Chapter 43
Hmm, what should I write next?
I'm not in the mood for poetry. I don't want to write a kid's book just yet. MY historical fiction needs more research. Sci-fi isn't my genre. I know, I'll kill someone, but who? I know what I'll do! I'll put Jenn washington into another prediciment and tell her to get out of it because Kevin is useless. No, he's really not. Occasionally he says something I laugh at, or that makes Jenn mad enough to twist around, which makes me laugh. I'll keep him a little longer, so he's off the hit list. Or is he? Gotta think on it...
Hidden Secrets
Leona Palmer Haag
Chapter 43
Kevin leaned back in his chair. It was nearly five.
Quitting time. Worse, it was time to call Jenn. With a few mouse clicks he
pulled up the video feeds to Honeysuckle Pie Drive. Jenn and Katie were
swimming. Good. He could put the task off a day. What? And ruin a perfectly
good Tuesday? It wasn't worth it. Kevin placed the call and watched as Jenn
pushed Katie's little inflated shark to the poolside and leaned out to get the
phone from off the towel.
"Hey, Jenn, thought I'd check back with
you."
"Hey, Uncle Kevin, how are you?"
Kevin winced. He watched Jenn raise her arm and wave,
but at the wrong spot. He stifled a laugh. She was smart. She knew he was watching
her. But she was too dumb to know where the camera was hidden. He
wouldn't tell her either. It would make her look silly and off balance. It
would help him not get an ulcer while talking to her.
"Oh, wait, he's not in the flowerpot," Kevin
heard the little pint-sized girl-woman say. He watched in horror as Jenn turned
her gaze and pointed to the back patio light fixture and said to Katie,
"Wave at Uncle Kevin. At the moment he's posing as a light post. His chin
is the black rim under the bottom, and his beady little eye is right beside the
light bulb." Jenn lifted Katie's hand to help her wave because the toddler
was looking around for a real person.
Kevin remained calm, but one eyelid twitched.
"So, Kevin, what can I do for you? You do know
I'm a little preoccupied at the moment, don't you?”
Kevin pretended he couldn't see Jenn as she bobbed
neck-deep in the water with a bowl of cascading fuchsias on the patio behind her, giving her hair a strange glow and making her resemble Medusa. He liked the evil image. "I
snooped around in your garage today," he said. It was a lie, but that was
the only way he'd accomplish what he had in mind—lie. Straight out.
"And?"
Kevin paused for emphasis.
"I said, and?" Jenn said.
"I found the kitchen order tacked on a cabinet
box. I hope you like puke green."
"What?" Jenn gasped, rising waist-high out
of the water in a splash and her eyes growing into inflatable killer sharks.
Kevin stifled a laugh. Torture was easy after seeing
she'd spent nearly three-thousand dollars that day on music, clothes, shoes
and—diamonds! "Puke green. Three cabinets are puke green. Don't tell me
it's your favorite color. It looks like regurgitated pea soup."
Jenn was silent. Staring. Mouth open.
"Ah, I guess it is your favorite color. Sorry I
said anything," Kevin pretended to say very sorrowfully.
"Green?" Jenn gasped, her face sliding from
ultra-pale to deep rose.
"Only three of them. Two are dark cheery, but the
tag said Nick ordered light maple. The rest are dark maple. They all say light
maple, except those puke green ones. Someone screwed up. Not Nick, except maybe
on those vomit cabinets. What do you want me to do?"
Jenn's mouth finally closed. She had sunk into the
pool again, but shrugged her shoulders out of the water. "Let's wait until
Nick gets home. You really don't need to do our kitchen for us."
Kevin's eyes never left Jenn. He was going to finish
the conversation while he had her in camera range—or he'd go straight to
Arizona to face her. Head on. "Mitchell okayed the office helping out.
I've got the order forms Nick left behind and…"
"Have you talked to Nick?"
Kevin took a deep breath. "Not yet. I couldn't
reach him today, so like I was saying, I got the order forms and went over
them. It looks like he ordered hardwood for the floors. Medium colored maple. I
called and it should be delivered tomorrow. They said they'd refund ten percent
because of the delay. I called the cabinet guys and chewed them out and they
came and picked them up this afternoon. I told them to hold off until after I
talked to you about the puke ones, so they're still in the garage. They don't
have all the light maple ones in stock, or the dark maple either, but they can
substitute with something else if you're in a hurry. What do you want to
do?"
Kevin smiled as Jenn bit her bottom lip in thought. If
he could get enough said in a short span of time, he might force a decision out
of her.
Jenn turned her back to the camera. "Kevin, can
we wait until Nick gets back?"
"We could, but a couple guys in the office said
they are free this Friday afternoon and Saturday. Me and another guy can go
over tonight to finish ripping the old stuff out of the kitchen and get the
place ready for them. The floor goes down first and they think they can have it
installed before the ballgame on Saturday night."
"But if there aren't any cabinets and…"
"The cabinet guy promised to rush order whatever
you want. He said he'd give you a refund if you decide to use someone else—if
you don't complain to the Better Business Bureau."
“Ohhhh," Jenn sighed in exasperation.
"I know it's a lot to deal with at the moment.
I'm sure Nick didn't do things this way on purpose. We don't mind helping him
out. That's what friends do."
Jenn turned back to the camera. "What am I
supposed to do here? I'm stuck in a desert and Nick isn't around to tell me
what he started and how he wants it finished and…. Kevin, we were planning on
finishing off the basement before we did any expensive repairs on the rest of
the house. I can't believe Nick started on the kitchen without talking to
me."
"Guys screw up every once in a while when they
want to impress their woman. Cut him some slack," Kevin coolly said.
"Usually their screw ups are not this big."
"Yeah, some are, believe it or not. Anyway, let
us help you get it finished before he gets home. He'll be tired and ready to
relax, not lay flooring or try to get a sink plumbed. Give him a break and let
him be a hero, even if you end up doing all the work." Kevin studied
Jenn's face as it turned toward him. He hoped the hero bit rescued his sinking
ship.
She shrugged and it looked like she was contemplating
it. Kevin tossed out another life line. "I asked around and the guys at
work pieced together his kitchen plans from the small talk Nick said to them
about what he had up his sleeve. One guy, I'd say who, but that's classified
information, said he'd ordered granite countertops. He thought it was tan with
black veins. I hope you like it. I haven't checked yet, but he said he knew
where it was coming from and he'd call to see if it was paid for already and
when to expect delivery. I think we know
basically what Nick was planning. Do you like tan granite stuff?"
"Wow, granite is excessive for our little cottage.
We live in a tiny house. We've talked about something like poured stone. You
know, the composites that are manufactured. I really don't think we can afford
granite."
"Do you want me to halt the granite then and save
you some money? I mean, I can do that if you want, but Nick might have already
planned how to pay for it and be a hero and surprise you. What do you want us
to do?"
Jenn sighed painfully. "Since it looks like we're
running over Nick with a freight train, I guess so."
"What about the other stuff? You like the
flooring?"
"Maple is fine."
"Do you want to keep the puke cabinets?"
"No!"
"Take some time tomorrow to look around. If you
see something at the Home Depot you like, call me. I'll call the cabinet guy.
If he's got something similar, we'll go for it. Does that sound good."
Jenn reluctantly nodded. "I guess so."
"Great. It's a go then?"
"No. I really want a tile floor. Nick knows that.
I have no idea why he would order wood. Wood would warp if the dishwasher
leaked. Our dishwasher is ancient and has done it more than once. He's reglued
the flooring down a couple times already."
Kevin's head sank to his desk. He slowly raised it and
stared at Jenn. He forced himself to sound calm. "Wow. You've been married
ten years or so and he…" Kevin quickly changed his strategy when he saw
Jenn stiffen. "…he ought to know he should buy tile. Would he mind if you
vetoed him?"
Jenn shook her head. "Probably not, but if he ordered
wood, there must be a reason. Maybe it was cheaper. Maybe he thinks it will be
easier to put down."
Kevin remembered the wounded dishwasher, a shotgun
blast victim that hadn't survived the Washington kitchen skirmish. "Jenn,
the old dishwasher is sitting by the trashcan. There's a new stainless steel
one sitting in a box in your garage. He made that decision for you. I'm sure
he'll allow you to decide the flooring."
Kevin watched Jenn hesitate. She finally nodded.
"I want tile."
"Great. When you get a minute, pick something
out. Give Debbie a call. She'll pass the info on to me."
Jenn seemed to relax. "Okay. I probably won't go
looking tomorrow. I'm all shopped out, believe it or not."
Kevin refrained from saying anything that might throw
Jenn into a bad mood or send her on a spending binge. "Okay, give yourself
a day off. While I've got you on the phone, is there anything you need?"
"Besides Nick?"
"Yeah. How's the car running?"
"Fine."
"What about the house? Does it meet your
needs?"
"Abundantly, except it's lonely without Nick.
When will he be home?"
"Soon, hopefully."
"Good, but it won't be soon enough for me."
"Anything else you need?"
"My own home and my job back. I hope they don't
fire me."
"We'll bring you home as soon as possible."
"I need the Internet."
"Sorry, but I can't let you have it." Kevin
watched Jenn stiffen. Was the whole conversation going to suddenly go down the
tube?
Jenn scowled at the hidden camera and said, "Read
my lips, Kevin Curtis. I like to check the weather, shop online, look at
preschool activities and—get this—cook! There isn't even one cookbook in that palace,
and since you haven’t sent me a live in chef, I want the internet." She
waved at the house, pointing like a pistol blasting holes in the side of a
crumbling barn, not a multimillion-dollar mansion. "Give me the Internet!
I also like talking to my brother and friends on the phone."
Water rippled around Jenn. Kevin couldn’t miss her
agitation. He sighed. Jenn could easily go to an Internet café or the library.
"I'll check with the boss and get back to you on that one. You'd need a
new email address or filters or something."
"Fine. Figure it out," Jenn snapped.
Kevin took a deep breath, considered how sweet little
Debbie might talk to his responsibility, and said, "What else can I do for
you, Claudia?"
"It's Dia, remember?"
Kevin wanted to pound his desk. He clenched and
unclenched his fist. "If I can get you something, I'd be happy to, Dia.
Just let me know." He was ready to hang up, but Jenn wasn't. He watched
her bite her bottom lip and hesitate. He waited.
Jenn sighed. "Good. I'll take you up on that
promise. What about the names on my phone list? When will they be okayed? I
really want to call my brother, Shawn."
"Hang on a second," Kevin said. He pushed
mute and called Debbie. She'd left for the day. He called his assistant and had
him scan Jenn's requested contact list. Kevin returned. "Who is Angela
Dowdy?"
"I met her in Baltimore. Her husband works for
the Chicago office. Why?"
Kevin rubbed his chin. After a long pause he said,
"Jenn, do you realize you're in extreme danger?"
He watched her shrug. "What's new?"
"If you can keep silent—not reveal any
information—I'll give you her phone number. I'll okay Shawn too."
Jenn slapped the water. “Yes! Yes!
You are the best uncle a girl could have!”
Kevin nearly hung up on her. “You’re welcome. Sorry I
interrupted your swimming lesson. Kiss the little one, uh, Kate for me and get
back to… to it.” Before she could respond he hung up and watched Jenn twirl
Katie in a splashing circle around her and laugh. He turned away from the
monitor and shook his head. Life was rough. No fun at all, sometimes.
End Chapter 43
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