‘We heard the dragger go out the front door, right? We were downstairs and never saw Diamond go back up. But she was there when the chief went looking.’
I sighed. ‘Yeah, I sort of figured the same thing. So Diamond’s out.’
‘Not necessarily,’ he said. ‘If she really is a medium, maybe she had help getting whatever was being dragged out of the house.’
I looked at my husband like he’d lost his mind. He grinned at me. ‘Or we can forget this horseshit and get frisky.’
I stood up, grabbed his hand, and pulled. ‘Or we could go take a walk,’ I suggested.
‘Maybe we should call the girls first,’ he said – proving he was a better parent than I. ‘Looks like we won’t be getting home today.’
Megan’s phone rang and she looked at the screen. ‘Oh, shit! It’s Mom!’
‘You think they’re home already?’ Bess asked, automatically stepping on the brake, which elicited a honk from the car behind them.
‘I don’t know,’ Megan said, still staring at the screen. The phone rang for a third time.
‘Answer it, for God’s sake!’ Alicia said. ‘She’ll really be suspicious if no one answers!’
Megan nodded, took a deep breath, forced her lips into a smile and clicked the phone on. ‘Hi, Mom!’
‘Hey, sweetie,’ her mother said. ‘How are y’all doing?’
‘We’re just fine! Are y’all home already?’
‘No, that’s why—’
‘Because we’re headed to the movies!’ Megan said.
‘You’re not driving, are you?’
‘And talking on the phone at the same time?’ Megan said, widening her eyes in hopes that would show in her voice. ‘Of course not!’
‘Put me on speaker,’ her mother said.
‘OK,’ Megan said and did.
‘Hey, girls!’ E.J. called out.
‘Hey, Mom!’ both Bess and Alicia said in unison.
‘Look, something’s come up here and we won’t be able to get home tonight. Hopefully tomorrow, but even that’s iffy.’
‘What’s going on, Mom?’ Alicia asked, while Megan shot her a look.
‘Nothing for y’all to worry about,’ E.J. said. ‘I just wanted to let you know. Do you have any money left?’
‘Sure do,’ Bess said proudly.
‘Well, if we get stuck here any longer than tomorrow, Bess, you know the new hiding place for that credit card, right?’
‘Yes, ma’am,’ Bess said.
‘I don’t know why you think you can’t trust me with that know-ledge!’ Megan said.
‘I do!’ both Bess and Alicia said in unison.
‘Alicia! Do you know?’ Megan demanded.
‘I didn’t tell Alicia because I didn’t want you totally alone in your ignorance,’ E.J. said. ‘Anyway,’ she said, emphasizing the word, ‘use it for groceries only. I know the three of you will have been eating out all weekend! So it’s time to get healthy. And, by the way, go to school tomorrow, OK?’
‘Gawd, Mom!’ Bess said. ‘You know I’d never skip school!’
Megan sat back in her seat, arms across her chest as she stared out the windshield. ‘She’s talking to me, y’all.’
‘Of course not, sweetie,’ her mother said. ‘Just to the group in general. Y’all be good and I’ll keep you posted on when we’ll be leaving here.’
‘OK, Mom,’ Bess said. ‘Y’all be careful. I take it somebody got murdered?’
‘Goodbye girls,’ E.J. said and disconnected.
‘Somebody got murdered,’ Alicia said.
‘More than likely,’ Bess agreed.
‘I don’t know why she always thinks the worst of me!’ Megan wailed. ‘I’m a good kid!’
Bess patted her hand while Alicia patted her shoulder. ‘Of course you are,’ Alicia said. ‘Right, Bess?’
‘The best,’ Bess said, attempting not to roll her eyes.
‘Y’all are just trying to humor me!’ Megan said. ‘And it’s not working! What have I ever done to deserve this?’ she said, a tear spilling down her cheek.
Just as Bess opened her mouth to enumerate the many things her sister had done to weaken parental trust, Alicia said, ‘Absolutely nothing. And Mom loves you! Whose phone did she call? Bess’s? No! Mine? No! She called yours. And who does she always call sweetie? You!’
Bess considered all that for a moment, then said, ‘Yeah, her real child.’
Alicia threw herself back on the second row of seats. ‘I give up! You’re both out of your minds! You know what I’d give to have had the upbringing you two have had? An arm? A leg? Both? You bet! Try being abandoned by your parents! Then see how that grabs you!’ Alicia said, then burst into tears.
Bess pulled the minivan over to the side of the road, as she wasn’t able to see much because of the tears that had started streaming down her cheeks. Megan was hunched over in her seat, hands over her face, tears leaking through her fingers.
The three of them continued like this till they heard a chirping sound behind them, and Bess looked in the rearview mirror. ‘Oh, great! A cop!’ Still watching, she heaved a heavy sigh. ‘Even greater, it’s Luna!’
‘Oh, shit!’ Megan said, wiping her tear-streamed face on her T-shirt. The other two did the same and Bess buzzed open her window as the lieutenant for the Codderville police department, who lived next door and was as close as their mom got to a best friend, sidled up to the van.
‘Hey,’ Luna said, smiling, ‘I thought I recognized that minivan. Y’all having car trouble?’
‘No! Everything’s OK,’ Megan said. ‘There was a bee in the van but we got him out.’
‘Well, that’s not fun!’ Luna said. ‘Anybody get stung?’
‘No,’ Megan said, while her sisters vehemently shook their heads.
‘When are your mom and dad coming home?’ she asked.
‘Maybe tomorrow,’ Megan said.
‘Something came up,’ Bess added.
‘Probably another dead body,’ Alicia said.
‘What makes you think that?’ Elena Luna said with a frown.
All three girls looked at her with wide eyes.
Luna shrugged. ‘You’re right,’ she said, tapped the side of the minivan with her palm, and headed back to her unmarked car.
‘Y’all still on for Harper’s mom?’ Bess asked, putting the van in gear and checking her mirrors for oncoming cars.
‘Yes,’ Alicia said.
‘You bet your ass!’ Megan said.
There was an opening in the light Sunday traffic and Bess took it.
We strolled down Main Street hand in hand. It was a beautiful spring day, the sun bright but not yet killer. That was a few weeks off – hopefully. The streets of Peaceful were clean, no litter, and the windows of the storefronts gleamed from recent wars with a bottle of Windex. Some stores had merchandise on the sidewalk in front, most artfully displayed to attract attention. We stopped at a bookstore that had shelves on the sidewalk filled with used books and unused knick-knacks. Willis grabbed a history book on the building of the state capitol – it’s always been his dream to discover how Texas’s Lady Liberty originally reached the top of the rotunda. There were no pictures taken at that time to show how it was done. It’s a mystery. I found several real mysteries and trinkets for the kids.
We walked on, admiring this and that. I saw a dress at a sidewalk sale that screamed my name. OK, it screamed Diamond’s name a little louder than mine, as it was gauzy, drapey, bejeweled and bejangled, but I loved it just the same. So I bought it – without trying it on. It was the right size. I hoped.
Moving on, I noticed a concrete building one block up unlike the lovely Texas Gothic buildings we’d been passing. There were police cars outside and a not-so-discreet sign saying, ‘Peaceful Municipal Building,’ and underneath that, in smaller lettering, ‘City Court, City Manager, Mayor, Police, Fire Marshall.’ All in one building.
I pointed at it. ‘I wonder if Chief Cotton works on Sundays?’ I asked
Willis.
He stopped and stared at the sign, then at me. ‘Was that the plan this whole time?’ he asked, for some reason suspiciously.
This time I was innocent. ‘No! I had no idea where the police station was! How would I know?’ I sighed at his lack of trust in me. ‘Let’s go back. He’s probably not even there,’ I said, letting go of his hand and turning back the way we’d come.
‘Really? You didn’t plan this?’ he said, one eyebrow raised.
‘Really.’
‘On the heads of our children?’
‘Jesus, Willis! I wouldn’t claim the sun was shining on the heads of my children! For God’s sake, what’s wrong with you? No, I didn’t know this was the way to the police station. No, I am not lying. No, I don’t like you very much at this moment.’ And with that I started walking back to Miss Hutchins’ B&B.
Willis grabbed my arm. ‘Sorry,’ he said, smiling. ‘That was unfair.’
‘No shit, Sherlock,’ I muttered.
He pulled me to him, his arms around my back, my head on his shoulder. ‘You know there’s baggage,’ he said.
‘I know,’ I said.
‘I’m trying to be more open-minded,’ he said.
‘I know,’ I said.
He sighed. ‘OK, let’s go talk to Chief Cotton.’
I really hadn’t thought about going to see the chief, but I still thank God Willis didn’t see me smile.
BACK HOME
They were once again parked in the lot of the boat repair shop, down the road from the Bentons’ double-wide trailer. There were no cars under the carport or parked anywhere nearer their place than next door.
‘So we just go up and ring the bell?’ Bess ventured.
‘All three of us!’ Alicia said with some heat. ‘I’m not doing this alone!’
‘You didn’t do the last one alone!’ Megan shot back. ‘I’m the one who went in the dress shop.’
‘All three of us,’ Bess said.
‘Whatever,’ Megan said.
‘So what do we say?’ Alicia asked. ‘Megan, what’s our approach?’
Megan shrugged. ‘I dunno. Maybe, like, we know Harper’s preggers and we also know it’s not Logan’s?’ she suggested.
‘Sounds good,’ Bess said.
‘And when she runs us off with a broom, then what?’ Alicia asked.
‘Why, we run, of course!’ Bess said with a grin.
Alicia sighed and opened the side door of the minivan. ‘Sorry, but that doesn’t sound like fun to me.’
‘Give it some time,’ Megan said, patting her on the shoulder. ‘This stuff is, like, addictive.’
‘Pretty much,’ Bess agreed, grinning at Megan.
They walked across the street and up to the threshold of the Bentons’ front path. An oversized white mailbox rested atop a filigreed cast iron pole that appeared to be cemented into a half-sized barrel filled with impatiens. All three stopped as if on cue.
They looked at each other, then at the front door of the trailer. Megan squared her shoulders and took a step forward. Her sisters waited a beat, but then moved forward behind her. ‘Nothing to it but to do it,’ Megan muttered under her breath.
‘Amen,’ Alicia said quietly, taking Bess’s hand in her own.
While other trailers on the street appeared to have warped and rotting wood steps leading to the front door, or cement block steps that left several inches between the top step and the actual door, the Bentons’ front steps were stone and were squarely attached to the threshold of the front door. And although it was as high off the ground as the others, flowering shrubs hid the pipes and undercarriage of the Bentons’ trailer, unlike the ones that were apparent all up and down the street. The front yard was newly mown, and there were a couple of trees in the front with flower beds surrounding them. From the front they could see a heavily treed backyard.
Megan stepped up to the front door and rang the bell. Her sisters stood on the steps behind her. And they waited. And waited.
Finally they heard a woman’s voice say, ‘May I help you?’
They whirled around to see an older woman who appeared from around the side of the double-wide.
‘Mrs Benton?’ Megan asked.
‘Yes?’ she replied. She had a floppy hat on her head, garden gloves on her hands, and was armed with a spade.
‘We need to talk to you,’ Megan said, her voice a little belligerent.
Mrs Benton stiffened. ‘Who are you?’ she asked.
‘I’m sorry, Mrs Benton,’ Bess said, hopping down from the steps and walking over to her. She smiled brightly and offered her hand. The older woman held up her gloved hands away from Bess’s outstretched one.
‘Dirty,’ she said.
Bess continued to smile. ‘My name is Bess Pugh, and these are my sisters, Megan and Alicia.’
‘OK. To what do I owe the pleasure?’ she asked.
‘Could we go inside and talk?’ Bess asked.
‘Absolutely not,’ she said. ‘You gave me names, but that means nothing. In fact, I claim to be Mrs Benton, but there’s no proof at the moment that I am, is there?’ She looked from one girl to the next. ‘Why don’t you just tell me what you want?’
‘I’m not sure you want us talking about this where your neighbors can hear,’ Megan said.
Mrs Benton laughed. ‘You could murder me in the front yard and nobody around here would notice. Well, they might notice, but they wouldn’t do anything about it.’
‘Rough neighborhood?’ Bess asked.
‘It used to be nice. Not anymore. It’s horrible,’ the woman said. ‘Now what is this all about?’
‘We know about Harper!’ Megan said, coming down from the steps and moving into Mrs Benton’s space. The woman used her spade to move Megan back.
‘And just what do you think you know about my daughter?’ she said, her eyes slits.
‘That she’s pregnant!’ Megan said. ‘And that she’s claiming it’s Logan Harris’s and it’s not!’
Mrs Benton’s eyes opened wide. ‘She’s what?’
‘Pregnant!’ Megan said.
The woman gave Megan a blistering look. ‘I know that! But what makes you think she’s claiming it’s Logan’s?’ she demanded.
All three girls looked at each other. Finally, Bess spoke up. ‘We were at the place where Logan Harris works last night, and your son came in and grabbed him and took him outside and was beating the crap out of him! I jumped on his back—’
‘Then we came out and began hitting on him—’ Megan supplied.
‘You were beating on my son?’ Mrs Benton asked, her eyes wide.
‘Well, ma’am, he was beating on Logan,’ Bess said.
‘Then after Alicia kicked him in the nuts, he ran back to his truck.’
‘You kicked Tucker in the nuts?’ Mrs Benton asked, looking at Alicia.
Alicia shrugged. ‘Seemed like a good idea at the time.’
Mrs Benton shook herself. ‘And what does any of this have to do with Harper?’ she asked.
‘She was there,’ Bess said. ‘We didn’t see her, but Logan did—’
‘And I talked with her less than an hour ago at her work, and she said it was Logan’s. But that’s not true!’ Megan said.
Mrs Benton took a deep breath and stared off into space. Finally, she looked back at the girls. ‘I’ll handle this,’ she said. ‘You need to leave before Tucker gets home. Which should be any minute.’
All three girls exchanged glances, said, ‘Yes, ma’am,’ and made a beeline to the minivan.
1943–1946
The baby was born at the end of summer. A dark-haired, dark-eyed little girl. Lupita’s mother had delivered the baby in her hut in the village. Edgar had stayed in the forest, as it was still viewed as unsafe to venture outside its confines. Lupita came to him the next day, carrying the swaddled newborn in her arms, and presented her prize to her husband.
Edgar looked at the baby then up at Lupita. To him the kid looked like a dark-haired Winston Churchil
l. All she needed, he thought, was a cigar. ‘Nice,’ he finally said.
Lupita cocked her head and he said, ‘Good. You done good.’
She smiled. ‘You name?’ she asked.
‘Me?’ he said, pointing at his chest.
She nodded her head vigorously.
His first thought was to name the baby after his mother, then he came up with a brainstorm. How funny would it be to let his old man know that he, Edgar, had a child and it was named after dear old dad? And then tell him it was a girl! His old man would shit a brick! And so Clayton Marie Hutchins came to be.
With the meat Edgar brought to the clearing for the village his daughter thrived, and by the time she was three, Lupita was pregnant yet again. Edgar hoped for a son, but wasn’t sure what he would do with one. He was still living in the forest while his so-called wife and child lived in the village. Everybody – all the women of the village – knew he was there, but they all kept silent when the Japanese raided the village. And for this, Edgar, who really didn’t understand the concept of gratitude, did know you paid for what you got. And an occasional warty pig or civet cat was a small price to pay for his life. He saw Lupita a couple of nights a week, and Clayton Marie one day a week. Even with so little time together, she was certainly picking up English, as was her mother. One night, when she’d become more fluent speaking English, Lupita mentioned a fear. ‘What if Clayton Marie speaks your English when the Japs are around?’
He’d taught her to say Japs and was quite happy she’d picked it up. He hoped it would catch on throughout the village. ‘I dunno,’ he said, in answer to her question. ‘So what?’
‘They might kill her.’
He just looked at her. ‘Why?’ he finally asked.
‘Because she speak your English! No one of us speak your English! At least, not around the Japs!’
‘Well, tell her not to talk English to the Japs!’ Edgar said, irritated that this was taking time away from him getting laid.
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