December 24th, Christmas Eve…
The next morning, Ezra and I went to the main house of the Thorny Creek Inn to enjoy a nice drama-free breakfast. After my visions the night before, Ezra had texted Elaine, and she’d texted Rob, and Rob had called us. I relayed what I’d seen the best I could. He was angry we’d gone behind his back to the impound lot. Even so, he’d thanked me for my effort and for the information. Honestly, I didn’t know how much any of what I’d seen would help the investigation. There hadn’t been any clues to Penny’s whereabouts in them, and that’s what we needed.
My sleep had been fitful and filled with the ruthless, faceless man who’d do whatever it took to get what he wanted. Ezra had awakened me once when I’d called out in my sleep. I was so ready to put the nightmare behind me.
The long dining table in the inn had a red runner going down the center and small bough wreaths with candles as decoration on the top. Molly served us cheese and spinach quiche with crispy potatoes, two bacon strips, and a side of freshly baked buttered sourdough toast.
“This looks wonderful, Molly.” I took a bite of the quiche. It was creamy and cheesy with a crisp, flaky crust. “Mmm. Delicious.”
Molly beamed with pleasure at the compliment. There were two other couples at the table, Norton and Donna Hightower from St. Louis, an older couple, a husband and wife, in their seventies, and another couple, Roberta and Elsie Dixon, a wife and wife, who looked to be around my age, from Kansas. During breakfast, we found out a lot about our dining companions. Apparently, Norton and Donna had gotten engaged on Christmas at the inn in 1969. Their son, who lived in California, couldn’t make it home for the holiday, so he’d paid for them to spend a week at the inn. Roberta and Elsie had met at the inn five years earlier, and their holiday stay was their date-iversary present to themselves.
When they inquired about us, Ezra said, “I wanted to introduce the love of my life to my family.”
“That is so sweet,” Elsie gushed. “And romantic.”
“Maybe you two will get engaged for Christmas like we did,” Donna suggested.
“Oh, look,” I said. “It’s getting late.” It was getting close to ten a.m. “We better get to your parents’ house. We told your mom we’d come early.”
Ezra smirked. “Like a deer in headlights,” he mumbled.
* * *
Lynn had her coat on and met us outside when we arrived. “Orsen and Lettie usually cook pancakes for the Christmas in Uniform Brunch at the firehouse, but since Penny’s disappearance, neither of them is in any shape to be of service. I’ve offered our assistance.”
“I’m happy to do it,” I said, and I meant it. I’d take flipping flapjacks over awkward intimate conversations any day.
“Great. Can we take your car? Hal got called to the plant. The sprinkler pipes froze last night, and one of them burst. I guess they have water everywhere.”
“Yikes.”
Lynn nodded. “It was shooting out like a fountain, and some of the water was freezing before it could hit the ground. It looks like an ice sculpture.” She opened her phone and showed us a photo. The shot had water spraying into the air, and below it was, in essence, an ice sculpture that looked like crashing waves.”
“Cool.”
“Not if you’re the one who has to deal with it,” she said. “He wasn’t supposed to go back to work for at least another two weeks, but I couldn’t talk the man down. I think Penny’s disappearance is making him feel useless. Getting the call this morning to go to work perked him up. Fool man.”
Ezra, who’d been quiet up until then, said, “What’s wrong with dad?”
Lynn looked startled at the question. She shook her head. “It’s not all that big of a deal.”
“He’s on blood thinners and strong pain pills. That sounds like a big deal.”
His mother’s brows knitted together. “Were you snooping in my bathroom?”
“Yes,” he said without any hint of remorse. “Penny told me dad was sick but didn’t tell me any more than that. I can’t believe you didn’t call me to let me know.”
“To paraphrase a man I know, the phone goes both ways.”
“We talk every week.”
Neither of them was raising their voice, but that didn’t stop this from being a fight. I went back and forth over whether to intervene or not.
“I talk,” Lynn corrected him. “You keep your answers short, and you never ask me any questions.”
“Oh, so not telling me was your way of punishing me?”
“I am not punishing you,” she said. “Your dad didn’t want me to say anything. He had a bowel perforation, and they were able to repair it laparoscopically without having to open him up, but he’s not supposed to lift anything heavy for six weeks, in which he only has two left, and he’s got to be on blood thinners until then. It’s not a big deal. He only spent two days in the hospital. Oh, and he has to be on a soft diet until then, too, and it’s making him and me crazy,” she blurted out. “So, if there is anyone doing the punishing around here, it’s you. When Kati got pregnant, I handled it badly, and I’m sorry. I thought you were throwing away your life. I shouldn’t have been so shortsighted, but you’re my son, and I love you. Raising a baby at sixteen is hard.” Lynn was crying now. “I wanted your life to be easy. I said and did things that I’m not proud of, but, son, when are you going to forgive me?”
Ezra looked like the wind had gotten knocked out of him.
Lynn wiped her tears with the back of her gloves. She sniffled as she turned to me. “I’m sorry, Nora. This has got to be the worst Christmas ever for you.”
I wasn’t sure she was wrong. Between Penny’s disappearance, the violent visions, and Ezra’s family drama, things were going south fast. I tried to smile, but my stomach was icky with the turbulence of stress. “It’s not Christmas yet,” I said. “We’ve got some pancakes to make, right?”
“Yes.” She sniffled again. “Can we take your car?”
“Yeah, sure.” I widened my eyes at Ezra. He looked numb, but he managed to turn and head to the car. “You can sit up front,” I told Lynn.
She got into the backseat. Wowza.
Ezra turned on the radio, and “Wonderful Christmastime,” sung by Paul McCartney, began to play. He tapped the dial and turned it off. Oh, yeah. Worst Christmas ever.
* * *
Christmas in Uniform was an event where grateful citizens in town came out to cook and serve breakfast to all the firefighters, police officers, EMTs, and all other city employees who had to work over the holiday. It was a way to give back to the men and women who served their community. I thought the idea was cool enough that I planned on suggesting it for Garden Cove next year.
The car ride over was somber. Neither Ezra nor his mother spoke a word. Lynn had confessed her truth, and now Ezra was going to have to decide how he felt about it. It wasn’t ideal timing, but feelings like burps were better to let out than keep in. Although both could be embarrassing when overheard in public.
Ezra parked the car along the road a block down from the firehouse because the parking lot and both sides of the street near the building were packed with other vehicles.
“This is quite the turnout,” I mused. My innocuous observation sent a ripple through the silence.
Lynn opened her door and practically sprinted up the street ahead of us. Ezra sat still, staring out the window.
“I love you,” I told him because I didn’t know what else to say. Any advice I might give him would be unwelcome and most likely unhelpful.
He pursed his lips and glanced at me out of the side of his eye. “That was intense.”
“Yep.”
“My dad isn’t dying.” His grip tightened on the steering wheel, and I could see the fight in his face to hold his emotions together. I hadn’t realized he’d been sitting on that fear this whole time.
“No, he isn’t,” I said with tenderness. “He’s not dying.”
Ezra nodded. He closed his eyes for a moment, and when he opened them, he took a deep breath and let it out.
“Are you okay to do this?” I asked. “We can stay, we can go back to the inn and huddle there until Monday, we can pack our stuff and go home. Whatever you want, I’m down for it.”
The corner of his mouth tugged up, and my heart skipped a beat. Progress.
He gave a slight shrug. “We’re here. We might as well make pancakes.”
“Might as well,” I agreed.
We got out of the car and strolled up the street to the firehouse.
It was crazy crowded. Lots of men and women in uniforms sat at long buffet tables with white tablecloths and Christmas adornments, chatting and laughing with each other. Several large propane heaters blasted warm air, managing to make the open space bearable. A host of volunteers manned four giant griddles, each of them at least four or five feet wide. Beyond that was food warmers that held bacon, sausage patties, scrambled eggs, and hashbrowns. At the very end was a butter and syrup station.
“This is very well organized,” I said. “I’m impressed.”
“I wonder how long they’ve been doing it.” Ezra guided us past several tables toward the cook and service area. “They weren’t doing this when I lived here.”
On the line was several of Ezra’s relatives, including Elaine, Baxter, Rose Marie, and…. I inwardly groaned but outwardly smiled, Lorena. I hoped she’d forgotten to put her shrew hat on this morning.
“Hi,” Rose Marie said cheerily. “It’s so nice to see you again.” She shook her head. “Just terrible about Penny.”
“It is.” I looked around. “Where do you want me?”
“Somewhere out of town would be a good start,” Lorena goaded.
I coughed as the comment took me off guard. “Good morning to you too, Lorena.”
She grumbled something that I actively ignored. Fortunately, the scent of breakfast foods only elicited happy memories from the crowd. Yay.
Elaine walked over to us and said, “You guys want to help me serve the stuff from the warmers?”
“Mmm, mmm,” Ezra teased. “Stuff sounds so appetizing.”
Elaine poked him in the ribs. “Smart alec.”
“Mom told me about dad’s surgery,” he said casually to her, but I knew he was feeling anything but casual.
Elaine winced. “Yeah, sorry about that. Dad made me swear not to tell you. He wanted you home for Christmas, not because he was a sick old man.” She nudged her brother. “Besides, if it had been really serious, you know I would have broken that promise so fast I’d have gotten whiplash.” She smiled at him. “So don’t be mad, okay?”
“Okay.” He gestured toward the rows of tables. “When did all this start?”
“When Rollo became a fireman about five years ago,” his sister said. “Aunt Lettie got upset that he had to work over the holiday, and she organized this whole thing so that she could spend time with her wittle boy on Christmas eve.” Elaine laughed. “Baxter is a fireman, too,” she added. “But he’s off today, so he’s manning the line with us.”
“I think it’s genius,” I told her. “Every town should do something like this.”
Lynn had taken a position near her sister, and she kept her head down as she poured circles of batter on the hot surface.
“What’s wrong with Mom?” Elaine asked.
Ezra shrugged, which was the only answer his sister was going to get.
“Fine,” she said. “Rob told me you all found a key in the alley last night. Do you really think it was Penny’s way of trying to send a message? She’s clever, I’ll give her that. And she can manipulate with the best of them, but she’s never been particularly smart.” Elaine said that last bit quietly.
Rollo came up to our section with two other men. I recognized the guy with the equine nose even out of his Santa outfit. “Howdy, Howdy.” I shook my head with chagrin. “Sorry. I can’t seem to help myself.”
He laughed. “I don’t mind.”
The other guy said, “I’m Blake. We met too.” Without the Santa beard, I saw that Blake had a cherry birthmark on his cheek. My grandmother used to call them angel kisses.
“Good to see you again, Blake.” I nodded. “I’ll remember you next time. Promise.”
Rollo asked, “Do you all know if Rob is any closer to finding Penny?” He scrubbed his face. He had a day’s worth of stubble, and his eyes were red with exhaustion. “I drove around all night hoping to find her.”
“I’m sorry,” Ezra told him. “We came up empty.”
“Except for a key,” Elaine told him. “Do you know why she’d think it was important enough to keep it away from whoever she’s with?”
Ezra shot his sister a loose-lips-sink-ships look.
She blanched. “Or, you know, whatever.”
Rollo shook his head. “Mom told me about the letter. She’s devastated.”
Now it was Elaine’s turn to shoot Ezra a what-am-I-missing look.
He ignored her. “Try to hold onto hope, bud. The police are doing everything they can to bring her home safe.”
After Rollo and his buddies moved down the line, I asked Elaine, “Where’re the girls?”
“They’re with Rob’s parents this morning to open presents with them. I’m picking them up later.”
“Must be hard,” I sympathized.
“It has been.”
Someone waved at Ezra from across the room. He gave me a kiss on the temple and said, “Be right back.”
“He’s so in love with you,” Elaine commented as she plopped a spoonful of eggs onto a police officer’s tray. “I’ve never seen him so content.”
“He makes me happy, too.”
“Rob and I used to be like that.” She heaved a wistful sigh. “Two babies later, and contentment went right out the window.”
“What happened with you two? If you don’t mind me asking.”
“I don’t mind. It started with a little bickering…then a lot of bickering, and then finally, we moved into the completely-ignore-each-other phase. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised when Rob suggested we take some time apart. I felt blindsided and betrayed.” She tossed the metal spoon back into the eggs. “So I told him that if he wanted to take some time, he’d get it, as in forever time. It got messy quick from there.”
“It sounds like it.” I used tongs to move two pieces of bacon onto another officer’s plate.
“Thanks,” he muttered. I looked up and saw it was Officer Rogers, the cop who’d threatened to taser Ezra. He didn’t look any happier than he had the day before.
“Have a nice day,” I said, then turned my attention back to my conversation with Elaine. “For what it’s worth, and that’s probably not much. I think Rob is still in love with you.”
She peered at me. “That ship has sailed. I missed my opportunity to fix our marriage when he’d brought up a temporary split.”
“I don’t know about that.” I tapped my nose. “Just saying.”
“When I talked to Rob last night, you know, for Ezra about Penny, it reminded me so much of when we were first together. He used to tell me about his work, and we’d talk for hours. Last night was the first time we’d talked like that in years.” Elaine’s shoulders slumped. “The girls are finally adjusting to our new situation. I can’t allow myself to get my hopes up. I won’t put them through more pain.” She tilted her chin back and met my gaze. “So, this…ability of yours. It’s real, right?”
“Real enough.” So real it haunted my dreams.
“How does it work?” She absently rubbed the base of her naked ring finger. “I mean, do you touch something and get a glimpse of the future.”
“Oh.” It dawned on me why she was asking. “I’m not that kind of psychic. I’m sorry, Elaine. I don’t see the future. Only memories of the past, and only how it’s related to scents.”
Her face bunched. “How does that work?”
We were by ourselves at the end, and our conversation was quiet, so I didn’t mind answering the question. “If someone has an emotional memory that is triggered by a scent, like, say, the perfume of jasmine brings up a memory of you and your mother pruning a jasmine bush that’s in bloom, then I would see that memory.”
I stared down the line at Lynn. Ezra’s memory had held so much love that I knew still existed between them if they could let go of the past to see it.
“Mom loves jasmine,” Elaine said.
I continued my explanation without getting more into Ezra’s memory of a less complicated time. “I’ve been trying to get better at finding specific memories while blocking others. It’s hit-and-miss. If I can tie one of my own memories to an aroma, it helps in the blocking department. A friend of mine was in trouble once, and she used a tube of eucalyptus and mint lip balm to leave me a memory of who had kidnapped her and that she was in the trunk of his car.”
“Wild,” Elaine whispered. “That was the case with the mayor of your town, right? The one that I read about on Stupor.”
I nodded. “That would be the one.”
“Amazing.” Elaine’s eyes were full of wonder, and her posture was upright again. I was glad I’d been able to take her mind off her troubles.
Howdy came back for a second scoop of potatoes and a sausage patty.
I had to fight the urge to call out, “How-dee!” But I managed. Barely.
Ezra walked back over. “That was a guy I knew from high school. He’s an EMT now.”
I smiled. “Nice.”
Lorena came over and stared Ezra down.
“Can I help you with something, Aunt Lorena?” he asked.
“Yeah,” she said tersely. “You can stop being a butthole who breaks his mother’s heart.” She didn’t wait for his response, which was probably good because I had a feeling she’d be waiting until the grave.
“That woman has zero boundaries,” I muttered.
Elaine hawed. “I think that’s the nicest way I’ve ever heard someone call Aunt Lorena a bitch.”
At my side, Ezra began humming, “Wonderful Christmastime.”