Bitter Sweets

as it tiptoed toward her on pink satin ballet slippers.

    “You were asking my mom about Christy’s mom, huh?” the girl said, a slight pout on her pixie face.

    “Christy’s mom?” Savannah’s mind raced.

    “Yeah, Christy Mallock, the girl who used to live down the street.”

    “Lisa’s daughter?”

    “That’s right. She’s the same age as me, and we used to go to ballet class together, but now she moved across town, and we have to go to rehearsal in different cars. I miss her.”

    “I’ll bet you do.” Savannah’s heart beat wildly. She was embarrassed by her eagerness to extract whatever information possible out of this innocent, unsuspecting child. “But you still see her in dance class?”

    “Oh, sure. Christy gets to be the queen of our pageant.”

    Savannah cast a furtive, guilty look at the house, but Mommy Perfect seemed to be nowhere in sight. She was sorely tempted simply to ask the girl outright where Lisa and Christy were living now. But, having just been refused the information by the mother, it seemed down and dirty to use the child that way. Even a P.I. had to draw a line somewhere.

    But there were other ways. ...

    “Your pageant? That sounds very exciting,” Savannah said. “When are you having it?”

    “Day after tomorrow, in the gymnasium at our school.”

    “And where do you go to school?”

    “Channel Islands Elementary.”

    “What time is the recital?”

    “It’s at two o’clock in the afternoon.”

    “May I come?”

    The girl beamed with pride at Savannah’s interest. “Sure. Anybody can come, if you pay three dollars.”

    “Thank you...and what is your name?”

    “Marilee.”

    “Thank you, Marilee. I’ll be looking forward to it.”

    “Are you really going to come?” the girl cried after her as Savannah climbed into the Camaro.

    “Sure, and thank you for the invitation,” she replied. “I’ll be there. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

    Savannah lay in her bed, trying to enjoy her new rose-sprinkled sheets and her latest Victoria’s Secret acquisition, an oversize, silk poet’s shirt. The ruffles spilled over her wrists and tickled the backs of her hands. The deep vee in the neckline revealed softly rounded femininity.

    Here, in her own bedroom, she had always indulged her female side...a part of herself that was often neglected in her day-to-day work. In the course of being a detective, she saw some pretty horrible aspects of society, revelations that would have made her hard and cold before her time. But every night, she could walk into this cozy room with its antique brass bed, the turn-of-the-century French armoire, the floral wallpaper and crisp, ruffled linens, and she could feel pampered and soothed.

    But tonight, it wasn’t working.

    She sat up in bed, propped against half a dozen pillows, Tammy’s latest reports spread across the duvet. And the facts she saw there in black and white disturbed her.

    Name : Lisa Mallock
    Age: 45
    Previous occupation: Registered Nurse
    Military history: Nurse in army hospitals, 23 years
    Divorced : Ex-husband’s name, Earl Mallock
    Children: One daughter, Christy, age 10, full custody
    Credit rating: Excellent

    Savannah continued to scan the report. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Lisa Mallock appeared to have led a responsible, productive life, until a year ago, when she had begun to move from one place to another about every three months. She had left her long-standing, well-paying job at the Veterans’ Hospital and had worked for a string of temp agencies, providing in-home nursing for less than half the money. Why?

    Usually, people didn’t pull up stakes and move households every three months just because they got an itch. Being on the run was a lot of work, especially with a child. What was Lisa Mallock running from? More importantly, whom?

    Earl Mallock seemed the likely person. Mothers were seldom given full custody of a child, unless the court deemed the father unsuitable for some reason.

    Savannah thought of the man who had sat, sipping coffee and eating cookies in her den. Brian O’Donnell... biological brother in search of his sister.

    Tammy had said that he checked out, that he was who he claimed to be.

    All the same, Savannah decided to proceed carefully, paying close attention to that voice inside that was warning her about this situation. She had no intention of being a pawn in some bitter ex-husband’s game, or anyone else’s for that