“Then we’d better get blue booties,” Charlotte said, squeezing Vivian’s hand. “That woman isn’t wrong when it comes to babies—or a lot of other things.”
Vivian wouldn’t argue about that. “That’s exactly what Madge said—including the blue booties bit. Sometimes I wish Wazoo wouldn’t say some of the things she does,” she said. “She can scare me a bit.”
“She means well,” Charlotte told her.
“I know she does and I love her to pieces. Wouldn’t it be somethin’ if she married one day?”
Charlotte hummed and seemed to get lost for moments. Then she said, “It would. We’ll see. Most of what I’m thinking tonight is about Lil. When you spoke to Spike last I suppose he was a closed-mouthed toad, like always.”
“Mama! Don’t you call Spike a toad. He isn’t even very closedmouthed anyway—he could say a lot less than he lets out sometimes but he’s too trusting. He just doesn’t waste time talkin’ when he’s got work to do.”
“He doesn’t fool me,” Charlotte said. “He likes folks to think he’s happy-go-lucky and informal, but he keeps more to himself than he ever lets on.”
Vivian avoided responding. “Lil’s not doing as well as they’d like but she is coming along. Madge was at the hospital earlier and she told me when she came in.” She and her mother looked at each other and sighed. “She’s doing her best about Millie.”
“Hard,” Charlotte said. “You do know Spike’s like his dad, don’t you? They both keep too much to themselves when it comes to feelings.”
Vivian decided not to touch that.
“Ornery old fool, that Homer,” Charlotte said, so quietly Vivian felt sad. “I know what it’s all about, y’know, that man’s stupidity. But don’t you ask me to tell you ’cause it’ll only make you madder than would be good for my grandson.”
Vivian giggled and rubbed at her tired eyes. “So this is definitely a son I have here. If you don’t mind, Mama, I’d as soon you didn’t talk like that in front of Spike. He wants to be surprised.”
“Oh, no, no, no,” Charlotte said holding her hands, palm up. “Not a word of it’ll come from me. Did Spike say anything else about Lil? More than you heard from Madge?”
“I haven’t talked to him for hours. I can’t figure out how Lil would drive right off a road she’s been using all her life.”
“Neither can I,” Charlotte said. “I feel bad about…well, she came to ask about a job and I didn’t hire her.”
“Lil did?” Vivian couldn’t believe it. “You didn’t mention it before. She’s been with Cyrus forever. She’d never leave the rectory.”
Charlotte fidgeted with piping on the arm of her chair. “I think money’s a problem. We both know Ozaire sees himself as an entrepreneur. If his schemes panned out it would be great, but mostly they don’t. Even adding his part-time from the church to what he gets from Homer, he can’t bring in much.”
“I bet Cyrus doesn’t know Lil came to you,” Vivian said. “Why doesn’t she talk to him about a salary raise. He’d find a way.”
“Cyrus always does find a way,” Charlotte said. “For everyone but himself.”
Vivian laughed. “He has what he needs—and what he wants. Cyrus is a happy man. Mostly.” She met her mother’s eyes briefly. There were few subjects they didn’t discuss but Cyrus and Madge was one of them.
“Madge could probably help figure out what to do,” Charlotte said. “When she’s settled down a bit, I’ll talk to her.”
Footsteps pounded down the stairs.
Charlotte held up a hand to Vivian and whispered, “Who can that be?”
“Bet it’s Madge,” Vivian said in a hoarse voice. “I don’t know what she’s goin’ to do without that dog of hers. She sure isn’t going to like being on her own up there.”
The dog beat Madge into the room and leaped into Charlotte’s arms.
“Lordy,” Charlotte said. “Look who I’ve got and she doesn’t ever come to me.”
“Or me,” Vivian said.
Madge came in, her face flushed and her eyes bright, even though she’d obviously been crying. “I don’t understand it. She was upstairs under my bed. And there’s not one mark on her. I think she’s been here all day.”
“She couldn’t have been,” Vivian said. “We’d have seen her. If she’s here and you’re not she doesn’t just stay in your rooms.”
“Anyway,” Charlotte said. “Wazoo said Lil took Millie to the vet in Loreauville.”
“She did,” Madge said, out of breath, her face flushed. “Her sister backed that up and the vet said he gave Millie a shot.”
Charlotte cuddled Millie. “Is she hurt? Do we need to get her back to the vet now?”
“She’s absolutely fine.” Madge’s dark eyes glowed. “I’ve checked her out. Not a mark on her and even her feet aren’t injured. They look as soft as ever.”
“This is great,” Charlotte said.
“Great,” Vivian agreed.
Madge said, “She hasn’t run miles, has she? She didn’t have to find her way home.”
“No,” Charlotte and Vivian said in unison and Vivian added, “She must have been brought back here.”
“Who would do that and not let me know—or one of us?” Madge said.
“
Why
would they?” Vivian added.
S
ometimes there was no right way to deal with idiots.
Roche wished he could shut out Kelly’s pacing. Unfortunately his brother made sure he walked back and forth only feet from Roche’s nose.
“It’s always been like this,” Kelly said, at least keeping his voice down. They were in the residents’ dining room at Rosebank and even with the door closed Roche didn’t feel safe from passing ears. “Don’t you do that freezing out thing with me,” Kelly said. “It gets you by with Max but it doesn’t work with me.”
“Leave Max out of this,” Roche said. “And remember Max and I don’t want you running to Dad just because you want to make points.” He knew his mistake at once.
“You shit,” Kelly said through his teeth. “You fucking superior upstart. No, don’t try to interrupt. This time Max gets pulled in and we sort out the thing you’ve got about me and
our
father. I’ve had it—”
“Shut up,” Roche said succinctly. “It’s time to get over being jealous of Max and me. And we don’t have time for sibling rivalry—not now.”
“Jealous of you and Max?” Kelly laughed but his eyes stayed hard. “It’s time
you
got over thinking you’ve got to cut me out whenever you can. I’m the oldest son, remember. I’m not in competition with you. Not with you or Max. Max is the one in competition with me.”
“You are jealous,” Roche said. This had been a long time coming and was overdue. “Dad and Julia couldn’t get along. They divorced. Dad and our mother met and married. Mom always treated you like her own son. Jeez, Kelly, whenever you’re around her butter wouldn’t melt in your mouth. And Mom had nothing to do with the divorce, except in your mind—”
“Shut the fuck up,” Kelly said and Roche heard his teeth grind. “I didn’t accuse Claire of anything. She’s a good woman. It isn’t her fault my father made a mistake when he broke up with my mother.”
Let it go.
Roche hoped he could.
“You pull off your little act nicely,” Kelly said. He took his coffee mug from the table they’d been using and went to the laden sideboard for a refill. The residents’ morning spread was invariably impressive. While they hadn’t been in this morning, usually the Devols and Charlotte also grabbed breakfast there, and the kitchens would want to keep them happy.
Kelly went to the window that overlooked gardens at the side of the house. From there, the chimneys at Green Veil were visible.
“I’m waiting,” Roche said when he couldn’t contain himself anymore. “What act am I pulling off?”
Kelly pulled back a sheer drape that hung to the floor and stood closer to the window. “We’re going to miss the lousy wet weather,” he said. “Looks like it’s going to burn us up and wring us out today. Damn, I hate humidity.”
“Don’t avoid the question,” Roche said.
“Okay.” Kelly swung to face him. “You put up a good front—you’ve got most people believing you’re Dr. Nice—but the quiet, reserved act doesn’t fool me. You resent Max. I pity you that, because I’m sure enough of myself not to care if everyone bows down to him. I just make sure I don’t get swept away in his dust. But you hate it because as well as you’ve done, you can’t touch Max. I’ve seen how you look when Dad and Claire are fawning on him.” He sighed. “I don’t blame you. Where is he anyway? He knew we were getting together this morning.”
Roche simmered. “Max is my brother, my twin. I’m glad for any success he has and I hate it that he’s going through so much he doesn’t deserve.”
“How reasonable,” Kelly said. “I hope he’s got himself covered for every minute of last night.”
“Why?” Roche opened and closed his hands. “Don’t fool around, just spit it out.”
“Lil,” Kelly said. “Last I heard she was going down for the third time.”
“She’s critical?” Roche frowned. “I should have checked on her condition last night.”
“You were busy.”
“Okay, you’ve made your point. Why would they think Max had anything to do with hurting Lil?”
“They’re going to think he’s got something to do with anything that happens around here. Did you hear anything else about it?”
“No,” Roche said. He felt a light sweat break out.
“Call the hospital. You can always get the information you want.”
“They won’t tell me anything,” Roche said. “Damn, just what we need, more complications. I’m sorry about the woman, of course. But no one’s going to suspect Max in this one.”
Kelly gave a one-sided smile. “Do you wish they would?”
“You…” Roche went around the table, but Kelly made sure he didn’t get too close. “What kind of thing is that to say? God, you’re eaten up with envy. You can’t even stand it that Max and I are twins. You don’t like how close we are. And you hate it that you couldn’t make it in medicine. Go on, admit it.”
Kelly’s eyes went flat and lost any shine. He drew the corners of his mouth down. “If I’d wanted medicine, I would’ve had it—and I’d have been better than either of you. Damn, you medical types think you’re gifts from God. And I still say you wish you were the star, not Max. Maybe you’re right. You think about that, don’t you?”
“Why do I bother with you?” Roche said. He took a long breath that didn’t calm him down and dropped his hands, limp, at his sides. “I’m proud of my brother. He makes a difference and that’s okay by me.”
“Sheesh, I wish I was as perfect as you. You don’t fool me. How does it feel when they say only screwed up people become psychiatrists? Nutcases and people who couldn’t cut it in most fields of medicine.”
“No one ever said that to me,” Roche said mildly. “They may have thought it, but so what, I’m doing exactly what I want to do. You might want to make an appointment.”
Kelly frowned.
“Short-term cognitive therapy might work for you,” Roche said, enjoying himself. “The way things are, I can fit you in every day until the clinic’s ready to go.”
For an instant Roche expected coffee in his face, then Kelly sighed. He shook his head and grinned. “We don’t stop, do we? You and I have been needling each other since you started talking. But even if you don’t get it, I want the best for you. I think you deserve it.”
What Kelly had already said wouldn’t be so easy to forget, but Roche grinned back. Some of what his older brother said was true, Roche didn’t always feel as unconcerned as he made sure he seemed. The reasons were complex and who knew when they’d all get worked out.
“I saw you with Lee,” Kelly said. He sat down at the table again.
Seconds passed while Roche digested what Kelly had said.
“I got back early. You were supposed to call her and ask for a rain check—for me. But you decided to take advantage of an opportunity. It wasn’t pretty.”
Roche’s pulse felt faint. He kept his gaze steady on Kelly’s. This had better not be what he feared it was. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll keep it in the family. But rough sex—”
Max came in and closed the door behind him. “Did I hear someone say ‘rough sex’?” He went straight for the coffee. The heat must already be turned up outside. A blue chambray shirt stuck to his back.
“You’ve got to get your mind on the right track,” Roche said. He hoped Kelly wouldn’t continue whatever he’d been about to say.
“Yeah,” Kelly said. “That’s what I said, rough sex. Roche here has been having too much fun and if he doesn’t watch it he could bring the town down on our heads.”
Max didn’t immediately face them. His life was changing, again, and he wanted to concentrate on it—not on his brothers’ arguments.
“You hearing me?” Kelly said.
“Yes.” Max turned around and drank some of his coffee.
“You’re late,” Roche said and Max felt his twin’s discomfort. “One of the building inspectors is coming today and we’re agreed we should be there, not just the contractor.”
Kelly rapped a knuckle on the table. He hadn’t stopped moving since he arrived. “More important than that is the human resources woman. I’m not wasting my time hiring office staff. Where were you last night by the way?”
“Minding my own business.”
“I didn’t think you got to do that anymore,” Kelly said.
Max didn’t rise to the bait in Kelly’s last comment. “You’re in a great mood,” he said. “You’re right, we had a breakfast date but we didn’t set a time. I was late getting in last night. This morning I had to drive Annie to work first, but I’m here now.” The two of them had decided they wanted openness, even if it did carry a price.
“Huh?” Kelly said.
“You heard,” Max said.
Roche smiled and offered Max a chair. “Annie spent the night with you? Go, bro’. You always were a stallion.”
“Yeah, a real stud.” Max felt more angry than sarcastic but he had to keep his temper under wraps. “Annie is special to me. Really special. She’s off-limits to guy comments—from either of you.”
Kelly put his elbows on the table. “Have you lost your mind?” he said to Max.
“Not the last time I checked.”
“Max, it’s too dangerous. For her. She can’t be with you all the time.” He jumped up and clasped his hips. “What if she’s alone and…You know what I’m thinking.”
He did. “Thanks for the concern,” he said. “I’m laying down some ground rules. When she’s not with me, there’ll be someone else keeping an eye on her. This thing with Michele has to be cleared up. If anything’s happening, I don’t know about it. Spike pretends he’s a good ol’ boy who shoots off his mouth. The problem is he never really says anything.”
“Who will you find to watch Annie for you?” Kelly said. “Where do you think you are, Manhattan?”
Max intended to approach Guy Gautreaux. He liked him, and trusted him. The big question was whether or not he’d take on the job. “Leave it to me,” he told Kelly. “What’s with you, Roche? You don’t look so good.”
“I’m fine, thanks, Doc.”
“He’s fine all right,” Kelly said, stacking his hands behind his head. “You should have seen him in action last night.”
“Damn you! You didn’t see anything. You couldn’t have.” Roche made a threatening move toward Kelly. “Leave it, will you?”
“Lee was a mess and you were no better,” Kelly said, smirking. “Drowned rats. Did you use one of the baths or something? Nothing like sex in a great, big bath. Roche had Lee O’Brien over at the clinic. When I saw them he was saying goodbye—on the floor in reception.”
Max shot out an arm to stop Roche from rushing Kelly.
“Matter of fact, she looked dead,” Kelly said. “Did you fuck her to death? Hope you made a good job of getting rid of the body if you did.”
“Let me at him,” Roche said but Max made sure he’d have to come through him to get to Kelly. “Out of my way, Max.”
“Quit,” Max said. “What’s the deal? You didn’t get rough with Lee, did you?”
“Forget it,” Roche shouted. “You aren’t in charge around here. My sex life is my business. Drop it, both of you, or you’ll wish you had.”
“You and Lee at the clinic,” Max said. “As you say, it’s your business but it isn’t a place I’d choose.”
“No,” Roche said, “you prefer to take women to your rooms, in front of anyone around.”
“Not women,” Max said. “Annie. And the choice was hers. I agreed.”
“Lucky you,” Kelly said under his breath. “Dad’s on a cruise.”
Max frowned. “Where did that come from?”
“I want to let him know what’s been going on here.”
“Roche having sex in reception, you mean? And Annie and me getting together?”
“Michele Riley,” Kelly said. “Have you forgotten? Her boyfriend or whatever is still over at the Majestic spreading hate about you. The whole thing has to be ready to blow. Now there’s Lil Dupre. I don’t want Dad reading it in the paper before we say anything.”
“We’ve been through this already,” Max said. “Dad’s a strong man. And Mom takes most things in stride. I don’t want to say anything yet. We could get lucky and have this go away.”
Kelly skewered Roche with a glare. “You’re careless. What made you turn on all the lights at Green Veil? I wouldn’t have gone over if I hadn’t wondered about it. You’ve got a clean reputation—why dirty it up?”
“Drop it,” Roche said. “Lee and I understand each other.”
Max didn’t like either of his brothers’ attitudes. “We’re all wearing thin,” he said. “Let’s ease up, huh?”
Heavy footsteps in the hall preceded Spike’s appearance. He threw open the door and walked in looking as if he’d missed a few nights’ sleep.
“Coffee?” Max asked, looking him over.
“Yeah. There’s a few things you ought to know.” He threw down a copy of the
Toussaint Trumpet
and pointed at it. “We’ll get to that later. Can’t get into it now. But if I’m readin’ the code right, someone around here could have some explainin’ to do.”
Both Kelly and Roche stared at the paper. They weren’t the only ones who wanted to get their hands on it.
“What else is on your mind?” Max said to Spike. He poured a mug of coffee from a carafe. “Did you eat? There’s still food here.”
“I ate. Around ten donuts, I reckon. I couldn’t tell you this before, Max, but Michele Riley went into the Majestic when you left her there.”