Suzanne that he’d saved when she went to Australia and now felt should be mine. I don’t know what else. I can’t believe he’s been keeping them for so long and never said a word.”
“He must be very good at keeping secrets.”
“Mm. Better than I ever guessed.”
They walked past the cut-off road to Judy’s house and continued on down to the divided paved road that was Magnolia Parkway. At this time of year, it was a beautiful sight, with a long line of crepe myrtles running all the way to the town, about five miles westward. Clusters of pink, white, lavender, and dark red blooms bent their necks in the breeze as bees clung to their flowers.
Alice and Nik stood at the intersection, admiring the view. A car whizzed by, and Nik grabbed Dawg’s collar to keep him off the highway.
“Ready to jog back?” she asked.
“In a moment.” Nik stepped into the shallow roadside ditch to examine a small amanita poking up through the leaf litter. Alice waited, used to his mycological diversions. He was always on the lookout for something he could photograph for the field guide that was his doctoral dissertation-in-progress.
“Not worth collecting,” he said, coming back to the road. Alice fell in step beside him and soon they were running at an easy pace. Dawg galloped on ahead, aiming for home.
Alice frowned, annoyed that she was feeling a little winded. She’d let herself get out of shape over the summer, eating too much ice cream and not burning it off. Nik could run and carry on a conversation with little or no effort, but she was having trouble keeping up. Finally she slowed to a walk.
“What’s the matter?” Nik stopped and waited for her to catch up.
“Stitch in my side.” She was feeling the tiniest bit wheezy and wished she’d stuck an inhaler in her pocket before they’d left the house.
“We’ll walk the rest of the way, then. Don’t breathe in shallow gulps like that. A stitch is caused when you don’t get enough oxygen.”
Alice nodded. He was always right about shit like that.
They turned down the driveway and stepped into the shade. There was a noticeable difference in temperature between the baking road and the cooler winding track under the trees. Alice’s hair stuck uncomfortably to her face and neck.
Her thoughts returned to the briefcase. After she’d helped Hal clean out her mother’s closet, when he’d gone upstairs to his study and brought down the case. “Go through it when you have the time,” he’d said, and that was all. No explanation beyond what she’d told Nik. She hoped it might tell her something about her father, and especially why her mother had returned from that faraway place so damaged.
She hurried across the yard and up the steps to the deck, Nik right behind her.
“What’s the hurry?”
“I think it’s time,” she said over her shoulder.
Inside, she went to the small extra bedroom that served as a home office and workspace for Nik, with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and a computer desk squeezed in beside a day bed. Margaret was sitting at the computer, completely engrossed in web surfing, and jumped when Alice came in.
“What?” she said, looking up.
Alice saw the flash of a webpage disappear as Margaret minimized the screen. Normally, she might have quizzed her about her internet surfing habits, but not just now. The briefcase contents were more important.
“I want to go through the stuff from your Grandma that Hal gave me.” She took the small brown case down from a shelf and sat on the floor, shoving books and a basket of laundry out of the way.
Nik stood in the doorway, his expression uncertain.
“You might as well come in,” she said. “No secrets. We’ll just all three see what’s here.”
Nik nodded and stepped across Alice to the day bed, where he moved notebooks and papers out of the way and sat down.
Alice turned her attention to the briefcase and undid the latch. As Hal had told her, it contained bundles of
“He must be very good at keeping secrets.”
“Mm. Better than I ever guessed.”
They walked past the cut-off road to Judy’s house and continued on down to the divided paved road that was Magnolia Parkway. At this time of year, it was a beautiful sight, with a long line of crepe myrtles running all the way to the town, about five miles westward. Clusters of pink, white, lavender, and dark red blooms bent their necks in the breeze as bees clung to their flowers.
Alice and Nik stood at the intersection, admiring the view. A car whizzed by, and Nik grabbed Dawg’s collar to keep him off the highway.
“Ready to jog back?” she asked.
“In a moment.” Nik stepped into the shallow roadside ditch to examine a small amanita poking up through the leaf litter. Alice waited, used to his mycological diversions. He was always on the lookout for something he could photograph for the field guide that was his doctoral dissertation-in-progress.
“Not worth collecting,” he said, coming back to the road. Alice fell in step beside him and soon they were running at an easy pace. Dawg galloped on ahead, aiming for home.
Alice frowned, annoyed that she was feeling a little winded. She’d let herself get out of shape over the summer, eating too much ice cream and not burning it off. Nik could run and carry on a conversation with little or no effort, but she was having trouble keeping up. Finally she slowed to a walk.
“What’s the matter?” Nik stopped and waited for her to catch up.
“Stitch in my side.” She was feeling the tiniest bit wheezy and wished she’d stuck an inhaler in her pocket before they’d left the house.
“We’ll walk the rest of the way, then. Don’t breathe in shallow gulps like that. A stitch is caused when you don’t get enough oxygen.”
Alice nodded. He was always right about shit like that.
They turned down the driveway and stepped into the shade. There was a noticeable difference in temperature between the baking road and the cooler winding track under the trees. Alice’s hair stuck uncomfortably to her face and neck.
Her thoughts returned to the briefcase. After she’d helped Hal clean out her mother’s closet, when he’d gone upstairs to his study and brought down the case. “Go through it when you have the time,” he’d said, and that was all. No explanation beyond what she’d told Nik. She hoped it might tell her something about her father, and especially why her mother had returned from that faraway place so damaged.
She hurried across the yard and up the steps to the deck, Nik right behind her.
“What’s the hurry?”
“I think it’s time,” she said over her shoulder.
Inside, she went to the small extra bedroom that served as a home office and workspace for Nik, with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves and a computer desk squeezed in beside a day bed. Margaret was sitting at the computer, completely engrossed in web surfing, and jumped when Alice came in.
“What?” she said, looking up.
Alice saw the flash of a webpage disappear as Margaret minimized the screen. Normally, she might have quizzed her about her internet surfing habits, but not just now. The briefcase contents were more important.
“I want to go through the stuff from your Grandma that Hal gave me.” She took the small brown case down from a shelf and sat on the floor, shoving books and a basket of laundry out of the way.
Nik stood in the doorway, his expression uncertain.
“You might as well come in,” she said. “No secrets. We’ll just all three see what’s here.”
Nik nodded and stepped across Alice to the day bed, where he moved notebooks and papers out of the way and sat down.
Alice turned her attention to the briefcase and undid the latch. As Hal had told her, it contained bundles of
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