and learn from younger surgeons how to work with lasers and television screens. It takes a toll on me now to stand for several hours at a time. And when I’m off duty, I want to relax and watch a movie and eat pizza with my hands. I don’t want to be glamorous, Alicia. I want to be comfortable.”
They had turned off Route 9 and were now in a maze of roads leading to their Wellesley house. The style was French provincial and the landscaping was elaborate. Alicia had hired gardeners to shape the evergreens into geometric topiaries, as if she were Marie Antoinette. Ari had lived in this house all her life, or all of the life she could remember. She could remember how her mother had worried and fretted over exactly what wallpaper to use and how she had been almost frantic to change the kitchen countertops from tile to granite. Alicia worked hard to keep the house uncluttered. She had a cleaning lady who came twice a week, but she was almost obsessive about where the silver pitcher should sit on the sideboard and the magazines should be placed on the table in the family room, as if the house would explode if magazines were left in the living room. Ari thought of her grandmother’s house, which had gatherings of shells on the windowsills and books clustered on tables near wing chairs and notes and letters scattered around the house.
They pulled into the driveway. When Phillip turned off the engine, the silence inside the car was stark.
Ari spoke quickly. “I’m going to make a quick pit stop. Then I’m driving back to Hyannis. I’ll take a boat back to the island. I have a lot of things left there. I’ll need them wherever I am, Nantucket or Boston. Also, I want to take a few days to laze around on the beach and enjoy the island and my friends.”
Alicia brightened. “How is Beck?” She turned around to smile at Ari and her face was mottled with emotion.
Ari wanted to give her mother hope but she had to be truthful. “Beck is fine. We are really good friends. He knows I’m going to have a baby. I like him a lot, Mom, and I think he likes me, but we’ve only known each other three months. I’m a lot to take on.”
“He would be a lucky man to get you,” Alicia said.
“Thanks, Mom.”
Phillip reached into the trunk of the car and hefted out the suitcases Alicia had taken on her cruise. Ari started to follow but her mother put her hand on her arm and they stood outside for a moment on the green lawn.
“I’m sorry your father and I had to argue in front of you,” Alicia said.
Surprised and reassured by her mother’s concern, Ari asked, “Mom, did you really sleep with that professor dude?”
“Why shouldn’t I?” Her mother tossed her head and her warmth vanished, replaced by her cool façade. “Your father had an affair all summer.”
“That doesn’t answer my question,” Ari said.
“I know,” Alicia replied with a smile.
Ari sagged from the weight of her emotions, from the sight of her mother being playful. Suddenly, she loved her mother. She understood for a moment how it was for her, so full of dreams, and so different from Ari, her own daughter. “I’m sorry, Mom. I hope you guys work it out.”
“Thank you, Ari.” Her mother turned away and walked toward the house.
Ari followed. She rushed to her room, selected a few things to take back to the island with her, and ran down the stairs to the front door. She needed to hurry in order to return the rental car and catch the last boat to Nantucket.
She had no idea where her parents were now in this expansive house. “Goodbye!” she called. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow from the island.”
From the back of the house, her father called, “Safe trip!”
Ari had to adjust the seat of the rental car because her legs weren’t as long as her father’s. She strapped on her seatbelt, found a radio station with eighties rock, and returned to the road, happy to be away from her parents.
Twenty-Five
Eleanor was tucked away in her bed with Shadow curled up next to her feet when she heard the kitchen door open and quietly close. She was reading a delightful mystery that she didn’t want to put down but she knew if her light was on, Ari might feel the duty to report