The front door creaks opens. Jack and I scoop up our rubies and slip them into our pockets. Dad’s work boots clunk onto the plastic tray by the door and his footsteps pound through the living room.
Moments later, Dad enters the kitchen in his socks. A neat freak, I think he’d rather have a coronary than wear shoes in the house. His face is chiseled with wrinkles and his temples look grayer than normal. I bet he’s been working since dawn.
His eyes brighten when he sees us. “Hey, kids. I’m surprised you’re still around. Figured you’d be out causing trouble with Cooper by now.”
Jack rubs his eyes. “Late night. We’ll probably head out soon. Unless…you need me to stay around and help you some more.” He looks apprehensive, as if he’s only asking to be nice.
Dad laughs, but it’s tinged with weariness. He lifts the coffeepot from the machine on the counter and pours a fresh mug. “Nah. I appreciated your help with the storm cleanup, but now that we’ve repaired the last of the broken shutters, I’ve just got to run to the hardware store for some paint. I might even get to take the afternoon off.”
Jack smiles. “Awesome. ’Cause I didn’t want to deal with any more fallen trees.”
Dad smirks. “I know. It must be tiring watching me chop all that wood.” He takes a swig of coffee. “I’m hungry. You want some pancakes? You haven’t touched that cereal of yours, Emma. And I know you can always eat again, Jack.”
“Heck yeah.” Jack rubs his unfairly flat midsection.
Although my talk with Jack didn’t fix our problems, it has calmed my stomach, at least a little bit. Plus Dad’s homemade pancakes are about the best in the world. “Yeah, that would be great.” I dump the untouched cereal back in the box.
Dad opens the cupboard and pulls a bag of flour, some sugar, and a box of baking powder from the shelf.
The phone rings. Jack jumps to answer, knowing better than to ignore it. No one ever calls on that line except Beau or Missy, and it’s usually to demand something ridiculous. Personally, I don’t get why my father takes their crap, but it’s his job, one he takes very seriously, so we don’t give him too much trouble about it.
“Hello?” Jack’s eyes stretch wide. “Hang on, this isn’t Jed. Let me get my dad.” Covering the mouthpiece, Jack shakes his head. “She’s totally freaking out. Like more than normal. Says it’s an emergency.” He hands over the receiver.
No matter what it is, whether it’s hanging a drape or changing a lightbulb, in Missy’s world, it’s always an emergency. Though considering the argument we witnessed between her and Beau last night, maybe there’s a reason for it.
Dad takes a deep breath before he lifts the phone to his ear. “Yes, Missy, what can I do for you?” I can’t make out her specific words, but from the muffled sounds I can hear, I’m fairly sure she’s crying. Dad’s brow creases. “Slow down. I don’t understand. What’s going on? Is it Beau?” He exhales. “All right. Is it the plumbing? Do you smell gas? Then what’s the problem?” Moments pass before he pinches the bridge of his nose and asks, “What do you mean broken?” More indiscriminate whelps emerge. He sighs. “Okay. I’ve got to run to the hardware store first. I promised Beau I’d finish the shutters today.” Her shrieks pierce through the speaker, causing Dad to yank the phone from his ear.
“It can’t wait.” Missy’s voice screams from the earpiece, nearly as loud as if she was standing right next to us. “Now get over here and do your job. Unless you want to lose it!” She wails then breaks into uncontrollable sobs.
“Okay. Don’t cry. I’ll be right there.” He cuts off the call then stands frozen as if he doesn’t know what to do next.
“What the heck was that about?” Jack brows are quirked.
Dad yanks himself out of his daze and turns to us, a blank look on his face. “I’m going to need to a rain check on that breakfast.”
…
Cooper, Jack, and I exit the hardware store, our arms laden with supplies for my dad. My stomach grumbles. Again.
“Excuse me.” I shift my bags to rub my still-empty and grouchy stomach. After Dad’s freaky call from Missy, I forgot all about breakfast. Instead, Jack and I waited for Cooper to pick us up and then drive into Beaufort to get the paint and other stuff Dad called about after he got to the Big House. I’m not sure why he needs drywall tape and joint compound but there’s never any rhyme or reason to Missy’s demands, so it’s not worth contemplating. It might even be related to the Great Burglar Menace, which means there’s no worry at all.
Jack’s head snaps toward me when my stomach growls again. “Come on, Em. That’s the fourth time in an hour. Can we please get you something to eat? You’re making me hungry. Let’s load this stuff in the car and get a burger or something.” He points across the street to Daisy’s Diner, one of our favorite spots.
Now that he’s mentioned food, the pit in my belly seems to have grown deeper. But we didn’t come out for lunch and, unlike Jack, I can hold out if I have to. “What about Dad?”
“We won’t be long. Heck, we can even take it to go. But if I have to listen to your stomach again, I might go crazy,” Jack says.
“Look, it’s Taneea,” Cooper says.
“Where?” I twist my head to see where he’s pointing.
“Ta
There she is on the sidewalk, in giant black sunglasses, texting on her iPhone. She’s wearing yet another statement piece, a curve-hugging, black mini-tank dress and bright pink platform espadrilles that perfectly match her fuchsia streaks. The diamond stud above her lip glints in the sun.
“Who is she?” Jack leans over me to get a good look. “And how do you two know her when I don’t?”
“We met yesterday,” Cooper says. “She’s Miss Delia’s great-granddaughter. From Chicago.”
“What’s she doing here?” Jack asks.
“Apparently hard time,” I mumble under my breath because I know it’s not exactly charitable to be so mean. But given the move she tried to make on Cooper yesterday, she totally deserves it.
“Officially she’s here to help Miss Delia for the summer,” Cooper says, ever the optimist and proponent of the bright side.
“Unofficially it’s because her mom kicked her out,” I add.
Jack’s eyes brighten with understanding. “That explains a lot.” His eyes travel the lengthy distance between her eyebrow ring and hot pink toenails.
Just then, a big, old-looking black car with dark tinted windows pulls up to the curb. Taneea smiles and tosses her cell into her oversize black leather bag. Flipping her shaggy bangs, she prances around to the passenger side, opens the door, and disappears inside. The engine revs then speeds down the street.
Cooper scratches his temple. “After all she said yesterday, I didn’t think she knew anyone down here.”
“I guess she made a friend,” I say. Based on that getup of hers, it probably wasn’t hard.
Jack laughs as he shoves the supplies in the trunk. “Wow, I bet she’s a ton of fun.”
I watch as the car disappears from sight. “Or a bucket of crazy. Doesn’t she know not to climb into a car with a stranger?”
“Maybe she’s lonely,” Cooper says. “What do you think, Jack? She’s available. You’re available. Maybe you two should hang out. You’re a little weird, but you’re safer than a random dude with tinted windows.”
Jack’s smile slips. “No thanks.”
“Hey, I didn’t mean—”
“No, it’s not that. Ever since Maggie, you know, left, I’ve sworn off chicks.”
Maggie didn’t leave so much as disappear. Literally. Because she was a ghost, killed nearly three hundred years ago by Bloody Bill and his pirates. And until we broke The Creep, she was his girlfriend.
