by Patricia Fry
“What’s his deal,” Michael asked, “battle scars from the military or something?”
“No. He wasn’t in the military, but battle scars is a good term for the guy. It seems that he’s just not very good at life. He can’t cope. I’m trying to get Cheryl to go to counseling. She’s such an enabler and I don’t think that’s healthy, either.”
“Must be hard for her.”
“Yeah. Say, Michael, hang in there and please keep me updated, will you? I might run out and see you later. Do you need anything? I could take the cat off your hands for a bit, if that would help.”
Michael chuckled. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No, I’m absolutely not kidding. I know he’s a handful, and I’d be glad to help out. I like the old boy. He and I have an understanding, you know.”
“I think I’d better keep him close. He might come in handy in case that guy shows up again. But thanks for the offer.” As Michael ended the call, he noticed that Craig was just pocketing his phone.
“I have some things I want to check out downtown,” Craig said. “I’ll be back later.”
“Okay. Call if you find out anything, will you?”
“You know I will,” Craig assured him.
“Any news?” Gladys asked hopefully when Michael joined her and Lily in the sitting room.
He shook his head and focused on his daughter, who was coloring. He sat down and lifted her onto his lap.
“I made a picture.” She wriggled out of Michael’s arms so she could reach the picture, and said brightly, “For Mommy.” She frowned and asked, “Daddy, where’s Mommy?”
He kissed the side of her head. “She’ll be home soon, honey. We just have to wait.”
“I want Mommy now,” the child insisted.
“I know, honey. Hey, where’s Pidgie?” he asked, standing up. “Have you seen Pidgie this morning?”
“Who’s Pidgie?” Gladys asked, dabbing at her eyes and trying to present a strong facade.
Michael patted her shoulder as he walked past her toward the window with his daughter. He prompted, “Lily, tell Grammy about Pidgie.”
“Pidgie is a…what bird is it, Daddy?”
“A pigeon,” Michael said.
“A pigeon, Grammy. Come see Pidgie.”
“No Pidgie,” Michael said, looking out over the balcony. “I guess he’s visiting other little girls at the hotel down the street.” When Lily continued looking for the bird, he suggested, “Shall we draw a picture of Pidgie? Lily, let’s color Pidgie.” He looked at his mother-in-law. “Gladys, why don’t you go in there with Teddy and try to get a little sleep?”
After thinking about it for a moment, she let out a sigh and said, “I think I’ll just stretch out here and rest my eyes while you two work on your art project.”
Nearly an hour had passed when Gladys sat up and looked around. “Teddy’s awake.”
Michael smiled at her. “You have good ears.”
“Didn’t you hear him? He’s in there talking to himself.” Before she reached the bedroom, there was a knock at the door. “Who’s that?” she asked
Michael looked at her. “I don’t know.” He lowered Lily to the floor and walked toward the door.
“Probably the maid,” Gladys suggested, continuing on her mission to get Teddy up.
When Michael opened the door, he saw Rob standing there.
“I just couldn’t focus on my work. I hope you don’t mind the intrusion.”
Michael shook his head. “Of course not, Rob. I know you care about her too. Come in.”
“Anything?” Rob asked.
Michael shook his head. “No,” he complained. “Things are moving so dang slowly, and I can barely stand it.”
Rob grabbed Michael’s shoulder with one hand and squeezed. “I know, guy. I know.” He looked behind Michael and said more cheerfully, “Hi there, Lily.”
“There’s Pidgie,” she said, pointing toward the window. She looked up at Rob and explained, “Pidgie is a pigeon.”
“There’s a pigeon out there?” Rob asked, going with her to the window. After spending a few minutes with the toddler, he asked Michael, “Where’s the cat?” Before Michael could answer, Rob saw Rags walking toward him. He scratched the cat behind one ear. “Hi there, boy,” he crooned. When there was another knock at the door, Rob stood. “Oh, that’s probably Cheryl. She was finishing up a phone call.” He quickly approached the door and swung it open, catching Rags just before he ran out. “Oops,” he said. “Almost forgot who I’m dealing with here.”
“Good catch,” Michael said. “Hi, Cheryl. Come on in and join the madhouse.”
“I’m so sorry about what you’re going through,” she said, approaching Michael. She lowered her head. “I can’t even imagine the torture.”
Michael nodded and fought back a rush of emotion.
Cheryl smiled at Lily, who was leaning against her daddy’s leg. “She’s so cute. Hi, Lily. How old are you now?”
Lily held up three fingers.
Cheryl kneeled and ran her hand down Lily’s arm. “You’re such a big girl.” She looked around and asked, “Where’s the baby?” When Gladys appeared holding Teddy, Cheryl smiled into the baby’s face, then introduced herself to Gladys. “I’m Cheryl, you must be Savannah’s mother.” When Gladys nodded, she embraced her and the baby briefly and said quietly, “They’ll find her. She’ll be okay.”
Gladys took a deep breath. “That’s my prayer.”
Cheryl took one of Teddy’s little hands and smiled. “He’s gotten so big.” She glanced at Michael. “I only saw him that once when he was tiny. Gosh, you have beautiful children.”
“Thank you,” Michael said, reaching for Teddy and holding him close.
When Rags jumped up onto a table and began batting at a set of keys, Michael snatched them up and put them into his pocket. “No you don’t,” he said to the cat. “With everything else that’s going on, I don’t need you losing my keys.”
At that, Rags leaped from the table and stretched up the length of Michael’s leg, clawing at his pocket.
Rob laughed. “He wants those keys, doesn’t he? Didn’t you bring any of his toys?”
Michael let out a sigh. “Yeah, he’s already bored with them. Now he’s looking for trouble.” He stared down at the cat. “He doesn’t do well when he’s cooped up in a small place for long. Savannah tells me that she used to have a devil of a time with his behavior when she first got him and they lived in a small apartment. Of course, he was younger then too.”
“How about if Cheryl and I take him for a little walk?” Rob suggested.
Cheryl nodded. “Yeah, we could do that.”
“Gosh, I just had him outside a while ago,” Michael said. He ran his hand through his hair. “Actually, I guess that was over an hour ago.” He nodded. “Yeah, with Rags, there’s no such thing as too much time outdoors.” He placed the baby in his jumper chair and picked up Rags’s harness and leash. He looked at Rob and Cheryl again. “Are you sure you want to do this?”
Rob nodded. “Absolutely. Whatever we can do to help.”
“Okay,” Michael said. “Just don’t let go of the…” He thinned his lips. “Oh, you know the drill.”
“Sure do,” Rob said. He took the leash and led Rags toward the door, saying, “Be back in a bit. Come on, Cheryl, let’s see if we can help this cat get rid of some of that energy.”
****
Rob, Cheryl, and Rags had just reached the only grassy area around the hotel, which happened to be adjacent to the parking lot, when they heard someone call, “Cheryl. Psst. Hey, Cheryl.”
She looked around, then said under her breath, “It’s Mark. What do you want, Mark?” she asked aloud, in a scolding manner.
“Come here will you? I want to talk to you.”
“Where did you get that van?” Cheryl asked.
“Never mind,” Mark said, opening the side door and sitting down on the floorboard. He glanced at Rob, who was walking with Rags
at a distance behind Cheryl and he said more quietly, “I’m going to need another advance on the inheritance.”
“Dad isn’t even dead, Mark,” she snapped, “and you’re already spending all of his money.”
“I’ll pay you back. You know I will—as soon as we get our inheritance. Dad won’t live forever.”
Cheryl gave him a disgusted look. “What do you want the money for this time? To pay for this van?”
“Oh no. This isn’t mine. I borrowed it for…for a job.” He grinned. “In fact I might just figure a way to get some money out of this job.”
“Cheryl,” Rob called from a distance away, “come on, we need to get a move on.”
She glanced back at him, then hissed, “Mark, how much do you need this time?”
Before he could answer, his eyes grew wide and he began backpedaling into the cargo space of the van. Cheryl turned in time to see Rags preparing to leap into the van.
“Rags!” Rob shouted, but it was too late. The cat jumped up into the cargo space and began batting at a couple of large feathers hanging from a string near a window. He laughed. “Oh, I guess he saw them blowing in the breeze and he thought it was a bird or something.” He took out his phone and snapped a few pictures, then picked up the cat and muttered, “Come on, Mr. Nosey.”
When Cheryl saw her brother peering out through the privacy curtain from the driver’s seat, she frowned. “What are you doing? Hiding from the cat?” She laughed. “I didn’t know you were afraid of cats.”
“I’m not,” Mark asserted.
When Rob called out to Cheryl again, she quickly asked her brother, “Okay, how much do you need?”
“A couple of hundred,” he said, glancing warily at the cat as Rob led him away.
Cheryl sighed. “I don’t know what you do with your money. I give and give and you have nothing to show for it. And I have no real assurance that you’ll ever pay me back.”
He stared at her for a moment and asked, “So are you saying no?” When she didn’t respond, he closed the side door in her face, climbed back into the driver’s seat, and started the van. He put it in reverse and shouted through the open window, “What kind of a sister are you? You won’t even help your brother. You stink as a sister and a person. I hate you!” He stepped on the accelerator, shot out of the parking space, and squealed into the street, barely missing a car.
“That jerk,” Rob said disgustedly. When he saw that Cheryl was in tears, he led Rags to where she stood and embraced her. “God, how I wish you would just walk away from that scumbag.”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I feel so responsible. He’s had such a difficult life.”
“Of his own making,” Rob insisted. When he felt her recoil, he hugged her harder and said, “I’m sorry, babe. I’m sorry that he upsets you and I’m sorry that I upset you. It’s not fair. Come on, let’s try to forget him for now and help Rags get some exercise, okay?” He said more playfully, “I’ll take you to your favorite coffee place later and we’ll have a mocha, okay?”
She pulled back a little, wiped at her eyes, and nodded. She then glanced down at Rags. “Oh, look what the cat found.”
“What?” Rob asked, turning in that direction.
“A shoe.” She picked it up. “A turquoise shoe.” She turned it over a couple of times in her hands. “Classy.”
“I wonder where that came from,” Rob said, trying to keep Rags from jumping up on Cheryl, to reach the shoe.
She looked off in the direction Mark had driven and said, “It must have fallen out of that van Mark’s driving.” She grinned. “Wow, I wonder if he has a girlfriend. Maybe that’s what he’s spending all that money on—wining and dining a woman.”
Rob scoffed. “I doubt that. It’s more likely he stole the shoes.”
Cheryl placed the shoe on the curb next to the parking space where they’d found it and continued walking with Rob and Rags. She said quietly, “I hope he’s not hurting women.”
Rob looked at her. “Why would you say that?”
“The shoe,” she explained, “and his defensive attitude just now.”
“Oh, he’s probably playing around with hookers,” Rob said, laughing. “That’s where all that money goes that you’re giving him.”
“Hookers?” she asked.
“Yeah, that could be a hooker’s shoe.”
She shook her head. “Oh no. That’s not a hooker’s shoe. It’s too chic.” She took a deep breath and faced Rob, “I just wish he’d straighten up his act so I wouldn’t have to always be worrying about him.”
“You haven’t always worried about him, have you? He just contacted you last year.”
“Yeah, I watched out for him when we were kids. I really thought he’d be okay once he graduated from veterinary school. Things were calm for him during that time. But he just didn’t seem able to hold it together long enough. He didn’t even actually graduate. All of his opportunities were short-lived. He’d be happy with a woman for a while, then not. He’d work as a tech for the vet clinic of his dreams, then quit. It’s almost like he’s afraid to allow himself to be happy or successful. Is that a syndrome? How does someone get that way?”
****
Just after one o’clock, Michael opened the door to Peter. “Good, you made it.”
“Yes, is there any news?”
Michael looked down at the floor. “I’m afraid not. Hey, are you hungry? We were just going down to have some lunch. I think Rob and Cheryl are coming back to join us.”
“No, I’m not hungry. How can I eat at a time like this?”
Michael said quietly, “The kids need to eat. Come on.”
Peter looked around the room at the others and said, “I’m sorry. Yeah, I probably should eat something.”
“Have you checked in?”
Peter nodded. “Hi Gladys,” he greeted.
She walked toward him and gave him a hug.
“You’re gonna make me cry again,” he said.
Gladys let out a sigh. “Join the club. We’re trying to put on a strong front for the kids, but darn—it’s…um…well, it’s just hard.”
Peter hugged Gladys again. “I know. I know.” He then patted his stomach and said,
“Hey, aren’t you going to feed me?”
Pocketing his phone, Michael said, “Yeah. Rob and Cheryl will meet us in the dining room.” He picked up Teddy. “Let’s go.”
“What about the cat?” Gladys asked.
“Believe it or not, they took him to a coffee shop,” Michael said. “They’re on their way back. I told Rob we’d meet them downstairs and I’ll bring Rags back up here.”
She shook her head. “It really isn’t easy traveling with a cat is it?”
He grinned and motioned for her to lead the way out into the hallway.
When they reached the dining room, they found Cheryl seated at a large table. She pointed. “Rob’s out there with the cat.”
“Thanks,” Michael said, strapping Teddy into a high chair and pulling a teething cracker out of the diaper bag for him. He then went outside and relieved Rob of the cat.
While Michael walked Rags back to the room, Rob joined the others. He approached Peter. “I’m so sorry, man.”
Peter took a deep breath. “Yeah, hardest thing I’ve ever had to deal with.”
Once Michael returned and everyone had placed their orders, Rob pulled something from his jacket pocket. He held it up. “I don’t know if this is important or not, but since we’re grasping at straws, I thought I should show it to you guys. At first we thought Rags might have kicked it out of the van Cheryl’s brother’s driving, but maybe not.” When he saw the look on Peter’s face, he asked, “Have you seen this shoe before?”
Peter reached for it, examined it, then clutched it to his chest. “It’s Rochelle’s. She was wearing these shoes when…”
“Oh, my gosh,” Michael said. “Where did you find it, Rob?”
He shrugged. “Like I said, it’s possible that Rags knocked i
t out of Mark’s van. When he pulled out of the parking lot, we saw it lying there on the pavement.”
“Rags went into the van?” Michael asked.
Rob nodded. “Yeah, I believe he thought he was after a bird.” He pulled out his phone and tapped on the screen. “Here’s a picture of him trying to attack some feathers that were hanging inside.”
Michael took the phone from Rob. He started to hand it back, when he noticed something. “Hey, there’s that shoe right there.” He passed the phone across to Peter. “Look, this shoe and its mate are right there on the floor. Oh, my gosh.” He looked at Rob, then Cheryl. “You say this is your brother’s van?”
Cheryl shook her head. “No. He drives a Toyota, which he left in Frisco. He says he borrowed the van. It belongs to someone else.”
“I need to call Craig,” Michael said, pulling his phone from his pocket. He had just started to place the call when the detective walked into the dining room.
“So what’s going on?” Craig asked, pulling out a chair and sitting down.
Before anyone could respond, the waitress appeared and asked him, “What can I get for you?”
He glanced around at the others and said, “How about a cheeseburger and fries? And coffee. Nice and hot.”
The waitress nodded and smiled.
“Craig,” Michael said eagerly, “Rob and Cheryl found Rochelle’s shoe. I was just about to call you.”
Craig abruptly faced Rob. “Say what?”
“This is her shoe, all right,” Peter said, holding it up. “I was with her when she bought them and she wears them all the time.”
“Where was it, for God’s sake?” Craig insisted.
“Out in the parking lot,” Rob said. He glanced at Cheryl. “I think Rags might have…”
Craig chuckled and repeated, “Rags?” He sat back in his chair and shook his head. “What did he do this time?”
“Well, he might have kicked it out of Cheryl’s brother’s van,” Rob continued.
“It’s not his van,” Cheryl insisted. When the others looked at her, she said, “He’s just borrowing it. Besides,” she said, her voice weakening, “we don’t know for sure it came out of that van.”
