Dead Woman Crossing J.R. Adler (early reader chapter books txt) 📖

“She was happy as a clam. I’m sure she’ll love it there, being around kids her age. In the city, I had an elderly neighbor lady in my apartment building watch her. It was what I could afford and she was good with Jessica, but I think she’ll get more out of a daycare center.”

“That’s a shame.” He slightly shook his head. “Well, she’ll have cousins living next door and there’s the kids at daycare. Dead Woman Crossing is a close-knit community. She’s going to grow up nicely here.”

In front of her was a glass of red wine and an open bottle on the table. Her mother had taken her glass into the kitchen to sip at while she finished up with dinner. Kimberley had offered to help, but Nicole had insisted on taking care of it herself.

Kimberley took a long sip from her glass of red wine. It was medium bodied, lighter than she liked, and had notes of berries and pepper. She wasn’t a big wine drinker, but she had a strong palate that could pick apart the flavors in any drink or food. Just as she placed the glass back down, Nicole entered the dining room carrying two plates of food. She was wearing a floral apron and her hair was pushed back behind her ears.

She placed a plate of meatloaf and peas in front of David and Kimberley.

“I have rolls too,” she said, dashing out of the room.

A moment later, she reemerged with a basket of freshly baked rolls and a small bowl of peas. She placed the basket in the center of the table and the bowl of peas on Jessica’s tray.

“Here you are my little hungry, hungry hippo, even though you ate all your snacks earlier,” Nicole said, smiling at her granddaughter.

Jessica immediately dove a hand into the peas and before Kimberley could help her, she had smashed a handful into her mouth.

“Yu… mmy,” she said. Her eyes lit up.

“That’s right. Yummy,” Kimberley repeated.

“Looks good,” David said. “Hurry, so we can say grace. I’m famished,” he said to Nicole.

She nodded, disappeared and reappeared faster than Kimberley could bow her head. Nicole placed her empty glass of wine on the table and her plate that had less than half the food that Kimberley had. She quickly sat down and placed her palm in David’s and then reached for her daughter’s.

After David finished his prayer, Nicole poured herself another glass of wine, while Kimberley and David began eating. Kimberley made sure to keep a close eye on her mother to see if she would eat anything this time.

“She likes the peas.” Kimberley smiled at Jessica and then at her mom.

Nicole nodded with a smile, looking over at her granddaughter. “I couldn’t get your mom to eat a single vegetable when she was a child.”

“Yum… my,” Jessica said again, smashing more peas into her gummy mouth.

“That’s not true. I loved mashed potatoes.”

“That’s hardly a vegetable,” Nicole said with a laugh. “Especially when they were smothered with gravy and butter.”

“Touché.” Kimberley smirked. She brought her wine glass to her lips and took a long drink, slightly closing her eyes for a moment.

Her father sat at the end of the table, his greasy blond hair pulled back in a ponytail, his sharp blue eyes staring back at her, and a beer perched between his lips. Her mother set a plate of food in front of him like a zookeeper would with a wild animal, cautiously. She then set a plate in front of eight-year-old Kimberley.

“Eat up, sweetie,” she said, just above a whisper.

Her father didn’t wait for Nicole to sit down. He didn’t say a prayer. He dove into the goulash, shoving a forkful into his mouth, the grease from the chunks of ground beef dripping down his chin.

“I said I wanted steak tonight. What is this shit?” He spat as he spoke.

“We don’t have money for steak,” Nicole said meekly.

Kimberley took a couple of small bites, chewing slowly and quietly, wishing she was invisible. She didn’t want to sit down for dinner, but her mother insisted as a way to seem like a normal family. But all it did was give Kimberley a front-row seat to her father’s dark side.

“Well, then, stop spending money on stupid shit like books for her,” he said, pointing at his daughter. “Or those goddamn CDs.”

“Those were Kimberley’s birthday gifts.”

“What the fuck does she need a birthday gift for? I’m the one that brought her into this world. I should get a gift on her goddamn birthday.”

Her father took a long swig of his beer, swishing it around in his mouth, and slammed the empty bottle on the table.

Nicole rose immediately to get him another, disappearing into the kitchen.

“You think you’re special?” he said, leaning forward and narrowing his eyes at Kimberley.

She shook her head.

“Good. Because you’re fucking not. That’s what’s wrong with your generation. Every last one of you thinks you’re so goddamn special. You’re an ant. A fucking nothing.” He clenched his jaw.

Nicole set the open beer in front of him and gave a small smile to Kimberley.

“Ain’t that right, Nicole?”

“What?” Her mother looked over at him.

“She’s not fucking special.” He pointed at Kimberley. “Tell your daughter, she’s nothing.”

Nicole pressed her lips firmly together.

“Tell her.” He slammed his fist against the table, making the silverware bounce.

Nicole and Kimberley flinched.

“Tell her.” He raised his hand, smacking her mother in the back of the head.

Nicole squealed. She looked at Kimberley, her eyes filled with tears. “You’re nothing,” she said, her lip trembling.

Kimberley opened her eyes and set her glass of wine down. Her father was gone, just a dark memory that haunted her from time to time.

“She is a good little eater. I fed her half my banana when she got home from daycare. I tried giving her just a small piece and she just kept reaching out her hands, saying, ‘More,’” David said with a chuckle.

Kimberley ran her hand