She lit a cigarette, inhaled, and went on without me answering: “O.K., then, I’ll tell you. He comes in, Joan. He sits with me, and when he comes in he talks.”
“About me, you mean?”
“About nothing else. He’s bitter, baby. He feels you crossed him, that you did it for money, and that he doesn’t respect.”
“I didn’t do it for the money!”
“… What did you do it for?”
She was suddenly sharp, and I felt, close as I was to her, that I didn’t have her respect, either. “I did it for Tad.”
“And where did that get you, I ask.”
“For Christ’s sake, shut up.”
“Baby, you’ve got it coming.”
“You say Tom comes in?”
“Every night, so far.”
“Then you might mention to him, Liz, if you find occasion, that … I have been true to him-so far. And I’m goddam well going to be. But please, please, please, don’t say I told you that.”
“If I do, he might rush over a minute later.”
“And he could get pushed out.”
“I’m not sure of that,” Liz said. “I’m not so sure.”
“Please don’t do it.”
“I’ll use my judgment what to tell him.”
“I’m not ready for him yet.”
She looked at me quite some time, then asked: “What do you mean by that?”
I guess I looked at her a while too. Then I told her: “Liz, I’m not sure I know.”
“If you mean what I think you mean-?”
“I mean, Rome wasn’t built in a day. I mean, first things first. And first of all, for me, I’ve got to make clear a deal is a deal is a deal. Once that’s understood, life can go on, and we’ll see where we take it from there.”
“And Tom? What does he do?”
“One thing at a time, Liz-!”
“O.K., O.K., just asking.”
I was suddenly half hysterical, and she reached out to calm me down. Then, looking at her watch: “Got to be running along, or Jake will have my skin. Bianca still hasn’t found someone to replace you, so I’m back to doing double the work.”
“I’m sorry, Liz.”
“I’m not complaining, I’m just telling you how it is.” She hesitated. “On Tom, I’ll tell him keep his fingers crossed, there may be more to come. Tell him calm down, take it easy.”
“Thank you.”
“He may not take it well. He’s not a patient boy.”
“He’ll have to take it, Liz. What’s his other choice?”
27
She went, and I got up and dressed. Then I went down and sat in the drawing room, waiting for Earl to come home. But I didn’t sit there long, for at 4:30 here came the car, and he bounded inside, bright and cheerful, “all ready for my walk to the Garden of Roses-except that this time, that woman Liz will serve me, instead of a beautiful girl I know.” I patted his cheek and gave him the smile he was after. I admit I was surprised he intended to keep up his pattern of visiting the Garden, but there was no reason I should have been-he’d been going there long before I came into the picture, so why not keep going now? “But Joanie,” he whispered, and took me in his arms, “when I get back, have I got a piece of news! I’m still pinching myself. I’ll give you a little hint: From now on, we can lead a normal life, like other people.”
He went up, changed to walking clothes, the rough shoes he had always worn, the double-weave trousers, flannel sport shirt, and coat. He patted me, kissed me, and headed for the door, waving at Boyd and tapping his watch. Then, quite briskly, he went marching off. He hadn’t said anything about me, if I wished to go somewhere, and I thought: I’ll fix that, right now. So I got a coat and went out to where Boyd was in the car, waiting to start down and bring Earl back. I got in the back seat and asked him to drive me to the garage where I’d left my car. He looked startled, but then said: “O.K., Mrs. White.”
“I’d prefer you call me Joan.”
“All right,” Boyd said. “Joan.”
At the garage, I paid the storage bill, $35, and then drove back. On the way I drove past my house, my out- of-date little bungalow, the only home I’d known since I bailed out of Pittsburgh. It looked exactly the same. I drove on. When I got to the White mansion-I can’t make myself say “got home”-I drove around back to the garage and put my car in there. Three other cars were there, a station wagon, a pick-up truck, and a slightly battered sedan, the last probably belonging to one of the servants. I’m sure I could have found keys to one of the other two and used it, but I was happier having my own car on hand.
Just before six here came Earl, in the car with Boyd, and I met him in the hall, asking if he had a nice walk. “Very nice,” he answered, “except for the stop at the Garden. Your former colleague, Liz, is a wholly objectionable person, cheap, familiar, and in all ways dreadful.”
“I like her.”
“Well, I don’t.”
“She’s a close personal friend, almost the only friend I have here, and I’ll be grateful if you speak no ill of her.”
“… As you wish.”
“Good, then we’ll say no more about her.”
I was a bit disagreeable, while trying not to be. Then, thinking it best to seem interested: “But, Earl, you said you have news. What is it?”
His frown disappeared, his face lit up, and he said: “The most beautiful news imaginable. Joan, today I saw a new doctor, and when I told him what Cord had said-that I have to live cautiously for the rest of my life, that there’s nothing that can be done-he just laughed. He says that’s all out of date. Maybe ten years ago it was true, but not today. He’s begun me on a course of treatments that he says will instantly show results. Something called intravenous chelation-it’s a new technique, where they flush some chemical through you and on its way out it takes whatever’s causing the problem with it. I don’t say I understand all the details, but that’s the gist of it. That, and shots of Vitamin E twice daily.”
“And he thinks that will cure your angina?”
“He’s certain of it. He’s done it for a dozen other patients-two dozen, maybe-and it’s worked for all of them.”
“And you tried it today? Is it painful?”
“Not bad, really. The injections are like any injection, and the chelation, well, you sit two or three hours with a bag slowly draining into your arm through a needle. There’s a pinch when the needle goes in, but after that you forget it’s even there.”
“Until you get up and try to walk away.”
“It’s on a stand,” he said. “It rolls.”
“… Well, it’s awfully exciting,” I said, trying to make myself sound pleased. “And I guess worth a try. But how will you know if it’s worked?”
A grin came over his face, like a young boy’s. “We’ll just have to give it a trial. He said tonight’s not too soon, since it’s had a few hours now to do its work.”
“Earl, I’m not so sure … you’d be taking an awful chance…”
“Dr. Jameson assured me I’m not.”
