"So, what, you just thought that 'hey, this guy might be a kidnapper, maybe I should cut his arm with a kitchen knife?'"
Yes, Taz wanted to say. But wouldn't that sound a little… crazy if said out loud? Gracie glared at her with that hands-on-hips-don't-you-mess-with-me stance. And Taz literally felt like the floor was going to swallow her up through the embarrassment of this whole situation. Crazy or not, though, she had to say something. "Um… it will sound a little saner if taken in its real context."
"Which is?" Grace asked as if that was the answer if she had been waiting for all along.
Taz took a deep breath, sinking lower in her seat. "I was watching the news and…" Wasn't it bad enough that she had hurt a poor innocent guy? Why did she have to explain herself? See, right now, she loathed herself so much that she didn't even bother talking herself out of it. This was one of those rare I've-sinned-so-punish-me moments.
"So… you just assumed that whatever happened to that old lady might also happen to you?" Gracie sounded like she was still having a difficult time digesting this. "the exact same thing?"
"Yes… like I said, I got a little paranoid." was only Taz could reason at the moment. A little?
"Which wouldn't have been the case if you listened to me." Gracie wiped the sweat off her forehead with the back of her hand and stared at the ceiling of awhile.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"I mean, if only you took the time and effort to get to know who our neighbors were, maybe you'd have an idea who Joe is and not attack him with that damn knife."
Oh, right. She did advise Taz that, didn't she? Oh, boy. Guess all of this was her fault at any angle you look at it.
"And plus, didn't I tell you that Joe was gonna stop by this afternoon to pick her daughter up before I left?" There was no sign Gracie was calming down any time soon.
Taz tried to remember when such 'telling' took place and sighed in sorry failure as something dawned on her. "Were you by the door when you said it?" She asked.
Gracie looked surprised at the randomness of the question for a second but soon had that faraway look on her face like she was trying to recall herself. "I don't know, yeah."
There you go. "Oh, well, Grace, I didn't catch that 'coz of the vacuum cleaner."
Gracie shook her head exasperatedly and finally took a seat next to Taz, looking desperate for some physical support. "But Joe is such an innocent guy. Probably one of the nicest guys in Del Paso, or even in this era, for goodness's sake. I just feel bad at the thought of him hurt just because you mistook him for a criminal. Joe? A criminal? There isn't anything weirder than that. And what you did to him- he just doesn't deserve it."
Taz knew that, and hearing it come out from Gracie's own lips felt like a life-altering slap on her face. "I know. I'm sorry. And you're right. I should have listened to you."
There were a few seconds of silence but Taz broke it immediately, "The truth was Gracie I was so afraid for the kids that it didn't matter to me if I was mistaking anyone for anything. I guess that's what drove me not to think rationally, or to think at all."
For the first time that night, Gracie's eyes became relaxed and… if Taz had interpreted it right, understanding.
"Well, thank you for that, Taz." She said, softly. "You really must care about the kids."
"Of course I do."
Gracie smiled into space, seemingly having a private moment with herself. Looks like someone was about to be forgiven.
"So, are we good, Grace?" Taz asked as carefully and as considerately as she could.
Gracie rolled her eyes and brightened her smile more. "Of course, we never were 'not good'".
Taz was about to break into a smile herself when Gracie stopped her with a hand. "But you gotta make it up to Joe, though. Let him know that you're not the crazy masochistic newcomer that you have succeeded in making yourself out to be."
Huh. She could handle that. It was never hard for her to swallow her pride. Well, in this case, she didn't even feel like she had anything to swallow in the first place, if truth be told. "Consider it done. I will go to Joe's place first thing tomorrow and bring him some… you know, token of apology."
Gracie approved of it proudly. "Good girl."
Taz was allowed to give a full, genuine smile this time. Hah. That was easy.
