Chapter 20

We pulled into the driveway of Lizzie’s house Sunday shortly after 8:00 p.m. We had talked a lot on the flight back home.

“My heart’s pounding,” Lizzie said.

I released the clasp on my seatbelt and squeezed her hand. “Everything will be fine.”

A moment later we were climbing the steps. She dug into her purse for her keys, unlocked the door and walked in.

“Hello!” she called out. “I’m home.”

We were greeted by a delicious aroma of freshly baked cookies.

“Smells good in here,” I whispered.

The lights were on in the kitchen. We heard Mrs. Reynolds’s voice calling. “Is that you, Lizzie?”

As she hurried toward her daughter, she glanced briefly at Lizzie and threw her arms around her shoulders, pulling her close. “I’m so happy to see you.”

Lizzie let her mother hold her as long as she needed to, then she stepped apart and gestured to me. “Do you remember Nick?”

“Of course.” Mrs. Reynolds expression warmed. “Good Lord, look at you. All grown up. A police officer and a hero, I heard. Where has the time gone?”

“Hi, Mrs. Reynolds. It’s good to see you too,” I said, and gave her a heartfelt smile.

To my surprise, Mrs. Reynolds held out her arms and hugged me, too. Then she led us into the kitchen for cookies.

“How’s your mother?” she asked me.

“Very well. Still living in Middletown,” I replied. “She remarried last year.”

“Lovely. So she’s happy, I presume?”

“Very. She married a good man.”

“That’s wonderful,” Mrs. Reynolds said. “Will you tell her I said hello?”

“Of course.”

We sat down on the stools at the center island where the cookies were displayed on a silver serving dish. Mrs. Reynolds moved to the fridge to withdraw a carton of milk.

“Is Dad here?” Lizzie cautiously asked.

Mrs. Reynolds poured us each a glass and shook her head. “He wanted to be, but he had a surgery this evening. He said it might run late.”

I felt both relieved and disappointed, because we had been dreading this confrontation, yet at the same time we wanted to get it over with.

“You’re probably wondering where I’ve been for the past few days,” Lizzie said.

“I can guess,” her mother replied, lifting an eyebrow from where she stood on the opposite side of the island. “Your father wasn’t too happy when he saw your car parked in front of Nick’s house. No offense, Nick.”

“None taken. He banged pretty hard at my door, but we didn’t answer. He seemed too angry, and we preferred to avoid a confrontation,” I explained.

“I can’t say I blame you for not answering,” Mrs. Reynolds said offering me a sad smile. “I apologize if his behavior was disrespectful in any way.”

Surprised by her candor, I wondered if she would have said something like that if her husband had been standing there beside her. Probably not.

“No worries,” I said, reaching for a cookie and taking a bite.

“We weren’t at Nick’s house the whole time,” Lizzie began to explain.

“Oh?”

“That’s what I came here to talk to you about,” she continued. “Nick found J.J.’s contact information and I sent him an email. He said he wanted to see me, so Nick and I hopped on a flight to pay him a visit.”

Mrs. Reynolds stood motionless, blinking. “You saw him.”

Lizzie nodded her head.

“How is he?” Her eyes were watering now.

“He’s great, Mom,” Lizzie eagerly replied. “He is happy and looks terrific. He lives in a good neighborhood. His wife is very nice and his children are adorable. You don’t need to worry about him. You’d be proud.”

“Thank God,” she whispered, turning her back on us. And hiding her face in her hands.

Lizzie rose from my stool to circle around the island and embrace her mother. “He’d love to hear from you. He said he tried contacting us a number of times over the years but Dad always told him to stay away and he even threatened him with a restraining order. He said he wrote us letters too, but I’m guessing Dad got rid of them. This has to stop, Mom. We can’t go on like this. Dad shouldn’t be able to keep us apart. I fully intend to see J.J. again, whether Dad likes it or not.”

Just then, the front door opened. Mrs. Reynolds gasped and quickly wiped the tears from her face, as if to hide them.

I clenched my jaw ready for what was going to come.