The Devil and Danielle Webster (12 page)

I threw open the door.

“Are you Miss Webster?” a good-looking woman with a
beautiful head of tinted gold hair and wide eyes asked.

“Yes,” I said faintly.  What now?

“Angel, come here,” she admonished.

Angel Battle came to the door, oozing indignation and
resentment.

“Angel?” I asked.  “What are you doing back here?”

“May we come in?” the woman asked pleasantly. 

Wordlessly, I opened the door.  She stopped, hesitated,
and said, “I’m so sorry.  I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

“No problem,” I said.  “We had a conference here, and I
think we’re wrapping it up.  You’re Angel’s mom? 
Marjorie,
right?
  I think I remember you from her IEP meeting a couple years
back.”  We shook hands. 

“That’s right,” she said, looking at me favorably. 
“Again, I’m sorry to interrupt, but Angel has something to return to its
owner.  Angel?”

Angel came forward and said crossly, “I wasn’t supposed to
take this.  I saw it on the counter and it looked like it didn’t belong to
anyone.  Mom says I should have looked for the owner.”  She held out
her hand reluctantly.

“The hot sauce diamond!”
Evie
cried out. 

“I thought it must have fallen out of someone’s engagement
ring,” Marjorie Battle explained.  “It’s not something Angel’s supposed to
have.”

Father Fritz introduced himself.  “Thank you so very
much for your efforts, Mrs. Battle.  This diamond belongs to the Roman
Catholic Church.  It had actually been stolen previously, and Angel’s
taking it prevented a worse theft.  For that I am truly grateful,” he
said, looking at Angel with kindness.

“I wish I could send the diamond to Salt Lake City, to the
LDS Church.  But it’s not mine or Angel’s to make such decisions.  We
won’t intrude further.  We have a long drive back.  Come, Angel,
shake hands with everyone, and let’s go.”

She went briskly out of the room.

Angel dawdled sulkily behind her, giving
Evie
the opportunity to offer a helpful hint in a stage whisper.

“No slouching, dear, or you’ll be mistaken for a
thirteen-year-old.”

With flashing eyes, Angel marched angrily out of the room.

Father Fritz said, “I was tempted. 
So
tempted.”

“To keep it yourself?”
I asked, but
everyone in the room denounced that idea.

“Well, I don’t know,” I said crabbily.  “What else
could it be?”

“I was tempted to just let her keep it,” Father Fritz
confessed.  “It would have removed a major burden from me.  But I can
give it to my bishop when I get back to Schaumburg.  He’ll take care of it
from there.”

Patty was consulting her phone.  “Whoa.  No, you
did the right thing.  I
googled
the Diablo
Diamond, and though it’s only a bit more than five carats, because of its
color, it’s valued at eight million dollars.  No teenager can handle such
a responsibility, especially without knowing what exactly she has.”

I was thinking.  “You know,” I said slowly, “I’ve been
wrong about parents.”

Evie
said, “You’re wrong about me
all the time, young lady.  It’s about time you realized it.”

“Touché,” I laughed.  “But I’m talking about parents of
my students.  Do you know how often I’ve heard teachers say, ‘The apple
doesn’t fall far from the tree’?”

Father Fritz said, “I’ve heard it a lot just talking to the
teachers at the parish high school.”

“Well, apples do fall far from the tree.  And once they
fall, they don’t stay put.  They might roll, or something.  Angel has
a mom who’s doing a great job bringing her up.  Maybe I’ll run into Angel
one day, working somewhere and being useful, and maybe she’ll have turned into
a nice person.”  I thought a minute longer. 
“Oh,
probably not.”

“Maybe you’ll go back into teaching one day,” Patty
commented mischievously. 

“No,” I said, unhesitatingly.

“Well, good!” said Jill.  “That’s the best news I’ve
had all day.  I need you, Danielle.  I would hate to lose you to a
bunch of spoiled brats!”

“Then there’s Jill,” commented Patty.  “She’s still
growing and learning, too.  One of these days she’ll meet a guy who
deserves her.”

“Absolutely,” Father Fritz seconded.  “You have a gift
for unconditional love,” he said to her.  “Don’t squander it!”

“Hey, stop being so nice.  It was temporary
insanity.  I’m over him,” she said. 

“All of this drama,” I complained, “and
not one Happily Ever After.
  I want my money back.”

“Oh, no,” said
Evie
.  “This
has been fabulous. 
First class entertainment.
 
Jill, I’m so glad you drove me up here.

Tina said, “Doug and I have a Happily Ever After to get back
to, featuring a ten-year-old who plays too many video games, and a toddler who
throws his
sippy
cup.”

“And a hubby who uses too much hot sauce and then gets a
stomach ache,” Doug reminded her. 

“I suppose your free ride disappeared down the toilet just
now,” I said regretfully.

Father Fritz said, “I’m flying out from Las Vegas to Chicago
later this afternoon.  Let’s see if we can get tickets for you, as
well.  You said your mom has the kids, Tina?”

“Patty, what about you?”
I stopped
and looked at her.  “What would I have done without you here?  And
how are you going to get back home?”

“I’ve called in sick today, and I have a scheduled day off
tomorrow.  That brings us to the weekend.  What about that birthday
party for Mike’s girlfriend?”

“Oh, no!
  What time is
it?  Josh and Leann are going to have a fit!”

“Josh and Leann can just chill,”
Evie
said.

“Mom, I swear, you’re becoming
uber
-cool
in your old age.”

“I’m not in my old age.  I’m in my middle age.”

“Will you help with the party?” 

“Of course,” she said, as if anything else would be out of
the question.

“It’s your choir night,” Jill reminded her. 

“The alto section will be lost without me,”
Evie
reflected, “but they’ll survive.” 

“Then count me in, too,” Jill said.  She embraced
Patty,
Evie
and me. 

“Group hug!”
Patty called
out.  We were swamped with hugs.  Father Fritz gave me a comforting
one.  Tina and Doug encircled me. 

“You know, you’re not so bad.”

“Tina!  What a nice thing to—“

“There’s still plenty of room for improvement,” she said,
stepping back and looking me up and down. 

I hugged her again and laughed.

Thanks so much for reading!  If you enjoyed
The
Devil and Danielle Webster
, please help this indie author and kindly leave
a review.  Recommendations to friends and co-workers are also very
gratefully appreciated!  Please note that this novel can be borrowed by
Kindle Prime members.

Also, if you would like to read more of the escapades of
Danielle, Patty,
Evie
and Jill, feel free to email me
at
[email protected]
 and
I’ll send you an update when the next book is completed.  (Hint:
somebody’s going to win the lottery!)

Sincerely,
  Cynthia
Cross