Silk and Stone (36 page)

“Hmmm. That’s what the old-timers are saying. That’s what he thinks too.”

“He must be a very respected tracker, from what I’ve heard.”

“He is. His sister has the same talent, but she applies it differently. Now, Ellie”—Dr. Raincrow waved a hand proudly—“she’d take Charlotte’s hands for a second, and she’d say, without anyone giving her Charlotte’s background, she’d say, ‘You’re not sleeping or eating enough.’ ”

“That’s kind of eerie.” Sam shifted. “That kind of intuition.”

“Well, I think it’s a matter of having a keen gift for observation. Logic.”

“Logic.” Sam nodded. “There aren’t many mysteries in the world.”
Except for Charlotte’s reaction to that necklace
.

“I agree.” He paused, and she thought he was going to get up and leave. “
If
I believed in meddling in situations I can’t completely analyze,” Dr. Raincrow said slowly, “
if
I did, I’d tell you that Jake hasn’t been fit company
for other human beings since the day you and your sister came here to live, and that his mother and I have discussed every way we can think of to change this situation. You and Charlotte would have been welcome in our home.”

Sam looked at him with surprise and gratitude she couldn’t hide. “Tell him I don’t expect him to wait for me any longer. Tell him I don’t want him to be unhappy.” She struggled with the next words. “Give him this, please.” She pulled the thin necklace from inside her blouse, closed her hand around the rough stone one more time, then lifted it over her head and held it out. “Tell him I said good-bye.”

Dr. Raincrow frowned and studied the dull, purplish ruby in bewilderment. “He gave this to you?”

“When we were kids. Back when we thought there was nothing we couldn’t overcome.”

Barbara popped out of the jewelry shop. Sam quickly jammed the ruby into Dr. Raincrow’s coat pocket. “Sam, you can discuss Charlotte’s condition with Mrs. Lomax’s private physician,” Barbara said, staring nervously at them. “Let’s go.”

Sam stood immediately, all business. Dr. Raincrow rose too, and she glanced at his face, then away quickly, because he knew she had no choice, and she saw the anger and something that might be pity in his face. “Thank you,” she told him, and held out a hand. “For taking the time to see to Charlotte.”

He shook her hand gallantly. “Take care.”

Sam hurried back inside, her head up and her shoulders squared, one hand clenched wretchedly over the empty space where she’d always kept Jake’s promise.

Charlotte screamed. Sam was beside her within a few seconds, groping for the switch on a lamp by Charlotte’s bed, pulling her sister into her arms. Charlotte’s hair and nightshirt were soaked with sweat; sobbing, Charlotte wound her hands into Sam’s flannel gown and shivered
violently. “It’s all right, it’s all right,” Sam told her, rocking her.

“Where am I?” Charlotte moaned, looking around wildly at the pastel prints and lacy trimmings of a room that like Sam’s was alien in its very luxury. “Your bed,” Sam crooned. “It’s safe. Shhh.” Sam glanced at a delicate little ceramic clock on the dresser. “It’s almost five. I’ll stay with you. Try to get some sleep.”

Charlotte shivered harder. “I can’t sleep. I don’t want to see Aunt Alex’s doctor this morning. I don’t need a doctor.”

Sam bowed her head against Charlotte’s. “You can’t go on this way. Aunt Alex says he’ll just prescribe something to help you relax.”

“I can’t relax. Not in this house. Not—” Charlotte inhaled sharply, wiped a hand across her damp face, then burrowed her head into the crook of Sam’s shoulder and was quiet.

Sam’s growing confusion and dread had reached a breaking point. She took Charlotte by the shoulders and held her away. One look at her sister’s fear-glazed eyes pushed her over the edge. Between gritted teeth she said, “You have to talk to me.
Tell
me what’s wrong. You
know
I’ll help. You
know
I’ll understand.”

Charlotte moaned. “You can’t help this time, Sammie. I’m okay. I swear. I just have to get used to the way things are here. I won’t let you down, Sammie.”

“What the—”

“If we don’t like living here, we can’t just leave. At least I can’t. And no matter how much you’d want to take me with you, Aunt Alex wouldn’t let you. I know what she could do. I’ve heard people talk about cases like this on
Donahue
. If I ran away, she could have me
arrested.
”

“Charlotte, talk to me, please.” Charlotte clamped her mouth shut and shook her head. Sam leaned toward her, holding her tortured gaze with a determined one. “If we can’t depend on each other, then we’ve lost everything.
Listen to me
. The only way you can let me down is by keeping a secret.”

Charlotte’s resolve evaporated, and she covered her face. And then, in a halting, shame-soaked voice, she told Sam the truth.

Alexandra was half awake, feeling cold and restless in bed, alone. Orrin was at the house in Raleigh, preparing to host a group of foreign investors for the state business commission. She had planned to go with him, until Charlotte’s strange affliction intervened. Damn Hugh Raincrow for meddling. Word might spread that her niece had fainted mysteriously, and people would gossip. What if, allowed to run wild by Frannie’s idea of child-rearing, the girl had gotten herself pregnant? In a few hours Alexandra would haul her to Asheville and have her examined from head to toe, including a pregnancy test.

And if, God forbid, that was the case, it would be taken care of immediately. Alexandra rolled over and punched a pillow. She dimly heard movements in the hall outside her suite, and as she jerked upright, one of the doors flew open. Light from a hall sconce silhouetted Sam and Charlotte. Sam flicked a light switch. Her face was full of rage. She had Charlotte by one hand, and Charlotte appeared to be terrified.

“A couple of weeks ago, when he was visiting here, Tim mauled my sister,” Sam announced. “He cornered her in your dressing room and groped her, and told her not to tell. I want you to call him at school,
right now
, and tell him to come home. Because I want to hear him admit it before I cut his testicles off with a pair of pinking sheers.”

“You have to believe me,” Charlotte said again. Several hours had passed to that horrified refrain, backed up by Sam’s fury each time their aunt countered it with another skeptical question. Alexandra paced the living room floor, a creamy robe fluttering around her bare ankles, her face a mask of rigid doubt.

Charlotte was frozen in a chair at the center of the
room as if this were an inquisition. Sam stood behind her, both hands on Charlotte’s shoulders. This was Sam’s worst nightmare come true—to be caught between Aunt Alex and her sister, defending Charlotte against their aunt’s unremitting insistence that Charlotte was exaggerating Tim’s actions or worse, lying about them. “I’m going to ask you one more time,” Aunt Alex said, halting and staring down hard into Charlotte’s eyes. “Did you make this story up simply to get attention?”

Charlotte moaned, “No,” and hugged herself. Sam stepped in front of her and said with barely contained sarcasm, “Is this what you think my mother expected when she left Charlotte in your care? That you’d call Charlotte a liar to save your own pride?”

“Loyalty works both ways. How do you expect me to respond to a lurid accusation about my son—yours and Charlotte’s
cousin
? Tim has a temper, I grant you that. It’s possible he said something that wounded Charlotte’s oversensitive feelings, but that’s no excuse for her to concoct an outrageous story in revenge.” Aunt Alex slammed one hand onto a table. “I will not have my son’s reputation smeared on the basis of allegations by a troubled girl who cannot prove a word she says is true.”

“
Charlotte isn’t a liar
. The last thing she wanted was trouble. She didn’t intend to tell me or anyone else what happened.”

Aunt Alex moved around Sam and bent over Charlotte, suddenly patient and conciliatory. “I’m not going to punish you, I promise. I know it’s been hard for you to adjust to losing your mother. I miss her too. I know it’s easy to become confused, to want attention and comfort
so badly
that you’ll do reckless things to make people notice you.” She took Charlotte’s hands. “But you have to tell me the truth, and then I’ll help you.”

Charlotte made a choking sound. “I already did.” She jerked her hands away and ran from the room. Sam started after her, but Alexandra grasped her arm. Sam faced her furiously. “I told myself you loved her—that you had her best interests at heart even if sometimes you get them confused with
your
best interests. But you
couldn’t really care about her—not and condemn her the way you’re doing.”

“Did Dr. Raincrow put these ideas into your head yesterday?”

Sam recoiled. “You’re so bitter toward the Raincrows that you look for any excuse to blame them for your own problems.”

“You’re the one who’s looking for excuses. If you think you and Charlotte can mastermind some scheme to put me at a disadvantage—
if you think
you can cry wolf and leave this house with Charlotte under your self-righteous wing—
forget it.
” Aunt Alex released her and, taking a deep breath, stepped back. “I’ll fly to Durham this morning and
find
Tim at the university. I’ll talk to him face-to-face and get his side of this ridiculous mess.” She paused, her eyes narrowing as Sam simply stood, gazing back at her with unwavering contempt. “And when I return with him this afternoon, I’ll expect a full retraction from both you and Charlotte, and an apology.”

“You won’t get either.”

Aunt Alex raised a warning hand and pointed at her slowly. “You’ve heard of ‘tough love’? Charlotte needs help. If she doesn’t come to her senses, I’ll have no choice but to send her where she can
get
that help.”

Sam’s head reeled. “What do you mean?”

“I mean a private psychiatric hospital.”

She is evil
. Mrs. Big Stick’s words had sounded melodramatic to Sam, but now they didn’t. Any small illusions she’d had about her aunt’s compassion vanished. She was looking at a woman who would strike viciously, even against the people she claimed to love. And if she’d treat them this way, what was she capable of doing to others?
My God, she really would destroy Jake and his family if I went to them for help
.

“All right,” Sam said carefully. “While you’re gone, I’ll see what I can do. Maybe Charlotte
did
overreact.”

Aunt Alex looked surprised. She studied Sam shrewdly, and Sam returned her gaze with unblinking sincerity. Aunt Alex’s face relaxed, but her eyes still glittered. “You’re a fast learner. I’m proud of you. I was a fast
learner at your age too.” She breezed past Sam, then stopped at the door and looked at her. “Don’t let second thoughts get the best of you. Barbara and Matilda will be in the house all day. I’m afraid, considering the mood you’re in, I’ll have to ask Barbara to monitor the phones.”

Sam didn’t breathe. “There’s no one I’d call. I take care of my own business.”

“Good girl. Once this
misunderstanding
is settled, I’ll take you—and Charlotte—to Atlanta for a weekend. We’ll spend an obscene amount of money on new wardrobes for both of you.”