The Yellow Rose Beauty Shop (Cadillac, Texas #3)(46)

“You’re not a member of my Angels,” Heather declared.

“I know, honey. I know. But I can pray to God right out on my front porch. It’s tough gettin’ old and not even knowin’ that you forgot to put on a bra,” Agnes said.

Violet looked down at her breasts and hollered so loud that Ethan took a step backward. “I’ve got on a bra. I have on underpants and a girdle, too, for your information.”

“See, Heather, when they get afflicted with that horrible thing, they say the most outlandish things, and I hear that it’s hereditary. Do you know what that means?”

Violet’s cane sank into a gopher hole when she took a step toward Agnes and she went down on her bad knee. She reached out to grab anything to break her fall and got a firm hold on Agnes’s shoulder, bringing her down with her. Everyone in the group heard the loud crack of bones as they fell in a pile of moans and groans.

“My knee!” Violet screamed.

“My hip,” Agnes whispered and all the color left her face.

“Call nine-one-one,” Heather and Ethan said in unison as they dropped down beside Violet.

“The ambulance is already here for any emergencies. Just hang on, Agnes. They’ll be here soon as they can get down the field,” Everett said.

Stella knelt beside Agnes. “Don’t move. Keep breathing. The ambulance is coming right now.”

“Have to tell you something. Come closer,” Agnes said.

Stella put her ear to Agnes’s mouth.

“Your mama is my snitch. She’s sorry she put your name on that list and she’s doin’ what she can to make it right. You’ve got to take up the reins and . . . damn, this hurts like hell . . . make sure Heather don’t become the next Violet. Remember, it’s up to us redheads to save Cadillac from ruination.”

“What have we got?” the paramedic asked.

“I think her hip is broken,” Stella said.

“Aunt Violet’s knee,” Heather sobbed.

“Call for the other ambulance,” he yelled at his coworker. “I’ll stabilize the hip. You work on the knee.”

Trixie kissed Agnes on the forehead as they loaded her into the van. “Get well, you old toot. I’ll take care of you when you get out. I’ll take you up to my room and you can help me work on a ceramic flowerpot I’m fixin’ up for my mama.”

Agnes opened her eyes and glared at Trixie. “I’m not going in your damn room. It’s so damn messy that the rats won’t go in there.”

Trixie laughed. “She’ll be kickin’ ass in no time.”

“I’m going to the hospital,” Stella said.

“You can ride with us.” Trixie nodded.



Stella turned the doorknob, automatically flipped on the light, and hoped that Jed would appear wearing nothing but a towel or a pair of lounging pants slung low on his hips. But a hunky blond-haired preacher didn’t poke his head out around the kitchen door.

Charlotte did.

“We were about to give up on you and go home. Shhh . . . the boys fell asleep in the spare bedroom while they were playing with their little video game things. How’s Agnes?”

Stella sat down on the sofa and propped her feet on the coffee table. “She broke her hip. They’re calling in an emergency team of specialists to replace it tonight. Marty sent Cathy and me home. She said she and Trixie would stay and call us as soon as it was over. The doctor said that she’d be in the hospital a week and then rehab for a few weeks. She’s going to love that.”

“And Violet?” Charlotte sat down and picked up a ball of green baby yarn.

“She’s scheduled for knee surgery on Monday so they’re going to keep her, but she didn’t do any damage other than falling and making it hurt. They’re not in the same room and Trixie already warned them not to put the two old farts in the same rehab room when they get out.”

Piper smiled. “Smart woman. What was it that Agnes was whispering to you?”

“Mama is her snitch.”

“I’ll be damned,” Piper whispered. “I knew Nancy was sorry. I just knew it. She already knew she’d done wrong that first morning and the doughnuts were a peace offering. You should have listened to me.”

“Maybe so, but she could have told me,” Stella said. “And Agnes said that I had to take her place and not let Heather ruin Cadillac.”

“And how do you feel about all this?” Piper asked.

Stella raked her fingers through her red hair. “Hell, I don’t know. I was so mad at her and she was so sweet tonight and I felt guilty and now I’m mad again. But I don’t know if I’m mad at her or at Heather for creating this shit storm.”

“She started it when she put you on that damned prayer list, but Heather shouldn’t have put up that sign or started all this crap about a barbecue ball.” Charlotte pulled a quart of ice cream from the freezer, stuck three spoons in it, and set it in the middle of the coffee table. “I bet this fireworks show goes into the history books.”

“Can you believe Gene showed up and had the balls to sit with us?” Piper dug into the ice cream. “I bet that by morning the story will be that we’ve gone back together.”

Charlotte followed Piper’s lead by putting her knitting away and dipping deeply into the ice cream. “I heard someone whispering behind us that the baby blanket I’m working on isn’t for Stella after all, it’s for you, and that Gene doesn’t know you were seeing Rhett while y’all were married. And that the twins might not have the same father.”