Page 129 of The Fallen Man

“I think theyarehappy,” said Hannah, following her gaze around the room.

“Yes,” said Eleanor, taking another bite of cake, enjoying the warm fizz of the orange-flavored sugar on her tongue. “That’s the real triumph, of course. Everyone else can go jump in a lake.”

Hannah laughed. “My father says that you know if you’re a success as a parent if you turn out a fully functional human being.”

“Your father is a smart man and a good parent,” said Eleanor.

“I think Senator Yamira is about to come over and pretend not to suck up to you,” said Hannah.

“You are quite correct,” said Eleanor. “That is exactly what is about to happen. Give him two minutes and then come over and say I have to attend to something.”

“No problem,” said Hannah, moving away.

Jackson’s talent for picking out quality human beings was unmatched. Hannah was a bright girl who would go very far. Eleanor smiled and talked and talked and smiled. It was the same merry-go-round of chatter that kept the world spinning. None of it meant very much. Or it meant everything, depending on one’s point of view. She stepped into the hall and found that there wasn’t anyone around for once.

“Glass of wine?” asked Theo, and Eleanor breathed a sigh of relief.

“Yes, please,” she said, taking the offered glass. “But pour one for yourself. We need to celebrate.”

Theo did as instructed and held up his glass. Eleanor clinked it and felt a smile settle onto her face.

“Do you know,” said Eleanor looking up at the family portrait over the fireplace. She was holding Genevieve on her lap, with Owen and Randall on either side of her. Henry loomed over all of them. It was the only remaining photo of her husband still hanging on the walls. Eleanor tried to remember what it felt like to be that young and couldn’t. “The first day I came here, I said it would be a beautiful place for a wedding, but I think this is the first one that has ever been held here.”

“You made it happen,” said Theo.

“No, Jackson made it happen. I just got out of the way.” She looked around again. “Henry hit me for the first time right over there at the foot of the stairs. I was so surprised.”

“An unfortunate memory,” said Theo.

“They layer, you know. Like leaves. The good ones over the bad ones. But sometimes the bad ones just make their way to the top of the pile.”

“Yes,” said Theo. “I know what you mean. It’s one of the reasons I don’t like going home. Nothing but piles of bad memories there.”

“It’s one of the reasons I stayed here,” said Eleanor. “Henry was so insistent on doing things the Deveraux way. He was so high and mighty, and he used to spit on how poor I was. He said I would never really belong here. But,” Eleanor looked around the hall, “now this ismyplace, and those aremychildren. I tookeverythingfrom him.”

“YouareMrs. Deveraux,” said Theo, a smile crossing his face. She knew he understood.

“And he doesn’t own one damn part of us anymore,” she said, holding out her glass, and he tapped his against it once more.

“No, he does not.”

“I may not have gotten everything right,” said Eleanor. “But the Deveraux legacy is mine now.”

“No,” said Theo, shaking his head, “it’s theirs.”

Eleanor laughed. “Yes. As usual, you’re correct. And that is far better than I could have hoped for.”

The End

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