“Where have you been?” Marie gave her the once over.
“None of your business.” She brushed the wet hair away from her eyes. “When were you going to tell me?”
“Tell you what?”
“About that night you showed up here unannounced.”
Worry lined Marie’s forehead. “I’m not sure I follow.”
“Oh, I think you do,” said Ellie. “I overheard you talking to Sara at the funeral this morning.
What did you talk about?”
Marie seemed thrown by her question. “I-I don’t know. I talked to a lot of people today, about a lot of things.”
“Was today the first time you’d met her?”
Marie narrowed her eyes. “Yes, why?”
“It’s just that the two of you seemed well acquainted for two people who just met.”
“What’s gotten into you? Wait…” She paused, looking as if she’d had an epiphany. “I see what’s going on here. This has to do with Jack, doesn’t it? You’re jealous because he’s with her?”
“Mother,” said Amelia, looking cross.
Her comment stoked Ellie’s anger. “If today was the first time you two had spoken, how is it she knew your first name?”
Marie’s scowl tightened. “How should I know? Maybe Clara told her or someone at the funeral. What difference does it make?”
“All this time, I couldn’t quite figure out what happened that night, like there was a piece missing. But Jack said something to me a few minutes ago that put it all in perspective.”
Marie stiffened and crossed her arms. “Do you really want to do this? Right here? Now? After we just buried your aunt?”
“Oh, I’ve wanted to do this for a long time,” Ellie said through gritted teeth. “And yes, right here, right now.”
But before the situation reached the point of no return, Amelia interrupted. “Stop it! Both of you. Less than twelve hours ago we buried Clara, and the two of you are already at each other’s throats.” She looked at Ellie. “What is it you suspect her of doing?”
“It’s not a suspicion,” Ellie growled. “It’s a fact.” She swung her eyes back to Marie. “She’s the one responsible for ruining what might have been the happiest night of my life.”
Marie threw her hands into the air. “God, how many times have we been over this? I’ve told you over and over that I knew nothing of you and Jack.” She turned to Amelia. “Talk some sense into your sister, will you? In the meantime, I’m going to bed.”
Marie got to her feet.
“Sit down, Mother!” Ellie demanded.
Marie glared at Ellie, and Ellie glared back. When Ellie didn’t relent, Marie returned to her chair.
“You knew about me and Jack, and you knew about his plan to propose. The reason I know that is because the only people who knew what he was planning were his mama, George, and Sara. God knows his mama and George wouldn’t have said a word, especially to you. Which leaves only one person.” She let that sink in. “Sara was infatuated with Jack even before I showed up that summer, and when she found out we were together, it drove her mad. I don’t know how she got your number, but she did, and she called you, didn’t she? That’s why you showed up here that night claiming it was a surprise, because you wanted to make sure Jack didn’t have a chance to pop the question.”
Marie looked to Amelia for an ally. “I think your sister has finally lost her mind.”
But Amelia was unfazed, processing everything that Ellie had said. “Answer the question, Mother.”
With no way out, Marie capitulated. “Fine. Yes. Sara called me and said she was concerned that you were about to make a huge mistake. Naturally, I had to intervene. I sent you here to spend the summer, not get hitched to some farm boy. Besides, you were only nineteen and had your entire life ahead of you. Did you think I’d sit idly by and let you throw it all away because of a summer fling?”
“How dare you! You had no right to interfere in my life. Even at nineteen, I was a grown woman.”
“You were a child,” Marie snapped. “And an ungrateful one at that. After everything I did for you…”
