was going to hit her, so she ducked a little and pulled away.
“What in the name of…?” The Newberry lady’s eyes went huge. “Did you think I was going to hit you?”
Fern relaxed a little but kept her distance.
“Honey, I would never hit you.” Tanyalee got that overly concerned look on her face Fern had seen before, especially with the CPS people—the ones who weren’t burned out by their jobs, anyway. “You’ve been hit before, haven’t you?”
“Whadayou think?”
The Newberry woman frowned. “You know, Bitsy Stockslager said you’ve been through a lot, but no one has filled me in yet. Would you like to tell me?”
“No, I would not. Can we just go to Gladys’s, please? I have homework.”
“I want to be your friend, Fern. Do you think that’s possible?”
“Sure, but I also think it’s possible that zombies are gonna invade Cataloochee County while we’re all asleep tonight.”
Fern watched as one of the woman’s eyebrows angled up on her forehead. “All right. We’ll play this your way. You hate me. You’re not going to loosen up and at least try to have fun with me. I get it. But you know what?”
Fern shook her head.
“It’s your call, missy. We can either sign those papers so I can mentor your skinny little behind or I can report your thievery so you can be sent to the protective service people.”
Fern’s jaw opened. This lady was unbelievable! “Shit, Tanyalee, you must really like to volunteer,” she said.
The car started up again and Tanyalee pulled out onto the road, making the turn to Gladys’s street. “Let’s just say I feel compelled to help our community in whatever way I can. And please do not curse. It is unladylike and disrespectful to me.”
A few minutes later, Fern, Tanyalee, and Gladys were seated around Great-granny’s dining table, drinking iced tea and eating store-bought brownies with fudge icing. Gladys and Tanyalee got along like long-lost friends, which Fern guessed they kinda were, and it didn’t take long before all the papers were signed and Fern had herself a damn mentor. Tanyalee hugged Gladys—and tried to hug Fern—then said she needed to be going, adding that she’d pick up Fern from the Girls Club at the same time the next day. Fern escaped down the hallway to her bedroom and locked the door, so incredibly relieved to be alone that when she heard a loud knock on Gladys’s front door she decided she didn’t care who the hell it was. It could be Justin Bieber himself and she still wouldn’t risk going back out there and being forced into more conversation. She’d had more Tanyalee Newberry than a person should have to take in a day. And gee—only one hundred ninety-nine point five hours to go!
* * *
Dante stopped his sedan outside Gladys Harbison’s modest ranch and stared in disbelief. The unmistakable pink Caddy was sitting smack in the middle of the driveway, and he had to make a decision.
It was likely that Vivienne Newberry drove her car to visit Gladys—the women were roughly the same age and were probably friends. But what if Taffy was here instead? Was he willing to risk it? Should he come back later when the car was gone?
Dante’s hand began to turn the key in the ignition when he froze.
He couldn’t do it. Knowing Taffy might be on the other side of that door was too much. Too tempting. Besides, they could easily run into one another at any time around here, so wouldn’t it be best to get it over with?
Of course it would. Dante kept telling himself that as he made his way up the driveway toward the small concrete porch. He knocked. His stomach twisted. And when the front door opened, all the breath whooshed from his body.
There she was, exactly as he had remembered, except that her bottomless blue eyes bugged out in alarm and her soft pink lips hung slack in disbelief.
“Hi, Taffy.”
Okay, that was fairly lame, but he’d never been a conversationalist, and besides, there was no time to beat himself up for his lack of originality because Taffy was starting to look a little woozy.
Dante pushed the door wide with his foot and caught her in his arms before she staggered. Taffy was dead weight as he lifted her and pressed her to the front of his body. It was at that moment that a very old woman in way too much spandex came marching their way.
She hissed at him. “You put her down right this