Read Online Coming Home by David Lewis - Free Book Online

school?”
    Jessie nodded, lost in the picture. It was like a trigger sparking more long-forgotten memories. Or a line of dominoes, each memory falling into the next.
    “You loved bubble-gum ice cream. Can’t give the stuff away now, but you practically lived on it.”
    Jessie laughed. “We did get sick of it.”
    Betty pointed to the round wooden table by the window. “You two would sit right over there and do your homework together. Your hair was so blond, I called you my little cherub.”
    Jessie gave Betty a humorous frown. “I disliked that name intensely.”
    Betty chuckled. “As I recall, Andy disliked math. But he was a dimple-cheeked charmer, wasn’t he? Got Bs instead of Ds ’cause of you.”
    Jessie shrugged, giving a subtle nod. “I was glad to help.”
    “We used to joke about you two. The whole town did, you know.”
    “The whole town?”
    Betty laughed again, her eyes dancing. “You and Andy were practically joined at the hip. Drove his mother crazy! Bless her heart.”
    “She wasn’t very fond of me, was she?”
    “Well … she was a real proper sort, you know. In her book, little boys and girls didn’t play together. In the end, it didn’t matter what she thought. We all knew you’d get married someday.” Betty paused, shaking her head. “Can’t even remember what day it is half the time. But some things you just never forget.” She sighed, appraising her again.
    “I’m so glad to see you,” Jessie said suddenly.
    Betty beamed. “You look good, sweetie.”
    “I drove by the house, too,” Jessie said. “It seems well kept, but the girl next door says no one lives there now.”
    “No one has ever lived there.”
    “But why?”
    Betty just looked at her as if Jessie should know the answer.
    Jessie frowned. “Who owns it?”
    “Well … honey …” She pursed her lips as if trying to find the words.
    “My grandmother?”
    Betty nodded slightly.
    Jessie felt a shudder of anger. “Why would she do that?”
    “I think maybe you should ask her that yourself,” Betty said with a shrug.
    Their eyes met and Jessie forced her features into a pleasant expression, but her anger was boiling. Betty seemed tentative, careful. “I know she’s a tough cookie, Jessie. You don’t have to tell me that, but—” she stopped and her eyes lingered on Jessie’s face—“people change. Sometimes they do anyway.”
    Jessie bit her lip and changed the subject. “How long did Andy stay?”
    Betty frowned. “I think they moved to Denver the following summer.” She tapped her cane against the tile. “He came back, though. My word, he’s tall now. Gave me a big hug. Nearly crushed my feeble bones.” Betty’s eyes twinkled and she sighed. She opened her mouth and then hesitated. There was more to the story.
    Jessie nodded. “It’s okay.”
    Betty’s eyes dimmed, her sense of loyalty showing through. “Had a girl with him—a TV preacher’s daughter … something like that. Elizabeth something. Engaged to be married. My word, he graduated with a degree in business. Now that I think of it, I can’t imagine him handling the math without you, but I guess he did.”
    Jessie felt a sinking feeling in her stomach, and for the moment it overshadowed the growing rage. Betty appeared apologetic again, unsure of what to say. She paused and then her voice became distant, as if she were conjuring memories from a rarely visited mental storehouse. “He asked about you.”
    Andy remembered me?
    “I told him you were away at college somewhere. That’s all I knew.”
    “I’m sorry to be so—”
    “Don’t you dare be sorry,” Betty interrupted. “We all worried for you, sweetie … and …” Her voice trailed off and she glanced at the wall, seemingly overcome with emotion.
    Jessie felt guilty, remembering that Betty had always carried more than her share of others’ burdens.
    “Everything’s okay now,” Jessie whispered, more to sound reassuring than truthful. She put her hand on her dear