bitten him to get his attention.
“I—” The word came abruptly from somewhere deep in his throat. His eyes focused and grew moist at the same moment. “I can’t,” he rasped and jerked his head away to stare straight ahead once more.
“That’s all right,” I told him. I dropped his poor hand and kissed him on the neck. “That’s all right.” There was still someone in there. That was all I needed to know.
I took a big breath and turned my own moist eyes forward.
A few moments later, I noticed three pairs of eyes staring back.
Gail Norton was the most obvious. She studied Wayne and me through her aviator glasses as if we were laboratory rats. There was a hint of dissatisfaction evident in the flare of her nostrils and the asymmetry of her brows, as if we rats were not producing the results she had hypothesized. Suddenly, I wondered if she was actually a research psychologist, not a psychotherapist as her mother had told me. Somehow, I just couldn’t imagine anyone pouring out their problems to Gail Norton.
Dru stood between her daughter and her husband, watching us a little less obviously out of the corner of one eye. She turned her head and whispered into Gail’s ear. Gail’s eyes didn’t flicker. Dru turned back and reached out for Bill’s left hand. His left was the only one available. He held a glass tumbler in his right hand. He gazed in our general direction with his usual bland smile.
I raised my hand and wiggled my fingers in a little wave just to let them know I saw them. Maybe their looks were meant to be friendly. Dru giggled and waved back. Bill toasted me with his tumbler. Gail continued to stare unblinkingly. Maybe she and Wayne could have a contest, I thought. I certainly wasn’t interested. I looked away, over to the corner of the living room where Trent, Lori, Ingrid and Mandy had gathered.
At least they weren’t staring at us. Ingrid’s eyes were closed as she hugged her granddaughter to her. And all I could see of Mandy’s head was her neatly braided hair. Trent and Lori’s heads were thrust at each other, brows down. Were they arguing? A harsh whisper drifted my way.
“… your mother is far too emotional—”
“Of course, she’s emotional, Dad!” Lori whispered back fiercely. Her bracelets jangled as she thumped her hands onto her hips. “Anyone human would be emotional….”
I tuned them out quickly and let my gaze travel to Clara and Harmony, who had taken seats on the other black leather couch. While Harmony sobbed Clara was murmuring something to her that I couldn’t hear.
I closed my own eyes for a minute, suddenly very tired.
“It was totally gross, I mean really totally gross….” a high-pitched voice was insisting.
Eric. That had to be Eric. But where was he? And where was Ace? I pulled my eyes open with an effort. They weren’t in the living room.
“Why did she puke all over the place?” Eric asked. The kitchen. That’s where his voice was coming from.
I heard the low rumble of Ace’s answer but not his words.
“I never knew that people puked when they had heart attacks, Grampy,” said Eric. “I thought they just like grabbed their chests and, you know, keeled over or something. But this was totally gross….”
Eric was right as usual. The whole damn situation was “totally gross.” No doubt about it. And his questions were on point too. Did people throw up when they had heart attacks? I didn’t know the answer to that one. But I was pretty sure people sometimes threw up when they were poisoned. And Vesta had tried to tell Harmony about something, something New Age, herbal and organic. Could it have been anything but the tea? Then I thought of the teapot, lying inches from her hand. Ugh.
I felt a wave of nausea as I remembered the scene in Vesta’s bedroom. And with the nausea came an unpleasant thought, one I hadn’t wanted to consider before. If Vesta had been poisoned, the poisoner might well be someone in this room. But that was
“I—” The word came abruptly from somewhere deep in his throat. His eyes focused and grew moist at the same moment. “I can’t,” he rasped and jerked his head away to stare straight ahead once more.
“That’s all right,” I told him. I dropped his poor hand and kissed him on the neck. “That’s all right.” There was still someone in there. That was all I needed to know.
I took a big breath and turned my own moist eyes forward.
A few moments later, I noticed three pairs of eyes staring back.
Gail Norton was the most obvious. She studied Wayne and me through her aviator glasses as if we were laboratory rats. There was a hint of dissatisfaction evident in the flare of her nostrils and the asymmetry of her brows, as if we rats were not producing the results she had hypothesized. Suddenly, I wondered if she was actually a research psychologist, not a psychotherapist as her mother had told me. Somehow, I just couldn’t imagine anyone pouring out their problems to Gail Norton.
Dru stood between her daughter and her husband, watching us a little less obviously out of the corner of one eye. She turned her head and whispered into Gail’s ear. Gail’s eyes didn’t flicker. Dru turned back and reached out for Bill’s left hand. His left was the only one available. He held a glass tumbler in his right hand. He gazed in our general direction with his usual bland smile.
I raised my hand and wiggled my fingers in a little wave just to let them know I saw them. Maybe their looks were meant to be friendly. Dru giggled and waved back. Bill toasted me with his tumbler. Gail continued to stare unblinkingly. Maybe she and Wayne could have a contest, I thought. I certainly wasn’t interested. I looked away, over to the corner of the living room where Trent, Lori, Ingrid and Mandy had gathered.
At least they weren’t staring at us. Ingrid’s eyes were closed as she hugged her granddaughter to her. And all I could see of Mandy’s head was her neatly braided hair. Trent and Lori’s heads were thrust at each other, brows down. Were they arguing? A harsh whisper drifted my way.
“… your mother is far too emotional—”
“Of course, she’s emotional, Dad!” Lori whispered back fiercely. Her bracelets jangled as she thumped her hands onto her hips. “Anyone human would be emotional….”
I tuned them out quickly and let my gaze travel to Clara and Harmony, who had taken seats on the other black leather couch. While Harmony sobbed Clara was murmuring something to her that I couldn’t hear.
I closed my own eyes for a minute, suddenly very tired.
“It was totally gross, I mean really totally gross….” a high-pitched voice was insisting.
Eric. That had to be Eric. But where was he? And where was Ace? I pulled my eyes open with an effort. They weren’t in the living room.
“Why did she puke all over the place?” Eric asked. The kitchen. That’s where his voice was coming from.
I heard the low rumble of Ace’s answer but not his words.
“I never knew that people puked when they had heart attacks, Grampy,” said Eric. “I thought they just like grabbed their chests and, you know, keeled over or something. But this was totally gross….”
Eric was right as usual. The whole damn situation was “totally gross.” No doubt about it. And his questions were on point too. Did people throw up when they had heart attacks? I didn’t know the answer to that one. But I was pretty sure people sometimes threw up when they were poisoned. And Vesta had tried to tell Harmony about something, something New Age, herbal and organic. Could it have been anything but the tea? Then I thought of the teapot, lying inches from her hand. Ugh.
I felt a wave of nausea as I remembered the scene in Vesta’s bedroom. And with the nausea came an unpleasant thought, one I hadn’t wanted to consider before. If Vesta had been poisoned, the poisoner might well be someone in this room. But that was
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