Wow, this woman was into Jesus.
My family wasn’t religious at all, so when I stepped into Mrs. McKenzie’s house, I got sort of wowed by all the crosses and statues and pillows with Bible verses.
“I like to surround myself with the Gospel,” Mrs. McKenzie said as we settled into chairs in her living room. She leaned in conspiratorially. “I let the preacher handle the Old Testament at the pulpit.”
She laughed like this was a great joke. I didn’t quite know what she meant, but I smiled anyway. I could do this. She seemed like a sweet lady who would make it her personal mission to make sure every bereaved family would get a casserole.
“You must be tired of the hat,” she said. “Lovely as it is. Want me to hang it somewhere?”
My hand flew to my head. “Oh, no, I couldn’t. My hair is going to be a disaster after wearing it all day.”
“Well, I can certainly understand that,” she said.
“I’d love to see Chance’s room, though,” I said, hoping to shift attention. I realized I was at her mercy now, since I couldn’t exactly get away without her driving or me calling a taxi. I should have thought this through.
No, this woman would be in my life for always. I needed to stay the course.
My phone buzzed with a text. Mrs. McKenzie dropped her gaze to my purse. “Do you think that could be Chance? Maybe he got a new phone and found your number?”
No way, I thought, but it was an excuse to take a peek. It was Redmond. I’d given him my contact info when we parted earlier. When I saw his message, I dropped my phone.
Chance just got here. You want me to fetch you?
“Are you all right, dear?” Mrs. McKenzie scooted forward in her chair.
What to tell her? If she knew Chance was in town, she’d insist on seeing him. And I really needed him first.
I chose my words carefully so nothing would be an out-and-out lie. “Redmond wants to come get me,” I said. “I think he’s gotten Charlie to help us get to Chance.”
She sat up a little straighter. “Really? She seemed all fluffed up like an angry cat this afternoon.”
I tapped out a quick YES and tucked the phone in my purse. I had no idea how far away Chance was. I was tired and travel-weary. If I had known he would come this fast, I would have gone to the hotel to get ready.
“I guess she came around,” I said. “How about a quick tour of Chance’s room before Redmond gets here?”
She popped up with more energy than I would have expected. I followed her down the dark carpeted hall, my nerves jangling. I was so close to the end of this search. But I didn’t know what he’d think. Him coming was a great sign that he wanted to see me.
But I had news for him. Big news. I had to be prepared for his anger, his disgust. God, who knew how he would react?
My knees wobbled a little as I walked and nausea flooded me again. No, no, no, I could not get sick here. Somebody like Mrs. McKenzie would figure it out in a hurry. How many reasons could there be to track down a one-night stand? I felt like anybody could guess in two seconds if I didn’t play every moment exactly right.
Mrs. McKenzie turned into a room on the left. When she flipped on the light, I actually took a step back. This didn’t look like Chance at all.
First, the room was neat as a pin. Shelves held perfectly posed action figures from X-Men. On a small wood dresser were stacks and stacks of Pokémon cards.
It was all so…cute. It didn’t suit Chance, who had this gritty edge. Maybe he’d been a normal kid. I looked at the brown and blue bedspread, the robot pillow, and thought — do I know this guy at all?
Then it hit me. There was nothing musical. This guy who’d left everything to sing across the country had absolutely nothing in his room to reflect that this had been a passion of his while he was growing up.
“When did Chance start playing guitar?” I asked.
Mrs. McKenzie held tight to the back of the desk chair. “Oh, I guess he did it pretty early, maybe ten or eleven? He took to it right away.”
“I guess I expected to see some pictures of musicians or things that would show that side of him.” I wandered the room, running my fingers along a perfectly tidy desk with a stack of Little Golden Books. Chance definitely wouldn’t have had those around before moving out. Mrs. McKenzie had done some creative editing of his room.
His mother tapped the desk absently. “Oh, well, some of his posters and keepsakes regarding that were a little, how can I describe it? Dark.”
I got it now. Chance had listened to bands that didn’t fit Mrs. McKenzie’s puritanical worldview. I suppressed another smile.
“I love it,” I said. “Thank you so much for showing me.” I fingered the Pokémon cards. “I collected these too.”
“You seem a little younger than him,” she said.
“Not much. I’m graduating the University of California in June.”