•CHAPTER SIX•
I left Michelle’s house and packed Laurie into the car. When I pulled out from the parking spot, my trunk flew open.
I reparked the car and jumped out to slam the trunk shut. It ricocheted back in my face. I examined the lock.
Jimmied.
Someone had broken into my car. A wave of desperation came over me, filling me with the urge to cry.
I looked into the trunk. My overdue library books were still there and so was my leather jacket. Nothing seemed to be missing. Still, I couldn’t shake the feeling that I had been violated.
Someone had rummaged through my stuff. My car. My library books. My jacket.
I pulled into our garage. When I got out of the car, my pelvic bones ached from so much activity. Jim sat on our steps sorting through George’s bags.
“How’s my little lima bean?”
“Not good. Someone broke into my car.”
“What? Where?” Jim stood and came over to me.
“In front of Michelle’s.”
“Who?”
“Michelle Dupree, who is now Michelle Avery. My friend from high school. Do you remember her?”
Jim unstrapped Laurie from her car seat. “Not really.”
“You met her at the ten-year reunion.”
“Oh! Vaguely.” A corner of Jim’s mouth twitched up. “Is she the one who won the drama award that should have-”
“Been mine? Yeah.”
Jim smiled.
“It
“You got the popularity award, or whatever it was called. Popularity? Personality?”
“I wanted the drama award. I earned it. They only gave it to her because of their stupid philosophy about spreading out the awards, so that no one student would dominate.”
Jim’s smirk turned into a laugh. “They thought they could stop you from dominating?”
“If you weren’t holding Laurie right now, I’d punch you.”
“Have a baby, lose a sense of humor?” Jim teased.
I covered my face with my hands. “I’m tired. It was her husband. The guy they found in the bay. Brad Avery.”
Jim’s face darkened, his playful mood vanishing. “That’s awful.” He rubbed my back with his free hand. “I’m so sorry, honey. Where’s Michelle live?”
“Noe Valley. Not a bad neighborhood. I had to tie my trunk down so it would stay shut.”
“Anything missing?”
“Not that I can tell. My jacket’s still there. They didn’t even have the decency to take the library books and return them.”
He laughed and kissed my neck. “I’m glad nothing happened to you or Laurie.” He handed the baby to me. “I’ll take your car in for repair tomorrow on my way to the office and drop your books off for you, too.”
“That’s why I love you so much.” I pointed to George’s bags. “Anything interesting?”
“Nope. Clothes and crap. You know, toothbrush, a toilet kit, jeans, T-shirts. Looks like he was living out of these bags, Kate. No wonder the medical examiner asked if he was a transient. I found the cell phone bill. I called the number. No longer in service. What a shock.” He squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. “My brother, a fucking bum. My parents are probably spinning in their graves.”
I pressed my head against his chest. “Michelle said he works at El Paraiso.” I pulled back and looked at Jim.
A glimmer of hope flashed on his face. “She knows him?”
“Yup. Says they were together the night Brad was killed.”
Jim moaned and shook his head. “I knew nothing good was going to come from any of this.”
I hardly slept that night. Well, better said, Laurie hardly slept. We were up nursing, rocking, and singing. As soon as daylight started to peek through the window, Laurie conked out. I slipped into bed next to Jim as the alarm went off.
He turned to me. “Are you just getting to bed now?”
“Mmmhmm.”
“I’ll take the night shift tonight,” he said.
I nodded off, wondering how he would take the night shift without breasts.
At 9 A.M., after a three-hour nap, Laurie awoke hungry. I nursed her, then rose to change her diaper. Her umbilical stump had come off. I examined her new belly button. Beautiful. My little girl was beautiful.
Images of her at fifteen years old, with her belly button pierced, flashed through my mind. My baby was growing up so fast.
I clutched her to me. “Take your time, will you?”
I laid her on my bed, then ransacked Jim’s closet in search of anything that fit, settling on a blue plaid shirt that hung over my now too-large maternity pants. I stuffed my feet into my favorite pair of black strappy sandals. The shoes were so tight, they cut off the circulation to my toes.
How depressing.
I kicked off the stupid sandals and shoved on a pair of stretched-out Keds. Would my old shoes ever fit again?
Laurie patiently gazed into space. I took advantage of her good mood and sat for a moment to compose my to-do list.
To Do:
1. Lose weight (What? I’m still the same weight after having given birth two weeks ago. Aren’t the pounds supposed to melt right off when you breastfeed?)
2. Call work and let them know about Laurie and plan a return date-yuk! (Send the office an e-mail with photos of Laurie. That way I don’t have to talk to anyone right now about my return date. Don’t even want to think about heading back to Corporate Hell and leaving Laurie.)
3. Find George-El Paraiso-drop off his bags.
4. What happened to Brad???
5. Grocery shop. (Right now would only be able to make Cheerios for dinner!)
6. Laundry. (How does the addition of one six-pound baby create so much laundry?)
7. E-mail Paula-tell her about Michelle Avery.
I found parking relatively close to El Paraiso, with the only hitch being a one-hour maximum on the meter.
Oh, shoot! George’s bags! With all the preparation required to get Laurie out of the house, I had forgotten his bags.
