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Paul rolled his eyes and commented, "Caroline was walking when she was nine months old. She's been a perpetual motion machine ever since."
Epstein broke into the conversation. "You still cook a mean pot roast, Annie. Better'n any diner I ever been to."
"Well, I should hope my cooking beats some old greasy spoon!" Annie growled in mock indignation.
Kacie ate her meal quietly, speaking only when spoken to, and then very sparingly. Peter watched with some concern, and when he had the opportunity, he asked quietly, "You all right, Kace?"
She nodded and then smiled at him. "I'm just a little tired." She reached under the table and squeezed his knee reassuringly. He took her hand in his and they continued to eat.
Dinner over, and the men having retired to the den, Kacie and Annie were busy with tidying up the kitchen. As they worked side by side, Annie commented, "You don't like Eppy very much, do you?"
Kacie paused a second in her scrubbing of the roasting pan, and then answered evasively, "What makes you say that?"
"I could hear the strain in your voice whenever you spoke to him, which wasn't often. And," Annie grinned, "you were MUCH quieter than usual."
"Oh." Kacie hesitated a moment before answering honestly, "No, I don't like him. The other night at Chandler's he said and did some things I found pretty distasteful, and...I think that he drinks too much." She sighed. "Peter thinks the man can walk on water, and we had a huge fight about it." She hesitated a moment before adding, "I hate to criticize Eppy to Peter. He doesn't handle it well, and I don't like feeling like I'm coming between him and an old friend. It's all just really awkward right now."
"Peter is very loyal," Annie agreed. "He's always been very protective of those he cares about, and Eppy is pretty special to him. I think that he idolizes him almost as much as he does Paul."
"Was Eppy a good cop when he and Peter worked together?" Kacie asked.
"He was the best," Annie said simply. "That was why Paul put the two of them together when Peter first joined the force." She smiled as memories swept over her. "Believe it or not, Peter used to be much more rash than he is now."
Kacie laughed. "THAT is hard to believe." She paused. "Peter said that if it wasn't for Eppy, he wouldn't have survived his first year."
"He's right about that, too."
They worked awhile longer in companionable silence. "I do think you're right about one thing, though," Annie commented. "I think he HAS developed a drinking problem. He's been here only a few days, but I can always smell liquor on him. He tries to hide it, but we blind chicks know these things."
Kacie wrinkled her forehead in thought. "Did something happen to him? I mean, that brought on this drinking business? I can remember my dad once telling about one of his top officers having his wife divorce him, and the guy started drowning in a bottle. Dad finally had to ask for his badge."
"I overheard him talking to Paul just this morning. I didn't catch everything, but I got the impression that his sons have all been in some kind of trouble with the law, and that they haven't wanted anything to do with him in years. My instincts tell me that he's feeling lost right now. He's getting older. He's alone, no family. I think that he is just a frightened, lonely, confused man who is trying to forget his problems by drinking them away."
Kacie made no further comment, but felt she had gained some insight into this man from Peter's past. She knew all too well what it was like to feel lost and alone.
Dishes finished, they were ready to head into the den when Kacie impulsively pulled Annie into a hug.
"What was that for?" Annie asked in surprise.
"You're just a very wise lady, and I'm glad that you're my mother-in-law. Now let's go see what the guys are up to."
Paul and Peter sipped their after-dinner drinks as
they visited with Epstein, who was relating stories of
the precinct in Boston . Eppy had already been back to
refill his glass twice by the time Annie and Kacie came
in to join them.
After a moment's hesitation, Kacie sat beside Epstein on the couch. She had been ready to perch on the arm of the chair Peter was sitting in, but was afraid itmight draw some kind of comment from Eppy and spoil the evening. She listened quietly to the stories, joining in with the laughter and adding a few tales her father had shared with her from the Denver police department.
Eppy gestured wildly with his hands to illustrate one of his stories, and forgot that the glass he was holding was not quite empty. The contents splashed onto Kacie's shirt front, and she jumped up quickly to keep the liquid from running onto the couch.
Epstein stood, too, and apologized, "I'm so sorry." He made an attempt to brush off the fluid, but Kacie blocked his hand and said sharply, "It's OK. I've got it."
He made another move toward her and she backed away quickly. He frowned at her response, and said again, "Geez, I'm sorry, Kacie. I shoulda been payin' more attention to what I was doin'."
She forced a smile as she regarded her ruined silk blouse and said, "Forget about it. It's only a shirt."
"I'm sure you can find something of Kelly's to wear," Annie told her. "She won't mind."
"Thanks, Annie, I'll do that." Kacie turned and disappeared down the hallway.
Eppy shook his head and looked after her regretfully. "Boy, she's REALLY gonna love me now, isn't she?"
"Don't be silly," Paul told him. "Kacie's not the type to hold something like that against you."
"Yeah," tossed in Peter. "She doesn't make a big deal out of things."
"Well, I don't think your wife is exactly my number one fan." Epstein got up and poured himself a new drink.
"I think you two just got off on the wrong foot the other night at Chandler's," Peter explained. "Kacie's just a little shy around people she doesn't know very well."
Paul glanced at him sharply and raised an eyebrow in surprise at the comment, but said nothing.
"Once the two of you get to know each other better," Peter continued, "it'll be different."
"Always the eternal optimist, ain'tcha, kid?" Eppy remarked fondly. He looked off down the empty hallway and took a swallow of bourbon. {I musta said or done somethin' the other night at the bar. Sure wish I could remember what it was.}