We Interrupt This Date (27 page)

“My family. My problem.”

She pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. I could
imagine the wheels turning in her head. “Yeah,” she said finally,
“it might be a good idea to have your backup wait outside the way
they do on those TV cop shows, though I never pictured myself as
your sidekick.”

“Gosh, I’m feeling just better and better about
myself.”

“Hey, don’t take it the wrong way. It’s only that
you’ve been so passive ever since I’ve known you, sort of like a
lamb following its mama.” She waved her arm around, and I ducked in
case the pepper spray had a hair trigger.

“I’m going to kill you after I’m done with Philip,
Patty.”

She looked doubtful about my ability to deal with
Philip, but she stepped back and held up the can. She shook it to
make sure I got the message and moved over to stand behind a
half-dead palm tree in the grass strip on the other side of the El
Camino.

“Go,” she stage whispered. “I’ve got your back.”

I rolled my eyes. When it came to drama, she could be
as bad as Mama and DeLorean combined. Before I lost my nerve, I
strode up to Room 200 and pounded against the wooden door with the
side of my fist. Though it kind of hurt my hand, the pounding
action seemed to instill some kind of resolve in me, adding a
strength I hadn’t felt a few moments ago.

The curtain at the front window flicked sideways for
the briefest of seconds and then I heard the sound of someone
fumbling with the door lock. The door moved inward a fraction. A
pale face and a set of eyes floated in front of me.

“Got the money?” Philip rasped. “About time.
Something’s come up business-wise, and I have to move on.” He
peered over my shoulder. No doubt he was checking to be sure there
wasn’t a mob of torch-bearing vigilantes milling around behind
me.

New resolve or not, the last thing I wanted was to go
into his motel room with him, but with Patty waiting behind a tree,
pepper spray in hand, I’d be okay. Besides, the door was flimsy and
warped along one side and I was surprised it would even lock. If
need be, I was sure I could kick it open the way actors did with
those special breakaway doors.

“I have it,” I said, holding my arm against my side
to give the impression I had a bulky package hidden under my
sweater. I didn’t even know how much cash I was supposed to be
giving him.

“Come in and we’ll get this over with.” When I
hesitated, he added, “I don’t have all damn night.”

“Got a plane to catch?”

“You might say that.”

The door opened wider, enough for me to fit myself in
the narrow space between the frame and the door edge. I slid inside
and watched as he pushed the door shut, redid the lock and poked
the chain into its slot. I glanced around, glad it wasn’t me living
at the budget motel. The room smelled of mildew and old food
wrappers. The rug was so worn I couldn’t be sure there was actually
a rug or if I was just looking at random fibers glued to the
concrete. The bedspread—ragged, mouse colored, stained—hung
crookedly off the side of the bed. Motel issue lamp, phone, and
nightstand completed the decor. No sign of a TV, though there was a
broken piece of plastic that might have once been part of a TV
stand bolted to the floor.

Philip held out his hand like a kid expecting me to
slap a chocolate bar onto his palm on Halloween Night. “What are
you waiting for?”

I scowled. “You’re not going to get money from my
mother or from anyone else in my family.” My voice trembled ever so
slightly. Not what I’d hoped for, but I was doing okay, already
feeling an adrenaline rush. “I know all about wife number—whatever.
Could be twenty for all I know. The new one in a hotel across the
river. I’m sure she’d love to teach you a lesson. I’m sure she’d
love to know you’re already married to Lurlene, who is no doubt
sharpening her knife back in Arkansas at this very moment. In fact,
I’m sure Lurlene is wondering when you’re coming home. I have her
number and I will call her right now if you don’t stop harassing my
mother. What I really ought to do is call the police, but out of
respect for Mama’s feelings, I’m going to hold off on that.”

Patty would have been proud of me. The voice tremble
had melted away to be replaced by the authoritative tone of someone
in charge of a situation--a police officer or even a judge.

Philip’s face twisted into a reptilian sneer. I
wanted to slap some respect into him.

“I’m not afraid of a bunch of stupid women. I happen
to know that Regina, the stupid cow, would jump off the nearest
bridge before she’d let me tell her new sweetheart about her past.
Her reputation means the world to her, and that’s as good as money
in my pocket.”

“You couldn’t be more wrong.” I shook with rage. What
I’d felt before was just a warm up. This excuse for a human being
was talking ugly about my mama and I was going to take him down.
“You know something, Philip? You were never good enough for my
mother. And you don’t know her, you never did. Mama has more
courage and goodness and character in one finger than you’ve ever
thought of having.”

“Do tell. Let’s see what kind of song she sings after
I present my ultimatum. Your little attempt to scare me off is
going to cost her double what I originally asked for.”

I crossed my arms over my chest and shot him a look I
hoped managed to convey all the warmth and love I’d show for a
hungry roach rummaging through my kitchen cabinets. “Either you
leave town tonight and never bother my mother again, or I’ll call
them all—Lurlene, the new wife,
and
the police. Mama’s
strong. She’ll get over all the unpleasantness. But you won’t have
such a great time. I hear that jail food isn’t exactly up to your
gourmet standards.”

The sneer deepened into something truly ugly. He took
a step toward me and I took a step back and glanced behind me. Too
late, I realized I shouldn’t have let him stand between me and the
door. The bathroom door was behind me, about eight feet back, but I
couldn’t count on there being a window in the bathroom--or a lock
on the door. My cell phone was in my purse--but my purse was
outside hanging off Patty’s shoulder.

Great planning. Primo, as Trinity would have
said.

His hands curled into fists. “You’re bluffing. Your
mother doesn’t want the boyfriend knowing she and I were never
married. Or her church crowd.”

“Nothing you have to say can ruin my mother’s
reputation. She didn’t do anything wrong.” As I spoke, I continued
to inch backward. My plan was to get him to keep moving toward me
and then I’d leap sideways onto the bed, bounce off on the other
side, and get behind him, closer to the door than he was. I might
not have time to get the lock open before he grabbed me, if that’s
what he had in mind. But hopefully I could make enough noise to
alert Patty.

I might as well have been thinking out loud. Philip
moved away from me until he was directly in front of the door, a
few feet in front of it.

“I still think you’re bluffing, you little bitch. Go
over to the nightstand and pick up the phone. Get your mother on
the line and have her tell me herself that she doesn’t mind if I
let her fancy boyfriend know all about what a hypocritical slut she
is.”

My heart rate got a fraction slower and steadier and
I fought down a triumphant grin. The idiot. He was sending me to
the phone. As soon as I picked up, I was dialing the police. My
fingers were so ready to key in 911, they actually curled into
position.

Something flickered on his face and with a sinking in
my stomach, I knew I’d telegraphed my intentions. Either that or
he’d realized for himself how stupid his plan was.

“On second thought, I’ll make the call.” He gestured
for me to move back against the far wall.

Instead, I made a dive across the bed toward the
nightstand. He was closer and he beat me to it, snatched up the
phone, and yanked the cord out of the wall. I rolled off the bed
and ended up on the floor, sure that I’d bruised both knees on the
concrete when I landed. He lunged for me and I rolled out of the
way and scrabbled to my feet, once again cursing myself for failing
to plan ahead.

All my acrobatics had come to nothing. He still stood
between me and the outside. And my knees throbbed like twin
migraines.

“I’ve given you all the warning you’re going to get,
Philip. Now I’m leaving.” If I could still walk.

“Not until I get my money.”

“You can’t stop me. My friend is right outside that
door and…and her boyfriend is a taxidermist. I mean, he’s big, a
huge, strong guy. He’s a taxidermist, too, but I don’t suppose he
wants to waste his time stuffing you. Not that anyone would want to
display a giant, thieving rat in their living room. Or their
den.”

“You’re babbling, Susan. You used to do that when you
were a little girl and you got nervous. Remember? Every time it
thundered or I raised my voice, you’d start babbling, making about
as much sense as a monkey in the zoo. Scared.” He grinned his
triumph, rocking back and forth on his heels.

“I am not,” I said. Damn, the tremble in the vocal
cords was back. “I’m angry. Very angry. You’re going to be so sorry
you ever came back into my mother’s life.”

I pressed against the wall and we locked ourselves
into a stare-off. I was determined to find a way out of here,
whether I went through the doorway or not. I wondered if the window
glass was as thick as it looked. Even if it were as thin as paper,
though, I’d never reach it ahead of him. My thoughts raced for a
second and then my mind prodded me to supply another option for
escape, something other than the door or window.

Sorry
, I thought.
I don’t see a skylight or
a convenient hatch in the floor.

But I didn’t have to ponder the lack of an escape
route for long. Someone--or something--flung itself against the
door. With a crack that sounded like lightning splitting a pine
tree, the wood splintered and the lock snapped apart.

I flinched. Breaking the door down was a little
extreme, even for Patty, but I certainly wasn’t going to scold her
for it. What was left of the door hit the floor, the second zero of
the room number hanging sideways by one nail. A bulky form backlit
by a streetlight loomed in the doorway.

Female, I guessed. But not Patty.

Philip’s lower jaw dropped open and hung there like a
broken hatch. He seemed to shrink inside himself as I watched. His
face drained and turned the color of raw butter before he inched
backward to stand next to the bed.

“Lurlene. Sweetie.” He pasted on a sickly grin and
flung his arms wide in hugging position.

The bulk rumbled into the room, crunching what was
left of the door under what looked like size twelve running shoes.
She was wearing canary colored stretch pants and a chartreuse
pullover sweater that was a size too small. She did not rush into
his arms with cries of joy.

“Why I didn’t kill you the first time I caught you
cheating, I don’t know. I must have been in a real good mood that
day.” She swiveled in my direction and rested her hands on her
broad hips—hips that probably needed to do a lot of scrunching to
fit into a seat in a movie theater. And big hands, hands that could
probably palm a basketball if she wanted them to. “Well. He picked
himself a younger one this time, didn’t he? Though I can’t imagine
what someone as pretty as you would want with this old goat. Guess
you believed the lies about him having money, didn’t you,
sweetie?”

I fought down a burst of nausea and waved my hands in
denial. “I’m not her. The new wife. I’m Susan Caraway. My mother is
the one who thought she was married to him last time you were here.
A long time ago. But it was a huge mistake and she didn’t do
anything bad. He lied to her and never told her he was
married.”

Lurlene’s expression didn’t soften one bit. “Then
he’s up to something else besides getting married again. Let me
guess. It involves money.”

“He’s trying to extort money from my mother.
Threatening to tell her friends and her church they were never
married and that my sister was born out of wedlock.” Dimly I heard
an engine rumbling outside. In fact, with the door broken, I could
hear all the traffic sounds as well as quick footsteps tapping
against the sidewalk. I glanced past Lurlene and saw a shadow slide
up next to Philip’s car. Thank goodness. Patty hadn’t forgotten her
promise to watch my back. She’d probably started the van so we
could make a quick getaway--as soon as I figured how to get past
Lurlene without her damaging me.

“I’m not surprised. If there is one thing Philip
loves, it is money. He is like a bee sniffing out a flower when it
comes to cold cash. A real smooth talker who takes advantage of
innocent women like a booth operator at the county fair talking
country folk out of their last few dollars.”

“Yes, well I’m sorry he turned out so bad. Husbands
can disappoint. I divorced mine last year after he cheated on me.”
As I spoke, I shuffled my feet along the floor, moving gradually
toward the exit to gauge her reaction. I hadn’t gotten any promises
from Philip, but judging from the way he was cowering next to the
bed, he wouldn’t bother Mama again. Not after Lurlene got through
with him. “Sorry I can’t stay and chat, but I’ve got to head on
home. Could you please step aside, Mrs. Beauchamp?”

Before Lurlene could shift her bulk, another female
form appeared in the doorway. I groaned. Still not Patty. This
woman, unlike Lurlene, wore a silk dress and shoes that probably
cost more than everything in my closet put together. Her platinum
hair was piled in waves on her head, probably held in place with
industrial strength spray. From the way her skin was pulled up
around the corners of her eyes and the way her expression stayed
pleasant despite her finding her cheating husband in a motel room
with two women, I concluded she’d had some work done.