Summer Shadows (18 page)

22

“I
hope Amelia will be at Mass today,” Dana said. It was Sunday, and she was standing in front of the mirror while Julia arranged her hair before church. “She said she and her dad always have to go to the early Mass because of his work.”

Julia struggled with a braid as she said, “She doesn’t get to see her dad a lot, does she?”

Dana shrugged. “He’s a cop. She said that being a cop is a tough job and requires a lot of sacrifices. She says when she grows up she’s going to be either a cop or a doctor. I like Amelia. She’s smart and funny and she really, really likes hanging out with us. It’s too bad that we can’t babysit her during the day instead of Mrs. Jurta. Then I’d have her to play with all the time.”

Julia smiled and ruffled her hair affectionately. “It is, but perhaps it’s best that she goes with Mrs. Jurta. After all, all Mrs. Jurta has is her dogs. She’s probably lonely, too.”

“There are lots of lonely people in the world, aren’t there?” Dana sighed.

“Yes, I’m afraid there is. That’s why it’s important to take care of the people you have in your life.”

“I guess. I think Amelia’s really lonely.”

“Oh, she must have lots of friends in school,” Julia said, as she stood and put Dana’s hairbrush on the bureau. She thought,
this bureau would make a good vanity if we just put a mirror and some fabric here…

“No she doesn’t. She said that I’m the first real friend that she’s made in Franklin. Except for Tigger, of course.”

Julia looked at her, concerned, but said simply, “Of course.”

“She said that I’m the first one who’ll listen to her talk. She said that she really likes you, too. She says that you are a really good cook.”

“Well, I must say, no one can whip up peanut butter and jelly quite like me. Come on, my girl. We’re late.”

“All right.”

After Mass, they went downstairs for coffee and donuts in the hall.

The church hall was large, with a low hung ceiling, rows of folding chairs, a small stage at one end and a kitchen at the other. Julia spotted Mrs. Jurta among the mostly middle-aged crowd, talking animatedly with a tall, distinguished-looking man in a suit. There weren’t many children. Apparently, there were no religious education programs until public school started again in the fall.

It was much cooler in the hall than it had been in the church, and Julia was grateful. She maneuvered the kids into line, and jumped when Amelia suddenly appeared.

“Dana!”

Although it had only been twenty-four hours since they’d seen each other, Dana greeted her like a long-lost cousin. They hugged and immediately began to giggle together.

Julia caught Ron’s eye and he rolled his eyes as if to say,
Girls. What can you do with them?

“Oh, man, I was so hoping you’d come today!” Amelia squealed. “Hello, Julia. Hi Jack. Hi… Ron.”

“Hello, Amelia.” Julia looked around for Wilde, but he was nowhere to be seen.

“Hey,” Ron said.

“Are you guys coming to the Fourth of July party tonight?” Amelia asked eagerly. “It’s going to be awesome. Last year, I went to Boston and saw the Boston Pops play, which was kind of boring, but the fireworks were cool and Kevin let me go anywhere I wanted all by myself.”

“Kevin?” Julia asked.

“My mom’s boyfriend. Well, he was, anyway. Now she’s seeing someone else. I’m glad, because Kevin’s boring and he’s ugly, too. My mom is, like, gorgeous, and she should be with someone who is handsome, like Dad’s handsome, you know?” She turned to Dana. “My Dad is handsome, isn’t he? Mrs. Jurta said that he’s the most handsome cop on the force and I think she’s right, don’t you, Julia?”

“Oh, yes, absolutely,” Julia said with more enthusiasm than she intended.

“I do, too,” Amelia said proudly.

“Who’s taking you to the lake?” Dana asked.

“Mrs. Jurta, of course. Who else?”

“I don’t know. You spend a lot of time with her.”

“Yeah, but I won’t for long. She’s going to Florida with her dog to get his surgery done. She told Dad last night – he doesn’t know what he’s going to do yet.”

Julia noticed when Wilde appeared in the door. He was dressed in his blues and was in the middle of a conversation with a heavy-set older man who appeared to be lecturing him. The other man carried himself with some authority, and Julia’s instinct marked him as a town official. Wilde’s calm seemed to irritate the man.

Ron caught Julia’s gaze and raised his eyebrows.

Julia shrugged. They were probably dickering over a city matter – none of their business. She turned to Jack and handed him a donut.

He rejected it. “I want a powdered one!” he pouted.

“There’s Dad,” Amelia said. “Maybe he’ll have a donut with us. Dana, you’re coming to the lake tonight, right?”

“Oh, yeah, absolutely!” Dana said. “We wouldn’t miss it.”

Julia handed Jack to Ron, motioning him to an empty table. “We’ll all be there, Amelia. I’m glad you’re coming, too.”

Amelia’s smile widened. “I’m pretty excited, too!”

She sat herself next to Julia, chatting incessantly, while Julia was occupied with Jack’s adventures with the powdered donut. After tearing into it, Jack wanted to join several other small children in the far corner of the room, but Julia felt that he ought to look less like walking powdered sugar and more like a boy before he went. They argued over it for a while, then Ron broke in.

“Come on, Jack,” Ron said. “I’ll take you to the bathroom, and then you can go play.”

Jack grabbed his hand and the brothers took off.

Wilde was talking amicably now with the man behind the coffee machine, and he gave Ron and Jack a friendly wave as they passed.

Mrs. Jurta wandered over. “That Jack is such handsome little boy. You must be proud.” She watched the boys with the keen eyes of a grandmother.

“He’s great.” Julia smiled at the older woman. “How are you, Mrs. Jurta?”

Mrs. Jurta snagged a chair and seated herself with a plop. Her thin face looked tired and her demeanor was one of a person who has fought great battles and sees only more on the horizon. “You’re coming to the Fourth tonight?”

“Yes we are and, to be honest, I’m looking forward to a night off.”

“I guess you would be,” Mrs. Jurta said. “I hear that you’ve been tearing your little house apart.”

“It sure feels that way. I’m sorry to hear that your dog is no better.”

Mrs. Jurta nodded and looked into her cup. “I know. He’s more than just a dog to me, you know. He’s a friend, my buddy. I have a surgeon friend in Florida who’s the best in the business, and he’s promised to work on my boy as soon as I get him down there. I’m trying to get the other dogs settled so I can leave by the fourteenth, but it is so hard finding any foster parents on such short notice. I mean, you can’t give them to just anyone.”

Julia smelled a setup, but there was no way she was falling for it. They couldn’t possibly take care of two untrained puppies and finish the house in time.

“It must be difficult,” she commented.

“You have no idea. You see, I care about animals.” Her tone made it sound as if this part of her personality made her very unique. “I want the best for them, which makes it even more difficult.” She leaned forward in her chair. “I don’t suppose that you and the kids would be able to…”

“Why, hello, Officer Wilde,” Julia said, a little too loudly.

Officer Wilde was as delighted to see everyone as they were to see him. They chatted for a while, then it was time for the Wildes to be going. Julia, hoping to avoid the direct question, decided that they would go, too. Mrs. Jurta was noticeably disappointed.

They said their goodbyes and went home. At the house, her cell phone started ringing. Julia sent the kids upstairs to change while she took the call.

“Hello?”

“Julia?” Miriam Budd’s voice sound surprised and distant. She spoke loudly over something that sounded like a mariachi band. “Julia, is that you?”

Julia felt like a noose was tightening around her neck. “Yes, hello, Miriam, how’s the cruise?”

“Where are the children?”

“They’re upstairs changing. Where are you?”

“Puerta Vallarta. It’s in Mexico, on the Pacific. How are the children?”

“They’re great. How’s Walter?”

“He’s fine. Actually, he’s had a touch of food poisoning and he’s sleeping in the cabin right now. We ate off the boat. I warned him, but you know how men are. How is Dana?”

Julia sighed. “She’s fine.”

“Is she eating enough?”

“Oh, yes.”

“And Ron?”

“He’s eating like a horse.”

Miriam was not pleased. “That’s unusual. He has a delicate stomach, you know.”

Julia got up and began to pace back and forth, trying to work out the knot of tension in her back.

“He likes only plain things. Amanda used to have to give him just bread and milk for the longest time.”

Julia sighed. “I know, I was there.”

“What was that?”

“I said he’s fine. He’s growing tall. So is Jack, actually.”

“So they need new clothes?”

“Not yet, but soon.”

“I’ll make a note to take Ron shopping. Kid shops will still suit Jack – the styles are so cute. But I’ll let my shopper handle that for me.”

“Don’t worry about it, Miriam. We’ve got it covered.”

Suspicious now, Miriam asked, “We? What is this ‘we’? Have you a man in your life?” She didn’t have to add “at last” – it came through loud and clear anyway.

“No, I was referring to the children and me. We’ve got it all set. We’re going shopping this week, so I can get what they need then.”

“I’ll wire you some money so you can take them somewhere decent.”

“No, Miriam,” Julia said firmly. “That will not be necessary.”

“Nonsense, Julia. Of course it’s necessary. You have three children in your care. I don’t think you realize just how expensive it is to raise children these days.”

“I’m starting to get an idea.”

“You don’t have to put on the brave front with me, Julia. I know what financial difficulties you’ve had in the past. Some people simply aren’t good with money, but there’s no reason why the children should suffer. I’ll send it this afternoon.”

Julia took a deep breath. “I’ll refuse it, Miriam. I don’t need your money and I won’t take it.”

“Julia, I never – You are the most stubborn…”

She would have gone on, so Julia did the only thing she could do without being brazenly rude. There was a corner of the living room with no reception; she walked slowly toward it. Miriam’s voice grew crackly until the connection broke off entirely.

She hung up the phone and took another deep breath. The newly installed air conditioning unit made a soothing hum and the cool air was refreshing. She looked around the empty room and, seeing so much work still to do, she felt like sinking into the floor.

Perhaps Miriam was right. Perhaps she wasn’t suited for the job. Maybe she had bitten off more than she could chew. Her simple house-restoration was growing with every piece of wallpaper they tore off.

“If this house had a name,” she said out loud. “It would be Julia’s Folly.”

“Aunt Julia?”

Dana peeked through the doorway. She looked nervous, having picked up on Julia’s mood.

“Yes, Dana?”

“Can we go outside and play? Amelia’s on her bike and she keeps beeping her horn.”

“All right, but stay on the sidewalk in front of the house.”

“Thanks!”

A moment later, Julia heard the three of them running, a door slam, and the house was quiet.

Julia grinned in satisfaction. She’d promised them no work on Sundays, and if she so much as lifted a rug, Ron would instantly appear at her side and drag Dana along with him. Now that they were outside, they wouldn’t notice if she did a little work.

What’s the point? You’ll never finish. Like Miriam implies, you’ve bitten off more than you can chew.

She heard laughter outside and went to the window, smiling as she watched Dana and Amelia push Jack on his trike, giggling as he made race car noises. Ron, lazily pedaling his bike back and forth, looked on in amusement as the trike spilled and the three younger children went rolling on the new lawn, laughing hysterically.

Julia hadn’t seen Ron smile since before the accident. Haunted by the memory of his parents and his own overwhelming sense of responsibility, he hadn’t seemed to have the space or time to smile. Today, though, he looked on the verge of a smile, a huge step forward.

I can do one thing right,
Julia thought.

It was enough to motivate her.

She changed her clothes, tied up her hair, and had just grabbed her first armload of things from the dining room when she heard a knock at the door.

“Come in, it’s open!” she shouted, thinking it was one of the kids.

When she came back into the kitchen, she was surprised to see Robert Wilde there, looking around, uncomfortable. He relaxed when he saw her and gave her a shy smile.

It flashed through Julia’s mind that he never, ever came upon her when she was ready for company. She always looked a mess.

Pushing the thought aside, she said, “Oh, hello. I thought you were out on patrol.”

“I’m on my way,” he said. “Derval Raye is coming by to look after Amelia while I’m gone, now that Mrs. Jurta is so busy with her dog’s problem.”

“Would you like some coffee?”

He shook his head. “Thank you, but no. I actually came because I have a little business proposal for you.”

“Really? Okay, I’m listening.”

“Mrs. Jurta is going away on the fourteenth, and she doesn’t know when she’s coming back. I go back to work on the fourteenth, and have no one else to look after Amelia while I’m gone. I’ve used up all my vacation time until October, and we’ll be short staffed that week because several of the other officers are going to be out on leave.”

Oh, no,
Julia thought.
He’s going to ask me to babysit. How can I possibly do that and still get these rooms done! I haven’t even finished the kitchen yet. What is it about me that make people see ‘Reliable Sitter’?

“Next week I have off and I was wondering: would you be willing to watch Amelia for about a week or so in exchange for a week of help on your house?”