Page 6 of Too Old for This
“Yes, right. Very thoughtful,” I say. “How big of a wedding are you going to have?”
He chuckles. In the background, I hear another man say something. Archie tells me to hold on and mutes the phone. It’s the middle of the day. He must be at work.
I love my son. He became a lawyer because of what happened to me, though he eventually switched from criminal to corporate law. But his intentions were good. His real problem is with women. He makes terrible decisions about them.
While on hold, I step into the garage and survey how much of Plum is left. Another hour, two at the most. At least I’ve tackled the hardest parts first.
“I’m back,” Archie says. “What was I talking about?”
“Your wedding.”
“Right. Morgan thinks about a hundred people. She’s working on the list.”
“That’s rather large.”
“She’s always wanted a big wedding. And probably soon, because of the baby. Most likely May.”
I almost ask if Stephanie and the kids will be there. Olive and Noah are teenagers now, old enough to realize their father has traded in their mother for a younger model. I haven’t seen them much since it happened. Everybody’s schedule changed after Archie and Stephanie broke up.
“Well, that’s wonderful,” I say. “But I’ve got to get going. I’m working in the garden today.”
“Mom, you know I can hire someone to do that.”
“I like to do it myself, thank you.”
“Okay, be careful.”
He says that a lot these days. Archie means well, but I do not like being treated like I’m too old to do things by myself. Every household chore is not a life-or-death event.
I end the call feeling the same way I always feel about Archie. His life is at least half my fault. I chose his father. That’s on me.
CHAPTER 4
My freezer is a thing of beauty.
Plum is carved up into pieces, none are recognizable. I’ve bundled them into small packages, each one wrapped in butcher paper and labeled.Chicken,Pork,Ribs,Tuna,Lamb,Salmon,Cutlets, and so on. Every type of meat and fish, even the ones I don’t eat.
If the police stormed into my house right this minute, all they would find is a stocked freezer. Though it won’t stay that way for long. I consider this to be the middle part of the process. A stopgap until Plum is completely gone.
Yes, I’m being overcautious. But I’ve never regretted doing that.
Next, I get the fireplace going. That’s another thing Archie has a problem with. He thinks an old woman in an old house with a wood-burning fireplace is a recipe for disaster. He may be right, so many things could end in disaster for me, but not this. When I was growing up, a fireplace was the only heat we had. I know what I’m doing.
One by one, I throw Plum’s belongings into the fire. The stuff from her bag is mostly useless, though I do take a closer look at her wallet. Credit and debit cards, along with cards from the library and gym. A few dollars in cash. No photos. They’re all on her phone, no doubt.
The one thing I do keep is the file she had next to her laptop. My name is written on the tab. I suspect that if thingshadn’t gone the way they did, Plum would’ve taken it out and showed it to me.
I get settled into my recliner. If someone had told me half my life would be spent in the same chair, I might’ve killed them just for that. But now, ten years after buying this recliner, it fits my body perfectly. Every wrinkle and lump has its own place. There is nowhere I’d rather be.
The first page in the file looks like a synopsis, followed by an episode-by-episode breakdown of her series.
The Tragedy of Lorena Mae Lansdale
Good Lord, sodramatic. She even used my full, original name.
Well. This is what it came down to in Plum’s eyes. My life, or at least a good chunk of it, has been a tragedy.
In the spring of 1985, the Spokane Police Department realized it had an active serial killer in the city. Detective Kenneth Burke was the first…
