Maxine by SUE FINEMAN Read Free Book Online Page A

worried about you, he’s offering a reward.”
    “Oh, no,” she whispered mostly to herself.
    “He wants to lock her up in an institution,” said Nick. “He’s after her money.”
    Angelo’s mouth dropped open. “No way.”
    Would these men go after the reward? Nick wouldn’t, but she wasn’t so sure about Tony and Angelo. She didn’t know them.
    “Hey, don’t worry about us,” said Tony. “We won’t turn you in.”
    If only she could be sure. If the road was fixed, she’d leave today, but with Lance on television, where could she hide that someone wouldn’t recognize her?
    Nick fingered Cara’s hair. “Angelo, can you fix her hair? I had to chop it off to get her loose. Be careful of her right shoulder. It’s banged up pretty bad.”
    Angelo ran his fingers through Cara’s hair. “What a shame to lose all that pretty hair. How do you want it?”
    “Whatever you think, Angelo. I’ve never had short hair, so I’ll leave it up to you.”
    As Angelo worked, Tony talked about an elderly neighbor whose house had been damaged in the earthquake. Poor woman couldn’t stay in her home unless it was fixed, and quickly.
    “I don’t know how to fix a house,” said Cara, “but I can help with money.”
    Nick shook his head. “Cara, there are agencies—”
    “Come on, Nick,” said Angelo. “You know Mrs. Cooperman would never ask an agency for help.”
    Cara felt Angelo’s gentle hands in her hair, combing, snipping, shaping. “As soon as I find an attorney, I’ll have him set up a company, but that takes time. I want you to take care of Mrs. Cooperman right away.”
    “What are you going to call this company?” asked Angelo.
    She looked from one face to another. “Any suggestions?”
    Nick answered, “Max and Company.”
    Cara exchanged a long look with Nick. She would have called it Donatelli Construction. Maybe someday there would be a company by that name, but Nick was a proud man, and he needed the satisfaction of building it on his own. “Max and Company. I like it.”
    Angelo finished and handed Cara a hand mirror. He had layered her hair to take advantage of the natural curl. “Angelo, you’re a genius. I won’t let anyone cut it but you.” Running her fingers through her hair, she felt the curls spring back. Her first short haircut. No more braids or ponytails, no more twenty-minute sessions with the hair dryer. No more snarls that took forever to work out. It felt light and free. She should have cut it years ago.
    Cara pulled a few thousand dollars from her purse and handed it to Angelo. “Is this enough to get started?”
    Tony shrugged. “Yeah, sure.”
    “Track your expenses and don’t forget to pay yourselves. As soon as I can get around, I’ll get the company set up and you can help other people, too.” Whether she stayed here in Gig Harbor or not, she’d set up the company to help other people with earthquake repairs. It was the least she could do for other victims.
    Nick walked outside and played Frisbee with the dog, and Tony and Angelo followed. Cara had longed for a dog like Riley when she was a kid, especially after her little brother, her only sibling, died from a tragic fall. Johnny’s death threw their mother into a deep depression and she needed full-time medical help, so the trustees of the estate sent her to a sanitarium, where she lived until her death last October. Johnny had a collie, but the dog wasn’t allowed in the house after Cara’s guardians moved in. Mrs. Corinth proclaimed the dog ‘unclean’ even though he was kept bathed and brushed. The dog lived with a member of the household staff until he died of old age.
    Tony and Angelo said goodbye and took Riley home. Cara found Nick sitting on the front steps, staring out at the water. She sat beside him. “Nick? Did I do something wrong?”
    “Helping Mrs. Cooperman was a nice thing to do, but you didn’t stop there. You’re setting up a company, for God’s sake.”
    “If you had the kind of