“Officially?” said Josh. Lisa could tell he was getting more and more flustered. “Well, we’ve gone out a couple of times, but I’d really rather not talk about it. It’s between me and Lisa. I hope you understand.”
“Oh, it’s gone that far already?” she said.
“Mom, stop,” said Josh. “That’s not what I meant.”
“It’s fine with me, as long as you’re careful,” she said. She turned to Lisa. “Has your mom talked to you about sex?”
Lisa wanted to die from embarrassment. She hoped Josh would protest, but he was speechless with horror. His mother misinterpreted their silence with a knowing smile.
“It’s okay, Lisa,” she said. “You don’t have to worry about me telling your parents. I’m good at keeping secrets. I just want to make sure you have all the information you need so you can make good decisions. You don’t want to get pregnant until you’re ready. You’re on birth control, aren’t you?”
“No,” said Lisa. “I’ll talk to my mother about it.”
She didn’t intend to follow through with this statement, but she doubted Josh would survive much longer if their conversation continued on its present course, so she didn’t feel too guilty about lying. To her relief, Josh’s mother seemed satisfied.
“I’m happy you’re such a responsible girl, Lisa,” she said. “That’s partly why I admire you so much. You don’t have to figure everything out on your own, though. I’m here for you if you ever need someone to confide in. You can always talk to me if you have questions, and that goes for any subject.”
Lisa hoped the disgust she felt didn’t reveal itself on her face. She wondered if Josh’s mother had secured her father’s trust with a similarly empty promise, but she recognized she would never get a better opportunity to turn the conversation around.
“Actually, I was wondering how you’re doing,” she said. “Josh mentioned you might be getting chemotherapy.”
“I’m going to give it a try,” she said. “I’ve got nothing to lose.”
“Maybe you won’t react badly to it,” said Lisa. “You never know. Some people don’t have trouble with it.” She paused, and decided to take a chance. “My grandmother was on chemotherapy about ten years ago. She wasn’t staying with us then, so I didn’t get to see how it affected her, but she said it wasn’t too horrible.”
Josh’s mother didn’t flinch at the mention of Lisa’s grandmother.
“I didn’t know your grandmother had cancer,” she said. “I hope it doesn’t run in the family. It would be rotten for your kids to inherit it from both sides. I know you’re not planning to have a baby any time soon, but you’ll have to get tested for any weird mutations before you and Josh decide to conceive.”
“Mom, we have to go,” said Josh, leaping to his feet. “It was nice seeing you. You seem to be doing great. I hope everything goes well for you tomorrow. Maybe we’ll visit you again—or maybe not. Come on, Lisa, let’s get out of here.”
He fled, despite his mother’s protests. Lisa excused herself and hurried after him, but he was halfway down the hall before she caught up with him.
“Josh, slow down,” she said. “It’s okay.”
“No, it’s not,” he said, not even looking at her. “I’m sorry, Lisa. I shouldn’t have brought you here. I’m such an idiot. This is all my fault. I didn’t expect her to question you like that, but I should’ve known she would make a scene about something. She always ruins everything. Why didn’t I stop her?”
“Because she’s your mother, and you were embarrassed,” said Lisa. To her surprise, she felt like laughing. “Josh, I’m not offended. It makes perfect sense. Just think about it: she knows she’s living on borrowed time, and she doesn’t want to miss out on anything. That’s why she’s being so pushy.”
“So you’re not upset?” said Josh.
“No,” said Lisa. “She doesn’t mean any harm—not this time, anyway.”
“I’m so lucky to have you, Lisa,” said Josh. “I was seriously about to panic. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t want to do those things with you someday: it’s just that we’re still getting to know each other. We would need to be completely sure before we started a family. I don’t want to think about kids until I get married, and I don’t want to get married until I’m finished with school.”
They walked around the corner, and Lisa saw Graham waiting for the elevator at the other end of the lobby. His back was turned, but Lisa didn’t want to take any chances. The hospital chapel was directly across the corridor, its stained-glass doors standing wide open. She shoved Josh inside.
“Or we could just get married right now,” said Josh.
Lisa put her hand over his mouth.
“Listen to me,” she said in a whisper. “Graham is here. He’s getting into the elevator. We have to do something.”
“Like what?” said Josh.
“I don’t know,” said Lisa. “We should at least see where he’s going.”
The elevator doors were closing. They hurried across the lobby once they were sure Graham wouldn’t notice them and watched as the numbers above the elevator counted up, passing the floor where Josh’s mother was staying, and finally stopping at the top of the building.
“Josh, he’s going into the intensive care unit,” said Lisa.
“Well, of course he is,” said Josh. “Lisa, there’s no reason to panic. If Molly told you Graham was planning to visit his friend—or his victim or whatever you want to call him—I don’t understand why you’re so freaked out about the whole thing. Besides, I thought we’d decided he wasn’t going to do anything bad.”
“No, you decided that,” said Lisa. “I never made up my mind. I can’t just stand here and let him get away with murder.” She was so flustered that she forgot to be afraid. “Josh, if you don’t want to come with me, I’ll go by myself.”
She started to march away, but he rushed
