“Well, maybe the real birds are overrated. They’re cute and fun to watch, but they eat bugs and rotten bananas. Terrible diet, if you ask me.” Annie stood up. “Now, I have to take a shower. You are free to return to laboring.” She bent down and planted a kiss on the top of his head. Then she went upstairs, her heart swollen with sorrow.

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

Standing under the pelting hot shower, Annie mulled over Kevin’s history with Gina. She was glad he had explained it; she understood why he didn’t want to get in touch with her. There simply were some memories that no one needed to revisit. Did Larry Hendricks fit into that category?

How she wished Murphy were really there to share a bottle of wine and a long conversation. Among so many things, Annie missed how they’d had each other’s backs, how she’d always felt safe telling Murphy everything. Murphy would have helped her decide if she should call Larry. Annie supposed she could have talked to Kevin, but there were some things a woman could only talk about with another woman, a best friend.

Winnie. The name popped into Annie’s head as if Murphy had dropped it there. If Annie could talk to Winnie, maybe she could unburden her angst about the skull and its far-reaching consequences, about Donna’s situation, and maybe, just maybe, about her reluctance to contact Larry Hendricks when Annie knew damn well he could help. Not that he would.

She quickly finished her shower, then dried and dressed. It was after ten-thirty when she left her room; it had already been a long morning, but Annie knew she needed to keep moving.

Half-hopping down the stairs she called out to Kevin, “Stop hammering!”

He stopped. Because though he was trying his damnedest to sort out his demons, he still was a good brother.

She ran around the corner into the great room. “I’m heading up to Winnie’s. I’ll be back later this afternoon, but you’re in charge of Mom until then. Okay?”

He hesitated, then said, “Sure.”

“Thanks. And by the way, you’re doing a terrific job on the floor.”

He managed a limp smile. “Yeah. Don’t mind if I say so.”

She swatted him on the shoulder, and then, feeling a little lighter, she darted through the kitchen and out the back door to her Jeep.

For the full two minutes it took to drive to the On Time, it seemed to Annie that things might work out after all. Her assumption was based on nothing in particular beyond a hoped-for talk with Winnie, but she wanted so badly to believe it that she refused to think otherwise—not even when she realized that Jonas was ahead of her in the ferry line. She might not have given it much thought, but she couldn’t help but notice that the back of his small SUV was packed with duffle bags, art canvases, and a large, folded-up easel. Jonas was going somewhere.