Jessie & Elizabeth (abandoned)

3. A Lion Snaps

Ari sprinted towards the door on all fours, roaring like a tiger. Camille shifted in my arms, whining for me to let her go so she could do the same. It was late, though, and she had already scraped her knee falling when running for the zoo exit. Her skirt was ripped and bloody, and I hoped to be able to change her into something else before her mother returned home.

Seemed today was my unlucky day, though, because there was Elizabeth in the doorway, her arms crossed, looking at me tight-lipped.

"Mom!" Ari called, attacking her legs and burying her head in her mother's belly.

To my surprise, Elizabeth held her close for a second, stroking her head. "What have you been up to?" she asked. "You're covered in mud."

"We went to the zoo," Ari said, "Jessie took us. There were bears, mom, they were so big! Cami was scared, but I wasn't. And there was a playground with a really high slide, and Jessie said I could climb up it, and then I fell, in the mud!" Her face was shining like that was the best thing that could happen to a person, but Elizabeth frowned, thinking it was decidedly not.

"That sounds amazing, Ari," she said, although her brooding expression did not match her tone. "Now you go on and run yourself a bath. I'm sure Manon will help you."

Manon sighed deeply, walking up to her mom with slumped shoulders. "Why do I have to help her?" she asked.

"Because you're older than her," Elizabeth said, then added: "Are you okay?"

The girl seemed to be debating something, then gave a defiant look. "Yes. I've never had so much fun."

If my daughter would've said something like that to me, in that tone, my heart would've broken into a million pieces: she, however, just nodded. "I'm glad to hear it. Now go and help your sister."

And Manon too vanished out of sight. That left me, miss Schneider, and Camille, who immediately ran up to her mom to hug her legs. The three of them were discussing the day, Elizabeth in her quiet, serious voice, Camille's shrill in excitement, and I wondered if I should just cut my losses and leave now, avoiding what would no doubt be a stern speech and a firm goodbye. Only, I absolutely needed the money, and Elizabeth seemed like a woman who, no matter how annoyed, would always hold up her end of a deal.

When miss Schneider had finally taken Camille inside to start preparing dinner, she turned to me, her arms crossed once more. She had gotten out of the pantsuit and into a pair of faded jeans, something I had never expected her to wear, and although her honey-brown hair was a bit wild, she still looked as composed and elegant as a few hours ago. Manon had told me her mother had just turned thirty, but she could've given me any lower number, and I would've believed her too. She glowered at me, her shoulders tense. "Help me here, will you," she said, and without meaning to, I took a step back. "You turn up out of nowhere, and I decide to let you watch my kids for a few hours, and then you think, 'well, why don't I take them to the zoo?'."

"That about sums it up, yeah," I said, rubbing the side of my face. Oh boy, I'd dug myself a good one again. Me and my spontaneous ideas.

Elizabeth huffed in disbelief. "That's all you got to say for yourself?"

"Yeah, pretty much."

She placed her fingers on her forehead, sighing deeply. "I can't believe I didn't cancel," she muttered, more to herself than to me. Without saying anything else, she turned around and returned a while later with her wallet, counting twenties. She stuck out her hand, and I took the bills from her — that was certainly a hundred dollars. Wow, I'd just made a hundred dollars by going to the zoo. How nice was that?

"Thanks," I said, probably smiling way too widely. All at once, she didn't seem all that bad. "You know, they wanted you to be there. Manon was just bluffing."

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes again. "I'm sorry, what are you implying?" she said, her voice so icy a chill ran down my spine. "I believe it was you who suddenly decided you had to go to the zoo."

"Now, hang on a second—"

"Goodnight."

"But—"

Too late. The door had closed with a bang, and I could hear her footsteps retreating.

"I wanted to say goodbye," I mumbled.

For a while, I stared at the mansion in front of me, the many windows in the red brick walls — where were Manon and Ari right now? What would they think if I'd just disappear?

Nothing, a voice in the back of my head spoke up, you were just another adult paid to take care of them; they're used to it.

Resolutely, I spun around, marching back down the driveway with my arms wrapped around myself, the gravel crunching beneath my feet. I looked back one last time, spotting Camille in the windowsill of the living room. She waved at me, pouting a bit. I waved back.

Just like that, I was back on the bottom of my dried-up well.