The Bogus Biker by Judy Nickles

some men go through golf balls.”
    “I blame myself for moving in with him to begin with. I was taught better.”
    “What are you going to do now? I mean, after you don’t have to hide out here.”
    “I’d planned to go back to Ohio, a little place near Cincinnati where I grew up. My parents thought I was still working in the library and just dating Travis. Last week I wrote them that we’d broken up, and I needed to get away.”
    “You’re going to be staying in the basement,” Penelope said. “Don’t worry, it’s finished. I had it done when Bradley was in high school so he’d have a place to bring his friends. There’s a bathroom with a shower and a small refrigerator that just needs to be plugged in. The sofa makes into a bed, and at one time, we got television reception down there. I’ll have Sam carry down the set from Daddy’s bedroom.”
    “Won’t your father want it?”
    Penelope struggled to speak past the lump in her throat. “Sam’s going to stash him somewhere.”
    “I’m sorry.”
    “Oh, Daddy will be fine. He’ll have the time of his life.” But I’ll worry about him ever blessed second he’s gone.
    “Couldn’t I just go home to Ohio?”
    “I suppose you could bring it up with Sam.”
    Someone tapped on the door. “It’s me.”
    Penelope opened the door. “Did you find Daddy?”
    “He’s downstairs packing. I’ll drive him to Little Rock tonight.” He glanced past her at Shana, who sat with her head down. “Miss Bayliss, I’m going to have to ask you some questions later, so I want you to try to organize last night’s events in your mind. Write them down if you have to.” He turned back to Penelope. “Come show me what you need carried downstairs.”
    ****
    Penelope was still sitting with Shana in the basement rec room when Sam came down just after nine that night. “Your daddy’s on his way.”
    “I wish he could’ve stayed here.”
    “He’s going to have the time of his life, I promise. But he’s as worried about you are you are about him. Made me swear I’d take care of you.”
    “I can take care of myself,” Penelope said, straightening her shoulders.
    “Whatever. Miss Bayliss, do you think you can answer some questions?”
    “I’ll try.”
    Sam pulled an ottoman close to the sleeper sofa which was already made down into a bed. “Who was out there last night?”
    “Roger Sitton and some other guy I didn’t know. Well, there was someone else in the study with Travis, but he’d been there a while. I didn’t see him come in, and I didn’t get a good look at his face when I went to tell Travis that Roger wanted to see him. He’d driven up to the side veranda and honked.”
    “What time was that?”
    “About eleven-thirty.”
    “Why were you up so late?”
    “I was waiting on Travis. He’d been gone all day—I don’t know where—but I needed to talk to him…tell him I was leaving.”
    “Did you tell him?”
    “He’d just come in and asked me for something to eat, so I warmed up some leftovers and took them to his office. That’s when I noticed the other man. Then Roger drove up and honked.”
    “So Travis went out to talk to him?”
    “Yes. I stood by the glass door and watched them. It seemed like they were arguing about something, and then Roger and the other man who’d come out of the house, started for the gin, and Travis followed them.”
    “What did you do?”
    “I went upstairs and got ready for bed.” Shana glanced at Penelope. “We hadn’t shared the same bedroom in a couple of months.”
    Penelope recalled how she’d occupied a guest room for a year before moving home.
    “You were dressed when I found you early this morning,” Sam said. “Why?”
    “I took a shower and put on my gown, but then I heard something—I don’t know what exactly, but it gave me the creeps. Something coming from the woods.”
    “What happened next?”
    “I got dressed. I don’t know why—it just seemed the thing to do. I went outside