The Queen of Cool Read Free Page A

to look into the living room. In
the shadow and memory, they both saw their mother’s lifeless body
hanging from the ceiling fan.
    “ I still see her there,” Lo
whispered.
    “ Me too,” Larry
said.
    While Lo pulled the sheets from the
furniture, Larry walked through the house. He turned on the air
conditioning and checked to see if the water was running. He
plugged in the refrigerator. He flipped a few lights on and
off.
    “ Looks like everything’s
working,” Larry said.
    Larry hugged Lo tight.
    “ Here,” Larry gave Lo a
disposable cell phone. “Your phone’s off. I didn’t know if you
knew.”
    “ I didn’t,” Lo
said.
    “ I tried to call you,”
Larry said. “This isn’t as fancy as your iPhone, but it works. It’s
from a set of phones cops are supposed to give informants.
Witchiepoo will never find you. I programmed mine and Lisa’s
numbers in case you need us. If Alisha or Mandy call me, should I
give them your number?”
    Lo nodded.
    “ You’ll be safe
here.”
    “ Thank you,” Lo said. “For
everything. Really.”
    “ Anytime of the day or
night, Lorraine,” Larry said. “Call and I’ll be here quick as I
can. Just don’t…”
    Larry swallowed hard. He clutched Lo to
him.
    “ The moment passed, Larry,”
Lo said.
    Larry kissed her cheek and walked out of the
house. Lo closed and dead bolted the door. Crossing her arms across
her broken heart, she walked back to the living room.
    “ Well Mom,” Lo said. “I
guess I’m home.”
    Q

CHAPTER TWO
     
    Sunday morning—11 a.m.
Fairmount Historic District, Fort Worth
     
    Days: 8
     
    “ You know what I think,”
Don Downs touched her shoulder to wake her.
    “ Hmm.”
    Loraine “Lo” Downs rolled onto her side to
look at him. The crisp white sheet lay across his tanned muscular
shoulders. He reached out to move a piece of blonde hair from her
face.
    “ Good morning.” He leaned
over to kiss her.
    “ Hello beautiful,” she
said. “What did you have in mind?”
    “ I think we should spend
the entire day laughing,” Don said.
    “ You’re in court all week,”
Lo said. “I have the no-carbs grumpies. How…?”
    Don tossed the sheet in the air and scooched
across the bed to her. She rolled onto her back. He kissed her face
and her eyes and then wrapped his body around her.
    “ Love you,
Lo.” He began tickling her. “Love you.” Tickle. “Love
you.” Tickle. “Love you.”
    Lo laughed.
    “ See! We’ve already started
the day laughing,” he laughed with delight. “Never let the bastards
get you down.”
    “ You know how to keep me
from being down,” Lo said.
    “ No I don’t, little lady,”
Don laughed. “Why don’t you instruct me in the finer
arts?”
    In one swift motion, Lo pushed him to the
bed. Her lips moved across his face until they caught his mouth. He
tugged at her, but she resisted engaging. She just wanted to kiss
him this morning.
    Pound. Pound. Pound.
    “ Don?” Lo sat up in bed.
“Don?”
    Her voice rose with panic. Don wasn’t in bed
with her. In fact, she wasn’t in her bed. She rotated around to sit
on the side of the twin bed. Looking around the room, she had no
idea where she was.
    Where was Don?
    He was just here. He was just right here.
She patted the bed where he’d been. They had started making love
and Don was never distracted from love making no matter what
happened and…
    Pound. Pound. Pound.
    A shard of pain shot through her core.
    Don was dead. She’d forgotten. Again. Don
was dead.
    She was at her mother’s house; the house she
was born in; the house her mother had hanged herself in. Her house,
Don’s house, their house was foreclosed while she was burying
him.
    She should have thrown herself in that
hole.
    She had to fight to take a full breath. If
she didn’t know better, she’d have sworn she had a gaping hole
where her heart once lived. She put her head between her knees to
keep from throwing up.
    Pound. Pound. Pound.
    Wearing only a Dolly the Sheep T-shirt