The moment Naomi reached the top of the stairway, the lights went out. I heard her cursing under her breath as she made her way to her room. Either deliberately or because she had limited illumination, she made a lot of noise going into the bathroom and back to her room.
All of it brought a smile to my face. Mrs. Winston and Mrs. McGruder had no special abilities or powers, but there couldn’t be two more protective people when it came to me. Despite what had happened, I closed my eyes and felt snugly safe in their rooming house. The shadows could surround it, and the dark figures could loiter in them, but it was as though I had luckily found an island upon which nothing that wished to harm me could set foot.
For a little while, at least, that pleased me, even though I knew that it was the world outside, the world I had to be in, where I was now as vulnerable to the horrors of the darkest places in my imagination as ordinary human beings were.
10
The two of them were just as concerned about me at breakfast as they were when I had returned from the hospital the night before. They hovered over me like two private-duty nurses, making sure I ate well. Of course, I wasn’t used to such mothering. Mrs. Fennel had always been intolerant of any weakness or pain in any of us. As an infant, I was forbidden to cry too much or too long, and I quickly realized that crying didn’t get me anything anyway. Mrs. Fennel had never been physically rough with me. She had never struck me or spanked me; she didn’t have to do that. Her stern looks, with those gold-tinted black eyes that were like laser beams cutting through me, were far more than enough to get me to swallow back a wail or a sob.
Tall and thin, with a hardness in her arms and body that had me believing she was made of iron until I saw her naked once, Mrs. Fennel had radiated a firmness and confidence that gave me, my younger sister Marla, Ava, and I’m sure our older sister Brianna a sense of security. As long as she was there, nothing could harm us. Even germs feared her. No one ever got sick or injured. None of us ever needed a Band-Aid. The first time I saw a bruise on another girl at school, I wondered what it was. Did she have a disease?
Since I had left my father, my sisters, and Mrs. Fennel, however, I wondered if I had already lost my invulnerability. This car accident and how I had come out of it without even an irritation on my body convinced me that I still had most, if not all, of whatever special gifts I once possessed. Would they stay, or would they slowly diminish? As nutty as it might sound, I wanted to be like everyone else even more now and was willing to give that up.
Naomi didn’t show up for breakfast while I was still there. I was happy for that. Mrs. Winston, unbeknownst to me, had called Mr. Dolan early in the morning, and he had arranged for Michael Thomas to swing by to take me to work. Mr. Dolan was just learning about what had happened from his daughter, Julia, when she returned from her night shift. Of course, I protested over all this concern, but no one would hear of it. Whether I liked it or not, I was being adopted into the lives of these people. Did I dare think it? It was almost like having a family again.
Michael wanted to hear all about the accident when I got into his truck. After I told him, he went into his own experiences with auto accidents.
“I had an airbag explode on me once, too,” he said. “Some idiot backed out of his driveway without looking. It was little more than a fender-bender, but I had bruises on my face for weeks. You were really lucky. All of us were. We wouldn’t want to lose that pretty face.”
I thanked him.
It was funny about compliments. I knew it was wrong not to be modest and show your appreciation when you received them, but I had grown up in a house where it was assumed we would always stand out when we were with normal girls. The difficulty for me, more than it obviously was for Ava, was how not to seem conceited or arrogant. The truth was, I was grateful for every kind word now, every sincere show of appreciation and concern.
Mr. Dolan also showed his concern about me as soon as I arrived. He told me to take whatever time off I needed if I had any aches or pains. I assured him that I was fine and went right to work to prove it.
“You’re a real trouper,” he said before going back into his office.
Liam was standing in front of me only moments later. “Julia told me what happened,” he began. “I thought you were going shopping with Naomi Addison. I would have been glad to take you shopping last night.”
“I did go shopping with her. She decided she didn’t want to stay in the mall with me any longer. Mr. Lamb just happened by when I was leaving.”
“I should have given you my cell-phone number just in case. Maybe this wouldn’t have happened.”
“It wasn’t Mr. Lamb’s fault,” I said.
“Oh, right. I’m sure he just happened by. He didn’t wait too long to pounce,” Liam said disdainfully.
“Neither did you,” I retorted. The aggressive manner in which I came back at him took him by surprise.
“What, you like this guy?”
“I don’t dislike him, but I told you, I’m not looking to like anyone just now.”
He nodded but stood there, obviously debating whether to say something.
“What?” I asked.
“Some of the guys here are thinking you might be gay.”
“Really?” I sat back, remembering how Ava could dispose of any young man she wasn’t interested in. They were always bitter when they were rejected and usually found a way to blame her.
“How typical,” I said, recalling what I called her “male lessons.” “The last thing a man will think is that if he’s rejected, it was something about him, some way his fault. It always has to be something else, like the girl is gay.”
Liam laughed. “Okay, okay. Got it. I’m around if you need anything or have to go anywhere.”
“You’re supposed to be doing that Bronson bid today, aren’t you?” I asked. “That should keep you busy most of the day.”
“Jeez, you’re more of a nag than my father,” he muttered, but I saw him smile to himself as he sauntered off. I knew he was thinking that I knew about his responsibilities because I was, despite how I appeared, interested in him. Maybe I was, but I wasn’t about to admit it yet. Maybe I never would.