Then he left and the doors slid shut behind him.
TWENTY-SIX
Christine couldn’t help feeling uneasy on her drive home. She had done the right thing—there was no question of that. But now that it was done, she was the one who was probably going to have to deal with the consequences.
Poor Jenny had been in tears by the time Mike Fenster finally walked out the door. Her face was red and her hands were shaking.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Thompson,” she whispered, looking up at her boss. “I…I didn’t know what to say! Nobody ever talked to me that way before.”
“Of course not! Because nobody should ever talk to a lady like that,” Bud had blustered. It was clear he wasn’t sure how to go about comforting Jenny, so Christine had done it for him.
“Come on, honey—let’s go to the ladies room and get you cleaned up,” she’d said.
Putting an arm around the crying girl, she led her to the restroom at the back of the store. There she soaked some paper towels in cold water and had Jenny press them to her cheeks and face.
“Feeling better now?” she asked, when the girl stopped crying. Christine knew that her parents were pretty strict—they were in church every Sunday and Jenny went to Bible camp every summer—so she’d led a pretty sheltered life. It was no wonder hearing such vile things coming out of Mike Fenster’s mouth had made her so upset.
“I…I think so.” Jenny nodded and blew her nose on the tissue Christine offered her. “I just never…he was just so awful.”
“I know, honey, and I’m sorry you had to hear all that,” Christine told her. “But at least you don’t have to worry about him anymore. Bud did the right thing, banning him. He’ll never darken the Food Lion doors again.”
“I guess you’re right.” Jenny straightened up and nodded. “Thanks, Ms. Conway. I wouldn’t have known what to do if you hadn’t helped me.”
“It’s okay, honey.” Christine put an arm around her and gave her a squeeze. “We girls have to stick together, right? You feel like you’re ready to go back now?”
Jenny nodded and gave her a grateful smile.
“Yeah, I think so. You know, this is my first Saturday checking by myself? I just got through my training.”
“I’m so sorry something so nasty had to happen on your first solo day,” Christine told her. “But look at it this way—the day can only go up from here.”
The girl laughed.
“I guess you’re right. You know, I really miss Lisa—she was the best babysitter I ever had. Is she doing okay?”
“She’s just fine—she’s going to be a doctor, you know. A pediatrician,” Christine told her, as they walked back to the front of the store together.
“Well, tell her I said ‘hi’ all right?” Jenny gave her a shy smile. “I’ll never forget how she used to let me play with her makeup and how she always did my hair. It made me feel like a princess.”
“You two always did have a lot of fun.” Christine smiled back. “I’ll tell her you miss her.”
“Thanks.” Jenny nodded as they reached the checkout lines again.
Bud Thompson was ringing up a customer at Jenny’s register but as soon as he finished, he came over to see if she was all right.
“Everything okay?” he asked anxiously, looking at Christine for confirmation.
“I think she was just a little shaken up, but she’s fine now,” Christine told him.
“I can go back to checking, Mr. Thompson,” Jenny said earnestly. “I’m feeling lots better now.”
“Well…if you’re sure,” he said. “I can send you home if you’re too shaken up.”
“No thanks.” Jenny lifted her chin, a determined light coming into her eyes. “I’ll be okay.”
“All right then. And Jenny…” Bud caught her eyes. “Just so you know, you don’t ever have to put up with that kind of…of nonsense. You come tell me right away if a customer is disrespecting you because I won’t stand for it.”
She ducked her head.
“Yes, Mr. Thompson. I just…I didn’t know what to do.”
“Well, now you know.” He patted her shoulder awkwardly. “Go on back to your register now—I think I see a customer coming.”
She nodded and, with a final glance at Christine, went back to her checkout line
Bud Thompson looked at Christine.
“Thanks for coming to get me. I don’t tolerate that kind of thing in my store.”
“I know you don’t,” Christine said, nodding. “I’m glad you told him not to come back.”
The big store manager frowned.
“But don’t the Fensters live next door to you? Are you worried you’re going to have trouble with them? Maybe you’d better talk to Sheriff Wainright.”
“Already did,” Christine told him. Though what she didn’t tell him was that she didn’t think it would do a damn bit of good. As far as the Fensters went, she was afraid she was on her own.