Paul and I were just finishing dinner. Mrs. Flemming had fed Pearl and taken her to the den to play with her toys. Molly poured us coffee and went into the kitchen to bring out the strawberry shortcake Letty had made. We were both complaining about the weight we had gained since we had moved into Cypress Woods and had Letty prepare our meals, but neither of us was willing to put restrictions on what she prepared. We laughed at our self- indulgence.
Paul began to tell me about some legislators who were trying to get him to run for office and who would be paying us a visit in a week or so when James suddenly appeared to announce I had a phone call. Neither Paul nor I had heard the phone ring.
'I was standing right beside it and picked it up quickly,' James explained.
'Who is it?'
'Your sister. She sounds very excited and demanded I call you to the phone immediately,' he said.
I grimaced. I was sure she was going to tell me she and Beau had become formally engaged. That was one bit of news she wanted to deliver personally so she could hear my reaction.
'Excuse me,' I said to Paul, and rose.
'Take it in my office,' he suggested. I went there quickly, fortifying myself for the announcement. 'Hello, Gisselle,' I said. 'What's so urgent?' She didn't respond for a moment.
'Gisselle?'
'There's been an accident,' she said breathlessly. Oh no, I thought. Beau.
'What? Who?'
'It's Daphne,' she gasped. 'She fell from her horse late this afternoon and struck her head on a rock.'
'What happened?' I asked, my heart pounding.
'She died . . . just a little while ago,' Gisselle said. 'I have no father. . . I have no mother. I have only you.'
7
The Ties That Bind
Paul looked up from his coffee as I slowly reentered the dining room, One gaze at my face told him I had received bad news.
'What happened?' he asked.
'Daphne . . . fell from her horse and struck her head. She's dead,' I reported in a lifeless voice. The news had left me stunned.
'Gisselle.'
'How is she taking it?'
'From the tone of her voice and the things she said on the phone, not too well, but I think she's more frightened than anything else. I'll have to go to New Orleans,' I said.
'Of course. I'll cancel my meetings in Baton Rouge and go with you,' he offered.
'No, you don't have to go right away. The funeral isn't until Wednesday. There's no sense in your hanging around that dreary house all day.'
'Are you sure?' he asked. I nodded. 'All right. I'll meet you there,' he said. 'What about Pearl?'
'I think it's better for me to leave her here with Mrs. Flemming.'
'Okay. Tragic,' Paul said, nodding slowly.
'Yes. I can't help thinking how devastated my father would have been had he been alive when this happened to her. He idolized her. I saw that from the first moment I met them.'
'Poor Ruby,' Paul said, rising to embrace me. 'Even after I've built this little Shangri-La away from everyone, sadness still finds its way to our doors.'
'There is no such paradise on earth, Paul. You can pretend and ignore just so much, but the dark clouds won't disappear. I think that's something we both better realize,' I warned. He nodded.
'When are you leaving?'
'In the morning,' I said numbly. Through my mind flitted all kinds of gloomy thoughts.
'I hate to see any sadness in your face, Ruby.' He kissed me on the forehead and hugged me to him, pressing his lips to my hair.
'I better go see to my packing,' I whispered, and hurried away, my heart feeling as if it had shrunk in my chest and only tapped a tiny beat.
The following morning, after kissing Pearl good-bye and telling Mrs. Flemming I would call often, I went out to my car. Paul had carried out my things and put them in the trunk. He was waiting for me at the car, his face downcast and troubled. Neither of us had slept well the night before. I heard and saw him come to my door several times, but I didn't let him know I was awake. I was afraid that his comforting kisses and embrace would slip into something else again.
'I really hate to let you go by yourself,' he said. 'I should accompany you.'
