Midnight Caller - By Diane Burke Page 0,50
taking care of all of us that the bad man won’t come near this house.”
“You promise?”
“I promise, sweetheart.” She made the letter X across her chest. “Cross my heart.” She kissed his forehead. “Now, why don’t we go into the kitchen and get started on those oatmeal and raisin cookies.”
Later that evening, Erin leaned against the kitchen counter, a pencil poised above a piece of paper. “Pajamas,” she called out in military fashion.
“Check,” Jack said and Amy mumbled along.
Erin made a show of placing a check on the paper.
“Toothbrush.”
“Check.”
“Toothpaste.”
“Check.” Jack giggled.
“Amy’s teddy bear.”
Amy held up the bear and Erin checked the paper. “I must be forgetting something.” She scratched her scalp with the eraser.
“Cookies,” both children yelled.
Erin slapped both her cheeks. “How could I forget the cookies?” She slid a tin from beneath the counter and placed it in the overnight bag.
“Mommy, you teased us.” Jack laughed.
“Time to go.” Tess scooted the children toward the front door.
“Don’t let them stay up too late,” Erin said and followed them down the hall. “And don’t let them eat all the cookies at one time.”
Tess turned around, hands on hips, and said, “You’d think I never took care of the children before. What’s the matter with you?”
“I know.” She wondered if her voice sounded as sheepish as she felt. “But he’s never been away overnight before.”
“We’re going to be right next door,” Tess said.
“That’s right, Mommy,” Jack assured her. “Mr. Fitzgerald put up a tent in his living room and we’re going to have an indoor campout.”
Erin squatted down, eye-level with her son. “A tent, huh? That’s pretty cool.”
“And we’re going to sing songs and play games and everything.”
Erin tousled his hair.
Jack pulled back, his nose and lips twisting in annoyance. “Stop it, Mommy. That’s what makes my hair stand up all the time.”
“Excuse me. You’re right. I won’t do it anymore.” One more sign of her little boy’s growing independence.
When they reached the front door, Erin held it open and said, “I bet you’re going to have the best time.”
“Yep. And you know what? I’m going to let you use my spyglasses. Then you’ll be able to look in the window and see everything we do.”
Erin laughed. “You know, Jack, that’s a great idea.”
Patrick came up the porch steps and stopped in the doorway as Jack tried to barrel out. “Slow down, son. We’ve got plenty of time.” He let the boy pass, stooped to pick up a package, and then handed it to Erin. “Here, somebody left this.”
Erin glanced at the small brown package and tucked it under her arm. “I can’t thank you enough for doing this for the children, Patrick.”
“My pleasure. Now don’t worry about a thing and go inside and get some rest.” He turned and, whistling a tune, led the children off the porch and across the lawn toward his house.
Tess stood beside Erin and watched the miniature parade. “When you get to be my age, you can’t afford to waste time. I think after the children fall asleep, Fitz and I are going to have a long conversation about his intentions.”
Erin’s jaw dropped.
“What? I’m not getting any younger you know. All of this business with Carol—” Tess’s voice faded away and a tear appeared at the edge of her eye. She took a deep breath, straightened her shoulders and faced Erin. “Life’s short. I can’t be wasting precious time.” She hugged Erin. “And neither should you.” She smiled and toddled off after the group. When she had gone a couple more feet, she glanced over her shoulder and said, “You know, lass, you’re going to have the house to yourself tonight. You might think about arranging a couple of hours of police protection.”
Erin laughed. “Don’t worry about me. A certain detective should be stopping by any minute to check and see if I’m all right. Now shoo.”
When the four of them disappeared into the house, Erin went back inside. Locking the door, she walked into the kitchen and placed the package on the counter before going to Jack’s room to retrieve his spyglasses. She hurried back to the living room, knelt on the couch, held the binoculars to her eyes and laughed out loud. Jack, Amy and Tess sat in the window waiting for her. They laughed and waved the minute they saw her at the window. Erin blew kisses and waved back. The children scooted inside the tent. Erin waved one final time to her aunt, lowered the binoculars and headed to the kitchen.
She turned