Peony Street

by Pamela Grandstaff

  “Hello, young lovers,” Patrick said, and put a pitcher of beer on the table.

  Claire stuck her tongue out at him and he laughed as he went back to the bar.

  “You two go on,” Ian said. “I want to see the end of this game.”

  Claire got up and walked to the back room with Pip right behind. Once they were inside she shut the door and said, “Well?”

  “Meredith still won’t talk to me,” he said. “Courtenay wants me to tell the police Meredith ran over your friend and then asked me to hide the car. She thinks if I turn Meredith in they won’t charge me, and then Meredith will be out of the way, permanently.”

  “First of all, you’re an idiot,” Claire said. “Courtenay probably wants both of you out of the way. With Meredith in rich people resort camp for manslaughter and you in federal prison as an accessory after the fact, Courtenay will have a clear shot at having Knox all to herself.”

  “She wouldn’t do that to me,” Pip said. “You don’t know her like I do.”

  “If you mean intimately, then, no,” Claire said. “But if you mean I don’t know her type that’s where you’re wrong. Courtenay’s the Russian starlet and Knox is the brilliant director. Meredith is Sloan, the famous actress, the wife with the money and the connections, but a total drag to be married to; and you, my dear ex-husband, are the personal trainer who fools around with both women but gets dumped in the end. Don’t you remember Lars?”

  “You’re just jealous.”

  “Oh, honey, bless your heart, I’m not jealous; I’m just smarter than you,” Claire said. “And trust me; I’m not that exceptional in the brains department.”

  “If you’re so smart then what should I do?”

  “You need to talk to Sean,” Claire said. “Do you have a working car that hasn’t been stolen or used in the commission of a crime?”

  “My mom’s car.”

  “I’m going to give you Sean’s number. Call him and make an appointment to go up to Pittsburgh and talk to him. Maybe he can figure a way out of this mess.”

  “You go with me.”

  “No, Pip,” Claire said. “Just this once do something difficult without some woman holding your hand. You’re forty-two years old, for crissakes. Grow up!”

  “Courtenay’s expecting me to come over tonight. Knox is in DC.”

  “Is there any point in me telling you that isn’t a good idea?”

  He shrugged.

  “Sloan’s in town,” Claire said, and was gratified to see real fear in his eyes.

  “Does she know I’m here?”

  “Not yet,” Claire said.

  “Well, whatever you do, don’t tell her,” Pip said.

  “Are you sending your wife any money to take care of your children?” Claire asked.

  “Her parents are taking care of them,” Pip said. “They hate me.”

  “Big surprise,” Claire said.

  “It’s not my fault,” Pip said. “Crap just always happens to me and everybody always blames me.”

  “It’s never your fault, is it?” Claire said. “I can’t imagine why you continue to have such rotten bad luck. It couldn’t possibly be the poor choices you make, could it?”

  “Courtenay says she’s going to help me start my own business. She says there are lots of rich people in DC who will pay big bucks for the stuff I do.”

  “As a prostitute or as a carpenter?”

  “I hate you, Claire,” Pip said, and banged out the side door.

  Claire went back in the bar and collected her father, then led him by the hand, out the door and all the way home.

  “I don’t like Pip,” Ian said as Claire helped him take off his coat in the front entryway. “I know he’s your husband but I think he’s an idiot.”

  “There’s nothing wrong with your mind,” Claire said. “He is an idiot.”

  “Why don’t you divorce him and marry some nice boy like Scott.”

  “I think Maggie may have a lock on that deal,” Claire said.

  “Your cousin Maggie blew her chance,” Ian said. “I think you could snag him.”

  “You think so?”

  “She’s as mean as that mother of hers. I told him he should thank his lucky stars; he made a narrow escape.”

  “What did Scott say to that?”

  “He said there’s a lid for every pot, and he’s Maggie’s.”

  Claire got him settled in his chair, brought him a glass of juice, and exchanged the medication patch on his back for a fresh one.

  “That patch is really helping my shoulder,” he said. “My bursitis is much better since we started using it.”

  Claire washed her hands as she reflected on the worth of a patch that was supposed to save her father’s memory in light of the fact that he couldn’t remember what it was for. Her mother said the patch cost over two-hundred dollars a month; their insurance only covered it for nine months out of the year, and only after the deductible was met.

  Claire wondered how people survived; people who worked hard for decades and had so little to show for it at the end of their lives. What did people do who didn’t have children to care for them? What would she do?

  Claire checked on her mother, who was lying in bed reading a book. She considered telling her everything that had happened that day, but her mother looked so rested and relaxed Claire didn’t have the heart to burden her.

  “How was your day?” Delia asked.

  “It was fine,” Claire said. “How are you feeling? What can I do for you?”

  After Scott had fully charged Claire’s phone, he tucked it in his interior jacket pocket and locked up the station. Loud bluegrass music from the Rose and Thorn was pouring out of the open front door and echoing against the mountain on the other side of the river. Sometimes when there was a lot of moisture in the air the river sounded like it was running right through the middle of town. Two new dams installed after a devastating flood three years before made sure it never could.

  Scott knocked on Ian and Delia’s front door and Claire answered. She invited him in and he saw Ian was napping in his chair. They went to the kitchen, where Scott sat down while Claire poured him some coffee.

  “How’s your mom?” she asked.

  Against his will, Scott felt his eyes well up. Claire put her arm around his shoulders, hugged him, sat down next to him, and clasped his hand on the table. He wiped his eyes and cleared his throat.

  “It’s cancer,” he said. “They think it started in her uterus and now it’s everywhere. The cough and shortness of breath are from where it’s spread to her lungs. The oncologist wants to do radiation and chemo, but the internist wasn’t very encouraging about that. He said if it were his mother he would call Hospice and try to make what time she has left as good as possible.”

  “Oh, Scott,” Claire said, tearing up in sympathy. “Your poor mother.”

  “She’s always been a bit of a hypochondriac,” Scott said. “I never took her seriously. Maybe if I had intervened earlier…”

  “Don’t do that,” Claire said. “Your mom is a grownup and responsible for her own health. How could you know when it was just for attention and when it was real? She could have called Doc Machalvie any time any day and he would have come right over to see her. Please don’t get stuck blaming yourself. You can’t rescue everyone.”

  Scott leaned into Claire and she embraced him.

  “Thank you,” he said. “I’m so glad you came back. I really need a friend right now, and somehow I don’t think Patrick or Ed could handle this quite as well.”

  “What about Maggie?”

  Scott shook his head.

  “We aren’t even friends anymore,” he said. “The worst part is I’m the one who set fire to that bridge.”

  “Well, it looks like I’ll be here awhile, so I’ll be glad to help you however you need me to.”

  “You’re staying?”

  “Just for the summer,” Claire said.

  “That long?” Scott said.

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nbsp; “I don’t know how long, exactly, but enough time to get everything organized here.”

  “I see.”

  “I don’t have to decide today. We’ll see how it goes.”

  “Don’t worry,” he said, smiling. “I’m not asking for a long term commitment.”

  “I know how I sound; I just can’t help it.”

  “You just got here,” Scott said. “It may take some time for you to figure out what you really want to do.”

  “What I want to do tomorrow is drive to Pendleton and buy a new phone. Do you think Sarah will think I’m making a break for it?”

  “I have a nice surprise for you,” he said, and took her phone out of his jacket pocket.

  “No way!” she said, and held her beloved phone up to her lips and kissed it. “How did you find it?”

  “I know people,” Scott said, and blushed.

  Claire hugged him again and kissed him.

  “I said you should get divorced first,” Ian said from the doorway. “Don’t go puttin’ the cart before the horse, little girl.”

  Scott was confused but Claire laughed.

  “Don’t worry, Dad,” she told her father. “I’ll do everything in the right order.”

  Claire found a notebook and she and Scott transcribed her calls and texts, starting the day she flew home, putting everything in order.

  4:45 p.m. GMT: Tuppy called Claire: “Clairol, you in danger, girl. Seriously, this morning Frau Schlechtwetter instructed me to nuke your world. I have a marvelous plan that will deliver us both from evil, but it’s too dangerous to leave in a voicemail. I thought we would fly to DC together and have a good chin wag on the way over but you were a sneaky little devil and did something else. Call me as soon as you get this.”

  5:15 p.m. GMT: Sloan called Claire: “Claire, Tuppy says you’re on your way back to us and I’m so glad. I promise to make it worth your while. You won’t regret it. I’ve missed you. See you soon.”

  8:14 p.m. EST; Sloan called Claire: “I don’t know what you two think you’re doing but it’s a big mistake. You of all people should know what bad luck it is to cross me. Stanley will be in touch; you won’t enjoy it, but he will.”

  8:15 p.m. EST; Tuppy texts Claire: “In dc. Wl mt u n rh. Btw I qt! Mr ltr.”

  “Same as before; it says he’s in DC and will meet me in Rose Hill,” Claire said. “He also says he quit and will tell me more later.”

  8:16 p.m. EST; Tuppy called Claire: “I’m in DC; where are you, my little minx? I left the Queen of Hearts with no notice and she’s all, “off with his head!” I’m going to drive to that godforsaken burg from which you hail to meet you at your parents’ house. Please, please call me. I have got to talk to you.”

  2:05 a.m. EST; Tuppy texts Claire: “Wr r u? Im n yr crpy tn. Call me!”

  “Where are you?” Claire translated. “I’m in your creepy town.”

  2:11 a.m. EST; Tuppy calls Claire: “Miss Clairol, this town is tiny and creepy; you do not belong here. Come with me to New York where I am soon to be a rich and famous author. You can be my personal assistant and I promise not to be half as mean as Brunhilda. Seriously, your hometown is like a fifties horror movie; I cannot wait to get out of here. Your dad was sweet but seemed a little confused. I gave him something to give to you. Read it and the truth will set you free. I hope you’re alright, Claire. I’m getting a little worried. Please call me.”

  2:12 a.m. EST; Tuppy texts Claire: “Yr swt dad has bk. Kp safe. Btw njoy yr 3dm. Yr wlcm.”

  “Your sweet dad has the book,” Claire said. “Keep it safe. By the way, enjoy your freedom. You’re welcome.”

  Tuppy’s communications stopped there. All the calls and texts after that were from Sloan or someone on her P.R. triage team, by turns threatening and cajoling.

  “I notice they didn’t stop communicating with you after he died,” Scott said.

  “Is that good or bad?” Claire asked.

  “It’s interesting,” Scott said. “About this book …”

  “I haven’t been able to find it,” she said.

  “Did you ask your dad?”

  “I’m afraid it will upset him.”

  “Let’s ask him now,” Scott said. “Just be real casual about it like you don’t really care.”

  They went to the living room where Ian was watching the news.

  “Hey, Dad,” Claire said. “Did somebody stop by here the other night and leave something for me?”

  Ian looked at Claire, wide-eyed.

  “I thought I dreamed that.”

  “No, that was a friend of mine,” Claire said. “Tuppy.”

  “That’s the one. Good-lookin’ fella,” Ian said. “Talked funny.”

  “That’s him,” Claire said. “Did he give you something?”

  “It was the darndest thing,” Ian said. “He tried to tell me it was a book.”

  “What was it?”

  “It was a key ring,” Ian said. “Now, what did I do with that?”

  “A key ring?” Scott said.

  “Are you sure?” Claire said, and immediately Ian got agitated and his head started to nod.

  “Well, I think so,” Ian said. “My memory’s not what it used to be.”

  “That’s okay,” Scott said. “It’s not important. Claire can get another key ring.”

  Ian’s nodding slowed down and his attention drifted back to the television.

  “It’s probably around here somewhere,” he said, losing interest in the subject.

  Claire drug Scott by the arm back into the kitchen.

  “I know what it is and where it is,” she said. “It’s a flash drive on a key ring that Sammy’s got in his treasure box. He showed it to me and Hannah and said Delia gave it to him.”

  “I’ll call Sam,” Scott said.

  “It’s late,” Claire said. “Let’s just wait until morning. It’s probably safer in Sammy’s tin box in Sam and Hanna’s house than in the station safe.”

  “Right next to my pen,” Scott said.

  “I’ve got to work at The Bee Hive tomorrow,” Claire said. “I’ll ask Hannah to bring him down in the morning and I’ll trade something for it. I’ll see if I can’t tempt him with a toy, or money, or something. As soon as I have it I’ll plug it into Denise’s computer and we can read it together.”

  There was a knock on the door and Ian said, “It’s like Grand Central Station in here. Claire, will you get that?”

  It was Skip bringing back Mackie Pea.

  “I forgot all about her,” Claire confessed to Scott. “How awful is that?”

  The little dog was excited to see Claire but rushed straight past her to Ian.

  “There’s my little girl,” Ian said and cuddled her as she licked his chin.

  “Thank you so much, Skip,” Claire said. “Thank your mother for me, too.”

  “She says Mackie can come every day if you want. They had a big time. Mom’s going to knit her a little sweater.”

  “I’m so grateful,” Claire said. “Tell your mom to come down to The Bee Hive this week and I’ll give her a free haircut.”

  “Thanks!” Skip said. “She’ll love that.”

  Skip left and Scott followed him out.

  “Try to get some sleep,” he told her. “I’ll come see you in the morning at work.”

  “You, too,” she said. “I’m so sorry about your mom.”

  Scott smiled and waved goodbye.

  When someone tapped on her window in the middle of the night, Claire groaned.

  “What do you want, Pip?” she said as she lifted up the sash.

  “I’m in big trouble,” Pip said.

  His eyes were wide and his skin pale.

  “What did you do now?”

  “I kind of owe Sloan a lot of money,” he said.

  “And?”

  “And I kind of owe a lot of back child support.”

  “And?”

  “And I kind of have some tax issues.”

  “And?”


  “I know you sold the Malibu condo; by rights half of that dough is mine.”

  “I figured you didn’t read the divorce papers before you signed them; if you had you’d know that’s not true.”

  “You gotta help me, Claire,” he said. “Sloan’s gonna kill me if I don’t pay her back.”

  “I’m done bailing you out,” Claire said. “I’ve got my own family to worry about.”

  “What should I do?”

  “Borrow the money from Courtenay, since she loves you so much.”

  “Courtenay says Knox and Meredith are going to frame me for the hit and run.”

  “See? You should have gone to Scott right away.”

  “I’m going to tow Meredith’s car down to the Hell Hole and push it in there.”

  “That’s about the stupidest thing I ever heard, plus it’s impossible. That’s a state park; you won’t get within ten miles of that cave before the park rangers stop you.”

  “Then I’ll leave town, maybe go to Mexico for awhile.”

  “Buena suerte,” Claire said. "No dejas que la puerta te pega en el culo, saliendo de aqui."

  “Please, Claire,” he said, and his lip turned down and his chin trembled, right on cue.

  Claire was reminded that Sloan had once set up Pip with an audition for a small part in a film. He was handsome enough and willing to have sex with anyone, so he probably would’ve gotten the part except he blew off the audition to get high with someone he met on the bus on the way to the studio. Pip had acting skills, no doubt, but they were so intertwined with his naturally manipulative behavior that she didn’t think he even realized it was an act.

  “No way,” she said. “You made this bed and you can lie in it.”

  “There’s a warrant out for me in California,” he said. “Sloan will probably call the police as soon as she knows I’m here.”

  “Her attorney’s in town, too,” Claire said. “She’s got a new one, and he’s even meaner than the last one.”

  “I’m toast, then,” Pip said. “Please, Claire.”

  Claire considered her options.

  “Meet me up at the Thorn at midnight,” she said. “I’ll take care of everything.”

  “Thanks, babe,” he said, and gifted her with a thousand kilowatt smile. “I knew you wouldn’t let me down.”