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Greg said, “We’re vegans. No meat, no dairy, no eggs, no animal products of any kind.”
“In that case, I guess you’ll have to have your meals somewhere else. I don’t know the first thing about vegan cooking.”
Shelly sounded put-upon. “We don’t have the money to eat out. We used all our cash to pay for the trip.”
Greg said, “We left San Francisco this morning and drove straight through.”
“Ah. Is that where you’ve been? We had no idea you were so close.”
Shelly said, “Something else while we’re on the subject.” She pointed at Greg, then Shawn, and then herself. “He’s Creed, he’s Sky Dancer, and I’m Destiny.”
Deborah lowered her gaze, keeping her expression neutral. She couldn’t wait to tell A
“Since we realized our birth names were completely meaningless. We each chose a name that represents the future, like a higher calling. Our vision of ourselves.”
“ ‘Destiny.’ I’ll make an effort to remember.”
Greg said, “Don’t worry if you forget. Everybody goofs at first.”
“I can well imagine,” Deborah said. “I’ll see if I can round up some towels for you. I assume you’ll be sleeping in the bus.”
Greg said, “Sure, if that’s what you want.”
From the way he’d phrased his reply, she knew he was waiting for her to offer them the guest rooms, with assurances they were welcome for as long as they liked. Their insistence on living like vagabonds must have lost its appeal. Nothing like clean sheets and flush toilets, especially when someone else is doing all the work. Shelly was giving her the hard stare she’d used so often before. Deborah felt a certain stubbor
“We don’t want to put you to any trouble,” Greg added. “I mean, you might be using the guest rooms for something else these days.”
“No, not really. You probably saw for yourselves if you had a look around.”
“Yeah, that’s right. It’s just the way you said that about our sleeping in the bus-”
“Creed,” Shelly said. “It’s obvious she doesn’t care to play hostess, which is her prerogative.”
Greg looked at his mother. “Is that true? You don’t even want us in the house?”
“It’s entirely up to you,” she said. She knew full well they wouldn’t take her up on it. She and Shelly were in a power play. Shelly couldn’t ask for anything. She only won if she could outmaneuver Deborah, who was supposed to extend herself of her own accord, graciously bestowing favors on her guests to save them the discomfort of making their wishes known.
Now it was Greg’s turn to look pained. “Man, this is like a major bummer. We didn’t mean to intrude. We thought you’d be pleased to see us. I guess not, huh?”
“Creed, dear,” Deborah said carefully, nearly tripping on the name. “You and Destiny left four years ago without so much as a by-your-leave. We had no idea where you’d gone or what your intentions were. I don’t think you should expect to be welcomed back with open arms. That’s not how these things work.”
“Sorry we didn’t keep you informed about our busy lives,” Shelly said.
Deborah turned on her in a flash. “I’m not going to put up with any shit from you so you can knock that off.”
Shelly shut her mouth, but she made a comic face, eyes getting wide, mouth pulled down in mock surprise. Like, Lah-di-dah, the nerve. Did you hear what she just said?
Greg made a gesture, indicating that he’d take care of it.
At least he was starting to stand up to her, Deborah thought. Watching them, she felt like she’d developed X-ray vision. She could see all the little nuances in their communication, the ploys, the dodges, the way they tried using emotion to throw her off balance. This was like the children’s game of hot potato, where the object was to leave the other guy holding the bag.
Greg said, “So where’s Rain? Shawn’s been looking forward to seeing her.”
“I’m picking her up at three. How long did you plan to stay?”
“Couple of days. Depends. You know, we haven’t decided yet.”
Shelly cupped a hand to her mouth, like she was making an aside that no one else could hear. “Notice how she’s ducking the subject of Rain,” she said to Greg.
Deborah kept her voice in a singsong range, as though speaking to a child. “Well, Shelly-oh, excuse me. I meant Destiny. What is there to say? We didn’t think you were interested in Rain. There was never a letter or a phone call and not a pe
“What, like you gave birth to her? News to me.”
Deborah didn’t think it was possible to loathe another human being more than she’d loathed Shelly in the past, but apparently, there were untapped reservoirs of hostility that Deborah could call upon at will. “We adopted her. We went through the court system. Your parental rights were terminated. That’s what they do when parents abandon a baby at the age of five days.”
Shelly said, “Fuck you, bitch. I’m not putting up with any shit from you either!” She got up, agitated, and snatched up her shawl. “Come on, Sky Dancer.” And to Greg, “We’ll be in the bus when you get done kissing butt. Jesus, what a mama’s boy.”
Greg made his excuses shortly afterward. There was no graceful way to exit the conversation. He went out to the bus, and Deborah went upstairs to the master bedroom and called Patrick, who said he’d drive up for the night, but he’d have to return to L.A. first thing the next morning. “Keep away from them if you can,” he said. “I’ll take care of it when I get home.”
“That might not be necessary. Now that Shelly-oh, excuse me, Destiny-has worked herself into such a state of righteous indignation, they may take off of their own volition.”
But such was not the case. Deborah picked up Rain from her playdate, half expecting the yellow school bus to be gone on her return. Instead it was parked where it had been, which seemed curious in itself. Flouncing off in a huff was a typical Shelly move, meant to alert you to her displeasure. Emotional one-upsmanship.
Shawn knocked on the back door soon after Deborah and Rain got home.
“Is Rain here?” he asked.
“Of course.” Deborah let him into the kitchen. He stood by the door, not quite sure what to do with himself. It was almost as though he held a hat in his hands, turning the rim while he waited for what came next. Deborah said, “Did your dad send you?”
“Greg’s not my dad.”
“Sorry.”
“He and my mom are asleep.”
“I see. Well, why don’t you have a seat? Rain went up to her room. I’ll tell her you’re here. She’ll enjoy the company.”
Shawn perched on the edge of a kitchen chair. His te
She said, “I’m happy to see you, Shawn. I mean that.”
She didn’t wait for a reply. She went upstairs to Rain’s room and told her she had company. “His name is Shawn. His mother calls him Sky Dancer and it would be polite if you did, too.”
She took Rain by the hand and the two went downstairs. Shawn was actually Rain’s half brother, but Deborah thought the concept would be confusing to a four-year-old.
Shawn got up from his chair when Rain entered the room. She stood there looking at him and he looked at her. There was an unmistakable resemblance between them. Both had Shelly’s dark hair and big hazel eyes. Rain’s hair fell into natural ringlets, and she was rosy with good health, where Shawn looked like a prisoner of war.
Shawn said, “You want to read stories?”
“I can’t read.”
“I couldn’t either when I was your age. What about the alphabet song? You know that?”
She nodded.
“You feel like singing it?”
“Okay.” Without any self-consciousness at all, Rain sang the alphabet song, bungling the order of the letters but otherwise presenting herself earnestly.