by Amy M. Reade
“I’ve made some phone calls and I’m waiting to hear back from several people to make appointments to see them. As soon as I start getting appointments, I’ll make my travel plans.”
“What’s the timeline?” Lilly asked.
“I’ll go to Washington as soon as possible.”
Lilly sighed. “I wish I could go with you.”
“Do you think there’s any way you can?” he asked, his eyes lighting up. “We could spend an extra night and see some of the sights.”
Lilly shook her head. “I’ve got too much going on here. Between my mother trying to escape from her house and Alice’s disappearance, I don’t think I should go anywhere right now.”
“What happened to your mother?”
Lilly remembered she hadn’t told Hassan about her mother’s excursion to the park by herself in the middle of the night. She explained the situation while Hassan’s face grew more concerned.
“Are you and Bill going to hire someone to stay overnight with her?” he asked.
“Not yet. We’re not ready to deprive her of all her privacy and independence. Nikki is going to keep the alarm on all the time, even when they’re in the house, so she knows if Mom tries to leave. We’re hoping that solution works.”
“I hope so, too. And there’s been no word on Alice?”
“No.” Lilly toyed with her napkin, her thoughts grim. “I wish I could do more to help find her.”
“You’re letting the police deal with Alice’s disappearance, right?” Hassan asked. He gave her a suspicious look.
“Of course.” She knew he would assume she was leaving the entire investigation to the police, and she didn’t say otherwise. “I just want to be in Juniper Junction in case Harry needs help. And this is not a good time to leave him in charge of the store. Plus—” She stopped. She had almost mentioned her planned solo excursion to Guy’s Place, and she figured that would not go over well with Hassan.
“Plus what?” he asked.
She thought fast. “Plus I want to make sure Laurel is following my orders and not going anywhere.”
He nodded. “I can understand that.”
The server came by to take their orders and Lilly sat back with an inward sigh of relief. She was ready to change the subject.
“Why do you need to meet with people from the embassies before you go to Afghanistan?”
“When I visit a country to collect gems, I always take along letters from that country’s ambassador to the United States that explain why I’m there. That way, if there are any questions, I can just whip out the letter instead of waiting for several days for someone to get in touch with the embassy to make sure I am who I say I am.”
“Are there people who don’t believe what you tell them?”
“Plenty of people. And when I’m in the Middle East or Southeast Asia, where there is almost always fighting, it helps to have the letter because it explains that I’m not there to take sides. I just want to buy my gems and get back home. Not everyone who looks at the letters can read, but there’s almost always someone around who can read it to them.”
“And what about all the money you’ll be carrying?” This issue worried Lilly, since she knew banditry was common in the mountainous regions of Southeast Asia.
“I keep the money in a bank in the capital city of wherever I go, then I transfer it to accounts of the gem miners and sellers whenever I’m in the capital. They trust me, so that arrangement works. I don’t carry much on me. That’s not how it used to be, though. While I was working to earn the trust of the people I deal with, I had to carry huge sums of cash with me to pay for the gems on the spot. It’s easier and less dangerous now.”
Lilly smiled. “I still worry.”
“I know. So does my family, even though my father spent decades doing the very same thing. It’s natural. I worry sometimes, too.”
“Let’s talk about something else before I’m too worried to eat lunch.” Lilly tried to smile, but it turned into more of a smirk.
Hassan laughed. “All right. I don’t want you to worry.”
Their meals arrived and Lilly told him all about talking to Harry about Mary Louise.
“He talked to her about putting her head on his shoulder in the theater. She was apparently pretty upset when he asked her to stop. What do you make of it?” she asked.
“I definitely think Mary Louise is taking advantage of a terrible situation, but I don’t know if there’s any more to it than that.”
“I don’t either,” Lilly agreed. “But I don’t think it should be overlooked. There’s always a possibility that she knows more than she’s saying. I just think Harry needs to be careful around her.”
“If nothing else, he needs to rethink his friendship with a woman who would connive like that to get closer to him.”
Lilly was liking Mary Louise less and less.
Chapter 31
Lilly avoided lecturing Harry again that afternoon, choosing instead to focus on telling him a little about Hassan’s upcoming trip. Since Harry’s Uncle Robert, Lilly’s mentor, had taught Harry all about the jewelry business, he was interested in learning more about the supply end of the business and where the gems came from.
“It would be so cool to go on a trip like that,” he enthused.
“I’m not so sure. Afghanistan can be a dangerous place,” Lilly said. That got her thinking all over again of how worried she would be while Hassan was gone and she regretted her choice of conversation topics.
“Let’s talk about something else,” she suggested. But there seemed to be no safe topic, so they fell silent as the afternoon wore on.
Few customers came in that day, so they were able to lock the front door right at closing time and get the displays put into the vault quickly. Lilly was grateful for it, since she wanted to stop at her mother’s house to check on things before going home for the night.
When she arrived, she knocked on the door and Nikki peered through the curtain on the front door to see who it was. Seeing Lilly standing on the porch, she disarmed the security system and opened the door.
“How is everything today?” Lilly asked.
“Great,” Nikki said. Then she lowered her voice. “She’s been spending more and more time in her past, in her memories, but they’re happy memories, so that’s not a bad thing.”
Lilly nodded, not quite sure what to expect when she saw Bev. And when she walked into the living room, she was shocked to see Bev wearing a 1960s-style A-line dress in a hideous tangerine hue and low-heeled patent leather loafers, sitting in her armchair and watching television.
“Hi, Mom. I love your dress!”
“This old thing?” Bev asked with a smile, making a dismissive gesture with her hand. “I’ve had it for years.”
Lilly gave Nikki a questioning look. “She found it in an old trunk,” Nikki explained. “She asked me to go up in the attic and bring it down. It’s full of old clothes. It’s like playing dress-up,” she added with a smile.
“How fun!”
“Your father should be home from work any minute,” Bev said. “Then we’ll have dinner.”
“Sounds good, Mom,” Lilly said. She glanced at Nikki, who smiled at her and nodded.
Lilly sat down and watched television with her mom and Nikki for a little while. Bev smoothed the skirt of her dress several times and looked down at her feet, rotating her ankles so she could see her shoes from different angles. It was simultaneously heartwarming and heartbreaking.
Lilly looked down at her lap. She missed the old Bev, the bustling mother who was organized, keen-minded, and always ready for anything. This new Bev, the one with the slightly vacant look in her eyes, the one who was dressed up in old clothes, patiently waiting for her long-dead husband to get home from work, scared Lilly a little bit.
She knew she needed to concentrate on something else or she would be overcome with sadness and fear of the future.
“Mom, I thought I’d bring Laurel over tomorrow evening to v
isit. How would that be?” she asked.
“I would love to see Laurel. Tighe called just—oh, Nikki, when did Tighe call?”
“Yesterday.”
Bev continued. “Oh, yes. Tighe called yesterday and he is studying hard. I’m so proud of him.”
“When he comes home for spring break, I know he’ll be happy to see you,” Lilly said.
Bev smiled. “I’ll be very happy to see him, too.” She sighed deeply. “Nikki, I think I would like to go to bed now.”
“Now?” Nikki asked. “You haven’t even had dinner yet.”
“I know, dear, but I’m not hungry.” The vacant look was still there in Bev’s eyes. Lilly wondered what was going through her mind.
“All right, you can go to bed anytime you’d like,” Nikki said. Bev pushed herself out of her armchair. Lilly noticed Nikki sitting forward on the sofa, her hands ready to assist Bev if needed. Nikki was watching Bev with concern.
When Bev had left the room, Lilly turned to Nikki. “Is she all right? I noticed the way you were watching her.”
Nikki held up a finger to Lilly, indicating that she would be right back. She stood at the bottom of the stairs, watching Bev make her way upstairs to her bedroom.
Nikki returned and sat down next to Lilly. “I didn’t want to say anything while Bev could hear me, but I’ve noticed in the past day or two that she’s been a little unsteady on her feet.”
“Has she fallen?”
“No, she hasn’t. But she’s been wobbling a little bit.” Nikki sat back against the sofa cushions. “Unfortunately, it’s all part of the progression of her illness.”
“So we should expect it to get worse?” Lilly fretted.
Nikki nodded as she looked at Lilly sympathetically. “Hopefully it will be a slow progression. I’ve seen it happen slowly and I’ve seen it happen quickly. When it happens slowly, the person has more mobility for longer, but it’s hard watching them decline like that.”
“There’s nothing good about this, is there?” Lilly asked with a sigh.
“It depends on how you look at it,” Nikki said. “If you think of all the happiness she has spending time in her own memories, which seem very vivid, then it’s not as bad as it could be. And despite the mobility issues we’re starting to see, she’s still able to get around the house. I’m thankful for the alarm system, because without it I would worry constantly not only about her leaving the house without telling me, but also about falling once she’s outside.”
Lilly sighed again. Her life seemed to consist of nothing but worry lately.
Once Nikki had gone upstairs to check on Bev and confirmed that she was already asleep, Lilly went home. She and Laurel ate dinner together, but Laurel didn’t seem to want to talk and Lilly didn’t feel like discussing her day. Or Hassan, or Harry, or her mother.
Laurel didn’t seem to notice. She was preoccupied with something else.
“Everything okay?” Lilly asked as they were washing the dishes together.
Laurel shrugged. “I dunno.”
“Want to tell me about it?”
“I think Nick is going out with some other girl. I saw them in the hallway at school today, holding hands.”
Lilly glanced sideways at Laurel and saw that she was wiping a tear from the corner of her eye.
She put down the dishrag and turned to Laurel, putting her hands on her daughter’s thin shoulders. “Laurel, this is Nick’s loss. You remember that. You’re sweet and thoughtful and pretty and confident and you don’t need some dumb boy to know how important you are.”
Laurel’s tears fell faster.
“The right person will come along, but before that happens you’ll have to kiss a lot of frogs. Think of Nick as one of the frogs.”
The corners of Laurel’s mouth turned up just a little bit.
“Ribbit,” Lilly said quietly.
Laurel laughed in spite of herself.
“See how easy that is?” Lilly asked, putting her arm around Laurel’s shoulders. “Nick may be the right person for someone, but it isn’t you. You’re destined for someone better.”
“Ribbit,” Laurel replied with a smile. She wiped her cheek with her hand and then ran her sleeve across her runny nose.
“Put that shirt in the laundry,” Lilly advised.
Laurel laughed again.
“I went over to see Gran today,” Lilly said as they were finishing up the dishes. “I offered to take you over there to see her tomorrow night. She thought that sounded nice.”
“Okay,” Laurel said. Then she rolled her eyes and looked at Lilly. “It’s not like I’m going anywhere.”
Lilly smiled. “You’re getting very good at being grounded.”
Laurel smiled back at her. “It isn’t as bad as I thought it would be.”
Lilly was glad to be taking Laurel over to Bev’s the following evening. She had other plans, and it would be best if Laurel was occupied.
Chapter 32
The next day went quickly. There were more customers than the day before and Lilly made sure she kept Harry busy all day. She knew he was growing increasingly depressed over the lack of leads on Alice’s whereabouts, and if his sunken eyes and stooped shoulders were any indication, the burdens of worry and concern were weighing on him more and more every day.
But she was going to do something about that.
As soon as she and Laurel had finished dinner that evening, she drove Laurel over to Bev’s house. She went inside to say hello to her mom and Nikki, made sure Bev had had a good day, and told everyone she had work to do.
She knew they would assume she was headed to the jewelry shop, and that was fine with her. She let them believe it.
She drove home and changed into her Guy’s Place “uniform” of tight jeans, flannel shirt, long-sleeved white tee to wear underneath the flannel, and boots. She grabbed her phone and dialed Noley, who answered on the first ring.
“I was afraid you weren’t talking to me anymore,” Noley said in a teasing voice.
“Of course not! I’ve just been busy the last couple days. I haven’t had time to talk. And actually, I don’t have time right now. I’m headed over to Guy’s Place.”
“Okay, be careful. I’m glad you told me, so now at least someone knows where you’ll be.”
“I’ll let you know how everything goes.” Lilly hung up and slid behind the wheel of her car.
She drove through the quiet streets of Juniper Junction to the main highway connecting the town to Lupine. There she sped up, eager to get to Guy’s Place, talk to Suzanne and Tracy, and get home before it was time to pick up Laurel from Bev’s house. She would have to hurry.
After driving for a little while once she was out of Lupine, she saw the lights of Guy’s Place brightening the night sky in front of her. The butterflies started to amass in her stomach, and she again wished Noley had offered to come along. It hurt a little that she hadn’t.
She parked as close as she could to the front of the hulking concrete building, since the thought of walking through the semi-dark parking lot by herself was unappealing, to say the least.
She found a spot two rows from the entrance and got out of the car. There didn’t seem to be anyone hanging around outside the bar. She hurried to the front door and swung it open slowly.
Everything inside looked the same—the dim light, the blinking neon beer signs over the bar, the thumping music coming from the back, the strobe lights accompanying the music. She allowed herself to stand still for just a moment to let her eyes adjust, and then she moved toward the bar.
“Yeah?” the bartender greeted her when she set her hand on the sticky surface of the bar.
“Got any wine?” she asked. In response, the bartender pointed to a corner of the bar, where several boxes of wine stood at the ready.
“Gimme a white wine,” Lilly said. The bartender shoved a beer glass under the tap of the box of white wine and let the light liquid flow.
“How much?” Lilly asked.
; “Six.”
Lilly handed him a ten dollar bill and told him to keep the change. She figured it couldn’t hurt to be on the good side of the bartender if anything went wrong tonight. The bartender nodded at her and smiled.
She held the wine over her head so it wouldn’t get jostled and spill before she found a place to sit by the dancers. As she had the last time, she chose a seat near the stage but concentrated on not looking at the dancers performing.
A waitress, clad in a sparkly tank top like all the others, came up to her and smiled.
“What can I getcha?”
“Actually, I’m looking for Suzanne. Um, Minx. Is she here tonight?” Lilly knew Suzanne was around because this was one of her nights to work.
“Yeah, she’s getting ready to perform,” the woman said with a smile. “If you wanna stick around, she gets a break when she’s done. These girls just started,” she added, jerking her head toward the stage.
“Okay, thanks.” Lilly took out her phone and started scrolling through emails while she waited for Minx to perform. What kind of woman comes into a bar like this and sits alone with a glass of wine? Lilly thought. I must look like a loser.
And, indeed, she was drawing attention to herself. She noticed several men looking at her from nearby tables. Many of them wore suits and wedding rings. She wondered if their wives knew where they were—and whether they cared. When they weren’t looking at her, probably wondering what kind of a sorry social life she had, their eyes were glued to the stage. Lilly wrinkled her nose reflexively and said a silent prayer of thanks that Hassan wasn’t the type who enjoyed hanging out at strip clubs.
As the music continued to blast, Lilly’s head started to hurt. She looked at her watch about a thousand times, wondering when Suzanne would come on stage. After fifteen agonizing minutes of waiting, the lights over the stage dimmed and the music changed. The dancers left the stage and a new group of three women came out, dressed in practically nothing.
Suzanne was among them. Lilly breathed a sigh of relief that she would only have to wait another twenty minutes or so until she could go backstage and talk to her.