Read Online When Did We Lose Harriet? by Patricia Sprinkle - Free Book Online
Authors: Patricia Sprinkle
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morning and wanted to return it,” Mac told her.
“Harriet moved right after her granny died.” With a gnarled hand ropy with veins, the woman brushed away a fly from her cheek. “Went out to live with her aunt, Dixie Lawson. Dixie Sykes, she’d be now. Mrs. William T. Sykes the Third. Lives out in McGehee Estates somewhere. They’re in the phone book. He has a store.”
“Well, you’re finally getting somewhere,” I told Mac as we gratefully sank into the Honda and turned on the air.
She sighed. “Yeah, but it’s getting more complicated than I ever imagined. I think after I’ve visited with my brother a little while, I ought to just take the money back to the center and let Mr. Henly return it to Harriet.”
I hesitated. I’d only met Mr. Henly over the phone, but our dealings hadn’t been too pleasant. I’d approached him about doing a summer reading program at his center, and he’d been real curt. Said he “was concentrating on sports that summer and would rather not scare kids away from the center its first summer of operation.” A man who talks that way about reading—well, I wasn’t sure he’d really get Harriet’s money back to her now that she’d moved across town. He might spend it on volleyballs. “Why don’t you call Harriet yourself when you get time?” I suggested.
Mac picked up right away on what I was hinting. “You don’t trust him? Why?”
“I don’t want to say more than I really know,” I told her, “and it’s more of a gut feeling than anything else, but Lewis Henly is a bit of an enigma. Blew into town from nowhere and got to know a lot of important people real quick. If I had money belonging to Harriet, I think I’d take it back to her myself.”
Mac decided to follow my advice. It still sounded so simple.
After that we headed toward the hospital, exchanging the little details women use to weave friendships. Itold her I’d cut back at the library to part-time while pursuing my Masters in Business Administration from Auburn at Montgomery. She told me about her family store, her husband, two boys, and four grandchildren.
“Do you have family here?” she asked.
“Not at the moment,” I told her, trying not to feel jealous that she had so much. “Daddy died when I was nine and Mama just last year. Now I rattle around in my house all alone. I hope to change that this fall, though,” I couldn’t help adding. “I’m thinking about getting married over Christmas.”
Before I knew it, Mac had me telling her all about meeting Morse. “Last April I went to watch my friend’s son wrestle in a high school match, and Morse was coaching the other team. I recognized him immediately. He was the champion wrestler on the Alabama State team the year I won a second in track. We got to talking about college, and one thing led to another. We went out to dinner and discovered we like the same music and food. We’ve been dating ever since.” I tried to sound casual, but I suspected my face was flushed with happiness. “He’s big and handsome and athletic and looks like nothing would faze him, but he had a rough childhood. Underneath he’s a hurting little boy who needs somebody to take care of him—which reminds me. He’s leaving this afternoon for a week’s trip with some of his buddies. I ought to call from the hospital to see if he needs me to pick up toothpaste or something.”
“Would it be possible to stop by my brother’s?” Mac gave me an embarrassed smile. “I hate to ask when you’ve already been so nice, but it’s not far from here, and I could freshen up while you make your call. After two hours in that center and my nosedive on the sidewalk, I sure could use a wash.”
I thought about telling her I was supposed to be at Morse’s very soon, but since I hadn’t mentioned that already, I didn’t like to make her feel worse than shealready did. Besides, she certainly needed to fix herself up a little. One knee of her pants was slightly torn, and
“Harriet moved right after her granny died.” With a gnarled hand ropy with veins, the woman brushed away a fly from her cheek. “Went out to live with her aunt, Dixie Lawson. Dixie Sykes, she’d be now. Mrs. William T. Sykes the Third. Lives out in McGehee Estates somewhere. They’re in the phone book. He has a store.”
“Well, you’re finally getting somewhere,” I told Mac as we gratefully sank into the Honda and turned on the air.
She sighed. “Yeah, but it’s getting more complicated than I ever imagined. I think after I’ve visited with my brother a little while, I ought to just take the money back to the center and let Mr. Henly return it to Harriet.”
I hesitated. I’d only met Mr. Henly over the phone, but our dealings hadn’t been too pleasant. I’d approached him about doing a summer reading program at his center, and he’d been real curt. Said he “was concentrating on sports that summer and would rather not scare kids away from the center its first summer of operation.” A man who talks that way about reading—well, I wasn’t sure he’d really get Harriet’s money back to her now that she’d moved across town. He might spend it on volleyballs. “Why don’t you call Harriet yourself when you get time?” I suggested.
Mac picked up right away on what I was hinting. “You don’t trust him? Why?”
“I don’t want to say more than I really know,” I told her, “and it’s more of a gut feeling than anything else, but Lewis Henly is a bit of an enigma. Blew into town from nowhere and got to know a lot of important people real quick. If I had money belonging to Harriet, I think I’d take it back to her myself.”
Mac decided to follow my advice. It still sounded so simple.
After that we headed toward the hospital, exchanging the little details women use to weave friendships. Itold her I’d cut back at the library to part-time while pursuing my Masters in Business Administration from Auburn at Montgomery. She told me about her family store, her husband, two boys, and four grandchildren.
“Do you have family here?” she asked.
“Not at the moment,” I told her, trying not to feel jealous that she had so much. “Daddy died when I was nine and Mama just last year. Now I rattle around in my house all alone. I hope to change that this fall, though,” I couldn’t help adding. “I’m thinking about getting married over Christmas.”
Before I knew it, Mac had me telling her all about meeting Morse. “Last April I went to watch my friend’s son wrestle in a high school match, and Morse was coaching the other team. I recognized him immediately. He was the champion wrestler on the Alabama State team the year I won a second in track. We got to talking about college, and one thing led to another. We went out to dinner and discovered we like the same music and food. We’ve been dating ever since.” I tried to sound casual, but I suspected my face was flushed with happiness. “He’s big and handsome and athletic and looks like nothing would faze him, but he had a rough childhood. Underneath he’s a hurting little boy who needs somebody to take care of him—which reminds me. He’s leaving this afternoon for a week’s trip with some of his buddies. I ought to call from the hospital to see if he needs me to pick up toothpaste or something.”
“Would it be possible to stop by my brother’s?” Mac gave me an embarrassed smile. “I hate to ask when you’ve already been so nice, but it’s not far from here, and I could freshen up while you make your call. After two hours in that center and my nosedive on the sidewalk, I sure could use a wash.”
I thought about telling her I was supposed to be at Morse’s very soon, but since I hadn’t mentioned that already, I didn’t like to make her feel worse than shealready did. Besides, she certainly needed to fix herself up a little. One knee of her pants was slightly torn, and
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