One Degree Of Separation Part 23

"On what?"

"If you're sticking around."

"Okay, I can see that." Liddy glanced at Carrie's ruddy cheeks and glowing eyes. Marian had said she was content with her life, and Liddy could see what she meant. "I don't know. We're off to a rocky start."

"You don't have to do it all in a day. Some things are better in time."

140.

They parted ways at the fountain. Carrie turned toward Soap Opera and Liddy toward the library.

She gave herself a minute to calm down. She wanted to seem poised and confident when she saw Marian. She brushed imaginary lint off her shorts, then noticed-to her horror-that she'd missed a patch on one leg while shaving. Would Marian notice? Well, she couldn't go all the way home to fix it.

I am what I am, Marian Sue Pardoo. Liddy smoothed the tank top and made sure the scalloped edges curved evenly over her cleav-age. You ain't seen nothing like me yet.

141.

10.

"That p.o.r.n guy is back." Marian regarded her immediate super-visor, Dean, the head of reference, with an aggrieved air. This was the last thing her Sunday needed.

Dean gave her a weary look. "Are you sure?"

"If we wait another five minutes we'll have to dry clean the chair."

She fought down a shudder. "Mary Jane's day off, and you're person-in-charge."

Dean heaved a sigh. "Same guy from last week?"

"Yeah, the middle-aged guy with the as.h.i.+t Happens' T-s.h.i.+rt. He's been in magazines for a while, but he finally got a computer. Another patron has complained." Come on, Dean, she thought. Mary Jane would have had him out of here by now.

Dean finally got up and she led the way, then stood back to provide visual backup. She hated this. These kinds of patrons got rude and mean, sometimes, and it wasn't as if anyone ever considered that dealing with public masturbation was in a librarian's job description.

142.

"Excuse me, sir," Dean said firmly, and just loud enough to attract the attention of the nearest patrons. "You need to stop what you're doing or I will call the police."

"f.u.c.k off," the man snarled.

Dean turned toward the reference desk where the nearest phones were. "I am calling the police."

Cursing, the man got up. Marian noticed him pulling his hand out of his pocket. The erection was hard to miss. He stomped his way toward the exit while she quickly shut his monitor off so no other patrons would see the lurid photographs.

She was just turning to thank Dean for handling the matter when the man suddenly lunged at a reshelving cart near the lobby. "Hey!"

Her cry was lost in the sound of the books cascading to the floor as he pulled the cart onto its face. Reaching for the next one, he swore loudly and yanked it over as well.

Marian froze, horrified. Dean was already dialing 911. She was not stupid enough to try to stop him. Staff and patron safety were her only responsibilities.

"Leave him alone-please get back," Marian called to one man who looked as if he were going to interfere. "The police have been called."

Another cart crashed over as a stream of violent invectives flew, and Marian backed away. Okay, she was afraid. Eric was on the other side of the floor and two other staff members hovered worriedly at a distance. There was a rush of footsteps on the stairs from the upper floor, but thankfully no one came down. She could hear Dean describing the man as she took prudent cover behind the microfiche drawers.

All the carts tipped, the man swung around to the door, looking, Marian hoped, for escape. The door opened and to her horror a woman with a stroller and two kids came in, followed by Liddy, who had held the door.

If not for the stroller, he'd have made his way past everyone, but the stroller blocked most of the door, leaving Liddy the easiest thing 143 to push aside. Marian was already running to help, thinking only of Liddy's tender skin and gentle fingers, of ribs that had seemed so delicate under her hands.

He swung at Liddy to get her out of his way, and Marian watched in shock as Liddy grabbed the swinging arm and propelled the heav-ier man into the doorjamb. The woman with the stroller yelped and grabbed at the closest of the two kids, then Marian had the other one, carrying the child away from the struggle.

She wanted to shout at Liddy that there was no telling if this guy was armed or what. She surrendered the squealing kid to the terrified mother and swung back to Liddy just in time to see her duck out of his way as he went for the door again. To Marian's immense relief, Liddy let him go.

Liddy staggered, gasping for breath. "What was that about?

What happened?"

"You idiot, you didn't have to do some bulls.h.i.+t he-man routine!"

Marian knew she was shouting, but her adrenaline was pumping too hard not to.

Liddy looked at her in astonishment. "I was just pus.h.i.+ng him away from the kids!"

"You could have been hurt!"

"He swung at me! What was I supposed to do?"

"Is everyone okay?" Dean still had the phone in one hand, at the limit of the cord anchoring it to the wall. "Everyone is fine, no ambulance needed," he said into the handset. He listened intently, then hung up. "They've got somebody down the block they think is the guy. I'll be right back."

Marian stood gaping at Liddy, then Eric's rea.s.suring voice carried across the floor. "It's okay, everybody, calm down. Just a little pus.h.i.+ng and shoving. Everything is okay."

Do your job, Marian thought. She likewise began rea.s.suring patrons, but she was aware that Liddy was stock-still, watching her.

Only when it seemed that patrons were settling back down did Marian make her way to where Liddy stood.

144.

"I'm sorry I shouted," she said in a low voice. "I was frightened."

"Me, too," Liddy whispered.

"You're okay?"

"Yeah. It was all instinct. I just pushed him away from everybody, including me. What an a.s.shole!"

"He didn't like being told he couldn't jerk off at the library."

Male and female uniformed officers strode through the doors.

Marian identified herself. Liddy admitted she was the person who had gotten into the shoving match.

The woman went to question the mother with the stroller, while the man talked to Liddy. "Did you want to press charges, ma'am?"

Liddy looked dumbfounded. "He just pushed me-"

"He's out there with a b.l.o.o.d.y nose swearing he's going to sue you."

Marian said quickly, "You should protect yourself. I'm sorry this happened, so sorry."

"I'm from California," Liddy said, as if it made all the difference.

"Yes, ma'am, but I agree with Ms. Pardoo. We can't do much about a.s.sault on books, but a.s.sault on people we can."

Liddy gave Marian a helpless look. Marian gazed back, wanting to hug her tight. Such a stupid thing. Stupid man. Stupid p.o.r.n-addicted idiot of a slime bag. "I think you should."

"Okay," Liddy said to the officer. "I'll make a complaint. I mean, if that creep will do something like that with all these kids around he needs a reality check." She shrugged.

"Why don't you do the interview in the staff room," Marian suggested. She led the way, then made tea for Liddy, who looked pale.

The officer accepted a gla.s.s of water, more to put Liddy at ease than anything else, Marian thought.

Dean and Eric were in a huddle with the rest of the staff over the mess of books, and Marian joined them with sorting and stacking.

"Thanks, Dean, for getting the guy out of here. It's not your fault he lost it."

Dean didn't answer, but he gave her a grateful look.

145.

Eric handed Marian a group of children's books for the stack she was setting aside. "You were great. I didn't know you could yell that loud. And you picked up that kid like he was a feather."

"I have been known to haul forty-pound bags of dirt, you know."

She sighed to herself. The things she had done for love. Focus, she chided herself.

"Your friend is so butch," Eric commented.

Marian found a weak smile at the thought of Liddy's pink toenails and the impressive array of moisturizers, skin peels, hair treatments and perfumes she'd glimpsed in Liddy's bathroom-was it only two days ago? "I'll pa.s.s that on."

They were just finis.h.i.+ng with the books when Mary Jane arrived.

Dean must have called her, Marian thought. Her slacks and s.h.i.+rt were impeccable, but Marian caught a faint whiff of suntan lotion.

This was obviously not what Mary Jane had planned to do with her day.

"Is everyone okay? What happened?" Everyone talked at once until Mary Jane shushed them. "Let's start on the incident report, Dean. Does anyone need a doctor? Did anyone break so much as a fingernail?"

"I don't think so," Dean answered. "Considering how ballistic that guy went, we were lucky."

"Except maybe Marian's friend," Eric volunteered. "He pushed her pretty hard. Course he didn't expect to get pushed back."

"Who?" Mary Jane gave Marian a piercing look.

"Liddy. She was just walking in the door as he tried to run."

"Oh, Gaia help us, is she okay?"

"I'm fine," Liddy answered for herself. Marian thought she still looked pale. "Just in the wrong place, that's all."

"Thank goodness." To Marian's surprise, Mary Jane gave Liddy a quick hug. "Did you have some tea or something?"

"Marian made me some."

Mary Jane nodded, while giving Marian a sidelong look. "Good.

You're sure you're okay?"

146.

"Really. I do have a brown belt," Liddy said with a tight smile.

"Do you?"

Liddy shrugged. "It's mostly to stay in shape." She glanced at Marian. "I don't go around looking for places to pull off some he-man routine."

Ouch, Marian thought. "I am sorry about that. I may have been a bit frightened at the time."

"I came in to get that book. I didn't think . . ."

Mary Jane steadied Liddy with one hand. "Dizzy? It's just a reaction."

"I should have put sugar in the tea." Marian worried that Liddy was going to faint, but it didn't seem like a good idea to throw her arms around Liddy in front of everyone.

"This is ridiculous," Liddy muttered. "I've sparred."

"It's different when it's real."

"Marian, why don't you go ahead and take your dinner break?"

She merely nodded at Mary Jane, and then gestured toward the door and said to Liddy, "Let's get some fresh air and something to eat, okay? I could use that, seriously."

Liddy preceded her through the door and let out a surprised gasp as they stepped into the full heat of the afternoon. "Oh, I don't think I could get used to this."

"This is hot," Marian agreed. "About as bad as it gets, except for August."