“I’m already using a safe social security number,” she said. “If Kevin knew about it, he would have tracked me down already. And if I’m going to stay in Southport, it’s something I need to do.”
He shook his head. “Katie…”
She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. “It’s okay,” she said. “My name’s not Katie, remember?”
He traced the curve of her cheek with his finger. “To me, you’ll always be Katie.”
She smiled. “I have a secret,” she said. “My hair isn’t naturally brown. I’m really a blond.”
He sat back, processing this new information. “Are you sure you want to be telling me this?”
“I figure you’ll find out eventually, anyway. Who knows? Maybe I’ll go back to being a blond one day.”
“What’s this all about? Wanting to learn how to drive, volunteering information?”
“You told me I could trust you.” She shrugged. “I believe you.”
“That’s it?”
“Yes,” she said. “I feel like I can tell you anything.”
He studied their hands, locked together on the seat divider, before looking at her. “Then I’ll cut to the chase. Are you sure your documents will hold up? They can’t be copies. They have to be originals.”
“I know,” she said.
He knew better than to ask anything more. He reached for the keys but didn’t start the engine.
“What is it?” she asked.
“Since you want to learn how to drive, we may as well start now.” He opened the door and got out. “Let’s get you behind the wheel.”
They switched places. As soon as Katie was behind the wheel, Alex pointed out the basics: gas and brake pedals, how to put the car in gear, turn signals, lights and wipers, gauges on the dashboard. It was always best to start at the beginning.
“You ready?” he asked.
“I think so,” she said, concentrating.
“Since it’s not a manual transmission, you use only one foot. It’s either on the accelerator or the brake, okay?”
“Okay,” she said. She moved her left foot near the door.
“Now, push down on the brake and start the car. When you’re ready, keep the brake on while you put the transmission in reverse. Don’t use the accelerator, and slowly release the brake. Then turn the wheel to back out, keeping your foot lightly on the brake.”
She did exactly as she was told and backed the car out gingerly before he guided her out of the parking lot. For the first time, she paused. “Are you sure I should drive onto the main road?”
“If there was a lot of traffic, I’d say no. If you were sixteen, I’d say no. But I think you can handle it, and I’m right here to help. You ready? What you’re going to do is turn right, and we’ll follow that until the next turn. Then we’ll turn right again. I want you to get a feel for the car.”
They spent the next hour driving along rural roads. Like most beginners, she had trouble with oversteering, she sometimes veered onto the shoulder, and parking took a little while to get used to, but other than that, she did better than probably either of them expected. As they were getting close to finishing, Alex had her park on one of the downtown streets.
“Where are we going?”
He pointed to a small coffee shop. “I figured you might want to celebrate. You did well.”
“I don’t know,” she said. “I didn’t feel like I knew what I was doing.”
“That comes with practice,” he said. “The more you drive, the more natural it feels.”
“Can I drive tomorrow?” she asked.
“Of course,” he said. “Can we do it in the morning, though? Now that Josh is out of school, he and Kristen are at day camp for a couple of weeks. They get home around noon.”
“Mornings are perfect,” she said. “Do you really think I did okay?”
“You could probably pass the driving portion of the exam with a couple more days of practice. Of course, you have to pass the written test, too, but all that takes is some prep time.”
She reached out and gave him a spontaneous hug. “Thanks for this, by the way.”
He hugged her back. “I’m glad to help. Even if you don’t have a car, it’s something you should probably know how to do. Why didn’t you…?”
“Learn to drive when I was younger?” She shrugged. “Growing up, we had only one car and my dad was usually using it. Even if I got my license, I wouldn’t have been able to drive, so it never struck me as all that important. After I moved out, I couldn’t afford a car, so again, I didn’t bother. And then, when I was married, Kevin didn’t want me to have one.” She turned. “And here I am. A twenty-seven-year-old bike rider.”
“You’re twenty-seven?”
“You knew that.”
“Actually, I didn’t.”
“And?”
“You don’t look a day over thirty.”
She punched him lightly in the arm. “For that, I’m going to make you buy me a croissant, too.”
“Fair enough. And since you’re in the mood for full disclosure, I’d like to hear the story of how you finally got away.”
She hesitated only briefly. “Okay,” she said.
At a small table outside, Katie related the account of her escape — the forwarded phone calls, the trip to Philadelphia, the ever-changing jobs and miserable flophouses, the eventual trip to Southport. Unlike the first time, now she was able to describe her experiences calmly, as though talking about someone else. When she finished, he shook his head.
“What?”
“I was just trying to imagine how you must have felt after hanging up on that final call from Kevin. When he still thought you were at home. I’ll bet you were relieved.”
“I was. But I was also terrified. And at that point, I still didn’t have a job and didn’t know what I was going to do.”
“But you made it.”
“Yes,” she said. “I did.” Her gaze was focused on some distant point. “It’s not the kind of life I ever imagined for myself.”
Alex’s tone was gentle. “I’m not sure anyone’s life turns out exactly the way they imagine. All we can do is to try to make the best of it. Even when it seems impossible.”
She knew he was talking as much about himself as he was about her, and for a long moment neither of them said anything.
“I love you,” he finally whispered.
She leaned forward and touched his face. “I know. And I love you, too.”
26
By late June, the flower gardens in Dorchester that had been ablaze with color in the spring were beginning to wilt, the blooms turning brown and curling inward. The humidity had begun to creep up and the alleys in downtown Boston began to smell of rotting food and urine and decay. Kevin told Coffey and Ramirez that he and Erin were going to spend the weekend at home, watching movies and doing a little gardening. Coffey had asked about Provincetown and Kevin had lied and told him about the bed-and-breakfast where they’d stayed and some of the restaurants they’d gone to. Coffey had said that he’d been to all of those places and asked if Kevin had ordered the crab cakes at one of them. Kevin said that he hadn’t but would the next time.
Erin was gone, but Kevin still looked for her everywhere. He couldn’t help it. As he drove the streets of Boston and saw the glint of gold brushing a woman’s shoulders, he would feel his heart catch in his throat. He
