In Cahoots with the Prickly Pear Posse (A Jackrabbit Junction Mystery--Book 5)

work.”
“You know I’m having sex with the sheriff, so why don’t you get to the point.” She stuffed the last of the bar in her mouth.
“Did you tell him what Mississippi told you yesterday about Lyle?”
She swallowed. “He already knew. Mississippi keeps him in the loop now.”
“What about your other visitor?”
“What other visitor?” Ronnie hadn’t told Claire or Katie about Elizabeth stopping by yesterday.
“His ex-wife.”
Ronnie’s mouth fell open. “How do you know about that?”
Claire pointed at her phone. “Natalie texted me.”
“I just told her that this morning.” Ronnie hadn’t made Natalie promise not to tell anyone about Grady’s ex, but who’d have figured the news would beat her to the General Store. “Dang, gossip travels fast.”
“I’m not sure if you understand how these new phones that Dad bought us work, but there are things called cell phone towers and satellites that help transmit messages at amazing speeds. Certainly faster than your slow butt can walk from the Winnebago to here.”
“I’d call you a horse’s ass, but that’s an insult to the equine population.”
Claire chuckled. “Listen, Natalie and I were talking last night at The Shaft after you left with your BB. We had an idea and thought you might be interested.”
“My BB? What’s that mean? Big Boyfriend?”
“Buddy with Benefits.”
“Grady is more than my sex buddy.”
“I know, that’s why I said benefits with an ‘s,’ as in plural.” She held up her fingers, ticking them off. “You get sex, food some nights, and a get-out-of-jail-free card with unlimited uses for you and your family.”
Ronnie glared at her.
“Oh, and a bodyguard when he’s not on duty. You really scored with your BB, I tell you.”
“Shut up.”
“Anyway, Natalie and I decided it’s time to reinstate the old gang—minus Kate because she’s completely deranged at the moment. With all of this shit coming down on us, we need to watch each other’s backs more than ever.”
“Old gang? You’re not talking about that stupid posse you guys formed with the neighbor when we were kids, are you?”
“It wasn’t stupid and you were one of the founding members, if memory serves me right.”
“There were five of us, Claire, including Violet Parker. We were all founding members.”
“Not true. We voted on allowing Kate to join.”
“Oh, yeah.” Ronnie smirked. “You didn’t want to let her in the posse back then either.”
“Only because she was lobbying to paint the treehouse Dad built bright pink. But I was outvoted.”
“It was a pretty shade of pink.”
Claire shook her head. “The Pink Posse. I still say it was a dumb name.” She pretended to gag. “So, what do you say? Are you in or not?”
“In what? The Pink Posse?”
“We changed the name.”
“To what?”
“The Prickly Pear Posse.”
Ronnie snorted. “Were you two drinking when you came up with that?”
“Maybe a little, but I woke up still liking it. Natalie told me to invite you even though I’m not sure it’s a good idea.”
Like Ronnie wanted to be part of their silly posse anyway. “Why not?”
Claire rolled her eyes. “Because you’re having intimate relations with the sheriff of Cholla County.”
“So what? That doesn’t mean I’m his lackey.”
“You sure? Because that polka dotted getup you wore yesterday told a different tale.”
“I’ll have you know that I like to wear dresses.”
“You don’t have to lie to make friends here. I’m your sister, remember?” Claire taped the reservation list on the wall behind her. “And don’t feel obligated to join our posse.” She turned back to Ronnie with a smile. “Like I said, I’m not sure you should be in it. You seem kind of shifty and cagey these days, and one of our first rules of order is ‘no secrets allowed.’ ”
“Shifty?” Ronnie huffed. “Katie is the one who is shifty right now, not me.”
“I agree. I don’t think we should let Kate in either.”
“Let me in what?” Katie said, parting the curtains hanging between Ruby’s private rec room area and the General Store.
“Nothing,” Claire said, lining up the cans of chewing tobacco on the shelf behind the counter.
“What are you doing here already?” Ronnie asked.
Katie joined her at the counter. She still wore her uniform shirt from The Shaft. Actually, this one looked clean and didn’t smell like last night’s beer. “Ruby invited me to come for breakfast. She doesn’t like me spending so much time alone at Butch’s place while he’s out of town.” She looked from Claire to Ronnie and back, her gaze narrowing. “What are you two hiding from me?”
“Nothing,” Claire said, avoiding eye contact.
Katie focused on Ronnie. “What’s going on? Is this about Grady’s ex-wife talking to you at the bar yesterday?”
Ronnie gasped. “Crap on a cracker! Did Natalie send out an all-points bulletin?”
“Natalie? No. Gary told me who the blonde was when I saw her talking to you yesterday during the lunch crowd.”
“Gary the bartender knows Grady’s ex-wife?”
“Yeah. She’s his cousin.”
Claire leaned her hip against the counter. “You’re kidding.”
“Don’t worry about Gary, though. He said she was always an uppity bitch, especially after she married Grady. He was glad to see her dust trail when she went to Nevada.” Katie planted her hands on her hips. “So, what were you two talking about when I walked in here?”
“The weather,” Claire said.
“You said no secrets allowed,” Ronnie reminded her.
Claire glared at her. “Ipzay ouryay ipslay,” she said in pig Latin, ending with, “big mouth.”
“No secrets allowed in what?” Katie pressed.
“Natalie, Claire, and I are reinstating our old posse gang.”
“Yes!” Katie’s eyes lit up, her smile a little too toothy for comfort, bordering on manic. “I’m in!” she told Claire, holding out her pinkie. “Who are we going after first?”
Claire looked down at Katie’s pinkie finger. “What’s that for?”
“Pinkie swear like we used to, remember?”
“We are not pinkie swearing.”
Katie held her pinkie toward Ronnie. “Come on, Ronnie. Swear me into the posse.”
“Ronnie doesn’t have the authority,” Claire said.
“Yes, I do. I’m the oldest,” Ronnie said, locking pinkies with Katie. “You’re in, kid.”
Claire’s scowl was back. “You are not the oldest. Natalie has you beat.”
“Not by much.”
“I have an idea,” Katie said, grabbing a