Trust in Me by Kathryn Shay Page A

upstairs.
    Matt had taken a chair at the table and tossed a baseball up in the air; its rhythmic thud as it hit the glove was soothing to Annie. Suzie perched on a stool and questioned him about his team.
    Soon, a high-pitched voice rent the air. “Aunt Suzie!”
    Five-year-old Faith burst into the kitchen, a human tornado on pink-sneakered feet, and threw herself at her aunt. Faith’s thick, waist-length blond hair was the exact color and texture Annie’s had been at that age; it bobbed in a jaunty ponytail.
    Slowly, Annie’s hand crept to her shoulder, where loose locks that turned curly when she cropped it replaced the heavy strands that she’d sheared—again, six years before—because Joe would never allow her to cut it.
    She frowned, wondering why her ex-husband was on her mind tonight. She could go for days without thinking about him, even though, within two years of their divorce, a monthly reminder began coming like clockwork—the child support check that grew larger as time went on. As she finished cleaning up supper dishes, and the kids entertained Suzie, Annie remembered getting the first check. She’d rushed right to Linc...
    “What does this mean?” she’d asked, distressed over seeing Joe’s bold masculine scrawl on the envelope.
    “Apparently he’s decided to start paying child support.”
    “It’s from the city. He’s only an hour away?”
    “I guess. Look, Annie, if he’s left you alone for two years, it’s not likely he’s coming back.”
    “Oh, God. What if he does?”
    “What if he does?” Linc had asked simply.
    She’d sat in Linc’s cramped apartment over the church garage, taking deep breaths, trying to silence the alarm bells going off in her head. Finally she calmed enough to say, “I can handle it. I can call the police, or a friend. I can get another restraining order. He won’t hurt me unless I let him.”
    “Good girl.”
    Two years of therapy had done wonders; Annie had won the battle with what used to be incessant anxiety....
    Suzie was talking to her. “What time do you have to leave?”
    Annie looked over to see Faith nestled on Suzie’s lap, examining her aunt’s blue metallic nail polish. Annie knew she’d come home to find Faith’s finger- and toenails the exact color. Though she was an angelic child worthy of her name, she loved to try different things.
    “Linc’s picking me up in ten minutes.”
    “How come you have a midweek council meeting? Aren’t they usually on Friday?” Annie was the community representative on the three-year-old Glen Oaks Youth Council which, thank God, Linc had started to help kids in trouble. Like she’d been. Like they’d all been.
    Her mind on business now, Annie wiped her hands on a towel, gathered up her purse, dragged a fleece jacket out of the closet and threw it on over her green sweater and jeans. “The new Social Services guy is coming tonight. This is to meet him.”
    “I thought he wasn’t due until the end of the month.”
    “He wasn’t. Haven’t you heard? Marnie” —the head of the Youth Council and director of Glen Oaks Social Services— “had a baby girl early—the day before yesterday.”
    “No kidding.” Suzie looked at Annie. “Who’s the new guy?”
    “Somebody from the city division. Apparently, he asked to come to Glen Oaks. Must have wanted a change of pace.”
    “Hmm, new blood in town. How old is he?”
    “I don’t know anything about him. No one does, since he wasn’t expected until April.” Annie grinned and ruffled Suzie’s hair on her way to the door. It was thick and silky—like Joe’s used to be. “I’ll check him out for you, though, kiddo.”
    “Check him out for yourself.”
    Annie turned as she opened the door. “No way. The last thing I need in my life is a man.” Though the thought no longer made her stomach queasy, it’d be a cold day in hell when she’d trust a guy again. Surveying the kitchen, she added, “I told the kids you’d make hot