The More the Merrier

by Elena Graf

  Brenda nodded. “Now let’s go find this kid. Officers and deputies are covering the area where she was last seen and all the parking areas. Let’s head down to the harbor to see if somehow she landed down there.”

  The thought made Liz uneasy. Harbor Park was less than a hundred yards from the water. Liz herself had taught Katrina to swim last summer, but in December, the water temperature was frigid. Anyone who landed in it wouldn’t last long.

  The chamber of commerce had set up a booth in Harbor Park to offer free hot chocolate and mulled cider to the paradegoers who had parked there. The parking lot was already mostly empty, and the people manning the booth were looking cold. They were organizing the table to pack up and leave. “Anyone seen a little girl, this high,” asked Brenda. She demonstrated by holding her hand up to chest height. “She has long, dark hair and big blue eyes.”

  The volunteers at the booth all shook their heads.

  “Let’s check the parking lot and the dock,” Brenda suggested.

  “Okay, I’ll take the dock,” said Liz, watching the trolley leave the parking lot after delivering the last round of passengers returning from the parade.

  “Brenda…” Liz caught the police chief’s arm to get her attention. “Katrina loves the trolley. Maybe she hopped on it somewhere along the route.”

  The police chief nodded and spoke into the radio strapped to her shoulder. “Hey, Davis. Head over to the trolley garage and see if anyone’s seen the Cummings kid.” She turned to Liz. “Let’s check the parking lot anyway and look down at the dock.

  As Liz walked along the dock, which undulated with the wake from the passing boats, she dreaded seeing the ghostly figure of a child floating in the water. She couldn’t even imagine the pain that it would cause Alina and Maggie if anything happened to the girl. She’d never had a child of her own, so she couldn’t say she understood what Alina was experiencing, but she had seen the pure fear in the young woman’s eyes.

  The cold wind near the water was cutting. Katrina wasn’t dressed warmly enough for this weather. One of Liz’s real fears was hypothermia. In a small child, it could come on quickly and be deadly.

  “Liz!” Brenda shouted. She motioned for her to come up from the dock. Liz was halfway up the stairs when Brenda, cupped her hands around her mouth and called down, “Davis found her in the trolley garage.” Liz ran up the stairs. “Davis boarded all the trolleys that went out today,” Brenda explained. “She found Katrina in one of them, sitting on the floor between the seats. The girl said she was hiding from the driver.”

  “The temperature is supposed to go way down tonight. She would have frozen to death in that unheated garage.”

  “Davis is bringing her down. She seems fine, if a little cold.”

  Liz quickly texted Maggie: “We found her. She’s okay.”

  A text shot back: “Thank God!”

  A moment later, a police cruiser blazing all its lights drove into the harbor parking lot and parked in front of the bait shop. Liz opened the rear door and found Katrina wrapped in a metallic emergency blanket. The girl’s teeth were chattering, and her lips were blue.

  “Mind if I borrow your blanket?”

  “You can have it,” said Officer Davis. She chuckled. “We can never get them back into the package once it’s been opened.”

  “Thanks for finding her.”

  “You’re welcome, Doc.” Officer Davis touched the brim of her hat.

  Liz gave Katrina a quick once over. She checked her pulse and pupils. Apart from being chilled, she looked no worse for wear.

  “I’m cold,” said Katrina.

  “All right, sweetie. Let’s go home to mommy and grandma.”

  “I’ll drive you to your truck, Doctor Liz,” Davis offered.

  Liz got in the back seat with Katrina. “Let’s see your fingers.” Liz was relieved to see they were white with cold, but there was no apparent frost bite or other damage. “You’re lucky,” said Liz, putting her arm around her. “You’re going to be fine.”

  Katrina started to cry. “I just wanted to go home and see Daddy.”

  “But the trolley can’t take you back to Florida.”

  “I thought it would take me to the airport like the one we rode on when we came here.”

  Liz frowned as she tried to figure out what the girl was trying to say. Then she remembered the ride on the parking shuttle in the airport and began to see the connection. “Our trolley only drives around town. It doesn’t go to the airport.”

  Katrina looked miserable. “I want to see Daddy.”

  “I know, honey, but your mommy was very worried about you. Grandma too.”

  “Were you worried?”

  “Yes, of course I was worried, but I know you are smart girl and will learn a lesson from this adventure.”

  Officer Davis parked next to Liz’s truck. “Do you need any help with her?”

  “No, thanks, Gina. I’ve got it from here.”

  Liz carried Katrina to the truck and strapped her in with the silver emergency blanket still wrapped around her. She tucked the old quilt she kept in the back around her too. “It will get warmer in here in a few minutes,” Liz explained, ready to close the door.

  “Grandma Liz…”

  “Yes, Katrina?”

  “I love you.”

  “I love you too, sweetie.”

  Liz climbed into the driver’s seat and started the engine. Within moments a call came through. “Are you on your way home?” asked Maggie.

  “Yes, I’ll be there in a few minutes.”

  “How is she?”

  “She can hear you, you know.”

  “I’m fine, Grandma,” Katrina shouted from the back seat. “Fine!”

  By the time they arrived home, Katrina insisted on walking on her own into the house, and Liz didn’t argue.

  “She does look fine,” said Maggie with surprise as Katrina rushed into her mother’s arms.

  Liz shrugged. “Kids are pretty resilient. Unfortunately, their small bodies can succumb to hypothermia really quickly. We probably found her just in time.”

  “They all need warmer clothes. I’ll take them to Reny’s this afternoon.”

  “Can we eat something first?” asked Liz. “I’m starving.”

  “You’re always starving.” Maggie gave her arm a little squeeze. “I’m heating up some of the mac and cheese from last night and the chili.”

  “Great. How’s Alina doing? No panic attacks, I hope.”

  “She’s fine, except Jeffrey keeps texting her threatening to kill her if she doesn’t come home.”

  “That’s friendly,” said Liz, raising a brow. “I’m sure that makes her want to run right home.”

  “It’s over from what she tells me. She tried to log into their online banking and found herself locked out. How can he do that?”

  “Report fraud and have all the passwords reset,” replied Liz, hanging up her coat. “This isn’t going to be fun.”

  “No,” agreed Maggie. “It’s not.”

  “I’m going to take Katrina into my office and examine her to make sure she’s okay. I’ll be right back.”

  Liz sat Katrina on the sofa in her office and gave her a quick exam. While she was listening to her chest sounds, Katrina asked, “Can I listen to my heart, Grandma?”

  “Sure,” said Liz and relocated the ear pieces to the girl’s ears. She positioned the diaphragm on the girls chest. “Hear that?”

  Katrina nodded. “Do you let other kids listen too?”

  “Sometimes. When they’re really scared of me. Do I look scary to you?”

  Katrina giggled. “No.”

  Maggie knocked on the door. “Almost done? Come into the kitchen and get something to eat.”

  They headed to the kitchen. While Liz was wolfing down her chili, she heard her
phone ringing in her bag.

  “Elizabeth Stolz,” she answered out of habit without looking at the screen.

  “Liz. It’s Erika.” The clarification was unnecessary. Erika’s crisp British accent with a slight undercurrent of German intonation was instantly recognizable. They’d known each other since Liz had been a surgical resident at Yale and Erika had been a graduate student in the philosophy department. They’d met in a local pub and discovered a shared affection for single-malt scotch and continental philosophy and indulged it by meeting regularly to drink, speak German, and discuss phenomenology.

  Liz’s first impulse was to ask solicitously about Erika’s mental state. Her friend had been despondent since her longtime partner had died suddenly of a heart attack in the spring. But Liz sensed that an upbeat tone might be a better approach. “Erika! How nice to hear from you!”

  “Liz, I’m glad I caught you. I have an enormous favor to ask.”

  “Ask away.”

  “I need to get away from here. Everyone’s gone for holidays. The place is like a bloody tomb.” Erika had been living in the professor’s residence at Colby for years. It was not the first time she’d found spending the holidays there too depressing. Usually, she and Jeannine had gone someplace warm for Christmas. They were both vocal atheists and didn’t celebrate the holiday, so it didn’t matter where they were. “I thought about opening the beach cottage, “ Erika explained, “but I just spent all that money getting it winterized. Could I possibly impose…?”

  “You’re not imposing. Of course, you can stay here. When are you coming?”

  “Is this afternoon too soon?”

  Liz mentally arranged the guestrooms, thinking of the two bedrooms that had been recently vacated by their party guests. She hated to ask Ellie, her housekeeper to clean on a weekend. There was another bedroom on the second floor, but with the children upstairs, Erika would be more comfortable downstairs.

  “Of course, you’re always welcome. I’ll let Maggie know. I’m sure it’s fine, but we had a very exciting morning.” Liz briefly recounted the story of Katrina’s disappearance and recovery. She was used to summarizing cases and very good at getting stories down to the essential facts.

  “That’s horrible,” said Erika when Liz had finished her tale. “I’m so glad she was found so quickly. Too many of these cases end badly.”

  “I never wanted to imagine it ending badly,” Liz admitted. “Unless you hear from me in the next ten minutes, pack up and head down.” After she got off the phone, Liz glanced at her watch. If Erika left shortly, she would arrive in about two hours.

  Liz went into the kitchen to tell Maggie, who was scooping out more macaroni and cheese for the children. Liz bent to speak in her ear.

  “Erika Bultmann asked if she could stay with us.”

  Maggie gave her a quick, anxious look. “When?”

  “She wants to come today.”

  “How long is she staying?”

  “I didn’t ask. Probably through Christmas.”

  “I forgot to tell you with all the excitement, but Sophia has decided to come for Christmas. She called while you were on the way home.”

  “I thought she wasn’t coming.”

  “She said she has big news to share and wants to tell us in person.”

  “When is she coming?”

  “She’s flying into Boston tomorrow morning, but we won’t need to pick her up. She’s renting a car at the airport.”

  “Okay. To make this work, we’ll need to split up. You go with Alina to Reny’s and get some warm clothes for the kids. I’ll change the linens and clean the bathrooms.”

  Maggie turned to stare at Liz. “You? You’re going to do housecleaning?”

  Liz gave her a dirty look. “I can, if I really have to. I hate to bother Ellie on the weekend. The poor woman works three jobs.”

  “Maybe you should pay her more.”

  “I pay her more than anyone else. I pay her double and triple when we have company.”

  “Tell her you’ll pay her triple if she’ll clean the guest rooms today. How much you want to bet she’ll be happy for money right before Christmas?”

  “I don’t bet on a sure thing. Okay. Let me call her.”

  ***

  By the time Maggie returned from town with Alina and the girls, Liz and Ellie had put the house in order for their new guests. Ellie was just leaving. She waved to Maggie and called, “Merry Christmas!” as she got into her car.

  Maggie rolled down her window. “You too!”

  “Thanks for the gift card!” Ellie called, waving an envelope.

  Maggie had no idea what she was talking about but she called back: “You’re welcome! Merry Christmas.”

  Maggie helped Alina bring in the bags.

  “I guess you were successful,” said Liz, watching the parade of shopping bags coming through the door.

  “The girls should be set for now. We also found a very nice winter parka for Alina. It’s hard to find small sizes sometimes.”

  “That’s because we grow ‘em big up here,” quipped Liz.

  Maggie came closer so she could speak privately. “Did you pay Ellie triple?”

  “Yes…on your orders. And I had an extra hundred-dollar gift card left over from the office party, so I gave her that too.”

  “You’re generous to a fault sometimes,” said Maggie kissing her. “But I love that about you.”

  The ship’s bell on the front porch sounded. “That will be Erika,” said Liz, glancing at her watch. “I’ll get the door.”

  Maggie heard the bustle in the hall as Erika came in with her bag.

  “We’ll put you in the downstairs guestroom, if you don’t mind.” Liz reached for a bag. “We have kids on the second floor.”

  “Suits me fine,” said Erika. “Beggars can’t be choosers, not that I think the downstairs room isn’t perfectly lovely or mind sharing the floor with children.”

  “You’re so adaptable,” said Liz.

  “Of course, I am. I’m a philosopher. I’m always reasonable.”

  After depositing Erika’s bags in the guest room, Liz and Erika came into the kitchen. “Hello, my dear,” said Erika, sweeping Maggie into a hug. “You look as ravishing as ever! Our very own star.”

  Maggie had to admit she enjoyed the hyperbole. Erika, who was mostly reserved and cynical, occasionally allowed herself moments of extravagance.

  She and Liz were the proverbial “two peas in a pod.” Erika was nearly as tall as Liz and as lanky as her friend. She was blond, now tending to white hair as approached her mid-fifties. Her parents had escaped from East Germany. She liked to recount the adventure like a thriller plot. In fact, it had been a harrowing experience for the young girl. Her stay in England after the escape had a left her with the distinctive British accent.

  “Was möchtest du trinken?” asked Liz.

  “Etwas wein, danke.”

  “Rot oder weiss?”

  “Rot, denke ich. Die Nacht is kalt und ich brauche irgendetwas kräftiges.”

  Liz poured Erika a glass of red wine.

  Erika raised her glass to Maggie. “Thank you, Maggie, for taking in one of Liz’s strays. I am eternally grateful.”

  “We’re used to having a full house. My daughter is here along with her two girls. My other daughter is coming tomorrow.”

  “A very female holiday,” observed Erika, raising her glass. “I approve.”

  Alina came into the kitchen. Erika reached out her hands. “Alina, my darling, how are you? I hear you’ve had a difficult day.”

  Alina sighed. “That’s putting it mildly. It was terrifying.”

  “All’s well that ends well, I hear.”

  “We’re heading there, I hope.” Alina handed the local paper to her mother and pointed out a display ad. “There’s a carol ceremo
ny tomorrow night at the Episcopalian church. Can we go?”

  “As long as it’s not religious,” muttered Liz, scowling.

  “Oh, Liz, don’t be a spoil sport,” said Erika. “Cultural Christianity is nothing to be ashamed of. It has sponsored some of the world’s most sublime music.”

  “You, the penultimate atheist, want to go to church?” asked Liz with an exaggerated look of surprise.

  “Sure, why not?” said Erika, shrugging. “I adore liturgical music.”

  “I’ve heard about the new vicar there,” said Maggie. “She’s a retired opera singer. She sang at the Met.”

  “Really?” said Liz and Erika in unison.

  They were both opera fans, so Maggie was not surprised this information got their immediate attention.

  “It would be interesting to hear why she made such a big switch,” said Liz.

  “Obviously, some kind of Pauline conversion,” said Erika in her archest voice. “She fell off her horse and bumped her head. Never been the same since.”

  Liz and Erika laughed, but Maggie wasn’t so sure she was willing to dismiss the woman and her conversion so lightly. “You two should show some more respect.”

  Liz shrugged. “Why?”

  Maggie, hands on hips, gave her a severe look. “Liz, I’m really surprised at you. She’s a community leader, like you, and an accomplished woman, like you. Just because she’s religious doesn’t mean she doesn’t deserve respect.” Maggie stared at Erika, who averted her eyes like a guilty child. “You two are dangerous together. Now, try to behave yourselves.”

  When Maggie left the room, Liz muttered, “She spoils all my fun.”

  “I heard that!” called Maggie.

  After dinner, Liz turned on the propane fireplace on the porch and sat talking with Erika. Maggie watched anxiously when Liz brought in an empty scotch bottle and opened a new one.

  Maggie helped Alina put the kids to bed and told them two stories as she’d promised. After she tucked them in, she went up to bed to read. After every chapter, she glanced at the clock. When the time went into single digits, she decided to turn off the lights. She lay there for a few moments wondering if she should go down and encourage Liz to come up to bed but reminded herself that Liz was old enough to decide for herself. After worrying for a few minutes more, Maggie finally fell asleep.