Caroline grinned. “I’d love to have this room.” She turned to Janie. “I’m sure you won’t miss Chuck and me at your house.”
“You guys have been wonderful guests, but I probably won’t miss Chuck drinking out of my toilet.” Janie smirked.
“Sorry about that.” Caroline made a sheepish smile. “That’s a little habit he learned from his previous home.”
“Speaking of bathrooms,” Abby injected, “I haven’t had a chance to do much with the bath up here, but it’s in pretty good shape anyway.”
“Hey, you’ll hear no complaints from me,” Caroline assured her. “After living in my mom’s house, everything else is an improvement.” She sighed to think of her mom. “That reminds me, I’ve got some funeral arrangements and things to do today. So I’d better get going.” Abby told her to move in whenever she liked, and Caroline hugged her three friends and went on her way.
The Lindas really did lift her spirits, but when she got back to her mom’s house, it was hard not to feel that sadness returning. The place was so depressing, and the open windows hadn’t done much to improve the stale acrid smell of smoke. Every place she looked seemed hopelessly dismal and sad. As horrible as the truth sounded, it might’ve been better if this house had burned to the ground.
Caroline didn’t have time for a pity party. She searched out her mom’s worn address book, where she thought she’d seen Michael’s old phone number. She found it in a kitchen drawer.
Clutching the book, she walked back to her mom’s bedroom. Caroline had no idea what to expect and wasn’t even sure if the space was safe, but she knew her mom had an old Bible from her girlhood days. Caroline had noticed it tucked into the top drawer of her bedside table, almost like her mom kept it there as a good-luck charm. Perhaps she had actually read it at times. For a spell Caroline’s mom had returned to church, but then the Alzheimer’s had set in and her routines were lost.
Anyway, if the Bible was still in one piece, Caroline planned to take it with her. She wasn’t even sure what she would to do with it. Bury it with her mother? Save it as a keepsake? Caroline took in a big breath, then she pulled up the neck of her turtleneck to cover her mouth and nose. Bracing herself, she opened the door to the room.
Blackened and broken and still soggy in places, the bedroom looked like a set from a horror movie. The only thing missing was the dead body. She hurried past the partially burnt bed, alongside the melted carpet, and, trying not to rub against the smoke-darkened walls, she jerked open the drawer, extracted the black Bible, and ran from the room, gasping. She hoped it wasn’t too dangerous to breathe that foul air.
With the Bible and address book in hand, Caroline couldn’t get out of the house fast enough. If she had her way, she would never go back inside there again. It was too horrible. Too hopeless. Except for the backyard, she would be happy if the house was condemned and knocked down. Probably everyone in the neighborhood would be too.
At Janie’s house she went straight to work calling the insurance company for the house, as well as the life-insurance company. She called the funeral home to make an appointment to discuss final arrangements, and finally she opened her mom’s old address book and called the last phone number listed for her brother. She waited as the phone rang, hoping she was about to be informed she had the wrong number. To her shock her brother’s voice answered on the other end.
“Michael,” she said in surprise. “This is Caroline.”
“Caroline who?”
“Your sister,” she said in a flat tone.
“Oh.”
Without going into all the details, she explained about their mom’s death, then waited for him to express his sadness, which actually sounded fairly sincere. She told him she was making arrangements for the funeral. “It’s the same mortuary that did Dad’s service,” she told him. “They got one of those packages back in the eighties. Mostly I just need to set the date and make a few decisions. I thought I’d see if you had any preferences. For the date I mean.” She had no intention of asking him to be involved in any other decision.
“I could be there by tomorrow if necessary,” he told her.
“Oh. Well, okay. How about if I find out what dates work for the funeral home and get back to you?” She gave him her cell phone number and hung up. She could hardly believe she’d just been talking to her brother. The reconnection was not only surreal but slightly creepy. It wasn’t that she hated Michael, but almost all her memories of him were bitter. For the most part she tried not to think about him at all. Years of therapy had helped her to get beyond the pain he’d inflicted on the family, but now it was like he was standing right in front of her. In fact that might be happening for real very soon. Caroline wasn’t sure she was ready.
Chapter 16
JANIE
As the measuring tape snapped back into its case, Janie heard someone calling her name. Thinking it was probably the floor guys here to start installing the carpet and wood floors as planned, she yelled back up the stairs, “I’m down here.”
She stepped back to study the wall she’d been measuring, trying to decide if that was really the best spot for her bookshelves, when she observed Victor walking toward her. Recovering from her shock, she pushed a strand of hair away from her face and smiled. “Hey, you’re not the floor guys.”
“I … uh … well, I noticed your car out front and figured you must be here.” His tone was uncertain and apologetic. “I hope you don’t mind me dropping in on you like this.”
“No, of course not.” She set the tape measure on a sawhorse. “I was just trying to make some decisions about furniture placement, basically killing time until the installers arrived. They were supposed to get started on the floor this afternoon.” She glanced at her watch. “Apparently they’re running late.”
“Well, I’m sure you’re busy, but I just hoped we could talk a bit … finish up our conversation from yesterday.”
She waved her hand around the basement. “As you can see, I can’t invite you to sit down. But Abby’s started placing some of the furnishings upstairs. Do you want to go up there? As far as I know, no one else is in the house right now.”
“Sure.” He waited for her to lead the way.
“Abby’s been working really hard to get some things ready,” she told him as they went up. “Donna’s room—or what Abby hopes will be Donna’s room—is all set, and it looks really great.” She knew she was jabbering on, but she couldn’t stop herself. She told him about Caroline’s mom passing, and how Caroline would be moving in here too. He followed her into the dining room, where a table and chairs were set up, and Janie kept on talking. “Abby got this set a few days ago. I think it goes nicely in here. And she’s getting some chairs for the parlor.” More nervous blathering, but she didn’t know what else to say.
They sat down on opposite sides of the rustic pine plank table, looking at each other for a long, quiet moment. Not wanting to start rambling on again and hoping to get her bearings, Janie pressed her lips together and waited, hoping Victor would take the hint and begin this conversation. After all, he was the one who’d initiated it.
“So …” He took in a deep breath. “As I mentioned yesterday, Ben and I observed you with Steve Fuller at Barney’s. We saw you two holding hands, gazing into each others’ eyes. It seemed rather obvious—and as I said, Ben jumped to the same conclusion—we both assumed that you and Steve were, well, involved. Or getting involved.”
Janie slowly nodded. “That was a natural assumption, Victor. I gave this some thought yesterday, and I understand how you might jump to a conclusion like that. But the truth is, when you described the scene to me, I almost thought you were imagining things. I honestly couldn’t even remember the incident.”
“You couldn’t remember having lunch, holding hands, having a moment with Steve Fuller?” Victor looked skeptical. “Like it was nothing
out of the ordinary?”
“No. I did remember having lunch. But the holding hands part, well, to be honest, I felt blindsided when you said that, Victor. Not that I thought you were making it up, but I had to think really hard to recall what you’d witnessed.” She paused, watching his reaction, which was hard to read. “So if you’ll let me explain …”
He nodded. “That’s why I’m here.”
She told him about volunteering to help with the VFW float, where she’d met Steve’s absentminded mother. She explained how Steve had shown up and how they’d started discussing the effect of war and battles on veterans. “Our conversation was just getting interesting when the parade ended. He suggested lunch, and I wanted to hear more.” Then she told Victor how Steve had helped her to understand what her dad may have gone through so long ago. “Steve’s perspective really brought it home for me. I began to comprehend how my dad had probably witnessed his friends dying. I understood how a Medal of Honor might’ve been a harsh reminder of things my father wanted to bury. And, well, I suppose I got a little emotional.” She swallowed hard as she recalled her sympathy for her father’s suffering. “At that moment I think Steve reached out and put his hand over mine. That was all it was, Victor. A friendly gesture, a friend reaching out to a friend. Nothing more. I swear.”
Victor’s serious expression seemed to crumble. “I feel pretty ridiculous now, Janie. I just never thought of it being like that. What a fool I was.”
She reached over and put her hand on his, the same way Steve had done to her, the same she would so often do for her friends. “You’re not the only fool here,” she assured him.
“What do you mean?” He looked earnestly at her.
She kind of shrugged, uncertain as to how much she wanted to say before she fully understood what was going on between him and Donna. “Well, I may have jumped to some conclusions of my own.”
“You mean regarding me?” Now his fingers entwined around hers, warming hers with his touch.
She nodded as she looked down at their hands clasped together in the center of the table. They seemed to fit together perfectly.
“This thing with Donna is complicated,” he began slowly. “I mean, I’d like to say she’s just a nutty woman on a crazy mission—and part of me believes just that—but the truth is, she was once my wife. She’s the mother of my two sons. At one point in my life I believed our vows would never be broken.”
“I know.” Janie wanted to pull her hand away but stopped herself. She needed to hear him out without reacting. To steady herself, she continued to gaze down at their clasped hands.
“Donna broke my heart a lot of years ago. You know as well as anyone that I’ve never tried to act like I was innocent in regard to my failed marriage. I realized too late that I was more married to my job than to my wife. Donna certainly wasn’t perfect, but I couldn’t really blame her for finding someone else.”
“I know,” she said again. Her voice sounded a bit hoarse, like tears were close to the surface. Was this the end of her and Victor?
“But I got over her, Janie.” He squeezed her hand, and she looked into his eyes. “I moved on with my life. I got healthy again. I figured out what really matters. And then I met you, and life was better than ever.”
She felt warmth running through her now, like an early spring breeze thawing the winter’s snow.
“But Donna is forcing me to consider some pretty conflicted things.” He slowly shook his head. “And the truth is, I get a little confused.”
She squeezed his fingers. “I feel confused too, Victor, but I’m trying to understand. I just want you to know I won’t pressure you. I mean, if you need time to figure this whole thing out, it’s okay. I know it can’t be easy for you. I can wait.”
His eyes brightened. “Really?”
She nodded. What she really wanted to ask him—it was right on the tip of her tongue—was Do you still love Donna? He hadn’t said that he did, but he hadn’t said that he didn’t either. And yet she couldn’t force those words from her mouth.
“Hello?” called a woman’s voice. “Yoo-hoo, anybody home?”
Victor released Janie’s hand. “That’s Donna.”
They both stood now, and for no explainable reason Janie felt as guilty as a schoolgirl who’d just been making out with her boyfriend out behind the gym.
“In here,” Victor called with no enthusiasm.
“I saw your car in front,” Donna told him. “I’d tried your phone, but you didn’t answer.”
“It’s in the car,” he told her. “I thought I wasn’t supposed to pick you up until two.”
She grinned at Janie now. “Vic dropped me at the bike shop to look for a bike. I guess he’s tired of dragging me around all the time.”
“Did you find one?” Janie asked.
“I did.” Donna smiled proudly. “A really nice street bike. I was just taking it for a test ride and then I saw Vic’s car and decided to see what was up. What are you doing here, anyway?”
“I noticed Janie’s car, and I wanted to stop in and talk to her.”
Donna’s eyes expressed suspicion. “Don’t tell me you’re in need of legal advice?”
Victor laughed a bit uneasily. “Maybe so.”
“So are you still moving in here?” Janie asked quickly, eager to change the subject. “Because my friend Caroline is getting ready to move in too. Maybe even by this evening.”
Donna’s mouth twisted to one side. “Well, I suppose if Vic has his way, I’ll be moving in here ASAP too.”
“With your new bike you’ll be able to get around town nicely,” Janie suggested.
“Unless it’s raining.”
“Well, if you and Caroline become friends, maybe she’ll give you a ride sometimes.” Janie had no idea what Caroline’s opinion of Donna was, but it seemed a reasonable possibility.
Donna gave Victor a pitiful look. “So you’re really going to throw me out of your house?”
Victor exchanged a quick glance with Janie. “I’m not throwing you out, Donna. It’s just that, like I already told you, I need my space.”
Donna winked at Janie. “He doesn’t like how I leave my things all over his clever little bachelor pad. You know he has the sweetest place, right on the beach. Very swanky really.”
Janie just nodded, using an expression that she hoped would not convey that she’d seen it, that she’d been there plenty of times, that she could imagine how it might look with Donna’s things strewn about, that the sloppiness would aggravate her as much as it did Victor. Instead she wore her attorney smile and feigned sympathy.
“You need your space too, Donna,” Victor continued. “Really, it’s for the best.”
“I think Caroline would appreciate the company too,” Janie assured her. “Her mother just died, and I know she’s feeling a little down.”
“If you like, we can get you moved over here this afternoon,” Victor offered hopefully. “Just leave your bike here and we’ll get the rest of your things and come back.”
Donna smiled in a catty sort of way. “Yes, I suppose that’s what we should do. Perhaps my absence will make your heart grow fonder.” She reached over and gently patted his cheek now. “Have it your way, dear. If I have to wait for you, I will wait. Because I know that in due time God is going to turn your heart around. God has promised to restore what the worm has eaten, and God will replace what the moth has destroyed. I’m relying on those promises, Victor, because God has shown me that he plans to keep them.”
Janie felt like she’d just been socked in the stomach. “Well, if you’ll both excuse me,” she said abruptly, “I need to do some measuring downstairs before the floor guys arrive.” She turned and hurried away. Was she a coward? Yes, but how could she refute a claim that God planned to reunite Donna and Victor? Really, who was Janie to stand in
the way of God?
* * *
By the time Janie got home, she was resolved to do as she had promised, to wait. Of course, it had irked her to hear Donna promise Victor that she was willing to wait too. So they would all play the waiting game. Janie was a patient person. She’d already experienced many life lessons in the art of waiting.
“How’s it going?” Janie asked Caroline, who was sitting at the breakfast bar with her phone and a bunch of official-looking papers.
Caroline looked up with a slightly haggard expression. “Ugh. I had no idea all the paperwork that’s involved when someone dies.”
Janie nodded as she opened the fridge. “Yes, it’s a bit of a quagmire. Want some water or soda or something?”
“I’m fine.” Caroline sighed as she began to stack the papers. “I’ll get out of your way.”
“No, it’s okay.” Janie opened a water bottle and took a swig. “In fact, if you need any help with anything, I’m happy—”
“Seriously?” Caroline looked at her with wide blue eyes. “I would love some help. I mean, I’m trying to figure it out myself. But some of this stuff, well, it just doesn’t make sense.”
“Why don’t we go over it piece by piece together?” Janie suggested.
“You’re sure you don’t mind? I hate to take advantage of—”
“The truth is I’d love to help. I need something like this to distract me right now.”
Caroline frowned. “Distract you?”
Janie nodded as she picked up a paper. “Yes, when we get finished with this, I’ll tell you the whole story, okay?”
“All right!” Caroline grinned. “Let’s get ‘er done.”
* * *
It was nearly seven by the time they finished the last piece of paperwork. “It’s a small way to say thank you,” Caroline said as she put the paperwork back into the folder, “but I insist on taking you out for a nice dinner to show my appreciation.”
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