Motherhood is Murder(11)

I noticed Celia, the midwife, watching me watching the cops. When we made eye contact, hers flicked over to McNearny. McNearny couldn’t even muster a rigid smile; instead he coughed into his hand, which caught Jones’s attention. They exited the church.

I glanced back at Celia. She shrugged then handed a card with directions to a pallbearer.

I left the church and crossed the Washington Square Park toward Columbus Street, where I had parked. It was blustery in the park and the trees swayed. I wrapped my scarf over my mouth and nose so as not to breathe in the cold air. As I approached union   Street, I saw McNearny and Jones go into Mario’s Bohemian Cigar Store Café.

Oh! Mario’s meatball sandwich and eggplant focaccia panini!

My mouth watered. I glanced at my watch.

Did I have time to stop in and grab a bite?

But then I’d have to talk to McNearny. Eating something grilled was completely different from being grilled.

While that meatball sandwich might well be worth it—I needed to hurry to my car in order to get into the line for the funeral procession.

I guessed McNearny and Jones weren’t going to the reception.

Some investigation they were running. Why had they come to the funeral?

I passed the Bohemian shop, and thankfully, because my face was covered by my scarf, neither McNearny nor Jones noticed me rush past.

Once in my car, I dialed Jim from my cell phone.

“How are you holding up?” I asked.

“Me? Great! Are you on your way home?”

“No. I’m going to the cemetery. How is Laurie?”

“She’s asleep in her bouncy chair.”

Hmmm. Why was babysitting so easy for him?

“Have you fed her?”

“She’s been asleep the entire time.”

I recalled the lint I’d found between her fingers the other day. “When she wakes up, give her a bath and then feed her. I left some milk for her in the fridge.”

“A bath?”

“Yeah.”

“What do you mean, in our tub?”

“No, come on. In her little baby tub. You know how to set up it, right? You need to snap in that green meshy net thing to hold her.”

Silence. Followed by a low “hmmm.”

Visions of him bathing Laurie flashed through my mind. I saw him either scalding her or getting distracted and leaving her alone in the tub, or not putting the net thing in right so she slipped under the water, or getting soap in her eyes, or—

“Never mind. I’ll give her a bath when I get home.”

“Okay,” Jim said cheerfully.

No wonder babysitting was so easy for him.





I followed the procession to the cemetery, which was a short drive out of San Francisco. My stomach rumbled and I regretted not buying the panini at Mario’s.

I would probably dream about meatballs and focaccia tonight. Certainly, there would be food at the reception, but probably not like Mario’s.

What kind of coldhearted person was I?

Thinking of food instead of Helene?

I quickly felt remorse as the procession arrived at the cemetery. At the grave site, the wind was unrelenting, whipping us around as though we were rag dolls. As Helene was lowered into the ground, I glanced over those assembled. No sign of McNearny or Jones. The crowd from church had significantly dwindled and I felt even more conspicuous.

Celia stood next to me during the short ceremony, giving me some comfort as she looked like she felt out of place also.

The priest announced the reception at Bruce’s parents’ house in Hillsborough. The November wind pushed its way between my hair, and up my sleeves, still managing to make me feel cold despite my winter jacket. I pulled my scarf over my ears and tucked my face into the collar of my coat.

We all quietly trailed up the hillside. Despite my efforts to keep up with the crowd, I seemed to be at the tail end of the pack behind all the other mourners. It wasn’t such a big hill. How out of shape was I?

Beeps and lights filled the air as the drivers unlocked their cars from a distance.

“Kate!”

I turned to see Celia rushing toward me. I stopped to wait for her.

“Can I get a ride with you?” she asked. “I came with Margaret and Alan. But I think they already left.”

“Sure.” I was happy to have the company. She could direct me to Bruce’s parents’ place, and more important, I might be able to glean some information about Helene from her.

We climbed into my Chevy and buckled ourselves in. Celia held the directions in her lap.

I started the car and headed toward the freeway. There was an awkward silence between us. I reached for the radio dial but decided against it. “Were you close to Helene?” I asked.

Celia rocked back and forth. “We were getting close . . . Margaret and Helene were inseparable, so I saw her every time Margaret had a checkup.”

I shook my head. “This is all so terrible, so sudden.”

“Do you know what happened? You were on that dinner cruise, weren’t you?”

“Yes, but all they really told us was that she fell down some stairs and was unconscious. Then the police showed up and took statements. That’s all I know.”