She saw him cast yet another lovesick look over at Alma and Freddy, who had ended their dance and were clapping along with everyone who was watching them. “Wait a minute,” she said. “This isn’t a bribe . . . so that I’ll put in a good word for you with my sister, is it?”
His eyes followed Alma as she led Freddy over to Tammy’s fruit table and gave him a chocolate-dipped strawberry. “No,” he said softly and quite seriously. “That’s a situation I hope I can handle all by myself.”
“I think you can, too, big boy.”
“Yeah?” He looked so hopeful, like a little kid on Christmas Eve.
“Oh yeah. I know her. I know you. Go for it!”
The next thing she knew, she was sitting alone on the bench, and he was headed for the fruit table.
“Hm,” she said to herself. “Reckon he’s got a powerful hankering for a chocolate strawberry!”
* * *
Savannah lingered on the bench long enough to make a telephone call, collect some information, and solidify her plans. Then she strolled over to the magnolia tree, where Granny was sitting in a chaise, enjoying the shade and a glass of lemonade. The Colonel lay beside her chair, snoring as she stroked his back.
She raised her legs, vacating a seat for Savannah on the foot end of the chaise.
Savannah sat down and pointed to the hound. “He’s worn to a frazzle from all this socializing with energetic kiddos.”
“It’s good for ’im. It’s good for all of us. Kids keep ya young.”
“Looking at you, I believe that. We were your fountain of youth.”
“You and Alma and Waycross were. The rest . . .”
They laughed.
Savannah reached over, took her grandmother’s hand, and folded it into hers. “I’ve got some good news to tell you,” she said.
“Oh, I done heard about how Mary found that will, right where you told her, where that lady’s body was.”
“Yes, that’s good news, but—”
“I know she might sell the mansion to Ryan and John, too. They asked her, and she said she’d think about it. That she prob’ly would, ’cause it wouldn’t be the same for her if Miss Lucinda ain’t there. Plus, she don’t think it’s good for her health, bein’ there.”
“I hadn’t heard! How wonderful! Can you imagine what Ryan and John could do with that place, with all their good taste and sophistication! It would be glorious!”
“Once they got all the junk out.”
“Well, yes. There’s that. But neither of those things are my good news.”
“Oh, I know. Waycross and Tammy done invited Alma to stay at their house till she finds a place of her own. Your house’s about full to the brim.”
“I don’t mind one bit and neither does Dirk. But that’s not my news.”
“I’m plumb outta ideas. What is it?”
Savannah looked down at the hand in hers and remembered when it had far fewer lines. When its veins had not been purple but had been smooth. When there were no age spots or misshapen knuckles.
She thought of all that hand had accomplished in its eighty-plus years. All the diapers it had changed, noses it had wiped, wounds it had tended, backs it had patted, troubled heads it had soothed, meals it had cooked, and broken things it had mended. Including hearts.
She wouldn’t have changed one thing about that hand, lines, veins, or spots. Or the woman who owned it.
“I was just given a gift,” Savannah began. “A very special gift that I didn’t particularly deserve and certainly wasn’t expecting.”
“That’s wonderful, child! I’m happy for you!”
“The person who gave it to me told me to use it to do something good for my family. Something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.”
“Really! Bless their hearts! Although I’m sure you deserved it. You’re my Savannah girl, and you deserve more than this whole world could give you.”
“So do you, Granny. That’s why I’m so happy to give you my good news.”
“What’s that, child?”
“I just made a phone call to that beautiful mobile home park down on the beach.”
“The one that’s right on the water?”
“Yes. The one that I know you’ve had your eye on ever since you moved here.”
“Oh, sugar.” She chuckled and squeezed Savannah’s hand. “That’s just a daydream for me. One o’ them fantasies you play around with in your head that you know ain’t never really gonna happen. It’s just nice to think about. Livin’ right there by the water, where all you gotta do is walk out your door and there’s the Pacific Ocean! Feelin’ them fresh breezes all day and all night. It’s just a dream.”
“But we Reid girls believe that dreams can come true.”
“Sure, we do. Just look at us, livin’ here in California and—”
“In a rusty trailer that’s parked among a bunch of yahoos making meth and turning tricks and who knows what else.”
“I’m contented. Nobody’s gonna bother me. I got the good Lord watchin’ out for me, and if He ever dozes off on the job I got the Colonel and a twelve-gauge shotgun full o’ rock salt.”
“That’s all well and good. I’m glad you’re contented with what you have. But I want you to have more than living in Dirk’s old rusty trailer. I want you to live in a nice mobile home in that wonderful park. I want you to walk barefoot on the beach every day, just like you’ve dreamed, for the rest of your life and watch every sunset and soak up as much of that sunlight and enjoy as many of those breezes as you can.”
Tears filled Gran’s eyes as she clung to Savannah’s hand. “Granddaughter,” she said. “I know you mean well, and I love you for it. But I won’t go into debt at my age, and I refuse to let you either. There’s no way we could—”
“We can. We will. Pay cash, that is.”
Granny gasped. “That was the gift you got? Enough money to buy a mobile home and a space in a place like that?”
“Yes, and we’ll furnish it any way you like. I called the park, and they have three units for sale. Would you like to go with me tomorrow and pick one out?”
Granny didn’t answer. She couldn’t. She was blubbering far too hard to speak as she grabbed her granddaughter and folded her into a breath-robbing hug.
Savannah happened to glance across the lawn, and who did she see watching their exchange but Ethan. Of course, he couldn’t know what his gift had bought, but he knew who had received it, and he obviously approved.
He smiled, nodded, and threw her a kiss.
She reached up in the air, “caught” it, and held it to her heart. Where it would remain. Forever.
Chapter 31
As Savannah stood at the picnic table, scooping leftovers into plastic containers and sealing others in zip bags, she remembered one of the reasons why she loved her younger sister so much.
Alma helped with after-dinner cleanup.
“If you’ll toss me one of those bigger bags, I’ll stick the leftover corn on the cobs in it,” Alma said from the other end of the table.
Savannah slid the box of bags down to her and said, “This brings back memories, doesn’t it? All those dishes I washed. All those pans you dried?”
“It sure does.” Alma smiled across the table at Savannah with eyes the same cobalt blue as her own. “I can’t say I enjoyed it all that much at the time. Mostly because I was frettin’ about the fact that the others weren’t lending a hand. But now that I look back on those evenings, I wouldn’t give them up for anything.”
“Me either. But only because of you. You actually managed to make kitchen cleanup fun.”
“You too. When we were little, we blew bubbles at each other. Then when we got older, we talked about boys. Told each other our secrets. That was always fun.”
Savannah glanced around to make sure no one was listening. “Speaking of boys, I couldn’t help noticing that you and Ethan seem to be getting along well.”
Instantly, Alma’s eyes twinkled even brighter. “Oh, we
are, Savannah. I knew he was handsome, of course, and a great actor, but I had no idea he was so nice.”
“I’d say he’s even nicer than he is handsome, and that’s saying something. It looked like you were enjoying each other’s company.”
“We were! The dancing was just . . . Oh, wow, Savannah. His little boy is a sweetie, too. We took to each other right away.”
“I could see that. I’m excited for you, Alma. You’ve barely arrived in California, and you’re already fitting right in.”
“Thank you for telling me to come. I don’t think I would’ve had the courage otherwise.”
“You? Lacking in courage?” Savannah shook her head. “Oh, Alma. Do you remember that time when I had gone out with Granny, and you younger kids were home all alone, and Cordele set the house on fire?”
“I’m not likely to forget that. Ever.” She shuddered. “It was the scariest thing I ever went through.”
“I’m sure it was. But you got all the rest of the young’uns outside and put them under the old tree in the front yard, like Granny told you to do if there was an emergency like that.”
“The worst part was when I couldn’t find Jesup. Momma hadn’t put her to bed before she left for the tavern. I finally found her laying on some dirty laundry in the bathtub.”
“Yeah, Shirley wasn’t much of a tuckin’ in kinda mom.”
“I didn’t think I was going to get us out of there alive. I kept thinking Jesup’s gonna die, and she’s only six years old! It’s gonna be all over for her before she even gets started!”
Savannah pictured the sweet little girl with the bright blue eyes and dark hair, who had dragged her sister to safety that night with no concern for her own. “Yes, Jesup was only six, just starting out. But do you know how old you were at the time, darlin’?”
She could tell by the way Alma stopped and considered it that she’d never given it any thought. “I’m two years older than Jes, so I must have been eight.”
“You were just starting out yourself.”
“When you put it like that, I reckon I was.”
“But you got her out. The firemen were so impressed that you were able to carry her like you did through all that smoke and heat.”
Savannah stepped closer to her sister, wrapped her arms around her, and drew her close to her heart. “If you had enough courage to risk your life and save another at the age of eight, sugar, you could move mountains now. There’s nothing you can’t do!”
“Thank you, Savannah. I love you. Always have.”
“Same here, sweetpea. Same here. Now, let’s go grab some more of those amazing cream cheese swirl brownies you made before that new fella of yours makes every one of them disappear!”
* * *
After a few more brownies, after a few more dances, and after saying good night to Mary, Ryan, and John, Waycross the DJ announced that he was about to play the last song of the evening.
Ethan just about overturned the picnic table, jumping up and running over to ask Alma for the pleasure.
On the other side of the table, sitting next to Savannah, Dirk snickered. “Man, that guy’s a goner.”
“He is, isn’t he!”
They watched as Ethan and Alma practically ran to the dance area and melted into each other’s arms.
“They’d better watch out or Granny’ll be after them,” Dirk said.
“I know. I don’t think you could slide a potato chip between them right now.” She watched a bit longer, then said, “I know women do, but do men ever fall in love that quickly? Love at first sight, and all that?”
“I did. But it might need to be a Reid woman.”
“Aw, the perfect answer.”
“Wanna go see if anybody can wedge a chip between us?”
“Sure! We’ll show the kids how it’s done.”
Fortunately, the last song of the night was a waltz, so they were able to show off their Fred and Ginger routine.
One of the nicest surprises Savannah had discovered about her husband was that he had a passion for ballroom dancing. Even less predictable, he was actually good at it.
He pulled her into his arms and they began to glide, turn, and slide across the grass, using the full expanse of the lawn.
“Hey, we haven’t forgotten how,” she said.
“Never. But I think we should do this more often, just to make sure we don’t.”
After a few more turns, he bent his head down to hers and said, “I was going to tell you this later, but now’s as good a time as any.”
“What’s that?”
“The phone call we’ve been waiting for, the one about our foster parent status for that mini ruffian we’ve been feeding and watering . . .”
“Yes?” she asked, her heart in her throat.
“It came through about an hour ago. I was inside the house, taking a leak upstairs, and I thought I heard the phone ringing, but I wasn’t sure so—”
“Are you gonna tell me what they said, or am I gonna have to slap you nekkid and hide your clothes?”
“Yes.”
“What? Yes? You’re gonna tell me?”
“Yes.”
“You are living dangerously, boy.”
“They said yes. That CPS gal rushed the paperwork through, and the state of California has declared that me and you are able and fit foster parents. Officially. Done deal.”
“Oh, Dirk!” She stopped dancing in midstride, and if he hadn’t caught her, she would have fallen. Then she burst into tears.
He laughed, but when she continued to cry, he got concerned. “Um, you’re happy about this, right?”
“Yes!”
“Just asking, ’cause you Reid women cry when you’re mad, sad, or happy.”
“We’ve been told that before.”
“Sometimes, it’s really hard to tell.”
“Sh-h-h. Don’t ruin the moment.”
He grabbed her around the waist, picked her up off her feet, and swung her around several times.
“How was that?” he asked, setting her down.
“Much better. Thank you!” She turned and glanced around the yard, looking for Brody. Finally, she spotted him. He was lying on the grass near the rose garden, his head on the Colonel’s shoulder. Both were sound asleep, obviously exhausted from the day’s activities.
She started to cry again. She couldn’t help it. Her heart was overflowing with happiness, and it was streaming from her eyes. Looking up at Dirk she said, “Then we can really keep him? At least for a while?”
“I asked about that. The CPS gal told me that his mom wants nothing to do with him, said it’s his fault that she got nabbed leaving the drug house, and if it wasn’t for him, she wouldn’t’ve been charged with felony child abuse.”
“What? I guess he whipped himself with that belt and burned his own butt with her cigarettes.”
“Believe it or not, that’s her defense.”
“She’s mean and crazy. She’ll be going away for a long, long time.”
“No kidding. So, I asked the CPS woman if she thought there was a chance, even a small chance in hell, that we might be able to actually adopt him.”
“Adopt?” The very word sent a thrill through her that nearly caused her knees to buckle again. “Adopt him? Like forever adopt?”
“I know, I know. I should have asked you first, but when she told me about his mother I got all excited and thought, maybe we could. Maybe we had a chance. Then I asked her, and she said we had an excellent chance! Excellent, Van!”
He paused for a moment to catch his breath, and Savannah saw that he, too, had tears in his eyes. He sniffed, then continued, “But only if you really, really want to. It’s a super big deal, I know, and you shouldn’t do it just for me. I wouldn’t want that. It’s gotta be something that you want as bad as I do because—”
He couldn’t say any more because she was kissing him, crying, and kissing him again.
“You are happy, right?” he managed to gasp when they finally
came up for air.
“Ye-e-e-e-s! Ye-e-e-e-s! I’m so dadgum happy I can’t stand it!”
“Oh. Good! Then me too!”
And the Killer Is . . . Page 26