Saving Faith By: David Baldacci

of cash around. You buy a one-way ticket with cash leaving today, that

might be a red flag for the airline. Right now, the less attention,

the better. What is it, by the way? Your other name?”

“Suzanne Blake.”

“Nice name.”

“Suzanne was my mother’s name.”

“Was? Passed on?”

“Both my parents. My mother when I was eleven. My dad six years

later. No brothers or sisters. I was a seventeen-year-old orphan.”

“That must’ve been tough.”

Faith didn’t say anything for a long moment. Talking about her past

was always hard, so she rarely did so. And she really didn’t know this

man. Still, there was something about Lee Adams that was comforting,

solid. “I really loved my mother,” she began. “She was a good woman,

and long-suffering, because of my dad. He was a good person too, but

one of those souls who always have an angle, a way to make a quick buck

with these crazy ideas. And when his plan blew up, and it always did,

we’d have to pack up and move on.”

“Why was that?”

“Because other people always lost money with my dad’s grand schemes

too. And they were understandably upset about it. We moved four times

before my mother died. Five more times after that. We prayed for my

dad every day, my mom and I. Right before she died, she told me to take

care of him, and me all of eleven.”

Lee shook his head. “I can’t even relate to that. My parents have

lived in the same house for fifty years. How did you manage to keep it

together after your mother died?”

The words somehow came easier for Faith now. “It wasn’t as tough as

you’d think. Mom loved my dad, hated how he lived, his schemes, all

the moving. But he wasn’t going to change, so they weren’t the

happiest couple to live with. There were times I really thought she

was going to kill him. When she died, it sort of became my dad and me

against the world. He’d dress me up in the one nice outfit I had and

show me off to all his prospective partners. I guess people would

think, how can this guy be so bad, what with his little girl right

there and all? When I got to be sixteen I’d even help him pitch his

deals. I grew up fast. I guess that’s where I got my motor mouth and

my backbone. I learned to think on my feet.”

“Quite an alternative education,” Lee commented. “But I can see how it

would serve you well as a lobbyist.”

Her eyes grew moist. “On the way to every meeting, he’d say, “This one

is the one, Faith, darling. I can feel it right here,” and he’d put

his hand over his heart. “It’s all for you, baby girl. Daddy loves

his Faith.” And I believed him every single damn time.”

“Sounds like he really ended up hurting you,” Lee said quietly.

Faith shook her head stubbornly. “It wasn’t like he was trying to rip

people off. We’re not talking Ponzi schemes or anything. He sincerely

believed his ideas would work. But they never did and we’d move on.

And it wasn’t like we ever made any money. God, we slept in our car

enough times. How many times do I remember my dad strolling into the

back door of restaurants and walking out a little later with dinner he

had talked them into giving him. We’d sit in the backseat and eat.

He’d stare at the sky, pointing out the constellations to me. He never

even finished high school, but he knew all about the stars. Said he’d

been chasing enough of them his whole life. We’d just sit there far

into the night, and my dad would tell me things would get better. Just

down the road.”

“Sounds like a man who could talk his way into anywhere. Probably

would’ve made a good

PI.”

Faith smiled as she thought back. “I’d walk into a bank with him, and

within five minutes he’d know everybody by name, drinking coffee,

talking with the bank manager like he’d known him his whole life. And

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