Page 35 (1/2)

I went back to talk to Ms Osiecki after taking a deep breath

A woman of about thirty stood up from her broad desk She had well-cut short red-streaked brown hair, blue eyes, and brown glasses She earing a nice white blouse and a wildly flowered skirt and high-heeled sandals She was sotten lost between the reception area and her office

"Sookie Stackhouse," I said, shaking the outstretched hand

She glanced down at the pad, and I could see she was going over the notes she’d scribbled the day before when I’d called her She looked over at the big Scenic Louisiana poster by her desk "Well," she said, shooting me a quizzical look "It really is a special day for you, isn’t it? It’s your birthday, and you’re going to e after I left the lawyers’ office I guess there’s nothing toyour will It’s also a literally do-or-die moment When your will is read, it will be the last time people will hear your voice: the last expression of your will and your wishes, the last stateely revelatory hour

Beth Osiecki was going to put everything in legalese, and I had to con it Just in case, I told her, I’d like to sign a list of the points I’dI asked her if that would al

"Sure," she’d said She’d ser store of "strange client" stories, and that was okay with me

When I left Beth Osiecki’s office, I was pretty proud of ure out what to do next It was three in the afternoon I’d had a late breakfast, and a full lunch was out of the question I didn’t need to go to the library; I had several library books I hadn’t read yet I could go home and sunbathe, which was always a pleasant pastioodthat now, standing here on the sidewalk The sun was glaring down ferociously I figured it was at least a hundred degrees My cell phone rang as I hesitated to touch the handle of my car door

"Hello?" I fished a tissue out of ers as I opened the door The heat rolled out

"Sookie? How are you?"

"Quinn?" I couldn’t believe it "I’lad to hear from you"

"Happy birthday," he said

I could feel my lips curve up in an involuntary smile "You remembered!" I said "Thanks!" I was absurdly pleased I hadn’t exactly thought Tara would be thinking about ht twins home from the hospital, but maybe I’d been a tiny bit flattened when she hadn’t

"Hey, a birthday is an ier said I hadn’t seen hiood to hear his deep voice

"How are you?" I hesitated for a erin?" The last time I’d seen Quinn, he’d just le and one-of-the-last-of-her-kind weretigress I don’t think I have to draw you a picture

"I’o!" I said "So you guys have ?"

"That’s not exactly the e do it, Sookie"

"Uer er mom"

"Gosh, that see

"To me, too But Tij’s real traditional She says that when she has the baby, she’ll go into hiding until he’s weaned Her ht see him as a threat" I couldn’t read Quinn’s mind over the phone, but he sounded plenty exasperated and not a little resentful

As far as I knew-and I’d done a little reading on tigers when I was Quinn’s girlfriend-only er cubs But since this was totally none of nation I felt on Quinn’s behalf At least, I tried to

So she’d used hier baby and now she didn’t want to see him anymore?

I told myself sternly, NotEven werepanthers!)

Since , I leaped in with both feet "Well, I’m so happy that you’ll have a cub, since there aren’t uess your mama and your sister are excited?"

"Uhwell, htened up a lot when I told her, but it was just te houy, and she took off with him last month I’h I’ on your birthday, and I didn’t reat day, Sookie No one deserves it more" He hesitated, and I could tell there were more words that he wanted to say "Maybe you could callto celebrate?"

I tried to do so in a very short ti out all the cracks and crevices in this tentative overture "Maybe," I said "I hope I do so about So far, all I’ve done is," he said

"You know I’m not"

There was a serious silence