Don’t Let Me Go(11)

“She needs to be at work.”

“She said she’d take off work to pick me up.”

“But she can only do that once. Or so. She can’t do it every day. So we thought, since I could do it just this one day, maybe we should save her taking off work until tomorrow. I’m surprised she didn’t tell you.”

“She might’ve told me something, I think, like maybe that somebody else would be here. I don’t think she said who, though. Or maybe I guess I might’ve forgot.”

They began the long walk home together, through the gray neighborhood. A car drove by, projecting rap music at earsplitting volume, and Rayleen winced. Grace could feel the bass notes in every muscle of her belly, but she didn’t wince.

When they could hear again, Grace said, “So you can only do it this once, huh?”

“Usually I’m at work. I went in early today. I had a client who changed her appointment from the last appointment in the afternoon to early.”

“If Yolanda can only get off work once or so, who’s going to pick me up day after tomorrow?”

“I thought maybe when we got home we could talk to Mrs. Hinman. She’s retired. I was thinking maybe she would.”

“What if she says no?”

“Well, then…I guess we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

“Oh. Whatever that means. How do you know Yolanda?”

“I don’t, really.”

“Then how did she ask you to pick me up?”

“I saw her in the hall this morning, when she was waiting for you to come up the stairs. I just talked to her a little about your situation, is all.”

“Oh,” Grace said.

She didn’t ask any more questions, at least, not until they got home.

? ? ?

When they got home, Grace asked, “Are we going upstairs to see Mrs. Hinman now?”

But Rayleen said, “Don’t you want to go in and put your backpack down first?”

“Not really.”

“I think you should,” Rayleen said.

Not having much in the way of a strong opinion on the subject, Grace answered with a blank shrug.

Rayleen followed Grace inside.

Rayleen paused briefly at Grace’s mom’s open bedroom doorway, and stood looking in at Grace’s mom, asleep on the bed. Rayleen seemed all prepared for something to happen, but Grace’s mom never moved, never flicked an eyelid, never made a sound. The shades were drawn, in this case a set of dusty blinds covering the high basement windows. Grace could see her mom in the little glow of afternoon that leaked through the blinds. Her hair had tumbled all around her face, covering it. It made Grace a little uncomfortable for Rayleen to see her mom that way, but she wasn’t sure exactly why.

“Are we going?” she asked. The minute it came out of her mouth, Grace knew, with that familiar guilty feeling, that she’d been too loud.

Rayleen jumped, and then she froze there in the doorway, as if expecting Grace’s mom to open her eyes or something. Actually, Grace also thought — just for a minute — that her mom might wake up. They both waited for it, but it never happened.

“Yeah,” Rayleen said quietly. “Yeah, we’re going to see Mrs. Hinman now. Let’s go.”

But she didn’t go. Not right away. Instead she wandered back into the kitchen, where she opened a few cupboards. Grace wasn’t sure why the insides of the cupboards would seem interesting to Rayleen — or to anybody else, for that matter. Rayleen opened the refrigerator and stared into it for a time.

“There’s nothing here for you to eat.”

“I think there’s some cereal at the back of that cupboard. And I know how to boil eggs.”

“But there’s only one egg left.”

“Oh.”

“Maybe we should order a pizza.”

Grace sprang to life as if someone had suddenly plugged her into a power supply. She jumped up and down, literally, screaming with delight.

“I love you, I love you, I love you, that’s the best idea anybody ever had, you’re my best friend, I love you, I love you, I love you!” she shrieked, among many other things, all along those same lines.

“OK, my eardrum,” Rayleen said, pressing one palm to her Grace-facing ear. “That’s my eardrum.”

Grace’s mom still did not wake up.

The phone jangled suddenly, and Rayleen jumped again. A second ring, and then Grace ran to it, and picked it up.

“Hello?” she said. Well. Screeched.

A woman on the line asked if she was Grace Ferguson.

“Yeah, this is Grace.”

The woman then asked to speak to her mom.

“She can’t come to the phone right now,” Grace said.

The woman asked if she was alone.

“No,” she said. “Rayleen is here.”

The woman asked to speak to Rayleen.

Grace held the phone out to Rayleen. “She wants to talk to you.”

Rayleen took the phone, but hesitantly, as if it might be more dangerous than anybody else’s phone.

“Hello?” Pause. “My name is Rayleen Johnson.” Pause. “I’m her neighbor. And…actually, if you don’t mind my asking, I’d like to know who I’m speaking to, as well.” Pause. “Oh. Well, right. There hasn’t been anybody home all day, so that’s why you just now got somebody. Grace was at school. I just now picked her up from school.” Pause. “Yes, ma’am, I’m looking after her.” Long pause. “It’s like this, ma’am.” Rayleen was half whispering now, but Grace could still hear her just fine. “I think that report you got might be all my fault. Not Grace’s mother’s fault at all. My fault. Who was it that called you, anyway?” Pause. “Oh. Right. Sorry. Of course you can’t. I’m sorry for asking. I just wasn’t thinking for a minute, there. Anyway. Here’s the thing. Grace’s mom hurt her back. And so she’s been on some heavy meds. You know, painkillers and those muscle relaxers that make you all sleepy. So that’s why she’s paying me to look after Grace. But…Well, I hate like hell to even admit this, because I just feel so terrible about it, but there was one day I messed up on my schedule and I wasn’t there when I was supposed to be, and Grace was alone for a while. But I swear to you, I promise, with my hand on a stack of Bibles if you want, nothing like that is ever going to happen again. Anybody can make a mistake, right? One mistake. But I’m a good babysitter. I’m responsible. Really, I am. Grace will be OK with me until her mom gets better.”