Enemy Mine Read Free Page A

had given each of her children an album, and I’m using hers as a template for all of yours. Come on, let’s go sit in the porch swing and eat.”
    They didn’t rock much in the swing as they supped their lukewarm soup. That was okay with Kathy. She loved moments like this with her mother, remembering how much Laura loved rocking chairs in general, and that almost every chair in their home rocked. Bread onone knee, the soup bowl in her left hand, Kathy spooned the thick, tasty gazpacho into her mouth.
    Between sips, she said to her mother, “You took an awful lot of photos of us growing up. There’s gotta be a godzillion to choose from. You aren’t putting every photo in our albums, are you?” Hers would weigh forty pounds. Even now, every time she turned around, her mom had a camera in her hand. Perhaps this project meant so much to her because she had never known her own parents, had never had photos of herself growing up.
    “Heavens, no!” Laura chortled. “I’ve been choosy!” She set her soup dish on a wooden table next to the swing. “But I spent January through March chronicling your life up to this point, like a life line.”
    “Oh…” Kathy frowned and swallowed the bite of bread she’d been chewing. It jammed in her throat. “Then you’re including the…kidnapping?” Even the word stuck in her throat. No longer hungry, Kathy dropped the rest of her bread into her empty soup bowl on the table. Silently berating herself for sounding so emotional, she stole a quick look at her mother.
    Laura’s dark blue eyes were warm with love as she reached out and settled her hand on her daughter’s thigh. “Pet, life is made up of happy moments and sad ones. I gave that a lot of thought, but you know what? The kidnapping is a part of our family saga now. It’s history in a way. Not happy history, certainly, but it happened to us and affected all of us. I think I would be less than honest if I avoided that part of your life, don’t you?”
    Her mother’s softly spoken words sent an ache through her. Kathy leaned back, closed her eyes andrested her head against the striped green-and-white cushion. When Laura removed her hand, Kathy whispered, “I guess….”
    “Honey, I’m forty-seven years old and you’re half my age. I’ve found that with time—and greater perspective—the horrible times evolve and take on a different aspect. If you don’t want me to include those years, I won’t.”
    Opening her eyes, Kathy rolled her head to the right and gazed at her mother, who looked young and untouched by life. Oh, Laura had lines around her mouth and a few across her brow, but other than that, she looked so vibrant and alive. Kathy herself felt raw inside. She had since the kidnapping. And at the same time, she felt like a robot, going through the motions of living, but never connecting fully with the passion of life. Since the kidnapping, she’d felt empty and devoid of emotions. Thanks to the Garcias.
    But she would get even. She would hurt Carlos Garcia as much as his father had hurt her entire family. Kathy knew she’d be successful but felt due to tight security around Carlos Garcia that she’d be shot in the aftermath.
    “Pet?”
    “What? Oh, I’m sorry. I want you to be happy, Mom. You’ve always been creative and I wouldn’t dream of telling you how to do something like this.” Kathy forced a smile she didn’t feel. “Besides, this is your project. Your passion. I don’t want to be a wet blanket.” Liar. Oh, God, she was lying, and it hurt her in a way she hadn’t expected. Kathy absently rubbed her chest as if to ease the ache in her heart.
    This wasn’t going to be easy at all. What made her think it would be? Maybe she’d hoped for an effortless goodbye, but now that she was home, everything was sharply poignant. And hurting her inside because this was the last time she’d be here. No more hearing her mother laugh. Or seeing that mischievous sparkle in her blue eyes. Or