Scott looked fondly at his wife. “Sorry, Jenny.”
When Rebecca sat next to her, Jen leaned over. “He’s on a lot of pain medication,” she whispered. “I wouldn’t listen to half of what he’s saying. He’s been like this all morning. Do you remember when he had his wisdom teeth out a few summers ago? He kissed the doctor and sang all the way home.”
Rebecca snickered. “I take it all pain meds work the same.”
Jen rolled her eyes. “Sure seems to. Any minute now he’ll be sound asleep. The nurses all have bets as to how long it’s going to take.”
Scott, who wasn’t paying any attention to them, continued talking to his wife as if they’d never stopped conversing. “I just think you’re making this a lot worse than it actually is. I heal really fast, you know. And I’m not as wimpy as you think I am.”
Rebecca sat next to Jen. “He heals fast for a man,” Jen whispered. “And we both know what that means.”
“Twice as long as a woman?”
“You got it.”
They laughed together, Jen at Scott and Rebecca at her friend. She was glad Jen was feeling happy enough to laugh today, a sharp change from the night before.
“How did things go with the police this morning?”
Scott shrugged and then winced. He ignored his wife’s meaningful look. “Fine, I guess. I didn’t have a whole lot to tell them.”
“Don’t you remember anything?”
Scott eyed the tray sitting next to him and sighed. “Just that it was a man wearing the strangest baseball hat I’ve ever seen in my life.”
“Did he take anything from your desk?”
Wearing a martyred expression, Scott pulled the tray toward him and picked up the spoon. “Beats me. I had gone into the office to look through your dad’s folder. I’d been going over it for only half an hour or so when this guy appeared around the corner, pulled out a gun, and shot me. It was kind of cool,” he said, trying to get the broth into his mouth without dripping it down his front. “Like I was in a cop show or something. They should make this into a movie.”
Jen snorted and moved to sit next to him. “You’re making a huge mess,” she scolded. She unfolded his napkin and tucked it in his shirt. “Try harder not to slosh around so much.”
“I’d like to see you try to eat broth with your left hand.”
“I am left-handed, honey.”
“Well, then with your right hand. Don’t be so critical.”
A few minutes later, the bowl was empty and Scott was snoring on his pillow. Jen pulled out her watch. “Three hours and twenty-two minutes,” she noted. “I’ll have to tell the nurses. He lasted a lot longer than I expected.” She wrote the time on the white board at the foot of his bed and then turned to her friend. “Now that we won’t be interrupted, tell me about your trip. How was Michigan? It sounds like things have been interesting.”
Rebecca raised her eyebrows in surprise. “How do you know that?”
Smiling, Jen held up the newspaper next to the phone. “Elliot’s columns have been very enlightening for those of us who can read between the lines. What exactly happened the other day?”
Rebecca recounted the story of Nicole’s accident, trying as much as she could to minimize her portion of the tale. Jen, of course, saw right through that.
“So what you’re not saying is that you really saved the day,” Jen said when Rebecca had finished talking. “You always were good in an emergency.”
Rebecca was saved from answering when her cell phone buzzed in her pocket. “I forgot to turn it off,” she said apologetically.
Jen waved her hand in the air. “Go ahead and answer it. There’s not a phone in here, anyway.”
Rebecca flipped it open. “Hello?”
“Is this Rebecca Done?”
The voice sounded vaguely familiar. “Yes, it is.”
“This is Sarah Pompilius from the Chicago Public Library. I’m sorry to disturb you on a Sunday afternoon.”
“That’s all right.”
“I’ll get straight to the point. Your predecessor is having her baby tomorrow and we need you sooner than we thought. Are you able to start working on Tuesday?”
Rebecca blinked. “Yes, of course. That won’t be a problem.”
“Excellent. I’ll plan on seeing you at eight o’clock sharp on Tuesday morning. Let me know if you have any questions before then.”
Rebecca thanked her and snapped the phone closed, her mind racing. “I need to find an apartment,” she said, thinking out loud.
Jen glanced up. “Is everything okay? You look a little panicked.”
“My first day of work is Tuesday. I told myself I’d be out of Cassie’s place before I started at the library.”
“She wouldn’t mind if you stuck around an extra week or two,” Jen said. “You know she wouldn’t.”
“But I would.” Rebecca stood up, anxious to get started now that she knew Jen and Scott would be fine. “I’ve got to go. Call me if anything changes, will you?”
“Wait a second.” Jen came around the edge of the bed, grabbing the paper as she came. “Go check out this place first. I have a friend that’s looking to sublet, and it’s not too far from where we live. She should be home this afternoon,” she added, writing a phone number on the margin. She hugged Rebecca briefly before letting her out the door. She called down the hall after her, “Don’t worry, Rebecca. The world won’t collapse if you don’t find the perfect apartment today.”
Rebecca grinned over her shoulder before disappearing down the stairs.
***
Sure enough, Rebecca reached someone at the number Jen had given her and made arrangements to meet at the apartment twenty minutes later. She parked the car in front of the building and looked around. She wasn’t in Cassie’s neighborhood any more, that was for sure, but it could have been a lot worse. The homes and townhouses that lined the street were older but looked well cared for.
An older woman, probably around Faye’s age, came outside when Rebecca got out of her car. “Are you Rebecca?” she asked.
Rebecca climbed the stairs to greet her. “Yes, and you must be Rhonda. Thanks for seeing me on such short notice.”
“No problem. If you’re a friend of Jen’s you’re worth it. Come on in. It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing.”
Rebecca followed Rhonda down a narrow hallway to the back of the house. “This house was divided into four units a few decades ago,” Rhonda said as she opened a door. “I’m afraid I have the smallest, but I happen to think it has the best view.”
The apartment was a little smaller than small, Rebecca thought to herself. The front door opened into a tiny sitting room, and she could see an equally small kitchen through an entrance at the opposite end of the room. Both were painted a hideous shade of green.
“Follow me.” Rhonda went into the kitchen and climbed a narrow, winding staircase. When she got to the top Rebecca gasped.
The room was twice as large as the two below, with large windows lining two walls. She walked to one and gazed out onto a small park. Children were flying kites and sailing boats on the pond, and flowers lined the paths.
“See what I mean?”
“What is that?” Rebecca could hardly believe her eyes.
“The residents of the neighborhood got together a long time ago and decided that it would be a good way to keep their property values up,” Rhonda explained. “They designed the park to appeal to people of all ages, and you can see that they were successful. I call this my library, even though there aren’t any books in here anymore.”
Rebecca turned around to look across the room. The wall was lined with empty bookshelves that needed a good dusting. The bottom row of shelves had doors that she assumed were for storage.
“The bedroom’s back by the stairs,” Rhonda said, watching her closely. “It’s small, but the bathroom’s lovely.” Rebecca opened the door in a daze and was faced with another stunning view of the park. She peeked into the bathro
om and had to hold onto the doorknob.
“This is better than any bathroom I’ve ever seen,” she said weakly. It was easily as large as the bedroom itself, and the sunken tub could fit several people. Next to it was a shower with faucets on two sides.
“How is this possible?” she asked without turning around. “The rooms downstairs are so tiny.”
Rhonda laughed. “I don’t know who put the bathroom in, but I thank my lucky stars that they did every time I take a bath. The library used to be the children’s nursery, and the original owner wouldn’t hear of dividing it. The unit downstairs is twice as big; they have the rest of the first floor on this side as well as the rooms around the back of the house. I think it’s the best apartment in the house, even though you couldn’t fit more than two people at a time in that kitchen. If you’re a chef, I’m afraid this is not the place for you.”
Rebecca thought about her failed attempt to teach Cassie how to cook and grinned. “I’m no chef, even by very generous definitions.” She looked at the woman in front of her. “How much did you want for it?” she asked nervously. There was no way she could afford it.
Rhonda hesitated. “Well, it depends on a couple of things. I have to get down to New Mexico to take care of my aunt, and I’d need someone to move in as soon as possible. And I really don’t want to move the furniture.”
Rebecca glanced at the furnishings. They were a little outdated–she was sure Cassie would object–but appeared comfortable and lived in, a sharp contrast to Cassie’s. She nodded. “I understand. I’m currently staying at my sister’s, and I don’t have a lot of things anyway. I could move in as soon as you’d like.” She hoped she didn’t sound too eager.
Rhonda smiled and named her price. “I’d forget about the security deposit if you’d be willing to paint the sitting room and the kitchen,” she added. “My nephew painted that several years back while I was on vacation and I haven’t had the heart to redo it. If you did it he might not mind so much.”
Rebecca breathed a sigh of relief. The amount of money Rhonda wanted was within her limited budget if she was careful. “It’s a deal,” she said, shaking the older woman’s hand. “When do you want me?”
“Does tomorrow sound too soon?” The two laughed.
“That sounds perfect.” Rebecca shook her hand and it was agreed. I’ll be independent again in less than twenty-four hours. The knowledge made her light-hearted.
Rebecca felt so good that she decided to visit William and Elisa before she started packing the few things she had at Cassie’s. Faye’s car was in the driveway when she pulled up to the curb in front of their new home.
No one answered when she knocked, and the door wasn’t locked, so she walked in. It looked like a smaller version of the old house, although with gaudier frames lining the walls. She shook her head as she went down the hallway, looking into rooms as she passed. She didn’t know how they were paying for this.
Everyone was in the den, sitting on uncomfortable looking couches and looking bored. Adrianna, in a red satin dressing gown, was sitting a little too close to William. He looked rather pleased with himself, and kept rustling his paper in an attempt to get the rest of the party to pay more attention to him. No one seemed to notice she was there until Faye glanced up at the clock over the mantel and saw Rebecca’s reflection in the mirror next to it.
“Rebecca! When did you get here?”
“I flew in last evening. How’s everyone doing?”
Faye smiled. “We had a visitor just before you came,” she said, looking particularly smug. “Aaron Sharpe stopped by to get your phone number and see how the family was handling the recent move. His mother keeps him up to date, you see.”
“That’s very good of him.” Rebecca was surprised that he would exert himself so much for a family he only knew about through his mother, but decided to keep her opinions to herself.
A disgruntled Adrianna shifted even closer to William’s side. “Can’t we go somewhere fancy for dinner?” she asked, inching her hand up his arm and squeezing his elbow. “Like the place we went last night. I want to get dressed up again.”
“Of course we can. What do you think, should we invite Faye to even out the group? I hate odd numbers of people at a dinner table. It looks so off-balance.”
Faye cleared her throat. “William, did you realize that Rebecca is here?”
William finally looked up from his paper. “She is? Rebecca, what are you doing here?”
Rebecca tried not to roll her eyes. “I came by to see your new house,” she said. “I hadn’t had a chance to visit since you moved in. How are you liking Naperville?”
William went back to his paper. “It’s adequate,” he said, patting Adrianna’s hand absently. “I suppose you want to come to dinner with us. We’ll have an odd number after all.” He sighed heavily.
“No, I can only stay a few minutes. I just wanted to give you my new address.”
“New address?” Elisa finally tore her attention away from the fashion magazine she was flipping through. “Have you finally decided to get married?”
Rebecca stared at her sister, wondering, not for the first time, how they could have been born from the same parents. “You don’t have to get married to change your address,” she said, trying to keep the exasperation out of her voice. “I got a job at the library and wanted to get out of Cassie and Michael’s way.”
“Oh, you’re a feminist.” Elisa looked at her sister pityingly. “Don’t worry. You’ll snap out of it eventually.”
Some things never change. “Well, I’m glad to hear you’re doing as well as can be expected. I’ll see myself out.”
No one moved, or even looked up, when she left the room, Faye following closely behind her.
Once they were safely outside, Rebecca turned to her aunt. “I see things haven’t changed since we sold the house.”
Faye opened her bag and started rummaging for her keys. “No, I’m afraid not. Sometimes I think the only person who could control the two of them was your mother, God rest her soul. It was a real blow when she died, for more reasons than one.”
“Even Mom couldn’t perform miracles.”
Faye sighed. “You’re right, of course; Anne was just delaying the inevitable. I don’t understand it, though. There’s no way William and Elisa could have gone through that much money so quickly. Did your friend ever make sense of it?”
Shaking her head, Rebecca sat on the top step. “No, and he was shot yesterday at work. I really hope it didn’t have anything to do with us. I’d never forgive myself otherwise.” She continued after a long pause. “Has Adrianna been that… affectionate toward William very long?”
Faye pulled a tissue out of her bag and dusted off the space next to Rebecca before sitting down and crossing her ankles. “Ever since she moved in here. Why do you ask?”
Rebecca shrugged, trying to decide which made her more uncomfortable–the fact that Adrianna was living there in the first place, or that she was trying to seduce her father. “It seems strange that she’d be interested in William at all,” she said finally. “I mean, he could be her father. And William’s not wealthy enough anymore to be a sugar daddy. What do you suppose the attraction is?”
Faye frowned. “I assumed she was just being friendly to help him get through the shock of losing the house. She really only tries to get him to take her to fancy restaurants and send her to the spa, but if you think it’s important, I’ll keep an eye on her.”
“It couldn’t hurt.”
“Now tell me about your new place. Where is it, and when do you move in? I’d love to throw you a housewarming party.”
Rebecca tried not to laugh. Once a social planner, always a social planner, she thought. “Once I get settled in, I’ll invite you over for dinner. The landlady is leaving all her furniture there, so I don’t really need anything. Thanks for the offer, though. It’s very kind of you.” She scribbled her new address on a piece of paper and gave it to Faye. “You’re welcome to
stop by any time you like, as long as you don’t bring any strange men with you. I meant what I said earlier,” she added, looking Faye straight in the eye. “I’m not going on any more blind dates. If Aaron Sharpe wants to go out with me, he can call me himself.”
“All right, all right.” Faye stood up and brushed off her pants. “I’ll leave you alone. But I think Aaron will call you. He seemed pretty determined to get your number.”
Thinking of Elliot, Rebecca made a face. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
As she opened her car door, Rebecca caught a glimpse of red through an upstairs window. An arm reached for the curtain and pulled it closed.
***
The next day she packed her suitcases and the few boxes she had stored under the bed in Cassie’s spare room and shoved them all in her car. She’d give Cassie her key when she came home from Michigan, but she didn’t know what to do with Elliot’s. She had no way of contacting him unless she called Locke, and that didn’t seem like a good solution. In the end she settled for leaving them under the doormat with a note that read, simply, ‘Thanks for everything. Rebecca’.
When she opened the door of her own apartment twenty minutes later, she put her things away and made the bed. Then she stood in the library for a long time, breathing in the fragrance of her new home. It smelled lovely, she decided. She’d have to get her books out of storage that weekend, but other than that, she was all moved in.
That night, in a bed that she knew would be hers for at least a year, she slept so soundly that if she had any dreams, she didn’t remember them when she woke up.
The next morning, she woke up early and then wasted all of her extra time in the shower. Enough hot water blasted out of the faucets to knead away all the kinks and knots in her shoulders and back that had been there since Nicole’s accident, maybe even before. Thinking of Nicole reminded her of Locke, and she called him while her bagel toasted in the oven.
“Rebecca! What are you doing up this early on a Tuesday morning?”
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