Sweet Misfortune: A Novel (18 page)

Evalynn laughed. “Poor Tom. After that, I don’t think he asked out another girl until he was well out of high school.” She paused. “Well I thought you handled yourself very well tonight, given the circumstances.”

“Thanks. I’m not any closer to knowing who sent it, but I’m at least relieved to know Ellen had nothing to do with it. She’s the closest thing I have to a mother, and I’d have been crushed to think I could no longer trust her.”

“Any other ideas about who might have sent it or where they would have gotten it from?”

“None whatsoever. But you know Ellen. If she says she can get the information, then I’m sure she will.”

As promised, a few minutes later Ellen strode proudly back into the kitchen. “Got it!” she announced.

“That was fast,” said Sophie.

“This one was easy-peasy. All I had to do was call up an old—”

Sophie didn’t want to hear every little detail about the data chase. All growing up she’d listened to Ellen’s lengthy explanations about the intricacies of tracking down perps, and she wasn’t in the mood for that now. “Who sent it, Ellen?” she pressed diplomatically. “Cut to the chase.”

“Fine,” she responded, only slightly put off. “The return address on your envelope is the home of one Jacob Barnes. Ring any bells?”

Evalynn and Sophie both shook their heads.

Ellen grinned. “Well, it did for me. As soon as my guy downtown said the name, I knew who it was. But just to be sure, I checked a copy of an old police report that I keep in my desk. Anyone care to venture a guess as to what report that is?” She waited for responses, but all she got from either of her visitors was blank stares. “
The accident
, Sophie. He was listed as one of the people who sustained injuries.”

“Jacob Barnes?” asked Sophie. “Do you remember him from that night?”

“Sweets,” Ellen said as she took a seat next to Sophie and draped an arm around her shoulder. To Sophie, Ellen suddenly sounded more like a mother, and less like a cop. “The only thing I remember from that night is that I met you. The rest of the details are just a blur, along with the thousands of other accidents I’ve had the misfortune of witnessing in my twenty-three years on the force.”

“Jacob Barnes,” Sophie repeated, familiarizing herself with the name. “So if this Jacob Barnes was there, then he must have found my fortune after I tossed it. But how did he know that it was
my
fortune? It could have been anyone’s.”

“It’s tough to say,” remarked Ellen, as she withdrew her arm from Sophie’s shoulder and placed it on her own lap. “But at least we know he was there, which explains how he got it.”

“I’m no detective,” quipped Evalynn, “but I think I know how we can find out how he knew it was yours, and why he wrote your name on the back. We know where the guy lives, right? I think we need to take a little trip to Bellevue. Sophie, are you game?”

Sophie nodded.

“Ellen?”

Ellen winked. “Me and my nine-millimeter would be happy to give you a police escort.”

Chapter 26

If good people have good luck, and bad people have bad luck,
why is it that you have dumb luck?

E
VALYNN AND SOPHIE PICKED UP ELLEN SHORTLY AFTER
lunch on the following Saturday, which was the first day that worked with all of their schedules. It meant that Sophie had to get Randy to cover a few extra hours at Chocolat’ de Soph, but he was more than willing to help out. Justin had purchased a plug-in GPS unit for Evalynn on her last birthday, so finding the home of Jacob Barnes was a cinch. The device’s female voice directed them off of the interstate after twenty-five minutes, and from there it was almost a straight shot up 150th Avenue to a development full of beautiful homes at the top of the hill near Saddleback Park.

“Wow,” Ellen commented. “Jacob Barnes is doing well for himself.”

“Destination on the… left… in point one miles,” said the electronic female voice after Evalynn made a turn onto 54th Place.

Evalynn slowed the car and pulled to a stop near the curb. “You sure you’re okay doing this, Sophie?”

“Yeah, Sweets,” Ellen added from the backseat. “You’re looking kind of flush.”

Clutching the envelope that had been sent from the house across the street, Sophie tried to smile bravely. “I wasn’t nervous until we pulled up. But now…?”

“I’m sure there’s nothing to worry about,” Evalynn said reassuringly.

Again, Sophie tried to grin. She turned to look at Ellen, and then again at Evalynn. “I know. It’s not meeting Jacob Barnes that has my stomach in knots. It’s more the thought of facing my past. It’s just… weird, you know? After twenty years, to suddenly find out that some stranger has known all along that I played a part in the accident.”

“You don’t know that’s what he’s thinking.”

“I know—I can feel it. Why else would he have sent that fortune back to me? He must have seen me on the news and somehow recognized me and figured out I was the one who placed the ad.”

Ellen reached forward and rubbed Sophie’s shoulder. “I’ve told you since you were nine that you can’t blame yourself. Maybe meeting Mr. Barnes will help that to finally sink in.”

“Maybe,” Sophie said, but sounded doubtful.
Or maybe he’ll blame me, too, and reinforce my worst fear.

With Ellen leading the way, the trio got out of the car and crossed the street. Sophie tried to ignore the woman in the house next door who was watching them like a hawk from her front window as they walked up the steep driveway. She also noticed that no cars were in the drive, and silently hoped that meant nobody was home.

Ellen marched straight up to the door without a moment’s hesitation and rang the doorbell. Sophie and Evalynn took a fallback position a few feet behind her.

Several moments later, a stout little man with a large round face opened the door. He had almond-shaped eyes and a grin that stretched from one earlobe to the other. “Hello,” he said with a funny accent. “Visitors. I love visitors. I don’t get too many of them, though.” He paused before adding another, “Hello.”

None of the three women needed to be told that the young man staring back at them had Down’s syndrome. His happy demeanor put them instantly at ease. “Hi,” Ellen said. “We’re looking for Jacob Barnes. Is he around?”

The man scratched at his thick blond hair. “Is it really important?” he asked, smiling. “He’s my dad. Maybe I can help you instead. I’m Alex.” Alex glanced at Evalynn’s sweatshirt and read the purple screen-printed words. “Washington State Dawgs.”

Evalynn laughed with amusement. “That’s right. Are you a fan?”

“No. But I like the word. D-A-W-G-S,” he said, stretching out the sound of each letter. “But I don’t think it’s spelled right.”

Sophie was watching the man intently. Something about him felt strangely familiar. “Alex, have we met before?” she asked.

He shrugged. “I don’t know. Have you ever shopped at Albertsons? I work there. Lots of people shop at Albertsons. They buy groceries.” He pointed at the mascot on Evi’s chest. “And dog food.” He paused once more to think. “And magazines with Britney Spears or Oprah on the cover.”

Sophie chuckled. “Maybe that’s it.”

Ellen laughed, too, as she opened up her police badge that was clipped to her hip. Even when she wasn’t in uniform, she always carried her badge, just in case. On more than one occasion it had saved her from getting a speeding ticket after being pulled over. “Alex, my name is Officer Monroe, and I work with the Seattle Police department.”

He seemed fascinated by the badge, reaching out to run his fingers over its shiny surface. “Cool. A cop.”

“My friend here,” Ellen continued, pointing to Sophie, “got a letter this week in the mail that has something in it that came from your dad.”

Alex stared at Sophie quizzically. “
You’re
the one looking for happiness? Cool.”

“So you know about what was sent?” Sophie asked, holding up the envelope in her hands.

He looked at it briefly. “Uh-huh.”

Sophie exhaled. “I’d like to talk to your father about it. Is he at home?”

“Nope.”

“Will he be back soon?”

Alex’s bright smile dimmed a little. “Nope.”

Evalynn had been largely silent but finally spoke up. “Do you know where he is? If it’s not too far, maybe we could pay him a quick visit.”

Alex scratched his head again. “I know where he is. I don’t know the address, but I could take you there.”

Evalynn and Ellen looked to Sophie to see what she wanted to do. Having taken half the day off of work to meet Jacob Barnes, she wanted to make good use of her time, but she wasn’t sure how she felt about involving Jacob’s son. Before she could make up her mind, another person showed up at the house.

“Can I help you?” asked the woman, as she walked up the front steps. “I’m Meredith Sloan, from next door.”

The hawk from the window
, thought Sophie.

Ellen smiled. “No, I think we’re okay. We just came to visit Mr. Barnes.”

Meredith’s demeanor shifted. “Well I’m not just Alex’s neighbor. I’m also paid to look after him and help with his… special needs. So if there’s something specific that you require, I’m probably the right person to work with.”

Before Sophie, Ellen, or Evalynn could say anything further, Alex piped up. “It’s okay, Meredith. She’s a police officer.”

Meredith straightened. “Oh my. Whatever happened, I’m sure Alex had nothing to do with it. He’s a good kid.”

“It’s nothing like that,” Ellen reassured. “This isn’t official police business. More of a personal courtesy call.”

Sophie stepped forward. “I was in an accident when I was a little girl, and Jacob Barnes was in it, too.”

“Ah,” Meredith said. “Probably the accident that took his fingers.”

An image flashed in Sophie’s head of a man lying on the ground staring up at his hand while an EMT worked to stop the bleeding where his fingers had been severed. “Yes,” Sophie replied softly, “that’s the one. We came today looking for a little more information about the accident, and Alex said—”

“They want to go visit my dad,” Alex interjected. “Can I take them?”

Meredith looked more puzzled than ever. “You want to visit Jacob?”

All three women nodded. “If it wouldn’t be a bother,” said Sophie. “Alex says he knows how to get there.”

“Yes, he knows quite well. Goes as often as he can.” She looked at Alex, and then searched the faces of the visitors. “But I don’t see what you’re going to learn at the cemetery about a decades-old car accident.”

“Cemetery?” Sophie blurted out, trading worried looks with Ellen. “Why on earth would we go to the—?” She stopped and stared at Meredith, confused. “Is Jacob Barnes…
dead
?”

Now Meredith looked confused, too. “You didn’t know?” she said. “He passed away a few months ago. Lost a good fight with leukemia.”

“Of course not… we… I mean, I got a letter in the mail and I just assumed…” She turned to face Alex again, and a new wave of recollection set in. “Which cemetery?” Sophie asked.

Alex looked to Meredith for the name. “Evergreen,” she said. “It’s up there off of—”

“Aurora Avenue!” said Sophie excitedly. “That’s where I saw you! About a month ago, on my birthday. Sunglasses, right?”

“I always wear sunglasses there,” Alex acknowledged.

“In case he cries,” Meredith said under her breath. “So other people don’t see.”

Sophie remembered the brief but odd encounter with Alex in the moments before Evalynn showed up that night, and suddenly became concerned. “Alex, were you following me at the cemetery?”

He stuck his hands in his pockets. “I was there first. I don’t think the first person can follow. Can they?”

Good point
, she thought. Tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, Sophie stepped closer to Alex, who was still standing in the doorway of the house. Her expression was serious, but her tone was soft and gentle. “Alex, when I saw you, you weren’t visiting your father. You were staring at the grave of
my parents
. What were you doing there?”

Everyone was silent, waiting for Alex to reply. “Reading,” he said, matching Sophie’s quiet voice. “ ‘Husband and Father. Wife and Mother. Loved their daughter and each other fully and forever.’ It’s very nice. I memorized it. Dad showed it to me every time we went there. He said he met that daughter once.” He looked at everyone in turn, his eyes landing on Sophie last of all. His voice dropped even further, but his face still shone with an innocent happiness. “I guess you must be her. Sophia Maria Jones.”

Chapter 27

A poor conclusion is simply the place where you
got tired of thinking.

E
VERYONE ON THE BARNES FRONT PORCH STOOD IN
awkward silence.

Everyone, that is, except Alex. “Are we still going to visit my dad?” he asked. “Or do you want to come inside my house? Inside is warmer than outside, and I like warmer better.”

“That’s a good idea, Alex,” Meredith said, taking a small step toward the door. “Maybe we should all go inside and sit for a bit. Would you ladies care for something to drink?”

Evalynn and Ellen both looked again to Sophie for direction. “That would be fine,” Sophie said politely. “Thank you.”

The house was even more spacious on the inside than it looked on the outside, with tall, vaulted ceilings and an open floor plan that made every room feel big. In the living room, most of the walls were lined with custom cherry cabinets, almost all of which were filled with books. To Sophie it looked like a small library. The only empty space was the end cabinet on the far wall, which was only half full.

“Wow,” Sophie said, impressed. “Someone likes to read.”

“Me!” Alex exclaimed proudly. “I’ve read every book here. Some more than once. Some even
more than
more than once.”

“You’re almost out of shelf space,” commented Evalynn. “What are you going to do then?”

Alex gave Evalynn a funny look, as though trying to decide if the question was a joke. “Get more shelves,” he said finally, without a hint of irony.

Sophie and Ellen laughed in unison. For her part, Sophie was beginning to feel a giant sense of relief. She’d been dreading facing Jacob Barnes, simply because she didn’t know how he would react. Had he held deep animosity toward her for the past two decades? Was his life in shambles because of her selfish impatience as a child? But in place of the grumpy old man that she imagined she’d be meeting, there was Alex, whose happy disposition and innocent friendliness was about as threatening as a purring kitten.

Meredith went to fetch coffee, while the rest of the group took seats in the living room. Sophie and Evalynn shared the leather sofa, Ellen sat in the love seat, and Alex plopped down merrily in a thick suede recliner.

Once everyone was settled, Sophie was the first to speak. “Alex, I’m really sorry to hear that your father passed away. Just meeting you, I can tell I would have liked him.”

Alex fidgeted with his fingers, but kept smiling. “Are you going to ask a lot of questions about him?”

“I’d like to ask a few, if that’s all right with you.”

His eyebrows jutted up and he scratched nervously at his ear. Then, without saying a word, he got up from his chair and shuffled over to a curved console in the entryway. In the top drawer was a pair of dark sunglasses. He put them on and then returned to the recliner. “Okay.”

Sophie smiled warmly. “Okay, you said your dad took you to the cemetery to visit my parents’ grave. How often did you go?”

“Every year. The day after my birthday.”

“Oh? When is your birthday?”

“September twenty.”

Sophie made eye contact with Ellen on the love seat. “That’s… the day before my birthday. So you went to the cemetery every year on September twenty-first?”

Alex leaned forward slightly in his chair and nodded. “On my birthday we always had a big party. Dad said the day I was born was the very, very most important day of his life. And the next day was the very most important one—
just one ‘very.’
There were other important days too, but I can’t remember them all. Except for Christmas. And Easter.” He paused to smile. “And Valentine’s. I remember those.”

Evalynn smiled.

“Did he ever talk about the accident?” Sophie asked.

Meredith returned from the kitchen a few moments later with five coffee mugs and an assortment of herbal teas. “I forgot, we don’t keep any coffee stocked here—it doesn’t sit well with Alex. Is tea okay? If not, I can run over to my house and put a pot on.”

“This is fine,” Ellen said. “Thanks.”

Meredith set everything on the coffee table and invited them to help themselves.

“What was your question?” Alex asked Sophie, once Meredith was seated.

“The accident that your father and I were in. Did he talk about it much? Maybe when you guys went to the cemetery?”

He shook his head. “Nope. Dad just said it was a day he would never forget. Mostly we just went there to take the stones.”

Sophie sat up as she recalled the beautiful stones she found annually on the corner of her parents’ gravestone. She saw out of the corner of her eye that the comment had caught Evalynn’s attention as well. “The rocks on the grave? That was you and your dad?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Is that what you were doing there two weeks ago? Dropping off another rock?”

“Yes. Dad told me before he…
left
, that it would be nice to keep taking rocks each year. Now I leave them for Tom and Cecelia, Jacob, and Katherine, but not on the same days.” Alex fiddled with his sunglasses to make sure they were still adequately covering his eyes. “A few years ago we figured out that if we went late enough in the day, we would find a piece of chocolate waiting there for me. Dad said that was my treat for taking the stones.”

Ellen stopped stirring her cup of tea. “Who is Katherine?”

Alex didn’t respond.

“Maybe I can field that one,” offered Meredith. “In fact, since your family was obviously important to Jacob, perhaps a little history is deserved. I can’t tell you much about the accident that you were involved in, but I knew pretty much everything else about the Barneses.”

Evalynn and Sophie fixed themselves cups of orange spice tea while Meredith spoke. Alex sat listening behind the safety of his dark lenses.

“Jacob and Katherine Barnes were both lawyers,” she continued. “Partners in a big firm downtown. When Katherine became pregnant they started searching for a full-time nanny who could help out once the baby arrived.” Meredith smiled and took a sip of her tea. “They chose me just a week before he was born. Unfortunately,” she glanced at Alex, as if looking for permission to continue, “it was a difficult labor. There were…
complications
. Katherine didn’t make it.”

The room was silent, except for the sound coming from Alex, who was fidgeting again with his ear.

Meredith shrugged. “So my role expanded somewhat for those first few years, until Alex was old enough to go to school during the day. But when he was little, I did almost everything to keep the family going.”

“And you’ve stayed on all these years?” Ellen asked.

She nodded. “The workload varied, depending on Alex’s needs and Jacob’s schedule. But Alex has always been such a joy to be around, I couldn’t think of a better job. Eventually I got married and started my own family. I have two teenagers—and if I know them, they are probably fighting right now over the Wii at home—but I’ve always been able to balance my own life with the Barneses’ needs. Once Jacob developed leukemia, he purchased the house next door so my family and I could be closer, basically to avoid having to move Alex to an assisted-living home once he was gone. I’m still technically an employee—I’m paid monthly from a trust—but I hardly feel like one. Alex is family, and that’ll never change. My whole family adores him.” She paused and looked directly at Alex, grinning proudly. “Everybody adores him.”

Alex slid four fingers beneath the rim of his glasses to rub at his eyes.

Sophie stared at the tea bag that was still steeping in her cup. She thought about the old paper fortune she’d wanted to discuss with Jacob. Then she pulled her eyes from her warm drink and looked at Alex, considering all that he must’ve gone through in his life, starting on day one with the loss of his mother, followed by years of struggling with a disability, and recently losing his father to a terminal illness. A new sense of guilt coursed through her for the additional pain that she’d caused this family.

Without thinking about it, Sophie put her cup down and took a giant breath. She looked at Alex and Meredith. “This wasn’t exactly why I came here today, but now that I’m here, I want you to know the truth.
I
…
am somewhat to blame for the accident twenty years ago that cut off Jacob’s fingers.
” After adding a few details about how she was distracting her father while they were driving in the rain, she quickly pulled out the envelope with the old fortune-cookie message and held it out for them to see. “This was my fortune from my ninth birthday. I threw it away that night at the crash, right after I told a police officer—Ellen—that it was my fault. But somehow Jacob found it.” Sophie took another moment to breathe while Meredith examined the fortune. “I can only assume that he overheard what I told Ellen, and then kept it all this time so he wouldn’t forget who was responsible for crippling his hand. Anyway… I… I know I should have apologized to Jacob while he was still… around. But until this very moment, meeting both of you, I never had the nerve. So, I’m… very sorry.”

Everyone let the words settle before making a sound. Meredith was the first to speak. “Ms. Jones, thank you for that. But honestly, I’m sure that Jacob did not blame you for what happened to his hand.” She snickered. “Jacob was a good and honest man, but… well, let’s just say he was a lawyer. If he’d thought someone was responsible for that accident, I can assure you there would have been lawsuits involved.”

“Then why keep the paper all this time? And why write my name on the back of it?” She turned to Alex. “And as a sidebar—who mailed this out last week, anyway?”

Alex raised his hand and let his glasses slide to the end of his nose so everyone could see his eyes again. “I sent it. I saw the thingy on YouTube—Meredith sent it to me—about the newspaper ad, and I wanted to help. Dad always told me that happiness is a gift, and so I thought his paper might help someone—you, I guess—find it. Sorry.”

“Oh, don’t be sorry,” Sophie said, backpedaling. “I just want to understand.” She smiled warmly at Alex. “I’m actually really glad you sent it. Of all the things that people sent me, this is my favorite, because it led me here to meet you.”

Alex adjusted the glasses that covered his eyes, but nothing could cover his giant smile.

“And as for why he kept that fortune all this time,” Meredith said to Sophie, “I don’t think you need to worry. Maybe he liked the message. Perhaps it gave him hope or lifted his spirits. But I can assure you that he didn’t harbor any animosity toward you, Sophia.”

“Can I ask something?” said Evalynn after a short span of quiet. “I’m still curious about the rocks on the grave. Is that like a religious thing?”

Meredith chuckled. “I don’t think anyone would ever label Jacob Barnes as a religious man. But he had faith. He believed that he would see Katherine again, that she wasn’t just gone. When I asked about the stones he always came up with a different answer. ‘Just for decoration,’ ‘Because flowers wilt,’ ‘I like rocks,’ that sort of thing. But on one occasion he said something that I thought was a little closer to the truth—‘Rocks and memories last forever.’ I think the rocks were just his way of memorializing the woman he loved.”

Evalynn nodded, but Sophie looked puzzled. “Then why did he put them on my parents’ grave?”

Meredith just shrugged. “Out of respect? I don’t know. Alex, any ideas?”

He shook his head. “Nope. I just know we took them, put them on the graves, and then he would tell me about Sophia Maria Jones. That was all.” Alex focused on Sophie. “And sometimes he would say that he’d like me to meet you, and…” His voice trailed off, and he looked to be thinking very hard.

“Alex?” said Meredith. “Is everything okay?”

A few seconds later Alex reached up and yanked his sunglasses from his face. There was an obvious excitement in his eye. “I’ll be right back!” With that, he jumped up out of his seat and ran down the hallway, returning a couple minutes later looking slightly dejected. “I can’t find it,” he announced.

“What were you looking for?” Meredith asked.

Alex sat back down. “I remembered. When he was sick, Dad said he was writing a letter for Sophia Maria Jones. Said he would put it in my favorite place, and told me that after he… you know—after he…”

“Died,” Meredith said softly.

Alex frowned. “Uh-huh… after that, he said if I found it I should mail it to her, and that maybe someday she’d come knocking on the door.”

Sophie waited a few seconds to see if he was going to say more, and then remarked, “Well, then, looks like I’m early.”

Shifting in her seat, Meredith asked Alex where he’d looked for the letter.

“In my room,” he replied. “My favorite place is my bedroom. I like sleep, so I looked under the bed, under the mattress, under the sheet—even under the pillow, but I couldn’t find it.” He turned to Sophie. “I’m sorry, Sophia, I don’t know where it is. But I’ll keep looking.”

“Thank you, Alex. That’s very nice of you. Can I give you my phone number, in case it turns up?”

His eyes lit up. “Yes! I like to talk on the phone. Can I call you?”

“Of course,” she said with a slight giggle. “If you ever want to talk, just give me a ring.”