Loving Miss Libby (3 page)

“Don’t worry about them.  They’re fine with me. 
We’ve been baking, and had just gone outside to play when the phone rang…”

“I’m really sorry, but I may be awhile here.  I’ve
had something come up at work.”  He gave a weary sigh.  “Something always comes
up.”

“As I said, we’re fine here.  Don’t worry about a
thing.”

“Libby, I owe you,” he said.  “I really do.  Here it
is your weekend and…”

“Really, don’t worry about it, and you don’t owe me
anything.  We’ll see you when you get here.”

After signing off, Libby stared at the receiver in
her hand.  That was perhaps the most words she’d spoken to her neighbor since
she’d moved in a year before.  Purchasing a home of her own had been one of the
most gratifying events in her life.  She’d managed to do it, on her own, just
before the dawn of her thirtieth birthday.  Fortunately, her job as a medical
transcriptionist allowed her to earn enough money to make her mortgage payments
and live a relatively comfortable life.  She had to pinch pennies, but she was
managing.

Her heart went out to her neighbor.  She knew from
other neighbors that Dan’s wife had passed away when Marky was two, and
according to these neighbors, Dan had taken it hard—as had Kate.  Her heart
broke for the little girl, who seemed older than her years, and who seemed to
worry far more than any eight-year-old should. 

With a sigh, Libby headed back outside to play with
the children.  Maybe if she could keep Kate occupied, and show her a good time,
she’d be less inclined to worry.  The poor little thing.

Back outside, she found the kids engaged in a
fighting match over the soccer ball.  Fortunately, when she stepped outside,
they immediately parted and smiled winningly in her direction.  Unfortunately,
Kate abruptly frowned, as if sensing that something was amiss.  “Is everything
all right?” she asked.

“Well, your father just called and…”

“Is he okay?” she cried.  “Was he hurt at work?  Did
someone shoot him?  Was he in a car accident?”

Marky took his cue from his sister.  “Is Daddy
dead?” he wailed.

Libby hurriedly reached the kids and wrapped her
arms around them.  “Listen.  Your daddy is fine.  He has to work later than
expected, but it’s okay, because you’re staying here with me.  No need to
worry,” she said.  “We’re going to have a good time, and we’re going to do our
best not to worry about anything.”

Marky smiled with relief, but Kate still frowned. 
“Why isn’t Grandma coming to get us?”

Libby forced a smile.  “Honey, your grandpa had to
have some tests done at the doctor’s and…”

“What kind of tests?  Is it his heart?  Is it…?”

Libby took a shoring breath and knelt down in front
of the little girl.  “Kate, please listen to me.  I don’t know why your
grandfather is having tests done, but I do know that tests are often routine. 
Do you know what that means?”

“Yes.”

“Okay, so try not to worry.  After awhile, I’m sure
you can call your granddad to check on him.”

“Okay, yeah.  I’ll do that.”  She took a deep,
steadying breath and attempted a smile.  “I’m sure he’s fine.”

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Marky parroted.

“And I think we should continue our game, since we
have cupcakes to frost very soon,” Libby said.

“Yay, cupcakes!” Marky shouted. 

***

“I’m going to draw a dinosaur on my cupcake!” Marky
declared, as he attempted to frost the treat.

His sister watched him with a rueful expression on
her face.  “Yeah, sure.  You can hardly frost it, and you think you’re going to
be able to draw a…”

“I am going to draw a Tyrannosaurus Rex!  You just
watch me.”

“Hey, hey, kids,” Libby said, “I’m sure you’ll both
do a great job decorating your cupcakes.  What do you plan to do, Kate?”

Libby had divided the frosting between small bowls
and added drops of food coloring to each.  The kids had a rainbow of colors to
choose from.

“I’m going to put little hearts on my cupcakes,”
Kate declared.

“Well, I think dinosaurs and hearts are both great
ideas,” Libby said.  She sat down at the kitchen island and watched them. 

“Hearts are stupid,” Marky muttered, and Kate
slugged him in the arm.  For a split second, he looked as if he might
retaliate, but fortunately, seemed too interested in his cupcake at the moment.

She bit back a laugh.  Wow, siblings could really go
at it.  These two certainly could, but then, she’d witnessed a good deal of
sibling love between them too.  Kate could step as easily into the mother role
to her brother as her sister role. 

Libby noted the little girl constantly checked the
stove clock.  She suspected she was worried about both her father and
grandfather.  She wished she could do something to ease her fears.  She knew
what it was like to carry around a lot of worry.  Her mother often told her
she’d been born with the weight of the world on her shoulders, and then when
her father had died suddenly in a car accident when she was eight, her
anxiousness had only intensified. 

“I wonder when Daddy is going to get home,” Kate
said from out of the blue, interrupting Libby’s thoughts.

“Does he often work late?” Libby asked.

Kate nodded.  “He’s a traffic homicide investigator,
so he has to carry a pager.  He gets called out all the time.”

Marky’s eyed widened, as he pinned them on Libby. 
“Daddy goes to wrecks and has to figure out how they happened. 
Sometimes
…” 
He let the word hang in the air and leaned closer to Libby, as if sharing a
secret.  “Sometimes, the people who are dead are still in the car when he gets
there…”

Libby was taken aback.  If that was true, how awful
for him to have to see death on an ongoing basis, but how had Marky been privy
to this information?  It seemed a bit too scary for a little boy to handle.

“Honey, how do you know that?” she asked.

“Well, sometimes when our phone rings, I pick it up
upstairs when Daddy answers it downstairs.  Anyway, I heard somebody tell him
that the…”  He swallowed hard and his eyes grew even wider.  “…That the
body
hadn’t been removed yet.”

“You’re not supposed to answer the phone, Marky!”
Kate scolded, and whacked him hard on the arm.  “You know Dad doesn’t want you
hearing that stuff!  It gives you nightmares.”

“Nuh uh.  You’re the one who has nightmares!  You’re
the one who screams in your sleep.”

“I do … not,” she said weakly.

Libby searched the little girl’s face.  It appeared
she was about to cry, but she bit her lower lip and fixed a stalwart expression
on her face.  Libby reached out and patted her arm.

“Everybody has nightmares,” she said.

“Do you, Miss Libby?” Marky asked.

“I do,” she said.  “And when I do, I try to remember
I’m safe in my warm bed, that God is watching out for me, and that there’s
nothing to worry about.”

“There’s lots to worry about,” Kate said weakly.

“Well, we’re not going to worry right now,” Libby
said.  “You know, I think I’ll frost a cupcake too.  I’m going to put a happy
face on mine.”

“Me too!” Marky cried.

The threesome continued frosting cupcakes until all
were done.  “This is my favorite,” Kate said, holding up one on which she had
drawn and filled in a large heart.  The heart was pink against white frosting.

“Kate, that is beautiful,” Libby gushed.  “You’re an
artist.”

The little girl beamed at the compliment.

“What do you think of mine, Miss Libby?  Am I an
artist too?” Marky asked.

“Absolutely,” she said, admiring his rendition of a
green dinosaur on his bright yellow cupcake.  It looked like a green blob, but
he was clearly happy with it.

He studied it briefly, and then promptly bit into
it.  “This tastes even better than it looks.”

“Yeah, I’m sure it does,” Kate said in a droll tone.

Libby gave her a mock warning glance, and couldn’t
help smiling when Kate giggled in response.  “Well, kids,” she said, “baking is
fun, but you know what comes after…?”

“Eating!” Marky yelled.

“After that, I mean,” she said, giving him a rueful
look.

Kate immediately understood her meaning.  “Cleaning
up.”

“Good girl.  You’re right.”

With the kids’ help, Libby soon had the baking
supplies stowed away and the kitchen sparkling clean.  She checked the clock. 
It was now mid-afternoon.

“Can I call my grandma?” Kate asked.  “So I can
check on Grandpa.”

“Sure you can.”

The little girl crossed the kitchen and entered the
attached family room.  She picked up the cordless phone Libby had left on the
coffee table.  She dialed from memory.  When no one answered, she gave a long
sigh.  “Nobody’s home.”

“Sometimes tests take awhile,” Libby told her.  “And
they may have had errands to run after the appointment.”

“Maybe,” Kate mused.

“Maybe they just needed a break from us,” Marky
said.  “I heard Grandpa say we’re a…?”  He crinkled his face, as if struggling
to remember something of importance.

“He said we’re a handful,” Kate said, glaring at
him.  “And he meant
you
!”

“I’m sweet,” Marky announced, returning her angry
stare.  “At least, that’s what Miss Libby said earlier.”

“Yeah, well, she was just being nice.  And you
weren’t supposed to be listening in on Grandma and Grandpa’s conversation
either.”

“Yeah, so?”

“Well, Daddy says if you listen in on peoples’
conversations, you might not like what you hear.”

Marky stuck his tongue at his sister, dismissing her
all together, and turned to Libby.  “Can we go outside?”

“We sure can,” Libby answered, glad for the
distraction.  “I need to get back to mowing.  Maybe you two can help me with
some yardwork.”

“Or…” Kate said, watching Libby pointedly.  “We
could stay in the family room and watch a movie.”  She nodded almost
imperceptibly in Marky’s direction.  “Sometimes, some people in this room need
a nap, or they get really cranky.”

“Hey, you’d better not be talking about me,” Marky
protested, watching his sister through narrowed eyes.  “‘Cause you’re crankier
than me most of the time.”

Libby suddenly decided Kate’s idea of staying in
sounded like a good one.  If Marky typically took a nap in the afternoon, she
figured she should probably keep him on a schedule.  “What do you kids like to
watch on TV?” she asked.

“Daddy only lets us watch educational programs,”
Kate said, and Marky gave her a dirty look.  “What?” she demanded, glaring at
him in return.

“You didn’t have to tell Miss Libby that!  I like
cartoons!”

“We’re not supposed to tell lies,” Kate scolded
him.  “God doesn’t like it when people tell lies.  Does He, Miss Libby?”

“We should always try our best to tell the truth,”
Libby agreed, and then attempted to divert the kids’ attention once again. 
“Hey, why don’t we watch a Disney movie?  Your dad wouldn’t object to that,
would he?”

“No,” Kate said.  “As long as it isn’t too scary for
Marky.”

Marky rose to his full height and balled his fists
at his sides.  “I’m not scared of nothin’!”

“Okay, okay,” Libby said, “let’s just pick a movie.”

Surprisingly, the kids agreed on a movie fairly
quickly and settled in, Kate on Libby’s couch, and Marky on the loveseat.  She
gave each a throw blanket and they soon became engrossed in the movie.  Before
too long, Marky fell asleep.

“That’s a relief,” Kate whispered, when Libby smiled
in the little boy’s direction.

“Oh, he’s a good boy,” Libby said, smiling at Kate
now.

“Oh, I know,” she said.  “He just gets on my last
nerve sometimes.”

“It’s what brothers and sisters do,” Libby assured
her.

“Do you have a brother?” Kate asked.

“No, but I have a sister.  She’s several years older
than me, and we also fought sometimes, but we’re really close today.”  She
paused.  “Hey, honey, will you be all right for a moment if I go check on a few
things in my office?”

“Oh, that’s right.  Somebody told us you work from
home.”

She nodded.  “I do.  I’m not going to work today
since it’s a weekend day, but I do have to send a quick fax.  I won’t be long.”

Kate nodded.  “I’ll be all right.”

Libby hurried to send the fax, and upon her return,
found Kate sleeping too.  The little girl had snuggled against the side of the
couch, her head tipped against the arm.  Her throw blanket had fallen on the
floor.  Libby scooped it up and covered her. 

She stood for a moment, watching the little girl’s
sweet face in repose.  Like her brother, she was absolutely adorable, with her
freckled face and upturned nose.  Both had strawberry blond hair.  She realized
that they must take after their mother, since their father’s hair was much
darker.