Authors: Lynda Simmons

Island Girl (49 page)

BOOK: Island Girl

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“That was Brenda,” Nadia said, smiling and holding up a sheet of paper. “And we have come up with plan to keep you busy.”

We both knew she meant—
We have come up with plan to keep you from drinking
—but I appreciated her subtlety. So when she slid my phone to the side and set her paper in its place, I didn’t go for her throat the way I otherwise might have. Instead, I tossed that poor little ball from one hand to the other while she laid out their plan to keep Liz busy.

“There is new place close by. Has all kinds of games. We start with laser tag and glow-in-dark bowling this morning. We break for pizza, then we play mini-golf this afternoon.” She punched me on the arm. “Some fun, eh?”

I dropped the ball on the page. “Did Brenda’s boys make this list?”

“I added laser tag. You will like it. They give you big gun. And do not worry about mini-golf. I am certain call will come before then.”

Such was her faith in good versus evil, even though lawyers were involved.

I slid the page back to her. “I can’t go anywhere. I have to be here if they call, so I can put on a goddamn suit and go pick up the goddamn check.”

“I told you, place is not far. Ten minutes, tops. When call comes, we bring you back, you change, and we go pick up check.” She got to her feet. “Do not argue. Brenda is on the way.”

“Fine,” I said, and flipped open my phone. Sent Grace a text confirming our picnic on Saturday. Regardless of what happened today, I wouldn’t disappoint Grace again.

She wrote back within minutes.
OK.

Nothing else. Not
Love Grace
or
Whoopee
. Just
OK.

I sent another message.
RU ok?

Again, she sent back one word.
Yes
.

I started to send another, but Brenda was already downstairs, double-parked, leaning on the horn. I squeezed into the back of the clown car with the boys, and stared out the window as she drove, looking forward to a really big gun.

Despite Nadia’s faith, we worked our way through laser tag, bowling, and the pizza lunch without a call from Champlain. It was now 1:15 P.M., a storm was threatening, and the two of us were standing under the Welcome sign at Pirate Bay Mini-Golf. The attendants were dressed accordingly and said “Argghhh maties” a lot, and the course was decked out with a sinking pirate ship, several rope bridges, and a number of water obstacles that smelled slightly off and were rumored to contain buried treasure.

Brenda and the boys were already at the first hole. Distant thunder rumbled, a parrot squawked, “Walk the plank, walk the plank,” and I turned to Nadia.

“Why are we doing this? It’s hot, it’s crowded, and it’s going to pour any minute.” I pointed my putter at the restaurant/souvenir shop. “You play if you want, but I’m going to wait over there for the call.”

She fell into step beside me. “Liz, do not do this.”

I squeezed the ball in time with my steps. “You don’t have to worry. The club doesn’t serve alcohol, I don’t have keys to Brenda’s car, and it’s too hot to walk anywhere. I’ll just sit inside where it’s cool and be good.”

She took hold of my arm and hauled me around. “Stupid bitch. Do you think any of us wants to play silly game?”

I stared at her. “Then why did they come? Why didn’t they just stay home?”

“Because Brenda could not stay home. This is last day. Hal is sitting outside her house, waiting for answer.”

My stomach tightened as I squeezed the ball. “He’s there already?”

“Arrived this morning early. He is not threatening, just waiting. Gary is with Mitch in case call does not come.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I found out when we got here.” She flicked a hand at the golf course. “Boys were too quiet, I knew something was wrong. She finally told me when we were buying tickets.”

I glanced back at the turnstile. “I had no idea.”

She snatched the ball away, dropped it into her bag. “Of course not. Everything is always about you, so you do not see that Brenda is on verge of tears and children are frightened. You think they want to spend time with grumpy lawyer always checking phone and frowning?”

“I’m not always frowning.”

She held up three fingers. “Three days, no smiles.”

“What do you want from me? This is serious shit, okay? Jim Hodgeson is playing with me. Trying to wear me down and it’s working. I can’t sleep, I can’t think—”

“And you cannot drink. My heart breaks for you.” She turned me around and shoved me toward the golf course. “No more selfishness. You will play, and you will let little boys win.”

Brenda spotted us coming back and waved us over.

More thunder rumbled.

“Pretty ladies in the house,” the parrot squawked. “Walk the plank.”

“Remember to smile,” Nadia said and handed me back my blue ball. “Who knows? Might even be fun.”

“Might be,” I said, putting on a bright smile when we reached the first hole, and picturing Jim Hodgeson on that bloody plank.

“You’re just in time,” Brenda said, edging us into line ahead of her and ignoring the muttered disapproval of the group behind. “Boys, you go first.”

Nadia was right. There was no excitement in Aaron’s step, no anticipation on Ethan’s face. Now that I took the time to notice, I saw the tension around Brenda’s smile, the quick, nervous movements of her hands. It was time the Bradleys had their own cheering squad.

I slipped the ball back into Nadia’s bag and started clapping, whistling. “Come on, Ethan. Give us a hole in one. A hole in one.”

Brenda raised a brow and Ethan looked over, clearly shocked to see me grinning and doing the whoop-whoop circle in the air with my fist. He gave me a small, uncertain smile, then looked down at his ball. Repositioned his feet. Checked the shot one more time—a straightforward putt up a slight incline with the cup on the curve to the right.

“Whoo-hoo,” I called, circling my fist in the air again.

Aaron joined in this time, chanting, “Hole in one, hole in one.”

Ethan grinned, flexed his fingers on the club, and took the shot. The ball rolled up the incline, curved right, and came to rest a few inches back from the cup.

“Hole in two,” I called, and Aaron picked up right away. “Hole in two.”

Nadia joined in, Brenda’s smile relaxed, and Ethan completed his play, shooting the coveted hole in two. Since three was par for the first hole, we gave him a well-deserved round of applause and did the same for Aaron when he also took no more than two shots.

The boys hooted when Nadia also managed it in two, booed loudly when Brenda took three, and were clapping and calling, “Liz sucks,” when it was my turn.

I inclined my head graciously, knowing I’d earned that. “Maximum of five,” the attendant reminded me while I lined up my feet with the ball, and the ball with the hole. I drew the club back and swung, whacking that ball right out of bounds and into one of those questionable ponds.

“Ball in the water,” the parrot squawked. “Walk the plank.”

Nadia laughed. The kids behind us started to titter and the attendant handed me another ball. “Try again, matie.”

Thunder rolled, coming closer. I lined up that ball again. Tapped it, and muttered, “Come on, come on,” as it rolled up to the cup, circled, and slowly rolled all the way back down. Honestly, who puts a hole at the top of a mountain anyway?

“Clap her in irons,” the parrot hollered.

I tried twice more and could have wept with gratitude when my phone finally rang.

“Play through,” I said to the kids waiting behind us. “Play through.”

Nadia put her hands together prayer style and followed me off the course.

I flipped the phone open on the third ring. “Liz Donaldson,” I said, and held my breath.

“Liz? This is Jocelyn.”

I gave Nadia a thumbs-down. Said, “Jocelyn, I can’t really talk now.”

“It’s about Grace. She doesn’t know I’m talking to you.”

I stopped at the end of a rope bridge. “Is she okay?”

“Yeah, it’s just—”

The beep went off in my ear. I had another call! I had another fucking call!

“Jocelyn, I have to go. I’ll get back to you.” I pressed Flash, said, “Liz Donaldson,” and my heart all but stopped when the voice on the other end said, “This is Jim Hodgeson. We need to talk.”

I flapped my hand at Nadia. Nodded yes, yes, yes when she put her thumb in the air and watched her take off to get Brenda. Children leapt out of her way, adults scattered, and even the pirates gave her plenty of room—there was nothing as daunting as Nadia in full flight.

“Walk the plank,” the parrot hollered.

“Where are you?” Jim asked.

“With clients.”

Nadia appeared with Brenda and the boys. I motioned for them to follow as I marched away from the parrot toward the shade and relative calm outside the men’s rooms.

“So, Jim,” I said. “When can I pick up a check?”

Brenda had her own phone to her ear, talking to Mitch. “She’s asking about the check,” she was saying. “I don’t know. We’re waiting.”

All eyes were on me when I said, “What are you talking about? What kind of deal?”

Nadia shook her head slowly, heavily. Brenda looked worried and Ethan asked, “Is she screwing it up royally, Mommy?”

Could be,
I thought. But to Jim I said, “They want to pay seventy-five percent? If this is your idea, Jim, you’re not doing your clients any favors.”

Brenda bounced up and down. “Take it, take it, take it.”

I made slashing motions across my neck, then turned my back. “Forget it, Jim. We’re not negotiating. My client delivered one hundred percent of that equipment and he expects to be paid according to the contract. Call me when you have a check for the full amount. Certified.”

I hung up. Silence hovered around me, heavy and accusing, broken only by the rumble of thunder, closer still. “He’ll call back,” I said, for my own sake as much as theirs.

“She hung up on him,” Brenda said to Mitch, and held the phone away from her ear while he hollered, “What the fuck? What the fuck?”

“Daddy swore,” Aaron whispered.

“Today it’s allowed,” Ethan whispered back, both he and his brother standing close to their mother, eyeing the woman who was screwing up royally.

Lightning flashed. More thunder.

“I’ll call you back,” Brenda said to Mitch, and we started running, making it across the parking lot to the clown car just as big fat drops of rain started to fall.

“Get in, get in!” Brenda yelled, and the thunder pressed down all around us.

We made it into the car and closed the doors as the sky let loose, dumping rain so hard and fast it was impossible to see the car in the next spot. The windows steamed over, the sky lit up like a giant camera flash, and my phone rang again just as the thunder started to roll.

Every head in that car turned to look.

“Liz Donaldson,” I said, my heart still beating fast, making my voice breathless, ineffective.

“Liz, it’s Jocelyn.”

“Jocelyn, I can’t talk now,” I muttered, and the heads groaned and turned away. “I’ll call you back.” I closed the phone. Jumped when it rang again right away. If it was Jocelyn again, I swear the kid’s life was over. “Liz Donaldson,” I said.

“Jim Hodgeson here.”

I gave a giant thumbs-up to the faces around me. No one reacted. Just kept staring at me while Brenda pressed a button on her phone and put it to her ear. “He’s calling again,” she said, still no expression on her face.

“Do you have a check for us, Jim?” I asked, and prayed for the right answer.

“No, I have a bank draft.”

My breath came out in a rush. “A bank draft, you say.”

Four pairs of eyes widened. Four mouths dropped open.

BOOK: Island Girl

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