She smiled. “What did you think?”
Maybe she was thinking about another sketchbook. She seemed genuinely interested to know how much I liked her work.
“That was a perfect likeness of me,” I said carefully. “I always wondered what I’d look like with snakes in my hair.”
She laughed. “Oh God, that’s right. I forgot about those drawings. I had some horrible English class in allegory and mythology last semester that I absolutely hated. So I did those sketches for my final project. Got me out of taking the exam. My professor thought it showed what she called ‘remarkable creativity, effectively demonstrating mastery of the material.’ I got the highest grade in the class. I used a family picture of you that I had on the bulletin board over my desk.”
“Who was the guy in the robe?”
“The Grim Reaper,” she said. “Death. I was going to give it Eli’s face from that same photo, but it kinda weirded me out. So I left him faceless.” She stood up. “Sara’s coming for me soon. I need to fix my makeup. I’ll take the tea tray in.”
I set the empty cups and the teapot on the tray. “How did you know I was looking for that journal of Mom’s?”
“Brandi told me.” She saw the surprised look on my face. “Eli told Brandi. You did talk about it with Eli, Lucie. I know you did.” She bent over and picked up the tray and said without looking at me, “You two talked about Mom and Fitz.”
“Brandi told you that?”
She straightened up. Her eyes had that same brightness as the day I saw her at the funeral home. “It’s okay, Luce. I know people have affairs and I know what happened.”
“You read all the diaries?”
“I had to use a dictionary, but yeah, I did. Really improved my French.” Her smile was heartbreaking. “After Mom died and you and Eli left, I was alone with Pop…when he bothered to come home. He used to look at me in the oddest way, like I was some kind of alien. Once when he was drunk he let something slip about Mom and Fitz. I didn’t hear him right and when I asked him to repeat it, he got mad and hollered at me. He never brought it up again and I was too scared to ask.”
“Did the diary say anything…I mean, did she write about what happened?”
She stood in a shaft of strong sunlight, as fragile and beautiful as a porcelain angel. Except for the bruise.
“She was lonely, Luce. Who could blame her?” she said. “She loved Fitz, but she never stopped loving Pop. They were still sleeping together, right up until the time she died. She slept with Fitz, too, but…jeez, I mean…I’m Leland Montgomery’s daughter, same as you are, if that’s what you’re getting at. She never wrote that I wasn’t.”
“He wasn’t around when I was born,” she continued. “Kind of a metaphor for my whole life.” She smiled another poignant smile. “He left Mom for some big hunting trip in Montana when she was about eight months pregnant. I thought that was pretty callous. Of course she didn’t criticize him. She never did.” She paused, then added, “Did you know I was born in the backseat of Fitz’s car?”
“Are you serious?”
“I swear to God. Apparently Mom called Uncle Mason when she went into labor but he never showed up. So she panicked and got Fitz to leave the inn and come get her in the middle of somebody’s wedding reception.”
“What happened to Mason?”
“He’d hit a deer. Speeding on Bull Run Mountain Road trying to get to the house. He practically totaled his car. Mom had no idea and he had no way of telling her.” She shrugged. “Makes you glad there’s cell phones now, hunh?”
“Yes. I suppose it does.”
I was still on the veranda when she came back, makeup reapplied, looking calmer and more collected. “Sara’s here. I’ve got to go.” She touched a finger lightly near her eye, but this time she didn’t wince. “Don’t say anything to anyone. Promise?”
“It’s pretty hard to miss.”
“I walked into a door. Clumsy me.”
“He shouldn’t get away with it.”
“Promise me, Lucie. I’m begging you. Please?”
I nodded, feeling sick.
She blew me a kiss. “I’ll call you from New York.”
The screen door slammed and a moment later I heard a car engine. Inside the house the phone rang. After a few rings the machine kicked in. With a small shock I heard Leland’s voice. We had never changed the recording.
“You’ve reached the Montgomerys. Leave a message.”
By the time I got inside the caller hung up. I hit the play button. A familiar Hispanic accent. “This is José at the Gas-o-Rama. We got your Volvo here and I need your approval and a credit card before I can fix your car. It’s gonna be ’bout six hundred fifty dollars. Please call me soon as you get this message.” He rattled off a number that I recognized as the one I’d called the other day.
The earlier messages from Kit and Hollis Maddox were still on the machine. I hit delete and dialed Kit’s number.
“You sound terrible,” she said. “Like you lost your last friend.”
“What’s wrong? Your message said it was urgent.”
“Are you all right?”
“I’m not sure. It’s a long story.”
“Wanna tell me?”
“Not right now.”
“How about later? I need to talk to you, anyway. Meet me after I leave work, say eight-fifteen? The home helper can’t stay with my mom too late, so it’s got to be quick. I know you’ve got that jazz concert tonight, but maybe you could slope off for a half hour.”
“We could meet at the villa. Eight-fifteen’s fine.”
“See you.”
She hung up and I glanced at my watch. Six-thirty.
I got the keys to Hector’s truck and drove over to the winery. As I pulled into the parking lot, Mason Jones was climbing out of his silver Mercedes.
“Well, hey there, Lucie!” He came over and helped me climb down from the cab. “What’re you doing driving that thing? It doesn’t have any shocks left. I thought you were Hector, the way you tore in here. You’re lucky you still have the teeth in your head, rattling around like that.”
“Hector let me borrow his truck. The Volvo’s in the shop.”
“What’s wrong with the Volvo? Don’t tell me it finally gave up the ghost after all these years?” He sounded concerned.
“It’s still got a heartbeat. Though it’s going to cost me six hundred and fifty dollars to revive it.”
He reached inside the breast pocket of his white linen suit and pulled out two tickets to the jazz concert. “That must be why you’re looking so perturbed. You need a little help, sugar? I could give you a loan to tide you over.”
“I’ve got it covered. Thanks, anyway.”
He tucked my arm through one of his. “You going over to the concert? I’ll walk you there. I’m surprised there aren’t more folks showing up for this.” He waved his tickets. “Parking lot’s pretty empty.”
“That’s because the concert doesn’t start for another hour. You’re very early.”
“Lordy. Guess I should have looked at these, shouldn’t I? I must be getting old. I’d better call Linda and tell her she doesn’t need to rush.” He patted his breast pocket. “Left my mobile in my car, too. Old
The sun, blisteringly pitiless earlier in the day, was setting in the west, coloring the horizon rim pale red. “Can I ask you something first?”
