Frogs, Floods, and Fraud

Frogs, Floods and Fraud The Tenacious Librarian Series M K Scott Frogs, Floods and Fraud M K Scott Copyright © 2023 Kindle Edition This eBook is licensed for personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person. If you’re reading this book and did purchase it, or was not purchased for your use only, then please return it and purchase your own copy. Many thanks for respecting the hard work of this author. All characters in this book are fictional and figments of the author’s imagination. Table of Contents Title Page Copyright Page Chapter One Chapter Two Chapter Three Chapter Four Chapter Five Chapter Six Chapter Seven Chapter Eight Chapter Nine Chapter Ten Chapter Eleven Chapter Twelve Chapter Thirteen Chapter Fourteen Chapter Fifteen Chapter Sixteen Chapter Seventeen Chapter Eighteen Chapter Nineteen Chapter Twenty Chapter Twenty-One Chapter Twenty-Two Chapter Twenty-Three Chapter Twenty-Four Chapter Twenty-Five Chapter Twenty-Six Chapter Twenty-Seven Chapter Twenty-Eight Chapter Twenty-Nine Chapter Thirty Chapter Thirty-One Epilogue Frogs, Floods and Fraud Recipes Excerpt from Movies, Monsters, and Marmalade Author Notes Chapter One The autumn afternoon sun slipped through the parted gingham curtains, warming the late lunch crowd and those who chose to indulge themselves with one of Almost Home Café’s delectable desserts. Silverware clattered against sturdy stoneware plates as customers gorged themselves on chicken fried steak, apple dumplings, and local gossip. Even when a person chose not to pass along idle chatter and rumors, it failed to stop ears from hearing. Tenny, Emerson’s newest resident and official bookmobile owner, picked up her fork and used it to test the flakiness of her apple dumpling. After her Aunt Cinnamon passed, the thirty-ish former reference librarian found herself comparing every morsel she consumed to the delicious dishes her aunt made. Her aunt’s award-winning cinnamon rolls earned her aunt her nickname. Cinnamon had even contributed desserts to the café. Although no other cooks even came close, the crust on the dumpling did flake nicely. She speared a bite, sampled it, swallowed, and sighed. “This is really good. Did they get someone new in the kitchen?” Blue, Tenny’s best friend and current companion, tucked a lock of her chin-length blonde hair behind her ear. “You bet. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have suggested dropping in for a treat.” She patted a rounded hip. “I can’t afford any wasted calories on a tasteless concoction. Heard it was Philomena’s grandson. You probably don’t remember him. He was about ten years behind us in school, which makes him about twenty-two now.” “Whoever it is, he knows his way around a pastry cutter.” Tenny loaded her fork with the glistening apples and feather-light crust. Her nose scrunched up and she lowered her fork to her plate, the delicious forkful uneaten at the first hint of overheard nasty gossip since it contained her first name. The woman’s voice carried loud enough for everyone in the small diner to hear. “I’m just saying, Dallas only went out with Tenny out of pity, ya know? With her aunt dying and all. Trust me, I have the details.” Blue reached across the table, nudging her friend’s arm. “Ignore her. Shadow’s only carrying out Rita’s bidding. As far as Dallas dating people to cheer them up, you’d be the first.” She smirked and then winked. “Yeah.” If anyone should know the machinations of the town’s self-appointed queen, Tenny should—especially since she’ stepped out with the queen’s ex enough times to cause speculation. Once, a new girl showed up at school named Rita, wearing a necklace with her name on it. The story was that hometown Rita snatched the necklace off the girl and declared she couldn’t use the name since it had already been taken and the town could only have one Rita. As for the girl, she disappeared. Maybe country life wasn’t for her family. Shortly after that, Rita showed up wearing a silver necklace with her name in cursive script. That’s the type of person she was dealing with. While she wanted to chalk it up to malicious gossip, it did make her wonder. What if Dallas only asked her out of kindness? “Ah, let’s talk about something else.” “Ready to do your first bookmobile run?” Blue asked as she finished up her apple dumpling and gave Tenny’s uneaten portion a speculative glance. Noticing her gaze, Tenny pulled the plate closer. “I intend to finish it, even if I do it at home.” She inhaled deeply and then spoke. “As for the first run, technically I’m ready, but…” She sucked in her lips and shook her head. “…I’m a little worried. Sure, I know this was my aunt’s dream and all. I’m not even all that good at driving an extra-long van, especially on all those narrow, winding country roads.” “Practice.” Blue bobbed her chin with a touch of certainty. “We’ll take the bookmobile for a dry run of sorts.” Before she could ask for more details, their server swung by with a coffee carafe and topped off their cups. The server, a middle-aged woman sporting gray streaks that resembled the zig zags in the Bride of Frankenstein’s hairdo, or at least it drew that comparison around Halloween, delivered food and drink with a side of chatter. “Did you hear,” she started, “that Rivertown has to move? Turns out flood insurance stops paying out after so many floods. Personally,” she propped her free hand on her waist as if settling in for a lengthy conversation, “they should have called the place Floodsville.” She barked with laughter at her own comment. No one else chuckled. Tenny noted her friend’s furrowed brow and pinched lips and then remembered. “Don’t you have relatives in Rivertown?” “Yes.” The normally gregarious Blue’s one-word answer hinted at much more, better told in another place. Not deterred by the monosyllabic response, the server cleared her throat and added, “You had better get the spare room cleaned