Page 38

"And you never told him who you really are?"

"Maybe I should have. Maybe he would have been calmer and understood and not been in such a rage against me. but I was frightened. I didn't want to cause any more trouble."

She stared at me a moment and then nodded.

"It's not your fault," she said with surprising firmness. "It's been Megan's fault from day one. And my parents' fault for always making excuses for her, doing things to cover up her mistakes, permitting her to live in a rose-colored world.

"If she did poorly in school, they blamed it on the teachers or the subject. If she spent money unwisely, it was because someone scammed her. Always the victim. Poor Megan this. poor Megan that.

"Grant shouldn't have been so understanding once the truth about you was out," she continued, talking mostly to herself now. "She plays that game all too well, getting people to feel sorrier for her all the time. Men are so weak when it comes to someone like Megan. My father was blind and stupid whenever he looked at her, listened to her, saw the things she had done. She's a snake charmer.

"Grant is in a different situation," she said, catching herself. her eyes nearly clicking with the change in her tone of voice. "He was trapped this time. Of course, he couldn't just heave her out and let the world know what he had married. He has a great future. I understand that. You compromise to get what you want. That's good business sense.

"Grant has wonderful business sen

se. He admires that in me, too, you know. I can tell,"

She pressed her thin lips together firmly and nodded.

"I've got to go to him to see what I can do to help him. My sister won't be able to help him one iota. She'll play the role of a tragic woman so no one dares blame her for any of this."

She fixed her eyes on me, the pupils smaller, her eyelids trembling with her fury. "But you and I know the truth, don't we? One day, we'll force her to face it.

"All right," she said standing. "don't do anything or say anything about this to anyone. I'll be in touch.

"As you can see," she said smiling coolly, "I'm really the only one you can trust in this family."

Before I could say anything, she pivoted on her heels like some marionette and marched out of the house to carry out her self- imposed mission.

My God, I thought, she's actually happy. She's going to use me as a wedge to drive my mother and Grant further and further apart, believing he will just spin around and fall gratefully into her waiting arms.

I got up slowly and followed her out to tell her I wouldn't be part of any plan to destroy my mother, but she was already gone, her car's engine a distant hum. Jake crossed the driveway..

"What'd she say?" he asked.

I looked at him.

"You're wrong. Jake," I told him.

"About what?"

"There's no way she could be your daughter."

.

Except for Aunt Victoria calling to tell me she had taken charge of the arrangements for Brody's funeral. I didn't hear from anyone over the next few days. Every day I expected my mother might call and babble incoherently, moving from self- blame to accusations. I was afraid of the phone ringing.

"It's lucky I decided to come here to help." Aunt Victoria told me. "Grant is still not in any condition to help himself and Megan is practically comatose most of the time. She's milking this for all it's worth."

"I doubt a mother losing her son would be milking for sympathy. Aunt Victoria," I told her.

"You don't know her like I know her. I can see that Grant is disgusted with her. He hasn't said anything to anyone, but when I talk to him. I see it in his eyes,

"We're going to have the funeral at their local church and Brody will be buried in the Hudsons' portion of the cemetery. My mother would want that, don't you agree?" she asked.

Why was she trying to get me to be her ally in all this? I didn't want to agree with her about anything, not even the weather. I was silent,

"You're coming, of course," she said. "I've already discussed it with Jake."