River's End Read Online Free PDF Page B

happened before I came and found you?”
    “I hid there for a long, long time, and he didn’t know where I was.”
    “It’s a good hiding place. Did you play with Kermit that day, or with puzzles?”
    “I played with lots of things. Mama didn’t have to work and we went swimming in the pool. I can hold my breath under the water for an ever, because I’m like a fish.”
    He tugged her hair, peeked at her neck. “Yep, there are the gills.”
    Her eyes went huge. “Mama says she can see them, too! But I can’t.”
    “You like to swim?”
    “It’s the most fun of anything. I have to stay in the little end, and I can’t go in the water unless Mama or Rosa or a big person’s there. But one day I can.”
    “Did you have friends over that day, to play?”
    “Not that day. Sometimes I do.” She pursed her lips and industriously fit another piece of her puzzle into place. “Sometimes Billy or Cherry or Tiffy come, but that day Mama and me played, and we took a nap and we had some cookies Rosa made. And Mama read her script and she laughed and she talked on the phone: ‘Lou, I love it!’ ” Livvy recited in such a smooth and adult tone, Frank blinked at her. “ ‘I am Carly. It’s about damn time I got my teeth into a romantic comedy with wit. Make the deal.’ ”
    “Ah . . .” Frank struggled between surprise and admiration while Livvy tried to set another piece of her puzzle in place. “That’s really good. You have a good memory.”
    “Daddy says I’d be a parrot if I had wings. I ’member lots of things.”
    “I bet you do. Do you know what time you went to bed?”
    “I’m ’posed to go to bed at eight o’clock. Chickens go broody at eight. Mama told me the story about the lady with long, long hair who lived in the tower.”
    “Later you woke up. Were you thirsty?”
    “No.” She lifted her thumb to her mouth again. “I had a bad dream.”
    “My Noah has bad dreams, too. When he tells me about them, he feels better.”
    “Is Noah your little boy? How old is he?”
    “He’s ten now. Do you want to see his picture?”
    “Uh-huh.” She scooted closer as Frank took out his wallet and flipped through. Cocking her head, she studied the school photo of a boy with untidy brown hair and a wide grin. “He’s pretty. Maybe he can come over to play.”
    “Maybe. Sometimes he has bad dreams about space aliens.”
    Forgive me, Noah, Frank thought with some amusement as he replaced his wallet, for sharing your darkest secret. “When he tells me about them, he feels better. You want to tell me about your bad dream?”
    “People are yelling. I don’t like when Mama and Daddy fight. He’s sick and he has to get well, and we have to keep wishing really, really hard for him to get all better so he can come home.”
    “In your dream you heard your mother and father yelling?”
    “People are yelling, but I can’t hear what they say. I don’t want to. I want them to stop. I want my mama to come. Somebody screams, like in the movies that Rosa watches. They scream and scream, and I wake up. I don’t hear anything, ’cause it was just a dream. I want Mama.”
    “Did you go to find her?”
    “She wasn’t in bed. I wanted to get in bed with her. She doesn’t mind. Then I . . .”
    She broke off and gave a great deal of attention to her puzzle.
    “It’s all right, Livvy. You can tell me what happened next.”
    “I’m not supposed to touch the magic bottles. I didn’t break any.”
    “Where are the magic bottles?”
    “On Mama’s little table with the mirror. I can have some when I get bigger, but they’re toys for big girls. I just played with them for a minute.”
    She sent Frank such an earnest look, he had to smile. “That’s all right then. What did you do next?”
    “I went downstairs. The lights were on, and the door was open. It was warm outside. Maybe somebody came to see us, maybe we can have cake.” Tears began to stream down her cheeks. “I don’t want to say