I polished off the last of my wine, then topped it off, ridiculously pleased that Eddie liked his gift enough to get competitive with Laura. “Mindy got a bottle, too,” I told her. “Allie got it from the Vatican gift shop and filled it there. She put it in the inside pocket of the jacket.”
“That jacket is gorgeous,” Laura said, and I had to agree. We’d bought a far-too-expensive leather jacket for Allie after she saved the world, even though we’d previously told her the jacket was way too pricey and wouldn’t be coming home with us.
The store had a second almost identical one, and since Allie begged to get it for Mindy, we’d caved. Because, well … Saved. The. World.
Laura reached across the table and took my hand. “I should know better than to drink in the afternoon because it always makes me emotional, but I just have to say thanks.”
I knew she wasn’t talking about the gifts, and I could feel that guilt start to bubble up. “Laura, you don’t have to?—”
“You could have made something up. That first night I mean, when I followed you. Or you could have told me the truth and then told me to stay away. But you pulled me in. You confided in me. And—and well, I get how much pressure you’ve been under, and it means a lot to me that—oh, hell, you know what I’m saying, right? It’s just that I’ve got your back because youletme have your back, and I guess I’m honored. Because your job comes with a lot of secrets, and you’ve let me in and shared them with me.”
She grabbed a napkin and dabbed her eyes. “And now I’m going to smear.”
“I love you,” I said, because it was true. But the secret I was still keeping sat heavy in my gut. “You’re part of the team.”
That was true—I really, truly believed it. Even Father Corletti did, taking it upon himself to praise Laura when he could have just as easily told me to discourage her involvement. We were a team. And I couldn’t help but wonder if an NFL team would have a shot in hell of winning the Super Bowl if the quarterback kept vital information to himself.
I didn’t know the first thing about football, but even I was pretty sure of the answer.
Definitely not.
I frowned.
“What’s wrong?” Laura asked, as Eddie snorted in the next room, undoubtedly understanding exactly what I was thinking.
I shook my head, trying to scatter my errant thoughts. “Just wondering if any NFL players are demons. I mean think about that speed. That strength.”
Laura squinted at me. “I’d say that your conversational shift surprises me, but honestly, you stopped surprising me long ago.”
“Just a random thought,” I said, then pointed to her glass. “More?”
“If I do that I’ll end up on my couch watching an endless stream of TV for the rest of the evening.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“Unfortunately, I promised myself I was going to make a dent in the laundry and plan next week’s meals.”
The miraculous thing is that she meant it.
“What a coincidence,” I said. “That’s my plan for the evening, too.”
We both had a good laugh at that, since I’m pretty sure that me planning a week’s worth of meals really is one of the signs of the apocalypse.
“They’ll probably end up at your place first,” I said, referring to the kids as we headed to the back door. Unless she happens to arrive in her car, Laura rarely enters and leaves from the front. She and Mindy live one street behind us, and our properties are separated only by a fenced utility easement, gated on both sides for easier access. Between Mindy and Allie and me and Laura, we’ve created a well-worn path between our two yards. “Remind Allie to text me.”
“Will do,” Laura promised as I hesitated by the French-style doors that lead into our back yard. I was expecting Eddie to say goodbye, too, but when I turned back toward his recliner, I realized that he and Timmy had both left the living room. I frowned, then heard a thud in the upstairs playroom followed by an “atta boy.”
“That man pretends to be a curmudgeon better than anyone,” Laura says. “But his sweet spots tell the real story.”
“True enough.” And every time I see my kids interacting with their faux great-grandfather, I say a little prayer of thanks forthat day when I found the drugged up and crazy old man in the nursing home and brought him safely home.
“Is it okay if Allie sleeps over?” Laura asked. “Eliza, too, of course. Mindy mentioned they might come back and do a movie marathon. I guess Allie’s in withdrawal from lack of TV in English?
“Sure,” I said as Laura tugged open the door, and I followed her onto the patio. “Just tell them?—”
Yeaaaarrrrrhhhhooooooowwwwww!!!!!!!!!
The hellish scream was accompanied by a fast moving, furry blob that brushed past my legs and tore into the house.
