Savoring the drumstick, he chuckled. “Never heard cooking broken down quite like that before.”
“I wonder if there are any chefs at NASA? I’ll have to ask Brain’s mom the next time I talk to her. I think cooking and science complement each other.”
He watched her pull a casserole dish of macaroni and cheese from the oven, check the level of milk still visible, and slide it back in. “Not ready?” he asked.
“No, but almost.”
“Where’s your sister?”
“Upstairs packing for Zoey’s sleepover.”
“Oh, that’s right. I forgot about that. We’re meeting her at church on Sunday, right?”
“Right.”
“What else are you cooking, Julia Child?”
She smiled. “Asparagus.”
“Can’t wait. Anything you need help with?”
“No, I got this.”
“Okay. I’m going to go up and talk to Tiff for a minute.”
He found his youngest angrily stuffing items in her pink overnight bag. “Hey? What’s wrong?”
The glare she shot him brought him up straight. “Whoa, Tiff. What’s the matter?”
She stopped packing and dropped down onto the edge of her bed. “Mom just called me.”
“And . . . ?”
“She wants me to demand that you let her stay with us when she gets here next weekend.”
“Demand?”
“Dad, I don’t want to be in the middle of my parents’ drama. She said all kinds of stuff about you deliberately keeping us from her, and that she was going to get a court order.”
“What? I talked to her before I left work. I told her she could see you when she got here. There’s no room for her to stay with us.”
There were tears in her eyes. “Why is she such a witch? I’m a kid. I’m not supposed to have to deal with this.”
Gary came over and sat beside her. He pulled her in against his side and gave her a strong hug. “You’re right. You’re a kid and kids shouldn’t have to be pawns in whatever craziness their parents are doing. She’s your mom and I’ve tried to be careful not to make you girls choose sides.”
“I know, but she’s not being nice. The whole time we were in Atlanta all she talked about was how terrible you were to her.”
He didn’t find that surprising. “There’re always three sides to something like this: her side, my side, and the truth.”
“Did Lee tell you what Mom said about her?”
“No.”
“You can’t let Lee know I told you, okay?”
Curious, he replied, “Okay.”
“Mom told her she’ll never get married if she keeps doing science.”
“What!”
Gary seethed. He now understood why Leah was the way she was when he talked to her about her visit to Atlanta.
“Then she said it was too bad Lee looked like your ugly family instead of hers. Leah cried that night after we went to bed. She was quiet, but I heard her. It made me cry, too.”
Gary’s heart broke. “In spite of what your mom thinks, Leah is beautiful in so many ways. And you are, too.”
“I know. She’s going to marry Brain and be the most famous astrophysicist in the world.”
“Yep.”
“And I already told her I’m going to be president of her international fan club. I don’t think Mom’s going to get invited to the wedding.”
He stifled his chuckle. “Did she hurt your feelings too, while you were there?”
“No. She just made me mad. Kept trying to get me to say you were a bad dad. When I wouldn’t, she yelled at me. Said I must be stupid not to know the difference.” She met his eyes. “I think you’re a great dad.”
Her words filled his heart. “Thanks. I think you and Lee are the best daughters a dad could ever have.” He kissed her forehead. “I’ll handle your mom, you get ready to go have fun with Zoey and your girls. Feeling better?”
She nodded. “Thanks.”
“Good. Are you eating dinner here or there?”
“Here, and there. Zoey and her mom won’t be here until seven.” For someone so tiny, Tiffany could put away some food.
He stood. “Okay. And I’ll be talking to your mom about this. If she has a problem with me, she shouldn’t be dragging you into it.” He took in her now relaxed stance. “Love you, Tiff.”
“Love you too, Daddy.”
As he walked to his bedroom, the idea of Colleen trashing Leah’s spirit made him want to punch a wall. The urge to talk to Leah about the incident was strong, but he didn’t want to betray Tiff’s trust. His oldest rarely cried, and for her to do it alone with no one to comfort her or tell her not to believe Colleen’s cruel words only increased his anger. Were it up to him, neither of them would ever visit Colleen again, but that would never fly. She was their mother, and until they reached eighteen she had the right to see them regardless of how they felt. As for the court order she’d talked about, he hoped she had more sense than to try that. He doubted a judge would rule in her favor if either of the girls were to testify on her own behalf. So for now, his only option was to continue to support them and their dreams with every fiber of his being. He’d also speak with Reverend Paula to find out if there was anything else he could or should be doing to help them stay strong.
A short while later, they had dinner, and as always, Leah’s cooking knocked it out of the park. Everything was delicious. Once they were done, Leah was off duty, so she sat at the counter with her laptop while he and Tiff did cleanup. When they finished he said, “I want to do something as a family next summer. Any suggestions?”
Tiff asked, “Can we go to the Grand Canyon?”
That surprised him. “I like that idea. What about you, Lee?”
“I’m not sure what I want to do, but I like Tiff’s idea.”
“Okay,” he said, “tell you what. Think about it and give me two choices each and we’ll talk about them and figure it out.”
They both beamed with approval.
“Do you have a preference?” Leah asked.
He shrugged. “Not really. Thought I’d let you two decide.”
“You should get a choice, too,” Tiffany replied. “You never do anything fun for yourself.”
Leah agreed, “She’s right, you know. All you do is work.”
Admittedly, they were right. “Someone has to,” he countered with a smile. “Kids are expensive.”
“Do you need us to get jobs?” Leah asked, concern in her voice.
Sorry his quip unintentionally caused her worry, he replied, “No, not really. I make enough to keep a roof over our heads, but if you want more spending money, a job is the way to go.”
“I think I might like working in the kitchen at the Dog,” Leah said, as if thinking out loud. “Siz could help me be a better cook.”
Tiff chimed in, “I’ve been wanting to learn to do hair. Do you think Kelly would teach me?”
The more he talked to his daughters, the more impressive he found them to be. “As long as the jobs don’t interfere with your schoolwork.”
Leah said, “Be easier for us to get around if I could drive.”
Gary eyed her. “You want to drive?”
“I’m sixteen, Daddy. Everybody my age wants to drive.”
He sighed. She was right again. With so much on his plate, driving lessons hadn’t been a priority, mainly because Leah had never brought it up until now.
“Brain can always teach me if you don’t have time,” she offered.
“No, I’ll make the time, and doesn’t he still need an adult riding with him?”
“Yes. I forgot about that.”
“Find out what we need to do to get started, like classes, costs, and all that, and we’ll go from there.”
Leah’s smile lit up the room. “Thank you.”
Tiff seemed equally happy. “You should get a Mustang, Lee. They’re lit.”
Gary chuckled. “No Mustangs. Nothing lit. The car will be used, but
new to Lee.”
Tiff did a mock pout. Leah didn’t seem to mind, though.
Roni and Zoey came to pick up Tiff a bit later, and Leah left with Preston and his dad to head to the rec for movie night. As Gary watched Preston back slowly down the driveway, all he could think about was that he, too, was about to become the dad of a teenage driver. He prayed.
Later, as he sat in his pajamas in his bedroom watching television, he thought about what his life might look like once the girls were grown and gone and the house no longer echoed with their laughter, their comings and goings, or the lingering scents of Leah’s cooking. He’d have nothing but the store. He’d still have Dads Inc., the town’s support group for fathers, but little else in the way of social entertainment. He could remember when he looked forward to life and the future, but that changed when he gave up both to make an honest woman of Colleen. His love of reading was limited to going over the catalogs sent by automakers like GM and Chrysler so he’d be knowledgeable when speaking with customers about their potential purchases. His love of track died because there was no time for such a frivolous activity like morning or evening runs when faced with having to put food on the table for his family. And there definitely had been no way to pursue his desire to study law, because without a scholarship, he had no money for tuition. So now, two decades later, he faced a future that paid the bills and provided for his girls but offered nothing to who he was inside. Truthfully, he wasn’t sure if the young man he’d once been even existed anymore. It certainly didn’t feel as if he did. The girls pointed out that all he did was work—not something he wanted on his headstone. As a parent, he was supposed to set an example for his children in all aspects of life. They knew he had a strong work ethic and that he attended church, but other than the joy he found in them, no joy emanated from the Gary within for them to see or emulate. He found that troubling. Leah would be leaving for college soon and Tiff would be following a few year later. After that, he’d be rambling around the house alone. Dinner alone. Weekends alone. Going to bed and waking up alone. The thought of such a reality was depressing. He wanted more, he’d earned more, and more importantly, he deserved more. So he weighed the options. Take Door Number One and stay on his current trajectory knowing how lonely and bland the future would be, or take Door Number Two and make changes that might allow him personal joy and happiness. Gary had graduated at the top of his high school class; no one had been smarter, so he chose Door Number Two.
Amari, Brain, and Leah were handling concessions at movie night. Amari was on the popcorn, Leah was handling hot dogs, and Brain was at the nachos station. When they were younger they resented the endless list of assignments Tamar regularly volunteered them for, but now Amari enjoyed helping. Handling the orders made him feel like an adult. He knew everybody, and they knew him, so he liked the back-and-forth banter, except when he was quizzed about having a girlfriend. He wasn’t sure why the older people were so interested in his nonexistent love life, but he was always grilled, albeit politely. Ever since Kyra and her family moved away, he’d had no one special in his life. He’d talked to her a few times right after the family left, but he hadn’t heard from her all summer, so he assumed she’d moved on, and he wasn’t putting himself out there to find out. So he was without a honey, and he had a better chance of scoring Cardi B’s home address than finding another girl in a place as small as Henry Adams. In a way he envied Brain; he and Leah would probably be hooked up for life. His dad assured him he’d have a ton of ladies to consider once he got to college, so he hoped that was the truth. In the meantime, he was serving up popcorn. His first customers were Mr. James and Mr. Abbott. The new teacher appeared amazed by what was going on.
“How often do you all do this?”
Mr. James took his box of popcorn. “At least once a month.”
“And anybody can come?”
“Yes. Amazed me and my son Eli the first couple of times we attended, too. Small-town fun.”
Mr. Abbott took his popcorn, told Amari thanks, and the two teachers left to find seats.
Next in his line was the new custodian.
“Hi, Ms. Stockton.”
“Oh, hi—um.”
“Amari,” he prompted.
She gave him a little smile. “Sorry, I’m still pretty new here, and I’m terrible with names.”
“It’s okay. Here’s your popcorn. Enjoy the movie.”
She nodded and moved off. Watching her search for a seat, he wondered if she’d found any friends yet. He was glad to see her, though, because movie night was a great place to meet people. She finally sat behind the Millers. In the row behind her were the two new people who worked at the coffee shop—the lady with the locs, and the guy with the dumb man-bun.
“Hey, Amari.”
He shifted his attention to Ms. Bernadine and her friend Tina, now standing in front of him.
“Hey, Ms. Bernadine. Hey, Ms. Tina. Would you like popcorn?”
They did, and once they had their bags, they, too, moved away and searched for a seat. He didn’t see the OG, though, and wondered how he was doing or if he’d ever be a part of the town’s family again. The place was getting crowded. He saw Zoey and her pajama party crew of Tiffany, Jaz, and Maria roll in wearing matching, sparkly pink tees that said “Being a Girl Is My Superpower.” He smiled and shook his head. His mom passed behind him carrying a sleeve of drink cups and said, “Ooo! I want one of those shirts.”
He laughed.
The movies being shown were Jumanji and Casablanca. He’d seen the old Jumanji and liked it, so he wanted to see how the new one stacked up. He’d never seen Casablanca but knew Bogart was a boss back in the day, and it was supposed to be about fighting the Nazis, so he was looking forward to watching it.
All the noise and chatter stopped as Tamar stepped onstage. She made an announcement inviting everybody to the fire station ribbon cutting taking place in the morning. Once she was done, Brain doused the lights and the opening credits of Jumanji filled the screen.
An hour into the movie, the sounds of a scuffle drew his attention. He and Brain stood up, but it was too dark to see where it was coming from. Suddenly a male voice boomed loud enough to be heard over the movie. “THIS IS THE FBI! TURN ON THE LIGHTS! NOW!”
He and Brain froze until Tamar shouted at them, “Go!”
They flew to the switch box. The lights came on and what they saw made Amari’s jaw drop. The locs lady from the café had a struggling Ms. Stockton in a headlock, and Man-Bun had a gun trained on them both. Stockton was furiously trying to fight her way free, but the locs lady, much taller and heavier, was not letting her go. Stockton was bucking and twisting, and clawed at the arm pressed against her throat, but she was finally bent down over the seat that once held Mrs. Miller, who was on her feet screaming, “We need a doctor! Please! My husband’s been shot! Oh God!”
Chaos followed as Jumanji continued to play on the screen. Screaming people scrambled to get out of the way. Stockton was finally cuffed and dragged upright. Her wig was askew and there was something wrong with her face that Amari couldn’t quite make out because of all the people in the way. Doc Reg raced up the aisle, knocking people aside. Amari saw his dad running, phone to his ear. Preston’s dad and Fire Chief Acosta were sprinting, too. All hell had broken loose. Amari and Brain were speechless.
The Millers were flown by medical helicopter to the Hays hospital, and the woman they knew as Lisa Stockton was dragged out and taken into custody.
Bernadine eyed FBI agent Kyle Dalton, who’d shown up at the end of the madness, and she wanted to scream at him for placing her people in danger. Two armor-piercing bullets had been shot into Sam Miller’s back through his seat. The movie’s loud soundtrack in tandem with the gun’s silencer kept the shots from being heard. Stockton stood immediately and was moving out of the empty row she’d been sitting in when a quiet moment on the screen allowed Miller’s cry for help to be heard, thus alerting the two Bureau agents. Given another few seconds, she mi
ght have gotten out of the auditorium and away. Holding on to her temper, Bernadine said, “Explanation, please.”
Will Dalton stormed in. Upon seeing him, Kyle’s lips tightened. He nodded his dad’s way before replying to Bernadine, “The Millers are in the Witness Protection Program. Sam witnessed a mob hit. I’m not at liberty to say where, but two members of the Russian Mafia went to prison.”
“And whose bright idea was it to relocate them here?”
“Mine.”
The anger on the faces of Lily, Trent, and Barrett mirrored her own. “Why?”
“I thought they’d have a safe life here.”
“But you didn’t have the decency to let us know about any of it beforehand?”
“I wanted to, but my superiors wouldn’t sign off.”
“So, you and the Bureau placed dozens of lives in danger instead?”
“The Millers weren’t supposed to be found.”
“But they were,” Trent pointed out. “How?”
It was obvious that Kyle didn’t want to reveal the details, but his dad, Sheriff Will, who looked as if he wanted to take his son to the woodshed given the opportunity, snarled, “Tell us, Kyle!” Apparently, county officials had also been kept in the dark, or at least no one had informed the sheriff.
“One of our agents was compromised. Gambling debts.”
Barrett Payne said, “So he cleared his debt by giving them up.”
Kyle nodded.
Barrett swore under his breath.
“What happens now?”
“If Mr. Miller pulls through, he and his wife will be given new identities and relocated again.”
“Will you let us know if he does?” Lily asked.
“No.”
Bernadine shook her head.
Trent asked, “Are we going to be overrun by hit men thinking the Millers are still here?”