Chapter 17
"Mother?" Amanda called as she and Lee entered the kitchen through the garage.
"Oh, thank goodness you are home. Lauren just called again to make sure I could still get Charlie. She's such a nervous wreck but I think it has to do with her presentation more than Charlie getting chicken pox. After all, chicken pox is just a right of passage for every child it seems. Do you remember when Jamie had them and we had to cancel his entire birthday party? And that clown you hired… what was his name again?" Dottie paused, her mind spinning.
"Pretzel the clown," Amanda supplied with a smile.
"Pretzel! That's right. And if you remember, the whole thing was so odd. First he was sick, then he wasn't. But Jamie had such a great day even though his friends couldn't go." Dotty stopped to take a breath. "I can't believe it was just a few short years ago. Jamie was so excited for Pretzel the clown and now, who knows what he wants to do. They grow up so fast, Amanda!"
"I know they do, Mother. And I think Lee and Jamie have a plan for his birthday this year. Isn't that right, Sweetheart?" Amanda turned to look over her shoulder at Lee who was sorting through the mail.
Lee nodded. "Yeah, he and I talked about it the other night and you're never going to believe what he decided on."
"Is this one of those things you're going to tell me I need to sit down for?" Dotty reached for the back of an island stool.
"No, not at all. Jamie asked if I could do a cooking class for him and his friends. They're working on extra credit for their Home Ec class because a few of the boys aren't doing so well, so he thought if we did a full cooking class, they could use the recipe. And he suggested we invite everyone over to enjoy the fruits of their labors." Lee tapped the stack of envelopes together before placing them in the basket by the phone.
Amanda tipped her head thoughtfully. "That's a wonderful idea. Did he say what recipe he wants to make?"
Lee grinned from ear to ear. "Yup. The first recipe we made together. The vegetable lasagna. He said it shows more steps than they are learning in school and it tastes better. He even asked if we could make garlic bread with it too."
Dotty's hand thumped against her chest as she sighed loudly. "I think that's the sweetest thing he could do for his birthday. After all, it wasn't that long ago when you became a full part of this family and making meals together has really helped build a strong bond with them." She blinked her eyes rapidly, trying to fight off the tears filling them.
Amanda reached out and touched Dotty's shoulder. "Mother, I hate to change the subject but Lee has to get back to work and I know you have to get Charlie. Are the girls still sleeping?"
"Like little angels. But we are going to have to figure out something soon. They're getting so big and they're not going to be able to share that crib much longer. OH! I still have those car seat bases in my car. You're not going to be taking them out this afternoon, are you, Amanda?"
"Not at all. As a matter of fact, Francine should be here any minute because she and Lee are taking my car to go do an interview. I'm working from home the rest of the day." Amanda shrugged out of her jacket and draped it over the chair beside her. "I'm just going to be doing some research on the computer while the girls sleep."
Dotty threw her arms around Amanda. "You work too hard, Darling. You too, Lee. But I'm glad you're here, so let me go. I should be back in less than an hour."
"The girls will love seeing Charlie again," Lee stated. The doorbell rang, distracting him. "That must be Francine. I'll get it."
Lee left the kitchen, leaving Dotty scrambling around the room, looking for her purse. "I know I put it here somewhere," she mumbled, her head twisting from side to side.
"It's right here, Mother, next to the phone," Amanda stated as she held up the brown leather bag.
"Oh! I would lose my head some days if it wasn't attached. Thank you, Amanda. I'll be back as soon as I can in case you need help." Dotty took her purse and disappeared into the garage.
"Did I miss a Dotty tizzy?" Francine joked as she and Lee stepped into the kitchen.
Amanda giggled softly. "Just a little one." She sobered up before asking, "Are you two sure you're up for visiting Brody?"
"It's the only thing that makes sense right now. It's going to take us over an hour to get to the prison, so if you find anything in Jonathan's finances, give us a call on the car phone." Lee took Amanda's keys off the hook by the phone, tossed them once, and asked, "You ready?"
"Just make sure you don't get into any trouble while you're there," Amanda warned.
Lee flashed a dimpled grin in her direction. "What kind of trouble do you think we're gonna find, huh?"
"Knowing you… you'll find something. Just remember Jamie needs a good teacher for his birthday dinner." Amanda spotted the tea kettle on the stove and added, "I'm just going to make myself a nice cup of tea and get busy."
"Looks like that's our cue to go. Come on." Lee headed into the garage, Francine right behind him.
During the drive, Lee and Francine talked over the ideas and thoughts on Jonathan's letter. They arrived at the prison with no issues and were quickly escorted into a small interrogation room.
"Brody will be here shortly. Do you want him handcuffed to the table?" the warden asked.
"No, I think we'll be okay. We left our weapons at the guard booth when we first came in, so I'm pretty sure he wouldn't try to take us both on, unarmed." Lee scanned the room, checking for anything that could be used as a possible weapon.
The warden nodded. "Just let us know when you're finished. Your supervisor called and said you might be here a while so we have one guard, CO Coughlin, assigned to him the entire time he's in here. It'll be shift change in a few minutes but he's offered to stay on for some overtime."
"Thanks. We'll try not to be here any longer than necessary."
On the other side of the prison, Brody was getting escorted through the main hall. As he passed one guard, he raised an eyebrow.
"Where are you takin' Brody?" the guard snapped to CO Coughlin.
Coughlin gave Brody a little shove. "Keep walking. Those feds aren't gonna wait all day. He's being interrogated this afternoon. Such a nice little reprieve from Building 9, isn't it," he stated sarcastically.
"Oh, and I'm going to enjoy it so much," Brody replied with a sly smile. He gave the guard a subtle nod before he was pushed around a corner and out of sight.