Bluegrass Courtship. Allie Pleiter

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      “The sponsors give us so much free food, I’m always trying to share it. Honestly, if I eat one more box of chocolate chip cookies…”

      Chocolate chip cookies? Was Janet staring at good fortune or a great background check that they knew her weakness for chocolate chip cookies? Her stomach growled, as if to say it wouldn’t quibble much either way. “Well, okay.” It wasn’t as if there’d be many customers. Everyone in town would probably be at the church preschool by now anyway.

      The bus doors folded open with a whoosh, and Annie motioned for Janet to step inside. As she walked up the steep stairs, Janet noticed a hand-carved sign hung over the entryway. Home Green Home, it read.

      “Drew made that one weekend when it was pouring rain and we were all beyond thankful to have a warm, dry place to sleep. He started calling the bus ‘Home Green Home’ after that, and it stuck. Granted, though, some days this bus feels less homey than others.” Annie shot Janet a look as she turned toward the bus’s center table. The bus was high-end; sleek and well-appointed with all kinds of comforts like a microwave, several televisions and plush furnishings. It also had a chaotic, slightly messy feel to it, as papers and videotapes and a few boxes of T-shirts were parked on every available surface. The table, however, was clear and neatly arranged. “Some days a corporate cubicle looks like a positive vacation. Drew’s nonstop creativity can be…well, non-stop. But most days this is an amazing job and I thank God for the chances I’ve got.”

      Well, thought Janet, you knew they’d get to the God part sometime.

      As Janet sat down, Annie reached up into a cabinet that was top-to-bottom chocolate chip cookie boxes. And not just any chocolate chip cookie, either. Delicious Dave’s Chocolate Chip Cookies—pretty much the finest stuff on the planet.

      She’d forgotten that Missionnovation had Dave’s as one of their sponsors. Every show ended with a parting shot of the whole design team sitting down to milk and cookies with whatever congregation they’d just saved. It was the kind of heavily wholesome scene that made Janet dislike the show, even though her mother watched it every Thursday night she happened to be over for dinner.

      “I hope you know your hardware as well as you know your cookies,” Annie said as she placed an opened Dave’s box on the table and flipped open a thick file of lists. “Drew can come up with some pretty unusual requests.” She pulled her glasses out of her hair and put them back on. “Do you want us to just purchase whatever stock you’ve got, or do you want us to place our special orders through you, too?”

      Janet froze with the cookie halfway to her mouth. “You’re going to buy your supplies through me?”

      Annie looked surprised. “You don’t want us to?”

      “I’m…” Janet hid her astonishment behind a mouthful of cookie. “I just figured you guys got your stuff through HomeBase.” The hardware megastore chain was one of Missionnovation’s major sponsors.

      “Well, we do loads of business with them, that’s true, but we also try to do as much local business as we can.”

      Annie popped up off her chair and filled a mug from the coffeemaker behind her. Janet noticed a bank of electronic equipment—walkie-talkies, headphones, video-cameras and several machines she couldn’t recognize—on a shelf over Annie’s head. The woman hoisted her cup Janet’s way in a “want some?” gesture, but Janet shook her head. She had never really been the coffeemaker after-breakfast type. “And, in answer to your question, yes,” Annie said as she turned back toward the counter to add a big swig of creamer to her cup. “He really is like that.”

      “Like what?” Janet hadn’t asked a question. Out loud, that is.

      “Like what you see on TV. The thing nobody seems able to figure out is that Missionnovation is exactly what it looks like. There’s no hype or gimmick. Drew and Charlie—that’d be Charlie Buchanan, our producer—just hit on one of those great ideas where everybody wins.” Annie sat back down, and Janet wanted to gulp. Had her suspicions been that apparent? “This is a first-class, faith-filled, high-integrity operation, Janet. If you have any problems, even the tiniest one, you come straight to Drew or me, okay?”

      I don’t know the first thing about you except what I see on TV—that hardly seems enough to go on. Janet stared at the long lists in Annie’s hands. The first page alone had more orders on it than Janet had seen all month. The first file—and there were six—probably doubled all the sales ledgers sitting in her office. If what this Annie said was true, then Bishop Hardware might not have a “slow season” this fall. And that would make a world of difference. Slowly, Janet nodded. “I’d be a fool not to take you up on it.”

      “Good. I’m glad we got that out of the way. We’re the real deal, Janet.” Annie dunked a cookie into her coffee. “And you can take that to the bank. We’ll try never to give you a reason to worry.”

      They were just going over the third file when a noise rose up outside the bus and the doors pushed open.

      “Annie,” came Drew Downing’s voice over the crowd, “we got our octopus!”

      Chapter Three

      “Octopus?” Janet glanced between them.

      “Drew, this is Janet Bishop.”

      “Hi, there.” Downing sounded as if he had run the whole way back from the church. “Howard Epson is going to be a handful. Serious octopus.”

      “The guy who has to have his hand in everything,” explained Annie with a wry grin.

      “Oh.” Janet couldn’t suppress a smile. She had an amusing vision of Mayor Howard Epson’s ever-present blue cardigan sweater suddenly sprouting six extra sleeves. “Yeah, that sounds like Howard.”

      Drew used one foot to tug over a stool while he reached into the bus fridge for a bottle of water. “I know he’s probably a good guy, but we’ve got to find something safe—lots of safe somethings—for Mayor Epson to do. I won’t get a thing done if he’s all over this the way he wants to be.”

      Annie sighed. “There’s an octopus on every project. And it usually is the one who sent in the application. It’s great that they feel such a sense of ownership, but…”

      “Howard is a bit of an attention and control freak,” Janet offered.

      “Being elected for three straight terms as Mayor of Middleburg does not qualify you to run a bulldozer.” Drew gulped down some water before continuing. “He can’t be the guy to knock down the gym. You need certification to do that sort of thing. Try and talk to him again, will you, Annie?”

      “And that,” said Annie, gathering up a clipboard, “is the other part of my job. Shenanigan Prevention and Octopus Wrangler. Put that on a business card.”

      “Shenanigan?” Drew looked at Janet.

      “Long story,” Janet answered dryly.

      “You two finish going over that list. I’ll go deal with His Honor.” Annie snagged her coffee mug—a green mug with the white Missionnovation logo on both sides—and headed out the door.

      “I’m Drew,” Downing said as he extended a hand. She thought it was funny that he introduced СКАЧАТЬ