The More the Merrier

by Elena Graf

  “First, have a cup of coffee. Then you can keep an eye on the pancakes while I fry eggs.”

  Maggie sat down with her coffee at the counter.

  “Grandma, you snore a lot,” said Katrina.

  “Thank you, dear,” said Maggie, patting the girl’s thigh. “Grandma Liz tells me that all the time.”

  “You should put that band-aid on your nose like daddy does. It works good.”

  Liz exchanged a look with Maggie. “Not that I haven’t suggested it.”

  Maggie rolled her eyes.

  Alyson breezed into the kitchen, looking like a model in a winter-white polar fleece. “Good morning, everyone,” she said, heading to the coffee maker. “Lynne’s in the shower and will be down shortly.”

  Eventually, Tony and Fred found their way into the kitchen and helped themselves to coffee. Meanwhile, Liz made a mountain of pancakes. She took orders for eggs, and soon everyone was seated in the dining room at the big harvest table that Liz had built.

  “Alina, your mom tells us you might be looking for a TV news job up here,” said Tony, reaching for the plate of bacon.

  Liz glanced up to see Alina give Maggie a sharp look. Everyone at the table fell silent.

  “I only said that if you decided to stay here, you might need to go up to Portland to find a job in your field,” Maggie explained.

  “The news director at Channel 8 is a good friend of mine,” said Tony, apparently missing the change in atmosphere. “Do you want me to put out a feeler?”

  Alina looked upset but mastered herself quickly. “Thanks, Tony. That’s so kind of you.”

  Liz glanced from Alina to Maggie, who shook her head. “Alina just got here,” said Liz. “It might only be for Christmas or maybe longer. Let’s see what happens.”

  “If you need a car,” said Alyson, “I’m selling mine. I’ve decided to give myself a new car for Christmas. The old one has a lot of mileage, so the dealer won’t give me much. I kept it longer than I probably should have, but I love it and it runs great!”

  “We might take you up on that, Al,” said Liz. “We could always use another car around here for summer visitors.”

  “There’s one catch, Liz. You’ll have to go with me to the dealership. No one intimidates car salesmen like you do.”

  Liz turned to Maggie with an apologetic look and explained, “She thinks I got her a good deal on her last car.”

  “You did,” said Alyson. “I thought the salesman would report you for theft.”

  “So, if you decide to stay, you might have a job and maybe even a Lexus,” said Tony. “How’s that for progress?”

  Alina abruptly got up from the table. “Excuse me. I need to feed the baby.” She left her half-eaten plate of food and headed to the living room. Maggie got up to follow her.

  Liz offered the group an embarrassed smile. “Eat up, everyone, before your food gets cold.”

  Their houseguests left after breakfast. Brenda had to report to the station to organize the officers for the parade. The others packed up and headed out.

  Katrina kept Liz company while she cleaned up the kitchen, chattering nonstop about her pet gerbil who had escaped in the house and later turned up dead in a cabinet where he’d eaten himself to death. Liz grunted from time to time during the story, but her mind was elsewhere, wondering what Alina and Maggie were talking about in the living room.

  ***

  “On Monday, I’ll call the bank and get this straightened out,” said Alina, laying the sated toddler, who’d fallen asleep while feeding, on the sofa. She arranged a blanket around her

  “Honey, I know you don’t want to hear this, but you should always have your own bank account and credit cards.”

  “I know, Mom. But I trusted, Jeff. We’ve never had any problems like this before.”

  “That’s because you were the breadwinner and had your own money. You called the shots. Jeff would rather pretend he’s a successful app producer than get a real job. You know he never made any money at it.”

  “But I never thought he could be so ugly. And that gun! Do you know the percentage of gun deaths caused by domestic violence?”

  “No, but I’m sure it’s high.” Maggie thought of the gun Liz always carried. It still terrified her.

  Liz knocked on the doorjamb. “I’m going to take Katrina up and get her dressed. And I need to get dressed myself. I have to be there by eleven thirty. Kitchen’s all cleaned up.”

  “Thanks, Liz,” said Maggie. “Liz is one of the judges of the floats in the parades,” she explained. “Part of her Chamber of Commerce duties.”

  “I’m going to leave Katrina with you,” Liz added. “She can’t sit with me on the dais.”

  “All right. Bring her down when she’s dressed.”

  Maggie listened to them go up the stairs. “I’m sorry I shared your troubles with our friends.”

  “I know, Mom. And they only want to help. You’re so lucky to have landed here. Liz adores you. The people are so kind and decent. I thought you’d be bored after living in New York, but you seem right at home here.”

  “It’s pretty quiet, especially in the wintertime, but I love teaching at UNE and acting at the Playhouse and the State Theater. Yes, I’d have a higher profile career if I’d stayed in New York. But there I’d be a tiny fish in a huge pond. Here, I’m a star.”

  “Mom, I love it here too, but I can’t impose on you and Liz for long. I’ll start looking for another place to stay as soon as I get my finances straightened out.”

  “You know we have lots of room.”

  “Yes, but that’s for your summer guests, not permanent residents.”

  Maggie patted Alina’s arm. “I’ll talk to Liz. I’m sure she’d be fine with your staying with us. Are you sure there’s no hope for a reconciliation with Jeff?”

  Alina shook her head. “No. Not after this. He was on oxycontin for his back pain before all this happened. I think his drug problem has only gotten worse.”

  Maggie’s mouth parted slightly. “You never told me that part.”

  “I didn’t want to worry you. You had enough to handle with your cancer.”

  “Maybe there was something we could have done before it got out of hand.”

  Alina shook her head. “There was nothing anyone could do.”

  Maggie put her arm around her. “Oh, Honey. I’m so sorry.” She held her daughter while she cried.

  Finally, Alina sat back and wiped her tears with the back of her hand. “I’m sorry I’m such a mess.”

  “You’re tired, and it’s been a lot. But, sweetheart, we need to get ready or we’ll be late for the parade.”

  Maggie dressed the baby while Alina showered. As Maggie searched through the suitcase, she saw how few items were warm enough for December in Maine. She decided that after the parade, they would head to Reny’s and the consignment shops to get Alina and the children some winter clothes.

  When Alina returned, Maggie went upstairs to get dressed. She put on ski underwear because she knew from experience that it would be cold standing along the parade route. Before she went downstairs, she pulled some fleece throws out of the linen closet to bundle up the children.

  Liz came down dressed in one of her best pantsuits. She had done her hair and put on makeup. Since “retiring,” Liz hated to dress up, but when called upon to appear as the president of the Chamber of Commerce or a surgeon at Seacoast Women’s Health, Liz always looked the part. She allowed herself a little more latitude as the head physician at Hobb’s Family Practice and was known to show up in shorts and a polo shirt in the summer.

  Liz leaned down to kiss Maggie. “See you after the parade. I’ll meet you at LaScala. I made reservations.”

  Maggie put her arms around Liz to keep her there a moment longer. “After we eat, can we take them to Reny’s for warm clothes?”
>
  Liz nodded. “Yes, I saw. No problem.” She pulled her dress coat out of the hall closet. “Gotta go, Mag. See you later.” She gave her a quick kiss.

  Maggie herded Alina and her girls into the garage. She was pleased to see that Liz had remembered to put the car seats for the children into her car. Maggie checked to make sure the sling chairs were still in the back. She always kept them in the car for impromptu visits to the beach.

  Alina swung the diaper bag into the backseat. “I found the juice boxes from last summer in the cabinet. I hope you don’t mind that I took them for the kids.”

  “Of course, not. There’s some string cheese too. And goldfish in the bread bin. I’ll get them.”

  Once everyone was strapped in, and Maggie headed to town. She knew that parking would be a problem, so she took the back way to the high school where they could catch the shuttle to the Post Road. A few of the trollies that ran from Hobbs to Webhanet during the tourist season had been taken out of winter storage to ferry passengers from the parking areas to the parade route. Alone, Maggie would have walked, but it was a long hike with two young children.

  Katrina jumped up and down with excitement when the trolley pulled into the stop. She scrambled aboard and found a seat. Maggie was glad to be there to help Alina with the folding baby stroller. The kids’ gear was mostly second-hand, collected by a woman in town, a retired nurse, who also rescued durable medical equipment otherwise destined for a landfill. Maggie liked that Mainers had such strong attitudes about unnecessary waste. Since moving to the state, Maggie had learned their well-known frugality was about more than money.

  They huddled together on the trolley. Fortunately, they were only using only the enclosed trolleys instead of the open-sided summer models. Although it was a bright sunny day, after the night’s snowstorm, the temperature had dropped sharply and the wind had picked up. Their breath was vapor as they settled on the sidewalk near the front of the library, not far from the judges’ dais.

  Maggie waved vigorously, but Liz was engaged in conversations with one of the town selectmen. People often said Liz should run for office herself, but Maggie couldn’t imagine Liz as a politician. She had learned some tact since they’d known one another in college, but Liz could still be stunningly blunt.

  Maggie bundled up the girls with the fleece throws to keep them warm while they waited for the parade to start. As long as it stepped off on time, it wouldn’t be a long wait, but in a small town there was a more casual approach to schedules. In the distance, Maggie could hear the persistent beat of drums, one of the bands waiting in the middle school parking lot. Parades always excited her. From childhood, she’d loved the feel of the drumbeats against her chest when a marching band went by.

  Alina held little Nicki on her lap to keep her warm. Maggie tried hold Katrina, but the girl wiggled out of her arms and insisted on standing.

  “Aren’t you cold?” asked Maggie.

  Alina shook her head. Maggie, watching out of the corner of her eye, saw that Katrina was more interested in the little girl next to her than the parade. At least, another girl her age would keep her occupied.

  The parade finally began to form. A Hobbs police car was poised at the front of the line, flashing its blue and red lights, followed by the department honor guard. The first band in the parade would be Hobbs High School Marching Band, actually not bad as school bands went. A string of local business floats passed, including one from Hobbs Family Practice with the doctors and nurses wearing matching green parkas, Santa Claus hats, and red stethoscopes. Liz was forbidden to vote for that float, of course, but she waved enthusiastically. The water rescue squad in wet suits came next.

  Maggie stood up to see if she could get Liz’s attention, but her wife was now chatting with the president of the Rotary. It wasn’t easy being married to a woman who was involved in everything. When no amount of waving could draw Liz’s eye, Maggie finally sat down. She glanced around, looking for Katrina, but her granddaughter was no longer standing next to the girl who’d caught her interest.

  “Alina! Where’s Katrina?”

  “She was just here.” Alina put the baby into the stroller and stood up. “Katrina!” she called.

  The girl whom Katrina had befriended stood beside her mother, attentively watching the parade. Maggie hurried over to her. “Excuse me…where is the girl who was standing next to you?”

  The girl shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “Katrina!” Maggie called in her loudest voice as she wove through the crowd, frantically looking for her granddaughter. She felt everyone staring at her. She didn’t care.

  After fruitlessly searching through the crowd twice, Maggie pulled out her phone and called Liz.

  “Maggie. What’s up?”

  “Katrina is missing. She was right here, next to Alina, and now she’s gone!”

  “What?” asked Liz. Then her voice was muted. Maggie could hear her repeating the information, probably to Brenda. “Okay,” said Liz. “Brenda is on it. Where are you?” Maggie waved vigorously. “I see you,” said Liz. “I’ll be right there.”

  Maggie worried for Liz’s bad knee when she saw her jump down from the dais to get around someone blocking her path. Limping slightly, she was at Maggie’s side within minutes.

  “When did you last see her?”

  “It was only minutes ago. She can’t have gotten far. Oh, Liz! This can’t be happening!”

  When Liz hugged her, Maggie clung to her desperately. “Don’t worry. We’ll find her. Brenda and her officers are searching for her right now.” Maggie finally released her. “Let’s split up,” Liz suggested. “I’ll meet you back at the chairs.”

  There was an announcement over the PA system. “If anyone sees a seven-year-old girl named Katrina, please bring her to the judges’ dais immediately! Katrina is three foot, six inches tall, weighs approximately forty pounds. She has long, dark hair and blue eyes.”

  After Maggie and Liz had combed the immediate area without any sign of Katrina, they met back at the chairs. Alina returned too, dangling on the edge of a panic attack.

  Liz reached out for her hand. “Alina, are you all right?”

  “No! I’m not all right,” she replied in a testy voice. “My daughter is missing!”

  “I know. But the police are looking for her, and we’ll find her soon. This is a small town.”

  “But the ocean is right there!” said Alina, pointing.

  Liz looked directly into Alina’s eyes when she spoke. “It’s a very long walk to the ocean from here,” she said in the calm voice she used in medical situations, “especially for a small person with short legs.”

  The sound of a radio squawking preceded Brenda’s appearance at Maggie’s side. “I want to give you an update. I’ve got ten of my best officers out looking for Katrina. I put out an Amber alert, but that’s just a precaution. We have no reason to believe she was taken.”

  Alina’s hand flew to her mouth and she let out a little cry.

  “Like I said, it’s just a precaution,” said Brenda, squeezing Alina’s shoulder. “We’ll find her.”

  “Maggie, I think you should take Alina and Nicki home,” said Liz. “They’re not dressed for this kind of weather.”

  Maggie shook her head. “I’m staying until we find Katrina.”

  “If you get chilled standing around waiting, what good will it do?” asked Liz. “Please take them home. Give them something hot to eat and drink..”

  “And what are you going to do?” asked Maggie.

  “I’m going back to my truck to change my shoes and put on my parka. Then I’ll help them look for her. She can’t have gotten far. She’s probably in plain sight, but we’re missing her.”

  “Liz, I’m so frightened.”

  Liz put her arms around Maggie. She spoke directly into her ear. “Please take them home and warm them up, or we’ll h
ave a real emergency on our hands.”

  “Promise me you’ll find her.”

  “We’ll find her.”

  Brenda nudged her. “Come on, Liz. We need to go.”

  “Go home,” said Liz to Maggie as she released her. “I’ll call you as soon as I know something, and I’ll check in every half hour. Okay?”

  Maggie nodded.

  “Let’s go, Maggie,” said Brenda, “I’ll give you a ride back to your car.”

  As Maggie sat in the front seat of the chief’s police car, she wanted to cry, but she didn’t dare for fear it might set off Alina’s anxiety. Brenda glanced at Maggie as she turned around to back up the car.

  “Don’t worry, Maggie. She can’t have gotten far.” Brenda’s steady calm momentarily eased her fears, but as soon as the police chief turned on her lights to get through the crowd, Maggie’s heart began to pound.

  ***

  When Brenda returned, Liz climbed into the police car. She always found it unnerving to hear the police scan, and she desperately hoped never to hear it report something terrible happening to a dark-haired, seven-year-old girl.

  “Where do you think this kid might have gone?” Brenda asked, interrupting Liz’s thoughts.

  “I have no idea.”

  “She didn’t get far unless she hitched a ride or was snatched.”

  Liz involuntarily shivered. “You don’t really think she was taken by someone?”

  Brenda shrugged. “I wasn’t about to say it in front of the mother or Maggie, but nowadays, anything can happen. And there are always so many tourists in town for the parade.”

  Liz allowed herself the luxury of a nervous laugh. “Why do they come? The parade is pretty awful.”

  “It is, but you know that small town nostalgia gets them every time.”

  “It keeps the economy booming and the real estate taxes low, so I’m all for it.”

  “Stop being such a cynic, Liz. You love it here, and we’re glad to have you. Best doc we ever had.”

  Liz glanced over at Brenda and saw that her comment was completely sincere. “Thank you.”