Kiss an Angel(116)

When Daisy had disappeared, Tater had stopped eating, but Alex had been too entangled in his own private hell to notice. It was only as the small elephant’s condition deteriorated that Neeco forced him to pay attention.

It didn’t take him long to discover that the elephant found comfort in his presence, not because of anything Alex did, but because the baby associated him with Daisy. He started to eat again, and before long, he was following Alex around the lot as he’d once followed her.

The two of them made their way toward the spool truck, where the nylon was ready to be unrolled as soon as the location for the top was decided on. Brady had arrived there ahead of him, but he stepped aside as Alex approached. Alex didn’t know what he’d have done without Brady. Along with Jack, Brady had helped take up the slack from his frequent absences and kept things running.

For the next few hours, Alex labored alongside the workers as they erected the top on the difficult terrain. He was still in the clothes he’d worn on the plane, but he didn’t stop to change when Trey arrived with his trailer. Sweat soaked his blue oxford-cloth shirt, and he managed to rip his gray dress slacks, but he didn’t care. The mind-numbing labor kept him from thinking.

When he could avoid it no longer, he headed to the trailer, with Tater close behind. He tethered the animal near the hay Digger had left, then hesitated as he approached the door. The trailer was filled with her scent, her touch, everything but her presence, and he hated going inside.

He did it anyway, and as he changed clothes, he was tortured with images of the way she’d looked as she’d rushed through the door with dirt-smeared cheeks, grubby clothes, straw clinging to her hair, and the gleam of accomplishment in her eyes. He wandered over to the refrigerator, but all he could find was a can of beer and a carton of yogurt Daisy had bought for herself. It had expired two weeks ago, but he couldn’t bring himself to throw it away.

He grabbed the beer and carried it outside, popping the top as he walked over to Tater. The baby was keeping himself cool by sprinkling hay on his back. He picked up a fresh batch and, as a gesture of friendship, dusted Alex with it instead. It hadn’t taken Alex long to figure out why Daisy’d always had hay stuck in her hair.

“I’ll bet she misses you, fella,” he said softly as he rubbed the elephant’s trunk.

She would be missing Sinjun even more. There had been a strange bond between Daisy and the tiger, one he’d never understood. She’d loved working with the animals no one else had the patience to pay attention to: the troublesome baby elephant, the shy gorilla, the old, regal tiger. It must be hard for her not being around any of the animals she loved.

At that moment everything inside him went still. His skin crawled with gooseflesh, and he forgot to breathe. What made him think she wasn’t with one of those animals?



Twenty-four hours later he stood by the railing in the Tropical World compound at Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo and stared at Glenna, who was sitting on the rocky mountain in the center, munching on a stalk of celery. He’d been wandering the sloped walkways that surrounded the spacious indoor habitat for hours. His eyes were gritty from lack of sleep his head ached, and acid burned a hole in his stomach.

What if he was wrong? What if she didn’t come here at all? He’d been to the zoo’s employment office, and he already knew she didn’t work here. But he was sure she would want to be close to Glenna. Besides, there wasn’t anyplace left for him to look.

Fool. The word pounded through his head like the noise of a stake driver. Fool. Fool. Fool. Fool.

His grief was too private to be put on exhibition, and as he heard the babble of another group of school children, he moved up the curving pathway, which was bordered by tropical vegetation and a railing of iron pipe painted green like bamboo and lashed together with rope. At the top, he found a more deserted location. Glenna tugged on one of the heavy rope hanging in the man-made tree trunks that stood at the summit of the gorilla mountain and came around to his side. She looked healthy and contented in her new home. She settled back down, this time with a carrot.

Suddenly her head came up and she began making smacking sounds with her lips. He followed the direction of her eyes and saw Daisy approaching the rail below and gazing at the gorilla.

His heart slammed against his ribs, and joy flooded him, followed almost instantly by distress. Even from fifteen yards away he could see that she wore no makeup, and lines of fatigue were etched in her face. Her hair was restrained with a clip at the nape of her neck, and for the first time since he’d known her she looked almost plain. Where was the Daisy who loved to primp and fuss with her perfumes and powder? The Daisy who took such joy in dabbing herself with apricot-scented lotion and raspberry red lipstick? Where was the Daisy who used up all the hot water taking her showers and left a sticky film of hair spray on the bathroom door? Dry-mouthed, he drank in the sight of her, and something broke apart inside him. This was Daisy as he’d made her.

This was Daisy with her love light extinguished.

As he moved closer, he spotted new hollows under her cheekbones and realized that she’d lost weight. His gaze flew to her waist, but the loose jacket she wore over a pair of dark slacks kept him from seeing if there were any changes in her body. Fear shot through him. What if she’d lost their baby? Was that going to be his punishment?

She was intent on her silent communion with the gorilla and didn’t see him as he moved around the children and came up behind her. He spoke softly. “Daisy.”