Haunted (Michael Bennett 10)

“That’s what every New Yorker says.” She winked at me.

I noticed a young lady slowly making her way across the firehouse yard to a table not far away. She dragged her right foot as she walked, and when she sat down I noticed that the right side of her face seemed to sag slightly.

She sat by herself as various people brought her plates of food and drink.

I asked Sandy who the girl was.

She said, “It’s a little bit of a sad story. Her name is Sadie, and her mom passed away last year.”

Mary Catherine said, “Who takes care of her?”

“The whole town. Technically she lives in a group home, but really she’s as close to homeless as we have here in Linewiler. She likes to be off on her own. No one really knows where she sleeps a lot of the time.”

I watched the teenager as she nodded her thanks to the people who brought her food and drink. She had dark stringy hair but a beautiful smile and a pretty face. I wondered how someone ended up in her situation. Where was her father? I don’t know why, but this young woman intrigued me. She could’ve been one of my daughters. The idea of them being alone and fending for themselves sent a chill through me.

Chapter 45

Later that night, Mary Catherine asked me on another walk around the lake. After what had happened the last time we walked, I couldn’t refuse, no matter how tired I was.

I was still smiling about how much fun the kids had at the cookout. Even Seamus had begun to enjoy himself.

As we walked down the path, with the water on our left, Mary Catherine hooked her arm through mine. She laid her head on my shoulder as we walked and said, “I could definitely get used to life in the country.” After a few more steps, she said, “Maybe not in the winter. I imagine that the snow here comes up to your chin.”

I chuckled and said, “Maybe your chin.”

We sat on the blanket she pulled from her miraculous bag and stared out at the calm water. Once again, I could see the house from where we were and felt relieved that every light was on. At least I knew where the kids were.

We chatted about nothing for a few minutes, then Mary Catherine worked in a bombshell of a question very casually. “I see the way Sandy and you talk and the way she looks at you. Did you guys ever date each other?”

She looked me right in the eye. I’d been hoping that this would never come up. It was really a nonissue. But I answered honestly.

“I don’t know if date is the right word. We had a minor little nothing a thousand years ago. We never took it very far and have never talked about it since.”

“You agree that she’s still beautiful.”

This sounded like a trap. I wasn’t sure how to respond. “I guess she’s pretty. But she doesn’t hold a candle to you.”

Mary Catherine smiled and said, “I appreciate that, but I don’t want you to think I’m falling for an old line like that.”

“A guy has got to try.”

My cell phone rang. Actually, it played the theme to the movie Shaft, a tune that Ricky had installed on my phone. I glanced at the screen casually and saw that it was Sandy Coles. Mary Catherine saw it, too.

I looked at her and said, “Why do I feel I definitely should not answer this call?”

Chapter 46

I took no chances after Mary Catherine’s question and immediately put the phone on speaker. I didn’t even give the customary warning to the caller that I had done so. I wasn’t worried.

“Hello, Sandy. What’s going on?”

“Hey, Mike. I’m sorry to bother you at this hour, but I was wondering if I could impose on you again. I need another favor. A police favor.”

I was silent for a moment and looked at Mary Catherine, who was shaking her head emphatically. I couldn’t pretend to misinterpret that signal.

Then Sandy said over the phone’s speaker, “You can say no, Michael. No one expects you to give up your vacation.”

I winced when I heard her call me Michael. Only Mary Catherine called me Michael now. Occasionally Seamus did, when he wasn’t calling me a jackass or an imbecile. Both were terms of endearment for him.