"So, you're going to be gone all day today, Susie?" Stephanie Beasley asked. She was an ample woman in a black pair of slacks and yellow sweater; her plump face with red hair, blue eyes and dimpled smile greeted Susanna Cox as she peeked over the cubicle.
"Yes, Steffie, I'm going to be out all day." Susie sat wearing a white silk blouse with a blue skirt. Beautifully made up and coiffed from an early morning trip to the salon, she smiled at her friend of three months. "Ya' know, sometimes it's like that: famine for a while, then feast."
"You'd be the first girl feasting in this job," Steffie smiled. "You're the third person in this job this year, and the other two girls hated it with a passion. No priest wants to see someone from the diocesan paper. The bishop's crazy thinking he can increase circulation the same way regular newspapers do. Your job's impossible; I've said that all along."
Susie looked off to the distance. "Well, maybe I've been blessed."
"Blessed," Steffie snorted. "God knows what it will take. How's the family?"
"Terri's got a cold. The boys are all right."
"And your husband?"
"SSDD."
"Same shit, different day? I can relate Susie, believe me, I can relate." Steffie said, tossing her head.
"At least it's security."
"Yeah, right. No rent, no worries and no action."
Susanna bent over her computer monitor and rechecked her emails. There was another one just this morning, after the two from yesterday setting up appointments for today. She hoped her neighbor didn't see the text and wonder aloud what the reference to apples meant.
Steffie's phone rang and she picked it up. Listening, she put her hand over the handset as she whispered to her departing neighbor. "Good luck today."
"Thanks, Steffie."
Susie could hardly keep her thoughts on her driving as she went through a red light in a bad neighborhood. The first parish on her schedule was a priest she'd never met before, but Fr. Christian Farnsworth assured her that Fr. Cody Miles was a good man she could trust. It had been years since she had an encounter like the one with Chris two days earlier.
The parish was in a bad neighborhood; Fr. Cody must be in the bishop's bad graces if he ended up here. A small, walled parking lot gate barely accommodated Susie's Suburban, and she breathed a sigh of relief as she maneuvered to a parking place.
"Yes," the door intercom squawked as she pushed the button.
"I'm Susanna Cox, I have an appointment with Father Miles."
A crackle and squeal, then a buzz. "Come in, Ms. Cox. Father is expecting you."
Her senses tingled as she entered. The hallway had a faded glamour: with worn rugs and old wooden furniture, pictures of old saints on the walls, and unused sacramental vessels in small glass cabinets. A large man in a Roman Collar greeted her. "Mrs. Cox? I'm Father Cody Miles. Welcome to St. Brendan's."
"Thank you, Father. I think you know why I'm here."
"Yes." The man was in his late 40's, a hundred pounds overweight, in a dark suit, black shoes and slick black hair parted in the middle. His chubby cheeks and full lips dominated his face, his brown eyes lounged in folds of fat. His hands were shaking as he limply shook hands with her. "Where should we go?"
"Your office should be fine. Tell your secretary you're not to be disturbed."
"She's not here today. Just somebody to answer the phones, she won't leave the front office no matter what. The housekeeper's not in until tomorrow. We'll be undisturbed." He licked his lips and his eyes darted around her.
They entered an office bigger than her boss had, with somewhat shabby furniture. A large leather couch dominated one end of the room. He flopped down, arms spread wide. "What's next?"