Page 30 of Rest In Pink

She waved me away and I decided to let her be. I don’t think last night had gone the way she’d hoped, either.

I was also annoyed with George because he’d left the paperwork to Vince so he could bring Anemone and me home, but that was outweighed by my admiration for the way he’d been at Vince’s side, pulling people away and cuffing them and generally fulfilling the very definition of peacemaker, and Mac, too, upholding the glory of the Fire Department. George had said it was just like Shane and Starrett without explaining who they were, and I didn’t ask because I didn’t care. It had been kind of exciting watching them subdue everyone, and extremely gratifying when Cash was handcuffed and sulking in the back of the police cruiser. Sulking did not look good on him. Real men don’t pout. Especially with a split lip.

“There are pancakes,” Peri told me as I sat down, just as Marianne came out of the kitchen and put a plate under my nose, dropping it so that it clattered on the table.

Anemone winced and transferred her glare to Marianne.

Marianne ignored her and left.

“There are nuts in these,” Peri said darkly, as I started slathering my cakes with butter.

“Oooh, I love nuts. What kind?”

“Pecans,” Peri said, staring at her plate.

“I love pecans. Pass me the syrup, please.”

Peri passed the syrup pitcher down and I splashed it over my buttery cakes, knowing that it would be real maple syrup and not that fake stuff. Anemone might be annoying, but she had standards. I was pretty sure Marianne would spit on fake maple syrup, too.

I picked up a piece of bacon and bit into it, getting a nice salty crunch to start my morning.

Marianne uses real bacon, too.

“You think these are good?” Peri said.

“Everything Marianne makes is good,” I told her. “But you don’t have to eat it if you don’t like it. Ask Marianne to make you some toast. Say please and thank you.”

“No, I’ll try this.” Peri looked at her plate again with deep suspicion. “I was just not expecting nuts.”

“Me, neither, and yet look at the people who surround me.”

Peri frowned.

“It helps to expect the unexpected,” I told her. “Since the unexpected is what usually happens.”

It took her a few minutes to think that one through, which gave me time to eat my cakes in silence.

“Oh,” she said finally and dug in.

I turned my attention to my other child.

“Anemone, do you know any guys named Shane and Starrett?”

Anemone raised her eyebrow. One. “You’ve never seenShane?”

“No. Movie? TV show?”

“It’s a classic movie,” she said, “likeHigh Noon,” and then she began to sing, stunning me: “Do not forsake me, oh my darling . . .” She got several lines into it, realized I was looking confused and Peri was looking alarmed, and stopped. “George and I watchedShaneand thenHigh NoonSunday night while you were doing something with your wrists. Bring the dour cop by tonight and you can watch them upstairs in that media room.” She frowned for a moment. “I thought that room was just conspicuous consumption, but it’s quite nice. We should have parties there.”

“Yes, that’s what we need to do, have parties,” I said, trying not to glare at her in front of Peri. “We are not becoming part of this community.”

Anemone smiled. It was that annoying smile that said,I know more about you than you do.Then she moved her head too fast and winced.

I changed the subject and looked at Peri. “What’s on your calendar for today? Big stuff, or can we lie around and read comic books?”

“I have swim class now.” She shot a look at Anemone then focused on me as the more likely peon who would drive her places. “I have swim class every morning at ten. And on Wednesdays, like today, at four o’clock I have Mandarin at the Red Box. Can you take me?”

Ignoring the weirdness of ‘Mandarin at the Red Box’, I said, “Of course. Where’s the swim class?”

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