“Nothing,” I muttered as I took a huge gulp of my drink and hoped she couldn’t tell I was lying. How on Earth could I possibly explain being chased by what I thought was a killer Angel and healing from wounds that would kill a mortal ten times over?
“Same ‘ole, same ‘ole,” Blanche added, quickly shoving two cookies into her mouth.
Miss Evelyn sat back on her loveseat and watched us, clearly amused by our pathetic attempts at deflection. “Hmm, sounds kind of boring.”
“It is,” Blanche agreed as she tried to swallow and talk at the same time. “Totally boring. Nice bracelet,” she added, steering the conversation toward the delicate piece of jewelry on Miss Evelyn’s arm.
It wasn't just a nice bracelet. It was a beautiful bracelet. There were three burnished gold strips woven together like braid and set in breathtaking pink diamonds. An intricate scroll covered the bands that I assumed was decorative, but on closer inspection I realized they were words. Words of a language I didn’t know. . .how odd. Miss Evelyn was one big mystery after another.
I leaned forward pretending to examine the bracelet, but really trying to cover up the pieces of chewed cookie that had flown out of Blanche’s face when she spoke with her mouth full.
There were definitely words on the jewelry, and I definitely didn’t understand them. I glanced up and caught Miss Evelyn’s eye. She winked and put her hand back in her lap, effectively hiding the unfamiliar language from me.
“So,” Miss Evelyn turned the tables back on us while graciously ignoring Blanche’s cookie crumb explosion. “Tell me about yourselves, girls.”
Damn, I was a bad liar, but Blanche was worse. I decided to take the reins.
“Well, we just moved here a couple of weeks ago,” I said as I tried to figure out how to bypass the particulars.
“From a tropical area,” Blanche volunteered.
“Yes. . .um, very tropical,” I cut her off before she announced we were from Hell and Miss Evelyn asked us to leave. Rhonda sat quietly and watched. I kept stealing glimpses at her to see if any more smoke floated out of her nose. Nothing. I was losing it for sure.
“What do your parents do?” Miss Evelyn inquired as she kindly reloaded Blanche’s baked goods plate.
I almost choked.
“Well, you know. . .um, my dad runs kind of. . .well, I guess you could say, um. . .a corporation of sorts. And my mom—I don’t know my mom,” I mumbled, wondering why in the Hell I told her that.
“Oh, I’m sorry.” She took my hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’m sure she would be quite proud of you if she knew you.”
“Well, maybe.” I shrugged my shoulders. “She didn’t want me.”
“Did your father tell you that?” Miss Evelyn asked sharply. Rhonda huffed and rearranged all the cookies on the tray. It was getting a little bizarre here.
“No,” I quickly replied. I’d clearly hit a sore spot with the ladies. Maybe they’d been abandoned too. And my dad never said she didn’t want me. He just never said anything. Period. “No,” I repeated. “He never talked about her.”
She shook her head sadly. “That’s too bad.”
“Did you get dumped by your mom too?” Blanche asked as she pocketed a few cookies and fed several others to Steve. Where in the Hell did she learn her manners? In a barn?
“No!” Miss Evelyn was taken aback. “Why do you ask?”
“You just seem a little wonky about the whole no mom thing.”
“Oh.” She shook her head and laughed. Her laughter sent happy shivers of delight through me. “I simply find it unfortunate that families these days can’t find ways to stay together.”
“Do you have a family?” I asked. A zing of jealousy shot through me as I imagined Miss Evelyn with a bunch of beautiful, well-adjusted children and a handsome husband.
“I do.” She sighed happily and clasped her hands to her chest. “I have two lovely daughters."
Envy set fire to my insides and I exerted great effort for my eyes to remain gold. I needed sleep badly. This was ridiculous. I felt like crying about not being included in a family of people I didn’t even know.
“Do you see your daughters much?” Blanche asked as she held out her glass out to Rhonda for more lemonade. I idly wondered when she’d last eaten. Hell, I didn’t even know she could eat.
“Occasionally,” Miss Evelyn answered. “It’s some of the most precious time I spend. It brings me true joy.”
That was all I could take. The walls closed in around me and I needed to breathe fresh air. “We have to go.” I stood abruptly and gave Blanche a look.