“Okay, Grandma,” he replied, his brow furrowed in confusion as he slid off his chair.
“Promise me Gabriella is okay,” I whispered to Chandra one last time before leaving.
“I promise,” she whispered back, her eyes filled with sincerity.
As we exited the restaurant, Elijah’s small hand clutched mine tightly, a mask of confusion stuck to his face. I tried to steady my breathing, wrestling with the wild emotions thundering through me. It was obvious that something was going on—something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. What could it be? If he hit her, I was gonna let him have it!
“Grandma, what happened?” Elijah asked, his voice quivering slightly.
“Nothing you need to worry about, baby,” I reassured him, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. “We’ll just find another place to eat tonight, okay?”
“Okaaaaay,” he stretched out his respectful curiosity.
I stomped back to my car with Elijah in tow and backed out of my spot, wondering if I should leave or call the police. I circled the small lot and spotted Gabriella’s car, which made me feel a little better. Just as I was about to exit the property, I saw Gabriella’s mass of hair bouncing down the back stairs. She waved me down, and I took a breath of fresh air as I scanned her face. No bruises or marks, thank God.
I lowered my window as Elijah nearly hopped over into the driver’s seat on top of me to see Gabriella for himself as well.
“I’m sorry I haven’t called you back.”
“Hi, Miss Gabriella!”
“Hey, Elijah. It’s good to see you.” Her eyes filled with tears that she blinked away. “I’ll be back home soon.”
“Great!” He settled back on his side of the car.
I whispered, “Are you okay, Gabriella?”
“Yes, Ms. Joyce. I appreciate your concern. I’m not in danger. Lorenzo and I are…trying to work things out. Without interference.”
“Interference? As in, nosy people?”
“No. I mean…well… He thinks I’ve been acting different since I moved out and… We want to see if we can work it out. Just the two of us. No interference. You know he has in-law trauma from his ex’s family.”
Is that a thing?
As far as I could see, the only two people Gabriella had been around were me and Elijah. Didn’t take a genius to figure out his insinuation. I didn’t know whether to be relieved or insulted. Gabriella’s calm demeanor soothed my fears, but her words made me wonder what was really going on.
“Plus, he’s letting me use the stove and oven after hours, to practice my recipes.” The fake grin on her face told another story.
“Gabriella, we can get the stove. You don’t have to—”
She caught a tear before it fell. The phone in her apron pocket lit up as it vibrated. “I have to get back to work. I’ll be home. Soon.”
Whatever was happening, I knew one thing for certain: I wouldn’t rest until I found answers.
Chapter 16
Every small Texas town has at least two restaurants: Sonic and Dairy Queen. Elijah was a fan of both and readily agreed that we should stop at Sonic. He considered it a special treat to park outside, roll down the windows, and wait for food between colorful menus dividing parking spots instead of idling through the drive-through.
To pass the time as we waited for our food, I asked Elijah about how things were going at the day camp. This led to a ten-minute speech about his new friends. One of them, Jamieson, was enamored by Greek mythology and had brought books to excite Elijah as well.
Try as I might, I could not give my grandson my undivided attention.Without interference. What exactly did that mean? And which one of them had come up with that phrase?
“Grandma, do you know how many kids Zeus had?”
I managed to catch the question. “Oh, I don’t know. Ten?”
“No. A hundred!” Elijah’s eyes shone with wonder. “And his wife was not happy about it.”
