"There is no point in continuing this discussion." She spun around, willing her back to stay straight and her voice to remain strong.
"So you are simply going to go into the dressing room, prepare for your exercises, and take your place at the barre calmly, as if you had not disrupted my morning?" His back arched at the very thought of something so incredible.
"No," she replied. "I am going to empty out my locker, pack my bags, and leave."
It took a long moment for her intent to sink in, but when it did, his demeanor turned murderous.
"No one has ever walked out on my troupe, Miss Enright, and I can guarantee that if you do so, you will never dance with a reputable troupe again. Never!" His voice rose another few octaves.
The other dancers stared in disbelief. Had Georgia Enright just
quit?
Forcing herself to look him squarely in the eyes and refusing to blink, she said in a level voice, "I'm sorry we were not able to resolve this in—"
"Oh, we have resolved this, Miss Enright!" He
moved toward her stealthily, the other dancers taking furtive steps back as he advanced. "You may consider yourself dismissed. Dismissed! Whatever made me think that I could make anything of you but what you are? Why, if not for the fact that your mother is so generous with her endowments, I would never have even taken you on
…
ooh, it appears we may have struck a nerve, doesn't it?"
She had turned back slowly to face him, his words ringing in her ears.
"Surely you know that your mother heavily supports the arts?" Ivan sneered, leaving no doubt in Georgia's mind—nor in the minds of her fellow dancers—of his implication. "Why, what better way to attract some of that lovely money than to invite Delia Enright's daughter to join your troupe?"
Georgia's face flushed scarlet and her eyes widened. She blinked back tears she refused to let him see and slipped into the dressing room, where she grabbed the backpack she had not even opened that morning. With Ivan's insinuations ringing in her ears, she fled down the steps without another backward glance, leaving Ivan to fume and fuss. As she closed the door behind her, she silently begged forgiveness from the other dancers for having unleashed the beast that was Ivan, and leaving them to deal with his wicked wrath.
Fleeing to her apartment, she sat in quiet rooms with shades closed against the sun, where she could contemplate the enormity of what she had just done. Fear filled her and she began to cry, wondering what had ever possessed her to even consider such a thing.
Maybe Lee was wrong and Ivan was right. Maybe he
could
keep other directors from hiring her. He was certainly not above telling terrible stories, the truth of which might or might not be questioned. Maybe she should have thought this through a little more thoroughly.
Fear gave way to panic, and she began to pace the length of her living room. What would she do if she could never dance again?
And had her mother, as Ivan implied, paid for her position with the Inner Harbor?
Georgia's hands began to shake as she contemplated this last insult of his. Ivan was not above lying, but the troupe had gone through a period when money had been terribly tight. And then there had been talk of an anonymous benefactor who had gifted the company with money for the costumes, the travel expenses
, the new stage equipment…
Had that anonymous person been Delia Enright? There was only one way to find out. Georgia reached for the phone and dialed her mother's number.
"
Sweetie, you've done what?" Delia had asked with no small amount of disbelief when Georgia called to relate what she had done just an hour earlier.
"I quit the dance troupe," Georgia repeated in a whisper.
"I'm sure you had a very good reason," Delia said levelly. "And I feel certain that any moment now you're going to tell me what that reason is."
"Oh, Mom—" Georgia sighed—"It all seemed to make sense at the time."
"And I'm sure it still does." Delia bit her bottom
lip. It had been clear to her that her youngest child had been less than happy for the past several months. Though Georgia had never complained about anything in particular, her mother had not failed to notice that her eyes now lacked some of their usual sparkle and, too often, her smiles had appeared somewhat forced. "Why don't you start from the beginning and tell me what exactly brought you to this point."
Georgia tried to explain the growing malaise, the feeling that she had gone as far as she could go. The feeling that there might perhaps be something more to life than blistered, bleeding feet and ceaseless hours of practicing the same steps and the same exercises to the same music. The feeling that s
he could do more, be more…
"Oh, Mom, are you terribly disappointed in me?" Georgia lamented when she had finished.
"Darling girl, why ever would you think that?"
"Well, I always thought that you liked the idea of having a ballerina for a daughter."
"I always liked having
you
for a daughter. Yes, of course I was proud of you; what mother would not be proud to call so wonderful a girl—so beautiful and graceful and talented a girl—her own? But whether you chose to continue with dance or pursue another path, why, Georgia, that's entirely up to you. It's your life, sweetie. It's your heart that you have to answer to, and all I've ever asked of any of my children is that they follow their own hearts." Delia tried to speak evenly, tried not to let concern creep into her voice. "Now, do you have any thoughts on where you might like to go from here?"
"Actually, I thought I would take some time off to think about it. I thought maybe I'd see if I could visit Laura for a few days."
"A wonderful idea," Delia enthused. "I'm sure that Laura will be delighted to have your company. I doubt the inn sees quite as much business this time of year as it does in the warmer months. And besides, some time away from Baltimore will do you a world of good. Broaden your horizons, sweetie."
"That's sort of what I was thinking." Georgia paused and bit her lip in the same manner in which her mother, on the other end of the telephone line, had done. There was something she had to know.
"Did you
…
I mean, have you
…
" Georgia hated to ask, but needed to know the truth. "Did you give money to the troupe to hire me?"
"What?" Delia exploded.
"What?
"
"Did you give money to the troupe—"
"What a preposterous suggestion," Delia exclaimed. "What on earth would make you ask such a ridiculous question? As if I had to—" She cursed under her breath and asked, "Where would you get such a thought?"
"When I tried to tell Ivan that I wanted to take a leave—and that's all I really wanted, Mom, just some time off to think things over—he went totally off the wall. Not unexpectedly—and I was pretty much prepared for his reaction—but then he
…"
Georgia paused. The entire idea was odious, and suddenly she wished she hadn't bothered to bring it up at all.
"He suggested that I had perhaps
purchased
a place for you?"
"Well, he intimated that you had made large contributions."
"I made the same contributions that other parents made during your pledge season, those fundraisers he was always having." Delia's jaw tightened. "I always thought Ivan was a little twit. What a perfectly nasty little man he is. And I suppose that he told you he'd have you blackballed or some such nonsense if you left?"
"How did you know?" Georgia fought back hot tears.
"Because bullies always say things like that. I wouldn't give Ivan Markovich a second thought, darling. You're good enough to dance in any troupe you set your sights on—"
"In the corps," Georgia said pointedly.
"What's that, sweetie?"
"I said I'm good enough to dance in just about anyone's
corps.
But I'll never go beyond that."
"Oh, sweetheart, I remember a time when that was all you dreamed of." Delia sighed. "When the dance itself was enough to feed your soul. Is it no longer enough, Georgia?"
"I don't know, Mom. That's one of the things I was hoping to learn."
"Well, then, I say to hell with Ivan the Terrible. You cannot live your life hoping to please the likes of him. Casting pearls before swine, as my father, the very Right Reverend William Hanesford Hampton used to say. You're far better off without having to deal with such negative influences in your life."
"That's what Lee said."
"
Ahhh,
and Lee would know." Delia smiled. She
had liked Lee Banyon from the very first time she had met him, and it had been obvious that he had taken Georgia under his wing. He had been a steady factor in her daughter's life; and had become a dear and trusted friend. "Lee truly cares about you, Georgia; he would give you only his very best advice. And I would imagine he is not without influe
nce in the world of dance…
"
"He said he'd help me to find another company when I'm ready to go back."
"There you are, then," Delia said. "Have your cake, sweetie, and take all the time in the world to eat it."
"Mom, you always know just what to say."
"That's because I'm the mom. Actually, I had been hesitant to pry, b
ut I had thought there was some
thing not quite right for some time now. I was hoping it wasn't anything serious. I hadn't expected it to be anything quite like this, although
…
"
Delia stopped, wondering just how much liberty a mother should take.
"Although…"
Georgia encouraged her
to continue.
"I can't say I'm sorry to hear that you're taking a break, sweetie. You've never really seen much of life beyond the barre."
"That's pretty much what I was thinking, Mom. Maybe after some time off I'll find that there really is nothing else that I want to do. And that would be fine. But I can't help but feel that maybe there's
something else, somewhere…
"
"Well, then, Georgey-girl, I'd say it's time to find out. And I think that the Bishop's Inn is a fine place to start. Now, I want you to hang up this minute and
give Laura a call to let her know that you're on your way. Pack a few casual things and set off for the beach. I was there for a week last month, before I started this latest book, and I can tell you that there's nothing in the world that will clear away the cobwebs like a cold breeze off the ocean."
Frigid wind is more like it.
Georgia recalled her mother's words with amusement as she shivered inside the down sleeping bag. But Delia had been exactly right about the restorative powers of a cold and windswept beach. Georgia did feel renewed, filled once more with the same sense of resolve she had experienced when she had first discussed the matter of her future with Lee.
Georgia felt hopeful and almost whole, and, coming on the heels of Ivan's humiliating tirade,
hopeful
and
almost whole
were nothing to sneeze at.
She took a deep breath of cool sea air and leaned her face up to catch the light. The sun was well up now, and the first of the scavenger seabirds had joined her on the beach. Tiny birds chased the tide and pecked frenetically at the sand, searching for breakfast that hid just below the surface, while the larger birds—gulls, Georgia assumed—fought over larger prizes plucked from the surf. Just as Georgia pitched the remains of her coffee onto the sand, a voice from behind called, "Wait! Don't!"
Startled, she turned to face a silver-haired gentleman who wore a dark green corduroy jacket and a horrified expression.
"Was that coffee you just tossed away so casually?" he asked.
Georgia laughed. "It was. But it was cold
…"
"Even cold coffee has its place on a day like this. I was about to offer to buy it from you." He shoved his hands in his pockets and grinned. "You wouldn't know where I could purchase some of my own, would you?"
"The Bishop's Inn serves breakfast." She smiled back, then hesitated. "At least, they do for guests. I don't know for sure if the dining room is open to the public, though."
Georgia shook the sand from the sleeping bag, struggling to hold on to it as the wind whipped up underneath the fabric, causing it to flap loudly.
"Here, let me help you." The gentleman reached for the escaping end of the bag and returned it to Georgia to fold into a puffy rectangle.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome." He stood several feet from her, and nodded out toward the ocean. "I trust you enjoyed the sunrise."
"Yes."
"Spectacular, wasn't it?"
"It was. I didn't see you on the beach, though."
He turned and pointed down the beach to their left. "I was watching from the dune. I try never to miss a sunrise over the ocean—when I'm in the neighborhood, that is."
"I didn't know that anyone else was as crazy as Laura."