Free GD00 - ToxiCity by Libby Fischer Hellmann

beautiful, or safe.
    The first thing Greg did was look for a new house. He refused to consider the neighborhood, or anywhere in the city. They would live someplace where the air was clean, and the people were too. So he wasn’t the most liberal guy in the world. He didn’t like people who were different. White bread was good enough for him. Maggie could handle that. Look at what was happening in the neighborhood anyway. They had started to move in, and property values were dropping like a rock.
    Whenever they could, mostly Sunday afternoons, they’d take a six-pack and some sandwiches and go exploring. One day they were out near Joliet, cruising down a newly paved road, when they came across an empty field. It was a big one, probably twenty-five acres, with a grove of trees in the back. A church steeple was barely visible through them. A bold-lettered sign announced a housing development would soon be built on the site. “If you’d like to live here, call this number.”
    Greg braked and jotted down the number. Then he got out his camera and took pictures of the field. He was always shooting pictures. Of Maggie, Dusty, the dog. Said it was his way of documenting his life. Maggie didn’t think much about it. He was a dreamer.
    The night Greg got back from a cross-country haul, he took her to Vincent’s, the only decent restaurant left in the neighborhood. He was grinning from ear to ear.
    “You just win the lottery?” Maggie asked.
    “Better.”
    He dug something out of his pocket, wrapped in white tissue paper with a red ribbon. When she opened it, several pictures tumbled out. Pictures of the empty field.
    “What’s this?”
    “Our future home, sweetie.”
    What the hell was he talking about?
    “You remember when we passed that place?” He pointed to the sign in one of the pictures.
    She glanced at it. Nodded uncertainly.
    “Well, I called the number. They’re making loans—practically interest free—if you buy a lot. It’s an incredible deal.”
    “We don’t have enough for a down payment.”
    “I think we do. If you sell the house, and I take a few extra loads, we could get close to thirty grand. That’s all we need.”
    “No way,” Maggie said, but the corners of her mouth lifted.
    “We can do it. I’m sure of it.” He folded her hand into his. “As sure as I am that I’m ‘gonna spend the rest of my life with you and Dusty.”
    It was that kind of stuff that melted her heart. She felt a smile creep across her face, a smile that said she’d believe him.
    Three months later she sold the house, and they got married. A week after that, they put down a payment on the lot.

Chapter Fourteen

    “Oh-pah!” Fire exploded on the plate, licking the air around it. A few gasps went up, followed by clapping. The waiter bowed and offered the plate to Deanna. When the flame died, she sliced the saganaki and passed it down the table. The Roditis was flowing along with the food; Georgia refilled her glass.
    With no one to impress and no family traditions to uphold, the wedding ceremony was over in five minutes. Toasts and champagne followed. By the time they headed down to Greek town, everyone was so cheerful that even the judge, who barely knew Stone, joined them for dinner.
    Apollo’s had stucco walls that looked like they were still puckering, posters of Greek islands covering them, and waiters in shabby black vests. Deanna sat at one end of the table, Stone at the other. Between them were friends of Deanna’s, most of whom Georgia didn’t know. Stone’s son, Jack was there next to Matt. Taller and leaner than his father, Jack hardly made eye contact with anyone. Georgia had seen that before in ex-cons, and Jack was one. Ashamed of their past and afraid for their future, they tried to skate though life without attracting attention. Sometimes, they landed back inside. But Jack was young. There was hope. She listened to him talking to Matt.
    “...Taking classes at Temple at night. I work during the