Page 41 of Final Inning

Chapter 30

The FBI was still in town, going around, asking stupid questions. Valeria couldn’t stand it. They’d been by the store twice that morning.

That bitch Hagan was watching her again. There at the deli counter, all prissy and important acting in her uniform. She even carried a gun like she was something special. Valeria hated Hagan so much.

Julian talked about Hagan and their friends from high school all the time. Every time he was in now, he asked if Hagan had been by to get her lunch yet. Like he cared about Hagan or something. Like he wanted to have lunch with Hagan? For real?

Why would he do that?

Valeria made sure to put Mrs. Cline’s groceries in the bag exactly the way the old woman would want them. She did this two times a week, and Mrs. Cline always came through Valeria’s line. She didn’t like Humphrey bagging her groceries—she’d told Valeria that Valeria was the best at it. Because she arranged things neatly and in easy ways for the older woman to carry. Valeria had worked at the grocery store since she was seventeen years old. She wasn’t stupid, she knew what she was doing. It wasn’t exactly rocket science. Only a moron loser would mess it up. Which…Humphrey was.

It was why they had picked her as the youngest assistant store manager in store history. Well, except for Luke. Luke was the grandson of Mr. Bellinger, owner of this store and the one in Helery Springs, and the one in the next county over. He said it was a chain.

One day Luke was going to have a regional chain of grocery stores. Valeria supposed it was possible he’d make it work. Luke was nineteen or so. And he wasn’t stupid or anything. He was okay. Quiet, and a bit of a loser. He’d been talking about running grocery stores forever. Totally boring. No one wanted to hear about how he wanted to make more money because people always needed food or something. What kind of woman wanted to date a man like that?

Of course, it was just Luke and his creeper old grandfather. His grandfather had tons of money, too. Luke would probably have lots of money someday. A woman could get used to that, even if he was still skinny and pimply. Even though he was tall and had broad shoulders. Maybe he’d fill out or something? Someday?

She looked at him—no, Luke wasn’t ugly. He just looked young. Like he wasn’t a real man or anything at all.

It was something to consider. Luke was going to take over the biggest store—the one in the next county—when he was twenty-one. Right now, he was just too young. But that meant…this store was most likely going to be Valeria’s someday.

If no one came and tried to screw it up for her.

There were those cashiers now. The night ones. They were both like eighteen. She’d caught them giggling at her once. Making fun of her. Valeria was certain of it. Well, they’d learn eventually. Old Mr. Bellinger listened to Valeria when it came to things at the store. He said he trusted her. She’d worked there for five years, after all.

He didn’t keep workers that easily. Everyone just wanted to work there part-time until they found something better. Or moved away or something. She’d been there the longest of anybody now—except Luke.

Well, Valeria had plans. She didn’t want to go to college now. No matter what her mom and Uncle Ted wanted. She hated school. She didn’t necessarily want to work in the grocery store forever, but…she didn’t want to go to college, either. It was boring—she’d known that forever. It was such a waste of time and money.

She didn’t want to work in a factory, either. Bellingers’ Grocery paid mostly okay. As long as she wasn’t stupid with her money, she’d be okay. Good things would happen to her. They always did.

She’d learned when she was twelve to do the hard things to get what she wanted. No matter how much they hurt or how bad they made her feel. She’d survived. And she was doing okay now.

She deserved good things. She worked hard.

She’d had enough bad things in her life—she deserved all the good now.

And she didn’t need stupid Hagan Lindhour coming around and screwing everything up all over again.

Hagan was watching her. Like she was suspicious or something.

Why couldn’t that bitch just leave her alone? What had Valeria ever done to her? Hagan was in the store every day. Harassing Valeria, and she did it on purpose.

Valeria had told Ted that again yesterday. And he’d promised to take care of it. To make Hagan stop it. Apparently that hadn’t worked.

Hagan just kept watching her, like she knew Valeria had done bad things or something. But she hadn’t. She knew she hadn’t.

She watched. Hagan was laughing at something Luke said. Like she thought he was funny. Or just wanted him because he was rich, and everyone knew Hagan Lindhour was poor white trash and always had been. Everyone in Buckbert and Helery Springs knew that. Hagan was just as trashy as her dad had been before he’d died in that wreck where he’d been drunk.

Hagan was trying to take everything away from her. Everything.

Just like everyone else in this stupid county always had.

It just wasn’t fair.

Valeria’s day didn’t get better at all, until Julian came in again. He was just so beautiful to watch. She loved it when he came to see her.

They were perfect for each other. He’d understand that one day.