Cedar Woman (182 page)

all
for
t
h
at
m
a
tter.
M
a
y
b
e
I
will
j
u
st
w
a
lk
i
n
to
h
is
a
r
ms,
s
h
e
wonder
e
d
, and t
h
e
n blu
sh
ed
at t
h
e
i
d
e
a
.

I
a
m
a
w
o
ma
n
of
t
h
e
L
a
k
o
ta
a
n
d
m
u
st
a
l
w
a
ys
be
a
l
ad
y.
So
nny must
make
t
h
e first move.
Oh, how can
I
s
h
o
w h
i
m
th
at I
d
o
l
o
ve
h
i
m a
n
d have
t
h
ese
ma
ny
y
e
ar
s
?

Her
tho
u
g
h
ts
were
i
n
terru
p
ted
w
h
en
Nic
k
ie
fl
u
n
g
op
e
n
t
h
e
do
o
r
to

her
o
ffice:

“
S
o
nn
y
’s
m
issin
g
.”

“
W
hat
d
o
yo
u
m
ean
h
e
’s
m
iss
i
n
g
?
”
Lena
cr
i
ed.

“
I
m
ean
he’s
m
iss
i
ng.
D
i
ti
said
t
h
at
h
e
sto
p
p
e
d
by
S
o
nn
y
’s a
p
art
m
e
n
t yes
t
er
d
ay afte
r
noo
n
, later
last
n
i
gh
t
, and
t
h
en t
h
is
m
o
r
n
i
n
g. So
nn
y is
n
’t
t
h
ere a
n
d
h
e
is a
half ho
u
r late.
S
o
n
n
y is
n
e
v
er
l
ate.”

Lena
c
r
u
sh
e
d
d
o
w
n
a
feeli
n
g of p
a
nic.

“
Liste
n
, I still
h
a
v
e
t
h
e
k
ey
t
o t
h
e a
p
art
m
e
n
t.
C
o
m
e with
me.”

Le
n
a and
Nic
k
ie ran
up
t
h
e ir
o
n
stairs to t
h
e seco
n
d
level
o
f
t
h
e apart
m
ent
buil
d
i
n
g.
K
n
o
c
king
o
n
S
on
n
y
’s
d
o
o
r
,
L
e
na
c
a
lled
his
na
m
e. Fi
v
e
m
i
nu
tes passed
u
n
til,
f
i
nally,
Le
n
a
i
n
serted
t
h
e
k
ey
to t
h
e
a
p
art
m
e
n
t
d
oor.
O
p
e
n
ing
it
slowly,
b
o
th
w
o
m
en
g
azed
insi
d
e.
T
h
e
a
p
art
m
e
n
t
was
e
m
p
ty
.

“
Oka
y
,
l
oo
k
,
h
e’s
p
ro
b
ably g
r
ocery s
ho
pp
i
n
g
or
at
t
h
e g
y
m
,
let
’
s
go back
to
the
re
st
aur
a
nt.
I
’m
sure
h
e’l
l
s
h
o
w
u
p
i
n
ti
m
e
f
or
w
o
r
k
,
”
Le
n
a sai
d
,
her
t
one bel
y
ing
t
h
e
li
n
es
of
w
o
r
r
y
o
n
h
e
r
b
ro
w
.
Nickie
n
od
d
ed rel
u
cta
n
tly as
Le
n
a
rel
o
c
k
ed t
h
e do
o
r.

Ret
u
rn
i
ng
t
o
t
h
e
rest
a
u
r
a
nt, Lena
ask
e
d Nickie to
com
e to
her office.

“
I
’
v
e
w
a
nted
to
talk
to
y
ou
a
nd S
on
n
y
a
b
o
u
t
so
m
et
h
ing
fo
r
a
m
onth
o
r
so
n
o
w.
W
h
y
do
n’
t
I
b
r
ief
yo
u
,
and
w
h
en
Son
n
y
a
rr
i
ves,
we
can
all