Voice hoarse, Lindsay said, “She had no other family. The landlord put her up in a hotel. She locked herself inside it for two weeks after the funeral. I don’t think she even ate. She tried to come back to work after. I don’t think she knew what else to do. But her first day back, one of her students came to the office, face pale, and whispered to me that Mrs. Watson was just sitting there, staring at the ceiling, tears falling on the papers on her desk. The kids didn’t know what to do.”
“Then she left,” Officer Weyland said. “Walked right out the front door without saying a word. We never saw or heard from her again.”
Silence engulfed them once more. It lasted until a tall black man burst through the door like Kramer on Seinfeld. He stopped short as he looked from one crying woman to the next, finally landing his gaze on Officer Weyland. “Everything okay in here, Karl?”
“Everything’s fine, Mr. Johnson. We’ll just be a few more minutes, if you don’t mind telling the other teachers to give us some privacy for that long, I’d appreciate it.”
“Yeah,” he glanced around the somber room again, “yeah, no problem. I’ll station myself right outside the door.”
Kaylee cleared her throat. “Well, you answered all my questions without me even asking. What do you want to know from me?”
Beth leaned forward, her eyes drilling into Kaylee’s. “Where is she?”
“She’s…” Kaylee looked down at her hands, wringing in her lap. “She’s in Colorado. She’s helped so many young people get off the streets. But she refuses to get off the streets herself. She won’t talk about her past—I had to turn into an amateur sleuth to figure out what I did.”
“Colorado.” Sara hissed through her teeth. “It’s got to be mighty cold there. Please tell me she at least stays in a shelter.”
Kaylee shook her head. “She won’t. She stays under a viaduct, with her small, protective army of kids. I’ve supplied them all with warm sleeping bags. They have a place for a fire. She buys them food with the money from her retirement checks.” Kaylee sighed. “She’s the most stubborn person I think I’ve ever met.”
The three women laughed and nodded. “How’s her health?” Beth asked.
Kaylee shook her head. “It was good—up until a few weeks ago. She’s developed a cough. I’ve been bringing her soup and medicine. My roommate’s boyfriend is a resident, medical student, and he got some antibiotics for her, but he said she needs to be in a hospital.”
“Maybe,” Beth looked down at the tissue in her hand, “if one of us…if I could come and talk to her, maybe I could talk her into going to the hospital.”
Kaylee’s voice softened. “She is going to be extremely angry with me for looking into her past. That was the one rule she had when she relented to speak with me—no questions about her past. But I’ll take any help I can get to convince her to go to the hospital.” She thought for a moment. “How about you give me your number? When I get back tomorrow and go check on Mama C, I’ll call you and hand her the phone. Maybe she won’t hang up on you.”
Beth smiled beneath her tears. “That would be wonderful.” She leaned forward and took Kaylee’s hands in hers. “Thank you, Kaylee.”
The weather had changed drastically in the hour she’d spent in the school. Kaylee zipped her coat and wound her scarf tighter around her neck. She turned away from the glass doors and toward Officer Weyland as she pulled her gloves on. “I’d like to get some authentic New York pizza while I’m here. Any suggestions?”
A wide smile brightened his face. “Well Miss Burke, that is something I can help you with for sure!” He pulled a small notebook and pen out of his shirt pocket and wrote as he talked. “Scarr’s is my personal favorite, and it’s not far from here. My wife prefers Nunzio’s in Staten Island, but that’s about a half-hour subway ride from here.”
“Scarr’s it is then.” Kaylee took the paper from his proffered hand and stuffed it into her coat pocket. “Thanks for all your help, Officer Weyland. I’ll be sure to let you know how Mama C is when I get back.”
She stepped out to the sidewalk, wishing she’d remembered to bring her ski hat as snowflakes fell from the graying sky. She sighed and pulled her right glove off so she could punch the address for Scarr’s into her phone. It was only a couple of miles away. She could walk since it wouldn’t be open for a while yet, anyway. She put her glove back on then turned in the direction her map showed and had taken a few steps when her phone buzzed in her hand.
Blayne: Hey, is everything okay
Kaylee pulled her glove off with her teeth and shoved it in her pocket before answering. Yes. I’m just leaving the school. I’m going to get some pizza.
Blayne: Why didn’t you text this morning? You said you’d text me before you left to go to the school
Her lips quirked up into a slight smile at his worry for her. I’m sorry. I realized when I got up that it would be really early in Colorado and I didn’t want to wake you up.
Blayne: I’m homeless and sleeping under a bridge I get up at around
