by Sarah Kapit
Maybe she wasn’t the only one who messed up sometimes. And maybe, just maybe, that was okay—so long as she could properly Make Amends.
“Obviously, the way you expressed your frustration wasn’t great,” Dad continued. “But I understand why you felt the way you did. And if you’re asking for my forgiveness, well, you’ve got it, Lara-bear.”
The bad feelings in Lara’s stomach disappeared at once. Who knew that asking for forgiveness could be so very easy? And it felt good too. Very, very good.
Still, surely she had to do something else. Something more. Right?
“Thank you,” Lara said. “So. What else do I need to do?”
Dad glanced at the oven timer, and then back at Lara. “Huh? I accepted your apology, hon. What else is there?”
Although Lara thought her meaning was obvious, she tried to find the right words. “I want to do something more than just say sorry. I want to show that I’m sorry. So that you know I mean it.”
“I know you mean it. There’s no need to go off on some mission to prove it. We’re good, you and me.”
Lara frowned. Now this was just too easy. Didn’t Dad know that she had, in fact, established a mission to Make Amends?
“Come on,” she pressed. “Isn’t there something—anything at all—I can do to make things up to you? I’m really trying to make amends here!”
For a while, Dad didn’t say anything. He continued wiping down the counter, even though it was already quite clean. “The garage,” he said after wipe number four.
“What about it?” In the Finkel household, the garage was a place where things went, collected dust, and most likely were never seen again. Even Ima had long since given up trying to make the place orderly.
“You can help clean the garage. Your sister is already doing it as part of her punishment. You want to make amends, you can help her out.”
Lara wanted to protest that she shouldn’t have to share in Caroline’s punishment. After all, she hadn’t been the one to prank one of her classmates. But she’d asked for a way to Make Amends and her dad had given it to her. She couldn’t very well complain now.
“Okay,” she said. “I’ll help Caroline clean the garage. We’ll probably finish sometime within the next bajillion years if we really work hard at it.”
Dad chuckled. “That’s my girl.”
Despite the humongous task before her, Lara smiled.
“Can I ask you something else?” she said. Dad seemed like he was in a good mood, so she might as well get all of her awkward questions out.
“Sure thing.”
“Are you and Ima . . . okay?”
They definitely had seemed okay as of late. There hadn’t been any fights, and on several occasions Lara had caught her parents looking at each other with one of those weird, kind of uncomfortable lovey-dovey looks. But still. She wanted to know for sure.
“Your mother and I are fine. We had a rough patch, and we’re getting through it. That’s what families do.”
A wave of tension left Lara’s body. Until that very moment, she hadn’t fully realized that it had been there at all.
Just as Dad squeezed her shoulder once more, the oven let out a most obnoxious beep. Lara pressed her hands to her ears.
“That would be the spanakopita,” Dad said. “It’s done.”
Lara perked up at the mention of one of her favorite foods. “You’re making spanakopita? I thought you didn’t know how to do that.”
Her father grinned. “Well, that’s why I’m going to learn. I wanted to learn more of your mother’s family recipes. Plus, it’s good practice.”
“Practice for what?”
Dad opened the oven and carefully removed the tray. Lara’s eyes widened at the sight of the golden brown, perfectly flaky pastry. She was pretty sure this particular culinary experiment could be deemed a success.
“Practice for when I go to culinary school,” Dad said as he set down the dish. “I’m starting in a few months, you know.”
“You’re going to culinary school? I didn’t know that!”
This time, Dad’s smile took on a decided cheekiness. “Well, Lara, I know you want to be a detective. But, believe it or not, you don’t actually know everything.”
“Right,” Lara said, cheeks pink.
Well, perhaps not knowing things wasn’t always the worst thing in the world. Good surprises were, in fact, rather enjoyable.
She marched over to the stairwell and called for her sister. “Lina-Lin! Come down! We have to clean the garage.”
Her sister appeared moments later, forehead crinkled in confusion. “I thought I was doing that on my own.”
“Nope. You’re stuck with me.”
Caroline smiled. “I guess I am. Let’s get started.”
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Writing this book has been a joy, and I absolutely could not have done it without the support of many, many people.
Thank you to my editor, Dana Chidiac. Working with you has made me a better writer. Lara and Caroline’s story could not have come to life without your always keen insights. Another big thank-you to my agent, Jennifer Udden, who has helped me to handle the business side of publishing with deftness and humor.
I am fortunate to have the opportunity to work with a wonderful team at Dial Books for Young Readers and Penguin Random House. Thanks to the entire team: Lauri Hornik, Nancy Mercado, Regina Castillo, Tabitha Dulla, Mina Chung, Emily Romero, Christina Colangelo, Carmela Iaria, Debra Polansky, and their teams. A big thank-you to Kaitlin Kneafsey for everything you do to help my books find readers. A special thanks to Alexandra Bye for the beautiful cover art, and to Theresa Evangelista for your amazing design.
Thanks also to Joanna Volpe and the entire team at New Leaf Literary.
endever* corbin, thank you for providing invaluable feedback about Caroline and her experiences. This story is much better for your contributions.
Adrianna Cuevas, you are an A+ critique partner. Thanks for providing feedback and motivation on this book and so many others.
Much thanks to Cathleen Barnhart, Taylor Gardner, Remy Lai, Jen Malia, and Meera Trehan for providing valuable feedback at varying stages of this project.
A big thank-you to the PJ Our Way program for your support of my books and the critical work that you do.
Thanks to Daniel Alhadeff for graciously providing help with Ladino.
I feel privileged to have had the opportunity to portray Sephardic Jewish culture, which is so rarely represented in fiction. Ima and her family were written to honor my maternal grandmother, Ray Farhi Ross. Grandma, I love you and I miss you. I hope I was able to do you proud.
As always, my family has been a source of much-needed support. Thanks to Mom, Dad, Grandpa Charlie, and Aunt Edy. You have done a wonderful job cheering me on and doing what you can to promote my books. Another big thanks to Wynn and Laurie, the world’s best in-laws.
This is a story about sisters, and so I have to extend a special thanks to my own sister, Elisheva Pripas. Thank you for reading an early draft and serving as a Judaism consultant. You also helped me to understand #LittleSisterProblems, which was critical in sorting out Caroline’s character motivations. You are a true Caroline: my partner-in-crime who is critical to the entire operation.
Thank you to Ari Ne’eman and Ruti Reagan for your friendship and support.
All of my gratitude to the teachers and librarians who have helped my books find readers, even as the world fell apart. Your work is invaluable and deserves more acknowledgment than it receives.
I would like to express my appreciation for the We Need Diverse Books movement. Your advocacy has made it possible for me to make the books that I do.
Finally, thank you to my husband, Neil. Thank you for always being my first and most supportive reader. You have helped me through all of the ups and down
s of being a writer, and everything else in this wild world of ours. I’m so glad you’re my lockdown partner, co-cat-parent, and everything else.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sarah Kapit lives in Bellevue, Washington, with her husband and their goofy orange cat. She earned a PhD in history from the University of California, Los Angeles, and she's always happy to talk about the history of women, medicine, and any other history geek topic. She has a longstanding involvement in the disability rights and neurodiversity movements, and serves as chairperson of the Association for Autistic Community.
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