Conchetta and I sit in a cool spot behind the li

    brary on a couple of old patio chairs that have been there forever. It's her lunch break and we're catching up. She shakes her head as I tell her about Sophie and Dr. Strangelove. Sophie is home from the hospital now, but she doesn't seem like her old self. More head shaking as I tell Conchetta about Evvie becoming one of the rich people overnight and taking up with a potential murderer.

  "Incredible." Her head is still shaking as I tell her that Jack and I no longer see each other. Jack's choice.

  "No, not Jack! He loves you."

  "Maybe so, but he's out of my life."

  "Madre mia! And all that's happened this week?" she marvels as we sip water and fan our selves with back-issue magazines left on the small patio. "Bet things were never this interesting in the years when you were a librarian."

  "That's for sure," I say. "The plots were always in the books, not in my life. How's your family?"

  "Pretty dull compared to your comings and goings. My sister, Nina, is pregnant again. The family is hoping for a boy after three girls."

  "That's great."

  "Never mind me. You seem so unhappy, amiga."

  "I'm miserable. I'm so tired of trying to take care of everyone and their problems. I guess I need somebody for me to lean on."

  She angles her ample shoulder toward me. "This one's available."

  I take her up on her offer. I lean into her and we sit that way quietly for a few moments, listening to the sounds of ducks in the near distance. All the houses in this neighborhood back onto canals. And ducks are ever-present.

  Conchetta breaks the silence. "Let me quote my uncle Paco. No matter what's wrong, he always says get a second opinion. The car won't work, the mechanic wants to bill you five hundred bucks for a valve job. Paco's advice: Get another opinion. Sophie's doctor is a quack at best, so get . . ."

  I finish it for her. "Another opinion."

  "Yes. And this case of yours, ditto. Evvie is not thinking clearly right now. Discuss it with someone who's not emotionally involved."

"You're on a roll. And Jack?"

  "That's a puzzle. I think you need to wait until you see him again. And you will. He's a good man. He wouldn't want to make you unhappy."

  "He already has. Guess there's no statute of limitations on getting dumped no matter how old you are."

  More sitting quietly. A gaily colored kite appears, flying lazily above us. Then it disappears over the palm trees. "Conchetta, lately I've been thinking of our old group. When Francie was still alive, when Millie didn't have Alzheimer's. Sandy and Joan hadn't moved back north. You were always the baby in the group among us old bags. Remember the fun we had?"

  "Sure do. The concerts we went to, the lectures, the crazy Bollywood movies from India that we loved."

  "What I liked best about them is the way hundreds of people would just appear and sing and dance regardless of the plot."

  I'm starting to feel better already. I start to giggle.

  "And the wild parties we had for the Oscars when we dressed up as characters from the nominated movies. Remember when you came as Darth Vader and your pants dropped off when you and Sandy were having a sword fight?"

  Now Conchetta is giggling as well.

  "Oh, what about election nights? The scream

ing and throwing popcorn at the TV set every time you-know-who captured a state."

  She hits me playfully on the shoulder. I hit back.

  "Please don't remind me. Millie, Sandy and Joan, and Francie tap-dancing to that song they wrote called 'Chads: Dimples, Hanging, and Preggy.' Silliness like that. Don't get me started on stuffing ballot boxes."

  I laugh out loud. It's the first time in a while. How nice to be spending a relaxing time with a friend. "We don't have much fun anymore. No, I shouldn't say that. You and your family still laugh a lot."

  "You don't hear us when we discuss Cuba."

  "I feel discombobulated. I want to go back when we were all together."

  "Not going to happen, pobrecita. You have to make do with what is. As you very well know."

  "Remember Francie always saying carpe diem? Seize the day!"

  "Yeah, and she was right. Take every day and make it count."

  "And she did. Every day was to be lived to the fullest for Francie. Now she's gone—"

  Barney pops out of the back door. "School bus with a zillion noisy teenagers. Help!" He hurries back inside.

  We get up, stretch. "I feel like I'm one hundred years old," I say.

  "Me, too, and I'm only thirty-eight."

That afternoon I drive back to Wilmington House in Alvin's Caddy. I feel like a yo-yo. I almost forgot to change cars. Can you imagine the looks I'd get from the attendants if I accidentally drove the old Chevy up to the entrance?

  Ida will keep an eye on Sophie and report to me. This is difficult. I feel I need to be in both places and it's not possible. My priority right now is finding out what Evvie is up to.

  Of course, that might not be so easy. When I go upstairs, Evvie is not in her room. Where has my sister gone now?