by KG MacGregor
With that thought, Spencer added one more note:
· already called James
That was why Henry was dead, because he had called James. So that meant that James knew about the changes in the program, and therefore, he knew what the program was doing. But he couldn’t have done this on his own; he would have needed another programmer, since his own skills were rudimentary at best. Come to think of it, James had never struck her as being the brightest bulb in the pack anyway, so it was likely that he was just along for the ride by virtue of his position as controller. If they were skimming the books, like Henry had said, they needed someone like James to cover the gaps in inventory. But there had to be others involved; someone in production and probably even their supplier.
What didn’t make sense at all was why the FBI–
"Will you get me some juice, please?"
Preoccupied with her analysis, Spencer was astonished to see the pajama-clad child standing before her clutching her doll. She had no idea how long the little girl had been standing there.
"Well, good morning!" Dropping her papers, she got up and went to the kitchen. "You want some cereal too?"
Jessie shook her head. "Toast and jelly."
"Toast and jelly," she repeated. "That sounds good. Maybe I’ll have some too."
Minutes later, they were sharing breakfast when Ruth stumbled down the hall.
"Is there coffee?"
"Yes, there is. It was made by the Lazy Lady."
That got a giggle out of Jessie, and a smile from her mom.
"What kinds of things do you have to do today?" Spencer asked casually.
"I have to get my car registered, and get a new driver’s license. Do you want me to pick up anything while I’m out?"
Anyone listening might have thought they’d been married fifteen years.
"Yeah, can you bring me a notebook of some sort? I borrowed a few pages from Megan’s tablet. I hope that was okay."
"Of course."
"And maybe you could find me something a little more...adult to write with?" She held up the crayon she’d been using.
"You mean like markers or maybe a paintbrush?" Ruth teased. "I have a pen in my purse you’re welcome to use. Anything else?"
"Gee, I was thinking more like a computer." Even that wouldn’t help, though. What she needed to figure all of this out was access to her own terminal at Margadon, and that lay within an impenetrable firewall.
"Are we getting a computer, Mommy?" Jessie asked with excitement. First a puppy, now this!
"No! She’s being silly. We can’t afford a computer."
Spencer leapt off the couch and began pacing. "All I need is access to a computer. Henry sent it to the server. I’m sure of it."
"What are you talking about?"
Now excited, she explained. "Henry and I used to do a few jobs on the side, you know, contracting with small companies to write code. But we couldn’t park that kind of stuff at Margadon, so we bought a server and set it up in Vienna. When we wanted to work on Margadon stuff at night or over the weekend, we’d send it to the server so we could both have access. I bet Henry sent what he found to the server."
"So how can you find out?"
"I need a computer with a modem."
"Well, we don’t have either one. Even if we had a computer, I don’t have a phone."
"We need some kind of Internet café."
"What about a library? Don’t they have terminals?"
Spencer nodded. "Yeah, but they’re public buildings. They might have some kind of surveillance. I could get caught. But worse than that is that they’ll find the server and go after it. Then all of the evidence would be gone."
"Okay, listen. I need to get going on this car stuff. I have no idea how long we’re going to be gone, but if you figure out how we can get to a computer, we’ll go when I get back."
"Can I stay here with Spencer?"
"No, honey. You have to come with me."
"Why?"
"Yeah, why?"
"Duh! Both of you. Viv doesn’t know Spencer is here, and she knows I wouldn’t go off and leave you by yourself."
"Oh," the others said together.
* * *
"…so I told him like, I’m not gonna do that, and he goes, well why not, and I go, I’m just not, so then he goes…oh, shit! Not again! Melanie, I gotta go. There’s a cop behind me and he’s pulling me over. Bye!"
Sixteen-year-old Carly Porr had been driving less than two months, and this was the third occasion on which she’d been stopped. The first time, she’d gotten a stern warning about rolling through a stop sign. The second was for a series of vehicle safety violations: one headlight and both brake lights in the old Plymouth were out, the tires were nearly bald, and one of the windshield wipers flopped aimlessly in the rain. For all that, she’d gotten ticketed, but it convinced her father to buy her something a little more road-worthy.
That’s how she came to be driving the brand new Saturn; at least it was new to Carly. They’d picked it up from her dad’s friend Dick Huggins in Farmington on Sunday.
"License and registration, please," the uniformed officer demanded.
"What’d I do this time?" She dug out her license and the bill of sale. The registration hadn’t arrived in the mail yet.
"Step out of the car, please."
"What’d I do?" she practically shouted. Some of her friends had warned her about cops who stopped women for no reason, just to bribe them into having sex so they wouldn’t get a ticket.
Ignoring her question, the officer studied the bill of sale, matching the vehicle identification number from the brass strip affixed to the dash beneath the windshield. It was definitely the car they were looking for, the one that had belonged to Ruth Ferguson.
"Miss Porr, I’m going to have to ask you to come with me."
Oh my god! Shaking with fear, she pulled out her cell phone. "I’m not going anywhere till I call my daddy."
"Is your father Harold Porr, the owner of this car?"
"He is."
"Then he’s going to have to come to the station, too, I’m afraid."
Oh, shit! She must have really done something awful this time. While the officer double-checked her license and bill of sale, Carly peeked at the grill to see if she had a bicycle or something stuck there.
* * *
The cranky four-year-old stormed into the trailer and went straight to her bedroom and slammed her door.
"There is no need to slam this door, young lady," Ruth said sternly as she followed her daughter into the room. "I know you’re tired and that you didn’t have a good time. I didn’t have a good time either, but you heard me promise Spencer that I’d take her somewhere when we got finished."
Spencer felt guilty to learn that she was the cause of the child’s consternation.
"Can I go see the puppies?"
"It’s ‘may I’ and I don’t think so, because I’m not very happy with the way you’re acting right now."
The pouting child responded with a mumbled apology.
"I think you need to sit in here a while and think about how you’ve acted. Maybe if you took a little nap, you would feel like being nicer."
Jessie kicked off her shoes and curled up on her bed. Ruth watched her settle down, the teary green eyes a sure sign of remorse. She walked over and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead. "I love you, sweetheart."
Spencer sat on the couch, looking sheepish at having witnessed such a personal moment between mother and child. Ruth plopped tiredly in the recliner.
"You’re wicked," the tall woman teased softly, bringing an easy smile to her new friend’s flustered face.
"That was my toughest Mommy act," she laughed.
"Well, it had me peeing in my pants."
"Stop."
"I’m not kidding. Remind me never to cross you."
"You’re so funny." Ruth shook her head, still chuckling. "So Karen Michelle Oliver is now licensed to drive in the state of Virginia,
and her car has brand new plates on the front and the back."
"Congratulations. How’d you pull that off?"
"I bought the car two weeks ago for cash from a private seller. I asked him to write me a receipt and I filled in my name. And I told them at the DMV that I’d never had a license before; that I was always afraid to drive. They tested me and that was that."
"Pretty slick."
"Yeah, it helps when you get in a long line of people who are abusing the poor clerk behind the counter and you’re the first person who treats him like a human being."
"Catching flies with honey?"
"That’s right. Listen, she’s going to be a lot more pleasant after a nap. Then I guess we should go look in on the puppies for a few minutes. Did you decide where you needed to go?"
"No. Without a phone book or anything, I couldn’t even guess. How would you feel about just riding around a little and seeing what we find?"
"That’s okay. But I need to take her somewhere to play for a while. Waiting in that line for three hours was torture."
"Sure. Maybe we’ll see a park or something."
Ruth looked at Spencer with gratitude. "Thanks for understanding."
"Not a problem. It’s taken thirty-three years, but I’ve learned that life isn’t all about what I want," she grinned.
* * *
Viv was pleased to see the pair standing inside the porch at the back door. It was nice to have these two as tenants, and she loved seeing the pure joy on Megan’s face each time she peeked in on the puppies.
"Come on in. They’ve missed you today."
The excited child made a beeline for the room off the kitchen where Maggie and her pups had settled.
"This is the highlight of her day," Ruth said.
"Then you should bring her over more often. Or she could stay here if you had to run out for something."
"That’s very kind. We don’t want to be any trouble."
"I wouldn’t have offered if it was any trouble. Say, I’ve got your laundry back here."
"Oh my goodness! I forgot all about it. I’m so sorry."
"That’s okay." Viv handed over a small basket of folded clothes and the blanket. "Those were some awfully long jeans in there," she remarked casually.
"Uh, yeah…I sometimes wear them long because I like to roll ‘em up. You know, cuffs."
"Uh-huh," she said skeptically. "Look, Karen. I know you got somebody else staying over there. I heard the toilet flush after you and Megan left."
Ruth could feel her face redden.
"Now I don’t really understand why you haven’t said anything about her, but I guess you had your reasons. It’s your business. But you don’t have to be sneaky about it. Makes me think you’ve got something to hide."
Ruth stared at the floor, ashamed to meet her landlady’s accusing look. If she only knew.
"She’s just going to stay a few nights. I’m sorry I didn’t say anything."
"You don’t have to be sorry. It’s your home and you can have company stay whenever you want. You don’t need my permission. But this sneaking in and out isn’t necessary. You should go get her and bring her over. "
"Okay." Ruth started out the back door, but stopped. "Viv, how did you know it was a she?"
The gray-haired woman chuckled. "No boxers. No briefs."
Ruth hauled the laundry basket up the steps, balancing it on her hip to open the door. "My landlady knows you’re here, and she wants to meet you."
"How?"
"I forgot the laundry and she found a pair of jeans that were about two feet too long for me. And she heard the toilet flush when Megan and I weren’t here."
"Great. Are you in trouble?"
"No, but she wants to meet you, so come on."
"Fuck!"
"What?"
"What if she’s seen me on TV?"
"Pull your hair back or something."
"Oh yeah, that’ll do it," she said sarcastically. "I’ll look like a whole different person. Who did you tell her I was?"
"I didn’t tell her anything. I just said you were staying here a few days. She’s a little put out that I didn’t mention anything."
"So, what? Am I a friend of yours from Maine? A relative? Help me out here."
"You can be a friend from Maine, but you’re living here now and you lost your job. I didn’t tell her much, so you get to make up whatever you want. Just remember that Megan may get curious and start asking questions, so you better keep it simple."
With Ruth in the lead, Spencer nervously walked in through the back door of the house. To her infinite embarrassment, the blonde woman introduced her as Dolly Rollins, which brought a snicker from the little girl, and a renewed threat of tickling from Spencer.
Viv asked worriedly about the black eye and Spencer explained that she’d been in an accident, but that it wasn’t serious. She wished later that she’d been more forthcoming about her bruises and injured arm, as that might have staved off the landlady’s next request.
"To tell you the truth, I’m glad there are two of you over there. I could use some extra hands with the storm windows now that it’s turning cold."
Their plans for looking for Internet access were scuttled when Viv directed them to the shed where the windows were kept, showing them where to find the glass cleaner and the ladder. For the back porch, she had gotten a roll of heavy plastic, which had to be measured, cut, and stapled all around.
"Don’t worry about Megan," Viv said. "I’ll keep an eye on her. We’ll watch the puppies, and maybe play around a little on the computer."
Computer?
CHAPTER 16
"WOULD ICE HELP?"
Spencer shook her head. Her ribcage was screaming at her from all the activity with the storm windows yesterday afternoon; and Viv had presented them with a new list of chores for today.
"Too late for that."
"You shouldn’t have done all that work without wrapping it up. That’s why I got the bandage."
"I know," she groaned. Ruth had advised her twice to stop, offering to wrap the elastic around her ribs. "I’ll do it today. But I might need some help."
"I don’t know about you, but I’m not all that eager to get started," Ruth said, peeking past the curtain to the house. "I’m afraid if we get finished with stuff, she’ll find more for us to do."
Spencer chuckled. "I think we’re being punished for me hiding over here. The chores are going to keep coming until she’s gotten her pound of flesh."
"You’re probably right." Wordlessly, Ruth picked up the elastic bandage and gestured for the tall woman to lift her shirt. "You need to be careful with this. If they’re broken, they’ll never heal if you keep pulling on it."
"I think they’re just bruised. They don’t hurt like they did a couple of days ago." Spencer grimaced as the bandage was pulled tight across the dark contusion. Still, she got a nice jolly from the warm hands.
"How’s your arm today?"
"It’s much better, Dr. Ruth." As soon as she said it, the image of the diminutive sex therapist popped into her head and Spencer snorted.
The blonde woman said nothing, her only response a hard yank on the elastic.
"Ow! Not so tight!"
"Sorry." She wasn’t really.
"Do you think Viv will let me use her computer?"
"I don’t see why not. Tonight’s bingo night, you know. I think you should have to come along for that before you’re granted computer privileges."
"Well, I would volunteer, you know, but since my picture’s on the news as a wanted murderer, it might be best if I pass," she answered sweetly, batting her eyelashes with exaggerated innocence.
"Excuses, excuses." Ruth moved around behind the dark-haired woman to attach the metal fasteners. "You know, you were asking me the other day about how to thank me for letting you stay here. I think I’ve just come up with a way, every Wednesday night."
"What, you don’t like bingo?"
"Puh-leaze!"
"It’ll be fun. You just need a positive attitude."
"Yeah, right. That reminds me, would you watch Jessie tonight so I don’t have to keep her out so late?"
"Sure. But I think she’s afraid of me."
"Well you did threaten to kill us both, as I recall," Ruth joked. "But she likes you alright. She doesn’t ask just anybody to play Candy Land." In fact, Jessie had insisted the night before that Spencer play too, because somebody had to be green. And when the mother-daughter pair trounced the newcomer in consecutive games, Spencer had been a very good sport. It was the first time in ages that Ruth could remember having fun with her daughter and another adult.
On the surface, Spencer was proving to be a really interesting person, easy to be around. Ruth could sense those times when the programmer’s thoughts would turn to her dilemma, and she wished there was more that she could do to help. It really touched her that Spencer seemed to have also taken on her problems with Skip, though it was pretty doubtful she’d be able to help with that.
"Look, I really appreciate all your help with Viv’s chores, but you really do need to take care of this. Let me do the heavy lifting today, okay?"
"Thanks, Ruth."
"And stop calling me Ruth."
* * *
"You’re all wet!" Jessie declared, as if either her mom or Spencer might have been unaware. Viv had grossly misrepresented the enormity of the dog bath task.
A happy Maggie joined her hungry puppies while Thor preened nearby. The dogs really did smell a lot better, but the same could not be said for Ruth and Spencer.
"Dibs on the shower," the blonde woman called as the threesome walked across the drive to the trailer.
Spencer muttered a few choice words under her breath, ever cognizant of the presence of a four-year-old.
"What was that?"
"You don’t want to know." She was exhausted, but at least Viv had agreed to let her use the computer tonight while they were at the church. She wanted to look for a job, she said.
Viv had them back over for dinner, and soon after, the landlady and Ruth left to seek their fortunes at the Goodwill Christian Church.