74 Seaside Avenue Part 16

Mack treat her? That was a laugh. Her brother was constantly broke. Besides, she wasn't even ten miles out of Cedar Cove and already her family was weighing her down, pulling her back. "I...I don't think so."

"Why not?" Mack demanded. "You weren't on any schedule."

"No, but..."

"Then what's the problem?"

Linnette sighed. "All right, I'll meet you-on one condition."

"I'm serious, I'll buy," her brother insisted. "Then you'll owe me."

"Mack, if you say a single word about me leaving Cedar Cove or bring up Cal and Vicki, I swear to you I'll walk out of the restaurant. Now, where should I meet you?" Since he'd offered to pay, he'd probably choose a fast-food joint.

"I promise not to say a single word about the impulsive nature of your decision."

"Fine." After a few minutes of discussion they decided to meet at a Chinese restaurant in old downtown Issaquah. Neither had dined there before, but Mack had heard good things about the food, which was said to be plentiful and cheap. Cheap being the operative word in this case.

Mack was sitting in a booth, sipping tea, when Linnette arrived. He saluted her with the cup when she entered. She looked forward to spending a couple of hours with her brother, but she meant what she'd said earlier. One word about her decision or Cal and she'd walk out.

Mack looked good, she had to admit. Better than just about any time in the past few years. He seemed genuinely happy, and she suspected that he'd finally found his real calling. After she'd studied the menu and they'd ordered, Mack told her about his training.

"You're qualified to be a real fireman now?" she asked.

"So they tell me."

Her brother had held any number of jobs through the years. He'd delivered mail, worked for a moving company, been an apartment manager, a bouncer and at one time, a painter.

"Do you have a line on a job?" she asked.

Mack smiled a bit sheepishly. "Dad told me there's another opening in Cedar Cove."

"Do you seriously want to be that close to Mom and Dad?" Although Mack and their father seemed to get along now, Linnette wasn't convinced that living in such close vicinity was a smart idea.

"I don't know," her brother told her. "I'm putting in my application there and another in Lake Stevens and a third in Spokane."

Spokane was on the other side of the state, which meant that both Linnette and her brother would no longer live near their parents.

"That'll be good for Gloria, don't you think?" Linnette said. The situation in their family was an unusual one. Since Gloria had grown up with adoptive parents, she didn't have the same childhood experiences Linnette and Mack did, or the same memories; in effect, she'd been a stranger to them. The fact that Linnette was already friends with Gloria had only added to the sense of unreality. So much had happened in the past two years and now, with Cal, it all felt overwhelming.

"Gloria's going to miss you, though."

"I'm going to miss her, Mack. And Mom and Dad. And you..."

"You're going to do just fine," he told her.

"I know that." She hadn't intended to be so defiant. "I'm going to be more than fine. I'm going to be great."

"You bet."

"I sound a lot like my brother, don't I?" she teased.

"More power to you."

"Power to the people!" she chanted.

Mack nearly choked on his tea and soon Linnette was laughing, too. This brother-sister bantering was exactly what she'd needed after the emotional farewell scene with her parents.

Mack set down his chopsticks and pushed away his plate of Szechuan chicken. "I had a reason for wanting to see you before you left. Besides wishing you well, of course."

Linnette stopped him with one raised hand. "I meant what I said earlier, Mack. If this has anything to do with Cal, then save your breath."

"It doesn't." He inhaled and paused for a moment, as if to gather his thoughts. "Listen, I just want you to know that if you ever need help, you can call me."

"That's really nice, Mack...."

"I'm serious, Linnette. Don't brush me off, all right? There might come a time when you're low on cash and you don't want to contact Mom and Dad."

Linnette almost laughed. For most of his adult life, Mack had lived hand to mouth. The fact that he was paying for their meal surprised her, especially since he was currently unemployed.

"I appreciate the offer, but, Mack, I wouldn't want you to take out a loan on my behalf."

"It wouldn't be a loan."

"You have money?" She couldn't help sounding flippant; everyone knew Mack lived one step above poverty level.

"I have enough," he said with a shrug. "If you need anything, you call me."

"What if I need more than fifty dollars?"

"Linnette, would you stop it?"

"You have more than fifty dollars you can spare?"

He nodded.

"More than a hundred?"

Again he nodded.

"Two hundred?" This was fascinating information.

"More than a thousand," he said.

Linnette pressed her palms against the table and leaned forward. "This is a joke, right?"

He shook his head. "All I'm saying is that I can help you if you need it."

She eyed her brother, still unable to believe he'd managed to hang on to a thousand dollars. Mack? "How much?"

"Money?" he asked unnecessarily. "Why do you want to know?"

She gestured weakly. "Satisfy my curiosity."

"I have enough to provide you with a buffer if necessary," was all he seemed willing to tell her. "The transmission on your car could go out in some podunk town and I don't want you stressed out about how you'd pay to get it repaired. Call me and I'll take care of it for you."

"That'd probably cost more than a thousand bucks." She had no idea how much money he had, but it couldn't be that much. If Mack had won the lottery she would've heard about it. And surely he wouldn't be driving that rattletrap truck if he had any other option.

"You're not going to rest until you wrangle it out of me, are you?" Mack said, shaking his head.

"You're right."

He exhaled a sigh. "It's close to six figures."

"Get out of here!"

"I'm not joking, Linnette."

Maybe he had won the lottery and somehow kept it a secret. "How...when?" She narrowed her eyes. "You're not a day trader, are you?"

"Hardly," he scoffed.

"Then how did you come by that kind of money? Hey-" she said suddenly. "Did you receive an inheritance and I wasn't in the will? Grandma McAfee always did like you best."

Mack laughed outright at that. "What's the matter, don't you think I could've earned it?"

"Frankly, no."

He waggled his finger at her. "Oh, ye of little faith. Anyway, you're wrong. I bought a broken-down house, spent every penny I could scrounge to fix it up and sold it for a nice profit."

"When?"

"About two years ago."

Linnette remembered that house. It'd been a real dump, and at the time she'd a.s.sumed he was renting.

"There, are you satisfied?"

She smiled and shook her head. "You're really something."

Mack returned her grin with one of his own. "I'll take that as a compliment."

"I meant it as one." Linnette settled back against the booth and looked at her brother with fresh eyes. Not only had he held on to his money, he'd kept quiet about it until now. "I'm proud of you, Mack."

"Because of the money?"

"Yes, but there's more to it. Despite all the arguments we got into while we were growing up, you care about me, don't you?"

Her words seemed to astonish him. "Of course I do! You're my big sister."

"Your big sister who's about to start a brand-new life," she told him.

"Do it with confidence, Linnette. Don't forget, you've got a safety net with me."

Everyone in her family had fought her on this decision. Everyone except Mack. He understood her reasons and had offered unexpected sympathy-and help.

He was everything a brother should be.

Seventeen.

The morning hadn't begun well for Grace Harding. She'd awakened late after a fitful night and then had to rush about the house, making coffee, collecting her books and papers, preparing for work. Cliff hadn't been the least bit helpful and had wanted her to stay in bed. His timing couldn't have been worse; she had to be at the library by nine, since she was opening for the day. She scurried about the bedroom, dressing as fast as she could, and all the while Cliff made a point of telling her that she didn't need to work. In fact, he'd like her to consider retiring.

Of course she needed to work! Grace was the head librarian, and she loved her job. She'd reminded Cliff of that on her way out the door and was almost at the library before she remembered that she'd left the house without kissing him goodbye.

Now the morning was half gone and that sense of urgency had yet to leave her. She felt disoriented and disorganized; when she arrived in Bremerton for a meeting with the selector, the librarian who ordered new books, she discovered she'd forgotten that set of notes at home. The meeting ended up being a waste of time, and it was her fault.

When Grace returned to the Cedar Cove branch, she had to admit she was giving Cliff's suggestion that she retire due consideration. One way or another, she'd been working her entire adult life. After the girls were born, she'd taken night cla.s.ses at Olympic Community College. Later she'd transferred to the University of Washington for her library science degree. Upon graduation she'd been fortunate enough to be hired by the local library.

Those early years had been good for her and Dan. He'd helped with the children and given her his support as she went back to school. Despite their financial constraints and the problems that haunted Dan, Grace knew he loved her as much as he could love anyone. It was once Maryellen and Kelly started school and grew older that his dark moods became intolerable. They hung over their marriage and family life and had grown progressively worse until the end, just before he'd disappeared.

It was difficult to think about her marriage to Dan and not feel a sense of grief and loss. Grace didn't understand why he was lingering in her mind on such a busy day.

"Grace." Loretta, another librarian, stepped into her office. "There's a gentleman out front who'd like to see you."

"Did he give you his name?"

"No, he said he's an old family friend. He came to apply for a library card."

In that instant Grace knew it could only be Will Jefferson.

"He seems friendly," Loretta added.

It was inevitable, Grace supposed, that she'd see Will again; it was going to happen sooner or later. Squaring her shoulders, she followed Loretta out of the office.

Sure enough, Will Jefferson leaned indolently against the counter, as though he had all the time in the world. When he saw Grace, he smiled and straightened.

Olivia's older brother had been a strikingly handsome young man, and the years hadn't changed that. He still had a rakish, self-a.s.sured air. As a teenager, Grace had the biggest crush on Will. Back then, he barely knew she was alive, which was probably why she'd been so flattered when he'd shown interest in her after Dan's death.

"Grace." Will bestowed on her the warmest of smiles. "You look wonderful, as usual."

He was smooth, always had been. "h.e.l.lo, Will. So you're here to apply for a library card?" She wasn't going to exchange pleasantries with him, nor was she willing to make him feel welcome. If he wanted a library card, he could get one without her a.s.sistance.