Nervous

Meredith said, “Jonquinette’s just fine. She’s the typical teenage girl. Her hormones are raging and she’s going through major changes.”

Henry shook his head. He stood up and grabbed Meredith by the shoulders. “Jonquinette’s anything but typical, Meredith. You and I both know it.”

Meredith yanked herself free in anger. “I refuse to stand here and listen to this nonsense.”

Henry got a glass out of the cabinet, turned on the faucet, and filled it with cool water. He took a sip and contemplated his next move. “Meredith, I wanted to believe Jonquinette was normal just as much as you. Hell, even more. But we’ve got to get her some help.”

“Help? What kind of help?”

“She needs to see a specialist. A psychiatrist.”

“You’ve lost your damn mind,” Meredith said. “Jonquinette isn’t crazy; you are.”

“Now, Meredith, I’m not saying the girl is crazy. I’m saying, at the very least, she’s extremely confused.” Henry started pacing the floor. “There’s just something that doesn’t sit right about all of this.”

“The only thing Jonquinette needs is a decent boyfriend. She’s at the age where she should start dating.” Meredith turned on the oven and then sat down at the table. “If you really want to do something for Jonquinette, spend more time with her. She still has to log another thirty hours of driving with her learner’s permit before she can get her license in January. She also needs to improve her computer science grade and being that you’re a programmer, I would think you could help her out with that.”

Henry didn’t appreciate the sarcasm lingering in Meredith’s voice. “This isn’t about driving or some damn computer. This is about doing something before Jonquinette seriously hurts herself or someone else.”

“Where is this all coming from?” Meredith asked apprehensively. “Granted, she’s had episodes in the past but nothing lately.”

Henry lowered his eyes to the floor.

“Henry, nothing lately, right?”

“I guess not,” he replied. “I just have this gut feeling that this is the calm before the storm.”

Meredith got up and touched his hand. “Henry Pierce, you and I have been through hell together over the past two decades and we’ve always survived. We’ll survive this, too, whatever it is.”

Henry hugged Meredith snugly. “I love both of you so much. I just want us to have a happy family.”

“We do have a happy family, Henry.”

“If you say so, but—”

Meredith pulled away from his embrace and glared at him. “But what?”

“I still plan to call someone on Monday. Just to see what they say.”

“Someone like who?”

Henry shrugged. “I guess I’ll start with the Health and Human Services Department. They should be able to recommend someone.”

Meredith rolled her eyes and slammed a pot down on the stove. She didn’t say another word.

Jonquinette tiptoed back upstairs without either one of them knowing she’d heard the entire conversation.

18

Thanksgiving Day, 1994

Three A.M.

Jude had waited until both Henry and Meredith were fast asleep before sneaking out of bed. She threw on a pair of jeans, a tee shirt, and a pair of raggedy sneakers and then eased her way out of the house into the garage. She winced when she pushed the button for the door to rise. It was a dicey move because there was a noisy vibration. Her room was directly over the garage and she always heard it but wasn’t sure whether it was audible in the master bedroom.

She waited for a minute to see if she heard any movement. There was nothing, so she unlocked Henry’s Lincoln Town Car and eased behind the wheel. She was elated that he always kept an extra set of keys in the kitchen drawer. It made things so much easier for her.

She put the car in reverse without starting the engine and coasted out the driveway onto the street where she turned it over. She grinned as she headed off into the darkness. “I’ll fix your ass but good,” she whispered.