Darknet Read Online Free Page B

When they stood side by side, Avril looked too skinny, but Cindy just told herself that was because she’d inherited Cindy’s own body structure. She was skinny as a rail herself.
    “Mom, what time are we doing the fireworks?”
    Cindy was making a grape jelly sandwich so that Avril wouldn’t get too hungry. It was a little after two o’clock in the afternoon.
    “Well, probably around nine-thirty or ten, I think,” she said. “When it’s dark enough.”
    “Okay. When will Dad be home?”
    Cindy had wondered the same thing herself.
    “I’m not sure. Probably not too long now. He didn’t really say how late they’d be keeping the store open.”
    Avril nodded and bit into the sandwich.
    Cindy stared out the back window at the yard. She’d mowed the lawn earlier in the day and set out four lawn chairs for them all.
    Just need Tony now.
    He’d only told her just the night before that he’d be gone for the day. “We’re going to open the store. It’s a busy tourist day and we think it’ll be good for business.”
    “Really? July fourth? I thought you didn’t really cater to the tourist trade.”
    She bit her lip as she said it, realizing he might take that as some kind of criticism. This time, though, he didn’t seem to notice.
    “Not up to me. I’m just the guy behind the counter, not the one who calls the shots.”
    As it turned out, she wasn’t all that unhappy that Tony had been away all day. It’d been fun, just relaxing when she would normally have been working. She didn’t bother turning the radio on to see how her day’s replacement was doing. She didn’t care. She had the time off with Avril and no tension in the house, and that was just fine by her.
    She’d even sneaked in a quick nap after mowing the lawn. It’d been years since she’d done that.
    “Is Laurie coming over soon?”
    Avril looked up at the clock hanging over the counter. “I think so. I can text her in a while if she’s not here.”
    Cindy had an urge, so she walked over and hugged Avril. To her surprise, she was hugged right back without hesitation. She closed her eyes and put her hand on Avril’s blonde hair, inhaling the scent of her daughter, never wanting to lose the feel of her.
    “Mom, you can let me go now.”
    Cindy did, reluctantly, and smiled. “I have to get those hugs when I can.”
     
    * * *
     
    At 5:00, Tony still hadn’t arrived home. The store normally closed at 4:30, so Cindy figured he was on his way home now.
    “We need milk,” she said to an empty room. She’d somehow let the last carton run low, and she always demanded that Avril drink a full glass with dinner each night.
    She grabbed the phone and called Tony’s cell. It rang three times and then went to voicemail.
    “Hi, it’s me. Can you call me at home? Just wondered if—”
    She hesitated, wanting to phrase it right, not like a demand, more of a suggestion or maybe just making casual conversation about milk.
    Shit. He won’t like this.
    “ — Just wondered when I should start the barbeque.”
    She hung up and stared at the phone.
     
    * * *
     
    6:00 and there was still no word from him. Avril and Laurie were running around outside and Cindy knew they must be getting hungry. She called Tony’s cell a second time, but again there was no answer. This time she didn’t leave a message.
    She went outside and lit the barbeque, hoping he’d be home before she started cooking. The last thing she needed was for him to think she’d done something wrong tonight. She wanted to enjoy the fireworks with her little family, and she didn’t want a misunderstanding ruining it.
    After another thirty minutes, she put her chicken on the grill alongside the burgers for the girls.
    “Mom, where’s Dad?”
    “He’ll be here soon, sweet-pea. I think he just got stuck in traffic.”
    The girls laughed as they ate their dinner, but Cindy’s smile was forced. She didn’t much care for her chicken and only ate a few bites.
    Her own mother’s