“Try reading the papers. I just work here.”
“Well I never! I thought you were such a nice girl the last time too. It’s strange how people can change so quickly—”
“Buy something or get the fuck out, all right?”
“Lois!” Melanie hurried around the counter to put a hand on the old woman’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, ma’am. She’s just going through a rough time. Her mother’s in the hospital.”
“Oh my, how awful for you. You needn’t be so rude, though.”
Lois leaned over the counter to grab the items from the woman’s hands. She rang these up, cramming the shirts and towels into the bag. She quoted the old woman the price and then took the woman’s money without saying anything. “Here are your crappy souvenirs,” she said, tossing the bag over the counter. “Get lost.”
“I’m really sorry, ma’am,” Melanie said. “Let me take those for you.”
“I can handle it,” the old woman said. “I’ve had quite enough of both of you.”
After the old woman had toddled off, Melanie turned to Lois. “Oh my God, are you insane? If Tony heard that he could fire you! She’ll probably go to the assistant director or someone and make a Federal case out of it—”
“So what? I’m a fucking millionaire. Or I will be soon. Mom’s crippled, Richard is dead, and I’m a millionaire. That’s how fair life is.”
“Oh my God, Lois, you didn’t say—”
Lois raised her voice a couple of octaves to parody Melanie’s. “Oh my God, it’s none of your fucking business, you airhead! Why don’t you go back to standing here twirling your hair with a vacant expression and leave me alone?”
Melanie stared at her, her face turning red and tears forming in her eyes. Then she turned and bolted. Lois watched her go, feeling her cheeks burn as if Mom were Glaring at her all the way from the hospital.
Tony stuck his head out of the back room. “What’s going on out here? Where’d Melanie go?”
“She had to use the bathroom,” Lois said. “Can you watch the store for a minute?”
“Sure.”
Lois jumped over the counter, hurrying off in the direction Melanie had gone.
* * *
As at the funeral home, Melanie didn’t go very far. Lois followed the sound of Melanie’s sobbing to the corner of the meteor exhibit, where she had tried to use the emergency phone during the robbery. She found Melanie curled up into the corner, her head pressed against the wall. Lois knelt down beside her, putting a hand on her shoulder.
“Melanie, I’m sorry. I feel terrible for what I said.”
“You should.” Melanie turned, her face still red and wet with tears. “I thought you were different. I thought you were my friend. You’re just like everyone else. You think I’m an idiot.”
“No I don’t—”
“Hello, you just said it! You think I’m some airheaded bimbo, just like my mom.”
Lois thought of Melanie’s heartfelt words at Dr. Johnson’s funeral, the words that had kept Lois from running away. “No, I know you’re not. I just—my father’s dead.”
“I know Dr. Johnson’s dead. I was at the funeral, remember?”
“Not Dr. Johnson. My real father. The one I didn’t know about. He died last night.”
That was enough to shake Melanie from her sobbing. Her eyes widened and she stared at Lois. “No way! Who was he?”
Lois looked down at the floor, trying to think of how to explain it. “He was a homeless man. His name was Sam.”
“Homeless? Oh my God, that’s so awful. How did he die?”
“He was shot.”
“I’m sorry, Lois. If I’d known—”
“I’m the one who should be sorry. It’s not your fault. You were trying to be nice. You’ve always been nice to me. Nicer than I deserve.” She sighed and then sat down next to Melanie. “I don’t deserve a friend like you. I’m a screw-up and since I’ve been here, I’ve brought nothing but misery to everyone.”
“That’s not true.”
“My mom’s in the hospital. Dr. Johnson and my dad are dead. And look at you.” Lois shook her head. “You’d be better off not being friends with me. You’ll live longer.”
“But you didn’t do anything to those people. It’s not your fault.”
“Maybe it’s not, but I feel responsible anyway. That’s how Mom is all the time. I guess I do take after her.”
“What’s to be embarrassed about? Your mom’s nice. I wish she were my mom.”
“Is your mom giving you crap again?”
“Always.” It was Melanie’s turn to sigh. “I’m going to end up on the street like your dad. I got behind on my rent and this job doesn’t pay that much. I tried getting a second job, but it’s hard, you know? That’s why I didn’t see you at the hospital much. I asked my mom if I could stay with her just a little while and she totally guilted me about Ollie and everything again, saying what a loser I am. I guess she’s right.”
“You’re not a loser. You’re just a screw-up like me.” Lois patted Melanie’s shoulder and smiled. “Why don’t you stay with me?”
Melanie’s eyes widened and when she squealed there was nothing forced about it. “You mean it? For real?”
“For real.”
“Oh my God, this is going to be awesome! It’ll be like having a sleepover every night. We can share each other’s clothes and make-up and all that stuff.”
“Sure we can,” Lois said, though she could already see the problem of how to sneak out at night to fight crime with Melanie around.
Melanie must have caught her hesitation, her smile turning to a frown. “Are you just doing this because you feel sorry for me? I don’t need charity—”
“Actually you’d be doing me a favor. Dr. Johnson willed his house to me. I can’t imagine living in a place that big all by myself. You know how spooky that would be at night?”
“Is it haunted?”
“Could be. He has a lot of ancient artifacts in there.”
“Wow, we could be like those Ghost Hunters people on TV! Sneak around with a camera and hold séances and stuff. I think I have a Ouija board in the closet even. We could contact the spirits and ask them questions about the afterlife.”
Lois continued to smile, but it was a struggle as she thought of Dr. Johnson, Aunt Betty, and Sam, all of whom would be in the afterlife if there were one. She wished she could talk to them, to tell them how sorry she was. Maybe they already knew.
She patted Melanie’s shoulder and said, “We should get back to work before Tony thinks we’ve quit.”
“All right. I think I’ll hit the ladies room first, though. I’m all red and puffy.”
“I’ll see you back at work.”
She and Melanie parted ways outside the meteor exhibit. Lois sighed with relief, grateful she wouldn’t have to add one more person to the roster of the lost.
* * *
When Lois came back to the store, Tony grinned at her. “You don’t have a black eye so I guess you two made up.”
“Very funny. Maybe I’ll give you a black eye.”
“Into the rough stuff, eh?”
“Wouldn’t you like to find out?” She went behind the counter, taking her position at the register as a customer came in. Tony stood next to her, his hand moving beneath the counter to touch her ass. She took a step away, glaring at him.
“What are you so afraid of?” he asked.
“It’s against the rules. You’re my boss.”
“I could always fire you.”
“I could sue you for harassment.”
“You could. You wouldn’t get much out of me, except maybe the shirt off my back.” The grin he gave her indicated how badly he wanted to lose the shirt off his back.
“You’re really asking for it, mister.”
“Then maybe you should give it to me.”
She waited until the customer finished buying a stack of postcards before turning to Tony again. “What’s with you? All the sudden y
ou’ve turned into American Gigolo. Is it because you know I’m loaded?”
“I like you is all. I thought after what happened the other day, we might get a little closer.” He leaned up against her, close enough that she could feel the hardness of his midsection and remember their brief time together in his car. Then she remembered her conversation with Sam, how coy she’d gotten when it came to talking about Tony.
“I like you too, but maybe we should try going on a real date. You know, not a quickie in the car or where you ditch me at a club or making out at a funeral.”
“Sure. How about tonight? I know someone who works at Frederic’s. He can get us a table. It might be by the kitchen, but at least it wouldn’t be in the alley.”
“That sounds romantic.”
“Or we could go to McDonald’s. I could let you have my Happy Meal toy.”
“You really know how to impress a girl, don’t you?” she said, but with a smile. “OK, let’s go to Frederic’s. Visiting hours are until eight, so how about nine?”
“Great. It’s a date.”
“Just don’t stand me up.”
“I was thinking the same thing.”
They might have kissed to seal their arrangement, but Melanie chose that moment to return from the bathroom. Lois stepped to the side of Tony and leaned on the counter, resting her chin on her hand.
“Hey guys. Pretty slow, huh?”
“Yeah, slow,” Lois said.
“I think I’ll go fill out those inventory reports,” Tony said. As he walked by, though, he gave Lois a tap on the rump. She could feel her cheeks turning warm and hoped Melanie hadn’t noticed.
Melanie settled onto the counter next to her and said, “I can’t wait for this day to end.”
“Me too,” Lois said, thinking of Tony’s body against hers and how much she hoped to get even closer tonight.
Chapter 25
She made a brief visit at the hospital to tell Mom about her new houseguest. “That’s great, sweetheart,” Mom said. “Melanie’s a good girl.”
“What about you, Mom? Where do you want to live?”
“With you.”
“That’s it?”
“That’s all that matters.”
Mom had drifted off shortly after that. Lois figured she would need to find a realtor to try selling their house once the will went through. It was a tough housing market, but a house with as much history and in as good of shape as theirs was bound to get offers. Just another thing on her plate along with everything else.
For the moment she focused on getting ready for her date. She hurried back to the house that might not be her home much longer. She made sure to avoid looking at the urn on the mantel as she went upstairs to change.
Looking through her closet, she decided on the black dress from the funeral. It was the only formal dress she had that wouldn’t make her look twelve years old. If she did become a millionaire and living in a mansion, would that mean she would have to start throwing fancy dinner parties? She would need to take dancing lessons so that she could learn to waltz and all that good stuff.
As she thought of this, she wondered if Tony could dance. In her mind they swept across the dance floor like in one of those Jane Austen movies. She was the romantic heroine and Tony the young man trying to win her hand. She shook her hand at this thought. They were just going out on a date, not getting married.
A motorcycle didn’t seem appropriate for the occasion, so she called for a cab to take her to Fredric’s. Along the way she kept fussing with her hair and makeup, wanting to look perfect for him on their first real date. Like most things in her life, her relationship with Tony was screwed up; they had started with sex and were now working back to a real date.
At some point she would have to tell Mom about Tony. She had already told her father about him, though that hadn’t worked out very well. She just hadn’t wanted to add anything to Mom’s worries, not when there was so much already. Not that it should be a big deal since Mom already knew Tony from the museum. He had even dropped by the hospital a few times.
As the cab pulled up to the restaurant, she saw him waiting out front. He beat her to the door, opening it for her. Before she could reach into her purse, he already had a twenty out for the driver. “Keep the change,” Tony said.
“Big spender,” Lois said and kissed him on the cheek.
She had never been to Frederic’s before. It wasn’t much bigger than Hal’s Diner back in Durndell, though it looked a lot classier with ivy climbing the front wall. The inside was old school with checkered tablecloths and candles in jars. All of the tables were occupied; maybe they were going to eat in the alley after all. Tony had his elbow through Lois’s, guiding her past the tables, out a side door. Instead of an alley there was a patio with a single table and two chairs. “Here we are,” he said.
“Dining al fresco, huh?”
“I thought you’d like some privacy.” He pulled out a chair for her so that she could sit down. She had to admit this was nice, the patio overlooking the park. If she squinted hard enough she might even be able to find a star or two amidst the light pollution.
“It’s beautiful,” she said. She looked for a menu but didn’t see one. “Where’s the waiter?”
“Don’t worry, I’ve taken care of everything.” He snapped his fingers and a moment later a waiter appeared with a bottle of wine and two glasses. It was a red wine and from what she could see of the label, not cheap either.
“That was impressive. I didn’t know gift shop managers were that rich.”
“I told you I’ve got a friend here. He’s the manager. Him and my dad were in the army together back in Vietnam.”
“Your dad was a soldier?”
“My grandpa too. It’s kind of a tradition.”
“Must have skipped a generation.”
Tony’s smile faltered for a moment. “Yeah, I guess it did.” He raised a glass. “Let’s have a toast for your mom. I hope she gets out of the hospital soon.”
“Salud,” Lois said and then touched her glass to Tony’s.
“How much longer do they think it’ll be?”
“Months. She’s making progress, though. She still gets tired out pretty quick.”
“I’m sure she’ll get stronger.”
“I hope so.”
He waited until after the waiter returned with a big bowl of salad before he asked, “What was going on with you and Melanie?”
“She didn’t say?”
“No. She just said it was girl stuff.”
Lois smiled, making a note to thank Melanie later for her discretion. She wondered if she should tell Tony or not, deciding in the end that he was her friend too. “My dad died last night.”
“Your dad? I thought you didn’t know him.”
“I didn’t.”
“Then how—?”
“I found him in an alley. He was homeless. Someone shot him. I saw his face and I knew it was him. Before he died, he confirmed it.”
Her stomach fluttered as she said this; she didn’t like the idea of lying to Tony so soon in their relationship. Not that he would believe the truth even if she could tell him. He had trouble believing the lie too. “Your mom was with a homeless guy?”
“I doubt he was always homeless.”
“Have you talked to her about it yet?”
“A little. She loved him. All this time I thought Mom was a nun and she had this whole dirty little secret.”
“I’m sure she had her reasons. So did he.”
“Yeah, I’m sure they did. I just wish I could have got to know him better. You know, all my life there’s been this other side to me that I didn’t know anything about. I guess now I never will.” Her lower lip trembled, but she kept herself from crying. “I mean, you at least knew your father was in Vietnam and all that. I don’t know anything about mine.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have asked.”
“It’s fine. It feels good talking about it.”
“
You told Melanie this afternoon?”
“After I told her that she was a bimbo and yelled at a nice old lady. You should probably fire me.”
“It’s all right. No one can be in a good mood when they get news like that.” Tony shook his head. “When my dad died, I went to a bar and wound up breaking some guy’s nose. I didn’t even know who he was; I just wanted to hurt someone.”
“At least I didn’t sucker punch someone, eh?”
“Right,” he said and they both laughed. A few minutes later the waiter appeared along with a fat man who looked like Chef Boyardee. He made a point of shaking Tony’s hand and then kissing her on the cheeks.
“Such a lovely date you have, Anthony.”
“She is. Lois, this is my dad’s friend Barney. He owns the place.”
“Barney? Not Frederic?”
The old man laughed harder than this deserved. “No, Frederic was my grandfather. I didn’t think Barney’s would make a very good name.”
“You’re right about that,” Tony said, elbowing Barney in the ribs.
“Watch out for this one,” Barney said, putting an arm around Tony’s shoulders. “He thinks he’s a real Casanova.”
“I can imagine.”
“Even as a little boy he would try to play doctor with the young girls.”
“Really? What was your specialty?”
“I was kind of a general practitioner.” The look Tony gave his father’s friend indicated that he wanted a little privacy.
“I’ll leave you two kids alone. Anything you want, you just ask for it.”
“Thanks,” Tony said. He shook his head. “Sometimes he’s a little too friendly.”
“Oh, I enjoyed it. I can just see you putting your stethoscope up some little girl’s skirt.”
“I’m not a pervert!”
“No, you just pick up girls in bars and take them out to your car.”
“You’re the only one I did that with.”
“I bet you say that to all the girls.”
He stared at her for a moment and then broke out laughing. He raised his glass for another toast. “To childhood indiscretions.”
“I’ll drink to that.”
* * *
The Night's Legacy Page 25
