sure…made sure of what? That she’d stopped hallucinating? That she wasn’t going mad?
Noemí slid one hand against her neck while she examined the other. She had a great, nasty burn between her index and middle fingers, where the cigarette had burned down to a stub. She’d have to obtain an ointment for that.
Noemí splashed more water against her face and stared into the mirror, her fingertips on her lips.
A loud knock made her jump back.
“Are you in there?” Florence asked. Before Noemí had time to reply, the woman opened the door.
“Give me a minute,” Noemí muttered.
“Why are you smoking when it’s forbidden?”
Noemí whipped her head up and scoffed at the inane question. “Yeah? I think the more important question is what the fuck is going on in this house?” Noemí said. She wasn’t quite yelling, but she was awfully close.
“What language! Watch how you talk to me, young girl.”
Noemí shook her head and closed the faucet. “I want to see Catalina, right away.”
“Don’t you dare order me around. Virgil will be here any minute and you’ll see—”
She clutched Florence’s arm. “Listen—”
“Take your hands off me!”
Noemí squeezed her fingers harder while Florence tried to push her away.
“What’s this?” Virgil asked.
He stood at the doorway, looking at them curiously. He had on the same pinstriped jacket that he’d worn in her dream. It gave her a jolt. She’d likely seen it on him before, which is why she’d pictured him wearing it in the first place, but she didn’t like this detail. It blended reality and fantasy together. It unnerved her enough to release Florence.
“She’s been breaking the rules, as usual,” Florence said, carefully smoothing back her hair even though it did not need to be smoothed. As if their brief confrontation could have upset her well-coiffed head. “She’s a nuisance.”
“What are you doing here?” Noemí asked, crossing her arms.
“You yelled, and I came to see if anything was amiss,” Virgil told her. “I imagine that’s the same reason why Florence is here.”
“Indeed,” Florence replied.
“I didn’t yell for anyone.”
“We both heard you,” Florence insisted.
Noemí had definitely not yelled. There had been noise, but that was the noise from the bees. Of course there were no bees, but that didn’t mean she had yelled. She would damn well remember if she yelled. The cigarette had burned her hands, but she hadn’t made that much noise and—
They both looked at her. “I want to see my cousin. Now. I swear to God, you let me see her or I’ll knock her door down,” she demanded.
Virgil shrugged. “There is no need for that. Come.”
She followed them. At one point Virgil looked at her over his shoulder and smiled. Noemí rubbed her wrist and looked away. When they walked into Catalina’s room she was surprised to see her cousin awake. Mary was also there. It seemed this would be a group reunion.
“Noemí, what is it?” Catalina asked, a book in her hands.
“I wanted to see how you were doing.”
“Same as yesterday. Resting, mostly. It seems I’m the Sleeping Beauty.”
Sleeping Beauty, Snow White. Noemí couldn’t care less about that right now. But Catalina was smiling kindly, like she always used to smile. “You look tired. Anything wrong?”
Noemí hesitated and shook her head. “It’s nothing. Do you want me to read to you?” she asked.
“I was going to have a cup of tea. Do you want to join me?”
“No.”
Noemí wasn’t sure what she had expected to find, but it wasn’t Catalina in high spirits, the maid quietly arranging flowers in a vase, the meager blooms from the greenhouse. The scene struck her as artificial and yet there was nothing wrong. She stared at her cousin, trying to find the faintest trace of discomfort in her face.
“Really, Noemí. You seem a little odd. You aren’t getting a cold, are you?” Catalina asked.
“I’m fine. I’ll let you have your tea,” Noemí said, unwilling to reveal more in the presence of the others. Not that they seemed terribly interested in this conversation.
She stepped outside. Virgil exited the room too and closed the door. They looked at each other.
“Are you satisfied?” he asked.
“I’m appeased. For now,” she replied tersely, intending to walk back to her room alone, but he was going in the same direction, obviously wishing to continue their conversation and not minding her curtness.
“And I thought there was no appeasing you.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked.
“You’re on a quest to find faults around you.”
“Faults? No. Answers. And let me tell you, they’re pretty big ones.”