We sat in silence. I finished nursing Laurie, then rubbed her back, expecting a little burp. Instead, she threw up all over my silk blouse.
I broke down crying, my bravado from facing Inspector McNearny evaporated.
Mom took Laurie from me and placed her in the bassinet, then put her arms around me. “Oh, honey, don’t cry,” she said, stroking my hair. “It’s just the hormones.”
I recounted my afternoon for Mom. She listened, her mouth agape.
She rubbed my back. “That’s horrible. Just awful, honey. What a shock!” I let her cluck over me, taking comfort in her support.
My head was throbbing, my legs ached, and I had baby spit-up all over my blouse. Not to mention finding Michelle dead and being interrogated by the police.
Not a good day.
I rose from the couch. I needed to change and take some pain medication, at the very least. “Will you come over tomorrow?” I asked Mom.
She hesitated. “There’s something I haven’t told you as well.”
I sat back down on the couch and held my head. Had Mom’s car been broken into, too? Or worse, had someone tried to break into the house while I was gone?
“I’m seeing someone,” Mom said.
Mom dating?
My parents had been divorced for nearly fifteen years. Mother had said over and over again that she was through with men, that she lived only to have grandchildren.
“What? Who?” I stuttered.
“A very nice man. His name is Hank.”
My body surged with a strange combination of happiness and. . what? Fear? Jealousy? Was I going to have to share my babysitting mother? How selfish of me. I pushed the thought from my mind and hugged her. “And why didn’t you tell me this earlier?”
Mom shrugged sheepishly. “I wasn’t sure there was anything to tell.”
I smiled. “How did you meet?”
“Well,” Mom said hesitantly, “I put myself on Match-dot-Com.”
Mom using the Internet?
“What?” I sputtered.
“Match-dot-Com, darling. It’s a dating service. Online.”
“I know what it is. I just. . I didn’t know. . that you were. . That’s great, Mom. Really great.”
“My profile was up for about a week.” Mom made herself comfortable on the couch. “I saw his profile. I already knew he worked at the pharmacy down the street, but that’s all I knew about him. I didn’t know if he was married or anything. When I saw him online, I thought, ‘Well, I’ll be. He’s single!’ So I winked at him. They have a little thing on the computer where you can ‘wink’ at someone. It sends them e-mail from you.”
I sat there, stunned. Jim and I had bought Mom a laptop for Christmas last year. Jim had shown her how to get online. I thought she used it only to read the newspaper.
“So, I winked at Hank,” Mom continued, “and he winked at me. We e-mailed for a while. Then we thought, ‘Well, this is plain silly, we’re both in the same neighborhood. ’ So he invited me out for a cocktail.”
I stared at her. “Mom, you don’t drink.”
“Well, once in a while. . there’s nothing wrong with that,” she said defensively.
I laughed, realizing Mom was at it again, telling me a crazy story to take my mind off my problems. “I’m not judging you, Mom. Tell me more.”
“I would but you look terrible, Kate. Exhausted.”
“Not to mention I have spit-up on my blouse. Let me go change. I’ll be right back.”
Mom insisted on leaving so I could get some rest, but promised to fill me in on more Hank details later.
Laurie and I were sprawled on the floor, looking at a farm animals picture book. Mostly, I was looking at the book; Laurie was drooling.
“The cow says moo, moo,” I ad-libbed.
I heard the key in the front door and scrambled to my feet. I pulled the door open and grabbed Jim around the neck, squeezed him, and inhaled his scent. “Oh, honey, I’m so glad you’re home safe.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I found Michelle dead this morning.”
“Oh my God! Why didn’t you call me!”
“I knew you had that big presentation today and I didn’t want you to worry.”
I recounted the experience for him. When I told him I went into Michelle’s house, his eyes popped out of his skull as if he were on the verge of a heart attack.
“What if the killer was still in there?”
“I didn’t think of that. She was lying on the floor. What if she wasn’t dead?”
“You should have waited for the police or the paramedics or whatever. In your car. With the motor running.” He pulled me closer. “I’m glad you’re all right, honey. Promise me you won’t go around breaking into people’s houses, especially if there could be a murderer hiding out.”
“I didn’t break in. The door was open.”
He clutched me tighter. “And you can always call me, no matter what meeting I’m in.” His voice cracked.
I realized he was crying.
“Nothing’s going to happen to me,” I soothed, running my fingers through his hair.
“We need you, honey. Laurie and I need you.”
“Except I might collapse from exhaustion and/or starvation.”
Jim smiled, his face brightening a bit.
“Want to call El Paraiso, get delivery?” I asked.
Jim squinted at me. “Yeah. Call. I’ll open you some wine.”
“I’m not supposed to drink.”
He rose. “Exceptional circumstances call for exceptional measures. One glass won’t hurt you, or Laurie.”
Jim headed to the kitchen. My mouth began to water as I thought of a nice dinner and wine.
Wine?
Someone had drunk wine with Michelle. Her killer had to be someone she knew, since there was no sign of forced entry. She let someone in, had wine with whoever it was, and then that person had let themself out, leaving the door open for me.
I pictured George going over to Michelle’s and sipping chardonnay with her.
Wait a minute.
George preferred beer, like Jim. He’d probably consider white wine a “girlie” drink.
Could a woman have killed Michelle?
Brad’s affair! The other woman?
Why would Brad’s lover kill Michelle? If Brad wasn’t dead, then her motive would make sense. But with Brad gone, why kill Michelle?
I called after Jim, “Hey, Jim? Does George drink wine?”
Jim returned, a beer in one hand and a glass of merlot in the other. “I guess he does.”
“White wine?”
“Probably. I mean, I’m sure it’s not his favorite, but I imagine he’d drink it.”
There went that theory.
I dialed El Paraiso. “I’d like to order some food for delivery.”
The hostess promptly informed me that they didn’t deliver.
I looked up at Jim’s expectant face. “They don’t deliver.”
“I thought George was supposed to be the delivery guy?” He sighed. “What, did he quit already? Get fired?”
“She said they’ve never delivered.”
Jim’s face clouded, his mouth twisting with concern. “Why would Michelle tell you he worked there if he didn’t?”
•CHAPTER NINE•
I awoke in a state of panic, drenched in sweat. I’d read that the body rids itself of extra fluids from pregnancy by sweating. What I didn’t know was if the sweating was from a postpartum symptom or from the frantic dream I’d just had about Michelle.
In the dream I’d been able to revive her. I’d asked her over and over again who had killed her. She’d clung to me, mute.