about debate. I’d never heard a bad word about him.
She hesitated. “No.”
That hesitation said a lot. “Deena, I know Mr. Collins can be kind of out there. Did he say something that hurt your feelings?”
“No.” She didn’t sigh. She exhaled forcefully enough to scatter the traces of flour I’d spilled on the counter. “I just wanted to quit, that’s all. And I didn’t want an inquisition. That’s why I didn’t say anything right away.”
Stay out of my life. I heard that loud and clear. Of course the problem is that for parents, these are fighting words. Most of the time we are actually quite thrilled to stay out of our children’s lives, since hopefully we have lives of our own. Deena’s hair is Deena’s hair. The color of her nail polish, whether she wears pants or a skirt any given morning, chooses Twilight or The Book Thief at bedtime, sleeps over at Tara’s or Shannon’s? These are pieces of Deena’s life, not mine. But possible problems at school? Problems she might not be able to handle on her own at fourteen?
Whose problems were those?
“It just seems odd,” I said. “You’re not involved in that many other things. It can’t be time.”
“Give up, okay? My decision, not yours. And I’m happy about it. What kind of sauce are you putting on the pizza?”
Mothers regroup, they don’t quit, and I know my role. I dropped the subject for the moment, but I knew we weren’t finished.
“Garlic and oil?” I asked. “Tomato? Pesto? I think I still have some in the freezer.”
“Let’s do garlic and oil with mushrooms. We have mushrooms?”
“Gorgeous mushrooms. And red peppers.”
“Maybe I am hungry.” She wandered off to see what Teddy was doing.
I had just set the dough in my gas oven to rise when Lucy came barreling into the kitchen. Lucy knows she’s always welcome, and she does knock, more or less. But this time she surprised me.
“Murdered?” she shrieked.
I hadn’t had time to call and tell her the events of my afternoon, although it had been the next thing on my agenda. I went to the sink to wash my hands, and she followed me.
“I promise I was going to call,” I said. “We don’t know anything for sure. We just know the funeral director had to take Win’s body to the coroner for an autopsy. Maybe they want to study the effects of heart disease on retired ministers.”
“Aggie, the police got a phone call! Somebody claimed Win Dorchester was murdered, somebody they took seriously enough to interrupt your service.”
I grabbed a towel to dry my hands, but I was facing her by then. “How do you know all that?”
“I keep my ear to the ground.”
Two evasive females in short succession. What was it about my kitchen?
I struggled to sound casual. “What ground exactly?”
“The police got a call. I think it was a woman, but that part’s up in the air. I overhead some of this.”
“Where?” When she didn’t answer, I smiled reassuringly. “Lucy, I can tell you’re involved with somebody, and now it’s pretty clear it’s a cop. Is Roussos the mystery? You don’t have to hide that from me. I promise if you tell me that much, I’ll never mention it again.”
It’s a sad day when a friend snorts at you.
I wrinkled my nose after the noise died away. “Okay, I’ll try not to mention it again.”
“It’s not even important where I heard it.”
“Well, if it was Roussos, you and he have something really special going on, because that man doesn’t give out information to anybody.”
“You mean to you . And why? He knows you’re practically a professional snoop.”
“And you’re not?”
She threw her hands in the air. “Did I say that?”
My head was whirling. “Okay, what else did you overhear?”
“Nothing else, darn it. But I wanted you to know that much.”
I filled her in on the scene at the service, plus my attempts to make peace with Win’s admirers afterwards. “I hate to think about my next meeting with Hildy,” I
She hesitated. “No.”
That hesitation said a lot. “Deena, I know Mr. Collins can be kind of out there. Did he say something that hurt your feelings?”
“No.” She didn’t sigh. She exhaled forcefully enough to scatter the traces of flour I’d spilled on the counter. “I just wanted to quit, that’s all. And I didn’t want an inquisition. That’s why I didn’t say anything right away.”
Stay out of my life. I heard that loud and clear. Of course the problem is that for parents, these are fighting words. Most of the time we are actually quite thrilled to stay out of our children’s lives, since hopefully we have lives of our own. Deena’s hair is Deena’s hair. The color of her nail polish, whether she wears pants or a skirt any given morning, chooses Twilight or The Book Thief at bedtime, sleeps over at Tara’s or Shannon’s? These are pieces of Deena’s life, not mine. But possible problems at school? Problems she might not be able to handle on her own at fourteen?
Whose problems were those?
“It just seems odd,” I said. “You’re not involved in that many other things. It can’t be time.”
“Give up, okay? My decision, not yours. And I’m happy about it. What kind of sauce are you putting on the pizza?”
Mothers regroup, they don’t quit, and I know my role. I dropped the subject for the moment, but I knew we weren’t finished.
“Garlic and oil?” I asked. “Tomato? Pesto? I think I still have some in the freezer.”
“Let’s do garlic and oil with mushrooms. We have mushrooms?”
“Gorgeous mushrooms. And red peppers.”
“Maybe I am hungry.” She wandered off to see what Teddy was doing.
I had just set the dough in my gas oven to rise when Lucy came barreling into the kitchen. Lucy knows she’s always welcome, and she does knock, more or less. But this time she surprised me.
“Murdered?” she shrieked.
I hadn’t had time to call and tell her the events of my afternoon, although it had been the next thing on my agenda. I went to the sink to wash my hands, and she followed me.
“I promise I was going to call,” I said. “We don’t know anything for sure. We just know the funeral director had to take Win’s body to the coroner for an autopsy. Maybe they want to study the effects of heart disease on retired ministers.”
“Aggie, the police got a phone call! Somebody claimed Win Dorchester was murdered, somebody they took seriously enough to interrupt your service.”
I grabbed a towel to dry my hands, but I was facing her by then. “How do you know all that?”
“I keep my ear to the ground.”
Two evasive females in short succession. What was it about my kitchen?
I struggled to sound casual. “What ground exactly?”
“The police got a call. I think it was a woman, but that part’s up in the air. I overhead some of this.”
“Where?” When she didn’t answer, I smiled reassuringly. “Lucy, I can tell you’re involved with somebody, and now it’s pretty clear it’s a cop. Is Roussos the mystery? You don’t have to hide that from me. I promise if you tell me that much, I’ll never mention it again.”
It’s a sad day when a friend snorts at you.
I wrinkled my nose after the noise died away. “Okay, I’ll try not to mention it again.”
“It’s not even important where I heard it.”
“Well, if it was Roussos, you and he have something really special going on, because that man doesn’t give out information to anybody.”
“You mean to you . And why? He knows you’re practically a professional snoop.”
“And you’re not?”
She threw her hands in the air. “Did I say that?”
My head was whirling. “Okay, what else did you overhear?”
“Nothing else, darn it. But I wanted you to know that much.”
I filled her in on the scene at the service, plus my attempts to make peace with Win’s admirers afterwards. “I hate to think about my next meeting with Hildy,” I
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