Charming Memory

by E L Bossert

  Shon stepped aside but remained within earshot.

  “Hi, I’m Dani Bern from the newspaper. Are you enjoying the show?”

  “Yes, very much. There are many talented artists in this area. It’s a local treasure.” Boo flashed her dimpled smile at Dani with surprising warmth.

  Dani sensed Boo’s easy going charm and instantly understood the stranger’s nickname. Looking from handsome Boo to eye-catching Shon, Dani liked the contrast in style.

  “Would you two mind if I took a picture of you together?”

  “How about if I assemble the whole family for a group picture?” Shon countered. A picture of just them and Boo would not be the big attention grabber Jamie wanted. Although, their outfit certainly might compensate for the lack of celebrity.

  “Great. Shall we take a picture against the back wall, behind the reception table?” Dani suggested. “There’s better lighting back there.”

  Shon nodded, leaving to gather the family and other press. Dani pointed the way for Boo.

  “Are you enjoying your visit with the Jordan family?” Dani inquired.

  “Yes, I am. It’s a beautiful area. Lots of different species of birds nesting this time of year. Wonderful diversity of plants. It seems like there has been an attempt to preserve some of the wetlands around here. It is an amazing eco-system.” Boo stopped herself, realizing she was talking to cover her nervousness. “Of course, I’m sure you already appreciate all of that about your hometown.”

  “I try to appreciate it. You sound like a botanist or ecologist?” Dani asked.

  “An ecologist?” A sudden memory seized Boo. “Yes, I am.”

  The Jordan family walking into the reception area interrupted the memory triggering exchange. Boo and Shon stood between Lessa and Philip with Sarah and Bryan on the other side of Jamie, who was front and center. Everyone smiled as Dani and a photographer from a Fairfield newspaper, as well as several local people, snapped pictures.

  A television camera crew from a Fairfield station arrived and began filming. It was a slow news day, making it likely that footage of the event would fill out the late night and early morning shows. Naturally comfortable in front of a camera, Jamie provided a brief statement for the television crew. As the reporters packed up to leave, Jamie looked for Boo, finding her lost in thought, staring at a painting of a butterfly on yellow coneflowers.

  “Echinacea paradoxa. I’m an ecologist. Dani said it and I remembered. I work on ecosystem restoration. It’s why I know all of the plant names. It’s not just a hobby.”

  “That’s great. One more piece of the puzzle. This will make it easier to find out your name. I’ll text Chief.” Jamie was stunned but not surprised by the sudden memory. Forgetting about the photographers in the room, Jamie reached for Boo’s hand, intertwining their fingers as they stood close together admiring the painting.

  Seeing the couple holding hands, Sarah and Shon exchanged a look. Linking hands, the two walked up behind Jamie and Boo, hoping the mimicking gesture would diffuse any speculation about Jamie and Boo’s relationship.

  “Boo remembers she’s an ecologist,” Jamie reported as she turned her head toward Sarah and Shon. Seeing her sister and assistant holding hands caused Jamie to bite her lip to stifle a hearty laugh, until she realized she was holding Boo’s hand. Instead of dropping Boo’s hand, Jamie grabbed Sarah’s free hand. Now Jamie and Boo looked more like part of a prayer circle than a new couple on a date.

  “An ecologist? Great. We need one of those in the family. Now, Shon, if you could just find yourself a plumber and an electrician, we’d really be set.” Sarah drew chuckles from the others with her inclusiveness. “What? I know about polyamory. I want Shon to be happy.”

  The Jordan family stayed at the gallery for well over an hour, visiting with each artist whose work was represented in the show.

  Later that evening, Dani posted a group picture online identifying Boo in the caption as a friend of Jamie Jordan and her family. The television station in Fairfield used video footage to highlight Jamie’s presence at the gallery. Boo appeared in the background, unidentified.

  The image receiving the most re-posts overnight was one of Jamie and Boo holding hands in front of a painting, looking at each other. Although the picture was taken from behind, the affection on their faces as they gazed at each other was obvious even with the limited view. Another image, taken after Sarah and Shon joined the circle, showed Boo’s full face. The post was titled Does Jamie Jordan have a new girlfriend?

  THE FOLLOWING MORNING, Jamie read a text from Shon informing her their scheme had worked, maybe just not according to plan. Jamie pulled up the pictures on her phone. There was no denying the look she and Boo shared.

  I sure hope María Garcia is not the jealous type, Shon’s text read.

  Keep an eye on the comments and see what comes up. If someone tries to contact us about Boo, pass it along, no matter how crazy, Jamie texted back.

  Boo and Max returned to the kitchen after their morning walk in the woods with Fred.

  “Is our plan working?” Boo asked while fixing a snack for Max.

  Jamie showed Boo the pictures posted online.

  “Nice picture. You look stunningly beautiful, as always.” Boo was in an anticipatory good mood and failed to read the photo’s caption.

  “The pictures are being re-posted because they think you’re my new girlfriend,” Jamie clarified.

  “I have good taste, huh, Max?” Boo winked at the boy, still not grasping the implications.

  “Mommy’s got a girlfriend, Mommy’s got a girlfriend,” Max sing-songed his approval.

  “Okay, you two, I think you’re missing the point. We don’t want anyone, like María, to think you are cheating on her?” Jamie was worried about the consequences of the photos for Boo, not herself.

  Boo reflected for a moment while placing a bowl of fresh fruit and yogurt in front of Max.

  “Sorry. You’re right. That was not the intention. But, at least it’s getting a lot of attention, and lots of people will see it, right? I thought that was the point? Plus, I’m sure María will understand. We’re holding hands, not kissing.”

  Max heard only the last word and picked up his song, “Mommy and Boo, kissing in a tree—”

  ”Max, eat your snack, please.” Jamie gave Max a firm but kind look. She didn’t want Max to think she was angry with him, or there would be anything wrong with her and Boo kissing. Jamie blushed as she looked back at Boo. “I do not know where he learned that song.”

  The mention of kissing did nothing to quell the longing of either Boo or Jamie to do exactly that. The memory of their near kiss was enough to make both of them look away, but the heat generated by their thoughts was nearly combustible. The rest of the morning featured both of them pacing through the house more than usual as they waited to see what would happen next.

  Shon called Jamie mid-afternoon.

  “I think we’ve got something. A María Garcia just commented on a post of the picture of you two holding hands in the gallery. I sent you the link. It says, Glad you are having a good time. See you next week. Then a heart. I checked—it’s definitely not María Garcia the director. You are not scheduled to be anywhere next week, so it makes sense that she’s talking to Boo. It’s a woman from upstate New York. I’m trying to find more info now.”

  “Any profile?”

  “It’s not public. Do you want me to reply to the comment?”

  “Not yet. Let me check with Boo.” Jamie took in the news with a mixture of excitement, determination, and sadness. She wanted the plan to work but was not prepared for her feelings when it seemed like it really had. It suddenly felt as if she was about to lose Boo, maybe forever. Jamie shook off her conflicted feelings to locate Boo, who was finishing washing lunchtime dishes.

  “Great news. We think we have a lead on María.” Jamie showed Boo the post.

  “New York. I don’t think that’s where María and I were married or live. Can we find more i
nformation? A picture?”

  “Shon’s looking now. Their online stalking abilities are considerable, so we should have more info soon. You’re welcome to look on the computer if you want?”

  “We met...we were both...we worked in a lab together.” Boo processed her new memories out loud, “We married. I’m from Colorado, she’s from Mexico. Why can’t I remember my name when I can remember all of this?”

  Seeing Boo’s frustration, Jamie pulled Boo into her arms. She wanted to protect Boo from pain, help her find her name and her life. She also wanted to be a part of Boo’s future.

  Boo relaxed into Jamie’s embrace. Max entered in the room and joined them without a word. Boo picked up Max, who put his arms around Jamie and Boo’s necks. There was no time for self-pity when a four-year-old offered comfort.

  This was the family Boo wanted. It was a feeling she did not remember having before. She needed to find María and remember the kind of relationship they had, if it was anything close to what she was experiencing with Jamie and Max.

  Jamie’s phone rang, breaking up the family embrace.

  “I’ve narrowed it down,” Shon reported. “Do you mind if I come up to the house and show you our leading suspects?”

  “Please do. I’ll call Chief. We’ll need her advice.”

  Shon arrived five minutes later with their laptop in hand, which they projected on the TV for everyone to follow along the search process. Shon integrated Boo’s latest memories, producing new search results.

  Looking for distractions from thinking about Gabriela, Chief was more than happy to make the trip out to Jamie’s house. Besides, if she was not getting her happy ending she thought someone should. She hoped it would be Jamie.

  “Using the information we have—Boo is an ecologist, from Colorado, and María Garcia is from Mexico, lives in New York, and has a brother named Miguel. They were married in Massachusetts, we’ll assume they are close in age, they possibly worked in the same place, etcetera...I have it narrowed down to less than a dozen strong possibilities. I can pull up pictures for about half of those.” Shon opened several webpages on the screen. “Boo, if you see anyone or anything that looks familiar, just say.”

  Boo studied the photographs of the women on the screen carefully but did not recognize any of them. Reading the information, she recognized an address. “That one looks familiar.”

  Shon searched for the address.

  “Bingo! A María Garcia lives there. Forty years old. Known relatives include a Miguel Garcia who lives in Dallas. She is a professional, but does not list occupation. Also says she supports marriage equality and reproductive rights.”

  Jamie and Boo looked to Chief for input.

  “If we think that’s our María, I have a friend who works that area for the feds. I will ask her to check it out. If it’s our gal, we can fill her in, find out Boo’s real name, and go from there. Plan?”

  “Sounds good.” Boo felt relief to finally make progress toward resolution.

  POPS SAW THE PICTURE of Jamie Jordan holding the hand of the same mystery woman he had taken a picture of her with in a far more intimate pose.

  “Shit.” Pops’ chance at big bucks, along with his camera and phone, were lost. There was one picture, uploaded from his cell phone to cloud storage before the phone drowned in the lake, but it was too grainy and the two people were not identifiable. “Shit.”

  Retaining a local lawyer in Crestwood wasn’t easy since most of the attorneys in the area had some connection to the Jordan family and turned down Pops’ business. The attorney who finally agreed to take his defense talked with the prosecutor. The basic deal was, if Pops agreed to never come back to Crestwood, did not claim his camera or phone from evidence, and if no pictures of Jamie were posted, then the charges against him would not be pursued.

  Pops pulled up a domain name registration website and typed Popsweddingphotos.com in the search box. He pressed the submit button. Popsweddingphotos.com is not available.

  “Shit.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  CHIEF CONTACTED HER work-friend in New York, a federal officer named Erin O’Donnell. Having met at a professional meeting several years prior, they hit it off and made it a point to hang out together with other female officers during conferences. Chief filled Erin in on the details of the case.

  “Would you be able to check out the address I texted and find out if this is the woman we’re looking for?” Chief requested. “If it is, give her my number, I’ll take it from there and arrange for her to contact Boo.”

  “I’ll check it out this evening. Take me about an hour to drive over there. If she works, she’s more likely to be around in the evening.” Erin was efficient and intrigued by the story. Unlike most of her work cases, this one might actually have a happy ending.

  “I appreciate it. Let me know what you find out.” Chief ended the call and turned her attention to Jamie and Boo, who both looked pensive. “I’ll call you when I hear something. We should have an answer soon if this is our María.”

  “Would you care to join us for dinner?” Jamie asked as she returned to stirring the simmering vegetables.

  “Thanks, but I need to finish up some paperwork. I’ve been taking some extra time off lately,” Chief sighed.

  Jamie and Boo finished preparing dinner, with plenty of help from Max. Jamie and Boo talked about the summer weather and Gee learning to use her crutches. They talked about Lessa and Philip’s new Bikes-for-Kids project. They exhausted several topics except for the one on their minds the most.

  ERIN INFORMED HER WIFE she needed to check something out and would be home before dark. She looked again at the picture of Jamie Jordan holding hands with an unidentified tall, striking looking woman. They looked like girlfriends to Erin. Hopefully María Garcia wouldn’t see it that way. Since this was not classified business, Erin would tell her wife the whole story later.

  Forty-five minutes later, Erin parked her car in front of the address provided by Chief. She surveyed the street as she walked to the front door. Erin knocked, then listened. No sound. She knocked again, louder this time. Erin did not want to announce to the neighbors she was a federal officer, so she stepped back from the door. No car was obviously associated with this house. However, a lot of people in the neighborhood probably biked, used public transportation, or parked on the street wherever they found a space. She resisted looking in the front windows for fear someone might call the police. She did not want to explain the story to a local officer.

  As Erin descended the stoop, a neighbor popped her head out of the house next door. The older woman, wearing an apron, looked Erin over twice before she spoke.

  “You lookin’ for someone?”

  “Yes, I am looking for María Garcia. She live here?” Erin nodded toward the door she had just knocked on.

  “What you lookin’ for?”

  “Nothing bad.” Erin put her hands on her hips, intentionally exposing the badge clipped to her belt. “Just need to talk to her. Is she around?”

  “She left about an hour ago. Want me to give her a message?”

  Erin debated the offer. Clearly this woman was the unofficial neighborhood watch on this block. If Erin left a note on the door, it might blow away or someone might swipe it. Mail came to a street box, not a door slot. Despite the desire to help out Chief, Erin did not want to make repeated trips to chase down María Garcia.

  “Yes, thank you, that would be helpful.” Erin took a pen and paper from her pocket to write a short note, María Garcia, Please give me a call. I would like to talk to you about your spouse. Erin added her name and phone number.

  The message was cryptic, but would have to suffice. Since Boo’s real name was unknown, there was no use using a new nickname María would be unfamiliar with. It was highly likely the nosy neighbor would tell María about Erin’s badge, giving the request credibility and some urgency. Erin folded the piece of paper and handed it to the woman.

  “I’ll give it to her as soon as sh
e gets home.” The older woman made no pretense of not reading the note. “I saw her leave with her wife about an hour ago. Do you want me to keep this a secret from Isabella?”

  Erin was taken aback by the news that her target was married to someone who most definitely was not missing. Erin adjusted her thought process. Either this was not the woman Chief was looking for, or maybe this was Boo’s ex-wife from a forgotten divorce.

  “Right, I should have written ex-spouse.” Erin retrieved the note and wrote in ex- above spouse, hoping that would suffice.

  “I’ll give it to her.” The older woman frowned as she took the note back. She shut the door as Erin descended the steps, and watched suspiciously from her front window as Erin walked back to her car.

  On the drive home, Erin called Chief to report.

  “Unless Boo has forgotten her divorce, this may be a dead-end.”

  Chief thanked Erin and promised her a nice dinner at their next conference as payment for the trouble. All they could do now was wait and see if this María Garcia had a missing ex-spouse and would be intrigued enough by the note to contact Erin.

  An hour after Erin departed, María and Isabella arrived home from Friday evening dinner and shopping for groceries. They parked in the first available spot and each grabbed bags to carry in. Isabella unlocked the front door while María finished collecting bags and locking the car. As María ascended the steps to the house, the neighbor woman’s head popped out of her doorway.

  “María, honey, would you help me with something when you have a minute?” the older woman called out.

  “Sure, let me put these groceries in the house. I’ll be over in a few minutes, Miss Miriam.” It was not unusual for María’s neighbor to ask for her help with a minor task she could probably do herself but really just wanted company. Plus, Miss Miriam often had some tidbit of amusing neighborhood gossip.