Into the Woods (DeBeers 4)

Mommy really enjoyed our shopping. Cost didn't seem to matter at all, I was shocked at the price tags for the sailing outfits she had chosen for us, The blouses. jackets, shorts. and shoes totaled nearly eight hundred dollars because of the designer name,

"This is too extravagant. Mommy," I protested. "How often will I be wearing these clothes?"

"More often than you think." she insisted.

"Burt you have to work so long and hard to earn this much money,"

"Stop worrying so much. Grace. You'll get wrinkles in your forehead," she teased.

To me it seemed she was tossing caution and reason cut the window. Was this all part of what happens to a grown woman after she has suffered so much tragedy and has had to change her life? Maybe she was having a different sort of nervous breakdown, I thought, The work. what happened at the restaurant. what happened with me at school. all of it was just too heavy for her fragile shoulders to bear on top of Daddy's tragic death.

After we had bought all the clothing, she decided she had to do something different with her hair, Unbeknownst to me she had already made an appointment with a beautician in Palm Beach, She insisted Igo along so I could walk Worth Avenue and "get a taste of the better life" I thought I might call Randy and have him meet me there. but Mommy said what I thought was a very strange thing for her to say.

"Don't get too close with anyone at your school. Grace. You know how hard it gets to be when you have to leave."

"But why would I leave. Mommy? We don't have Daddy the possibility of any transfer."

"Just take my advice." she said. sounding very cryptic. "Take a breath and step back. I don't want to see you have another minute of unhappiness."

"I don't understand." I said.

"Trust me." she insisted, and we headed for Palm Beach. "I guess you're not going to work tonight then," I said.

"No. Dallas will cover for me, Besides. it's time I spent more time on myself" She looked at me and added. "For both our sakes,"

Once again I felt there were forces and winds carrying me along. regardless of what I wanted,

.

I had never been to Palm Beach. All of our shopping and my school were in West Palm Beach. I didn't even understand that they were two separate entities, didn't understand until we crossed that bridge. My look of wonder began to rival Mommy's. It was as beautiful, as elegant, and as bright as she had described. I had never seen so many expensive automobiles and, when we were on Worth Avenue, sa many ritzy-looking people, especially the women. Even the dogs on jewel-studded leashes looked spoiled rotten.

Mommy parked the car and walked to the beauty salon as if she had been there many times. There was a luxurious waiting lounge with television sets, racks of magazines, and a cappuccino machine. The air was fragrant, not only with the aromas of hair sprays but with flowers. To me it was a little nauseating, and I made up my mind quickly to leave and wander about outside while she had her hair done.

As soon as Mommy gave the receptionist her name we were greeted by the owner of the salon himself, a man named Rene who had curly hair as black as licorice and a complexion close

to alabaster. I was positive he was wearing makeup, even a little lipstick. He had long eyebrows and a gold stud earring. Dressed in a black silk shirt and white pants with a pair of leather sandals, he swung himself around a chair and strutted up to meet Mommy. He was wide in the hips, so he looked more as if he waddled, reminding me of Quack-ie.

"Enchante," he said, extending his hand as if he expected her to kiss it. He only offered his fingers to shake. which Mommy did. They were laden with rings, each a different precious stone. I was expecting her to laugh or to say something about his histrionics, but she simply stood there. glowing.

"Hello," Mommy said. "I'm sorry we called so late. but..."

"Oh, no, no, no, no," he replied, shaking his head so vigorously I thought he would rattle his brain. "I am so happy to be given the opportunity to do Mr. Montgomery a favor. Please," he added, stepping back so Mommy could enter the shop.

She turned to me. So Winston Montgomery had arranged this, I thought, a small detail she had forgotten to mention,

"Let me give you some money, Grace."

"I still have the twenty you gave me two days ago," I said.

"'You might see something that costs a bit more here." she said. and Rene laughed. She handed me a fifty-dollar bill. I just stared at it. "Take it," she insisted, jerking it at me.

The receptionist watched with interest. I plucked the bill from Mommy's hand and shoved it into the pocket of my jeans.

Mommy smiled. "Explore," she said. "See for yourself how wonderful this place is.'

"Oh, how I wish I was a young girl just arriving in Palm Beach." Renee said, his eyes rolling like two green marbles in a dish.

You probably were, I wanted to say. but I left quickly instead. My nerves were so taut they were twanging like guitar strings. I just stood on the sidewalk, trying to calm myself. I wasn't looking at anything in particular. Cars floated by like magic carpets, glittering in the afternoon sunlight, a few driven by uniformed chauffeurs, their passengers poised like manikins in a store window.