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Their mother hadn’t left them as mine had. Would I be different if she’d lived? If she hadn’t been sick? If she hadn’t made the choice to end her own life?
“What do you think of Bluefern?” Rafferty asked me. “You came from Seattle, right?”
I nodded. “Born and raised.”
Caspian peered at me with obvious curiosity but didn’t say anything. What did he think when he looked at me that way?
“You have a bar like this at home?” Rafferty asked me.
I smiled, remembering my favorite dive bar in Ballard near Aunt Biddie’s house. “There’s a bar not far from where I lived with my aunt. Great greasy burgers and cheap beers. There’s not that many cheap bars left in Seattle anymore.”
“This place is exactly the same as when we were kids,” Caspian said.
“It’s the perfect small-town bar,” I said. “It feels good when you walk in here.”
“I’ve always thought so too,” Caspian said. “I don’t know why I don’t come in here more often.”
“Because you work seven days a week,” I said.
Caspian chuckled under his breath. “That could have something to do with it. Although as you know, I take two nights off a week now, thanks to you and Leo.”
The performer returned to the stage and started singing a rendition of a James Taylor song, making it harder to hear the conversations on the other end of the table.
“I’m glad I’ve made it easier for you,” I said to Caspian.
“He’s glad to have someone he can count on,” Rafferty said.
“Amen,” Caspian said, winking at me, before glancing toward the front of the bar. “It’s Arabella. Who’s that dude with her?”
Rafferty looked that way quickly, his features morphing into a scowl. “Will I ever get away from her?”
“Is that her boyfriend?” I asked.
“I’ve no idea, but if he’s with her, I feel sorry for him,” Rafferty said.
“Be nice,” Caspian said. “Why do you dislike her so much anyway?”
Rafferty continued to frown, bringing to mind an angry three-year-old. “Isn’t it obvious? She’s an obnoxious, know-it-all braggart with one of her science books shoved way up her…you-know-where.”
Perhaps it was the beer, but that made me laugh out loud. I quickly tempered it by taking another sip of beer. Rafferty clearly didn’t find it amusing.
“I disagree. She’s awesome,” Caspian said. “Soren likes her too.”
“I didn’t say she wasn’t a good vet,” Rafferty said. “But that fact does nothing to diminish her nasty personality.”
“They were rivals in high school,” Caspian said to me. “Rafferty never forgave her for taking the valedictorian spot from him.”
Rafferty’s expression further darkened. “Shelivedto outshine me. Beating me was an obsession. Totally unhealthy, I might add.”
“Pot meet kettle,” Caspian said.
“I was not obsessed with beating her,” Rafferty spit out. “I couldn’t care less, then or now. It was all her. She probably had a voodoo doll she poked pins into the head of to try to thwart me.”
“You’ve both done well for yourselves,” Caspian said. “Isn’t it time to let it go?”
We couldn’t speak further about Arabella because she and her date approached the table to say hello. “This is Ryan,” Arabella said. “A friend of mind from school.”
I studied Ryan for a moment. He seemed pleasant enough, although his dark hair and pointed face reminded me of a Doberman. Intelligent, if maybe a little cold?
