Goodnight, Irene

“Right. And, well, let’s just say she was a little more fully developed than the dog. The guy only had a beagle. Anyway, she was stuck between her hips and bra-line.”

He looked over to see if this was offensive to Barbara, but to my amazement she was sitting there with a little grin on her face.

“How’d you get her out?” I asked.

“Well, by the time I got there, she’d sobered up quite a bit, and felt more than a little embarrassed. I asked the guy if he had any mineral oil or petroleum jelly and a sheet. He brought in a bottle of baby oil and a sheet. I told her I’d need her to take off her blouse, and we’d put the sheet over her for the sake of modesty. She said she was past worrying about modesty, her back and knees were killing her and would we please hurry up and get her the hell out of the dog door.

“So we stripped her from the waist up, and lubricated her skin and as much of the door liner as we could. I went out and around through the backyard gate so that I could pull from the other side. I’m sure it didn’t feel great, but eventually she slid right out. She thanked me, took her blouse and bra and told the guy she never wanted to see him again.”

“I’ll never feel like the most desperate woman in the world again,” Barbara said.

“Frank and I knew each other when I worked in Bakersfield,” I said.

“Oh,” said Barbara, “I didn’t know you were such old friends.”

“We haven’t been in touch in a long time.”

Barbara looked between us. “Oh.”

“I know you’ve really had a shock today, Mrs. O’Co

She nodded. Tears welled up in her eyes and she looked back over toward the glass doors, but she stayed put.

“Did Mr. O’Co

She turned back to Frank. “You mean Ke

Frank waited.

“He said he couldn’t tell me more over the phone because the cops-I mean, the police-might have the phone tapped.”

“Why was he afraid of the police?”

“I don’t know. I think he was afraid of everybody. He was just so scared. Anyway, he asked me to come and give him a ride, since he didn’t have his car-” She looked at me and reddened. She turned back to Frank. “I guess you already know that.”

“Did he mention the names of anyone who might be causing him trouble?”

She hesitated. “I’ve been thinking about that. He said he couldn’t tell me what his problems were or who was after him, just that they were very powerful people who could get away with anything. But when we dropped the Corvette off at your house, Irene, he said something like, ‘All because of Ha

Frank and I looked at one another.

“Well, maybe that’s crazy,” she added quickly. “I don’t know. But who is Ha

“‘Who Is Ha

“Oh, for pity’s sakes, Irene, that Ha

“That’s what I want to know, Barbara. Who is it that might know her real name?”

Frank shot me a look that clearly said he wished I would shut my big mouth. Barbara saw it and went into a pout. “No one tells me anything!”

“I’m sorry,” Frank said. “I just think your sister is doing a lot of speculating on slim evidence and I don’t want her to worry you.”

“Worry me! After today?” She turned to me. “Do you know what happened to me today?”

The shrill edge in her tone made me realize Barbara was a powder keg and I was playing with matches. I shook my head “no” and looked at Frank, who was now looking down at his hands. He was rubbing his right thumb over the knuckles of his left hand.

“That’s right,” she went on, “you don’t. When Ke

“Barbara…”

She was white as a sheet. Her voice scared me-it had become mechanical, as if she were describing a scene in a movie. “There was blood everywhere. Everywhere. I walked in and I called out, ‘Ke

She stopped and looked down at her shoes, and then back up at me. She started to cry.

“Barbara-” I reached out and she recoiled from me. I looked to Frank for help.

He said, very quietly, “Let her tell it.”

She started to speak again, tears rolling down her face.

“When I looked out into the backyard, I saw this red baseball bat stuck in the sand. I wondered why it was sticking up there in the sand, right where this trail of blood stopped. And then there was Ke

“Oh, Jesus Christ, Barbara…”

“That’s when I started screaming. I just screamed and I screamed. I was screaming the whole time I was digging him out. At first I couldn’t find his nose. I wanted to make it so he could breathe, you see. I guess I got his mouth free, because he made these gulping and wheezing and then coughing noises. Then there was Detective Baird. I don’t know when he got there, but he helped me dig Ke

She looked at Frank, and took his hands. “You sent Detective Baird to look after me, didn’t you?”

“You might put it that way,” he said.

“I want to thank you for that.” She started sobbing again, but she wouldn’t let go of Frank’s hands. He didn’t try to take them away.

I thought of how often I misjudged her, thought of all she had been through just this morning. I stood up and took the bag of Thai food over to the trash can. A shame to waste it, but I didn’t expect to be hungry again for about five years.

As I turned to go back to the table, I noticed Sister Theresa walking toward us. I prayed a prayer I never thought I’d pray-I prayed to God that Ke