Motorcycle Girl: Book Three

Chapter 19: Mr. P

"Doorbell!" Raylen exclaims, dropping his legos and running for the front door.

"Do not open that door!" Odeletta calls, thrusting the baby into my arms and sprinting after him. I hear her reprimanding him, telling him that little boys can't open the door. She opens it instead, and then it's quiet.

"I wonder who it is." I say to Noemie, bouncing her in my arms. She coos, clapping her hands. I laugh and start tickling her. "Babe, hurry up!" I call. "We have to be at your parents for New Years Eve in an hour!"

I hear the front door shut, and then Raylen walks in the room. Odeletta has a Manila envelope in her hands.

"What is that? Oh god, are we getting sued? Or arrested?"

I snatch the paper from her hands. It's handwritten and all it says is For your troubles-Mr.P

"Who is Mr. P?" I ask. "Are you sure this is meant for us?"

I shift the baby in my arms and go to step around her, but she moves in front of me.

"It was a man in a suit, he asked me if I was Mrs. Reed. When I said yes, he handed it to me.

"What if it's for my parents?" I ask. "God, this is heavy."

"I think it's for us. Your parents live a half hour away."

"Well Peyton and Matthew-"

"They aren't Reed's." She reminds me.

"But Julian-"

"Is single." She says. "They came to our house."

"It could be Harper. Gabe is a Reed. Or Aunt Clara-"

"They do not live near here. God, we cannot afford to be sued."

I look at her nervously.

"You open it first." I hand it to her.

"No, you do it first."

"No, you."

We start passing it back and forth to each other.

"Open it!" Raylen whines, tugging at my shirt. "Just open it Daddy!"

I glance down at him, and then I look at my wife.

"Is our son mentally older than us?"

"I think so."

I bite my lip and look back down at the Manila envelope.

I carefully undo the string holding it shut and pull it open, peeking inside.

There is just a white piece of paper.

"Hold your breath." I tell my wife. "I saw on this episode of NCIS once, Dinozzo opened an envelope and white powder came out, and it was the plague."

She gasps.

"No! You saw that episode too?"

"Yes!" I exclaim. I look at her. "We should watch it! Let's rip up whatever this is and watch it."

"No, I want to know what it is." She says, gesturing to it. She puts her hands over her mouth while I reach in and pull out the paper.

"Oh dear god." I choke, looking down at the paper.

"What?" Odeletta demands. "What is it?"

I look down at the paper, and then at my wife.

"We can afford to be sued." I mumble.

"What?" She asks. "What is it?"

She snatches it from my hand, and then all the blood runs from her face.