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"Thank you, Mommy." I kissed her on the cheek and smelled her hair and perfume and felt my heart lighten. I was lucky, and I would not let anything darken this wonderful day and this wonderful night, I thought.

After our guests left, the twins whined and begged for me to open some of the graduation presents. Mommy wanted them to go to bed, but Daddy said it was a special night and they could stay up a little later, so we all went into the sitting room, and I unwrapped some of the gifts.

There was clothing for college and some expensive reference books. Dr. Portier and his wife had given me the latest edition of Gray's Anatomy.

The twins became bored with my presents rather quickly. The two of them sank back in the larger settee, resting against each other, Pierre's arm over Jean's shoulders, Jean's eyes blinking and battling the weight of his eyelids. Finally Daddy nudged them and ordered them to bed. They had no resistance left and stumbled along. He guided them upstairs, and Mommy followed to be sure the two of them were all right.

Daddy returned first. "Happy, princess?" he asked.

"Yes, Daddy."

"It was the happiest day of my life," he said.

"No, it wasn't, Daddy."

"What?"

"The happiest day of your life was the day you met Mommy."

He laughed. "That's different."

"But it was-your happiest day, wasn't it?"

"I didn't know it at the time, but yes, it was. I met her right outside this house, and I thought she was her sister in a Mardi Gras costume."

"How does a man know when he's in love, Daddy? Do bells really ring in your head?"

"Bells?" He smiled. "I don't remember bells. I just remember that my first thought every morning when I awoke was of being with your mother." He stared at me. "Trouble with Claude?" I nodded. "The problem is simple, Pearl. You're too mature for him."

"I'm too mature for all the boys my age."

"Maybe."

"Does that mean I'll be happy only with a much older man?"

"No," he said, laughing. "Not necessarily. And don't you bring home anyone who could be your father," he warned. Then we hugged and started upstairs. At my bedroom doorway, he kissed me on the forehead.

"Good night, princess," he said.

"Night, Daddy."

"When you were opening your gifts

downstairs," he said, "I thought I saw something around your ankle. Is it what I think?" I nodded. He shook his head. "Well, they say if you believe in something hard enough, it will happen. Who am I to disagree?" He kissed me again, and I went into my room.

Mommy came to say good night, too. I told her Daddy had seen the dime.

"Now he'll tease me to death," she said. "But I don't care. I've seen my grandmere do things that defied reason and logic."

"There's so much you still haven't told me about the past, isn't there?"

"Yes," she said sadly.

"But you will now. You'll tell me everything, won't you? The good and the bad. Promise?"

"Just think happy thoughts tonight, honey. There's plenty of time to open the dark closets." She kissed me and stared down at me a moment with that angelic smile on her lips, and then she left.

I could hear music in the night, trumpets and saxophones, trombones and drums. New Orleans was a city that hated to go to sleep. It was as if it knew that when it did, the spirits and ghosts that hovered outside the wall of laughter, music, and song would have free rein to wander the streets and invade our dreams.