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With a tingly smile on my face, I sauntered into our breakfast room where we ate breakfast on special occasions. I loved this room. Located off our kitchen, it was octagon-shaped, with built-in robin-blue cabinets and a hand-painted coffered ceiling. All original to the house. To keep with the airy spirit of the room, I’d furnished it with a round glass-top table and vintage moss-green wicker chairs with delightful chinoiserie-print cushions. It was pretty enough to be in an interior design magazine.
This year my birthday fell on the first Sunday in November. Matt, Paige, and Will, clad in their pajamas like me, were standing around the table. It was beautifully arranged, placemats set up with my Herend floral china, a housewarming gift from my mother-in-law, and a Lalique crystal vase filled with vibrant pink peonies in the center. My favorites. On the antique sideboard, neatly wrapped presents were grouped together next to my silver coffee service, pitchers of orange juice and milk, a fresh fruit platter, and a tray of assorted pastries—croissants, muffins, and palmiers from my favorite patisserie. One of them—a shimmering sugarcoated blueberry muffin—was already on my plate on the table. A single pink birthday candle was anchored in the middle.
I laughed. “You guys! I’m not turning one, I’m forty. The big four-oh.”
Matt chuckled. I don’t think my kids appreciated my sense of humor. They both rolled their eyes.
Matt stood and pecked my cheek. “Don’t worry, babe. You don’t look a day over thirty-nine.” Something my envious friends said to my face all the time. If only they knew…
The truth: I wasn’t a day over thirty-nine. This was actually my thirty-sixth birthday. When I met Matt at the trade show, I was only seventeen and a minor. I’d lied about my age (and a lot of other things) and told him I was twenty-one. I looked older than my years, more sophisticated, and I’d become an excellent actress out of necessity. Almost two decades later, I was still acting.
“Where’s Tanya?” I asked, suddenly realizing she wasn’t among us.
“She’s probably still in bed, hungover,” quipped Paige.
I narrowed my eyes at my daughter. “That’s really presumptuous. Tanya’s a lovely girl. Sometimes, I wish you were more like her.”
Before we could get into a tiff, the last thing I wanted on my birthday, Matt took out his monogrammed gold lighter and lit the candle. He urged me to blow it out and make a wish.
I lowered my head, and as the flame flickered in my eyes, I contemplated a wish. There was only one—I wished that my beloved Anabel could be here with me to celebrate my birthday and the rest of my life. Fighting back tears, I extinguished the flame with one breath.
My family clapped and cheered, extinguishing my sadness.
“Let’s eat!”
We all helped ourselves to the lovely continental breakfast, which included vegan poppy-seed muffins and almond milk for Paige. As I sat down at the table, with some coffee and my plate piled with deliciousness, my phone rang. I retrieved it from the pocket of my robe.
The caller ID said LAPD. A foreboding feeling fell over me as I accepted the call.
A stern, male voice on the other end greeted me. “Hello, is this the Merritt residence?”
“Yes, this is Mrs. Merritt.”
“This is Officer Hamilton with the LAPD.”
My heart pounded. My stomach clenched. I always knew this day would come. Trying to stay as calm as possible, I asked, “Is there something I can do for you, Officer?”
“There’s been an accident involving a vehicle registered to your husband.”
“What do you mean?” I was both relieved and confused that this was why the police were calling me. “All our cars are here parked in our garage.”
“Do you own a 2020 white Jeep Cherokee with the license plate number 823KYZ?”
“Yes, that’s my daughter’s car, and she’s sitting beside me.”
Able to overhear the conversation, Paige shot me a quizzical look. The officer continued.
“Another girl was driving the vehicle. The only form of identification she was carrying was her school ID. It says her name is Tanya Blackstone and listed you as her emergency contact.” A beat. “Mrs. Merritt, are you related to her?”
“No, but I guess you could say I’m her guardian. She’s a guest of our family…a foreign exchange student who’s staying with us.” I took a long, shuddery breath. “Is she okay?”
“I’m unable to answer that. She crashed into a tree and was taken by ambulance to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. To the emergency department.”
“Oh my God!” My mouth dropped open and I felt my body tremble. The phone shook in my hand.
“You should know, Mrs. Merritt, we found her unconscious.”
My heart almost beat out of my chest as he continued. “The car was towed. Here’s the number to call to retrieve it.”
