Page 5 of Baby Blue
Kids playing. The neighbor woman! She had kids! She’d know what to do. Then Blue thought about what would happen when he knocked on her door, and he was pretty sure she’d slam it in his face, but he had to try. There was no one else. “Stay right here. I’m going for help,” he told the writhing bundle, the realized how stupid that sounded. Where would it go? And howwould it get there? With one more backward glance, he closed the door behind him and sprinted across the lawn.
The kids playing outside stared at him as he ran across the yard and up onto the porch. One knock and the door opened. Her eyes went squinty and she glared at him. “What doyouwant?” she practically spat.
“I need some help. It’s an emergency,” Blue wheezed out.
“Oh, what’s wrong? Your latest lay get her leggings tangled up?” she asked, her tone mocking and sharp.
“No! There’s a… I’ve got a…” Blue realized in that moment that what he was about to say sounded ridiculous, and she’d probably just laugh and order him off her porch.
“Well, spit it out! I haven’t got all day!” she snapped, leaning against the door jamb and folding her arms across her chest. “What’s the emergency? Out of rum?” she asked, one eyebrow cocking upward.
“No. I’ve, um, there’s a baby at my house.”
Her brows dropped and her forehead creased. “What do you mean, there’s a baby at your house?”
“Someone left a baby on my doorstep. And I don’t know what to do with it.”
She gave a little snort accompanied by a snicker. “Well, I’d suggest you call the cops to come take it away because you sure don’t have any business with a baby.”
Blue stood there for a few seconds, his heart plummeting. Maybe that’s what he should do, just call someone to take it away. So what if it was his? He didn’t need a kid. But something about that idea made his chest hurt. He tried, but he couldn’t hide his disappointment when he said, “Never mind. Sorry I bothered you.” With a sigh, he turned and stepped off the porch to cross the lawn and return to whatever was going on with that baby curled inside that basket sitting on top of his kitchen table.
He’d almost made it to his porch steps when he heard a voice behind him say, “You aren’t kidding. There’s really a baby in there.”
Blue turned to the woman. “No. I’m not kidding. There’s really a baby in here.”
Her eyebrows shot upward. “Can I see?”
Blue shrugged. “Sure. Why not?” He opened the door and held it while the woman stepped inside.
The baby was screaming bloody murder, and the woman ran straight to it. “Oh, you poor little thing!” She picked up the tiny child and held it close, and it quieted a little bit. “Where’s its bottle? Oh, god, its diaper is wet. It needs a change. Where are its diapers?”
“Whoever left it didn’t leave any. I don’t have anything for it.” Now Blue could feel his face burning. He didn’t even know what to buy! What could he possibly do for this wiggling, squirming little person?
“Oh, lord. Um, let me think. Got a hand towel? Or a dish towel?”
“Yeah.”
“And some duct tape?”
Blue brightened. “Oh, yeah! I always have duct tape! Hang on.” In a couple of minutes, he’d rounded up a bright blue hand towel and a roll of silver duct tape. “Here.”
He watched with curiosity as the woman took the baby to the sofa, unfolded its blanket, and started changing it. When she got down to the diaper, she pulled it off and grinned. “Ah! It’s a girl!”
“Oh, yeah! The note said there’s a birth certificate in the bottom of the basket. Hang on.” While the woman continued on with the makeshift diapering, Blue sprinted to the basket, dug around in the bottom, and pulled out a plastic bag. “Here it is! Let’s see. Hmmm. Says the mother is CynthiaDenise Holland.” Yeah?Cynthia. He looked at the birthdate, then tried to countbackward. His heart fell when he realized that, nine months before that date, they’d indeed been dating. And she’d listed the father’s name: BrentAlan Wallace. That was definitely him. “Oh, god,” Blue moaned as he read it.
“There! That’s much better, although it’s not waterproof. Let’s put a plastic bag under her in the basket until we can get some diapers. What’s her name?”
Blue could barely breathe. “Indigo.”
“That’s a pretty name! Wonder why they named her that?”
“Because they call me Blue.”
The woman stared at him. “Well, makes sense, I suppose. Now, do you want to go get some things and let me wait here with the baby? Or do you want me to go get some stuff?”
Blue shrugged. “I have no idea what to get. Do you want her?”
The woman looked confused. “What?”
