Page 30 of Fatal Witness

“She would say blessed.”

“Point taken.” Dr. Wexler made a note on her chart. “I’ll give you a few minutes alone with her.”

She stopped outside the room and looked through the window. In the seven months since Alex had returned to Pearl Springs, she’d seen Mae at least a couple of times a month, and she still hadn’t gotten used to seeing her with short hair. Alex missed the long braid she remembered from her childhood.

Alex took a deep breath and knocked as she pushed the door open. The older woman turned her head but didn’t say anything.

“How do you feel?” Alex asked. Someone, probably a nurse’s aide, had brushed the leaves and twigs from Mae’s copper-colored hair that had almost no gray streaking it.

“Where did Morgan and Ben go?”

Alex was relieved that she didn’t seem confused at all.

“They’re in the waiting room. How do you feel?”

“Tired.” She closed her eyes.

“Maybe I better go and let you sleep.”

“No! I’m just resting my eyes. Dr. Wexler said I’d be fine, and that I can go home tomorrow.”

“He actually said he hoped you would stay until Monday.” Alex pulled a chair beside the bed and sat quietly for a few minutes.

Mae turned her head and stared blankly at her. Alex leaned closer to the bed. “Do you know who I am?”

“Of course,” Mae said sharply. “I was just remembering. And when Danielle gets here, with Morgan home, the Three Musketeers will be back together.”

“Do you know how we got that name?”

“Sure—’cause where you saw one, you saw the others, just like in the comic books you read. That’s where you got that saying I got so sick of hearing—‘One for all and all for one.’”

Alex ducked her head to hide a smile. They never would have discovered the comic books if Mae hadn’t pulled them out that summer to keep the three girls entertained. “Do you remember where we got the comics?”

“Of course I do. Do you think I’m senile? Or are you like the nurses who keep coming in and asking if I know where I am or what year it is—testing me?”

“I’m testing you.”

Mae stared at her, and her lips twitched. “Well, you can quit. I’m fine. But to answer your question, your grandmother hijacked me into babysitting you. Got me to come down off the mountain twice a week while shesupposedlyran errands. I had to do something to keep you three from running me ragged.”

Alex smiled. “And it was three because ...?”

“I brought Danielle with me,” Mae said softly. “And back then my great-niece, Morgan, lived next door to you, and that’s why I had all three of you.”

Alex fell quiet and let memories wash over her. With a sigh, she said, “It was the best summer of my life.”

The older woman’s face softened. “Pretty good for me too. Your grandmother was a wise woman. Still is.”

“Yes, she is.”

“Then Morgan’s dad moved them to Texas, and Neva...” Mae’s chin quivered. Neither of them spoke as ghosts of timespast settled between them. Then the older woman wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. “I miss her so much. And little Danielle...” She fixed her gaze on Alex. “She’s coming tomorrow. You have to make them release me—I don’t want her to see me like this.”

14

Three hours into the trip, doubts assailed Dani as the miles rolled off on I-75. Was she crazy to strike out for Tennessee like this? According to the GPS on the Navigator, she would arrive in Knoxville in forty-eight minutes, and it was only two thirty. Way too early to stop for the night. She might as well drive on to Pearl Springs.

“Maybe I should’ve talked to that deputy again,” she muttered. “What do you think, Lizi?”

The Puli barked from her crate. If the dog ever answered with more than a bark ... Dani laughed. It was bad enough that she talked to the dog like she was a person. She sat up straighter as a sign for the Tennessee Welcome Center came into view. “You want to stop and stretch your legs, girl?”

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