Page 89 of The Seven Miracles of Beatrix Holland
Mrs. Jumai closed her eyes. After a moment, the deep line between her eyebrow eased, and her eyes flew open. “Oh! I’d forgotten something that Leon always said to me. I’d forgotten it till right this minute.”
“What was that?”
“‘Woman, unless you’re running from a bear, there’s no need to be in such a bloody hurry.’” A smile bloomed below her damp cheeks. “Oh, I’d forgotten that. I swear, I can hear him right now, telling me to slow down. There’s no hurry to get to my boys.”
“So now you know they’re together in the afterlife. And you know you’ll join them, but only when the time is right.” Beatrice could barely believe she was saying this, that she wasbelievingit, but she was. And she had one more thing to say. “Don’t hurry. They’ll wait for you.”
Winnie sighed. “That’s beautiful. And it’s not accidental that you remembered. That’s a gift they just gave you.”
Mrs. Jumai touched the paper. “Thisis a gift. You must let me pay you for it. Both of you.” She looked tearfully at her wedding ring. “The proper way. Do you take Visa?”
“No.” Beatrice shook her head firmly. “But I do like white chocolate chip cookies.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
I don’t know, I find it comforting to think about them still out there. Still being themselves, having a good time on the other side. Can you imagine what they’re getting up to out there? Shenanigans. Hijinks. I just know it.
—Evie Oxby,Us Weekly
Her cappuccino hot in one hand, a latte in the other, Beatrice wandered back to the marina, a new lightness in her bones. She’d helped someone! That was real! Who in the world would mix salt and vinegar chips with Nutella? Okay, granted, the world was really big, and surely, acoupleof other people probably did. But the initials,Kfor Kumail, andLfor Leon. The blue handkerchief. Put together, the truth was incontrovertible, right?
It was proof.
And more: She’d known enough to handle the situation the right way. She hadn’t done more auto-writing. She hadn’t triggered another miracle. Nor had she inadvertently invited the pissed-off undead to throw chairs through windows.
She had simply made Mrs. Jumai feel better.
All of it pointed to one thing: She was figuring this shit out, and if she figured more shit out, maybe she could forestall future miracles. Maybe she could keep being alive.
The gate to her dock was wide open, and Beatrice felt a smile spread across her face.
Reno was good people. Somehow, she knew it. Was it possible that Beatrice really could make a home here? Would Reno be her first real friend? Cordelia and Minna didn’t count—they were her family. (Her heart gave a zing at the thought. Again.)
But friendship took time. Something she might not have much of.
She felt her smile wobble, but then she saw Reno on the wide deck of theForget-Me-Knot, another plank balanced on her sawhorse. The muscles of her arms shone in the sun, and she must have felt the sway underneath her feet as Beatrice boarded, because she turned. She didn’t smile as much as… brighten.
That brightening? Better than any smile.
Feeling suddenly too warm, Beatrice held out the cup. “Brought you something.”
Reno did her head-duck thing. “Oh.”
Their fingers brushed.
Something danced in Beatrice’s stomach. “Cordelia said you like a latte.”
The brightness got even brighter. Joy looked so good on Reno. “I do.”
“Fritz guessed it was for you and added two sugars.”
She touched the lid. “That’s… really kind of you.”
This was where Beatrice would normally wave away a gift with a quickOh, stop, it’s nothing. But if she did that now, she’d brush off this moment of—what was it? Connection? Whatever it was, it felt good. “I know you’re working, but do youwant to take a break? We could sit on the bench over there and just…”
Reno’s eyebrows rose.
“Sorry. That’s silly. I’ll let you get back to work.” Surely Reno had enough friends already.
