The Class Menagerie

Pooky was pleased. 'Yes, that's it. That's what I meant.'

'What about Avalon? Has she changed?' Jane asked, putting new cases on the pillows while Pooky made hospital corners on the sheets.

'Oh, not at all. Avalon's wonderful. She's so talented. Did you see that picture she drew of the carriage house? Wasn't that fantastic? I hoped she'd give it to me, but I guess she didn't understand how much I liked it and she gave it to that man Edgar who owns this house. I wonder if I asked him—'

'I don't think I would if I were you. He showed it to me this morning. He loves it.'

'Oh, that's too bad. Well, maybe she'll make another one for me. Avalon's really nice, too. That's what's great about her. Did you know she's got foster children. She takes handicapped ones that nobody else wants.'

'I'd heard that. Was she so nice in school?'

'Well, I don't know. I don't remember her all that well, except that we had a home ec class together. She was really quiet, see, and I was real popular and busy. But in home ec she made this fantastic dress. It was all sort of scraps of fabric, you know, like pretty little rags, sort of here and there. She didn't even have a pattern, can you believe it? Greens and blues and purples. I think there were some ribbons, too — she should have gone into fashion design. Now, that's a great field. She'd have been famous if she'd done that.'

Jane smiled. Kathy wanted Avalon to use her talents to better the world; Pooky wanted her to better the state of fashion. 'What does Avalon do, besides take care of the children?'

'She has a little craft store down in the Ozarks. She sells things that ladies there make, plus her own things. Quilts and like that.'

'Somebody said she did drugs,' Jane said. Actually both Lila and Kathy had suggested it.

Pooky nearly dropped the bedspread she'd picked back up. 'No! I can't believe that anybody'd think a thing like that! I'll bet it was Lila who said that. Lila is — was — a big liar.'

'Here, let's put that spread back. Lila seems to have threatened a couple of people. Did she threaten you?'

Pooky gave the spread a fierce flap and, as it settled into place, said, 'No! No, there's nothing to threaten me about.' Her ruined face was set in harsh lines and

her hands were trembling. It was obviously a lie.

Jane's curiosity was overridden by guilt. 'I'm sorry. I didn't mean to upset you.'

'You didn't! I'm not upset! Now, where are the towels? Oh, I see. I'll put these away. And give me some of that cleaner stuff!'

She stomped into the bathroom and Jane could hear her crashing around, although how she did any crashing armed primarily with towels was a mystery in itself.

Jane dragged the vacuum in from the hall and shoved it around until Pooky came back out. 'I'm really sorry,' Jane repeated. 'It must be hard on you, staying here where Ted lived. Somebody told me you dated him.' She figured this line served the dual purpose of giving Pooky an excuse to be nervy and might also elicit some interesting information.

She was right on the first. Pooky fell on the justification as if it were a life raft. 'It is strange to be here. I really hadn't thought about Ted much for the last few years and now I keep remembering him all the time. He was really a neat guy. Smart and so good-looking! Captain of the football team and president of the Latin Club. That was a prestigious thing, the Latin Club. I don't think kids take Latin these days. Just as well. I never did get why anybody'd care about a language you couldn't talk in. But I bet Ted could have talked it if he wanted to.'

'Did you date him for a long time?' Jane asked. She wound up the vacuum cleaner cord.

'Most of our sophomore year. And part of our junior year. Then Ted — well, we— decided it would be better to date other people, too. It was the right decision. I mean, we were just kids, after all.' But all these years later the pain was still in her voice.

'Then he dated Lila—' Jane said.

'Oh, just a couple of times. She was such a cold fish, though. Always criticizing other people. Guys don't like that, you know. They like a girl who's cheerful and fun, not somebody who's always whining and complaining. No, mainly he dated Beth.'

'Mainly? Did you two still go out together?'

'Sometimes,' Pooky hedged. 'But I didn't want Beth to know. It would have hurt her feelings. And I wouldn't have done that for the world.'

'You liked Beth?'

'We were best friends. She had her jobs and her studying and I had my cheerleading. That took a lot of time. But we spent all the time we could together.' This was so unlikely as to be impossible, but apparently Pooky had convinced herself it was true.

Pooky picked up the bottle of window cleaner and spritzed it on the mirror. Jane noticed that Pooky managed to clean the mirror without looking into it. She was a brave person, like Crispy said, Jane realized. She found herself thinking, brains aren't everything.

'But you must have been awfully upset when Ted killed himself because she broke up with him.'

Pooky laughed. 'Oh, he didn't kill himself over her.'

'Then what was it? Why did he do it?'

Pooky turned, looking troubled. 'I don't know. I never could figure it out. Maybe he just couldn't stand it that we were all growing up and going away. Or maybe he was just drunk and feeling sorry for himself. Everybody feels sorry for themselves sometimes. I don't know.'

'Crispy thinks it might have been an accident, not suicide,' Jane said, starting to gather up her cleaning equipment.

'An accident? But how? Oh, like he didn't mean to start the car then go back upstairs? I don't see how. But maybe — that would be wonderful if it was an accident. I mean, not wonderful, but not so bad.'

'Did you know Crispy well in school?'

'Not really well. But I liked her, I guess. Well, I was a little jealous of her, I admit. She and Ted were really good friends. Just friends, I mean, he wouldn't have dated her. She was too fat and sloppy-looking. She really was a mess. I tried to tell her once if she'd go on a diet and stop biting her nails, I'd help her with her hair and stuff, but she nearly bit my head off. She's certainly improved. She looks real stylish now. She probably could do better with her hair. That windblown look is real passe', but it's good with her face shape.'

Jane smiled to herself. It was such an irony that Pooky, whose appearance was little short of frightening, always came back to people's looks and fashion sense. Inside herself someplace, she was still the high school knockout. And it was a good thing, probably the only thing that kept her going from one day to the next, one mirror to the next.

Jane touched Pooky's thin arm lightly and smiled. 'Thanks for helping me. I've really enjoyed getting a chance to talk to you.'

'Thanks. I like talking to you, too. You listen to me. Not many people do. I'm not as stupid as people think.' Before Jane could even begin framing a tactful reply to this, Pooky went on, 'And I'm going to help you with the rest of the rooms, Jane.'

'Pooky, that's very generous of you, but there's no need. I don't mind doing it myself.'

'If I don't help you, I'll have to go back to Kathy's room,' Pooky said with a grin.

'Okay, I get it. Then let's do Avalon next.'

Pooky pushed the vacuum cleaner along the hall as Jane led the way with the rest of the equipment. Jane tapped on Avalon's door and, getting no answer, opened it.

It looked like a tornado had gone through. Clothes were strewn everywhere, drawers gaped open. The dressing table was pulled out from the wall, pictures were hanging crooked, and the top half of the mattress was halfway off the bed.

Jane stopped so suddenly that Pooky ran the vacuum into the back of her foot. 'Jane, I'm sor — oh, my God. What happened here?' Pooky whispered.

'Pooky, run down and peek in Kathy's room. See if Avalon's still in there.' If Avalon was in this room, she was in trouble and Jane didn't want to be the discoverer of any more bodies. She watched Pooky, heart pounding, as she tiptoed down the hall and looked in the partly open door. Jane finally breathed when Pooky looked back and nodded.