“I’m sorry about everything,” I said.
“It’s okay,” he said, then leaned into my shoulder and sobbed. “Oh, God, I feel so awful.” I gave his back a gentle pat, but he tore away and rushed into the church.
As we processed slowly into St. Luke’s, Tom murmured to me that we were on our way to getting justice for Jack and Doc Finn. Yes, okay.
As Father Pete led the prayers, my thoughts returned to Jack’s last note to me: “Finn left me this key, he said, as an insurance policy, in case something happened to him. But I don’t know what it goes to, and I couldn’t figure it out. Maybe you can.” And I had.
But despite my reconciliation with Lucas, I didn’t yet feel a sense of comfort regarding the death of his father. No, not by a long shot. Once again, Jack’s words came to mind: “I’ve had a good run, and you were a big part of it.”
He’d given me puzzles and games, and love. And I’d always worked on solving his puzzles, including the last one. And I’d loved him right back.
We prayed, and Arch, bless his heart, got up in front of the congregation and talked about how much fun Jack had been. I hadn’t been up to it; nor had Lucas. Tom squeezed my hand.
Finally, at the end of the service, I thought of the last words in his note: “Wherever God sends me, I want you to know that I’ll be thinking of you.”
Now, when I miss my godfather, that’s what I remember.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
The author would like to acknowledge the help of the following people: Jim Davidson, Jeff, Rosa, Ryan, and Nicholas Davidson, with particular thanks to Rosa for help with the Spanish in the text; J. Z. Davidson; Joey Davidson; Linda, David, and Becca Ranz, with thanks for giving me a place to work in Nashville; Sandra Dijkstra, my extraordinarily hardworking agent, along with her excellent team; Carolyn Marino, my superb and kind editor; Brian Murray, Jane Friedman, and Michael Morrison, all of whom have been very supportive of Goldy; Lisa Gallagher, for the tremendous job she has done at Morrow; Dee Dee De-Bartlo, Joseph Papa, Wendy Lee, and the rest of the fabulous team at Morrow/HarperCollins; Kathy Saideman, for her remarkably insightful readings of the text; Richard Staller, D.O., who always patiently answers my many medical questions; Carol Alexander, for patiently and lovingly testing all the recipes; the following writers friends, who are always willing to be supportive: Julie Kaewert, Jasmine Cresswell, Emilie Richards, Connie Laux, Karen Young Stone, and Leslie O’Kane; Ed Neiman, the wonderful chef and chief caterer of Sage Creek Foods in Evergreen; Ed’s phenomenal sous-chef, the tremendously talented Dave Pruett, who patiently instructed me for hours as he allowed me to work a wedding and reception with his team; Triena Harper, who, even though she is retired from being deputy coroner of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, still helps me enormously; and as always, my amazingly helpful source on police procedure, Sergeant Richard Millsapps, now also retired from the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department, Golden, Colorado.
RECIPES IN
Julian’s Summer Frittata
8 ounces fresh broccoli
6 tablespoons best-quality extra-virgin olive oil, divided
1 red onion, sliced
8 ounces fresh baby spinach
8 ounces fresh mushrooms
1 bunch green onions
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
12 large eggs
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 teaspoon kosher salt
? teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
? cup freshly grated Parmesan (preferred type: genuine Parmigiano-Reggiano), divided
? cup finely chopped or grated Havarti cheese
Preheat the oven to 350°F.
Rinse the broccoli and remove the stems. On a large cutting board, chop it into bite-size morsels. Measure out 2 cups and reserve the remainder for another use.
Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil; place the broccoli on the foil and mix with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, then put the onion on top of the broccoli and pour 2 tablespoons of oil on top. Bake for 10 minutes, stir, then return to the oven for 15 minutes, or until the broccoli is tender. Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly. (Leave the oven on.)
While the broccoli and onion are cooling, wash the spinach and steam until wilted, allowing only the water that clings to the leaves in the pot. Watch carefully; do not scorch. This only takes a couple of minutes. Drain and allow the spinach to cool. When the spinach is cool enough to handle, use paper towels to carefully wring out all liquid. Remove the spinach to a cutting board and chop it.
Clean and finely chop the mushrooms. Using a clean cloth towel that can be stained, or paper towels, wring all liquid out of the mushrooms. Clean and finely slice the green onions. Measure out ? cup and reserve the remainder for another use.
In a large, ovenproof saute pan, melt the butter over medium-low heat and saute the ? cup green onions and mushroom pieces until the mushrooms begin to separate. Remove from the heat, place in a bowl, and wipe out the pan.
In a large mixing bowl, beat the eggs until they are well blended, then blend in the cream, seasonings, ? cup of the Parmesan, and Havarti. Mix the cooled spinach, broccoli, onion, and green onion–mushroom mixture into the egg-cheese mixture. Over medium heat, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons of oil in the ovenproof saute pan just until it ripples. Carefully pour the egg-cheese-vegetable mixture into the pan. Sprinkle the remaining Parmesan on top.
Place the pan in the oven and bake for approximately 25 minutes, or until the center is set.
