“I’m sorry about this, you guys,” Nadine responds.
“It’s not your fault,” Blythe speaks up.
Morrow looks over at Nadine. “It’s not,” she agrees with Blythe, “your fault.”
“It’s certainly not,” chimes in Sylvie.
The four of them exchange smiles as Tommy stops messing with the barricade and looks over his shoulder, aware that something has happened. He turns around and takes in the scene. Something has shifted and he knows it. He almost seems afraid.
He should be, Sylvie thinks.
Chapter 12
From behind the counter, a song begins to play, low enough that they all think they are imagining the sound. Everyone except Nadine. She leaps up. “That’s mine,” she announces, embarrassed by her ringtone. She doesn’t so much want to answer the phone as she wants it to stop playing the song they danced to at their wedding. She’s been meaning to change it for a long time, but she keeps forgetting. Now her cheeks color as Tommy looks at her while the song plays. Then, blessedly, it stops.
But seconds later, it starts again. “Go see who it is,” Tommy says, his gruff tone masking whatever he might be thinking or feeling.
Nadine nods, then goes to retrieve her phone from where she stashed it behind the counter while she was working. The display tells her it’s her mother calling.
She looks at Tommy, who is studying her every move. “My mom,” she says just as the ringtone goes silent again.
“What’s she calling for?” Tommy grouses.
Nadine thinks that perhaps her mom called to see if she’d heard from Tommy since the papers were served. Or perhaps she’s already gotten wind of what’s going on. Word travels fast in a small town, and her mother has friends everywhere.
But to Tommy she just says, “How should I know?”
“Hand it here,” Tommy instructs her. He leaves the tourism pamphlets behind, abandoning his cleanup efforts. Crossing the room to where she stands, he extends his hand at the same time the phone goes off again.
“You’d better answer that or she’s just gonna keep calling,” Nadine advises him.
He shakes his head. “I don’t wanna talk to your mama.”
“So you’re saying I should answer it?”
“I don’t know,” says Tommy, sounding irritated and put-upon when he’s the one who created this whole situation.
Nadine answers without waiting for further permission, ignoring Tommy as she says, “Hey, Mama.”
“Put it on speaker,” Tommy orders. “I wanna hear this.” Nadine rolls her eyes but does as he says.
“Nadine, honey.” Nadine’s mama’s voice comes through loud and clear. “You there?”
“Yeah, Mama, I’m here.”
“I had to call and make sure you’re okay. I got a call from Alice up at the police station, and she said there’s something going on at the post office. She said they’re having to send cops over there. I was worried to death.” She exhales loudly into the phone, the sound like a rushing wind. “I’m just so relieved you’re not involved. Phew!”
Nadine raises one eyebrow as she looks at Tommy. “You wanna tell her or should I?”
“I ain’t telling her nothing,” Tommy says. Though his voice is truculent, his face is downright scared.
“Tommy?” Nadine’s mama, whose name is Earlene, says. “Why is Tommy there? What’s going on? Am I on speaker?” Nadine knows her mama hates to be on speaker.
“He’s got a gun, Mama,” says Nadine. “He’s taken us hostage and barricaded us in the post office.”
“My Lord in heaven,” says Earlene. “Can he hear me right now?”
“The whole room can hear you,” says Nadine. She almost adds,That’s how the speaker function works.But now is not the time to be sassy.
