, Midge,” Velma said. “I’ll go after her. You stay with the car.”

“No, stay here with me,” Midge urged. But Velma didn’t hear her, as she was already running after Lauren.

“I’ll stay here and guard the car in case someone wants to steal these rocks,” Midge joked sourly. It seemed to her Velma was always running after that girl. “She’s gonna spoil her,” Midge thought. She was fishing through her pockets for a cigarette when the tow truck pulled up. A good-looking gal with short gray hair and a friendly manner waved to Midge.

“This must be the place!” the driver cried as she hopped out of the truck cab and ran around to the passenger side, opened the door, and helped Cherry down.

“Thank you ever so much!” Cherry cried as the strong girl scooped her up in her arms and helped her safely to the ground. Cherry blushed as she buttoned her blouse, which had somehow popped a few buttons on the way down. Midge had to grin when she saw how red Cherry’s face was. But her smile turned to a frown when she realized Cherry was alone.

Where was Nancy?

While the capable tow-truck operator got to work, expertly attaching hooks and chains to their automobile, Midge quizzed Cherry as to Nancy’s whereabouts.

“She kept saying how much she needed a drink, so I got her a refreshing soda and left her in a cool spot under a big juniper tree next to the service station,” Cherry explained.

“Not a martini?” Midge joked dryly.

“Why, it’s awfully early to have a cocktail, Midge,” Cherry pointed out. “We haven’t even had supper! Oh, look, there’s Velma and Lauren!” she cried. She had spied the pair walking toward the car arm in arm. And Lauren had a big smile on her face.

The girls piled into the cab of the tow truck. It was so crowded that poor Cherry had to sit practically in the driver’s lap!

“Good thing I’m a good sport,” Cherry thought as she balanced herself on the girl’s strong right thigh. While the confident girl steered the truck over two miles of unpaved, bumpy road, Cherry busied herself asking pertinent questions about their destination, the town of Dust Bin, Wyoming.

“Did you hear that, Midge?” Cherry squealed in delight when she found out there was a square dance that very night. “Maybe we can go while the car’s being repaired! It will be good for us to get some exercise after sitting all day in the car!” She wriggled about in excitement when she thought about how much fun it would be to do-si-do that very night!

“My, that was an invigorating ride!” Cherry exclaimed when they pulled up to the service station. She scampered out of the truck and fanned herself with her handkerchief.

The driver donned a pair of overalls, picked up a heavy box loaded with all sorts of interesting tools, and got right to work on their automobile. Another girl clad in a similar fashion came over to assist her.

“Honey, we’re here,” Cherry called. When there was no reply, she ran to the back of the building and gave a cry of alarm when she realized Nancy was no longer in the cool, shady spot where Cherry had left her.

The mechanic’s assistant informed them as to Nancy’s whereabouts. “Your friend said she was dying of thirst, so I directed her to town,” she said helpfully. “I offered her another cold soda pop, but she said she needed something stronger.”

“She probably went to get a refreshing ice cream soda,” Cherry realized aloud. “Golly, I’m tired. I sure could go for one, too. But first I simply must freshen up!”

Cherry disappeared into the washroom and came back five minutes later looking invigorated and relaxed, and with a new hairstyle and fresh lipstick, besides.

“What’s that smell?” Lauren cried. She wrinkling her nose in disgust. “Pew!”

Cherry blushed to the tips of her toes. “It’s Tabu, Lauren,” Cherry said. The washroom had a perfume dispenser, so Cherry had dropped in a dime and chosen the exotic fragrance.

Lauren held her nose and pretended she was choking.

“Perfume is as important to a girl as scent is to a flower,” Cherry told Lauren in a hurt tone.

Lauren started to laugh but stopped when she saw the disapproving look on Velma’s face. “Uh, I was only kidding. You smell nice, Cherry,” she said in a chagrined tone. “Really. And your hair looks … ah … different, too.” She peeked at Velma, who was smiling in approval. Phew!

“Thank you, Lauren,” Cherry replied. “As my mother always says, a girl can change her hair almost as often as she changes her mind. You know, Lauren,” she continued, “with your long, thick hair, you could wear many different attractive styles. I’ve got some styling lotion and bobby pins in my purse if you’d like to step into the ladies’ lounge with me and try something new.”

Lauren scowled and tucked her long auburn braid under her baseball cap.

Cherry vowed to do whatever she could to guide the young girl along the perilous path to womanhood. “We’ll fix her hair and get her some nice clothes,” Cherry planned to herself. “I’ll bet we’d find a really cute girl under all that dirt.” Then she said to Velma, “Don’t you think Lauren should do something with her hair? Something besides hide it?”

Velma cocked her head and took a good, long look at Lauren.

Cherry smiled when she saw Lauren turn bright red under Velma’s penetrating gaze. “Why, Lauren really does care about her appearance!” Cherry thought. “She just doesn’t let on.”

“I don’t know, Cherry,” Velma replied. “I’m really not the best judge. While I like to do my hair in many different styles, what I really like on a girl is short hair.” She lightly brushed the nape of Midge’s neck with her hand. Midge smiled happily.

“Let’s all go to town for an ice cream soda while the car is being repaired,” Cherry suggested. “And then we’ll be on our way.”

The mechanic shook her head. “I’m afraid you gals are stuck here for the night,” she said ruefully. “It’ll take us all that time to fix what’s broken under the hood, and, besides, the front right wheel-rim is pretty dented and I’ll have to pound it out.

“It will cost approximately forty dollars,” she added.

Cherry groaned. “Nancy will be frantic when she learns we’re delayed yet another day,” she said. “How are we going to get forty dollars for the car repair and money for a motel, not to mention other important things like snacks?” she cried aloud. She flung up her arms in despair and wailed, “Oh, we are never going to get to River Depths!”

“You’re going to River Depths?” A smartly-coifed, middle-aged woman outfitted in a trim, cherry red, worsted boxy jacket and matching straight skirt, poked her head around the side of the garage and smiled at Cherry.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt, but did you say you were going to River Depths? River Depths, Illinois?” the woman asked. She put down the orange soda she was holding in one neatly gloved hand and slipped off her jacket to reveal a white nylon shell top that, despite the heat, looked band-box fresh.

She noticed Cherry staring wide-eyed at her. “You’re wondering how it is I’ve been sitting in the car all day and I’m still perky as a daisy, aren’t you? It’s the miracle of synthetic fabrics,” the woman announced grandly. Actually, Cherry had noticed how wrinkle-free the woman’s blouse was.

“Now, didn’t you say you were going to River Depths?” the woman queried.

Without thinking, Cherry nodded her head.

Midge groaned. No one was supposed to know that they were speeding to River Depths with Nancy Clue!

“Marty, they’re going to River Depths, too,” the woman called to her friend sitting in the front seat of a white, four-door Buick. Her friend, a handsome brunette with a smart, short hairdo tinged with silver at the temples, smiled and waved at the girls before going back to studying her map.

“We’re from the Wyoming Buffalo Bulletin, sent to cover the story of housekeeper Hannah Gruel, charged in the murder of attorney Carson Clue,” the smartly dressed woman announced importantly. “Marty—that’s my friend over there; her real name is Miss Martha Mannish, but everyone calls her Marty for short. Well, Marty and I decided to do some sightseeing on the way; that’s why we’re driving. By the way, my name is Gladys Gertz. Miss Gladys Gertz. I’m the newspaper’s society editor and Marty’s our wedding photographer. I usually never get to cover exciting crime stories such as this, but because it’s a housekeeper that did the deed, they gave it to me,” she confided with a sunny smile. “It’s my big chance to really dig up some dirt!” She took a starched white handkerchief from her black alligator handbag—which Cherry noticed perfectly matched her low-heeled pumps—and wiped her brow.