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Inside the house, she tossed her shawl on the kitchen table and flipped through the mail. There was a big manila envelope from Meghann.
She ripped it open. College catalogs fell out onto the table. Columbia. NYU. SUNY. Three of the graduate programs that had accepted Elizabeth all those years ago.
A Post-it note read: you cant say you dont have time now.
Elizabeth avoided talking to her daughters. She carefully called during school hours or when swim practice was going on, and left cheerful messages that sounded as if everything were unfolding as it always had. Dad was doing great in New York, lighting up the airwaves; Mom was working hard to get the place ready for renters. Lies that stacked like a house of cards.
She glanced at the mantel clock. It was one-forty-five.
Four-forty-five in Washington, D. C.
Theyd be in swim practice right now. Saturday was the big meet against UVa.
Coward, Elizabeth thought as she punched in the number. She was so busy devising her pert, upbeat message that it took her a moment to realize Stephanie had answered.
"Hello?"
Elizabeth laughed nervously. "Hey, honey, its good to hear your voice. Ive been thinking about you guys a lot lately. "
"Hey, Mom. " Stephanie sounded tired. "Your uterine-radar must be working. Im sick. "
"Whats wrong?"
A pause slid through the line, and in that split second, Elizabeth imagined the worst. Motherhood was like that; it pushed you out on a ledge and then said, Be careful. Dont look down.
"Dont call nine-one-one or anything. I just have the stomach flu. Everything that goes down comes right back up. "
"Is Jamie taking care of you?"
"Oh, yeah, thats her specialty. This morning she said, If you think youre going to puke, aim away from my new shoes. "
Elizabeth laughed. It was so Jamie. "Im sure youll be back on your feet in no time. "
"I hope so. Hey, Mom, Im glad you called. I need to talk to you about something. Tims parents invited Jamie and me to go skiing over spring break. They have a place in Vermont. Its the second week in March. "
Thank God.
Elizabeth had been worrying about how she and Jack would handle the separation with the girls at home. It was one thing to avoid the truth by phone. It was quite another to lie to you
r children in person. "That sounds great. "
"Its kind of expensive. Lift tickets--"
"Your dad can afford it. " Elizabeth winced. She should have said We can afford it.
"Itd be the first spring break we havent come home. Are you okay with that?"
Sweet Stephie, always worried about hurting peoples feelings. Elizabeth had a sudden urge to say, Break a few eggs, honey, be courageous, but instead she said, "Ill miss you, of course, but you should go. Have fun. "
"Thanks, Mom. So, hows it going with the house? You must be going crazy. Every time I call Dad, he sounds so amped about Manhattan. You must really miss him. "
"I do," Elizabeth said, flinching at her word choice.
"How much longer will you be in Oregon?"
"I dont know. Nobody seems to want to live this far out, and we cant leave the house empty. " She glanced down at her left hand, curled in her lap. The diamond ring was still there. Everything about it, her wearing of it, was both a lie and the deepest truth. Looking at it now, all she saw was the lie.
"So, howre classes going?" she said to change the subject.
