“Go to hell, Duane.”
CHAPTER SIX
The mall was far busier than it had been during her visit the day before. LuAnn was grateful for the crowds as she made a wide berth around the office she had visited earlier, though she did glance in its direction as she passed by. Through the glass panes on either side of the door it seemed dark inside. She supposed if she tried the door, it would be locked. She didn’t imagine that Jackson would have hung around long after she had left, and she assumed she had been his sole “client.”
She had called in sick to work and spent a sleepless night at a friend’s house alternating between staring at a full moon and Lisa’s tiny mouth as it randomly produced smiles, grimaces, and every expression in between while the little girl slept heavily. She had finally decided not to make a decision on Jackson’s proposal until she had some more information. One conclusion had come fairly rapidly: She would not go to the police. She could prove nothing, and who would believe her? There was no upside potential to such a move and at least fifty million reasons against it. For all her sense of right and wrong, she could not get past that one inescapable temptation: Incredible, sudden wealth was perhaps staring her in the face. She felt guilty that the decision wasn’t more black and white. However, her latest episode with Duane had only reinforced to her that Lisa could not be allowed to grow up in such an environment. Something had to give.
The mall office was at the end of a corridor on the south side of the building. LuAnn swung open the door and went in.
“LuAnn?”
LuAnn stared at the source of this exclamation. Behind the counter, the young man was dressed neatly in a short-sleeve shirt, necktie, and black slacks. In his excitement, he repeatedly clicked a pen in his right hand. LuAnn stared at him, but no recognition was forthcoming.
The young man almost vaulted over the counter. “I didn’t expect you to remember me. Johnny Jarvis. I go by John now.” He extended a hand in a professional manner and then, grinning, he gave her a solid hug and spent a full minute cooing over Lisa. LuAnn pulled out a small blanket from her bag, set her daughter down on it, and gave her a stuffed animal.
“I can’t believe it’s you, Johnny. I haven’t seen you since, what, the sixth grade?”
“You were in the seventh, I was in the ninth.”
“You look good. Real good. How long you been working here?”
Jarvis grinned proudly. “After high school I went on to the community college and got my A.S. That stands for associate degree in science. Been at the mall for two years now. Started out as a data inputter but now I’ve moved up to sort of the assistant manager of mall operations.”
“Congratulations. That’s wonderful, Johnny—I mean John.”
“Oh hell, you can call me Johnny. I can’t believe you just walked on in that door. When I saw you, I thought I was gonna fall over and die. I never thought I’d see you again. I supposed you’d just gone on to New York City or something.”
“Nope, still here,” she said quickly.
“I’m kinda surprised I’ve never seen you around the mall before then.”
“I don’t get up here much. It’s a pretty long way from where I live now.”
“Have a seat and tell me what you been up to. I didn’t know you had a baby. Didn’t even know you were married.”
“I’m not married.”
“Oh.” Jarvis’s face reddened slightly. “Uh, you want some coffee or something? I just put on a fresh pot.”
“I’m kind of in a hurry, Johnny.”
“Oh, well, what can I do for you?” He suddenly looked surprised. “You aren’t looking for a job, are you?”
She looked pointedly at him. “What if I was? Something wrong with that?”
“No, I mean, course not. I just meant, you know, I never expected you to hang around here, working in no mall, that’s all.” He smiled.
“A job’s a job, ain’t it? You work here. And while we’re talking about it, exactly what am I supposed to be doing with my life?”