Chapter Eighteen

Kelleigh was suddenly excited. She hadn't really felt excited about anything for a really long time, she realized. She went to bed without eating dinner; the past few days had been exhausting and full of change. She had to get up in the morning and secure Steve's money before his family claimed it. As she lay there, she realized that she would have to call into her work. She hadn't thought about that at all either. In just two days, everything had changed.

The alarm woke Kelleigh up the next morning. She shut if off and fell back onto the pillows. She was exhausted and she had a headache. She lay there trying to remember why she was so tired and why the alarm had woken her up. She lay there for a few minutes until consciousness brought everything rushing back with full force: Steve died, the racecar, the money, the test. She had so much to do today! She threw the covers back and nearly ran into the bathroom to get ready.

It was the first morning in a long while that she was excited to be up and about in the morning. She hadn't had anything to look forward to in quite a while. While she wasn't necessarily looking forward to getting the death certificate, she was interested in the newfound money. Moreover, she was interested in taking the test tomorrow.

What she did truly forget was the fact that she hadn't called back to the track to get a recommendation for a reputable chassis builder or paint shop. She groaned thinking about it now; surely there wouldn't be anyone available at the track until Thursday. Oh well, she thought, I have enough to do in the next two days. The racecar will wait.

She called into work and spoke to her boss. Briefly explaining what happened, she was immediately excused from work for “as long as you need.” Kelleigh found herself not caring. Her work was just one more thing that she found herself dissatisfied with. Well, now she had time to change that, if she wished.

Next she flipped through the telephone book and called a security company. She made an appointment to have a security alarm installed on the house and garage. They couldn’t come until the end of the week and Kelleigh hoped that nothing would happen before then.

The next call was to the racetrack. The telephone clicked over to voicemail and she left a message, not expecting anyone to get back to her until the weekend.

The final call was the most nerve-wracking. She called the tech school and inquired about taking the test in place of Steve. After some cajoling and maneuvering, she finally gained permission to take the test. Because of her job, she was enrolled in a continuing adult education program. Otherwise, her plan to take the mechanics test would have been thwarted.

Feeling accomplished, she headed out to the funeral home and bank. The stop at the funeral home to get Steve's death certificate was incredibly easy. She showed her drivers and marriage licenses and had three copies in hand within fifteen minutes. She expected judgment on behalf of the funeral home directors but there was none. Apparently, any time that they had spent with Steve's family had made the dynamic crystal clear.