A Change in Altitude

by Cindy Myers

  “Is Jameso excited?” A middle-aged woman with a German accent asked.

  “It’s hard to tell with him, but I think so, yes,” Maggie said. “I was worried he’d be disappointed in a girl, but he seems thrilled. He said he wouldn’t know how to handle a boy like him.”

  “Boys have their challenges, but so do girls,” Sharon said.

  “I heard about your son,” Janelle said. “We’re all praying they’ll find him safe.”

  “Thank you.” She had a hard time getting the words out around the sudden lump in her throat.

  “Now that everyone’s here, let’s get this party started,” Barb said.

  “You promised no silly games.” Maggie gave her friend a stern look.

  “Since when do I listen to you?” Barb shook her head. “I promise nothing too silly.”

  “I was once at a baby shower where we had to bob for nipples,” Olivia said.

  Everyone stared. “Seriously,” she said. “There was this big punch bowl full of baby bottle nipples and we had to try to snag them with our teeth.”

  “Baby bottle nipples.” Lucille put a hand to her chest. “I don’t even want to tell you the images that went through my mind.”

  “I thought we could just eat all the wonderful food Janelle and Danielle brought and talk,” Maggie said.

  “And open gifts—you can’t forget that,” Olivia said. “We want to see all the great stuff you got for the baby.”

  “But don’t you want to guess what’s in the diaper bag or play baby charades?” Barb asked.

  A groan went up from the assembled crowd. Barb stuck out her lips in an exaggerated pout, but Maggie patted her arm. “You know you’d rather eat, drink, and talk, too. And you can keep track of the gifts for me.”

  “Well, all right.” Barb led the way into the dining room, where the table was laden with food, and soda and liquor bottles filled a sideboard. “Help yourselves, ladies. Then we’ll look at all of Maggie’s loot.”

  “I want to see the rest of the B and B,” Janelle said. “Downstairs is gorgeous.”

  “Only one of the bedrooms is finished,” Barb said. “I’m still waiting on some of the bedding for the others.”

  “I’m trying to talk her into opening up that one bedroom for Chris Amesbury,” Lucille said.

  “Who’s Chris Amesbury?” Sharon asked.

  “He’s a director who thinks Eureka would make a great location for his next movie.” Olivia selected a raspberry tartlet and added it to her plate.

  “You should definitely put him up here,” the fair blonde, whom Sharon remembered was named Tamara, said. “It’s the classiest place in town. He might even end up using it in his movie.”

  “I say all we need to do is feed him Danielle’s baked goods and he’ll never want to leave.” Maggie popped a bite of lemon bar into her mouth, closed her eyes, and moaned.

  “We’ll do all of that and more if it will convince him to bring a film crew here to pour some money into the town coffers,” Lucille said. “We’re not proud.”

  “Eureka in the movies.” Olivia shook her head. “I can’t imagine.”

  “I’ll do my best to impress this director,” Barb said. “Though I was really hoping Maggie and Jameso would be my first guests, on their wedding night.”

  “We’ll still have the wedding here,” Maggie said. “Having this other guy stay here first won’t spoil that.” She winced and put a hand to her belly.

  “What is it?” Barb asked. “You’re not going to go into labor right now are you?”

  “Before the presents are opened?” Maggie shook her head and rubbed her stomach. “No, the baby just kicked me in the kidneys.”

  “She’s reminding us who the real guest of honor is.” Barb took Maggie’s arm and led her back toward the living room. “All right, everybody. Let’s open the gifts. You can bring your food and drinks with you.”

  For the next half hour they all “oohed” and “aahed” over the diapers, stroller, baby seat, and other items Maggie received. The clothes were Sharon’s favorite—delicate little shirts, pajamas printed with images of kittens, dresses trimmed in lace and ribbon. She fingered the soft fabric and longed for a return to her own time as a new mother, when she’d been too absorbed by the wonder of her new baby to notice or care about anything else.

  If she had the chance to start over with Adan, she would have done things differently. She would have found a way to keep him with her. To keep him safe.

  “Thank you, everyone,” Maggie said when the last box was open, the last ribbon carefully tucked away. “Now all I need is a house to put everything in.”

  “You still haven’t found a place to live?” the woman with the German accent, who Sharon had learned was a massage therapist named Katya, said.

  “Not yet.” Maggie sighed. “And neither of us really has time to look. If worse comes to worse, we’ll make do with my dad’s cabin, I guess. Babies are little and don’t take up much room.” She looked at the items stacked around her and laughed. “Though apparently their stuff does.”

  The party began to break up. Sharon stayed to help clean up. As she stacked plates to carry to the kitchen, Maggie touched her arm. “Thank you for coming this afternoon,” she said. “I know you have a lot on your mind.”

  “It was good to have a distraction. Though seeing all the baby things reminded me of when mine were little.”

  “You were still a baby yourself when your children were born, from what Jameso tells me,” she said.

  Sharon smiled. “I was and I wasn’t. I was always mature for my age. And I liked being a mother. For me, that was the best part about marriage.”

  “Have you heard anything from the police?” Barb joined them beside the now-cleared table.

  Sharon shook her head. “Joe knows how to cover his tracks. He’s not going to be easy to find.” It was the first time she’d said the words out loud, admitted that she might not see her son again anytime soon. She wouldn’t say never. Surely he’d want to find his mother again. She had to cling to that one hope at least.

  “But he wouldn’t hurt his son—would he?” Barb asked.

  “Not physically.” She had to believe this. Joe was a lot of things, but he’d never been violent with her or the children. “But he’s paranoid about the government, and about other people, too. I’m afraid he’ll pass along those crazy ideas to Adan, who really worships his father.” Her voice caught and she looked away.

  Maggie rubbed her shoulders. “You did what you had to do,” she said. “What I’m sure any of us would have done.”

  Barb pressed her lips together. Sharon recalled that she had a son; maybe she didn’t agree with Maggie’s assessment of the situation. Sharon didn’t blame her; if they had changed places, she might have judged harshly, too.

  Maggie continued to rub Sharon’s back. “You have to believe everything will work out all right,” she said.

  Sharon nodded. To do otherwise meant giving in to despair, and she had Alina to think about, too. Her daughter needed her.

  A musical chime sounded and she looked up, grateful for the distraction. The kindness of these women, whom she barely knew, overwhelmed her. They eased her pain, but also made it impossible to escape from her feelings for even a moment.

  “The party’s over!” Barb called, as she headed for the door.

  Lucille and Olivia came in from the kitchen. “Is that everything?” Olivia asked.

  “I think so,” Maggie said. She put a hand to her back and grimaced. “Time to go home and take a nap. I’ll let Jameso come by later and get all the gifts.”

  “Don’t leave yet, ladies,” Barb called. “We have a visitor.” She ushered Officer Miller into the room.

  He removed his Stetson, and nodded. “Hello, ladies.”

  Sharon’s heart thudded hard and she took a step toward him. “I got your message,” he said. “I still haven’t heard anything. I’m sorry.” He turned to Lucille. “I really came here to see you, Madam Mayor.�
��

  The lines around Lucille’s eyes and mouth deepened. “What’s wrong now, Josh?”

  “I drove by the park just now and saw some activity there. I wanted to double-check that you’d authorized it.”

  “Activity? What kind of activity?”

  “It looked like Miss Wynock was there, with a couple of young people. They were up on ladders by the sign at the entrance to the park.”

  Cassie had really done it this time, Lucille thought as she and Olivia, followed by Maggie, Barb, Josh Miller, and no telling who else, headed toward the town park in a caravan that wound through the streets of Eureka. A small crowd, including Bob and Reggie, had already gathered at the entrance, drawn by the spectacle of Cassie Wynock on a ladder, shouting directions to Lucas Theriot and Alina Franklin, who were also on ladders, a large vinyl banner stretched between them.

  Lucille stopped her car a scant two feet from the base of Cassie’s perch and jumped out. “Cassie,” she called up. “What do you think you’re doing?”

  “I’m doing what the town should have done years ago.” She turned back to the two teens, who were eyeing the gathering crowd apprehensively. “Pull the banner tight and tie on the ends. The sign company said it should fit perfectly.”

  A gasp rose from the crowd as the banner straightened to reveal the words Ernestine Wynock Park.

  “You do know it’s a crime to deface public property,” Lucille said.

  “I’m not defacing anything. Think of it as righting an old wrong.”

  Lucille searched and found Reggie in the crowd of onlookers and beckoned him. “Where do we stand legally on this?” she asked.

  “Well, she’s not actually defacing anything, so you couldn’t get her for vandalism. It’s public property, so she’s not trespassing. Maybe littering, but that’s only a fifty-dollar fine, and the judge usually lets folks work that off by cleaning up alongside the highway one Saturday.”

  The image of Cassie, dressed in orange jail coveralls and brandishing a trash-picking stick, flashed through Lucille’s mind and she shuddered. “What’s our liability if we don’t do anything?” she asked.

  “If she falls off that ladder, she could sue us, and depending on how good a lawyer she hired and how sympathetic the jury, she might actually win.”

  Lucille never thought of Cassie as sympathetic, but the woman was determined, and even a decent actress, so who knew what she could get a jury to believe.

  A flash went off to Lucille’s right. She looked over to see Maggie, her camera aimed up at the sign and the trio holding it. “Rick is going to be sorry he chose today to go fishing over in Norwood,” Maggie said, as she repositioned the camera for another shot.

  No question what would be on the front page of the next issue of the Eureka Miner, probably with a headline along the lines of REBELS TAKE OVER TOWN PARK. Rick tended to like military references. When it was his turn to write up the report of the town council meeting, council members never discussed issues, they always battled or fought.

  “Do you want me to order them to stop?” Josh Miller had worked his way over to Lucille’s side and spoke softly.

  She probably should have Cassie arrested. The librarian was ignoring the town board’s decision—or lack of one—and making a ridiculous show of getting her own way. On the other hand, “Town Park” was a dud of a name, and Ernestine Wynock had been a driving force for good in the town at one time. “Where did you get that banner?” she called up to Cassie.

  “I had it printed in Montrose. It’s guaranteed for a year, though they said it could last longer.”

  “And you paid for it?”

  “Of course.” She gave a very unladylike snort. “If I waited for the city to pay for it, I’d be in my grave before you ever got around to fitting it into the budget.”

  “Alina, what do you think you’re doing?” Sharon Franklin, a little out of breath, ran up to join them. She stared, white-faced, at her daughter, who was balanced on the tall step ladder, struggling to lift the heavy vinyl banner.

  “Miss Wynock said she needed our help, Mom,” Alina called. “You always said we should help people, especially old people.”

  “Do not speak of me as if I am in my dotage, young lady,” Cassie admonished. “And make sure you tie that banner tightly.”

  “Don’t be too hard on your daughter,” Olivia said. “I blame Lucas.” She looked amused. “For some reason, he actually likes Cassie. I sometimes think he even encourages her schemes.”

  “Oh, let her hang her silly banner,” Bob said. “Everybody will still call it the town park, no matter whose name is on it. And it’ll save you having to repaint the old sign before the movie fellow shows up.”

  Discussion spread among the crowd; from what Lucille could tell, opinions were about fifty-fifty for and against the name change. “You can keep the banner up for now,” she called to Cassie. “But we won’t be changing the permanent sign anytime soon—not until the town council has voted on the matter.”

  “You heard what she said, Lucas,” Cassie said. “How are you coming with your end?”

  “Almost done.” He strained against the ropes that held the banner in place, red-faced.

  “I can’t get my end tight,” Alina said.

  “Maybe I’d better help.” Josh handed Sharon his hat and climbed the ladder to help Alina fasten her end of the sign.

  Maggie took another photograph. “You aren’t going to print that one, are you?” Sharon asked. “I mean, he might get into trouble, since he’s on duty.”

  “I won’t print it.” Maggie checked the shot on her camera’s screen. “But I’ll give you a copy if you like.”

  “Oh.” Sharon flushed pink. “No, why would I want that?”

  “I just thought, since she’s your daughter . . .”

  “Oh, yes. Of course. Sure, you can send me a copy.”

  Maggie grinned. “Oh, I will.”

  Together, Alina and Officer Miller succeeded in fastening their end of the sign. They climbed down and met Cassie and Lucas on the ground.

  “It looks really good,” Lucas pronounced.

  “But we need some kind of plaque in the park, to let people know who Ernestine was and what she did,” Alina said.

  Cassie beamed at the girl. “That’s an excellent idea. The historical society has some money in their funds. I’ll persuade them a plaque would be a worthy expenditure.”

  Lucille could have protested that there was no sense erecting a plaque when the sign was neither official nor permanent. But she could have suggested the sun stop shining or the wind stop blowing with about the same effect.

  “Take another picture, now that we’re done,” Cassie ordered Maggie. “And tell Rick I’ll be sending over a press release, with all the information he needs to include in his story.”

  “Rick always looks forward to your press releases,” Maggie said with a straight face as she raised the camera for another shot of the sign in place.

  Someone in the crowd started clapping and others joined in. Cassie’s cheeks pinked and she looked almost happy.

  “It is kind of nice to see something named for a woman for a change,” Olivia said, as she and Lucille headed back to Lucille’s car.

  “There are lots of things around Eureka named after women,” Bob protested. “There’s the French Mistress, the Irene McGraw, Washerwoman Hill, and don’t forget the Dirty Sally.”

  “Old mines and a saloon named after a mine,” Lucille said. “Forgive us if we’re not flattered.”

  “There wouldn’t be a town here if it weren’t for those mines,” Bob said.

  “Speaking of mines, how are things at the Lucky Lady?” Lucille asked. “Have the engineers finished installing the safety gear to Gerald’s satisfaction?”

  Bob spat a stream of tobacco juice into the flower bed alongside the parking lot. “In case you haven’t figured it out, there’s almost nothing Pershing likes better than putting on airs and ordering people around. He keeps finding new work
for the contractors—and I keep reminding him that until we get in there and start actually mining, none of us is going to be making any money.”

  “What does he say to that?” Olivia asked.

  “He tells me a good investment requires patience, or some such balderdash. He needs to watch it or I’ll teach him a thing or two about patience.”

  “Bob, promise me you won’t do anything illegal,” Lucille said.

  “Who’s the proven shyster in this partnership?” Bob asked. “I’m not the one you need to worry about.”

  “I’m pretty sure it’s in the job description of the mayor to worry about everything.” She didn’t point out that he hadn’t promised not to break the law; Bob might pretend to be a loony old codger when it suited him, but the man’s mind was still razor sharp, and he never did anything that wasn’t deliberate. He’d probably broken more than a few laws when it suited him, and he had certainly bent plenty. “Be careful,” she said. “Eureka doesn’t need any more problems.”

  “I can handle Pershing,” Bob said. “Lesser men than him have tried to get the better of me and lived to regret it.”

  She had plenty of regrets where Gerald Pershing was concerned, but it was too late to do anything about any of them. She could only move forward and hope things turned out for the best. She opened her car door. “Where’s Lucas?” she asked Olivia.

  “He asked if he could hang out with Alina and make sure she doesn’t get into too much trouble with her mom,” Olivia said.

  “How gallant,” Lucille said. “Is Alina Lucas’s girlfriend?”

  Olivia made a face. “He says she’s just a friend. I don’t know if he’s really ready for romance. I know I’m not.”

  “As if any of us are ever ready for that.” Lucille climbed into her car and stared out the windshield at the banner that now hung over the entrance. Ernestine Wynock Park.

  “What are you thinking?” Olivia asked as she fastened her seat belt.

  “That we could do worse than follow Cassie’s example.”

  Olivia frowned. “What example is that?”

  “I’m not sure—maybe ‘Don’t take no for an answer,’ or ‘When someone puts an obstacle in your way, climb over it.’ ”