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Tellie felt her heart stop beating.  His girlfriend? she prompted.
 Sorry. I keep forgetting that your memory s limping. Bella, she added.  She s a beauty contestant.
J.B. s been dating her for several weeks.
Tellie stared at her hands.  Is he serious about her?
 He s never serious about women, Nell replied.  But that doesn t mean he won t have them
around. Bella travels with him, mostly, and she spends the occasional weekend in the guest room.
 This room? Tellie asked, horrified, looking around her.
 No, of course not, Nell said, not noticing Tellie s look of horror.  She stays in that frilly pink
room that we usually put women guests in. Looks like a fashion-doll box inside, she added with a
chuckle.  You d be as out of place there as I would.
The implication made her uneasy. J.B. was intimate with the beauty contestant, if she was spending
weekends with him. The pain rippled down her spine as she considered how easily she d given in to
him the night before. He was used to women falling all over him, wasn t he?
And Tellie wasn t immune. She wasn t even respected, or he d never have touched her when she was a
guest in his house. The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. He was involved with another
woman, and making passes at Tellie. What was wrong with him?
On the other hand, what was wrong with her? She only wished she knew.
She got out of bed and started helping Nell around the house, despite her protests.
 I can t stay in bed my whole life, Nell, Tellie argued.  I ll never get better that way.
 I suppose not, the older woman admitted.  But you do have to take it easy.
 I will. She pushed the lightweight electric broom into the living room. The sofa caught her
attention again, as it had when she d come home from the hospital. She moved to its back and ran her
hand over the smooth cloth fabric, frowning. Why did this sofa make her uneasy?
What had happened in this room in the past that upset her?
She turned to Nell.  What did J.B. and I argue about? she asked.
Nell stopped dead and stared. She was obviously hesitating while she tried to find an answer that
would be safe.
 Was it over a woman? Tellie persisted.
Nell didn t reply, but she flushed.
So that was it, Tellie thought. She must have been jealous of the mysterious Bella and said something
to J.B. that hit him wrong. But, why would she have been jealous? She was almost certain that J.B. had
never touched her intimately in their past.
 Honey, don t try so hard to remember, Nell cautioned.  Enjoy these few days and don t try to
think about the past.
 Was it bad? she wondered aloud.
Nell grimaced.  In a way, yes, it was, she replied.  But I can t tell you any more. I ll get in trouble.
It might damage you, to know too much too soon. Dr. Coltrain was very specific.
Tellie gnawed her lower lip.  I ve already graduated from high school, haven t I? she asked.
Nell nodded, reluctantly.
 Do I have a job?
 You had a summer job, at the Ballenger Brothers feedlot. That s where you met Grange.
She felt a twinge of memory trying to come back. There was something between J.B. and Grange,
something about a woman. Not the beauty contestant, but some other woman. There was a painful
secret...
She caught her head and held it, feeling it throb.
Nell moved forward and took her by the shoulders.  Stop trying to force the memories,
she cautioned.  Take it one day at a time. Right now, let s do some vacuuming. Then we ll make a
cake. You can invite Grange over to supper, if you like, she added, inspired.  J.B. won t be around
to protest.
Tellie smiled.  I d enjoy that.
 So would I. We ll call him at the feedlot, when we re through cleaning.
 Okay.
They did the necessary housekeeping and then made a huge chocolate pound cake.
Grange was enthusiastic about coming for a meal, and Tellie was surprised at the warm feeling he
evoked in her. It was friendly, though, not the tempestuous surging of her heart that she felt when she
remembered the touch of J.B. s hard lips on her mouth.
She had a suitcase that she didn t remember packing. Inside was a pretty pink striped dress. She wore
that, and light makeup, for the meal. Grange showed up on time, wearing a sports jacket with dress
slacks, a white shirt and a tie. He paid for dressing. He was very good-looking.
 You look nice, Tellie told him warmly as he followed her into the dining room, where the table
was already set.
 So do you, he replied, producing another bouquet of flowers from behind his back, and presenting
them with a grin.
 Thanks! she exclaimed.  You shouldn t have!
 You love flowers, he said.  I didn t think you had enough.
She gave him a wary look.  Is that the whole truth? she asked suspiciously and with a mischievous
grin,  or did you think you d irritate J.B. if I had more flowers in my room?
He chuckled.  Can t put anything past you, can I? he asked.
 Thanks anyway, she told him.  I ll just put them in water. Sit down! Nell and I chased Albert out
of the kitchen and did everything ourselves. I understand he s down at the goldfish pond slitting his
wrists...
 He is not! Nell exclaimed.  You stop that!
Tellie grinned.  Sorry. Couldn t resist it. He seems to think he owns the kitchen.
 Well, he doesn t, Nell said.  Not until I leave for good.
Leave. Leave. Tellie frowned, staring into space. Nell had quit. Tellie had been crying.
Nell was shouting. J.B. was shouting back. It was raining...
Grange caught her as she fell and carried her into the living room. He put her down on the sofa. Nell
ran for a wet cloth.
Tellie groaned as she opened her eyes.  I remembered an argument, she said huskily.
 You and J.B. were yelling at each other...
Nell frowned.  You couldn t have heard us, she said.  You d already run out the door, into the
rain.
Tellie could see the road, blinded by rain, feel the tires giving way, feel the car going into the ditch...!
She gasped.  I wrecked the car. I saw it!
Nell sat down beside her and put an arm around her.  Grange saved you, she told the younger
woman.  He came along in time to stop you from drowning. The ditch the car went into was full of
water.
Tellie held the cloth to her forehead. She swallowed, and then swallowed again. There were odd,
disturbing flashes. J.B. s furious face.A blond woman, staring at her. There were harsh words, but she
couldn t remember what they were. She didn t want to remember! [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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