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Blaze knows. At least he thinks he knows. I think he knows. I’m going to have to be more careful if and when I seek a game. Right now, I’m alright. I have what I need in my bank account, but if Kiley needs a lot of work, I might need to find one more game. How awful would it be to have Blaze and, I assume, his team come busting in on a game because I led them to it? Big Mike would never forgive me. I wouldn’t forgive myself. There’s a code. A code of honor. I’ve never broken the code. Ever.
My phone vibrates. I lift it and see Fosdick’s is calling. “Hello.”
“Hey, Maribeth. This is Chris. Your car is ready to come home.”
I laugh. He talks like she’s at the vets and has woken from surgery. “Wonderful. I’ll be there as soon as I can get a ride.”
I hang up and text Kate.
She’s in my driveway when I walk from the trolley stop nearest my house. I run inside and grab my winnings. We pull out just as Blaze pulls in. He’s looking at us so expectantly. Kate notices and lets off the gas to slow down.
“Keep going.” I say to Kate. My heart feels as heavy as a two-ton boulder.
Chapter Nine?
My heart aches because of the way I ran off from Blaze at breakfast, but having Kiley running again helps to soften the blow. Some. I stop by Wells Fargo Bank on my way home from Lead, so I can touch base with Michelle to see how she’s doing since her declutter. It takes my customers a day or two to recover, but generally, they feel really good after we finish a project. I’m waiting for that sensation to fill me with joy since my own declutter, aka break up with Jason.
“Hey, Michelle.” I say as I walk up to her teller window.
“Maribeth!” She looks up from counting money that is being placed in her drawer. I notice her outfit is one that we unearthed from her closet. She had several things that still had tags but had gotten shoved to the back where she forgot they existed. This was one of them.
“I like your outfit.” I grin.
“This old thing?” She feigns humility. I know at one time it was new, but she never wore it, so it’s like new to her.
We giggle. “I got Kiley back! She purrs like a kitten now.” I tell her. She doesn’t, but at least she starts and stops.
“Wonderful. No more Crazy Kate.”
Her remark stings. “I really like Kate. I may call her for a ride just for the heck of it, because I’ll miss her.” I chuckle.
Michelle looks at me like she thinks I’m as crazy as Kate, but I don’t care. “Listen. You know that long lost uncle of mine?”
“Sure.” She smiles wickedly.
“His estate lawyer sent me some more. I need to get this into my account.” I pull the manila envelope out from under my jacket.
“Wow. Okay, let’s go count it.”
I follow her into the little side room. “I’m gonna swing by Goodwill in a bit.” I say to test the waters on her regret for discarding her “stuff,” while she runs the bundles through the machine and re-bundles each one.
“Oh, good.” She smiles, barely a flicker of remorse. “I hope somebody can get some good out of all that junk. I don’t even miss it.” I look into her eyes and know she’s lying, but it’s alright. She’ll get there eventually.
“Thank you, again,” she continues, “for helping me organize my stuff. I feel so clean and refreshed with everything being neatly arranged.”
“My pleasure.” I state with a slight lift of my chin. It always makes me feel good to help when someone can’t begin to sort through their things. “Well, Cindy is next, so if you want to come help, I say you’re welcome over.” We chuckle. “Once we have everybody decluttered, we should all go out and celebrate.”
Michelle winks at me. “Yes! We sure should!” She laughs. “We’ll have a lot to celebrate then. And yes, I’ll come help Cindy. It’s the least I can do since she helped me.”
I nod. “Wanna meet at the Buffalo Bodega Saturday night?”
“Sure.” Her eyes sparkle with anticipation.
“Great.” I smile sincerely. I love that Karaoke Night is becoming a tradition that the five of us do together. “Well, I’ll see ya.” I tuck my receipt into my backpack purse and go get in my precious car and drive to my house.
I load up her donation boxes, filling the back seat and trunk to nearly overflowing, and turn to see if Blaze is at home. His house looks quiet, curtains pulled, and garage door closed. Surely, he is sleeping after pulling an all-nighter and taking me to breakfast afterward. I just wish he wasn’t investigating the very thing I’d prefer to keep as my little secret. At least, I assume that’s what his investigation is about. I hope I’m wrong!
Kiley and I leave as quietly as we can. Goodwill is going to be happy with this donation. I drive down Main Street, then back up Sherman Street, looking for a Goodwill, thrift store, Salvation Army, consignment store, anything that might take donations. Nothing. Hmm. I pull into a parallel parking spot in front of Deadwood Tobacco Company and google for a place.
