Something She's Not Telling Us - Darcey Bell Page 0,65
isn’t always 100 percent truthful. Well, who is? What’s the point of being honest in a world full of liars?
Charlotte applauds, then Eli, then Mom and Luz. Finally Daisy joins in, clapping louder than the rest. She stops when the mariachis look at her, then edges over and clings to Charlotte.
The head mariachi bows to Daisy. Your wish is my command. “Mucho gusto, princesa.”
Daisy looks around to make sure that her family has seen that the nice man with the violin recognizes her as the princess she is.
The high percussive notes of the trumpets dare Rocco not to cheer up. The trills and swoops are irresistible, and now the violin comes in, singing around the brass, but sweeter, adding a vibrato of longing to the joy. The musicians take turns singing. The head mariachi croons a heartbroken ballad about his love for a Mexican girl.
Rocco wishes it didn’t make him think that he will never feel that way about Ruth—or about anyone. The little boy takes the lead, with a song about how happy he is to be a mariachi, about having a musician’s access to beautiful music, tequila, and women. Tequila? Women? Rocco and Luz and the other musicians laugh.
Rocco’s feeling a lot better when Ruth ruins his good mood by skipping over to him with her arms outstretched. Asking him to dance. No way he’s going to let her make a spectacle of him. He shakes his head. She doesn’t seem fazed, but goes over to Charlotte and asks her to dance. It’s no surprise to anyone—except Ruth, maybe—when Charlotte refuses.
Before Ruth can approach her, Mom makes the sign of the cross, as if to ward off a vampire. Ruth doesn’t ask Eli, which might have irritated Charlotte, and she’s not about to ask Luz. Rocco would have despised Ruth for adding dancing to the tasks that Luz has been hired to perform.
There’s no one left but Daisy.
Everyone waits for Daisy to dive under Charlotte’s skirt, but the little girl holds out her hands, and Ruth bends down so they can join in a demented polka.
Ruth and Daisy whirl and dip. Rocco’s never seen his niece look so carefree. Her eyes are half closed, her head thrown back. Daisy giggles and slides her feet in time to whatever Ruth is doing. Dancing with Daisy changes Ruth, until she begins to resemble a child, and the spectacle takes on the charm of two little girls dancing. Or almost.
Rocco worries that he’s misjudged Ruth. If she’s capable of bringing his shy, solemn niece so much joy, she must be a better person than he’d thought.
The mariachis play two more songs, each livelier than the next. Then they conclude with a blast of horns and a flourish of strings. Ruth and Daisy hold hands and bow. Everyone applauds.
Rocco looks over at Charlotte. The set of her jaw reminds him of the stone heads on Easter Island.
Charlotte has never said so, but he knows she dislikes and distrusts Ruth. And though Rocco would never admit it, he thinks, despite everything—despite even the magic that Ruth has worked on Daisy—that his sister may be right.
Something is wrong with his girlfriend.
He wishes he knew what it was.
18
Charlotte
Mom wanted the musicians to play for her party, but this is better. It’s like having their personal mariachi band. The boy and his dad sing, in harmony, a ballad about the soul. Charlotte longs to stay in this moment forever. They won’t have to leave Mexico, go home, deal with all the problems and responsibilities. Daisy will stay this age forever and never grow up and leave them.
And Daisy will never have to find out what Ruth knows—or doesn’t know—about her. Charlotte watches Ruth ask Rocco to dance. Ruth knows Charlotte will refuse but asks anyway. When Ruth moves on to Daisy, Charlotte can’t stop her.
Charlotte watches her daughter beaming, twirling, shaking her hands in the air, jumping and spinning. She knows that she should find it heartwarming, but Charlotte feels sickened, queasy.
She really wants Ruth to stay away from her daughter.
Charlotte doesn’t trust Ruth, who has begun to scare her. First one thing, then another.
The story about the beggar children. Her claiming that Eli isn’t Daisy’s father. Chef Basil saying she’d never worked for the baroness. The incident with the driver.
What had so enraged the driver that he’d risk bursting into a party full of expats? They could have had him arrested. Surely he must have known that. But no one here calls the police.