Page 1 of A Seed Of Peril

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

“Look, Lulu, it’s Uncle Sonny,”Katrina pointed out.

Holding my hand and with Mr. Cat snug in her other arm, Katrina and I walked through the foyer. As Sonny waved, I greeted him with a nod and a friendly smile.

“Good morning, Uncle Sonny!”

“Good morning, Katrina.”

“Lulu, let’s ask him to come sit with us.”

I watched Sonny go back to whatever he was previously doing on his phone, which was probably updating himself on what was going on in the world today. He, along with almost everyone else, did it nearly every morning.

I swept my thumb back and forth across Katrina’s knuckles. “Later, honey. Sonny’s busy.”

She let out a defeated breath, making me smile. “Oookay,” she said, drawing out the O.

Upper Saddle River was growing on me. It was a nice, rural city with lovely greenery, beautiful wooded areas, and a choice of parks suitable enough for the baby to see and enjoy. The residents weren’t as stuck-up as I thought they would be with this being such a rich suburb. It was a pleasant and welcoming surprise. I’d already become fast friends with the older woman, who ran the nearest flower and potpourri shop. She had a familiar spirit about her—a spirit I mourned, which was probably what mainly drew me to her. Eventually, I needed to set up a time for us to chat over coffee.

I was glad Dominic made the switch out of Englewood, although I occasionally missed our old place. Despite the memories and that attached pain, that was what I missed most—the memories.

The smell of freshly baked bread in an upturned kitchen with the entertainment of the music of Italy.

My stupidly enormous shower.

Mine and Dominic’s first kiss.

Nadia’s laughter… And Hector’s fatherly embrace.

Dominic said I could go visit the old place whenever I wanted, that he’d arrange things with its new owners, but I didn’t know how I felt about that. I told him I’d think about it. Truthfully, I knew I had to pull away from the past. The mansion. People. Old histories. I couldn’t truly heal from all my trauma otherwise.

I had to keep my focus on the present, creating new memories here. Maybe after the baby arrived, I would consider that road trip.

Katrina ran to the door for the sunroom, throwing it open and telling me to hurry up while she raced inside. It was one of our favorite spaces in this place. Shaking my head and smiling, I closed the door, turned on the television mounted on the wall, and drew back the heavy, white curtains, bummed it was dreary outside yet again. I wanted sunshine—not constant clouds and fog.

Inside the mini-fridge off to the side, I grabbed a blood vial bag—my first one today. Katrina finally knew about this part of the pregnancy, but she tended to forget what the liquid actually was, and when she said it was juice or fruit punch, I didn’t correct her. What was the point, honestly?

Seating myself next to Katrina on the taupe-colored, two-seater sofa, I browsed the channels for something to watch.

Taupe, dove gray, and white were the main colors in the sunroom, the furniture holding the grays. The sofa, two motion club chairs, matching ottomans, and the two lounge chairs had a nice resin wicker. Faux wood held up the side tables and the coffee table. Out back by the pool were more lusciously cushioned furniture around a dining table and matching chairs, all the same dove gray shade.

I liked the color; what could I say?

“Ooo, ooo! Can we watch this?” Katrina excitedly asked the moment I landed on one of her favorite cartoons.

“Sure.”

While she was immersed in that, I texted Dominic, asking how his morning was going. Among his few morning errands, he needed to pick up more blood to top off our stock and grab groceries to restock the kitchen.

Dominic always had someone else buy groceries. He hated grocery shopping unless it came to buying the ingredients for his homemade tomato sauce. That was strictly his thing, something about no one having the nose and eyes for the most important components—the tomatoes, the garlic, the herbs. I didn’t care. It was his niche, and it made him happy.

Dominic texted me.

We won’t be much longer. Is everything alright?

Worrying about me, as usual. It was adorable.

Of course. I just miss you.

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