The Wife Stalker(39)

I quickly checked out and drove to the airport. I couldn’t wait to get home and to spend some time looking into Pamela Rayfield.





27

Piper




With the children back in school and settling into the routine of their days and early bedtimes, Piper was spending more time at the center again, and she cherished her only opportunity to recharge. Their new setup was taking getting used to on all of their parts, she admitted to herself. The first time she’d made tofu stew with quinoa for dinner, Stelli refused to eat it. If it had been up to her, he would have gone to bed hungry, but Leo thought differently.

“It’s all right. You don’t have to eat it, buddy. You’ll try it another time,” Leo had said, getting up to make Stelli a sandwich.

Stelli had picked up his bowl of stew, taken it to the trash can, and dumped it out, giving her a victorious look.

Piper pressed her lips together, furiously tapping her foot under the table. “Leo, that’s not right. Stelli needs to know that it’s wrong to waste food.”

Leo looked over at his son, who stood in front of the trash can with his arms folded across his chest. “Piper’s right, Stel. There are lots of children who don’t have enough to eat. We’re really lucky that we do. We shouldn’t waste it.”

“It tasted awful,” Stelli said.

She could tell that Leo was trying not to laugh. “It was just different. That’s all. Look”—he’d pointed to Evie—“Evie’s eaten all of hers.”

“I liked it,” she said. “I think Stelli’s being a brat.”

Piper had raised her eyebrows at Leo as if to say, See? I told you he’s acting out. Even his sister sees it.

She had to give Leo credit. From then on, he stayed firmly on her side when Stelli was being picky about food. At least try it, he would say to him, and Piper was satisfied that it was a good compromise. One Friday night, she had something else she wanted to introduce, so she made spaghetti for dinner, one of Stelli’s favorites.

When she brought it to the table, his eyes grew wide and so did his smile. “Oh, goody. Spaghetti!”

“Garlic bread, too,” Piper said, setting the bread plate on the table. It had been hard for her to serve bread with pasta, but she knew both Leo and Stelli would love it, and she wanted everyone in a good mood.

“So,” she said, after they’d been eating awhile, “I thought we’d play a little game while we’re at the table, before we watch a movie.”

They stopped eating for a moment and looked at her. “What kind of game?” Evie asked, putting her fork down.

“I want all of you to think of something you were thankful for today. It can be something that happened or someone you know or even just a thing.”

Evie raised her hand.

“Yes, Evie?” Piper said, smiling at the girl’s manners.

“I’m thankful that my friend Jennifer is back in school and not sick anymore.”

“That’s really lovely, Evie. What about you?” Piper looked at Leo, wanting to give Stelli more time to ponder.

“Easy. I’m thankful for you little rascals,” he said, ruffling Stelli’s hair. “Your turn, Stel.”

Stelli tapped his fork against the plate and looked up at the ceiling for a few seconds. “I’m thankful for my Lego Explorer.”

“Okay, good. My turn. I’m grateful for my new family.” Her smile froze when she saw that Stelli had rolled his eyes. Ignoring him, she continued. “Now, this is a little harder. I want you to sit and be very quiet. It will help if you close your eyes.” Piper let her words sink in and closed her own eyes. “Everyone’s eyes closed?”

There was a murmur of yeses around the table. “Okay. Now pay attention to what you’re feeling right now. And remember, there are no right or wrong feelings. Just whatever you’re feeling right this moment.”

She heard Leo clear his throat, but otherwise, there was only silence. After a minute, Piper opened her eyes. “Okay, now open your eyes and let’s talk about what we felt.”

“Piper—” Leo said, but he was interrupted by Evie.

“I felt really sad. Today when Jennifer came back to school, some of the kids were really mean to her and they made fun of her ’cause the medicine made all her hair fall out. I wanted to yell at them and tell them to leave her alone, but I didn’t say anything. I was scared.”

Leo and Piper exchanged looks. She’d had no idea that Evie’s friend was seriously ill.

“Come here and sit on my lap, pumpkin,” Leo said to his daughter.

She rose from the table and went to sit on his knee, and he put his arm around her. “Sometimes it’s very hard to stand up to kids who are being mean and nasty. If that happens again, I want you to talk to your teacher. It’s not your job to stop them. It’s hers. Your job is to be Jennifer’s friend.”

Piper smiled and nodded her head at him. “What about you, Stelli? How were you feeling?”

“This is stupid.”

“Stelli, tell Piper you’re sorry.”

Stelli threw his fork across the table and flipped his plate over, spilling spaghetti all over the place mat. “Why do I always have to tell her I’m sorry? Why is she such a big baby?” He jumped up from his chair.