Read The Long Way Home for Free Online

of them left behind.
    And then Kimberly, Troy’s mother, came back and took over everything. Kimberly was still listed as a co-owner on the deed to the house, a shock to Marnie. Brian had named her as the beneficiary on his life insurance too. Kimberly took care of all the paperwork, arranged the funeral, and greeted the mourners at the funeral home. It was her show.
    Kimberly. Even thinking the name made Marnie shudder. To make things worse, Kimberly was gorgeous—slim and blonde. One of those women who looked effortlessly glamorous. Everyone liked Kimberly too. She was even nice to Marnie, which under different circumstances would have made it hard to hate her, but in this case, Marnie made an exception.
    When Kimberly left town, she took Troy with her and there wasn’t a damn thing Marnie could do about it. It was like the last ten years of her life were letters on a dry-erase board and Kimberly had wiped it clean.
    She looked at Jazzy through the lens of tears. “It’s been difficult,” she said, dabbing at her eyes with a napkin. “I really miss my stepson. I feel like someone ripped my heart out.”
    “Where is he now?” Jazzy asked.
    Marnie swallowed. “In Las Vegas with his mother.” She was going to lose her composure if they kept talking about Troy, and she didn’t want to start blubbering in front of company. “Would you like coffee?” she asked brightly. “I’d be glad to brew a pot.”
    Over coffee and dessert, the conversation became more cheerful. Jazzy liked to read, something she had in common with Marnie. They talked about books, which led to a conversation about movies. “The next time I want to see a movie I’ll give you a call,” Jazzy said.
    Marnie nodded, pleased. Jazzy was probably being kind, but who knew? Maybe this was the beginning of a friendship. At eight o’clock, Jazzy announced that she had to get up early to work the next day and had to go.
    “I’ll see you at the grief group, right?” Marnie said.
    “Oh sure,” Jazzy said. “I’ll see you then.”
    They exchanged good-byes, with Jazzy pulling Marnie into an enthusiastic hug, which took her off guard. When Marnie opened the door to see her out, a gray tabby cat leisurely walked in and rubbed up against Jazzy’s ankle. “Well, hello there, you cute little thing.” Jazzy reached down to pet the cat. She looked at Marnie. “I didn’t know you had a cat.”
    Marnie’s mouth hung open for a second. Recovering, she said, “It’s not mine. I’ve never seen it before. It must belong to the lady downstairs. I hear a cat sometimes.”
    Jazzy scooped up the cat and held it like a baby. “What a cutie you are. Yes you are.” She rubbed its head then looked up at Marnie. “I’ll drop him off on my way out.” She stepped out into the hall and headed toward the stairs.
    Marnie got a panicked flush and started speaking rapidly. “Mrs. Benner doesn’t like to be bothered. Why don’t you just leave the cat in the hall? I’m sure it will find its way home.” But Jazzy was already at the bottom of the stairs.
    Jazzy called out, “Really, it’s no trouble. I’m going that way anyhow.” The clattering of her shoes on the wooden stairwell suddenly sounded thunderous. Marnie debated going after her and taking matters in hand, but it was too late. She could already hear Jazzy knocking on Mrs. Benner’s door.

Chapter Eight
     
    When Laverne heard a knock, she stiffened with dread. Lately that was her reaction to everything, and she was getting tired of it. Tired of being a hermit, tired of being homebound, but not quite sure how to end her reign of solitude. Interacting with others felt like an ordeal. Recently she’d managed small outings—the post office, the library, the grocery store. Luckily all of them were within walking distance because she’d let her driver’s license lapse.
    She was, she sensed, starting to overcome this nonsense, this feeling that the world was too big and frightening to navigate on her