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weapon somewhere else on her body, but somehow, watch-ing her pet the dogs,
Joanna doubted that.
Maybe what Hannah Green had told them in the begin-ning was true. Maybe all
she really wanted to do was talk. To that end, the best thing Joanna could do
was try to estab-lish a sense of rapport, a sense of normalcy. She dropped her
purse on the counter beside the grocery bags.  Are you hun-gry? she asked.
 Would you like something to eat?
 Just a piece of bread or two would be fine, Hannah answered.  And maybe a
little bit of jam if you have some.
 I was going to bake a couple of pork chops, Joanna said.  If you don t mind
waiting until they cook, I m sure we ll have plenty to go around. She looked
at Jenny.  While the food s cooking, Jenny, you get busy with your homework.
You told me you have a whole bunch of math to do for Mrs. Voland s class.
Jenny shot her mother a surprised look.  But Mom ...
 No argument, young lady. Joanna abruptly stifled jen-ny s objection before
the child could reveal that her teacher s name was really Mrs. Harper, not
Mrs. Voland. All Joanna could do was hope Jenny was smart enough to take the
hint. Take it and act on it.
 No argument at all, Joanna finished.  Get now. And take the dogs with you.
They ll just be in the way. Mrs. Green and I need to talk.
Without further discussion, Jenny took the dogs and her school backpack and
retreated to her bedroom. Relieved that, for the time being at least, Jenny
was out of any immediate danger, Joanna turned to the everyday task of putting
away groceries. After the unnerving terror of the preceding minutes, the
little kitchen seemed impossibly warm and homey. Despite Hannah Green s still
ominous presence, fold-ing the empty paper bags and putting them in the bottom
drawer gave an air of mind-bending domesticity to the pro-ceedings.
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Hannah Green slid onto the bench in the breakfast nook and slouched there.
The despair emanating from her was almost as powerful as the stink of her
great unwashed body. Her flat, vacant features could never have been
considered remotely attractive, but she seemed at home in her placid ugliness.
 Before you and I say anything more, Mrs. Green, Joanna cautioned,  you must
understand that I m a police officer. Since you re a suspect in the death of
your father, you probably shouldn t be talking to anyone me included without
first consulting an attorney and without being read your rights.
 Don t care none about my rights and can t afford no fancy attorney, Hannah
returned morosely.  All s I ve got with me is just what I had laid by in my
underwear drawer. Five hundred fifty dollars and some change. I don t reckon
that d go any too far in hirin me one of them there lawyers.
 If you can t afford an attorney 
 Besides, Hannah continued, seemingly unperturbed.  Don t much want one
anyways. I already tol you I kilt him. And if n they send me to jail,
leastways I ll have food to eat and a roof over my head. It serves him right,
my daddy. He allus said I wasn t smart enough to rub two sticks together. He
allus said that without him I d just up and starve to death. Well, I reckon I
won t. Nobody ll let me starve in jail, will they?
Joanna had pried the plastic wrap off the pork chops and begun to season
them, dropping them into a cast-iron skillet and browning them before placing
the skillet in the oven.  No, she agreed.  I don t suppose they will.
 See there? Hannah said.  I ll be fine. Just fine.
Joanna could think of nothing to say in reply.
 Aren t you going to ask me why I did it? Hannah asked a moment later.
Joanna shook her head.  I m gonna tell you anyways. You see, I just wanted to
change the damn channel. That s all. Daddy wouldn t never let me watch what I
wanted. It was just pure meanness on his part. That s what made me so mad. He
didn t want to watch nothin else. Didn t care about no other channel so long
as I couldn t watch what I wanted. He just got up and went outside and took
that clicker with him. I coulda changed it on the set, but I wanted to use the
clicker like a regular person.
 He went out and I went chasin after him, tellin him to bring it back to
bring it back right now. But he wouldn t. Wouldn t no way. Jus kept right on
walkin  didn t even have no coat on and I kept right after him, yellin my
fool head off, tellin him to give it back. And then somethin hap-pened. He
musta tripped and fell and didn t get up. The next thing I knowed, I was
standin over him with a rock in my hand, bashin the back of his head in, all
the while screamin at him at the top of my lungs.  Give it to me. Give it
back! 
Hannah Green told her story with a minimum of emotion, delivering the details
with a chilling dispassion that seemed to imply she was still more upset about
the loss of the remote control than she was about her father s death.
Maybe she is crazy,Joanna decided.
Sitting there hunched in the breakfast nook, with her multiple chins resting
in her good hand and with the ruined one once again back in its concealing
pocket, Hannah Greendidn t appear to be a danger to anyone. Still, Joanna
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recognized that she would need help in dealing with this woman. She could go
through all the motions of playing hostess, of feeding her unwelcome guest and
warming her. But somewhere along the line, the charade would come to an end.
Joanna knew that when that moment arrived, she would need back up. Had Jenny
understood or not?
As Joanna continued with dinner preparations, she wondered if it would be [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]