AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Anna had said, “I’ve been thinking the same thing.”
They were both sure now that Violet wasn’t telling the truth. That she’d “moved” to Nantucket without explaining why.
Anna still had Dean’s cell phone. She’d pocketed it the day of the accident and never offered it to anyone—not the authorities, not Dean’s family. “I’ll find his dad’s phone number,” she’d said. Apparently, she still kept the phone charged, perhaps as a last attempt to cling to Dean. This detail broke Julia’s heart.
On the drive, the Copperfields were boisterous. Bernard had a million ideas for topics of conversation, and he demanded they dig into philosophy, language, mathematics, and stories in a way that made Julia’s head spin. “Dad,” Alana protested, “not all of us are known geniuses, okay? Mom isn’t even here!”
Twice, Bernard made Violet laugh—real, belly laughs, and the sound warmed Julia’s heart. Maybe they could save this woman with enough laughter, conversation, and good food. Julia only wished she could be honest about needing help.
Hours later, Julia parked the SUV in a parking garage in the Lower East Side. Others in the Copperfield family were already in the city and would meet them at the venue later. Scarlet and Quentin were meeting with producers; Catherine had come early to see a friend. Charlie sidled up with Julia and laced his fingers through hers, his eyes glinting. Julia knew he was thinking about when they’d moved to the city without a plan, back when they’d been reckless and first in love. She was thinking about it, too.
Before the concert, they ate at a Chinese restaurant with a Michelin star. Violet’s eyes were enormous as she read the menu, trying to make sense of fare she’d never heard of before. Adorably, she ordered a white wine with a meek voice and tried to laugh at herself. “I’m such a small-town girl at heart,” she stammered.
Ultimately, Julia and Alana decided to order most of the menu so everyone at the table could taste a bit of everything. There was Peking duck, mapo tofu, hot pot, sweet and sour pork, and wonton soup, along with plenty of appetizers wrapped in fried dough. Julia watched as Violet took her first bite of Peking duck and closed her eyes at the intensity of the flavors. When she opened them again, they remained slits.
“My goodness,” she whispered.
“Not bad, huh?” Alana asked with a laugh.
Violet swallowed another bite. “Dean always accused me of being unadventurous,” she said after a pause. “He always urged me to try new things.”
Julia felt momentarily deflated. She worried that mentioning Dean would drag Violet back into the depths again. But instead, Violet dug into the mapo tofu and took a large sip of wine, her eyes dancing to Bernard, who was ready with yet another story. Julia’s heart swelled. She texted Anna back in Nantucket to report.
JULIA: All good here.
JULIA: Violet seems to be coming into her own.
JULIA: How is it going there?
Chapter Fourteen
Anna held Dean’s cell phone with both hands. It glinted up at her; it displayed a photograph of Dean and Anna during their sixth-month anniversary dinner in downtown Seattle. The smile on Anna’s face was difficult to see. Her happiness and carefree nature made her look like a completely different person. When Anna peered at her reflection in the mirror, she saw a haggard young mother who hadn’t gotten enough sleep.
Smith urged her not to think of herself that way. “Words have power over us,” he’d said. “You have to think of yourself in the positive.”
Anna no longer remembered how she knew Dean’s phone’s passcode. Had he told it to her? Had they really had that kind of laissez-faire relationship? Anna typed it in and was immediately drawn into Dean’s world prior to his death. He’d even taken several photographs on the hike that had killed him—Anna in her raincoat next to an enormous pine tree and a selfie of them both with a mountain hovering behind them. Several photos back were the engagement ring, seemingly before Dean had given it to Anna. Maybe he’d sent it to a friend for approval. Maybe he’d sent it to his mother.
Anna had never gotten up the nerve to read Dean’s text messages. It felt like crossing a boundary. There had assuredly been stuff Dean hadn’t told her about. That was the nature of a nine-month relationship.
Anna found Dean’s father’s phone number easily. It had Dean’s Ohio area code. Anna took a deep breath as she typed the numbers into her own phone. For some reason, she was terrified.
The phone rang and rang. Anna considered hanging up and sending an explanation via text. People usually didn’t answer the phone if they didn’t know who it was.
And then, abruptly, a familiar voice said, “Hello? This is Larry.”
Anna’s mouth went dry. Little Adam slept on in his carrier, his fingers curled loosely, his black hair in ringlets around his ears.
“Larry. Mr. Carpenter. Hi.” Anna swallowed. “It’s Anna. Anna Crawford?”
Larry’s voice lightened. “Anna. It’s so good to hear from you.”
Anna loosened her shoulders. This was just Dean’s father, a man who’d always been kind to her. A man who’d loved his son and lost him.
“I guess, um. I wanted to reach out. And tell you more about your grandson? If you want to hear?”
Larry’s voice became just a crackle. “Yes. I mean. Of course.” He sighed. “I figured you’d had him by now. I wanted to reach out. I don’t have any excuse.”
Anna’s heart pumped. This confirmed one thing: Violet and Larry weren’t in contact.
