“She works for her brother.”
Anna shook her head. “Isn’t that going to be a problem? Her brother is madly in love with the woman her husband tried to kill. Do you think she is going to ask that he choose his sister over his lover? I don’t think so. If she is a normal woman, she will put her own needs aside and see to it that her brother is happy. She will walk away from Cara, her job and her family.”
Adeline said quietly. “That sounds dreadful. Perhaps we can find her something.”
Anna shook her head. “You don’t want Cara to find out that you got the wife of the guy that tried to kill her a job, do you? At least not until she has had a chance to heal a little. To process all of this a little. She needs to have some power too. She needs to know that there are some safe spots for her and one of those should be her job.”
Adeline protested. “I actually believe that Cara would be grateful.”
Anna shook her head. “She is a nice girl, but she’s not a saint.”
Carolyn sounded so sad. “True.” She sat a little straighter. “First things first. I will go back to my condo and make sure that the extra room is ready for Suzi. There is every chance that Suzi is already there. It was her intent to move into the condo as soon as I left for Hawaii. That seems like such a long time ago.”
“We will call Roland. I believe he will be well aware of Suzi’s location.”
“He’s watching her?”
“Yes.”
Carolyn was immediately defensive. “You don’t trust her?”
“I don’t trust Barry and I want to make sure that should he decide to contact Suzi there are people in place to assure her safety.”
“Right. You’re right. I know that. I’m sorry. Thank you.”
Carolyn was obviously at her limit and both Adeline and Anna were worried.
“I’ll tell you what I think we should do. I think that we should put you and your granddaughter up in a hotel. In that way, we don’t have as much concern as we would. There would be no way for Barry to know where you are.”
Carolyn seemed resigned. “Maybe that’s a good idea. Oh, and we need to cancel all the stuff for the trip to Hawaii. I’m so sorry. I’m not sure we can get our money back for a lot of that.”
Anna jumped on the chance to say something positive. “All taken care of. Did it this morning. We aren’t out anything. I took out travel insurance. I was more worried about getting one of us home if we got sick or something, but I’m glad I did it just the same.”
Adeline smiled. “You are a marvel. Roland should hire you.”
“Roland can’t afford me.”
The girls got a chuckle out of the comment, which was a small step in the right direction. A very small step.
“Tell you what, Carolyn, you and Suzi are more than welcome at my house and you wouldn’t have to pay for a hotel.”
“Or you can stay at the loft with me. There is plenty of room.”
“I appreciate the offer, but I think Suzi would be better off with a little more privacy than that. She’s pregnant and with all of this with Barry, I think that she would be happier if it were just the two of us. I don’t want to offend…”
“Don’t be silly. You aren’t offending us. We can still go with the plan. Either I can stay with Anna or Anna can stay at the loft with me and you can stay at her house.”
Carolyn hesitated. “I’m not sure.”
“You don’t need to decide right now. Anna and I can shift accordingly. Whatever is best for you, Carolyn. Please. Allow us to help you. It is our honor.”
Anna tried for humor again. “Your turn will come soon enough. One or the other of us is going to need help and we won’t hesitate to ask. Lucky you, you were just the first to come into a problem.”
“Alright. Thank you. I think that Suzi and I would be comfortable either place.”
Anna and Adeline discussed it for a few minutes. They both had alarm systems. The winning point was that the loft space had closed garages and Anna had all her nephew’s junk in the garage. On the off chance that Barry followed Carolyn and Suzi home, they would be safer alighting from the car under more secure circumstances.
Carolyn gratefully accepted their reasoning and called Suzi to see if she could arrange a meeting.
Anna and Adeline excused themselves and made tea in the large modern kitchen.
Ten minutes later, Carolyn joined them in the dining room.
“Suzi and I decided not to tell anyone that we came back early. A.J. has enough on his mind. She’s going to tell him that she’s staying with a college friend so that he won’t worry about her being alone. She has accepted your generous offer. I just can’t thank you girls enough. I’d offer you my condo, but the thought of anyone taking a chance staying there when I’m not willing to take that chance myself is inexcusable.”
“Don’t you give it a thought. I’ve got it all arranged. That handsome young man, Harry, is going to pick me up here in about twenty minutes. He will drive me over to pick up my car at your condo. I’ll leave him there and head off to the grocery store and open my house back up. He’s going to grab your car and bring it back here, I’m assuming with the help of another guy from the office. Then he’s going to drive Adeline over to my place.”
Adeline snapped. “Don’t be ridiculous. I can drive.”
“Turns out that your doctor said you couldn’t drive until you got back from Hawaii and they had a chance to see you again, and technically that isn’t for several more days plus a doctor visit. Besides, give Roland a break. We were pretty hard on him today.”
“Very well.”
“Suzi is aware that we will be working with someone, I’m sure she assumes it is the police, to find Barry. She is as anxious to find him as we are.”
“That’s good.”
“She’s heartbroken. Terrified. Angry.”
Adeline leaned toward Carolyn. “That’s good too. There are a lot of steps to all of this. Psychologically speaking. Cara was telling me about them, trying to comfort me about the mess my older children have created and believe me, she didn’t even know the half of it. This was before we left. She was speaking about my older children allowing me to wallow in that miserable old house without the least bit of familial care. She said the first step is denial. I stayed in that process far too long. The next is anger. I think sometimes that women our age are not good at anger. We tend to turn things inward. I’m learning. Cara suggested that I buy a punching bag and make good use of it. She even found a company that will emblazon images onto the bag. She had some amusing suggestions.”
Carolyn actually smiled, a big step in the right direction. Because of that smile, Adeline continued.
“Then comes bargaining and depression and finally acceptance.”
“I’m worried about my Suzi. She has so much to deal with. Her best friend is in the hospital because of her husband and she’s pregnant with his baby. Thirty years ago, I wouldn’t have given much thought to the genetics side of all of this and I would never say a word to Suzi, but the truth of it is that she is mixing our gene pool with that of a monster. If her parents are any indication of our side, this baby could be a huge challenge to guide into successful adulthood.”
Anna’s voice was firm but kind. “Carolyn, you need to stop right there. Honey, Suzi will have a beautiful little baby and she will show that baby all the love in the world. We’re going to catch Barry and we are going to make sure that he can never intrude on Suzi’s life in a negative way. Or Cara’s life either. And let me just say for the record that a mother’s love can overcome much more in this world than you think. I’ve seen it time and again. Children born into much more difficult situations with generations of dysfunction and poverty, rise above it all and become the finest people you would ever want to meet. Please don’t look for a problem, because if you look, you will always find at least one.”
“You’re right. I know you are. Thank you. For your kindness. Your wisdom. And if I could impose upon you, for a pro
mise.”
Adeline actually answered first. “Anything.”
Anna followed right behind her. “If it is within my power it is yours for the taking.”
“If I don’t straighten up and fly right within the next twenty-four hours, please kick my butt.”
The girls started to laugh.
“I have had problems with depression in the past. When my husband died, I nearly buried myself with him – metaphorically, not literally – and I don’t want to allow myself to go that deeply again.”
“You have my word and I’m sure Adeline will back me up. Now you just tell us what it is you and your Suzi need and let us take care of you for a little bit. Can you do that?”
“I can. Thank you.”
Adeline stood. “I am just going to go make a few phone calls. If you girls could do me a favor?”
“Sure.”
“Could you sit down and think? Make some notes. I know that Roland and his group are very competent, but it feels to me like their approach is more corporate and I think that we need to go after Barry on a more personal level. If this is too upsetting for you Carolyn, I understand, and Anna and I can work on it from her house after we get you and Suzi settled.”
“It is upsetting to me, mostly because I didn’t see any of this coming. I should have been more observant. I knew there was something just a little bit off about Barry, and in the last few months, since their wedding actually, it seemed to be a growing problem, but I didn’t want to overstep. I didn’t want to alienate my Suzi. What a fool I have been.”
“Carolyn, while I feel the same way about my recent experiences with my older children, I must share with you what was shared with me. A very wise woman told me that once you know better you will do better. You cannot hold yourself responsible for things you were not aware of.”
“That’s good advice.”
“Thank you.” Anna smiled. “I spent a lot of my life taking responsibility for things that were not mine. Still do, actually. It is something I’m trying to let go of. When my Morgan was so badly hurt, I ranted at the stars. I just knew that had I been there I wouldn’t have allowed that child to walk through a college campus unescorted. She was such a lovely young thing. Beautiful and smart as a whip. Was going to be a doctor. Top of her class. My stupid nephew and his wife thought that because she was so trustworthy that she was able to do anything. A little girl walking through that place all alone. Such stupidity.”
“While I understand your frustration, Anna, might I point out that young women walk through a college campus alone all the time and that your nephew is not responsible for the atrocity that befell your niece.”
“True, but to my way of thinking, people don’t think these days. We are such a free and open society that we have become stupid. In my day there is not a chance that a father would allow his daughter to walk alone in the dark. Daughters have become much more free, but at what cost? And at the same time, it seems to me, that we have become a much more violent and scary society.”
“I don’t know that I agree.” It was good to hear Carolyn join in the conversation. “And I say that with everything that has happened recently burning a hole in my brain. Think about the twenties. They were a very violent decade. Think of the wild wild west.”
“I thought that had been debunked.”
“What?”
“I thought I read somewhere that the Wild West wasn’t all that wild. That the settlers had formed some kind of private security groups within each of their areas. Those groups took care of everything from land disputes to regular security. That was before the land ever became states or there was a recognized government.”
“I’ve never heard of such a thing.”
“Don’t get me started on the way we educate ourselves and our kids.”
“Anna, you should have been a teacher. It’s not too late.”
“Oh, don’t be silly. I’m too old to start a whole new career. I’m not educated, I’m curious.”
“Curious is more important than educated.” Carolyn, a retired teacher, felt confident in her response.
“You see, that is part of the problem. We have dumbed down ourselves and our kids so badly that we actually believe that. I don’t mean to be disrespectful of you or your chosen field, Carolyn, but I am much more old school than that. I believe that there is little more important than education and that our schools are a dismal failure and getting worse.”
“Anna, I would have to agree.”
“As do I. Things were quite different when I started teaching. I recall the excitement of the children when they came to school. We rewarded good behavior and we punished bad behavior. That simple. We depended on parents to do the rest. Unfortunately, that is no longer how it is done. I think our children are paying the highest price. I read an article the other day about rethinking what we teach our kids about war. How it is important to tone down the negativity. Another article I read was all about the importance of self-esteem. The article outlined the best way to give your child a high level of self-esteem. If we can agree that self-esteem is important, which I’m not convinced of, because I’m still unclear as to how to give someone self esteem, when by its very nature it is earned not given. All of that is a discussion for another time.”
“Things are different now. Some things are better. Some things are worse. When are we going to learn to keep the good and improve it instead of throwing everything away and coming up with a new approach that is gonna have just as many flaws, just different flaws.”
“That’s a question for the ages.”
FOUR
“Adeline, I really appreciate you going to the trouble of allowing Carolyn and her granddaughter to stay at your place, but I understand if you would rather stay at a nice hotel.”
“Don’t be silly.”
“My house isn’t as grand as you are used to. I think I’d actually be embarrassed.”
“I’m sorry that you think so little of me, Anna.”
“What?”
“It is you who I would be imposing upon. Your hospitality is quite generous and the inconveniences of having a houseguest upon unexpected arrival from a trip out of state is a nuisance, but please know that the accommodations would be more than comfortable. I don’t know why you and Carolyn seem to think that I need to be pitied.”
“Pitied?”
“You and Carolyn seem quite comfortable with each other, but when it comes to me, you seem a bit, I’m not sure of the word I would choose, perhaps the best one would be hesitant.”
“Adeline, you have to admit that my entire house would fit in one of those bathrooms you have at your place.”
Adeline allowed herself a bit of a grin. “That might be a slight exaggeration.”
“Slight.”
“Be that as it may, I have quite enjoyed my time with you girls.”
“Yes, but we were comp-ed that really expensive suite. Carolyn and I aren’t used to driving around in limousines and flying on private planes at the drop of a hat.”
“So all of those things are something new and different for you. And do you enjoy it?”
“Yes, I suppose we do.”
“Then why would you assume that I would not enjoy a change?”
“There’s a difference between an upgrade and a loss.”
“Yes, but who defines the upgrade? I would much prefer living in a house with dirt floors than my home, if I had to choose between the loneliness inherent in that monstrosity I live in versus the love of a smaller home.”
“Not all small homes are full of love, and even the ones that are, a small area can create its own problems.”
“My point exactly. A large home presents problems of its own. I would remind you that I almost died in that big house. Not only because of the mold issues, which were my own fault for being stubborn and not allowing a full staff to stay in residence, but also because there was no one who cared about me as an individual. I was seen more as an employer or a woman to be feared.”
/>
“Well, I don’t work for you and you don’t scare me. As scrawny as you are, I could take you with one hand tied behind my back.”
“Oh really?” Adeline couldn’t hold back her smile this time. “You think so?”
“Okay, that wasn’t a challenge. No granny wrestling here. I’m just telling you that Carolyn and I don’t care about your money. That isn’t what it is about. But at the same time, we don’t want you to be uncomfortable.”
“Thank you, Anna. It’s nice to see that someone is actually worried about my sensibilities, but please allow me to assure you that I do not need all the trappings of wealth. What I need is much more basic. In every realm.”
“Point taken. In that case, you are more than welcome to stay with me. I have the room, and I just gotta swing by the grocery store and pick up a few things. Maybe we can invite Carolyn and her granddaughter over for dinner. We’ll see how it goes.”
“I think that would be lovely. If you provide a list, I can have whatever you require delivered and save you the effort of shopping.”
“Come on to the grocery store with me, Adeline. Take a walk on the wild side. Smell the produce. I’ll bring you on an adventure the likes of which you have never seen. Forget Hawaii, I can bring you to Bob’s Market. I’ve seen things in there you wouldn’t believe. There is one particularly lovely gentleman, must be our ages combined, who can still balance on pink four inch heels and wears a blue and white pleated wool skirt like the girls used to wear to the catholic school down the street. He’s a little heavy on the blue eye shadow, but he is careful to blend well into his beard.”
“Anna, I’m surprised at you. It is unkind to make light of people with mental problems.”
“That’s just the point. At Bob’s, you and I are the ones that will be seen as different. Everyone I’ve ever met in there has been happy with their life and their choices. How many of us can say that?”
“Not many.”
“Come with me and play at Bob’s”
Hawaii Can Wait (The Girls Series) Page 6