Firefly Rain

by Richard Dansky

  Jenna sprang into action before I did, hurrying over to the stove and starting a pot of Folgers. “Jacob, what’s going on?”

  I looked back and forth. Jenna was fussing by the stove while Hanratty was crouched next to a shivering Adrienne. Her eyes were huge and dark, what Mother used to call “raccoon eyes.” Only then did I notice what she was wearing: a rain slicker over an ankle-length bathrobe, and slippers on her feet. They were fuzzy slippers, no less, with bunny noses and big floppy ears. One of them was scorched a bit along the left side.

  Two and two suddenly came together in my brain, and I do believe my jaw actually dropped. “Don’t tell me,” I started, and then Jenna elbowed me out of the way.

  “Coffee,” she announced, putting the cup and saucer right in front of Adrienne. “Now, what happened?”

  It was Hanratty who answered, which didn’t surprise me one bit. “Around eight o’clock tonight, we got a call that Mr. Logan’s missing car had been seen on Maynard Street, heading north. Miss Moore here”—she indicated Adrienne—“maintained an apartment on the first floor of a three-story building at the intersection of Maynard and Blount.”

  “Maintained?”

  Hanratty glowered and nodded as Adrienne gratefully sipped her coffee. I could see her hands shaking.

  “Maintained,” Adrienne said. “It’s… it’s not there anymore.” And she burst out sobbing again. Jenna moved to comfort her, while Hanratty fixed her eye on me. “Your car, you will be interested to know, has been located.”

  “I don’t like where this is going,” I said. “What happened, Hanratty?”

  Her voice took on a more formal, clipped tone. “At a quarter past nine this evening, an officer was dispatched to the vicinity of Maynard Road to see if your car could be intercepted. As he approached the intersection of Maynard and Blount, he heard a crash and saw flames ahead of him. At that time, he turned on his siren and hurried to the site, where he spotted your car. It had apparently been driven at high velocity into the wall of Miss Moore’s apartment, and had managed to punch through that wall into her bedroom.” She looked quickly over at Adrienne. “If she hadn’t been off brushing her teeth, it probably would have killed her.”

  “Jesus,” I said softly.

  Hanratty nodded. “Something like that. The fuel tank went up properly right about then and the building started to go with it. Gas heat, you know. Officer Bates was able to clear the building, including Miss Moore, and call for backup and the fire department. The fire was brought under control, but Miss Moore’s apartment was rendered uninhabitable.”

  “Oh, that’s terrible.” I looked over to where Adrienne sat. She and Jenna were murmuring to each other. “Is she all right?”

  “Shook up, but that’s all. The paramedics from County General said she’s fine physically. We had them take a good long look at her, have no fear, and that was before we took her statement.”

  “Of course.” The words came out of me in a rush. “I’m just glad she’s all right.” A sudden thought struck me. “What about the driver of the car? Did you catch him?”

  “That’s the interesting thing,” Hanratty drawled. “There wasn’t one.”

  “What? That’s impossible.”

  She nodded. “You’re right. But there was no sign of a driver in the wreckage, nor was there any description from eyewitnesses of anyone fleeing the area. No prints were lifted from the wreck, though considering the shape it was in that’s hardly surprising. A wreck like that, normally we’re picking up what’s left of the driver with a vacuum cleaner. You don’t expect to find prints on something burned out that badly.”

  “Well, at least the insurance company will finally listen to me,” I said distantly. “No witnesses?”

  Hanratty slowly shook her head from side to side. “Not a one. Best guess we’ve got, honestly, is that the driver started the car toward the apartment and then bailed out onto the pavement. If he’d been in the car when it hit, he would have been a pulled pork sandwich by the time it burned out. No chance of survival, much less one of getting up and running off without being seen.”

  I nodded. “So what now?”

  “Now,” Hanratty said with immense satisfaction, “I get to ask you to account for your whereabouts between nine and a quarter past that hour this evening.” She took out her notepad and opened it with a flourish. “Speak clearly, please.”

  “Oh, for God’s sake.” I turned my back on Hanratty and went over to the sink, looking for some clean water to wash out the rotten taste in my mouth. “I was here, all right? With Jenna the whole time.”

  “Don’t say anything without a lawyer, Logan,” Jenna said, as if on cue. She looked up from Adrienne, who seemed a bit calmer, and she glared at Hanratty. You could hear the sparks crackle then, in that old-time Frankenstein movie sort of way. I saw Adrienne draw back an inch without thinking about it, and I’m pretty sure I did the same. “She’s just trying to mess with you.”

  “And you are?” Hanratty asked, a great fat cat sitting in front of a brand-new mouse hole.

  “Jennifer Conlon.” The words came out pure ice.

  “Your business here?”

  “I’m visiting Mr. Logan.”

  “And your relationship to him?”

  “If I say ‘purely sexual,’ will you put your pencil down already? I’m a friend, here to visit, and I was with Mr. Logan the entire evening. The only time he was out of sight was when he went off to take a leak, and even then I could hear him.” She crossed her arms and leaned forward. “Now are you done trying to mess with Jacob, or do you have more bullshit up your sleeve, Officer? There’s a girl here who’s an obvious wreck, and you dragged her out here into the howling wilderness just so you could play bad cop? That’s fine police work, it is.”

  Hanratty put the pad down, and for a moment I actually thought she might try to arrest Jenna. “Actually, I brought her here because she insisted on it. She was going to drive, but I didn’t think she was in any shape to do so, so I gave her a lift.” She favored Adrienne with a look. “Honey, would you mind telling this nice lady here your version of this?”

  Adrienne nodded, then drained the last of her coffee. “I’d gone to bed, actually—my bed was right up against the wall—when I realized… I realized I hadn’t brushed my teeth. So I got up to do that, and then all of a sudden there was this… this noise. I thought something had exploded, so I ran back to see what it was, and everything was on fire. So, so, so I grabbed a handful of clothes, ’cause they were the only things I could reach that weren’t already burning, and then I ran. There was a policeman outside and he was yelling at people to get out, and someone was screaming, and then someone put this on me to cover up, and I just sat down on the curb and watched.”

  “The bag is mine,” Hanratty added wryly. “You’re probably going to need to take her shopping tomorrow, though I don’t think the fire department’s in a hurry to get the slicker back.” Jenna shot her a look, and she subsided. “Keep going, child.”

  Adrienne sniffled. Jenna handed her a tissue from somewhere, and there was a champion bout of nose-blowing before Adrienne could continue. “Thank you,” the librarian said. “I’m so sorry for disturbing your… your visit with Mr. Logan.”

  “Jacob’s already disturbed,” Jenna answered automatically. “Now keep going. I’ll freshen up your cup.” She shoved back from the table, took the mug with a disapproving look, and put the flame under the kettle. I sidled over to the cabinet that held my meager condiment selection and pulled out the sugar, which Jenna took wordlessly.

  Adrienne, I could see, was watching us with big eyes. “I really am sorry to interrupt,” she said. “But I didn’t… I mean, my whole apartment was gone, and everything in it, and I didn’t have anywhere else to go, so I thought maybe I could stay out here for a while.” She took a deep breath. “Until I found someplace else. It wouldn’t take long, I promise, and I wouldn’t touch anything, and…” Abruptly, she collapsed down on herself, miserable.

/>   “Of course you can stay,” Jenna said. “Now stop crying. You don’t have the complexion for it.” Gracefully, she dumped too much sugar and too much milk into the coffee, then stirred it. “Drink this, and then we’ll have a look at what you brought, and get you into something that smells a little less like soot. You’ve got another bedroom you can make up, right, Logan?”

  I nodded, not trusting myself to say anything.

  “Good,” Jenna plowed on. “Now, Officer Hanratty, is there anything else you need to do here, or are we finished?”

  Hanratty lurched to her feet. “Honey, we’re just getting started. Come on down to the station tomorrow and I’ll take formal statements from you and Mr. Logan. Then I can get him the paperwork he needs for his insurance.” She turned to me. “You’ll need to identify the car, of course.”

  “Of course.” I moved the kettle to a cold burner and thought desperate thoughts about a beer. “What time should we be down there?”

  “By noon,” Hanratty answered. “I’ll let myself out, as usual. Good night.” She marched over to the door, then turned and said to Adrienne, “You call if you need anything, okay?”

  Adrienne nodded, huddled in on herself in a way that was heartbreaking to see. “I will. Thank you.”

  “Just doing my job,” Hanratty said and stalked out. This time, she didn’t slam the door, and it swung back and forth a few times until I finally shut it.

  The sound hung in the air for longer than it had any right to, nearly until I heard Hanratty drive away. Then, and only then, did we move around the kitchen again. The tension drained out of the air, and I could feel those steel bands around my chest loosen up, just a touch.

  Jenna put her cup down on the table with a clank. “That was special, now, wasn’t it?”

  “Hanratty’s a charmer, like I told you.” I rummaged through the cabinet and came up with some ancient Sweet’N Low, just in case. “Do you want anything else to drink, Adrienne?”

  “No, thanks.” She didn’t sit, but rather hovered, her eyes constantly flicking to the door and the night outside.

  “I think formal introductions are in order,” I said as I poured hot water and instant coffee into a cup of my own. “Jenna, this is Adrienne Moore. She’s one of the librarians here in town, and she’s been a big help to me in all this mess. Adrienne, this is Jenna. She’s a friend and business associate of mine from Boston.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Adrienne sniffled.

  “Don’t let him fool you with that ‘business associate’ bullcrap. I worked for him, and then ran screaming for the hills.” Jenna grinned, genuinely, and patted Adrienne on the shoulder. “Now finish your coffee, and then we’ll get you taken care of.”

  “I’m all right, really.” Adrienne put her cup down and stood. “I’m just very tired.”

  “Of course you are. Now take that ridiculous raincoat off, and let’s put you to bed.” Jenna gave me a look that clearly said Get your ass in gear, and I figured it out about a second after anyone with a brain would have.

  “Right, right.” I hastily dropped my cup into the sink and made a grab for Adrienne’s bag. “Come this way. We’ll figure out where to put you, get you some towels and everything, no worries.”

  “You’re very nice to let me stay here,” Adrienne said, with considerably fewer sniffles as she followed me. “I know it’s a big imposition.”

  “No,” I told her. “It’s a big house. Besides, it’s good to have someone out here to protect me from Jenna and her razor-sharp tongue.”

  “Just for that, you sleep alone tonight, Logan,” Jenna said, and I could hear the sharp intake of Adrienne’s breath. “Oh, relax, I’m just kidding. Now where are we going to put you?”

  “Right this way,” I said, and I suddenly stopped. To my left was the door to Mother and Father’s bedroom. It was open, and as I watched, it swung open wider. “Oh, no,” I breathed.

  Jenna squeezed past Adrienne to stand next to me. “How about here?” she said, and she barged in. I followed her, my heart going a hundred miles a minute.

  “Are you nuts?” I hissed once we’d crossed the threshold. I flicked on the light and gestured. “This is my parents’ room. She can’t sleep in here.”

  “The bed’s made up,” Jenna said mildly. “Saves us some work. And did you realize you just called them your parents? That’s a first, I think.”

  “Never mind that,” I said. “She can’t stay in here. Things have been happening in here, or haven’t you been paying attention?”

  “The door was open,” Jenna said. “The door was opening. You saw it, too. Your mother wants her in here.”

  “I know,” I said softly. “That’s what scares me.”

  She smiled at me. “Smart boy. Now go get her bag.”

  Adrienne was standing in the hallway, her arms folded across her chest, holding herself tightly. “Adrienne? You’ll be staying in here, if that’s all right?” I asked. She nodded but didn’t say anything. “I’ll be right across the hall,” I said more softly. “You can leave the door open, and I’ll leave mine open, and if you need me, just come get me, all right?”

  She nodded again. I stepped closer, and when she didn’t move away, I pulled her to me. She didn’t resist, but she didn’t open her arms, either, and I could feel the tension in her body. “It’s going to be all right, I promise,” I told her. “You’re safe here. I’ll take care of you. And besides, I don’t have any other cars.”

  She didn’t laugh, but I could feel her smile a bit. “I’m just afraid,” she whispered. “Do I have to sleep in there?”

  “Just for tonight,” I promised. “Tomorrow, we can figure something else out. But nothing will happen tonight, I swear.”

  “Nothing else, you mean.” And there was a spark of the Adrienne I’d first met. “All right. I trust you. I hope you’re a light sleeper, just in case.”

  “Just in case what?” I said, and I waggled my eyebrows even though I knew she couldn’t see them. “I’ll stand watch outside your door all night, if you ask.”

  She actually laughed then. “You’re terrible,” she said, and she disengaged herself from my arms. I stooped to pick up her bag and followed her into the bedroom.

  Jenna had already turned down the bed and fluffed the pillows. “You should be comfortable in here, dear. Jacob, why don’t you run out to the kitchen and clean up. I’ll see about getting Adrienne here something to sleep in, and maybe something for tomorrow.”

  “As you command.” I put the bag down next to the bed. “Towels are in the closet next to the bathroom. First come first served on the hot water in the morning. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  Adrienne shot me a look of pure gratitude. “Thank you, Jacob,” she said, and shooed me out.

  I shut the door behind me carefully. Nothing odd happened as I did, though I did hear a burst of laughter from Jenna that would have scared small children, had there been any around. Down to the kitchen I went, and I made a great show of puttering around with mugs and dishwashing soap. When everything was as clean as it was likely to get, I set up the drying rack and took myself to the door. There I looked out at the night and wondered if the dog would visit.

  An hour or three later, Jenna joined me. “Hi,” I said without turning around.

  “Hi,” she replied, and she leaned on my back. “Whatcha looking at?”

  “Nothing, and that’s good.” I shook my head. “I keep on wondering when that damn dog is going to come back.”

  She shifted slightly, and I was suddenly aware of her body pressing against mine. “Maybe there are too many people here for him, or he got picked up by animal control.”

  I laughed. “Around here, animal control is firing a warning shot and giving him a chance to run. No, he’s still out there. I can feel it.” I turned and felt her slide off me. “The scary thing is, I don’t know why he’s out there. All the rest of it—well, most of the rest of it—I’m starting to understand. But the dog? I don’t know.”

  Sh
e gave me a look that could best be called appraising. “How serious are you about all this, Logan?”

  “Dead serious, Jenna. I can’t afford to be otherwise.” I pulled out a chair and swung it around, then sat myself in it and leaned over the back. “Mother’s trapped and wants me back here. I don’t doubt anymore that she’s here or that she’s real. Father’s stuck here, too, and I think he’s trying to help me. Carl’s tied up with both of them, and the town’s working with Mother whether they know it or not. Hanratty, well, she’s just a cast-iron bitch—”

  “Don’t be too hard on her,” Jenna said, much to my surprise. “I think I know what’s going on there.”

  “Oh?” I gestured to a chair. “Pull up a seat and tell me about it.”

  “You said she followed her husband here, and then he left?” I nodded in response. “She stayed, though. Why?”

  I shrugged. “Never gave it much thought. Maybe she liked Mr. Hilliard’s ice cream?”

  “Looks like, but that’s not what I’m thinking. She stayed. She made herself a part of the town.”

  “Man, did she ever,” I grumbled. “She was lecturing me on what it’s like to be from here.”

  Jenna stabbed the tabletop with a finger. “Exactly. She gave up a good job to come here, and then she chose to stay. I think she’s become more town than the townies, just to vindicate the decision she made to come here. She moved here, and by God, she’s staying.”

  The light dawned. “And all of a sudden I come here, I don’t want to be here, and the town tries to pull me in. Damn, that must be busting her balls.”

  “That’s one way of putting it.” She gave a thin smile. “So don’t be too mean to Hanratty, even if she is a cast-iron bitch. She got dealt a lousy hand, and she’s been bluffing with a pair of threes for years. Oh, and she’s got a gun.”

  I chuckled. “All right, I’ll try to play nice. She doesn’t make it easy, though.”

  She shook her head. “No, she doesn’t. Though it was nice of her to bring your little friend out here.”

  I felt myself blushing. “Adrienne? How is she?”