Chapter 26

Mila awoke with the intense desire for a cigarette and fished in her jacket pocket for the semi-crushed pack she knew was in the pocket. She pushed the window open wide, stuck a cigarette between her lips, and struck a match. She inhaled deeply, instantly calming with the first puff. It had rained during the night again and the outside air smelled fresh and cool. The back lawn was covered in dewy light, and Mila figured she must’ve slept later than her mother would ever have allowed. It was still eerie to think that she was back in her mother’s house, and yet, knowing the woman was gone gave her a strange sense of calm. She smoked the cigarette down to a nub and stubbed it out on the windowsill, tossing it carelessly into the yard below. As yet she had no idea what she was going to do, but she figured it would be a good idea to do something, and her stomach growling urged her toward food.

There was nothing but stale crackers and molded fruit in the kitchen. The fridge held expired dairy products and lunch meat, and the freezer even less. Mila didn’t feel like cooking, and the house still smelled strongly of a dead body. She decided to call for a pizza as she and Marqi had done one night. She dragged the phone book from its hiding place in a drawer and picked up the phone. Thankfully with the lawyers handling the family trust, there had been no loss of services even with her mother’s death. Mila dialed and waited while it rang. She ordered the special the woman had suggested and hung up the phone again. She felt like she couldn’t breathe, and knew she had to open some windows. She opened the side door and propped it with a rock so it wouldn’t shut. She then moved through the house opening every window and door to circulate as much chilly air through the place as she could.

A layer of dust seemed to coat everything in the old study. She wondered if anyone had cleaned it after she left. The safe had been repaired, but Mila eyed it determinedly, already hatching a plan to devour its contents.

She strode purposefully out back to the old shed and rummaged through the gardening tools until she found the rusted hatchet she knew was buried in the box. Smiling as she hefted its weight, Mila marched up into the house and went straight to the study. She raised her hatchet high and gave the safe a sound whack. The steel reverberated slightly, and her hand stung with the backlash, but she gave it another crack. Six more chops with the axe and the door came free.

“Success,” Mila said to no one, sifting through the contents and immediately going for the cash. With the safe wide open, she would have to find a better place to stash this, but for now, she loaded it into the empty wastebasket from under the desk and dragged it upstairs to her bedroom.

The doorbell sounded just as she was tucking the can into her closet, so Mila grabbed a hundred dollar bill and ran downstairs.

“Large pepperoni and two pops comes to $15.99,” the hairy man told her. She accepted her order and handed him the bill.

“Dude, I can’t change a hundred,” the driver balked, “can’t you read?”

He gestured at his bag that read “Driver carries less than $20.”

“Oh, sure, just keep the rest,” Mila said with a grin. “I don’t care.”

“Seriously?”

“Oh, yes.”

“Thanks.”

“Bye,” Mila said, shutting the front door on the dazed driver. She carried her pizza box into the living room and watched him back down the driveway and speed away from the house. She switched on the television and opened the box. The steamy pizza smelled heavenly, and the first bite was a fiery bliss of overly hot cheese. Still, it was delicious and Mila ate until she couldn’t cram in another bite. Then she drank her soda and watched television until the show ended, reminding her that she was alone in the big, empty house of crazy. She slipped Granger’s business card from her pocket and went to the phone again.

The secretary put her through after a few minutes and Mila was able to ask the lawyer, “Is there any way I can get back our old housekeeper? The one my mother fired?”

“Mm, I don’t have record of any housekeeper, son,” the man said, riffling through papers in the background. “She must’ve paid her cash under the table.”

“Oh,” Mila said, disappointed. “Well, thank you.”

“Anything else I can do for you?”

“Uh… actually I need to learn how to drive,” she said, mildly embarrassed, but desperate for a way to get around.

“…Excuse me?” he seemed stunned, and why wouldn’t he be? She was 25 and didn’t know how to operate a motor vehicle.

“I never learned to drive, so…”

“That’s all right,” the man said, making a hasty recovery. “How about I just arrange for a driver in the meantime? The estate can cover that if you designate the days. How does Tuesday and Thursday sound?”

“That would be great, thank you.”

“All right, I’ll be in touch.”

The line clicked off before she could say goodbye, but instead of feeling affronted, Mila was simply glad and relieved to be making progress. She rubbed her scruffy chin and decided on one more thing.

As soon as the driver came, she was going back to the doctor and get her pills. She was sick of living like a man.