Isabella sighed. “I have stacks and stacks of work to get to, but I don’t think I’ll be able to get Larry Calvin Johannes outof my head. Not quickly, anyway. Do you mind if I keep digging into him?”
Oriana felt a wave of nausea. “I don’t mind, of course.”
“I know that bad press around him might affect your career,” Isabella said quickly.
Oriana imagined the headlines. She imagined buyers calling her, demanding to know why she’d sold them paintings from such a sinister criminal. But what if Larry really had done something to his wife, and she chose to ignore it?
“It’ll take me a little while to go through everything,” Isabella went on, pushing it. “I probably won’t uncover anything for a month or more. If there’s anything to uncover.”
“Right. That big ‘if,’” Oriana said, squinting so that she could just barely make out an enormous bird, landing on the watery horizon.
“I’m visiting family on the East Coast around Thanksgiving,” Isabella said. “What if I bring you whatever I find then? You can assess it and tell me what you think. Maybe it’ll be nothing. Perhaps it’ll be something so crazy that it’ll actually help you sell his paintings. You know how fame can be. It can come from a good place, but it can also come from a bad place.”
Oriana laughed nervously. She had no idea what was on the horizon. “You’re always looking out for me.”
“We’re friends,” Isabella reminded her. And it was true that they’d worked together for the better part of twenty years at this point. Sometimes it boggled Oriana’s mind to think that she was toward the end of her career. She’d worked tirelessly for so long. She wasn’t sure what it would mean to quit.
After Oriana got off the phone, she returned to her circle of female family members and got a refill of wine. Conversation swirled, taking them from one topic to another in a sort of beautiful dance. Samantha announced that dinner would be readysoon, then they would have a video chat with Rachelle inRome at six o’clock and a bonfire on the beach when night fell. It would be a gorgeous night. They would be able to see every sensational star.
But a little before dinner was served, there was a cry of alarm from inside the house.
“Oriana!” Roland called from the kitchen. “Come quickly!”
Oriana felt all the blood rush from her head. Panicked, tipsy, and lost, she shot into the house and down the stairs to find the men of the family crowded around Reese. He was on the floor, slumped over, his hands on either side of his face. It looked as though he’d fallen.
“Call the ambulance!” Oriana cried because she couldn’t take it anymore. Reese shouldn’t be this tired. He shouldn’t be this thin. He shouldn’t be falling like this.
Oriana sat down beside her beloved, took his hand, and tried to find his eyes. But he was too exhausted to look up at her. He was too lost to mutter anything but, “I’m sorry. I thought I could do it. I’m sorry.” Oriana didn’t know what he meant, but she guessed he didn’t either.
Chapter Six
Jenny called Jasmine on a beautiful day in late October. Jasmine hadn’t heard from Jenny in a week, not since Jenny’s spontaneous threat about her marriage and Jasmine’s perceived involvement in that marriage, but at the sound of her daughter’s voice, Jasmine immediately melted with happiness and forgiveness. As a mother, it was impossible to remain angry with your only child. Especially given the fact that Jasmine had always done everything for Jenny.
“Mom,” Jenny began, her voice wavering, “I was wondering if you could do me a favor?”
Jasmine was on the back porch of her apartment, reading an adventure novel that she’d borrowed from Cynthia. She was expected at the convenience store in half an hour, but she was caught up in the story and considered bringing her book to read behind the counter.
It was rare to get a reprieve from the difficulties of real life, but a good book could always save her.
“What is it, honey?” Jasmine asked.
Jenny sounded tentative. “Walton has a surprise for me. He wants to take me on a romantic retreat. You know, things haven’t been easy for us lately. But we’re still really in love, andwe want to work on it.” Jenny sounded like she didn’t want to reveal all of this to Jasmine. Maybe she didn’t have a choice. “Alyssa and Jade have school, obviously. Could you stay with them for a few days? Just to make sure everything’s okay? I know they’re older. They’re teenagers. But I don’t want to put too much pressure on Chase to take care of his sisters, especially because he has to work so much right now. So many tourists, calling and calling him. And it’s such short notice. I’d need you to come today.”
Jasmine wondered if Jenny had been holding out for another option, if she hadn’t wanted to ask Jasmine for this favor. It was either that, or Walton had sprung this surprise on her that very day, without thinking about their teenage children, what they needed, or that it wasn’t so nice to leave them at home overnight alone.
At the idea of spending more time with her grandchildren, Jasmine perked up. “Of course! I can come after work tonight. I’ll be there around seven.”
“They’ll be thrilled,” Jenny said. “And Mom? Thank you. Really.”
Jasmine’s throat was tight. “Any time, honey. And…” She wanted to tell Jenny that she needed to talk to her, that she wanted to either apologize or express why she was so worried about her. But Jenny told her she had to go.
“My bags aren’t going to pack themselves,” Jenny said. “Love you. I’ll text with more info about where we’re going.” She hung up. Jasmine was breathless. Was this really happening?
Jasmine went to work with her adventure novel in her back pocket, a few changes of clothes, and her toiletries in her bag. As she sold sodas and bags of chips and candy to tourists, she smiled extra wide, happy to have something to look forward to. When Cynthia texted her to ask if she wanted to come over for dinner, Jasmine told her that she was spending a few days withher grandchildren. Cynthia was happy for her, but guardedly so. Cynthia didn’t trust Jenny—Jenny, the little baby she’d helped raise so many years ago. The little baby who’d become a forty-nine-year-old woman willing to do anything for that “evil” man, Walton.
Cynthia was clear that she loved Jenny, but that didn’t mean she always knew what to do with that love. Cynthia had never had children of her own.
When Jasmine appeared on the front porch of the little condo where Jenny, Walton, Alyssa, Chase, and Jade lived together, Jade swung open the door and hugged her grandmother hello. Upstairs, a speaker played a horrible rock song that made the windows shake in their panes.
