Before she could bolt, Carmen grabbed her hand and squeezed her fingers. “Alberto is so happy you’re here. He’s been waiting to find you.” She hesitated. “Your grandfather is a wonderful man. I hope you’ll grow to love him.”
Callie had no idea what to say to that.
“This way,” Carmen said.
They left the suitcases by the front door and walked by the wide, curved staircase, then down a hall and another hall. There was a turn and maybe a couple of bridges and a mountain, or so it felt. Finally they arrived at a book-lined study. An old, old man in a gray suit looked up from his book.
“Oh, Carmen, she is as beautiful as I imagined.” He stood and smiled. “Callie, at last. Welcome, child. Welcome to your home.”
He was taller than she’d expected—close to six feet—and despite his age, still handsome. She could see traces of the younger man he had once been. He looked strong and healthy and way too excited to see her.
“Mr. Carlesso,” she began, but he stopped her with a quick shake of his head.
“Grandfather Alberto,” he told her. “Or just Alberto if you’re not comfortable thinking of me as your grandfather just yet.”
He motioned to the sofa. “Come. Sit. We’ll get to know each other.”
She moved closer and sat on the sofa, as far from him as she could. He sank down, then poured them each a cup of coffee from the tray in front of him. Carmen smiled and left.
He handed her coffee and held out a plate of cookies. “Biscotti,” he said. “We make them here, in the city. It’s an old family recipe. They’re one of our best sellers.”
She looked at the weird cookie, then watched as he dunked it in the coffee before taking a bite.
“Best seller?” she asked.
“Alberto’s Alfresco. It’s the family company. I started it many years ago. We sell food and drink all over the world.”
She stared at him. “You mean the catalog company?” Of course she’d heard of them—probably on TV or something. Everyone had. They were an upscale company that sold delicious Italian food. “That’s you? I mean you’re that Alberto?”
“I am. You are, as well.” His gaze settled on her face. “You look just like my late wife. She was so beautiful. It’s been thirty years and I still miss her.” He smiled. “I’m so glad you’re finally here. You were not easy to find.”
Callie didn’t know what to say to that. Too much was happening too fast. She sipped her coffee and ignored her biscotti, all the while trying to get her breathing under control.
“How was your trip?” Alberto asked.
“Good. I’ve never flown before. It was different than I thought it was going to be. Everyone was very nice.”
Alberto’s expression was kind. “So much to get used to. I must remember that. If I move too fast, as you young people say, tell me. The lawyer said she told you about your father.”
“That he’s, ah, no longer with us?”
Alberto nodded. “Yes. It’s unfortunate. He was difficult at times, but still my son. And he gave me you and your siblings. Let’s see, there’s Malcolm. He’s a few years older than you, and Keira who is only twelve. We only found out about you girls a few months ago.”
“Shari, your lawyer, mentioned that.” She didn’t know much about her father but what she did know wasn’t very promising. Not that she was going to have to deal with him but still there were—
A man walked into the study. He was tall and looked enough like his grandfather for her to guess the relationship. Unlike Alberto, his eyes were not kind...or welcoming. If anything, he seemed resigned.
“Hello, Callie,” he said as he approached. “I’m your half brother, Malcolm.”
She didn’t know what to do. Stand? Sit and smile tightly? Run?
“Hi,” she said quietly. “Nice to meet you.”
“You, too.”
Like Alberto, he wore a suit and tie. If she’d seen him on the street, she would have assumed he was rich and successful and gone out of her way to avoid him.
Malcolm took a seat across from them and poured himself a cup of coffee. “I’m sure this is all overwhelming.”
“A little.”
“You can take as much time as you’d like to get settled. There’s a lot to explore.”
Alberto patted her hand. “Seattle is a beautiful city. You’ll want to see it and we’ll show you around the company, of course. The executive offices are very nice, but you should see the factory where we create our magic.”
She smiled. “I’d like that.”
“Keira is so excited to meet you,” Alberto continued. “She’s very happy to have a sister.”
Malcolm surprised her by grinning. “Yes, she’s made it clear that she would not welcome another brother. My fault, I’m afraid.” His smile faded. “Did you leave anything behind in Houston?”
The question was so vague, she didn’t know if he was referring to a job, a boyfriend, a dog or an apartment.
“I didn’t know what was happening,” she admitted. “I thought it was easier to make a clean break.” She supposed that if things didn’t work out here, she could always go somewhere else. There was nothing to return to in Texas.
“Good.” Malcolm rose. “Why don’t I show you to your room? Dinner is at six thirty and I’m sure you’ll want to take a little time to settle before then.”
She set down her coffee. Alberto rose, put his hands on her shoulders and kissed both her cheeks. “Welcome, my beautiful granddaughter. We are your family now. Always we will be here for you.”
His words sounded genuine. She saw tears in his eyes and felt the ice wall around her heart melting just a little. Then she turned and met Malcolm’s wary gaze. Maybe she was wrong but it seemed to her not everyone was thrilled by her arrival. If she had to guess, she would say Malcolm wasn’t happy to have a felon in the family. All things being equal, who could blame him? Certainly not her.
* * *
Malcolm left Callie to get settled, then walked the few feet to Keira’s door. His sister had been after him all day to let her know the second Callie arrived.
Just before he knocked, he paused to remember the awkward trip he’d taken down to Los Angeles when he’d gone to get Keira. He’d had no idea how to deal with a twelve-year-old, nor had he known what she would be like. He’d filled a backpack with snacks, an iPad loaded with games and a couple of Disney movies, headphones, and an activity book with puzzles and easy crosswords.
Keira had been waiting at her social worker’s office. Everything she owned had fit into a battered old-fashioned hatbox decorated with pictures of landmarks from around the world. She’d been wide-eyed, thin and silent as they’d been introduced.
He hadn’t known what to say beyond explaining he was her half brother, that she had a grandfather and that he was taking her to live with him in Seattle. He promised her her own room and a good school. At the end of his awkwardly stilted speech, she’d simply picked up her hatbox and looked at him as if waiting for whatever was going to happen next.
He should have done more, he thought nearly three months after the fact. He couldn’t say what, but he should have tried harder. They’d barely spoken on the two-and-a-half-hour flight. Maybe she’d been scared or nervous or hungry. But he’d only asked if she needed anything and when she’d said no, he’d believed her.
He remembered taking her to the airport gift shop and buying her a sweatshirt so she wouldn’t be cold, but he’d done little else to make her feel comfortable or safe. He swore silently—couldn’t he have offered her a candy bar or some chips? Something to show she was more than a chore he had to finish?
He thought about her phone. Asshole brother. He didn’t want to be that. Whether or not he’d gone looking for more family wasn’t the point. She was a kid and totally alone in the world. The least he could do was suck it up and give her some attention. So what
if he was bad at it—at least he had to try.
He knocked on her door. She flung it open instantly as if she’d been waiting for him.
“Is she here? Is she here? What is she like? Does she look like me? Is she nice? Will I like her?”
Malcolm smiled. “You’ve been saving up those questions, haven’t you?”
Keira danced from foot to foot. “Yes, now tell meeeee!”
He studied his younger sister. According to her pediatrician, she was about average height, slightly underweight and perfectly healthy. Her hair was light brown, her eyes blue and Carmen had said more than once he and Keira shared the same smile.
“She has your freckles,” he told Keira.
She laughed, then ran to the mirror and stared at herself. “Really? All of them? I can’t decide if I like my freckles or not.”
He almost pointed out her opinion on her freckles didn’t matter—it wasn’t as if they were going away—but stopped himself in time.
“They’re cute,” he told her. “On you and on Callie.”
Keira spun to face him and beamed. “Really? I can’t wait to meet her. And I want to see her room.”
“Give her a couple of hours to get settled,” he said, repeating what they’d discussed the previous night at dinner. “We don’t want to overwhelm her. You’ll meet her at dinner. As to her room, you saw it yesterday, when everything was delivered.”
Keira gave him a look that implied he was incredibly stupid but she would indulge him this one time. She crossed to the bed and scooped up the kitten sitting there. “Maybe she’s scared. Maybe she needs a friend.”
“Maybe she’s tired from her trip and would like a few minutes before she has to deal with the whole family.”
“There’s only three of us, plus Carmen. That’s not a lot.”
“It might be to her.”
From what he’d read in the report on Callie, since getting out of prison, she’d lived a quiet life. She’d stayed in a halfway house for nearly nine months before moving to Houston. She worked her two jobs, volunteered at a cat shelter once a week and lived in a rented room. She didn’t seem to have many friends or much of a social life. As for what had gotten her arrested in the first place, from how she’d lived the last five years, that had been a one-time thing.
Keira sighed heavily. “Fine. I’ll wait until dinner.”
“Good. You seem to be feeling better. You have a lot of energy.”
“I’m excited. This is so fun. We have a new sister. I could barely sleep last night. Aren’t you excited?”
“Very,” he lied. He didn’t care about the trust fund his grandfather would set up for Callie or the potential division of the business. He already had enough. It was more that all these years later, he was still dealing with his father’s shit. When was it finally going to end?
“I’ll see you in a couple of hours,” he told Keira. “Until then, leave Callie alone.”
Keira batted her eyes at him. “I wouldn’t think of doing anything else.”
chapter eight
Callie stood in the center of her two-room suite, not sure what to think about any of it. Her head hurt, the world seemed to be spinning and she honestly couldn’t believe any of this was happening. Before she could catch her breath or figure out if she wanted to faint, Carmen appeared, a tray in her hands.
“You must be tired from your flight,” she said with a gentle smile. “And maybe overwhelmed. I brought you a snack to tide you over until dinner.”
She set the tray on the dark gray tufted ottoman at the foot of the queen-size bed. “Let me show you around the room, then I’ll leave you to get settled.”
Callie could only nod. Speaking seemed impossible, as did making sense of any of this.
“I only had a few days to get your room ready,” Carmen said. “If you want to make changes, go ahead. I have no idea if you like my taste or not.”
The bedroom was huge, maybe twenty by twenty, with big floor-to-ceiling windows. The walls were cream except for the dark gray wall behind the bed. The head and footboards were upholstered in cream, the bedspread was the same color with a woven gold pattern in the center. The cream-and-gold color theme continued with a fuzzy cream rug. Dark wood accents—the dresser, the legs of the ottoman and the chair in the corner—added contrast. The nightstands were mirrored with glass-based lamps.
Callie had never been in a five-star hotel in her life. Come to think of it, she’d only ever stayed at a Quality Inn, her first two nights in Houston, but if she had to guess, she would say this was what a five-star hotel room looked like.
Carmen showed her the big bathroom with a long vanity and a separate tub and walk-in shower. There was a closet nearly the size of her rented room and a second room attached to the first.
“Malcolm uses his spare room as an office,” Carmen told her. “I set up Keira’s as a living space.” She smiled. “I went brighter with her colors. Again, if you want to change any of this, please let me know.”
The color theme continued. There were two sofas and a chair, all upholstered in cream, another tufted ottoman, plenty of small tables, floor lamps and a fun faux-fur throw rug done in a gold-and-white zebra print.
“I’m overwhelmed,” Callie admitted. “Thank you so much for all of this.”
“You’re welcome.” Carmen pointed to her right. “Keira’s room is next to yours.” She waved toward the left. “Malcolm’s room is beyond the staircase. Your grandfather sleeps on the first floor. The stairs are more difficult for him these days. I have a suite of rooms on the third floor. Please make yourself comfortable, explore the house. You’re welcome in the kitchen anytime you’d like. I keep a running grocery list. Just tell me what you’d like and I’ll get it.”
“I’ll do that,” Callie promised as her head began to throb. She just wanted to be alone and try to figure out how to process all of it.
“Then I’ll leave you to get settled. Dinner is at six thirty. Just come downstairs and turn right.” She paused. “Your grandfather is very happy you’re here.”
Good to know, Callie thought, not sure how she felt about her new circumstances, but determined to be polite. She followed Carmen to the hallway and thanked her again before shutting the bedroom door. She felt her legs start to give way but forced herself to keep moving. She sat on the bed, then turned on the nightstand lamps before checking out the tray Carmen had brought only to be overwhelmed once again.
There was a large antipasto plate filled with slices of several kinds of cheese and meat. There were olives and almonds and walnuts, mushrooms and cherry tomatoes. Crusty rolls sat on a smaller plate next to a ramekin of butter. A third plate contained a half dozen different kinds of cookies. S-shaped and pinwheels, frosted lemon drop cookies and chocolate-dipped butter cookies.
Even as her stomach growled, she honestly wasn’t sure she could eat a bite. Not with her whole body fighting the need to bolt.
She ignored the food but sipped the tea as she checked out the big closet and saw there were more drawers there, along with built-in shelves and racks for her shoes. Back in the bedroom she found the remote for the television on the dresser, then walked into the huge bathroom.
The towels were the softest, fluffiest she’d ever felt and the shower was stocked with several kinds of shampoo, conditioner and body wash. There was a blow-dryer tucked in one drawer, along with a flat iron and a curling iron.
The sitting room had another television, a small refrigerator and more built-in storage. She saw several boxes stacked on the ottoman and walked over to inspect them. There was an iPhone, an iPad, chargers, headphones and a note about which carrier the family used, along with the house’s Wi-Fi code.
Callie left the boxes untouched as she moved around the room. One of the end tables had a stack of magazines along with a couple of hardcover books. She opened the front cover and was shocked
when she realized these were new books, bought from a store. They hadn’t been checked out of the library.
She didn’t know if she should laugh or cry. She had a sudden urge to scream or run or hide. Before she could decide, there was a knock, followed by the sound of her bedroom door opening.
“Callie?”
The voice was unfamiliar and very young. Callie went back into the bedroom and saw a slightly gawky girl smiling at her, a black-and-white kitten in her arms. The other sister, she thought.
“Hi. I’m Keira and this is Lizzy.” Keira sank onto the floor and released the kitten, who immediately began to explore. “She just used the litter box so you don’t have to worry about her peeing or anything. She’s really good. I’m really glad you’re here. Malcolm said I wasn’t supposed to bother you but I had to come see you. I mean dinner is hours away. Did you have a good flight? Have you flown before? I hadn’t and I was so scared, but Malcolm was with me and I didn’t want to say anything to him. He can be intimidating. Oh, wait!”
Keira jumped up and raced to the door. “I’ll be right back.”
Callie sat on the rug and offered her hand to the kitten. Lizzy sniffed her fingers before rubbing her head against her hand.
Keira returned and handed Callie two night-lights.
“It’s hard being in a strange place,” she said. “It can be dark at night. These might help. I have them in my room.”
The unexpected and kind gesture hit Callie with the force of a semitruck. She had to swallow before speaking so she wouldn’t burst into tears.
“Thank you. You’re very sweet.” She motioned to the room. “This is kind of a lot to take in.”
“It’s big, huh? When I lived with Angelina, my bedroom was an alcove off the dining room. When I saw my room, I freaked. In foster care, I had to share a room, which wasn’t too bad, only my foster sister was older and she talked about really scary stuff.” Keira reached for Lizzy and hugged her close.
“So here’s what you have to know. Grandfather Alberto is really old. Like ninety or something. He likes to give hugs and they’re nice, even though he smells strange. He’s funny and he really cares, which is nice.” She rolled her eyes. “He always wants to hear about how school is and stuff, but it’s good. Carmen is our housekeeper. She’ll get you anything you want.”
When We Found Home Page 9
