Chapter 3

The smile on Denise Sawyer's face froze, tears welling up.

Brenda panicked. "Your sister-in-law is talking nonsense! When did I ever say I wouldn't buy it?"

I threw up my hands at once. "Mom, my mistake, I misread you. So you never went back on your word after all."

The air went quiet for three seconds.

Brenda drew a deep breath. "Fine! We'll go buy it tomorrow!"

Denise burst into tears and threw herself at Brenda, hugging her. "Mom, I love you to death! I knew it, you're not the kind of person who breaks a promise!"

Brenda held her, the corner of her mouth twitching.

But I knew she'd never bring herself to shell out that kind of money.

Sure enough, the next day at the Apple store, Brenda suddenly pulled me aside and lowered her voice.

"Cheryl, Mom left in such a hurry I forgot my card. Front the money for me first, and I'll transfer it back to you when we get home."

I almost laughed out loud.

Forgot her card? Who'd believe that?

I spread my hands, all helpless. "Mom, I just moved my money into a fixed deposit. I've only got a little over five hundred left in my account, and the mortgage is due in a week. I really can't free up the cash. Why don't you run home and grab it?"

Brenda's face stiffened.

"Go home for what? That's two hours there and back—"

"Then we can just come back next week. School doesn't start for a while anyway."

Brenda's mouth twitched a couple of times. Before she could get a word out, Denise's delighted squeal came from behind the counter.

"Mom! I want this one, the one-terabyte top model!"

The clerk quoted it with a smile. "Hi there, this one's fifteen hundred ninety-nine."

Brenda's face went white.

"That expensive?!"

Denise's smile crumpled in an instant. "Mom! You promised me! Are you backing out?"

Brenda's lips were trembling. "Mom's not backing out... I just didn't think it'd cost this much..."

"What's so expensive about it? All my classmates have this one! You're always saying how much you love me, and in the end you won't even spring for a phone that costs a little over a thousand? If you can't afford to raise a kid, don't have one!"

The clerk's smile froze on her face, and everyone in the store turned to look.

I stood off to the side and said nothing, watching the show in peace.

I wanted to see just how Brenda was going to keep this act going.

Right then, Brenda's phone rang.

She answered and listened for a few seconds. "What? Harold Abbott had a stroke? Which hospital? I'll be right there!"

She hung up and grabbed Denise by the arm. "Denise, let's go, something's happened to your dad!"

Denise dragged her feet, but she got hauled off to the hospital all the same.

The doctor said he needed surgery right away, with a two-thousand deposit.

Brenda handed over her bank card on the spot.

Three hours later, Harold was wheeled into the ICU.

Brenda slumped onto the bench, then finally dug a dusty old basic phone out of her bag and held it out to Denise.

"Denise, this is Mom's old phone. Use it for now."

Denise glanced down at it and didn't take it.

"I don't want it."

"It's just a phone! Your dad's lying in the ICU right now! You want a phone, or you want your dad?"

Denise bit her lip, her eyes going red.

Brenda suddenly turned her head toward me, changing tack.

"Cheryl, and then there's you, her sister-in-law. When other families' little sisters get into a good high school, the sister-in-law gives a gift. And you? You fobbed her off with a red string bracelet? Your salary's not low either. How can you be this stingy?"

"Before school starts, you'd better make up for Denise's gift!"

Denise looked up at me too, expectation in her eyes.

Great. Dumped the blame on me again.