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Sources close to Ms. Bridge, however seem unconvinced that she will return. As one employee, who asked to have her name withheld, put it, “I guess she was a big talker. All that advice about the sanctity of marriage . . . well, its a real disappointment to find out what a liar she is. ”
There was obviously a full-scale media frenzy going on out there Today . . . Larry King Live. Reporters were probably scouring the country, talking to anyone and everyone who ever knew Nora Bridge; theyd tear her apart if they could.
And Rubys article would make it worse . . .
Ruby sat on the bed in her parents" old bedroom, with her knees drawn up and her yellow pad in her lap. The USA Today lay beside her; that grainy, unflattering photograph of her mother stared up at her.
My mother is being destroyed in the press. Its only fitting, I suppose. She ruined her family in pursuit of a career, and now that career is detonating.
Its what I wanted to happen. Im sure its part of what made me accept the money for an article. A need for some kind of . . . if not vengeance, then fairness.
And yet . . . something about it doesnt sit well with me
Ruby! Come help me make dinner. "
For a weird, disorienting second, Ruby was four teen again, hiding in her bedroom, reading The Lord of the Rings when she was supposed to be doing homework. Shaking her head to clear it, she rolled over on her stomach and yanked open the top drawer in her mothers nightstand. Pens and junk clattered forward. As she started to put her pad away, she saw a brown prescription bottle.
She picked it up and read the label. VALIUM. NORA BRIDGE. 1985. The doctor listed was Allbright.
Ruby frowned. Her mother was on Valium in 1985?
Chapter Ten
Valium.
That discovery opened a door, hinted at a woman Ruby had never known, never even imagined.
In 1985, everything had been fine. Great.
Or so Ruby had thought.
She wished she hadnt found the bottle. It was the sort of thing she didnt want to know. Like accidentally finding your mothers vibrator. Some things were supposed to remain hidden.
Finally, Ruby couldnt stand being in the bedroom anymore. She went downstairs and found Nora already in the kitchen.
“Were going to make chicken divan. How does that sound?”
Ruby groaned. “Cooking together. ”
“I want you to chop that broccoli. The cutting board is right there. "
Ruby did as she was told.
Smaller, please. Each piece needs to fit in a human mouth. "
Ruby took a deep breath and started over.
For the next half hour, they worked side by side. Ruby boiled and cut up the chicken-in human-size bites while Nora did everything else. Finally, the casserole was in the oven.
“I have a surprise for you,” Nora said, putting the cutting board away. “Theres a big cardboard box in my closet. Will you get it?”
Ruby shook her head. “I dont think so. ” A surprise from her mother just couldnt be a good thing.
Nora gave her “the look,” and Ruby caved. Some things were bigger than willpower, and a mothers raised eyebrow was one of them. She went into the bedroom, opened the closets louvered doors, and found the box. As she hefted it into her arms, it made a rattling, clanking sound like auto parts crammed together.
She took it into the living room and set it down on the glossy wormwood coffee table. It hit with a clatter.
Nora had followed her into the living room. “Open it. ”
