reintroductions, and Sirius wagged his tail as if he remembered each and every mourner; maybe he did.
In the midst of all the shaking and wagging, I caught sight of Lisbet. She flashed me a smile before returning to more last-minute demands on her time. Lisbet was wearing a dark outfit, but pinned to her blouse was a bright red rose.
The notes from a flute called all of us to gather, the music playing over the freeway noise. The same flutist had also played at the last funeral. Sirius and I took up positions on the outskirts of the garden, and my eyes drifted over to all of the gravestone crosses that were already in place. A number of items had been left atop and around the crosses. There were religious objects to be sure-crucifixes and Saint Christopher medals-but most of the remembrances were kid things like toy cars, superhero necklaces, stuffed animals, and dolls.
I studied the names on the crosses. There appeared to be about an equal number of boys and girls buried. In the middle of the plot was a large tree; the last funeral I’d attended had occurred on a hot desert day and I remembered how that tree had provided needed shelter. The shade wasn’t necessary today, but the shadows of the tree seemed to be reaching out to offer a group hug.
A clergywoman stepped forward to give the eulogy. You wouldn’t think there would be much to say about Rose. There wasn’t much entered in her murder book other than pictures from the crime scene, my notes, and the coroner’s identification card, which showed two baby feet and ten perfect little toes. A coroner’s ID card isn’t the kind of memento that should be in a baby’s scrapbook. Luckily, I wasn’t giving the eulogy. My emphasis would have been on the death of baby Rose, but the clergywoman was somehow able to make it about her life. She built on the scant hours that Rose had lived, and personalized her. The death of an innocent, we heard, was a sacrifice from which all of us should learn. The clergywoman quoted from Matthew, saying how we had to become like little children in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. According to her, that was where Rose already was. I hoped she was right. In the meantime, I’d be working the case on planet earth.
When the minister finished talking, a man stepped forward and opened a birdcage. It took a little prompting for the three white doves inside to realize that the prison doors were open. When the birds flew out, they circled above the garden and for a few moments appeared unsure of which way to go, but then all three of them set off east in the direction of distant mountains. The doves had the good sense to be flying away from LA.
The flute music started up again, and I recognized the tune to “Rock of Ages.” There were a lot of wet eyes in the crowd, but more smiles. Normally, I would have hurried away while the music was still playing, but this time I felt the need to socialize. I wasn’t alone. Fellowship seemed to be on the docket of all. I wanted to talk to Lisbet, but she was surrounded by those who also wanted a little of her time. Our eyes met over the crowd, and I signaled for her to meet me over at the punch bowl. She nodded but managed to convey that I would need to wait for her to disentangle herself.
Sirius and I slowly made our way over to the refreshments. We were stopped by a few people that had missed us on the first go-around. Once we passed through that gauntlet, I poured Sirius a cup of water and me some punch.
The sun was setting and the Garden of Angels was bathed in golden light. The sun’s rays seemed to spotlight one grave marker in particular. Beneath the name Amanda were the words “Deserved to be loved.”
Sirius’s happy sounds alerted me to Lisbet’s approach. “Hello you,” she said, talking to the dog and then leaning down to scratch him.
“If I make those sounds,” I asked, “will you scratch me?”
“Only if you roll over and beg first.”
She smiled at me and made me feel good inside. I had planned on nothing more than a short conversation with Lisbet, but suddenly that wasn’t enough.
“I hope this doesn’t sound inappropriate,” I said, “and it probably is, and if it is I apologize, but are you doing anything afterward?”
It took Lisbet a moment to make sense of my meandering question.
“I have to stay here for another half hour or so,” she said, “but I’m free after that.”
My head started bobbing up and down, but the bobblehead imitation didn’t help me with my speaking skills, and once more I found myself babbling. “Good. I mean, that will work for me. We are talking about dinner, aren’t we? Because I know we discussed having lunch, but this way we can kill two birds with one stone.”
I finally took a breath and then said, “Sorry, that didn’t come out quite right.”
Lisbet lightly touched my burning left cheek and delivered me from feeling felony stupid with a smile. “Dinner sounds great.”
“Good,” I said. “Okay, then. I guess I’ll take Sirius for a walk while you finish up here.”
“Enjoy your walk.”
Waving seemed like a better option than talking. I needed to study those tapes of the old me again, I thought, so that I could remember who I was supposed to be and how I used to act. I wanted to be that self- confident man again and not some blithering idiot.
There wasn’t much in the way of scenery near the cemetery, and I didn’t think it appropriate to go look at headstones with Sirius, so we set off up the long driveway. After the fact, I started giving some thought as to where I’d be taking Lisbet to eat. I wanted a quiet spot that was comfortable and not stuffy. Usually my only concern is if the restaurant has a patio and allows me to bring my partner. Tonight my date was going to be much less hairy and only have two legs.
I used my phone to check out dining options in Palm Springs. Usually I only care if the food is good. This time I also checked on comments that spoke to ambience. The Europa Restaurant received high marks in both. I called for reservations and then asked the hostess for directions. She provided them and then said, “You can’t miss it.”
I thanked her, and hung up, but was sure she had jinxed me and said as much to Sirius.
“Whenever anyone says, ‘You can’t miss it,’ you always do,” I said. “When ‘Wrong-Way’ Corrigan took off from New York, he didn’t end up in California. No, he ended up in Ireland. I am sure someone said to him, ‘You can’t miss it.’”
Sirius didn’t look interested.
“Cucamonga,” I said, and my partner responded with a little dance.
We began walking back to the Garden of Angels. From a distance the cemetery appeared to be deserted, but as we drew closer I could see that Lisbet had one final task awaiting her. Two cemetery workers were lowering a small pink casket into the ground.
Sirius and I didn’t encroach. With a bowed head, Lisbet waited for the casket to be positioned and the hole filled. Her vigil continued even after the workers finished with the burial. It was dark when Lisbet finally took her leave of Rose. I was feeling a bit uncomfortable by then and wondered if suggesting dinner had been a good idea, but Lisbet quickly dispelled any doubts.
“Sorry to keep you waiting,” she said, “but I don’t like to leave the children until I have this sense that they’re settled. It’s always a huge relief for me when they’re buried and, well, when they’re home. I know that probably sounds crazy.”
“What’s crazy is that they’re here in the first place. Are you still okay for dinner?”
“Okay? You hear my stomach grumbling? I’m afraid if you listen closely you might hear it growling the words ‘Donner Party.’”
“Barring any blizzards, we should get to the restaurant in about half an hour.”
“I hope you’re right, otherwise it might cost you an arm and a leg.”
Once we were in the car and on the road, I pointed to the glove compartment. “Inside you’ll find your choice of appetizers, madam.”
Lisbet flipped it open and started pulling out odds and ends that I’d taken away from restaurants. There were several packages of saltines, oyster crackers, sugar packets, dinner mints, and some hot sauce.
“You really know how to spoil a girl.”
“If you’re still hungry, there’s also a box of dog biscuits under your seat.”
Lisbet rummaged around and came up with the box. Sirius’s ears perked up at the sound and she asked, “Can I give him one?”
“He’s sort of particular and won’t take food from someone he doesn’t know well.”
Sirius put his muzzle on Lisbet’s shoulder and took a dog biscuit from her without any hesitation. He was already munching when I told him, “It’s okay to eat, boy.”
