Free The Lost Girls by Heather Young Page A

hesitate to ask him or Abe if you need anything.”
    â€œAbe?”
    â€œMatthew’s brother. They keep to themselves, those two, but there’s nothing they wouldn’t do for Lucy’s family.”
    Justine tightened her arms around Angela. During the drive from San Diego she’d tried to remember what Lucy looked like. All she could remember was the reading glasses she wore on a chain around her neck and that she smelled of talcum powder. Now, as she thought of the unfinished book on the bedside table, the porcelain bowls with their unused cotton balls and hairpins, and the photograph of herself and Maurie, her chest felt hollow.
    â€œI don’t want you to think I’m being ungrateful. But I’m not Lucy’s family. Not like family is supposed to be. I only met her once, when I was a little girl. I hardly remember her.” Surely, she wanted to say, there must be someone else—if not Maurie, then some cousin, or even a friend—who was closer to Lucy than she. More deserving.
    Arthur templed his fingers and looked at her over the tops of his glasses. “There were just the three sisters. Lucy never married. Lilith had the one child, your mother. And Emily died young.”
    Justine nodded but didn’t trust herself to say anything more. Arthur reached for an accordion folder and walked her through the paperwork, instructing her where to sign and giving her copies ofeverything. When he said the probate would take four months he was quick to reassure her that, as Lucy’s trustee, he’d requested an early disbursement of the two thousand dollars in Lucy’s bank account. “To tide you over,” he said delicately. When he was done he handed her a small jewelry box. “Lucy gave this to me a few weeks ago. She said Lilith would want Maurie to have them.”
    Justine took the box with numb fingers. As she’d signed the papers and listened to him talk about transfers and court orders, the reality of her changed circumstances had struck her with full force. Two thousand dollars was more money than she’d ever had at one time. The investment portfolio could send her daughters to college, which was something she’d hardly dared hope for them. She felt a manic elation, yet at the same time she felt chagrined, even guilty. She could not remember Lucy’s face.
    â€œThere’s one more thing,” Arthur said. “Lucy asked that her body be cremated and the ashes deposited in the lake. I arranged her cremation before you arrived, and will keep custody of her remains until the lake thaws. But I wanted you to know, in case you were wondering about funeral arrangements, or burial.”
    Justine hadn’t wondered about any of that. She swallowed, her throat thick. “Thank you.”
    Arthur took off his glasses, relaxing now that their business was done. “How long will you be staying?”
    It took a moment for Justine to realize what he meant. “We’re going to live in the house permanently. If that’s all right.”
    Arthur looked at Melanie, then back to her. “It’s awfully isolated out there.”
    â€œI know. But the girls will be at school during the day.” She didn’t know where the school was, but surely it was here in town.
    â€œWhat about you? I imagine you’ll need a job.”
    Justine hadn’t given this much thought, either. She’d never had trouble finding the sort of work she and her mother had always done—waiting tables, tending bars, working in stores. Now shethought of the empty shops on the square. “I was a receptionist in San Diego, but I can do most anything, if anyone’s hiring.”
    â€œPeople are losing jobs rather than finding them around here. You might try over in Bemidji. There’s a Walmart there, and a Home Depot. If you’re willing to work a cash register, there might be a place for you.”
    â€œThank you.” Justine had