Arietta was surprised at how pleased she was to see them, too. Hilary, stopping by with pie and conversation, had reignited her belief in the Salt Sister community.
“We should have told you we were here,” Tina said.
“It’s all right.” Arietta waved it off. “It’s been a busy few days.”
“Who was that guy?” Stella asked conspiratorially, her eyes dancing down the walkway, where they could see Jasper getting into his convertible.
“A colleague,” Arietta said. “He needs me to write an article for him.”
Tina gasped inwardly. “He’s in love with you,” she said.
Arietta cackled. “He is not. We’ve known each other for years.” She was about to say that Jasper was friends with Fred as well, but she stopped herself.
“Is he single?” Hilary asked.
“He just got divorced,” Arietta said.
“He has that energy,” Stella said. “He seems like he’s dating for the first time in a while. He’s still excited about it.”
“Really?” Arietta wanted to pretend that she hadn’t noticed how flirtatious he’d been, but of course, she knew the dynamic had been entirely different from before. She knew there was an energy between them that maybe they hadn’t allowed during the previous years.
Had Jasper known that would happen? Had he planned it? After considering the facts, Arietta decided that no, he hadn’t. Maybe he’d been just as surprised at the vibe as she was. Or perhaps he hadn’t felt anything between them at all.
But it didn’t matter, not then. Arietta let herself indulge in one last glass of wine with the Salt Sisters (nearly a full hour of laughing and stories and more joy than she thought she deserved) before she took a cab back home to Shannon and Fred. Shannon was watching a movie on the big screen, all tucked in under a fuzzy blanket. After saying hello, Arietta performed all the rituals to ease Fred’s discomfort, reminding herself of how grateful she was to be there for him during his time of need. This was what marriage was all about. Then she finished watching the film with Shannon and went to bed.
It was only later, around four in the morning, that she woke up with a start and remembered the blackmail letter. Her face and chest were covered in sweat. After getting a glass of water, she told herself it was beautiful that she’d allowed herself toforget about the letter for the night. But it was going to haunt her if she didn’t do something to stop these people from taking everything she and Fred had.
17
When Shannon woke up the following morning, she found her mother and father on the veranda. Arietta drank coffee while doing a crossword, and Fred—as usual, now—gazed at the water in a way that made Shannon question if he could feel or see or understand anything.
“Morning, Mom and Dad,” Shannon said, bending down to kiss them both on the cheek.
“Morning, honey. How did you sleep?” Arietta asked dreamily.
“Not bad,” Shannon lied. Of course, she’d hardly slept a wink.
Last night, when her mother had returned from dinner with Jasper and drinks with “the girls,” as she called them, Shannon had desperately wanted to pry the information out of her mother about the blackmail letter and how much cash Arietta had already sent the blackmailers. But Arietta had seemed happier than she had since before Fred’s stroke, and Shannon hadn’t wanted to drag her down into these depths.
Maybe soon, Shannon would find a way to ask her mother about the blackmail. Maybe soon, she’d find a way to call Russell and apologize for running away from him after the kiss. It hadn’tbeen logical or kind. But Russell hadn’t contacted her since she’d gotten to the island, and she had too much on her mind to deal with everything at once.
Rather than hang around the house all day, Shannon decided to head to a beach she’d loved as a girl. She wanted to read and collect her thoughts. Arietta told her, “Enjoy yourself, sweetie. You deserve it after a difficult semester.”
Shannon thanked her, put on her swimsuit, and got out of there. It was only when she made it to the beach five minutes faster than she should have that she realized she’d been speeding the entire way. She thanked her lucky stars the police hadn’t caught her. She didn’t want to bother her mother for the money to pay for the ticket.
At the beach, Shannon spread out a blanket and lay beneath the sun. She did a brief meditation exercise, as she’d read that clearing the mind and controlling it were beneficial for brain health. She’d read enough about all the awful things that could happen to the brain that she tried to strengthen it, to train it to avoid disease. But she found that she couldn’t clear her mind completely. When she rolled over, her phone buzzed with a call. She assumed it was her mother or maybe Russell. But the name read: MIMI.
Shannon was surprised. At first, she wondered if Mimi had somehow learned about Shannon and Russell’s kiss. Maybe she was calling to yell at her.
“Mimi?” Shannon answered, furrowing her brow. She was too curious not to answer.
“Shannon, hey. Long time no see,” Mimi said.
“Yeah. Um. How are you?”
Mimi groaned. “I guess you heard that Russell and I broke up?”
I’ve heard everything about your breakup, Shannon didn’t say.