chewing over this a lot. Half of me says I should leave. Merry would snap out of it. Half of me says she won't snap out of it. In that case, she'll need more than a shrink to help. Half of me says she could spiral out of control in either case. If she gets too bad, it'll mean institutionalization. Any option screws the kids up.”
“You do know that's three halves.” Raney twirled the dregs of her wine.
“Never was good with numbers. I want to come home, but I can't. I may have to hogtie and drag Merry to a therapist. She's got to come around. If not, I'll have three children on my hands, instead of two.”
“Have you thought about bringing Merry to New York? Lord knows, we have more shrinks than any other city.”
“Bring Merry here?”
Raney nodded.
I'd never thought about that. Would getting Merry completely away from her family do the trick? I had to consider it.
“If that won't work, you have a fourth half. You could stay in Riverbend.”
“I know. I don't want to stay. Every time I think about leaving, I go on a major league guilt trip. I can't abandon Em and Alex. Whip won't let me bring them to New York for any extended period, so if I'm going to take care of them, I have to be in Richmond.”
“Didn't you say Merry was moody as a child?” Raney reached for her latte.
“I thought she was a normal teen. With perfect hindsight, I'm not so sure. Anyway, I took her to a therapist after her dad died. He didn't find anything wrong. She was grieving. He gave her Valium.”
“Which was the magic panacea at the time. Take the pill, and everything will be all right.”
Raney stirred sugar into her cup. “You know, some of that early hostility could be coming back. Maybe some mental block broke loose. Maybe she no longer has control over what she says.”
“Em said the same thing. Now that I look back, Merry was self-destructive in junior high.” I half-closed my eyes against the memories. “She used to bite her hands and arms. Said the neighbor's dog did it.”
“Really?”
“It didn't last long, though. I forgot about it.” I sat in thoughtful silence looking back at Merry's childhood. “In high school she got hooked on diet pills.”
“My girls did too. They wanted to be rail thin, so they went for the pills.”
“Better than today's bulimia or anorexia. Maybe if I'd paid closer attention, I could have figured out her behavior and gotten her help.”
“Maybe if her doctor asked better questions, he could have discovered her problem.” Raney's eyes clouded. “You're not a psychiatrist. Nothing in the common literature of the day would have told you what her behavior meant.”
“I'm so damned scared. Merry drinks in secret. She's addicted to drugs too. She has piles of prescriptions. Always sucking down a pill or two.”
“Sounds like she needs drug rehab more than physical therapy. Can't you get her into a clinic so the doctors can put her through detox and teach her coping skills? Therapy only helps if Merry's ready to admit she has problems, though.” Raney sighed. “Listen to me. The new queen of pop culture psychobabble.”
“Watch out, Dr. Phil. Dr. Raney's ready for prime time.” Raney made me feel better. I still needed a Dr. Phil.
“I hope it works out. I'm selfish. I want you to come home. I miss our weekly dinners and bridge games.”
“I miss you too. I want my life back.” I didn't feel the least bit guilty admitting it. “I'm way more concerned about Em than Merry. She says such odd things. Like knowing her mother's not doing well. Knowing she's thinking crazy, mixed-up thoughts. Knowing she's not the same.”
“Is she trying to get attention?”
“I thought so at first. No, when she tells me something about her mother, she goes very pale. Breaks out in a cold sweat and trembles. She apparently knew the exact moment Merry was injured.” I blew on my latte.
“That's not possible.” Raney frowned.
“Bette confirmed Em went ashen just after ten the
“You do know that's three halves.” Raney twirled the dregs of her wine.
“Never was good with numbers. I want to come home, but I can't. I may have to hogtie and drag Merry to a therapist. She's got to come around. If not, I'll have three children on my hands, instead of two.”
“Have you thought about bringing Merry to New York? Lord knows, we have more shrinks than any other city.”
“Bring Merry here?”
Raney nodded.
I'd never thought about that. Would getting Merry completely away from her family do the trick? I had to consider it.
“If that won't work, you have a fourth half. You could stay in Riverbend.”
“I know. I don't want to stay. Every time I think about leaving, I go on a major league guilt trip. I can't abandon Em and Alex. Whip won't let me bring them to New York for any extended period, so if I'm going to take care of them, I have to be in Richmond.”
“Didn't you say Merry was moody as a child?” Raney reached for her latte.
“I thought she was a normal teen. With perfect hindsight, I'm not so sure. Anyway, I took her to a therapist after her dad died. He didn't find anything wrong. She was grieving. He gave her Valium.”
“Which was the magic panacea at the time. Take the pill, and everything will be all right.”
Raney stirred sugar into her cup. “You know, some of that early hostility could be coming back. Maybe some mental block broke loose. Maybe she no longer has control over what she says.”
“Em said the same thing. Now that I look back, Merry was self-destructive in junior high.” I half-closed my eyes against the memories. “She used to bite her hands and arms. Said the neighbor's dog did it.”
“Really?”
“It didn't last long, though. I forgot about it.” I sat in thoughtful silence looking back at Merry's childhood. “In high school she got hooked on diet pills.”
“My girls did too. They wanted to be rail thin, so they went for the pills.”
“Better than today's bulimia or anorexia. Maybe if I'd paid closer attention, I could have figured out her behavior and gotten her help.”
“Maybe if her doctor asked better questions, he could have discovered her problem.” Raney's eyes clouded. “You're not a psychiatrist. Nothing in the common literature of the day would have told you what her behavior meant.”
“I'm so damned scared. Merry drinks in secret. She's addicted to drugs too. She has piles of prescriptions. Always sucking down a pill or two.”
“Sounds like she needs drug rehab more than physical therapy. Can't you get her into a clinic so the doctors can put her through detox and teach her coping skills? Therapy only helps if Merry's ready to admit she has problems, though.” Raney sighed. “Listen to me. The new queen of pop culture psychobabble.”
“Watch out, Dr. Phil. Dr. Raney's ready for prime time.” Raney made me feel better. I still needed a Dr. Phil.
“I hope it works out. I'm selfish. I want you to come home. I miss our weekly dinners and bridge games.”
“I miss you too. I want my life back.” I didn't feel the least bit guilty admitting it. “I'm way more concerned about Em than Merry. She says such odd things. Like knowing her mother's not doing well. Knowing she's thinking crazy, mixed-up thoughts. Knowing she's not the same.”
“Is she trying to get attention?”
“I thought so at first. No, when she tells me something about her mother, she goes very pale. Breaks out in a cold sweat and trembles. She apparently knew the exact moment Merry was injured.” I blew on my latte.
“That's not possible.” Raney frowned.
“Bette confirmed Em went ashen just after ten the
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