Stargazer EPB by Anne Hillerman

Author:Anne Hillerman
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2021-04-13T00:00:00+00:00

16

The streetlamps had flickered on by the time Bernie drove up to Williams’s house. Although the detective had given her the code to open the garage door and a second set of numbers to silence the alarm, she didn’t do that. Instead, she climbed out of the unit and stood a moment. Then she locked the car and started to walk. She always thought better when she moved.

It was warmer by a few degrees here in central New Mexico than in Shiprock, and the air held some moisture. She noticed the lack of dust and the juicy smell of someone’s dinner—a roasting chicken—dancing in the night air. Dinner would be welcome.

She’d had longer and tougher days of driving, but her eyes felt heavy, her back tight, her spirit exhausted. It wasn’t the 280-mile trip, she realized. The harsh words she and the man she loved had exchanged left her drained and saddened. Recalling the conversation raised her temperature. How dare he order her to cheer up? Even as a joke.

She walked faster.

By the time she got back to Tara Williams’s place, her anger had cooled, but she’d reached no conclusion on how to deal with Chee. She removed her bag from the trunk and took it to the front door. The house glowed with welcome light.

“Hi, Bernie. I saw your unit out there. Did you forget the codes?”

“No. I wanted to stretch my legs after all that time in the car.”

“I hope you’re hungry.” Williams didn’t wait for an answer. She had set the table with cloth napkins and a plate at each place. “I’m starved. Let’s eat and then we can plan how we’ll approach Maya tomorrow.”

Bernie washed her hands and sat at the place where Tara had put a glass with ice and Coke. “Thanks for dinner. I want to talk to you about something else, too. Something personal. Well, personal and professional.”

“Chee, huh? Eat first, my dear. Food is a good thing. The brain likes it.”

There were two white boxes in the center of the table, one with a check mark on the lid. Williams reached for a plastic bag and unloaded chopsticks wrapped in red paper, orange-colored liquid in a small round container, little packets of soy sauce and hot mustard, and even fortune cookies. She handed Bernie the box with the check mark. “I hope you like it.”

Bernie watched as her friend opened her own box. Ah, just as she feared. Vegetables floating in a brownish sauce probably named for a mysterious place in China. Tara unwrapped a set of chopsticks and lifted up a bite-sized white cube from the sauce. Mama always told her never to complain when someone offered you a meal but to be grateful for something to eat. OK then, she could do this, she told herself as she studied her box.

“I remembered how you are about chopsticks. You could use your fingers, but here, just in case.” Williams handed Bernie a little package with a plastic knife, spoon, fork, and an extra napkin.

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