A Smidgen of Sky by Dianna Dorisi Winget Page B

to Ben. I’d say thank you if Mama remembered to make me, but other than that, I’d pretend he wasn’t there at all.
    In the meantime, I had to find a way to convince Ginger to give Operation Finding Tina another try. Surely Tina was ready to be a mama by now.
    At least I hoped so. I was almost outta time.

9

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    â€œM ISS C LAUDIA ?” I asked as soon as Mama left for work the next afternoon. “I watered all those flowers out back. Need anything else?”
    â€œYou ’member those magnolia shrubs as well?”
    â€œYes, ma’am.”
    She glanced up from her sewing machine. “Well, then, no, child, I can’t think of nothing else right now.”
    â€œOkay, then I think I’ll ride my bike to the library for a bit. That all right?”
    â€œI s’pose it is. You asked your mama first?”
    â€œOh, she won’t mind. It’s not very far. I’ll be back in an hour or so.”
    She held up two squares of fabric with red roosters on them. “What do you think of these potholders I’m making for your mama? You think these colors are okay?”
    â€œOh, yes, ma’am. They look just right to me.”
    â€œWell, bless your heart. You be careful crossing those streets, now, you hear?”
    â€œI will,” I said. “Don’t fret about me.” Then I scooted out of there real quick, before she had time to realize that I’d never admitted to asking Mama about the library. But once I pedaled out of sight of the apartment, I slowed to give myself time to think.
    I didn’t like sneaking around behind Mama’s back like this. It made my belly feel all antsy. But the wedding raced toward me, and I owed it to Daddy to at least try to do right by him.
    I waved to Reverend Thomas as I passed the old Baptist church on the corner of Third and then waited for a delivery truck to pull out of the parking lot of the Taco Cabana on Fifth. By the time I reached the library, I’d talked myself out of feeling quite so nervous. After all, I was trying to bring Ginger and her mama back together. That wasn’t anything to feel bad about—it was downright admirable.
    I leaned my bike against one of the pillars by the front door and headed inside. I fished my library card out of my pocket as I neared the front desk. “Could I use the Internet, please?”
    The library lady didn’t look very old, but her glasses dangled from a gold chain around her neck. I thought only old people wore their glasses like a necklace.
    â€œI’ll need to see your card, please.” She ran it through a scanner and peered at the computer screen. I fidgeted. Maybe the card would somehow tell her what I was up to, that she shouldn’t let me use the Internet. But after a minute she smiled and said, “All right, we’ll put you on number nine. You can have thirty minutes, and more if you need it as long as no one else is waiting.” She scribbled the time on a sheet of paper and slid it across to me. “Need help with anything?”
    â€œNo, ma’am. We use the Internet at school all the time.” But then I hesitated. “Do you know how to go about finding people?”
    â€œFinding people? You mean like a person’s address?”
    â€œSomethin’ like that.”
    â€œWell, the easiest way would probably be with the online phone book.”
    I guess she could tell by the look on my face that I didn’t have much idea what she meant. She wiggled a finger at me. “Come on, I’ll show you.”
    She led me over to a computer and rolled out the chair. Her long fingers tapped in some letters on the keyboard. She wore pearly pink fingernail polish that made me think of Ginger. The screen flashed to Yahoo and then to the phone book. “Okay. Here you go,” she said, pointing. “Type the person’s name in this box right here, and any other information you might know in these boxes over