Diva Wraps It Up, The (22 page)

I persisted. “Do you know where Kat found these?”

“Not a clue.” He told me the price.

I handed over the cash. “That’s funny. I thought you told Kat she could have them.”

His Adam’s apple bobbed. In a very low voice, he said, “She found them in the living room. Okay? I didn’t know they belonged to a mouse.”

“But you do now.”

“I guess Gwen or somebody had one of those mice. Maybe the glasses broke off when she was decorating. Excuse me, Sophie. There’s a line of customers behind you.”

I backed away certain of one thing—Elvin knew more than he was saying. I was pondering a way to pry more information out of Elvin when I heard Twiggy scream, “No!”

Jonah did his best to calm her but there was no hope of that. Twiggy ran past me to the back of the store.

“Everything okay?” I asked Jonah.

“Kat’s missing.”

“Can I help?”

“Uh, sure. We’re going over to her school right now. The more people searching for her, the better.”

Twiggy returned with their coats, and we fled out the door before they had them on.

We arrived to a gathering of a distressed teacher, Sugar, assorted police officers, and, much to my surprise, Alex. For once, Sugar wasn’t clinging to him.

The teacher was explaining that she had brought in a classroom kitten, but it turned out that one of the little boys was allergic to it. “So I informed the children that it would be Harry’s last day with us. Kat wouldn’t let Harry out of her arms. She just clung to him and accused me and the allergic boy of lying about his allergy. I was telling Sugar about it, and when we looked around, Kat and Harry were gone.”

“Have you searched the school?” asked a police officer.

“Yes, of course.”

Sugar seized Alex’s arm with both of her hands. “Could social services have taken her? Is that something they would do? Sneaky like that?”

“Social services?” Twiggy appeared doubtful. “Why would they snatch her?”

“Because Baxter isn’t her father. And no one knows who her dad is,” I clarified.

Sugar glared at me. “I know who he is.”

Everyone turned toward her. Jonah rolled his eyes and brushed a shock of hair off his forehead.

“
I’m
Kat’s mother,” declared Sugar.

Dear Natasha,

We have a TV over our mantel, and a fireplace under it. Our taste leans to clean, modern décor. How do we decorate it for Christmas?

The Klauses Jr. in North Pole, Alaska

Dear The Klauses Jr.,

Leave the mantel bare. Place a narrow white Christmas tree on each side of the fireplace. Decorate it with solid-colored ornaments in rings. Red at the top, orange, yellow, green, blue, and finally violet. Festive, sparse, and modern!

Natasha

I did a double take. “I thought you were Gwen’s daughter and Kat’s sister.”

Sugar glanced at Alex, who said, “Social services is much more professional than that. And they wouldn’t have taken the kitten.”

Twiggy staggered backward into Jonah. “
You’re
Kat’s mother? Not Gwen?”

Sugar placed her hands on her hips. “I am Kat’s real mother. I’m downright ashamed by what a lousy mother I was. Look, let’s split up and look for her. I’ll explain after we find her.”

They assigned me the way back to our block. It was a long shot, but Kat might have gone home. I wished I had Daisy with me. She’d be more likely to notice a little girl with a cat if Kat were hiding somewhere.

I walked along the sidewalk, peering behind bushes. There were too many little passages leading to backyards. Kat could be anywhere. I kept walking. When I neared our block, I cut through the alley behind the Babineaux house, intending to pick up Daisy at Mars’s house.

The gate to Edith’s garden hung open. Would Kat have wandered in there? Anything was possible. I peeked inside. “Kat?”

I didn’t see her anywhere. The chandelier glowed in Edith’s dining room window. I scouted the garden, poking around a bit. When I neared the house, I made out Edith sitting at the dining room table. Across from her, little Kat drew something.

I knocked on the back door.

Edith opened it and invited me in. She was actually attractive when she smiled.

“I see you have a visitor. Everyone is in a panic about her.”

“I should hope so! I’ve been phoning the Babineaux house, but the line is always busy. She doesn’t want to go home.”

“Did she hide in your yard?”

“I heard her crying. She was so sad, holding that kitten and whimpering. So I brought her inside and gave her something to eat. She told me that everyone lies about cat allergies and that she won’t let them take Harry away from her. Given that she just lost her mother, I think it’s extremely unreasonable to take away the cat. What are they thinking?”

I explained what had happened. “I’d better call Alex’s cell phone to let them know she’s safe.”

When I hung up, I watched Edith with Kat. A gentleness had replaced the anger in Edith’s face. The taut lines and cold eyes had softened.

Edith heaped praise on Kat’s drawing. She sat in the chair next to Kat, who held Harry.

“Kat,” said Edith, “your family is looking for you. They’re very worried about you and Harry.”

“Don’t tell them I’m here. They’ll take Harry away. My mommy went away. I don’t want Harry to leave, too.”

Edith pulled Kat onto her lap. “They love you as much as you love Harry. I’ll make you a promise. If they won’t let you keep Harry, he can stay here. That way you can come over to play with him any time you want.”

Kat nestled her head against Edith’s shoulder. I had to turn away to wipe the tears off my face.

An hour later, Kat and Harry were safely home and playing in Kat’s princess bedroom. In the living room, Sugar thanked us all for helping.

Sugar clung to Alex again as she told us about Kat, which did not make me happy.

“When Kat was three months old, I left her with my mother, Gwen. I was a dancer at the time—pole, not ballet—and I left with my new boyfriend, who was in a little band that was touring the country. I’m ashamed that I did that, but I just wasn’t ready to settle down with a child. When I came back, Mom was gone. I didn’t know anything about Baxter or their marriage or her new name. I’ve spent the last five years searching for her on the Internet. When Elvin said he was going to visit his brother, I didn’t make the connection until we drove up, and there she was.”

Sugar looked straight at Twiggy, who had cried when she saw Kat and appeared to be on the verge of tears again. “Mom, um, was a dancer herself, but she’d gotten too old to make any money at it. She was stuck with my baby and a job in a bar that didn’t pay enough for her to make ends meet. She resented me for being young, and having my life ahead of me, and dumping my child on her. She said when she met Baxter, it was like all her dreams came true. Baxter wanted to have another baby, and Mom wanted Baxter. She told him that Kat was her daughter. She moved and changed her cell phone number, and I couldn’t find her. I didn’t know she had married Baxter. I walked away from Kat when she was a baby, something I will always regret. But Mom could see that I’ve changed and grown up. Alex, you explain the legal stuff.”

“Gwen had obtained custody of Kat. When Sugar told me about Kat, we brought an emergency motion in the court. I couldn’t imagine anything worse for Kat than losing the woman she thought was her mother, and then being removed from her home at Christmas.”

Sugar looked at Jonah, raised her eyebrows, and gestured toward Twiggy.

Twiggy collapsed into a chair. “Oh no. I knew it. You’re leaving me.”

Jonah, who had been silent, kneeled on the floor, picked up Twiggy’s hand, and glared at Sugar. “See what you’ve done now? Did I ask you to let me do this in my own time?”

Twiggy sobbed.

“Honey, don’t cry. I’m not leaving you.” Jonah gently wiped tears off Twiggy’s face. “You see, I met Sugar once before at a convention in Vegas and—don’t cry, Twiggy! I swear I’m not leaving you.”

She couldn’t stop. Jonah shot Sugar a look that could have fried her. “Twig, it was before I ever met you. It was just one night, but you know how that can be. It just happened. I didn’t want to upset everyone until the paternity tests came back, but there’s a good chance that I’m Kat’s father.”

Twiggy froze. Her eyes flicked between Jonah and Sugar.

“Oh, you’re her father, all right,” protested Sugar. “Who needs a paternity test? She’s just exactly like you.”

Jonah focused on Twiggy. “Honey, I swear I didn’t know anything about this until Sugar came to town.” He hugged Twiggy to him. “I thought you’d be upset, that’s why I wanted the paternity results first.”

Twiggy sobbed like she’d lost her best friend.

“Does Kat know any of this yet?” I asked.

“When we know for sure,” said Jonah, “we’re going to ask Luis to help us break it to her. I’m not taking any chances. It’s going to be a huge shock. I can’t imagine how her little mind will be able to deal with it all.”

They had blown
my
mind! I sat down on the sofa, my head reeling.

I glanced up at the mantel between the two orange-flocked Christmas trees. Gwen had decorated the mantel in this room only a few days ago. At the time, no one had dreamed how many things would change in this house. Maybe she thought she was saving Kat from heartbreak by pretending to be her mother. Whatever her reasons, she had been right about the stag-head candleholders. The mantel wasn’t the same without them.

I gazed around the room. “Where’s the lamp that was in the corner?”

Sugar sighed. “The police took it. The killer used the lampshade to wrap Mom.”

While Twiggy cried, and the others talked about Kat, I wondered about the mouse and the glasses that it had lost. Gwen had been hit over the head by something heavy. I searched the living room for an object that could have been used. Of course, the police had probably collected anything that they thought was suitable. Except for the candlesticks. I had a pair of old sterling candlesticks that had belonged to my grandmother. They were weighted in the bottom. I wished I had picked up one of Gwen’s to see how heavy they were. I could well imagine someone grabbing one of them and slamming it over Gwen’s head. Those antler parts could be very dangerous.

I left the chaos, walked through the kitchen, and tiptoed up the back stairway to peek in on Kat. I found Baxter watching her from her doorway. He appeared a bit disheveled, as though he hadn’t bothered to comb his hair or shower. He held a finger up over his lips.

I peered into Kat’s room. Sound asleep in a fancy bed, she had curled up and drifted off holding Harry, a gray tabby, in her arms. Above her, a grand crown held sheer pink and white panels that cascaded down the back of the bed and a foot or so along the sides. Exactly as Patty had described, the walls were painted with scenes depicting huge windows looking out over castles and unicorns roaming the hills.

Baxter closed the door.

“How are you doing?” I asked.

He snorted. “Every single day I learn something else that Gwen lied about. She messed up a lot of lives.”

“Including yours?” It slipped out.

“I’m an old guy. Didn’t think anything could surprise me anymore. But Kat . . . It breaks my heart. Mostly Gwen messed me up by spending every cent I had. The day you found Gwen, the antiques dealer called and yelled at me because Gwen’s check bounced for that fancy silver sleigh and the candlesticks she bought. Wanna hear something pathetic? I couldn’t cover it. I don’t even have the money to pay for Gwen’s casket and funeral. I had to return that silver stuff so he wouldn’t call the cops. I’m living day to day, minute to minute, wondering which of Gwen’s lies will be uncovered next and how I’m going to make it right.”

Footsteps sounded on the stairs. Luis appeared carrying a large box wrapped in white paper printed with sheet music. A gigantic lacy silver bow clung to the top. “Would you mind if I hid this gift with you? Liza is so nosy. She always searches the house for her gifts. She would open it and rewrap it if she found it. Just this once, I’d like to surprise her.”

“Ohhh,” I exclaimed. “What is it?”

Luis set the package down and smiled at me. Waving his forefinger, he said, “Not a chance. This year her present will be a surprise.”

Ouch. Baxter didn’t need any more surprises. But he didn’t show any dismay at hearing the word.

“Of course. I’ll stick it in here. Come get it when you’re ready, Luis.”

“Thanks! What’s going on downstairs?”

Baxter filled him in on what had happened.

“And how do you feel about that?” asked Luis.

“Well, let’s see. I lost my job, then I lost my wife, now I’ve lost my little girl, and I don’t know how long the bank will let us stay in this house. How do you think I’m feeling?”

Luis nodded. “Would you excuse us, Sophie?”

I gladly took my leave, grateful that Luis knew what to say to Baxter. What can you say to someone going through so many crises at once? The sun might come out tomorrow, but it would take Baxter a long time to crawl out from under all his troubles and see anything sunny. If he didn’t end up in jail first for killing Gwen.

I left their house only to discover Mars and Bernie in front of my home. “What are you doing now? I thought you were finished.”

“Just a final touch,” said Bernie.

Mars glared at me. “Your boyfriend is a jerk!”

I suspected I would take some heat for putting it this way, but I dared ask, “Which one?”

“The lawyer. He refused to represent Natasha.”

“She’s getting a lawyer?”

“The police showed up again today, this time asking questions about Horace. By the way, do you know anything about peanut brittle and pink boxes?”

“They hopped on that fast!”

“So you do know about this? Natasha and I had no idea what they were talking about. They confiscated her pink boxes.”

Nina yoo-hooed from the front of her house. Lights were being draped by men clambering over the roof. She jogged across the street. “I am sooo going to outdo you guys!”

“Professionals?” Bernie scowled.

Nina grinned at him and grabbed my sleeve. “Guess what? I know who Brown-Eyed Girl is.”