'Beau likes it that way.' It was nearly the same length as my own hair.
'How is . . . Beau?'
'Wonderful . . . and happy,' she added quickly. 'So don't say anything or do anything to ruin things for us or . . . or the world might just find out what a sinner you are,' she said, shooting a hostile glance at me.
'How can you make threats at a time like this, Gisselle?' I asked, astounded.
'I'm not making threats. I'm just warning you not to spoil my happiness. You've made your decisions and you're happy with your choices. Good. Now I have a right to be happy, too. And so does Beau.'
'I didn't come here to ruin anyone's happiness.' 'That's nice to hear.' She smiled, tilting her head toward the door. 'Paul isn't with you?'
'He will be here for the funeral.'
'And the baby . . . what's her name?'
'Pearl,' I said sharply. I knew she knew her name. 'I thought it was better to leave her at home with Mrs. Flemming.'
'Good. Then you and I can get right to business.'
'Where's . . .'
'Daphne's body? At the funeral home. You don't think I would permit it in the house, do you? Ugh. It was bad enough we had Daddy here afterward. The only thing we'll have here is the wake, and it will be a nice wake, too. I've already called the caterers. Of course, we'll have tons of flowers. People are sending them like crazy, but I'm having them brought right to the funeral home. And I've prepared a list of people to ask.'
'What are you talking about? List of people? This isn't supposed to be a party,' I said.
'Of course it is,' she replied. 'It's a party to help us forget the tragedy. Now, don't go around here with a long face and pretend you're devastated. You hated her and she knew it, too. I can't say I cared for her, but I probably have more reason to be sad than you do. She was my stepmother much longer than she was yours.'
I stared at her a moment. Maybe Daphne deserved such a daughter. She had certainly sowed the seeds and by example taught Gisselle to be this self-centered. I sighed, anxious now to get the funeral over with and any other arrangements completed and return to Cypress Woods, where life, at least for me, was far less complicated.
Stevens brought my things up to the room.
'Oh, how nice,' Gisselle cried when she saw him carrying my suitcase. 'We'll be next to each other again. It's times like this that I really appreciate having a sister,' she declared, loud enough for Stevens to hear.
'Mrs. Gidot asked me to inform you that she has prepared some lunch, mademoiselle. Do you want it brought up or . . .'
'Oh no. Tell her my sister has arrived and we'll be dining in the dining room,
'What did he say?'
'He said very well. Who's Mrs. Gidot?'
'The Frenchwoman Daphne hired to replace Nina Jackson.'
'Where is Nina?'
'How would I know where someone like that is? Really, Ruby. Anyway, I hope you're hungry. Mrs. Gidot is a very good cook and will have something delicious for us to eat, I'm sure.'
'I'll just freshen up,' I said.
'So will I. I've been crying and dragging myself around so much, I'm sure I look terrible. And Beau will be here in a little while,' she added.
My heart started to run away with itself. Just the thought of being face-to-face with Beau again made me tremble. I tried not to let Gisselle see my apprehension.
'Fine,' I said, and flashed a smile. Then I hurried out and into the room that had once been so new and wonderful to me, a room in which Beau had first kissed me and in which he had held me and comforted me during Daddy's wake. I smiled when I saw the picture of the little girl and the puppy still on the wall, and then I went to the window and looked out on the tennis courts and the flowers, recalling how I had felt like a princess the first time I had slept here. It had all looked so magical and precious, I could never have imagined the sadness and trouble that loomed above the great house, just waiting to rain down over us all.
I stopped to look into the office before I went to the dining room to join Gisselle for lunch. Just as she had said, Bruce was there thumbing through a stack of papers, an open bottle of bourbon beside them. He wore a jacket and a tie, but the tie was pulled loose. His hair was disheveled and he looked like he hadn't shaved in a week. When he glanced up at me, his first thought was that I was Gisselle, but after he focused, he realized it was I.
'Ruby!' he cried, rising quickly. He bumped into the corner of the desk in his eagerness to embrace me. The stench of whiskey reached me before he did. He hugged me quickly and stepped back. 'It's horrible, horrible. I can't believe what's happened.'
'Why?' I said sharply. 'It happened to my father; it happened to my uncle Jean.'
He blinked rapidly and then shook his head.
'Of course, those were terrible tragedies, too, but
Daphne . . . Daphne was at the prime of her life. She was more beautiful than ever. She was . . .'
'I know how wonderful you thought she was, Bruce. I am sorry this has happened. I wouldn't wish it on anyone.
