Free The One Safe Place by Kathleen O`Brien Page A

said, trying to smile. “How are you?” Her voice was toneless and automatic, like a tape teaching English phrases. “I’m Mrs. Alton Millner. It’s nice to—”
    A raucous honking interrupted her robot speech.All three of them looked over to the road, where a long, sleek convertible full of people had just crested the hill and rolled into sight.
    Faith quelled her instinctive anxiety. It wasn’t anything to be afraid of. It wasn’t Doug. Doug Lambert owned a hearselike black Mercedes, not a bright blue vintage Cadillac convertible. And even if he had found her—which he hadn’t, which he couldn’t, how could he?—he would come for her quietly, in the dead of night. He wouldn’t arrive with horns blowing and laughing people spilling out all over.
    â€œOh, terrific,” Justine muttered. The noise had awakened the baby, and she bounced him gently to reassure him all was well. “What do those old geezers want, anyway?”
    â€œJustine,” her mother said. “Stand up straight. Wipe your face.”
    Justine pointedly refused to do either. But Faith watched, amazed, as the older woman shrugged inside her designer suit, squared her shoulders and surreptitiously fluffed her silky blond pageboy. Mrs. Alton Millner clearly did not want to meet these people, whoever they were, without her game face on.
    As the Cadillac purred to a halt in front of Autumn House, Faith finally was able to see the occupants of the car. Two very large, very handsome white-haired men dominated the front seat, and in the back two beautifully dressed ladies in their sixties perched on the trunk of the car, their feet on the seat, as if they were princesses in a homecoming parade.
    Oddest of all, between the lovely ladies sat another handsome old man, his face ruddy beneath longish hair the color of a slightly tarnished silver teapot. He was sound asleep, and probably would have keeled over if the ladies’ legs hadn’t held him up.
    The man at the wheel, who, Faith noticed, really was shockingly handsome for a man who must be nearly eighty, spoke first.
    â€œWhy, if it isn’t the mayor’s gorgeous wife! Dee Dee Millner, climb on board, my lady! We’re auditioning beautiful women who would like to ride with us in the Halloween—”
    â€œNow, Granville,” the smaller of the two women in the back interrupted irritably, adjusting her bright, flowery skirt. “You can see there’s no more room. Boxer’s already drooling all over our legs.”
    She sniffed and tried to tilt the sleeping old man upright with one finger. “I think he’s just pretending to be asleep.”
    â€œMadeline Alexander, you’re such a prissy little number.” The other woman, who had flaming dyed-red hair, green eyes and the statuesque body of an Amazon queen, gave the little white-haired woman a scornful look. “Boxer is passed out cold. If he’s bothering you, just kick him.” She patted her hair. “But she’s right about the room. There isn’t any.”
    â€œNonsense, Bridget.” Granville grinned and winked at the other white-haired man. “There’s always room for one more beautiful woman, isn’t there, Ward?”
    His friend nodded. “Or three. I see three more gorgeous ladies here. You’re all welcome to audition, if you’d like.”
    Justine made an incredulous sound that stopped just short of being truly rude. But it didn’t seem to faze either of the old men, who merely exchanged another devilish grin.
    The driver, the one called Granville, eyed Faith curiously. “Hello! I’m not sure we’ve met,” he began, but then his face broke out in a fresh smile. “Oh, of course! You’re the gorgeous new housekeeper everyone’s buzzing about. Ward, this must be Faith Constable, remember Theo was telling us?”
    â€œOf course!” With a sudden spring, Ward