“What do you mean, what is the truth? I told you exactly what happened. It was an accident. I answered the phone before I thought about it, but if those girls weren’t so hateful—”
“Why was your phone on, anyway?” Ava pursued, leaning toward me and bearing down on me like a prosecutor in a courtroom. “Daddy and I know never to call you during school hours. Why would you think it was either of us?”
“I just told you. I wasn’t thinking. I didn’t realize it was on. I don’t do everything as perfectly as you do, Ava.”
She sat back, lapping up my backhanded compliment. “You’d better be as perfect as I am,” she warned. “We have a great many wonderful things, and we’ll each have more. But there are many tests ahead of you to pass, Lorelei. Failure is not an option for us, either. You had better think more than twice about everything you do from now on. If Daddy forgives you, that is,” she added, and shifted her eyes toward Marla.
I felt Marla’s eyes stinging me. Ava had been right about her. There were differen
ces in her, mature changes happening almost right before our eyes. It was not hard to imagine her breathing down my neck as Ava had predicted. My changes didn’t occur as rapidly. I didn’t think they had for Ava, either, and of course, I couldn’t recall anything about Brianna’s maturing, but I had never heard any stories about her to illustrate these sorts of quick changes. Maybe of all four of us, Marla was the special one, after all.
As I looked from Ava to Marla and back to Ava and saw the steely cold in their eyes, I thought this was more than the simple sibling rivalry Daddy had described. It was one thing to be competitive with your siblings, to seek to gain your parents’ approval faster than your brothers or sisters and maybe even become their favorite, despite their insistence that they didn’t favor one of their children over the others. But it was quite another thing to be absolutely ruthless about it, to wish actual harm on your brothers or sisters. Although my experience with other girls and boys as I had gone through school was very limited, I had learned and sensed enough to know that what was happening here among me and Marla and Ava was unusual, despite the lessons taught from the biblical tale of Cain and Abel. At least, I hoped it was; otherwise, what was the value of family? Where were the love, affection, and concern? Didn’t we owe any loyalty to one another as well as to Daddy? Was the fable of Cain and Abel the truth? Were we Cain’s descendants and not Abel’s? Was this to be forever our truth?
Ava decided that since I was the screw-up that day, I would have to clean up after dinner while she and Marla went off to watch television and chat. When it was time to take out the garbage, I took my cell phone with me so I could call Buddy as I had promised him. The rain had stopped, but it was misty and cool. Even though both Marla and Ava were in the living room, I had the eerie feeling that I was being watched. I hovered near the door and made the call.
“Did you get into a lot of trouble at home?” Buddy immediately asked.
How easy it would have been for me to say yes and that I had been ordered to stay home until my suspension from school was over. But all I could think about when I heard his voice again were his soft eyes, his tantalizing kiss, and the way my body reacted to his touch. It was as if his fingers on my breast could literally touch my heart. Even though we didn’t go that far, I could feel him inside me. Now, every quiet moment I had since I had been with him was filled with him. I heard his loving words and smiled at the vision of his smile. Everything I had read and seen on television and in movies about love reinforced what I was feeling. Surely, this was different from anything my sisters had experienced. Even Ava, if she felt the way I felt now about Buddy or any boy, might question having to forget him.
“Not yet,” I said. “My father and his sister are away until late tomorrow.”
“Does that mean… can we see each other tomorrow at the same place?”
“I don’t know, Buddy. I’ll call you in the morning.” I looked back at the house. “Ava was looking for you today,” I said.
“What for?”
“I don’t know, but she will probably look for you again tomorrow.”
“She won’t be happy if she finds me. I can’t see any other girl but you, no matter who I look at or who I hear talking.”
“Ava’s very clever,” I said. “She’ll know immediately if you and I have met. She’ll get me in deeper trouble. Don’t dare mention me. She’ll tell my father.”
“This is nuts. I don’t want to keep hiding from your father,” he said.
“It has to be this way for now. If you can’t—”
“Okay, okay,” he said quickly, afraid I would end it then and there. “I’ll wait for your call, and if I see her, I’ll be careful. I promise. Will you call?”
“Yes,” I said. “Good night.” I quickly shut the phone. I heard movement in the house and hurried inside.
“What a good little housekeeper you are,” Ava said when she saw me enter. She was already in the kitchen, and I was afraid she had heard me make the phone call. “Mrs. Fennel will be so pleased with how you kept her kitchen. But don’t think that will get you off the hook with her or with Daddy,” she quickly added. Since she didn’t mention hearing me, I assumed I was safe.
“I know it won’t do that, Ava,” I said, sounding as remorseful as I could. “I can’t think of anything else.” How good could I be with this performance? I wondered. Could I be the student who matched the teacher? “I’m scared, Ava. I really messed up.”
She studied me a moment and then shook her head. “It’s not that tragic. Daddy won’t be pleased, of course, but considering that he’s planning on a move quite soon, he won’t be as worried as he would have been if you were staying here longer. I’m leaving, of course.”
“I don’t want to do anything to spoil your plans,” I said.
“Don’t worry. You won’t. You’ll live up to your responsibilities, I’m sure.”
I glanced at her to see if she were being sarcastic, but she wasn’t. If anything, she wore that face of utter self-confidence that shared a seat with arrogance.
“After all, you’re my prodigy, aren’t you?”
“Yes,” I said. “I guess I am. Do you know when they’ll be back?”
“Daddy said late in the day tomorrow but early enough for Mrs. Fennel to prepare dinner. I’d say around four, maybe five. You’ll just have to be on pins and needles all day. I’d hang around and hold your hand, but I have to be at college. I’ve cut too many of the classes I have tomorrow and could bring some unnecessary attention to us. See? I think about that all the time. You’ll have to get so you do as well, Lorelei.”