heard secondhand that he’d been shanghaied to Vegas
by Vivian, and that, while he was still in a drunken stu-80
Mary Daheim
por, the pair had gotten married in a casino wedding
chapel. It wasn’t until many years later that Judith had
found out he’d tried to call her later that same day.
Gertrude had intercepted the call and never told Judith
about it. Not hearing back, and feeling compelled to
honor his commitment to Vivian, Joe had stayed married
to Vivian for over twenty years. He’d felt sorry for Herself, he explained to Judith after they were finally reunited. She’d had two unhappy marriages already, and
was trying to raise two small boys on her own. Then Vivian had given birth to their own daughter, Caitlin. Joe
felt stuck, and he knew that Judith had married Dan McMonigle on the rebound. It was only after the children
were raised and Herself had grown more passionate
about Jim Beam than Joe Flynn that he had finally decided to make a break. There had been no need for an
annulment. In the eyes of the Catholic Church, Joe’s
marriage to Herself had never been valid. Taking vows
while not in his sane and sober mind was only part of it;
the Church didn’t recognize the union because Vivian
was still the wife of another man.
Meanwhile, Judith had lived a lie, at least as far as
Mike was concerned. Joe didn’t know that she was
pregnant when he ran off with Herself. Judith had
never told him, not until almost a quarter of a century
later. Dan had raised Mike as his own, and perhaps his
often antagonistic attitude toward Judith was a form of
punishment for bearing another man’s child. Whatever
the cause, Judith had suffered a great deal during the
nineteen years that she was married to Dan.
“But he was a good father.” She repeated the phrase
so often that it was like a mantra. She could never
make Dan happy, but she could honor his memory, especially in Mike’s eyes.
SUTURE SELF
81
“Yes, yes,” Renie said testily. “But Mike’s a grown
man now, he can handle the truth. It’s not fair to Joe. It
never has been, and I’ll bet my last five bucks he resents it, deep down.”
Judith heaved a big sigh. “Yes, I know he does. I
guess I’ll have to bite the bullet.”
“It’s about time,” Renie said, still testy. “Your problem, coz, is that you hate making decisions, you can’t
stand rocking the boat, you’re absolutely terrified of
change. Go ahead, make out that family tree, and fill in
all of Joe’s family. His brothers, his parents, the whole
damned clan.”
“I never knew his mother,” Judith said, as if her
early death might give some excuse for abandoning
the project.
“Do it,” Renie barked. “I’ll help.”
