Page 29 of The Best Lawyer
“We are all done talking about it,” I said. “Not here. Okay? Don’t make this any harder for me than it needs to be.”
“You see?” Vangie said. “This is all your fault, Joe.”
“How do you figure that?” he said.
“You had a clean break. You were done with her. But you just had to go back to her. Mess everything all up even though she broke your heart and stabbed a knife in your back.”
Both Joe and I winced. It was a poor choice of words. Vangie knew it, but when she got like this, there was no backing her down.
Down at the end of the dock, Sean started yelling too. Only he dropped a four-letter word that startled even Joe.
“Enough,” I said. “I’m not listening to you two anymore. If you can’t fight nice, then one of you do me a favor and just kill the other. Get it over with.”
I went back into the house just in time to see Emma bolt out the front door with her keys in her hand.
“Terrific,” I said. There went my chance to make sure she ate. Vangie wasn’t wrong about that.
Eric and Jeff came in through the side door off the porch. The burgers were done. Shaking my head, I went to the fridge and pulled out the tray of trimmings I’d cut up. I set it on the counter, then grabbed the buns, ketchup, and mustard. Though I’d pretty much lost my appetite.
“How long is that going to go on?” Jeff asked.
“Hard to say,” I answered. “Joe will run out of steam first. Vangie? She could go on for days.”
Jeff gave me a sheepish smile. “She sure is a fiery one.” Oh boy. This was always my concern about their relationship. Jeff was absolutely smitten with Vangie. To the point he often couldn’t see straight. But Vangie was a truly wild horse.
I heard something crash to the ground in the back bedroom. “Go ahead and start feeding those idiots without me,” I said.
Eric, completely used to my family’s antics by now, startedbuilding his own burger, unfazed by the drama. I softly knocked on the bedroom door. When I heard no answer, I stepped in.
Tori was sitting on the bed, her right arm propped on pillows. Henry lay sleeping against her chest. Tori was crying.
“Oh, don’t worry about them,” I said. “They’ll burn out eventually.”
Tori wiped her eyes and forced a smile. “I’m sure they will. They’ve been at it for weeks. Matt’s given up trying to stop them. I don’t know what will satisfy Vangie, to tell you the truth. I think she might be secretly hoping Katy goes to prison forever.”
Her face fell as soon as she said that. “Oh, I’m sorry. Cass, I didn’t mean to put any extra pressure on you. I’m only being sarcastic. Vangie doesn’t really want that.”
I climbed onto the bed beside her and leaned over. I got a whiff of Henry’s intoxicating scent. He squirmed and farted. At least, I think it was a fart. It could go either way.
“You okay?” I asked. “You’ve been back here for three to five business days.”
She leaned her head back on the pillow. “I’m just so tired, Cass. Matt’s doing everything he can to pitch in, but Henry’s not sleeping through the night. I’m up about every two hours all night long. Then Sean’s up by six. If I’m lucky, I get one ninety-minute nap out of Henry after breakfast. I’m ashamed to admit it, but I’ve been letting Sean stare at a TV screen the whole time while I either fold a load of laundry or throw some cereal down my head.”
“Oh, honey,” I said. “I wish I could help out more. Once I getpast this trial, I can come over at least one afternoon a week and take Sean off your hands.”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I wasn’t fishing. And you’ve got plenty on your plate. This isn’t your responsibility.”
“We’re family, Tori,” I said. “I love these boys. And I love you.”
She burst into tears in earnest. Oh lord. I’d cut the red wire somehow.
“Here,” I said. I reached over and took Henry out of her arms. He grunted, but didn’t wake. But as he shifted, I caught a good whiff of him. It had been more than a fart.
“PU stinko,” I whispered to him. “Let’s get you cleaned up, little man.”
“Oh no.” Tori sniffed. “Please don’t wake him up. Not yet.”
I laughed. “Okay, boss. But how about this? Let me take a shift. Eric’s got lunch ready. Go eat. We’ll be fine in here for a bit.”
