said Elaine. ‘I’m going to tell them I have a dangerous lunatic in my house.’
Dory closed her eyes and began to shake her head as tears seeped out from under her eyelids and ran down her cheeks. ‘Why . . .’ she moaned.
Alex took charge. She pulled Dory along by the arm without another word to Elaine or Therese. Dory stumbled along and mounted the stairs with Alex leading the way. Alex grabbed the polka-dotted suitcase at the top of the steps and rolled it, leading Dory and her belongings out of the apartment and the building and into the street below.
Once they were in the car and en route back to Chichester, Alex glanced over at Dory. ‘What the hell were you doing back there?’ she chided her. ‘You could have had your bail revoked for assaulting Therese.’
Dory sat hunched in the passenger seat, her arms crossed over her chest. She raised her chin defiantly and did not reply
‘Look,’ said Alex. ‘I’m sure it’s difficult to see someone sitting in your place. But between Lauren’s . . . death and you going to jail, your mother has lost an awful lot. Maybe Therese is some comfort to her.’
‘She could have me back now if she wanted,’ said Dory. ‘But who is she making lunch for? Therese. My mother always treated Therese like her own little china doll. Always fussing over her.’
‘Why would she do that?’ Alex asked.
‘Oh, she felt sorry for her. Chris and Joy are always fighting,’ said Dory disgustedly.
‘That’s tough on a kid,’ Alex said.
Dory looked over at her. ‘Did your parents fight?’ she asked.
Alex shook her head. ‘No. Not really. They got along really well.’
‘Mine didn’t either,’ said Dory. ‘My father just does everything she says. It’s easier that way.’
‘I’m sure that’s true,’ said Alex.
‘I don’t know why Chris and Joy don’t get divorced. People get divorced all the time,’ said Dory.
‘Maybe they want to stay together for Therese’s sake,’ said Alex.
Dory shook her head. ‘I don’t think so. She walked out on both of them.’
‘Who?’ Alex asked, confused.
‘Joy. She left Chris. And Therese. That’s why my mother feels sorry for the kid. Joy was gone for a while. But then she came back.’
‘How long was she gone?’ Alex asked.
‘I don’t remember. Six months maybe . . .’
‘Wow. That must have been hard on Therese.’
‘Oh, don’t you start,’ said Dory irritably.
Alex sighed. Change the subject, she thought. ‘So, are you glad to have your things back now?’ she asked.
‘Yes,’ said Dory. ‘I can’t wait to change into my own clothes.’
As if, Alex thought, there was something disgusting about my clothes. She stifled the urge to make a cutting remark. Leave it alone, she thought. Keep the peace. But at what price? she thought. And for how long?
SEVENTEEN
It began to snow around midnight and continued on till morning. When Alex woke up and looked out her window the streets were silent, the tree branches laden, the driveways and curbs adrift in snow. She lay under the covers, still half asleep, thinking how lovely it looked outside her window.
Suddenly Dory appeared in the doorway to her room. She was wearing a down parka over her nightgown and shivering. ‘The power’s out,’ she said.
Alex looked at the clock radio beside her bed. It read four o’clock. She tried to switch on the bedside lamp to no avail. ‘Damn.’
‘No heat, either,’ said Dory.
‘Oh. I guess not,’ said Alex. ‘Not if the power’s out. Sorry.’
Dory shrugged. ‘Not your fault,’ she said. ‘You didn’t make it snow. I’m going downstairs.’
Before Alex could reply, Dory vanished from the doorway. Alex slid down under the covers and relished the warmth. Once she got out from under these covers it would be a struggle to stay warm. There was no telling when the power would be back on. She wasn’t really looking forward to a day in the cold and the dark with Dory.
She closed her eyes and felt the beginning of a headache. She needed to be able to wash her hair before her interview tomorrow. She couldn’t meet Louis Orenstein looking like this. Oh, well, she thought. Stop feeling sorry for yourself. Maybe the power is out in Boston as well.
She thought she would try to go back to sleep, and she had nearly succeeded when she smelled something cooking. Bacon. Alex sat up in bed, frowning. Suddenly she heard a voice calling her name. ‘Alex. Breakfast.’
Alex forced herself to get out of bed. She hurried to the closet, threw on several layers