Cedar Woman (121 page)

‘
N
o
m
o
re
!
’”

A
l
l of
t
h
is flash
e
d
t
h
r
o
ug
h
Lena
’
s
m
ind
as
she
watch
e
d Jo
-
A
n
n wal
k
ing
a
l
o
n
g t
h
e si
d
e
walk,
w
h
ich
led to
h
e
r
b
ack do
o
r.

“
J
o
-
A
n
n!
G
o
od
to see yo
u
!”
Le
n
a s
m
ile
d
,
op
e
n
ing
t
h
e screen
and i
nv
iti
n
g J
o
-Ann
in.

“
H
ow
d
y
,
n
eigh
b
or!”
J
o
-
A
nn
c
h
ir
p
ed.

“
O
h,
your
n
e
w
hu
tch
you
were
telli
n
g
me
a
b
o
u
t.
V
e
errry
n
i
ce!” Lena
s
m
iled.

“
Th
a
nk
s
!
M
ichael
and
I
li
k
e
anti
q
ue
s
,
as
y
ou have p
ro
b
ab
l
y gu
e
ssed,”
Lena replied
in
r
e
f
e
rence
to the
f
e
w
pieces
that
she
h
a
d
bought to
a
u
g
m
ent
t
h
e
f
u
r
n
it
u
re
L
e
na
had
k
e
pt
f
r
om
her
fa
m
il
y
’s
t
h
ree
-r
oom

apart
m
ent,
c
o
m
b
i
n
ed
w
it
h
Mi
chael’s
p
i
e
c
es
f
r
om
h
i
s
soon
t
o
be
fo
r
m
er

res
i
d
e
nce.

Jo
-A
nn
n
o
d
d
e
d
.
Clearl
y
,
s
h
e
had
n
o
t co
m
e
over
t
o
discu
s
s fur
n
is
h
i
n
g
s.
S
h
e wal
k
ed
o
v
er
to
a
s
m
all
k
itc
h
e
n
ta
b
l
e
and
sat d
o
wn, d
r
u
mm
ing her fi
n
g
ers
o
n
t
h
e For
m
ica
top.

“
Lena,”
she
b
e
gan. “Ye
s
?
” L
e
na
r
eplied.

“
W
h
e
n
are
y
o
u
g
etti
n
g
m
arrie
d
?
” J
o
-A
n
n questi
on
e
d
.

Lena
r
e
ga
r
d
e
d
her
fr
ie
n
d
.
She
was
a
m
azed
at
h
o
w
c
l
ose
she
had beco
m
e
to
Jo
-
A
n
n
in
t
h
e
f
e
w
m
onths
she
had
li
v
e
d
h
e
re.
W
ith
Jo
-
Ann
,
y
ou w
e
re n
e
v
e
r b
o
r
e
d, a
n
d s
h
e could
k
eep
y
ou la
ug
h
i
n
g w
i
th her st
o
ries
un
til you
b
egged
h
er to
s
t
o
p
.

Lena
recalled Jo
-A
n
n
’s
h
o
rr
o
r wh
e
n
she r
e
alized
that
sh
e
’
d
s
e
rv
e
d alco
h
o
l
t
o
a
mi
nor.
W
i
t
h
i
n s
i
x
t
y
se
con
d
s,
h
e
r
f
a
ce
had
r
e
g
i
s
t
er
e
d disbelief,
s
ho
c
k,
co
nste
r
n
ati
o
n,
an
d
finall
y
,
self-r
i
dicule.

“
Y
ou
’d
t
h
in
k I was d
ro
pp
e
d
o
n
m
y head!”
she exclai
m
ed.

I
t
h
i
n
k
th
a
t
o
n
e
o
f
t
h
e
t
h
in
g
s
I
l
o
ve
abo
u
t
h
e
r
t
h
e
most
–
is
h
er
ab
ility
to
la
u
g
h
a
t
h
erself,
admit
h
er
mis
t
a
k
es
a
n
d
m
o
ve
on
,
L
e
na
m
u
sed, and h
e
r
a
d
m
i
rat
i
on f
o
r her
f
r
i
end he
i
gh
te
n
e
d
.