Shadow of a Life (22 page)

“
Nope. I’ve just been . . .
umm . . . busy.” Peter looked down at me.

I blushed.

“
Oh. I see.” Scott got a
silly grin on his face and nodded.

“
Well, call us sometime,
bro. Don’t be a stranger.” He high-fived Peter and he and Jason
walked out the door.

We claimed a booth by leaving my bag
and Peter’s gray hoodie on the table before going to the counter to
place our order. While we stood in line my cell phone
rang.

“
It’s Sophia,” I whispered
loudly as I placed it to my ear.

“
Hello?”

“
Jamie?” Her voice was quiet
and distant.

“
Yes.”

“
How are you?”

“
I’m fine, but what about
you? Did you make it to Haiti yet?”

“
Yeah . . . we’re trying to
find someone to take us out to the site now.” The connection was
fuzzy and I could tell I was about to lose her.

“
Okay. Call me when you
can.” The call dropped before she could respond. I wondered if it
would be the last time I’d hear her voice.

CHAPTER 16

O
ne thing I learned by watching Peter that day was that teenage
boys are never satisfied. Camille had a half sandwich with a bowl
of chicken noodle soup. I had a turkey sandwich with fries. Peter
had a double cheeseburger with chili cheese fries and a large Coke.
When he finished all of that he ate what was left of my fries. He
was in good physical shape so I couldn’t figure out where he hid it
all.

“
Where are we going now?
Didn’t you say there were two museums to visit?” Camille asked as
she pushed her dishes away and leaned her elbows on the
table.

I looked at my watch and
sighed. “It’s already 2 o’clock. The other museum is in Salem so
we’d have to take a bus. Even if we left now, we couldn’t get there
before they close at five. Besides, I kind of feel like we’re just
spinning our wheels and not getting anywhere. I doubt going there
would be of any help. I’m so confused about how
I’m
supposed to help Sophia and Nick.
Maybe they were wrong and I’m not really their soul
saver.”

Peter leaned back and put his arm
across the back of the booth. His arm wasn’t actually around me,
but it made me blush anyway. Camille giggled and I kicked her under
the table hoping Peter wouldn’t notice.

“
Jamie, Sophia’s been
hanging around as a ghost for over a hundred years. I don’t think
you should expect to solve her problem in just a few days. Give it
some time. Something will come up,” he said.

“
If we’re not going to
Salem, what else could we do? Please don’t make me go home to hear
Allison babble on about her boyfriend. I’m not ready for more of
that yet,” Camille pleaded.

“
I guess we could go back to
my place and hang out. We could rent a movie and get pizza and give
this whole soul saver thing a rest for a while,” I
offered.

“
I’m game,” Peter said
without any hesitation.

“
Count me in, but can I
invite Travis, too?” Camille asked.

I hesitated. I’d promised
Dad I wouldn’t have any parties, although I don’t think he
seriously thought I ever would.
Does this
count as a party?
Camille and I did that
kind of thing all the time when Dad was at work, but there weren’t
usually guys involved. Besides, I didn’t want it to look like a
double-date because I didn’t want Peter to feel pressured to
act
like my
date.

“
Uhh . . . that would
probably be okay.”

“
Good. I’ll text him right
now.”

*****

We ditched our bikes on my lawn and
climbed the stairs to the front door. My heart skipped a beat as I
reached for the doorknob. The door wasn’t open, but it wasn’t
closed either. It was as if someone had pushed it shut behind them
and it didn’t quite latch.

Camille scrunched up her nose as she
looked at me. “What’s wrong? You look scared.”

“
Guys, I know the front door
was shut and locked. I double-checked it before I left my house.
Someone’s been here.”

“
You’re
positive
you locked it?” Peter asked
with concern.

“
Yes!” I snapped at him
without thinking. I was scared.

“
Is there any chance your
dad missed his flight and came back already?” Camille asked as she
slowly backed down the stairs.

“
He would’ve called me.
Guys, someone has definitely been here. What if they’re still
inside?” I was freaking out.

Peter put his hand on my shoulder.
“Let’s check it out. It’s probably fine. Maybe the wind caught
it.”

He led the way while Camille and I
hovered close behind. He threw the front door open and peered
inside before stepping over the threshold. We looked around the
living room first and didn’t see anything amiss. My heart thumped
loudly in my chest and I was sure if anyone was hiding inside they
would be able to hear it. We stepped through the kitchen doorway
and collectively gasped. Someone sat the kitchen table drinking a
glass of ice water.

“
Mom
?”

“
Jamie.”

“
You scared the crap out of
us.”

“
Why?”

“
You left the door open. We
thought someone was in here.”

“
Someone
is
in here. Me.” She
laughed.

“
Hi, Lillian,” Camille said
as she stepped out from behind Peter. She loved my mom and always
called her by her first name—which my mom insisted on. I think
their personalities were more similar than mine and my mom’s. I was
more like my dad.

“
Hey, Cam. I’m loving your
new hairstyle.” Mom gave Camille a little squeeze on her way to
give me a hug.

“
She cut her hair in
November, Mom.”

“
Well, it’s new to me. Who’s
this?” she asked, looking at Peter.

“
I’m Peter Ashby. I live
nearby.”

“
I remember you. You came to
Jamie’s birthday party when she was little. Wow, you’re all grown
up now. You even have muscles.” She playfully patted him on the
arm.

I was mortified. I didn’t know who was
more embarrassing when it came to boys—my dad or my mom.

“
That was a fun party,” he
offered. I’m sure he barely remembered it.

“
Mom, why didn’t you tell me
you were coming?”

“
I dunno. I thought you
might like the surprise. Is Dad at work?”

“
He’s in
Chicago.”

“
You mean he just left you
here—by yourself?”

I didn’t respond because I knew she
didn’t actually care. If she did, she wouldn’t have left me all
those years ago. Dad referred to Mom as his Wildflower. She was
full of life and made the world prettier and happier wherever she
went, but you couldn’t control her. Her seeds fell where they may
and sprung up in random places just when you least expected it. I
thought of her as a gypsy. She went from one job and one town to
another, trying new things and exploring the world. She phoned or
wrote a letter now and then, and sometimes she even dropped in
unexpectedly. I loved seeing her, but after every visit my dad
would retreat to his office for weeks and I was left even more
alone.

“
So, Jamesie, what are you
guys up to? I came to town to see some friends and thought I’d pop
in for a visit.”

First, I hated the pet name
she had for me. Second, I loved the fact that visiting
me
was the secondary part
of her reason for being there. I tried to stay calm. I knew that
was how she operated and I couldn’t let it get to me.
Just try to enjoy her while she’s here. This
situation is probably still better than having her here
permanently, fighting with Dad.

“
We were thinking about
renting a movie this evening—maybe getting a pizza, too,” I
said.

“
Fun. Can I come?” Mom was a
perpetual teenager.

“
Of course you’re invited,”
Camille insisted before I had a chance to tell her no.

Well, I guess I didn’t have to worry
about getting in trouble for having a “party.” There would be
“adult” supervision. I just hoped Mom didn’t try to flirt with
Peter or Travis—I would definitely have to find a new town to live
in if that happened.

The four of us sat down in the living
room and listened to Mom tell stories about her current life. The
woman knew how to live—I could give her credit for that. She had
just started to tell about the month she spent on a cattle ranch in
south Texas when we were interrupted by the buzzing of the
doorbell.

“
Oooh, it’s probably
Travis.” Camille jumped up and opened the door.

“
Hi, Camille. Is Jamie
around?”

I couldn’t believe who stood
at the door. It was Rita, looking very anxious.
How does she know where I live and why is she here? What
should I tell Mom?
I’m sure I looked like a
deer caught in the headlights.

“
Uhh . . . hi. Come in,
Rita,” I opened the door wider for her. “Mom, this is Rita. She’s
the mother of one of my friends.” I hoped Rita would play along
with my charade.

Mom didn’t stand up, but greeted her
warmly from the comfort of the couch. “Hi. It’s good to meet you.
I’m sure Jamie has told me all about your daughter . . . or is it
son?”

Rita looked at me. “Oh . . . that
would be daughter. Sophia.”

“
What a beautiful name? Is
she here with you?”

“
No. That’s actually why I
came to see Jamie.”

We had the attention of the entire
room. Three other sets of eyes were on us and Rita seemed hesitant
to proceed.

“
I was wondering if you’d
heard from Sophia, Jamie. She’s not answering her cell. I needed to
tell her something. You know how she is about keeping her cell
charged, though.” She raised her eyebrows.

“
Oh yeah—I know Sophia. I
heard from her a couple of hours ago, actually. She was hanging out
with Nick in Hai . . . Hartford, you know.”

“
Oh good. I hoped she was
still with him. I thought she might have left him by now. If you
talk to her again, can you give her a message for me, please?” she
asked.

“
Sure, I can do
that.”

“
Will you tell her that her
Goodwin relatives are in town and I think they would like to see
her?”

I could feel my eyes clouding over as
I understood what Rita was trying to tell me. We exchanged knowing
looks and Rita nodded. I was sure Cam and Peter caught on, too.
Camille sat on the couch biting her nails, something she only did
when she was really nervous. I hoped Mom wouldn’t notice the
concern rapidly spreading through the room.

“
Well, I better get going.
My husband’s probably wondering where I disappeared to. It was nice
to meet you, Mrs. Peters,” Rita said.

“
It’s just Lillian. Call me
Lillian. Oh, and it was nice to meet you, too, Rita,” Mom
gushed.

I showed Rita to the door
and she squeezed my hand and whispered, “
Be careful,
”
right before I shut the door. I stepped back into the room and
plopped down on the chair I had previously occupied. Camille,
Peter, and I exchanged looks, but none of us dared say anything.
You could have heard a pin drop in the room.

“
She was nice. And
very
pretty. How come
I’ve never heard you talk about Sophia before?” Mom finally spoke
up, breaking the silence.

“
She’s kind of new to town.
I guess she hasn’t come up in conversation, yet.”

Mom seemed to be okay with that answer
and a thoughtful look spread across her face. “Did Rita say that
their Goodwin relatives were visiting?”

“
Yeah, I think that’s the
name she said.”

“
Huh. I wonder if you’re
related to your friend. That would be really funny, wouldn’t
it?”

“
What?” I asked.

“
You know, because you have
Goodwin relatives, too.”

“
What are you talking about,
Mom?”

“
My mother was a Goodwin.
I’m sure you knew that, honey.”

“
Why would I have ever known
that? You never talk about your family. Why haven’t you told me
about them before now?” I yelled.

Mom’s mouth dropped open at my
outburst. “Jamie, why are you getting so upset? I didn’t know you
cared about your ancestors, I guess. Sorry.”

“
Do you remember any of
their names?”

“
Sure. Grandpa and Grandma
Goodwin.” She laughed before looking around at her audience to see
who would be amused by her joke. Camille was the only one who took
the bait.

“
Honestly, Jamie, I can’t
remember anyone’s name right now. I just remember Grandpa Goodwin
talking about his crazy relatives sometimes. I think there were a
pretty wild bunch of people in his family line. If you really want
to know their names you can look through their stuff. I think when
Dad moved you over here from the other house he just put everything
that had been in the attic there into the attic here. Grandma
Goodwin saved everything and she passed it on to my mother. When my
mom passed away, I inherited all the junk.”