A Crying Shame: A Jesse Watson Mystery Read Online Free Page A

was one way to keep them close, except
for Jenny and Beth. The great outdoors wasn’t so great as far as they were
concerned. They have their own house on the compound, but they live in the city
with their families.
    “Wow, what a great place to raise a child,” I said to the
dogs as I got up from the sofa and walked to the kitchen and then back to the
living room, turning off lights on my way. I left a single lamp burning on the
computer table. I stretched out and looked around the room. The fireplace was
such an added comfort to my chilled body. I guess being pregnant not only made
you sick, but also caused your thermostat to get out of whack. I’ve had my
share of nausea in the past month, and I’ve definitely had a problem with my
body temperature. Mom says that will all change after a couple of months. We’ll
see. She told me to forget about being pregnant and just take care of myself.
She said to eat right and after I’d reached my third month, I would be safe.
That was a scary thing to be told. Since this is a first for me, I guess I’d
better listen, at least until I’ve done some research on the subject. “Are you
guys listening?”
    Athena’s ears perked up. Thor rolled over and threw his legs
up in the air—his tongue hung out of his mouth.
    “I’ve had a long trip. I’m going to lie down for just a
minute and then I’ll get up and call …”
    I dozed off for what seemed like just a little while, only to
be awakened by a bark from one of the dogs. I sat up and rubbed my eyes. The
room was dim and the fire had died down to a bed of embers. The soft glow cast
shadows on the walls. I looked over at the clock above the desk.
    “It’s eleven-thirty! I can’t believe it!” I yelled. “Why
hasn’t Billy called? He should’ve called by now!”
    I jumped up from the sofa and ran straight to the phone on
the kitchen wall. I grabbed it and did the first thing that came to mind. I
dialed Mom’s number. I tried to get my head together as I waited for her to
answer.
    What did I do with that list? I looked around and caught
sight of the notepad lying on the kitchen table. I reached over and grabbed it.
After waiting through only two rings, I hit the clicker to end the call, and
proceeded to dial the first number on the list. After much static and hissing,
an electronic message came on and said that my call couldn’t be completed as
dialed. I tried the number again. This time, the phone rang and rang, but to no
avail. Nobody was answering. I dialed Jonathan, the next number on the list.
Again, a message came on, but this time it said that the wireless customer was
unavailable at this time. That meant that Jonathan had turned off his cell
phone. Why would he turn off his cell phone unless he was in the middle of
something? I dialed the last number on the list as my stomach did a flip-flop.
The phone didn’t even ring. I dialed it again and still got nothing. Now I was
really in a tizzy. I hung up the phone, walked over to the refrigerator and
then opened the door. The cold air blasted me in the face as I stood there and
waited for the hot flash, or whatever it was that had hit me, to pass. I
reached in and grabbed a can of soda, popped the top, and walked to the kitchen
table to sit down. I took a big gulp from the can. My hands shook. I had to get
it together. I mean, how bad could it be? Carl is a crybaby wimp and Billy is a
girl’s knight in shining armor. There was no contest! Billy could handle
anything. Everything was fine. I was sure of it! I had to call Mom. Now that I
think about it, why hasn’t she called me? She calls me on a regular basis. She
even called me on my honeymoon. Something must have gone wrong! No, if
something had gone wrong, I would’ve heard about it by now. Isn’t that what
they always say? I took another sip of my drink and then went back to the
phone. I dialed Mom’s number, and after several rings, she finally answered.
    “Hello,” Mom said. Her voice was groggy.