We’ll Meet Again Someday

Audra Abbington drove her Camry into the double-car garage and closed the door behind her with the remote clipped to her visor. She went to the door that led straight into the kitchen and found her husband and daughter preparing dinner. “Hello there,” she said brightly and audibly. “Sorry I’m late.” “Oh, that’s okay,” James said, kissing his wife. “Dinner will be ready soon.” “Great,” chirped Audra, heading for the refrigerator for a cool soft drink. Her movements were quick compared to her husband’s, her gait heavier despite being lighter. “In the meantime, the place has been rented,” James told her, nodding toward the back of the house. “Riana’s getting settled in right now.” Audra froze. “What?” Emma glanced nervously at her father and said, “I told you she would want to meet her first, Dad.” “Yeah, yeah, I know you did,” James said. But he knew his wife would agree that this woman seemed to be the most promising once he explained the situation to her. “Emma, please leave your father and me alone,” Audra told her daughter in a stern yet calm voice. After all, it wasn’t Emma’s fault that James sometimes acted in haste, good instincts or not. Emma left wordlessly, and Audra focused her eyes on her husband as she leaned back against the kitchen’s center island, soda can in hand. It wasn’t the first time James had to answer to his overly picky and sometimes bossy wife, and he knew it wouldn’t be the last either. “Emma really liked her,” James began. “It doesn’t matter, James. You should have let me meet her first, as we agreed,” said Audra. “I know, I know. But if she doesn’t work out, we’ll get rid of her. Plain and simple.” “But I’d rather not have to go through the hassle of doing that anytime soon, and then have to hunt all over again for someone new.” “I really don’t think we’ll have to. Besides, we can’t know for sure how anyone will work out until we’ve had them here for a while anyway.” “That’s true,” Audra agreed. “Okay, so she’s here. Tell me about her.” James picked up a piece of paper from the counter. “Her name’s Riana Brennan. She’s your age, forty, although she doesn’t look it any more than you do.” Audra listened intently, so far not at all impressed. “Get this. She lived with a woman, Amberlyn Kramer, who was a police officer with the Western Division. I never knew her, but I’ve heard the name before. Eventually, Kramer and her three-year-old son were killed in a car accident.” A slight look of dismay crossed Audra’s face. “That’s awful. When did this happen?” she asked, back to business as usual. “Two years ago. She’s been living with a friend in her house ever since, but the friend recently married, and the place is too small for the three of them, plus the kids they had prior to marrying.” “What does she do?” “Oh, she makes her living in a rather unusual way.” Audra eyed him inquisitively. “She enters sweepstakes and contests online.” “Enters sweepstakes and contests?” Audra asked as if that were the silliest thing she’d ever heard. “How can she get by on that?” James shrugged. “Apparently, she does. She sells her unwanted wins on eBay or at swap meets, since she doesn’t always win just cash. She says she sometimes barely makes ends meet this way but has a lot of fun doing it. No bosses or coworkers to quarrel with and that sort of thing.” “No insurance either.” “I mentioned that, but she says she never gets sick and insists she’s healthy.” Audra rolled her eyes and shook her head as if that were absolutely ridiculous. “She says that as soon as she wins big—and the law of averages is certainly in her favor, so she also says—she’ll buy a house on a small parcel of land outside the city.” “What about family?” “She’s from the Northeast but has no family, from what I gather. Just a few friends. Guess she’s the homebody type who prefers to keep to herself, but that’s good. This way, we won’t have to worry about all kinds of people coming around.” Audra took a sip of her drink, absorbing her husband’s words. “Emma likes her because she’s shorter than her and has really long hair. Got a kick out of her pet rat, too.” Audra jumped. “She’s got a rat? Oh, come on, James!” “Relax. It’s old and dying.” “Wow, that’s a real consolation.” “Well, I figured it was either her—someone Emma obviously feels comfortable with—or this other woman who came by earlier. She was more experienced but didn’t seem as friendly. There was just something very cold and austere about her.” “Friendliness doesn’t matter, James. We’re looking for a housekeeper, not a friend.” “But Emma didn’t like the other lady at all. Isn’t that at least somewhat important?” “Of course it is. But James, you haven’t even had time to check out her record, have you?” “No, but I didn’t have to. She told me about it on her own.” Audra’s eyes bulged. “She has a record? James, I’m going to strangle you!” “Calm down. It’s just some petty pranks that happened many years ago, but don’t worry. I’m still going to check her out.” Emma re-entered the room. “It was so funny, Mom! I wasn’t around for much of the interview, but at the end, when Riana said she’d get her stuff packed quickly, Daddy asked how she knew she’d even gotten the job, and she said, ‘Well, because you never said you’d call me. It’s when they say they’ll call that you can pretty much count on not getting the job.’”