Brooklyn Bones Read Online Free Page B

was yet another night when we were sharing a home, but barely. I was drifting off when I heard my door open.
    “I can’t sleep.”
    She stood in the doorway in her sleep clothes—gym shorts and camisole—arms wrapped around herself as if trying not to shiver on this hot night. She was like a shadow in the dim light from the hall, the same little girl who used to come to me when she woke up from a bad dream, only taller.
    “What?” I fumbled for the bedside lamp.
    “Did I wake you?”
    “Uh…no…uh….” I rubbed my eyes. “What is it, honey? Is thinking about the skeleton keeping you awake?”
    “That’s not exactly it.”
    “Come on in.” I patted the edge of the bed. “I’m up now.”
    She padded in barefoot and sat down.
    “OK, it is the skeleton, but not the way you think. I mean, yes, I can’t get it out of my head that it was a girl, a kid. She had her favorite music, like me, and her jewelry, and even a bear. I mean—well, I sleep with mine sometimes.” She gasped. “Please never, ever tell anyone that!”
    “I swear it. My lips are sealed. I have to admit, this discovery is haunting me too. If it’s upsetting you so much, do you want to sleep at Mel’s for a few nights? Then we can get rid of that fireplace forever, or maybe restore it to something beautiful. I bet that will send any ghosts right back where they belong.”
    She shook her head. “No, no, no, that’s not it. It’s not being scared.” She fidgeted. “I was, at first, but now it seems more like sad. And really weird, of course. And I feel like—this sounds dumb, I know—I feel like I found her so I owe her something. I feel like she wants me to find out about her. Like dig out who was she and why was she here?”
    “Hmm. I kind of understand how you feel….” The historian in me understood perfectly, but the mother in me was fumbling. “OK, yes I do, really, but you can’t. It’s a police matter now. I’m pretty sure they won’t tell you a thing and you can’t get in their way.”
    “I know that! I wouldn’t, be, like, trying to solve it but I want to, you know, see that she isn’t forgotten. Or lonely. You know?”
    “But, Chris, it’s obvious something truly terrible happened here. It was a crime of some kind. You can’t be involved in this.”
    “But it was ages and ages ago. It’s not like I found a…a…a corpse. It’s more like archaeology.” She looked at my face and heaved a great sigh. “I’m not convincing you, am I?”
    Actually, I was tempted, but not enough to let her think this was a good idea. And it wasn’t. “Not in the least,” I said, not quite truthfully, but quite firmly. “It’s absolutely out of the question. It’s not even up for discussion.”
    “Mom! Why don’t you ever let me do anything?”
    What I should have said—calmly—was “Isn’t that kind of a broad statement? If you calm down maybe we can work something out.” What I did say—snapping—was, “You are out of your mind. This is something ugly and scary and you stay out of it. It’s not going to happen. End of story!”
    “You don’t understand anything.”
    She ran to her room, slammed the door and left me feeling like the wicked stepmother. I felt like slamming doors myself. Instead, I went back to bed and lay there, wide awake, mind and emotions racing. A very long time later there was a tiny knock on mine.
    “Well, then,” Chris said, “you think we could…I mean, you could…or maybe Uncle Rick!…at least nudge them to tell us when they find out? If they do?”
    “Yes, that I can try . Now maybe we could both try to get some sleep?”
    She sat down, “I can’t. I can’t get back to sleep. I’m not scared. I’m not. I’m just…wide awake.” She looked deeply embarrassed.
    “I can see that. What would help? Cocoa?”
    “Let’s see.”
    It didn’t, quite. After the cocoa, she stalled some more and finally said, “Come with me.”
    “What? You don’t want me to sleep with