“"What time did you get home?”" she asked. “"I didn’'t hear you come in.”"
Martin shrugged. “"I don’'t know,”" he said simply. “"It was late.”"
“"It was well past midnight,”" Nola informed him with an edge in her voice. It was this edge that tipped Lucy and Naunie off that this was most likely a conversation they should indeed be eavesdropping on.
“"I suppose it could have been,”" Martin replied.
“"It was,”" Nola confirmed. “"You told me you’'d be home at nine.”"
Naunie and Lucy slid into the hallway, where they were in earshot of the conversation.
Martin shrugged again and tried to move past her.
“"Where were you?”" Nola said, grabbing his arm.
“"I was driving around,”" he answered quickly, and ended it with a sigh.
“"All night long? Are you sure?”" she demanded.
Martin laughed.
“"Why, Nola? Do you want to correct me again? Were you in the backseat?”"
She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. It remained hanging open, waiting for Nola to fill it with something, but she didn’'t. She finally closed it and looked away.
“"I was at Jilly’'s,”" Martin said matter-of-factly. “"There was a wake, and I went. Tulip died.”"
Lucy was immediately absorbed by numbness. Naunie grabbed her by the shoulder and drew her close in.
“"Oh, sweetheart, oh, sweetheart,”" Naunie said softly as Lucy broke into waves of sobs.
“"You just can’'t break free of her, can you?”" Nola accused as Martin abruptly walked by her into the hallway and went for the front door. “"She’'s not coming back, Martin. She’'s not. No matter how many pictures you hide of her in the top drawer of your desk, Lucy is not coming back for you.”"
“"Nola,”" Martin said as he stopped dead in his tracks and turned around. “"What is in my desk drawer is none of your business, but what you tried to get rid of in the side table drawer is my business. I don’'t have to listen to this. I don’'t have to listen to you. And I won’'t.”"
With that, he picked up his keys on the console next to the door and walked out.
If Nola had had another digital picture frame within reach, it would have gone flying. Instead, she stood there for a moment, pouting and breathing angrily, her fists clenched on either side of her.
“"I never liked that stupid mutt,”" she forced out between her teeth, then marched into the bathroom and slammed the door.
The sound of the shower turning on followed within seconds.
Nola’'s heartless comment was enough to make Lucy break from Naunie’'s embrace. She put her face in her hands and took several deep breaths, neatly gathering her sorrow and her anger.
“"I’'m okay,”" she reassured her grandmother. “"I’'m okay.”"
She stood there for several moments, breathing in and out and collecting every bit of herself. She hadn’'t been this angry since the day of her funeral. Then, after one final deep breath, she took three steps to the refrigerator and grabbed either side of it with both hands, standing in front of it as if she was pushing it up a hill.
“"Lucy, what are you doing?”" Naunie cried, watching Lucy’'s glow getting more and more luminous and bright. “"Lucy, stop and think for a minute!”"
“"I am thinking, Naunie,”" Lucy replied staunchly. “"I should have done this a long time ago.”"
The refrigerator made a strange clicking sound, then the motor faintly ground to a halt.
Lucy moved on to the television, the answering machine, every lamp she could find, the microwave, even her very own broken coffeemaker. She mercilessly drained everything in the house until she heard the shower stop and her shine was almost as fiery as the sun.
When Nola emerged from the shower wearing a bathrobe with a towel around her head, it was hardly how she’'d expected to look the next time she ran into Lucy Fisher.
Who was now sitting on the couch in the living room. Waiting for her.
“"Boo,”" Lucy said simply.
“"How did you get in here?”" Nola immediately demanded.
“"I was already here,”" Lucy said, getting up and walking toward her.
“"You need to leave,”" Nola barked. “"I think you should leave, Lucy. You aren’'t wanted here. You don’'t belong here.”"
Lucy smiled. “"You see, Nola,”" she said with a grin, “"that’'s where I think you’'re wrong.”"
Nola shook her head. “"I was right, wasn’'t I?”" she declared, pointing her finger at Lucy. “"I was right about you hanging around here, putting stickers on things, writing on the mirror. Even the mailman caught you. I knew it. I knew I wasn’'t making things up! So, what, now you want it all back? What is it that you want, Lucy?”"
“"I want you to leave,”" she said simply. “"I want you to pack up your things and go. Because I promise you, I’'m not going anywhere until you do.”"
“"You think I’'m going to leave Martin just because you said so? You think that you’'re the only one for him?”"
“"No,”" Lucy replied. “"I’'m not the one for him, but neither are you. And you know that.”"
“"What makes you so sure? What makes you think that you can come in here and take this away from me, huh? What makes you think that I’'d let you? I will never let you take anything from me again! You think you can decide to come back and just waltz through the door like nothing happened?”"
“"You can’'t even imagine what’'s happened, Nola,”" Lucy said. “"So much that it isn’'t even a possibility. Everything I had is gone.”"
“"Everything you had is gone? Really? You think you know about losing everything? Well, let me tell you about that, Lucy, because I once had everything. I had a fiancée, too. Did you know that? I was planning on getting married, starting a family. Everything was all set. But then my fiancée, Ricky, went home with another girl one night. He was at the Round About when he met this girl. They started dancing, drinking, and the next morning, he woke up with her in his bed. He told me about it, said she was a friend of Jilly’'s and her name was Lucy. He decided after his night of fun that he wasn’'t ready to get married after all and broke it off. A few months later, a friend of Jilly’'s came to interview with Dr. Meadows for a job. He told me to get all of the paperwork ready; he had hired her. Her name was Lucy.”"
“"Icky Ricky was your boyfriend?”" Lucy gasped, amazed, disgusted, unbelieving, horrified, and wanting to take a shower even though she theoretically no longer had a body. “"No, no, no, wait. Wait, wait, wait a minute, Nola. You mean that you think I ruined that all for you?”"
“"No, Lucy,”" Nola barked back. “"I don’'t think. I know it was you. You ruined the rest of my life, and I swore I’'d make you pay for at least some of it. I waited, and waited, and waited, and finally, the time was right. You made the wrong move, just like I predicted you would.”"
“"The deposit,”" Lucy said, shaking her head. “"I gave you too much credit, Nola. Even I didn’'t really think you would stoop that low. You put that money in there on purpose, so that I would be responsible for it, and you counted on me being distracted.”"
“"Well, it had to be that night.”" Nola chuckled. “"A typical day’'s draw would be maybe a hundred dollars in cash, the rest in checks and credit cards. No big deal if it went missing. Most of it could be replaced. But if twenty thousand dollars of the doctor’'s money turned up missing, that was a different story altogether. I took a chance and waited a couple of days before putting it in the deposit the day before you were leaving for Hawaii. It was just a matter of perfect timing.”"
“"Perfect for you,”" Lucy replied. “"How on earth did you manage to sneak the drug test in there? And how did you know it would be positive? Did you rig that, too?”"
“"Oh, that was luck in its purest form,”" Nola said, and smiled. “"I had nothing to do with that. There were pharmaceuticals missing. I had no idea whether you had anything to do with that or not. Turns out,
you did.”"
“"I didn’'t,”" Lucy protested. “"I had nothing to do with that, Nola. I didn’'t take the drugs, I didn’'t do the drugs, I knew nothing about the drugs. Just like I had nothing to do with your boyfriend. If he broke up with you, it had nothing to do with me. I did have too much to drink that night and I should have left with Warren and Jilly, but my biggest crime was passing out before I could tell Icky Ricky where I lived. That’'s how I ended up at his apartment, and believe me, when I woke up the next morning, fully clothed, I should have been quarantined. Had something happened between us, I would have turned myself in to the Centers for Disease Control. At this point, I would love nothing more than to tell you I ruined your life, but the truth is, I had nothing to do with it. Nothing. Your jealousy, your rage, your hate, it’'s for nothing. You wasted all that time and energy when you could have been doing something good with yourself. And, if I may impart some advice, I’'d start working on your good deeds list now if I were you. You can make your first contribution by moving out of this house.”"
“"I will not,”" Nola said adamantly. “"You have no control over me, Lucy. I have a nice life here. A life that is owed to me.”"
“"Think about it, Nola,”" Lucy said carefully. “"Because the decision you make could very well haunt you for the rest of your life.”"
“"He won’'t take you back,”" Nola insisted. “"Not after what you did. You can try to get rid of me, but Martin will never take you back after you cheated on him.”"
“"I already told you, Nola,”" Lucy sternly replied. “"Nothing happened between me and Icky Ricky. I’'m sorry you formed a life of revenge around a lie, but you did. I’'ve told you the truth, and you’'re going to have to drop it.”"
“"I’'m not talking about Ricky!”" Nola said, her voice rising. “"Martin knows nothing about Ricky. I’'m talking about Hawaii. I’'m talking about when Martin caught you with another man. He called you, and that man answered your phone and told him everything!”"
“"Nola, your lies are getting ridiculous,”" Lucy answered. “"I was rooming with Jilly and Marianne. Don’'t you think they’'d have noticed a strange man in their bed talking on the phone?”"
“"Not your room phone! Your phone! He called you on your cellphone and a man answered. He said that you were in the bathroom getting ready to ‘'party’' with him and then told Martin not to call back!”"
“"That never happened,”" Lucy insisted. “"It’'s impossible. Martin would never tell you something that never happened. You’'re making this up.”"
“"It was the night before you came home, Lucy,”" Nola added. “"A man answered your phone and basically told Martin he was going to have sex with you. He said you were in his room, in his bathroom. You were there; you know it.”"
Lucy felt as if she had dropped seventy feet in an elevator with no cables. That’'s what this is all about? she thought, trying to keep the room from spinning. That’'s what changed my life into death? The fact that I was throwing up in the bathroom and the most disgusting, vile man on the face of the earth answered my phone because he thought he was going to get lucky?
That is why I’'m here?
It’'s all been for that?
“"Lucy!”" Naunie whispered from her vantage point in the hallway. “"Wrap it up. You’'re losing the charge!”"
Lucy snapped back, her anger even more intensified. Everything that had seemed unfair had just been brought into a much sharper, closer view. And Nola was certainly a part of it.
“"Whether Martin takes me back or not is not the issue; what matters is that you leave him alone and let him have something real,”" Lucy said as she started to walk toward the front door and try to get out of the house before she became nothing but the tailpipe exhaust figure Nola had seen of Naunie the night before. “"This isn’'t real. It’'s not genuine or true, and you know it. You’'re here because you wanted to take from me what you thought I stole from you. And you’'ve been terrified ever since you stepped foot in this house that I would always return and come back for what was mine.”"
“"I—--”" Nola started as Lucy opened the front door.
“"I’'m back,”" Lucy concluded as she walked over the threshold and shut the door behind her.
Nola said nothing to Martin about Lucy breaking into the house and confronting her. She didn’'t want to start another fight with him, and she didn’'t want to give Lucy the satisfaction of knowing that she had gotten to her. She weighed her options and planned out her strategy, staying quiet and keeping her eyes open. She listened carefully. She knew she could wait this out, even though she was positive that every time she came around a corner, Lucy would be there, waiting for her, telling her what she already knew.
Because she was right. Lucy was back.
It was confirmed a couple of days later when Nola saw Lucy’'s truck pull into the driveway. There was no hiding this time, no skulking around, no behind-the-scenes mischief, Nola thought as she peeked out the living room window. The truck sat in the driveway for a long time, simply idling. Martin’'s truck was in the driveway too, as plain as day, right in front of it.
Today, Nola thought, is the day that Lucy is going to stake her claim.
She’'d brought reinforcements, too, Nola realized when she saw Jilly get out of the passenger side of Lucy’'s truck and walk around the front of the vehicle. What are they going to do, Nola asked herself, beat me up? Why would Jilly even remotely need to be here? That was a bad move on Jilly’'s part, she said to herself. She, too, could be easily replaced at the office. It had taken Nola years, but she had found a way for Lucy to go, and she could be patient and find a way for her little friend, too.
Martin saw Lucy’'s truck pull into the driveway, after he heard the familiar sound of its engine and peered out the bedroom window to investigate. While Jilly had called and said she’'d be over with Tulip’'s ashes, he’'d never expected this. A part of him felt ambushed, while another, truer part of him felt relieved, as if the whole last year was finally over, everything had been fixed and was now working the way it should have been. That feeling, however, only lasted for a moment. The driver’'s side door opened.
Instead of Lucy sliding out of the driver’'s side, it was someone Nola didn’'t know, didn’'t recognize. After the doorbell rang and Martin walked past her and answered it, Nola realized that only two people had arrived in Lucy’'s truck, and Lucy wasn’'t one of them.
Jilly looked terrible. Her face was drawn and tired, her eyes puffy and red. It was apparent that she had been crying. But once Nola saw what she had in her hand, she understood. A small brass urn, no bigger than a mayonnaise jar. Nola wanted to scoff, but couldn’'t. She understood what it was to love something and lose it, even if it was just a dog.
“"Alice?”" Martin said as the next woman walked into the house. He looked very surprised. His mouth opened to form another word, but he couldn’'t finish it, and he stood there, as if frozen.
Naunie gasped from the couch, where she had been reclining. “"Lucy, it’'s Alice!”" she nearly screamed. “"It’'s Alice! It’'s Alice!”"
Lucy ran in from the kitchen, where she had been reading the flap of the newspaper Martin had left open on the table. Naunie was already next to Alice, getting as close as she could.
“"How are you, Martin?”" Lucy’'s sister said, and she gave him a faint smile.
Martin nodded, but still didn’'t say anything.
“"Lucy, look!”" Naunie said, pointing. “"It’'s Alice! She’'s here!”"
Lucy stood in the doorway and looked at her sister. She was relieved, grateful, overjoyed to see her. Just as when she’'d seen Alice at her funeral, she wanted to embrace her and hug her tightly. Now Alice looked far better than she had at the funeral home, and Lucy was glad. She couldn’'t stand the thought of her sister being in any kind of distress, and to see her looking better was a huge relief to Lucy.
Naunie was simply giddy. The look on her face said it all; a wide, bright smile, her eyes sp
arkling like the sun off water. She could not get enough of Alice, and danced around her almost like an elf, trying to take all of her in.
“"I wish I was here under better circumstances,”" Alice said to Martin. Nola lurked silently behind him.
Martin agreed, although he was curious why Alice had come with Jilly to deliver Tulip’'s ashes, and thought for a moment that this might indicate a tug of war over them. In that instant, he decided, if Alice really wanted them, he wouldn’'t fight her for them; he had his memories of Tulip and didn’'t feel entirely entitled to them, since he’'d given the dog to Jilly.
“"May we sit down?”" Alice asked politely.
“"Of course,”" Martin replied, and motioned toward the couch. “"It’'s hot out there. Can we get you something to drink?”"
“"Water. Just water would be wonderful,”" Alice said as she took a seat on the couch. Jilly sat next to her, Martin took the recliner, and Nola stood there for a moment until she understood that she was in charge of refreshments.
“"Water would be great, thanks,”" Jilly said, and Nola scooted off to the kitchen, looking quite unsettled as she passed Lucy.
“"Martin,”" Alice started right away as Naunie squirmed in delight, sitting behind her on the top of the couch, “"I need to say something that is not easy to say, and I’'m sorry. I thought I had already said it, but after talking to Jilly I realized that I hadn’'t, so here I am.”"
Martin decided to jump in. “"I have no problem with you taking Tulip’'s ashes, Alice; I know Lucy would like to have them. I completely understand, or we can share them,”" he said. “"Either way, whatever you decide is fine with me. You won’'t get an argument.”"
Alice clasped her hands together tightly. “"That’'s not it, Martin,”" she said, shaking her head softly. “"About a year ago, I tried to contact you. Your phone number had changed and I didn’'t have your email address. Because of that, I thought the best way to reach you would be by letter. It wasn’'t an easy letter to write, but I hoped you would understand my reasons for writing it and not coming down to Phoenix to see you. At the time.”"