Then I turned off the Tesla and we got out of the car. Mrs. Cruz was waiting for us near her husband’s just-for-showworkbench, with what looked like her iPad and a few envelopes tucked under her arm. I’m not going to lie—Mrs.Cruz sort of scared me. Isa had inherited her mom’s CEO voice, but the difference was that Mrs.Cruz used hers almost all the time. It took a while for her to wind down and just be a mom. “Isabel,” she said. “Did choir run late? I expected you earlier.”
“Yes, it did,” her daughter lied, and I felt her grasping for my hand. She wove her fingers through mine. “We were practicing a new song…”
“And it just wasn’t coming together,” I blurted. “Everyone agreed to stay a little late so we could work out the kinks.”
Isa’s mom gave me a look. “You’ve rejoined choir, James?”
Well, shit. I guess I had to now.
At least it was only for a month.
“Better late than never,” I quipped.
Mrs.Cruz smiled, bemused. It reminded me of family gatherings; after a glass of Pinot Noir or two, she was easygoing with a wicked sense of humor. Like, during charades, it was next to impossible to connect her with the crazy pressure she put on Isa.
“I’m sorry, Mamá,” she said. “I would’ve called if I’d known you were going to be home early.” Her voice went up an octave. “Why are you, um, home already?”
“I decided to take a half day,” Mrs.Cruz said. “I realized I haven’t in a while, so I caught a train at lunchtime. I spent the afternoon watching a show Jesse recommended a few years ago.Billions?”
“Mrs.Cruz!” I was genuinely shocked. “You’re in finance, and you haven’t seenBillions?”
“I know, I know.” She shook her head. “It’s embarrassing. I guess I’ve just never found the time.” She shrugged, then glanced at the Tesla. Her eyes narrowed. “If one of you could plug it in to recharge the battery…” She refocused on Isa while I quickly went to do the honors. How hard could it be? “Isa, you should’ve told me you were going to take the Tesla to school.”
“Yes, I know,” Isa said solemnly. “Mamá, I apologize, but—”
“No, cariño, it’s nice you did,” she told her. “I’m surprised, since all you do is race around in the Mini—the charging port is on the other side, James—but pleased. I was going to discuss selling it with your father.” She shook her head at the Tesla. “If he’s not going to drive it, someone should. Cars are not just collectibles; they should be out making memories.” She pointed to her light blue vintage Beetle, the car she and my mom always cruised around town in with Mrs.Adler, before clearing her throat. “Now, Isabel.”
Pilar Cruz, CEO, was back.
“Yes?” Isa asked as I returned to her side. She took my hand and squeezed it so hard that my blood circulation was nonexistent.
“Three items to cover,” her mom said. “I noticed when I got home that the alarm was off, and so were the cameras. Do you have any idea what happened there?”
Come on, Izzy,I thought. She’d told me that she and Grace had disabled the alarm and cameras before their Tesla theft.Keep it short, sweet, and simple.
“Oh, well, I was preoccupied about my test this morning,” Isa said, “so I probably forgot to set the alarm before I left the house.”
“How did the test go?”
“Good,” Isa said, a prediction for next week’s makeup. “I’m very confident.”
“Wonderful.” Mrs.Cruz smiled. “What was the essay question?”
Fuck,I thought, pulse spiking, but Isa amazingly rattled off a feasible test prompt. I guess last night’s extra studying had paid off.
“Interesting…,” her mom said. “Now, what about the cameras?”
“Yeah, I don’t know.” Isa shrugged. “Maybe there was a random malfunction? I saw Papá fiddling with them before he left on Sunday.”
I had no idea if that was true.
“That’s what I thought,” Mrs.Cruz agreed. “Just a little hiccup. The system rebooted without any trouble.”
I bit the inside of my cheek. Why did Mrs.Cruz have to choosetodayof all days to come home early?
Before Mrs.Cruz could say anything else, Isa raised our clasped hands. “Hey, look, Mamá!” she exclaimed. “James ishere!”
Because besides asking me about choir and me plugging in the Tesla, Mrs.Cruz had yet to technically acknowledge me.
