Lottery (31 page)

“Well, there’s a slight complication.” Ling paused.

Jenee stiffened. She hoped Ling wasn’t going to tell her that Caleb had gone completely off his rocker.

“I’m pregnant.”

Jenee slumped down in a chair, feeling mixed emotions. She was happy for Ling, but sad knowing she would never give birth to another baby. “Oh, my God, I’m so excited. How far along?”

“Two months. Due the middle of November. I just told Caleb this morning.”

“Huh? Why’d you wait so long?” Jenee had told Justin she knew she was pregnant before she’d even missed a period.

“I just wanted to see if …” Ling let out a sigh. “If everything was going to work out between Caleb and me.”

“It’s that bad?” Jenee knew there were problems, but had no idea that their marriage had reached this point.

“I smelled liquor on his breath this morning.”

“Oh, no,” Jenee answered, even though she wasn’t surprised. She’d smelled booze on Caleb’s breath early in the morning when they were in Shanghai.

“I’m not going to go through the craziness again,” Ling said sadly. “I’ve given him an ultimatum.”

Jenee had never heard Ling say anything like this before, not even when she’d found the receipt for the hotel. “And?”

“Caleb always says he’s going to quit. But he’s said that before. ” Ling paused. “Yet when I see him with Ahna, my heart melts.”

Ling didn’t say how
she
felt about Caleb, only how she felt when he was with Ahna. “From what you’ve told me, he is a good father.” Jenee didn’t trust Caleb, but felt this wasn’t the time to tell Ling her feelings.

“I want to talk to you about it, but right now I need to concentrate on getting the next adoptive couple chosen, so back to working together,” Ling continued. “Think you have the time?”

“Are you sure you don’t want to talk about Caleb now? I have time and you know I’m always here for—”

“No,” Ling said adamantly. “I need to get my mind off of Caleb. What I’d like you to do is some preliminary interviewing. I have over five hundred applicants and that’s after narrowing them down.”

“Whoa,” she responded. “You think it would work with me in Kansas and you in San Francisco?” Jenee had recently started thinking about taking a part-time job. With Eli in pre-school, and Baileigh in kindergarten, she had some time on her hands.

“Oh, Lord, everything’s done on the net anyway. I’ll just email the applications. Ling paused. “Of course I’ll pay you.”

“You’ve paid me already by giving me Eli.”

“I either give you a salary or it won’t work.”

Ling was strong-minded, and Jenee knew she didn’t stand a chance to win this argument.

“I’d love to have you come out for a few days so we can just go over everything together,” Ling said.

“Oh, gee,” Jenee teased, “I don’t know. Topeka or hang out with Ling in San Francisco.”

“You can bring the kids if you want.”

Remembering what Ling had said about Caleb’s drinking, Jenee didn’t feel bringing Baileigh and Eli with her was a good idea. “I think this is a mommy trip.”

“You think Justin will be okay with it?”

“Of course. I just need to give him the heads up. Between him and Mom—”

“I need a friend,” Ling interrupted, her voice breaking.

Jenee stiffened. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

“I’d love to have you here for Ahna’s birthday.”

“April tenth, right?” Jenee asked.

“Yes,” Ling answered. “But that’s just a few days away.”

“I’m coming.”

“Really?” Ling said excitedly. “Are you sure? ‘Cuz I’ll book your ticket today if you think—.”

“No, I’ll book my own ticket,” Jenee argued.

“Woops … already done,” Ling said. “It’ll be in your inbox within an hour.”

When they hung up, Jenee walked up the stairs and into her bedroom. She didn’t like the tone in Ling’s voice. In Shanghai, she’d caught Caleb talking to himself a few times. She was well aware of the signs of addiction. With her father’s side of the family riddled with alcoholism, she knew Caleb was trying to hide his drinking from Ling; the breath mints, the cup after cup of coffee he drank in the morning, and the puffy eyes.

She went to the small desk in the corner of her bedroom and sat down in front of the computer. Typing ‘Caleb O’Toole into
the browser, she found the name of the advertising agency where he’d worked at as a creative director, and then saw a picture of him holding the lottery ticket. Her eyes grew wide when she read that he’d won over seven hundred million dollars. Jenee had no idea it was that much. She found another picture of him and Ling when they’d announced their engagement, and a press release announcing Ling’s adoption agency.

She drank the last of her coffee, stood and went downstairs for a refill. She’d heard Caleb mention the name of a friend. As she stared out the window at the rain, Jenee tried to remember the name. Wagner. No. That wasn’t right. Weber. Jake … no … Jack Weber. “People are who they choose to be friends with,” her mother used to say.

Back in her bedroom, Jenee set her coffee mug down on the desk, and typed in Jack Weber and San Francisco, California. The screen immediately filled with articles. As her eyes scanned down the list, Jenee realized there were three Jack Webers who lived in San Francisco. She tilted her head back and tried to think of what suburb Ling had told her that she and Caleb had lived in before they’d bought the house in Pacific Heights. She bent over, and took the map of California out of the bottom drawer of her desk. Running her index finger over San Francisco, she stopped when she came to Nob Hill.

It took her an hour and a half to skim through all the articles about the Jack Weber who’d lived in Nob Hill. Weber had been a wealthy socialite who’d hosted a number of parties on his hundred-foot yacht; had graduated from Harvard, and … died? He’d died on his boat? She draped her hand over her forehead. Maybe Weber was the guy Caleb had told Justin about who’d died last year.

She picked up her coffee cup and took a sip, her eyes not leaving Weber’s obituary.

“JACK WINSTON WEBER, 32, DIED UNEXPECTEDLY ON ….” Jenee continued to read finding that the police had questioned friends who’d been on Weber’s yacht the night of his accident.

She tapped her fingernails on the he desk and stared into space. Wait. Wasn’t Weber’s death close to when Caleb claimed the lottery ticket? Jenee quickly went back to the article with the picture of Caleb’s holding the lottery ticket and found it was dated May 23
^rd
… four days after Weber had died. Really?

Catching a glimpse of the time, Jenee saw it was 11:30. She had to pick Eli up at noon.

By the time she pulled into the parking lot of the pre-school, the winds had picked up, and the rain was pouring down in sheets. She reached into the backseat and grabbed her umbrella. Even with protection, she was drenched by the time she reached the door.

“Eli,” she called, bent over and held out her arms. When Eli saw her, he scrambled to Jenee as fast as he could given the cumbersome braces on both legs. She felt so bad for him, but hopefully one day soon, he’d be running as fast as other children.

“Mommy.” Eli held up a paper he had in his hand. “I made a picture. See?” He’d caught onto the English language quickly. But then, he was only a little over two when Jenee had brought him home.

“Oh, my.” Jenee took the picture from Eli and stared at the swirls of red, blue, and yellow watercolors that covered the page. “It’s beautiful, sweetie. I’ll hang in on the fridge with the others.”

In the car, she turned on the windshield wipers and then glanced into the rearview mirror. Eli’s eyes were growing heavy as he sat perfectly still in his car seat mesmerized by the rain that beat against the window. “Eli, don’t fall asleep, honey. We’ll be home in a minute.” He was a beautiful child with hair so
black that it almost looked blue. His trusting eyes lit up whenever Baileigh walked into the room and his sweet smile never seemed to disappear.

Her thoughts went to Eli’s biological parents. Dr. Wang had told her and Justin that there were no records of Eli’s birth when they were in Shanghai. Would Eli eventually try to search for his parents? Or at least his mother? But how would her son even know where begin without a birth certificate? If that time ever came, although it might be hard, Jenee would support Eli’s decision, as every child had the right to know who their biological parents were.

When she parked the car underneath the carport, she hurried to the other side of the car. The rain poured down on her when Jenee unhooked Eli from his car seat, picked him up, ran up the steps, and into the house.

“Thunder scares me, Mommy.” Eli’s lower lip puckered and he laid his head down on Jenee’s shoulder.

Jenee patted his back and rocked him back and forth. “That’s God walking in heaven.”

Eli lifted his head and stared into Jenee’s eyes. “Is God watching me?”

“He’s watching over all of us,” Jenee replied. She carried him up the stairs and into his room. Jenee helped Eli into dry clothes, and then changed into sweatpants and a t-shirt.

After lunch, they sat on the couch and Jenee read Eli a book. He’d fallen asleep before Jenee had finished
The Cat in the Hat
. She covered him in his favorite blanket, and tiptoed back up the stairs.

When the computer came back to life, she saw that the article on Jack Weber was still up. Jenee felt guilty trying to find out more about Caleb. But the guilt wasn’t enough to stop her from investigating further.

Her eyes moved down the list of those who’d been on Weber’s yacht the night of his death. Because Jack Weber had been a big deal in Nob Hill the police would have done a thorough accounting of who was on his boat before they ruled his death an accident.

McKenzie Price, age twenty-seven, had been questioned, Jenee read. Price was quoted as saying that she was last one to leave the yacht, and that Weber had been asleep on one of the lounge chairs.

She typed McKenzie Price into the computer. “WOMAN, 27, FOUND DEAD IN ABANDONED WAREHOUSE …” Her heartbeat quickened as she read on. “…. strangled … no suspects …”

Jenee glanced down at her watch. Baileigh was due home at any minute.

Quickly, she clicked out of McKenzie Price’s obituary and clicked on the post below it. “RONALD JASON PRICE DIED OF UNKNOWN CAUSES ON …” Jenee’s eyes traveled rapidly down the page. PRECEDED IN DEATH BY SISTER MCKENZIE ….”
What the hell
?

She leaned back in her chair and tried to piece everything together. Caleb’s friend Jack Weber had died just before Caleb had claimed the lottery ticket. Another woman who was on Weber’s yacht the night of Weber’s death was killed soon after, and the strangled woman’s brother had died a few months later.

Something wasn’t right.

aleb watched Ling rush out the front door when the squad car turned into their driveway. His nerves were raw and Caleb was in no shape to drive home. He’d left his BMW in the parking lot at the Yacht Club.

Ling had evidently been watching for Caleb and her father. She’d called Caleb a half a dozen times, but he hadn’t taken the calls. He was sick to his stomach. How the hell was he going to tell Ling that that her father, the man she looked up to the most was dead?

Ling stopped at the end of the sidewalk, her face ashen. She wrapped her arms around herself. Caleb opened the passenger door of the police car and stepped out.

“What’s going on?” Ling asked, her voice shaky. “It’s after nine. Why are you with the police? Why didn’t you answer my calls?”

Caleb had rehearsed the story before he’d even called the Coast Guard. “Ling,” he said slowly walking toward her, “I—”

“Where’s Dad?” She glanced over his shoulder. “Dad?” she called anxiously. She started past Caleb for the squad car, but Caleb caught her arm.

“He’s gone, honey.” He tried to embrace her, but she pulled away.

“What do you mean … gone?” Ling asked angrily. “Gone where?”

“I’m sorry, ma’am,” the stocky officer standing behind Caleb said. “Your husband tried to save your father’s life, but—”

She slapped the palm of her hands on Caleb’s chest and pushed him away. “
Noooooooo
,” Ling’s cry echoed, and she turned and ran back to the house. “Please, God, no.”