The B Girls (5 page)

###

Lucy winced against the glare of the sunlight
streaming into the bathroom as she peeled the tape from her skin to get a look
under the bandage.

Yep, it was real.

Big as life on her right butt cheek just below the
dimple in the small of her back was a one inch tattoo of a honey bee.

She felt a small twinge of guilt at dragging Mae and
Jane into the madness but it had seemed like a good idea at the time.
Spiceritas would do that to you.

At least they'd had the good sense to choose a spot
that no self-respecting woman over thirty would ever reveal in public even in a
bathing suit.

She pressed the tape back in place and went to face
the music. No doubt the others were experiencing tattoo remorse.

# # #

Lucy was shocked to find Mae smiling and chipper,
puttering around the kitchen making breakfast. "You're not mad at
me?"

Mae brought a plate of toasted bagels to the
kitchen table where cream cheese, butter, peach marmalade and a carafe of
coffee were already waiting. "Nope. I think it's time I figure out who I
am other than soccer mom and wife."

"I wish I could go back to the time when I was
passionate and excited about the future. When I still had visions of myself as
a strong, independent, adventurous woman."

"You
are
a strong woman," Jane said from the kitchen doorway. "I have a tattoo
of a bee on my ass to prove it."

"Do you remember feeling like the whole world
was out there waiting for you?" Lucy said. "I do. How did we wind up
suburban clichés?"

"Speak for yourself," Jane said.

"She's right," Mae said. "We lost
our dreams when we weren't looking."

The ringing phone interrupted their maudlin
self-analysis.

Lucy was surprised to hear her Aunt Belle's voice.

"Are you alright? You left me a mostly
unintelligible message but if I understood the important point, Gary left
you?"

Fresh tears sprang to Lucy's eyes. Like a child who
feels safe enough to cry when Mom pulls her close, Belle gave her permission to
let go. "Yes. He just walked out without any warning." She hiccupped
on a sob.

"I always suspected he was a low down
bastard," Belle said with a sniff.

Lucy figured she should have known better than to
expect cooing and sympathy. That was why she'd called Belle in the first
place--because her aunt didn't do platitudes.

Lucy's tattooed bravery faded in the face of the
cold reality of her impending divorce. "What am I going to do? I want my
life back!"

"Well I don't know if that's true."

"Of course it's true. I don't want to be
divorced. I want to retire to the beach." Lucy wanted to smack herself for
the whining tone in her voice.

"Retiring to the beach doesn't have to involve
Gary. You're not thinking clearly. You need to get away from that house for a
few days. So, you're going to pack a bag and come up here so I can give you a
hug and you can have a good cry. The second thing you're going to do is help me
solve a little family mystery. After that, we'll see."

"Oh, I don't know if I should leave right
now," Lucy said. "What about the divorce? I have to find a good
lawyer."

"Of course you should leave. Gary did. And as for
the lawyer, I'll make a call. No more arguing. I'll expect you later today. I
have something to do this afternoon but you know how to get in if I'm not back
when you arrive."

Lucy sniffed, suddenly consumed with the thought of
burrowing into one of Belle's big overstuffed chairs and getting a dose of
practical advice. Even at her age a motherly shoulder to cry on was appealing.
"Okay. I'm going to bring some friends with me."

"Good. Don't you worry about anything. We'll
figure out what to do about Gary. And I think you'll be intrigued with my
little mystery."

Lucy hung up the phone and turned to her friends.

"What was that about bringing friends
somewhere?" Jane asked.

"You remember my Aunt Belle," Lucy said.

Mae and Jane nodded.

"She's going to rescue all of us from
ourselves. It's time for all of us to break free from suburban
oppression."

Jane rolled her eyes. "That's a little
melodramatic isn't it?"

"I don't think so," Lucy said. "But
it doesn't matter. Aunt Belle lives in this fabulous house outside Dahlonega.
She calls it a cabin but it's more like a lodge. A luxury lodge complete with
hot tub, gleaming glass walls with fabulous views, and a lap pool. We deserve a
little vacation."

"It would serve my family right if I took
off," Mae said then shook her head. "But I really shouldn't."

Jane smeared cream cheese on a bagel. "Do you
mean to tell me your husband and your two nearly-grown children can't manage on
their own for a couple of days?" She shook her head. "That's
pathetic."

Mae frowned. "It is, isn't it?"

Jane tapped a fingernail on the kitchen table.
"Although, I should probably stay in town and look for a new job . .
." She tapped her fingernail some more.

Mae just tightened and got quiet which was more her
style than her recent emotional outbursts. Finally she said, "You really
want our company on this trip?"

"I really do," Lucy said. "The B
Girls have a mystery to solve."

"Your Aunt Belle must be something," Jane
said.

"She is. She just got back from a glacier trek
in Alaska."

"How old is she?" Mae asked. "I
mean, she must be a pretty young aunt if she went on a trip like that."

"Belle is seventy-two. Two years younger than
my mom."

"Holy shit!" Jane said. "Seventy-two
and trekking across an Alaskan glacier?"

"Seventy is the new fifty," Mae said.

Lucy nodded. "She's an amazing woman. Married
once, young and well. After he died she inherited a big pot of money and
started traveling the world. She would write me amazing letters full of
adventure, excitement and advice."

She smiled, remembering. "She's the one I
called when I was ten and my mom refused to let me take ballet lessons--I was
supposed to focus on my mind and not my body-- and when got my heart broken for
the first time, and a hundred other times when my parents couldn't or wouldn't
understand. I always wanted to be her when I grew up."

"And you wound up with Gary instead,"
Jane said.

"Let's not go there right now," Lucy
said. "We leave in two hours."

"I can't," Mae said. "Not without
time to plan, make sure the kids have rides to their activities, put casseroles
in the freezer, pick up the dry cleaning."

"Let Chip figure it out," Jane said.

"Do you really think I could? Just pack a bag
and go?" Mae said.

"Yes. I really think you can," Lucy said.

"You can't just take off. What about the kid's
activities? Dinner? Dry cleaning? You're being selfish."

Mae winced. Was she being selfish? Maybe she should
stay home. Lucy would be okay with Jane for company.

But dammit, she didn't want to stay home. She wanted
to take some time for herself, do something spontaneous and unscheduled. She
could practically hear Jane's voice in her head telling her to grow a backbone.

"You are a very intelligent man and we have
two very intelligent kids. They aren't helpless toddlers for heaven's sake and
neither are you. I'm sure the three of you will survive without me for a few
days."

Chip pulled himself up to his full height like a
dog bristling to show dominance. "I shouldn't have to get by and neither
should the kids. You're staying home."

Mae sucked in a shocked breath and froze, her mind
reeling. How had she spent the past sixteen years ignoring the fact that Chip
was a bully?

The answer was obvious--Chip was usually more
subtle about his bullying and she was afraid to rock the boat. Afraid of losing
her place in the world of respectability.

This time, she wasn't giving in.

Mae put on her best all-purpose polite and happy
face. "You have the rest of the day to figure out what has to be done
tomorrow and you can take it one day at a time after that. Lucy's been a good
friend to me and she's asked for a little support. I'm asking for yours."

"You're putting that red-headed bohemian above
your own family?" Chip said.

"No. I'm helping a friend and trusting that you
are competent enough to take care of the family," Mae said.

"You might not like what happens if we find
out we can get along just fine without you."

Mae dug her fingernails into her palms, using the
pain to fend off tears. "I'm going to pretend you aren't acting like a
jerk and I hope you do some thinking of your own the next few days. I'll have
my phone if you need me."

###

Jane figured there wasn't any point in putting off
the inevitable. She called her voice mail as soon as she put her overnight bag
on the kitchen table.

"What the hell is wrong with you?"

She sighed at the sound of Norm Bankstone's voice.
Her
boss
Norm. He sounded angry. Big
surprise. After asking what was wrong with her, he requested she return his
call.

There were three more messages from Norm. In the
final message, he gave up on her returning his phone call and said he would see
her in the office early Monday morning.

The rest of the messages were routine calls from
clients.

No personal calls.

Because--aside from Mae and Lucy--she had no
personal life.

She was consumed with her career. With her image of
herself as a strong independent woman who didn't need anyone--meaning a man--to
make her life complete.

So, why had she endangered her career with that
little stunt yesterday?

She scrolled to Norm's number and hit the call
button.

"Norman Bankstone."

"Norm--"

"Jane? Please tell me you've had a nervous
breakdown or developed an addiction to oxycontin so I can tell the client
you're in a mental institution."

"Stress. I think it's stress." Seemed as
good an excuse as any.

"Stress? You expect me to tell a man who's
worth a few hundred thousand dollars a year in business that you turned into a
foul-mouthed shrew because of stress?"

Jane had intended to play the humble penitent. To
throw herself on the mercy of the court of Norm. Right up until the word shrew
came out of his mouth. She didn't do humble well. "Tell him whatever you
want. If you're not going to fire me, I'm taking a month off."

"You're fired."

Jane pushed the button to end the call without
replying.

"It's official," she said, peering into
her tank of very expensive--and very beautiful--saltwater fish, "I've just
flushed fifteen years of work down the toilet."

The fish weren't impressed. Little did they know, fish
food would be the first thing to be sacrificed to the budget gods if she didn't
find a new job. Herbie, Gracie and their little friends just might wind up in
some doctor's reception room.

She made a note to call the fish sitter tomorrow.

###

Within five minutes of Jane and Mae leaving, Lucy's
bag was packed and sitting by the front door.

She didn't have anyone to answer to and she didn't
worry about her wardrobe while she packed. Her idea of casual wear consisted of
jeans, the odd pair of khaki shorts and whatever shirt came to hand.

She went back upstairs to a spare bedroom she'd
turned into a serene, uncluttered space for meditation, lit a candle and
lowered herself into a half-lotus.

This is what she should have done yesterday instead
of shooting up the fish or drinking that awful boxed wine. Which probably said
something profound about the state of her spiritual life.

She focused on the candle flame and started
counting her breaths. She only made it to three before her mind started to
skitter and jump around.
Divorce. How is
Ryan doing at school? Has he eaten anything except pizza? What lawyer is Gary
planning to hire? What mystery could Belle be talking about?

Lucy shook her head in disgust. Classic case of
monkey mind.

She focused on the candle again and started
counting.

When she got to five, the doorbell gonged through
the house.

Dammit!

She unfolded herself and went to see who felt the
need to ring on a Sunday.