Under the Viaduct Read online

  She’d taken a break before calling her own mom to tell her to expect the package and send it on to Kaylee ASAP.

  “Kaylee!”

  She jumped and looked out the windshield. Blayne, big grin on his face, hurried toward her, waving some papers in his hand. She smiled as she threw open the car door and hurried to him. He wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off the ground. “I got the job! I start tomorrow.”

  He set her down and stared into her eyes. “This would never have happened without your help.”

  Blood rushed to her head. His clean, crisp scent filled her nose and his joyful eyes filled her sight. His hands still rested at her waist, the papers in one of them rattled in the breeze, her hands on his shoulders, and she froze, afraid that any movement would make him let go and step away. And she did not want him to let go. Did she? Her body gave a resounding “no,” but her mind flew to the multitude of reasons why she should. She stepped back and dropped her arms to her sides awkwardly. “That’s great! So, so great!” Her vocabulary had taken the midnight train to Georgia, or something.

  “Yeah,” his voice rose in pitch a little and he cleared his throat. “She…uh…she said I can borrow some tools and a tool belt until I have money to buy my own. But I need some steel-toed boots. Do you think the shelter would have any?”

  “That’s great.” Kaylee winced inside at her third use of “that’s great” in the last ten seconds. “I mean, that’s really nice of her. Let’s go see if the shelter has boots.”

  Blayne’s face turned sullen, and he looked at the ground and mumbled. “Did you get a hold of my parents?”

  “Oh,” Kaylee clapped her hands together, “yes! I talked to your mom, and she was so sweet and so relieved to know you’re okay. She cried the whole time—happy tears. She’s going to overnight your birth certificate to my parents’ house then my mom will overnight it here.”

  He nodded. “So, she doesn’t have my Social Security Card? It must have been in my wallet that got stolen my second night on the streets.” Although he didn’t comment on her description of his mom’s reaction, the hurt and hope mixed in his eyes told her he cared.

  “She said she thought you had taken it with you.”

  “Are we going to be able to get one with just my birth certificate?”

  For no reason other than her skin itched to touch him again, she laid her hand on his arm. “That depends. Does your new job supply you an employee I.D.? With a picture?”

  His head jerked up, and he beamed at her, the dimple in his left cheek teasing her. “Yes! In fact, we did that today so I can get onto the site in the morning.” He pulled a laminated I.D. with a metal clip out of his pocket and showed it to her.

  She squeezed his arm and smiled back at him. “Will you need a ride in the morning?”

  His smile faded. “You’ve done so much for me already. Maybe for this first day, it would be a good idea to get a ride, just so I can time the walk back to the encampment. I don’t want to be late.” He looked at her and bit at his bottom lip, shaking his head. “And, I have one more favor to ask.”

  Kaylee nodded encouragement.

  “Can we go somewhere where I can charge my media player after we find some boots? I’m going to need to use it as an alarm clock.”

  “No problem. Besides, this calls for a celebration, anyway. My treat—as long as we go cheap.” She remembered their conversation about her finances and winced. “The McDonald’s over by the college has chargers at some of the tables.”

  “Okay,” he looked down at the employee badge in his hand. “But this is the last time you treat. Next time we eat together—I’m buying.” He reached up and pushed a stray lock of hair out of her face, his fingers leaving tendrils of prickling heat on her skin where they brushed against it.

  “It’s a deal.”

  Blayne worked through the New Year holiday, excited to be getting holiday pay for New Year’s Day. He’d refused to let her drive him to or from work after the first day and it had been a few days since she’d seen him. Kaylee threw on some sweats and hurried down to the apartment’s mail slot—his birth certificate should be there today.

  She inserted her key into the slot and released the breath she’d been holding—it was there. She couldn’t even fool herself into thinking she was excited because it meant Blayne could get his Social Security Card. It was really because that meant she would get to see him.

  Since his boss had told him she’d give him a little time to go get his card replaced as soon as the birth certificate got there, Kaylee hurried to get ready and headed to the work site on campus. Having no idea how to find him, she parked next to the construction trailer, got out, and knocked on the door.

  “Can I help you?” A woman wearing a hardhat, brown hair with gray streaks hanging to just past her chin beneath it, answered the door.

  “Um, yes. My name is Kaylee.”

  The woman smiled. “Ahh. You’re Blayne’s friend. He said you might be stopping by within the next day or two. My name is Kelly.” She reached out, and they shook hands. She had a strong grip. “I’ll go get him, I wouldn’t want your pretty hair to get messed up wearing one of these.” She tapped on her hardhat. “I haven’t had a good hair day in twenty years.”

  Kaylee laughed as Kelly stepped out of the trailer. She laughed again as she heard her yell, “Hey, new guy! You have a visitor!”

  Blayne skipped most of the stairs as he rushed into the trailer. His nose was red from the cold and a few days’ worth of stubble gave him a rugged, handsome look. He pulled his hardhat off and smiled. “Hi.”

  “Hi,” Kaylee replied. “Your birth certificate came today.”

  “That’s what I figured.”

  Kelly stood behind him in the open door. “Take an early lunch and go get your Social Security Card so I can pay you on Friday.”

  Blayne turned to her. “Thank you, Kelly. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

  “I don’t expect it to be too soon,” she said. “It’s January second which means the Social Security office will probably be packed.”

  “Well,” Blayne looked down. “I really appreciate you giving me time to go. I know we’re running behind here.”

  “Not as far behind as we were before you came along. You’re a hard worker and I appreciate that.”

  The back of his neck flushed pink. “Thank you. And thank you for giving me a chance.”

  “See you when you get back.” Kelly stepped away from the door so they could leave.

  Blayne set his hardhat and tool belt in Kaylee’s back seat before sitting himself in the passenger seat.

  “Sounds like things are going well.” Kaylee buckled her seatbelt and waited for Blayne to do the same before starting the car.

  “Yes. Kelly is enthusiastic about me learning how to do new things on the site. It’s been invigorating to work hard.”

  “I’m so glad it worked out.” She reached into the backseat and grabbed some papers to hand him. “I printed these off the internet. I thought you could start filling them out while we drive. Hopefully it’ll save us some time when we get there.”

  It didn’t end up saving much time, they still had to wait in a long line. But once they got to the front, it didn’t take long at all. The man at the window took Blayne’s papers, his birth certificate, and his work I.D., typed it all into the computer, and said, “The actual card will be mailed to you and should arrive within ten business days. Do you need me to print off a temporary card for you?”

  “Yes, please.” Blayne smiled down at Kaylee.

  Back in the car, she asked, “Do you want to get a quick bite to eat before you go back to work?”

  He frowned. “I promised you I’d pay next time, but I don’t get paid until Friday.”

  “Well, I think we can negotiate something. How about I pay today, and you pay the next two times?”

  His stomach growled, and they both laughed. “It’s a deal. But let’s go somewhere cheap and fast.”

 
; “Taco Bell it is.”

  After dropping Blayne off at work, Kaylee headed to a post office so she could mail his birth certificate back to his mom as she’d promised. As she stepped out onto the stairs of the post office, she noticed a familiar figure leaving the bank next door. Mama C. Kaylee stood still and watched as the elderly woman dropped some papers into the garbage can just outside the bank. Kaylee moved when Mama C disappeared around the corner. She wandered over to the trash can, looked around to see if anyone was watching, then reached in and grabbed the papers laying on top of the other garbage.

  “Claire Watson,” she whispered as she read the name on the first paper, a check stub with the letters NYSTRS strewn across the top. The other paper, smaller and thicker than the first, said “United States Treasury” on it. This one must be a social security check, Kaylee thought, but what’s the first one? She folded them, put them in her coat pocket, and hurried to her car.

  Kaylee didn’t even bother taking her coat off after she rushed into her apartment. She flipped her laptop open and searched “NYSTRS.” New York State Teacher’s Retirement System. Mama C had been a teacher. In New York. Such a long ways away from Denver.

  She typed “Claire Watson” and “teacher” and “New York” into the search engine. A New York Post headline from ten years prior popped up: EARLY MORNING APARTMENT FIRE KILLS TWO. Her hand shook as she clicked on the article. She read:

  A fire that swept through an apartment in northern Manhattan early Wednesday, killed two tenants, Daniel Watson age 58 and his son, Eugene Watson age 18. The two lived together, along with wife and mother, Claire Watson, in the ground-floor apartment where the fire started accidentally, most probably caused by a faulty power cord. Mrs. Watson was not in the apartment at the time of the fire.

  The two-alarm fire started around 6:00 a.m. and quickly swept through the ground-floor apartment. Both victims’ bodies were found by firefighters huddled together in a corner of the small bathroom.

  The building had no fire alarm, a Fire Department official stated. “It is a very old building. By code it would not be required to.”

  Kaylee couldn’t read anymore. Her eyes blurred from the tears she didn’t even try to slow down. “Poor Mama C. No wonder she doesn’t want to talk about her past,” she whispered. She needed to find out more. Why hadn’t Mama C been there? Were these two her only family? What about friends? She wiped her eyes and turned to the article again, skimming until she saw what she wanted to know.

  Mrs. Watson, a school teacher at Westbrook High School in Manhattan, had left at her usual time of 5:30 a.m. to catch the subway to the other side of town. She could not be reached for comment.

  Westbrook High School, Kaylee thought. It had been ten years—there should still be some people there that would remember Mama C. She looked up the high school and punched the number into her phone. As she held it up to her ear, listening to it ring, she wondered, what am I doing? Before she could answer her own question, a bored female voice answered, “Westbrook High.”

  “Umm…” What was she going to say? She considered hanging up, but shook her head.

  “Can I help you?” the voice said.

  “Umm, yeah, yes.” Kaylee squeezed her eyes shut and pinched the bridge of her nose. “Yes, sorry. I’m looking for someone who may have known a teacher that worked there ten years ago or longer.”

  “And what is the reason you are seeking this information?”

  Crap. She should have thought this through before calling. Truth or lie? Truth. Mostly. She was sure Mama C didn’t want anyone from her past knowing where she was, so she just wouldn’t mention Denver. “I’m a psychology student and I’m doing my thesis about different ways people handle tragedy. I just need some information about a fire that happened about ten years ago.”

  “And…” Suspicion crept into her voice. “This teacher’s name is?”

  “Mama…I mean, Claire. Claire Watson.”

  “I knew Mrs. Watson, but you’ll never be able to find her by talking to anyone here. Her friends have been trying to track her down for a decade. Either she’s dead, or she doesn’t want to be found.”

  Kaylee swallowed. “That’s unfortunate. But I’d still like to talk to some of her past coworkers. Get a feel for what she was like before and after the, uh, fire.”

  “I don’t think you’re going to get anyone to talk to you. Mrs. Watson was a private woman before and a recluse after. Her friends will want to protect her privacy.”

  Yep, that was the Mama C she knew. “Well, could you maybe just ask around? And if anyone consents to talk to me, they can call me?”

  “Okay, but I’m telling you the chances are slim to none. What’s your number?” The woman sighed.

  Kaylee recited her phone number, then ended the call. She’d give them a couple of days to call back, but if that didn’t happen, she needed another plan. It had suddenly become of utmost importance for her to find out more about Mama C’s past.

  Now she needed to decide what to tell Blayne, if anything, about what she’d found out. She was most definitely not going to mention anything to Mama C. That would be a terrible idea.

  The winter sun had nearly set by the time Kaylee saw the dark form of Blayne leaving the construction site. He wasn’t expecting her, but ever since she’d decided to tell him everything she’d found out about Mama C, she’d been as antsy as the new kid on the first day of school. She didn’t want to lie to him. And he cared deeply about Mama C.

  She stepped out of her car and yelled, “Blayne!” waving so he’d see her when he turned around.

  Even in the darkness of twilight, she could see the smile blossom on his face. As he reached her, he said, “Wow. Twice in one day. It feels like my birthday.”

  She rolled her eyes and smiled back at him. “I just thought maybe we could go for a ride.”

  His eyebrow rose up and his smile faltered. “A ride? Just out of the blue?”

  “Yes.” She tilted her head. “A ride. There’s something I want to talk to you about.”

  “Uh oh. That sounds ominous. If we were dating, I’d think this was The Breakup.”

  A nervous laugh flew from her lips. “Nothing ominous. I promise.” At least she hoped he wouldn’t see her snooping as a bad thing. Now her smile faltered. Would he? There was no turning back.

  “Okay then. Let’s go for a ride.” He turned toward the passenger side of her car, but stopped mid-stride. “Or, to save your gas, would you like to go for a walk instead?”

  “Aren’t you tired after working all day?”

  “Not too tired to go for a walk with you. And you can show me the highlights of this campus, since I never leave the construction site when I’m here.”

  “Okay, let me grab my scarf and gloves. We can walk along Cherry Creek.” She bent into her car to grab the items from the middle console.

  Cherry Creek was close by the business building. They walked slowly and in silence for several minutes.

  “Well,” Blayne broke the silence, “what non-ominous news do you have to tell me?”

  How should she start?

  She had no idea, so she just plunged in. “I saw Mama C today when I went back downtown to mail your birth certificate back.”

  “Oh?” He raised an eyebrow.

  She swallowed. “Um, yeah. She was leaving a bank right next to the post office I was at.” Keep going, she thought. “She threw some papers away and I…I…” Kaylee huffed out a breath and raised her hands in surrender. “I snooped.”

  “You dug through the trash?” His eyebrow raised even higher, nearly touching his hairline.

  Kaylee looked down. “I’m not proud of it, but, yes.”

  “Do I even want to know what you found out?” There was both a touch of curiosity and a touch of irritation in his voice.

  “I don’t know. Do you?”

  Halting, Blayne reached for her arm to stop her beside him. He turned to her. “You know how private a person Mama C is. I know you’re cur
ious about her past, so am I. But I don’t want to break her trust—she’s the only reason I’m still alive.” His forehead knotted and his eyes narrowed as if he’d just had a thought that angered him. “Is this personal information going to make it into your thesis? Is that all you care about here? No thought for her wishes, college girl?”

  Kaylee shook her head so hard her ponytail slapped her in the face. “No. I’m only using the information she willingly gave me for that. I already have that part of it written up.” Blayne didn’t relax his face. Kaylee grew frustrated that he didn’t believe her. “I mean it, Blayne! I just want to help her.”

  “And, will this new information ‘help her’?”

  “I think it can. That’s why I wanted to tell you, to see what your opinion is.”

  Finally, his face softened somewhat. “Okay, tell me then.”

  She took a breath to shake off her frustration. “She threw away two check stubs—one that I’m pretty sure is Social Security, the other from a New York teacher’s retirement fund.”

  “Okay, you found out where her money is coming from. How will this help her?” His expression and voice stayed neutral.

  She couldn’t help but let a little excitement show. “I found out more than that. She’s getting older, Blayne. I’m worried about her health out on the streets. What if she has some family somewhere who would take her in? I bet she has access to health insurance from Medicare and maybe even through her teacher’s retirement—that’s something she can fall back on if…if her health demands she get out of the elements.”

  Concern laced his voice. “What do you know about her health? Do you think she’s sick?”

  “I don’t know for sure. She has been coughing a lot lately and I’m worried about her. She just brushes me off when I say something.”