One other thing that truly surprised me even more was Cassie’s sudden use of makeup, all Mother’s makeup too. Once someone who hated even to put on lipstick, Cassie would now spend hours on her hair and face while she sat at Mother’s vanity table and looked into what had been Mother’s mirror.
When I asked her about it, she snapped at me.“Don’t you see how I’m trying to brighten things up here for Daddy? Can you even begin to imagine what it must be like for him every day to finish his work and start out for this house, knowing how empty it is for him? The holes, Semantha, the holes!”
She didn’t have to shout about it. Of course, I could imagine how hard it was for Daddy; it was still hard for me, and I wasn’t completely oblivious to the other change in him as well. I noted how he drank more, especially after dinner. I was very worried about him, and when Uncle Perry paid a visit, I brought it up the first chance I had. Actually, I was the one responsible for his visiting. I realized I hadn’t seen him for a long time, and I called him to invite him to lunch on a Saturday. When I told Cassie, she had another fit.
“Why did you do that without checking with me?”
“It’s only lunch, Cassie. What’s the big deal?”
“The big deal is Daddy and I are going to Lexington on Saturday, and I’m not going to change our plans to accommodate Uncle Perry.”
“Well, I suppose I could cancel and tell him to come some other time if we’re going to Lexington.”
“I didn’t say we’re going, Semantha. I said Daddy and I are going. It’s a business trip, not an outing. We won’t have time to entertain you.”
“I don’t have to be entertained. I haven’t gone anywhere in weeks, Cassie.”
“I’ll take you out for dinner one night this week. I think Daddy’s having a dinner meeting with some retailers. Thank goodness for the business. It takes his mind off the holes in his heart for a while, at least.”
“Maybe Daddy will be upset that he won’t be here for Uncle Perry,” I said.
“Hardly,” Cassie said. “Don’t give it a second thought.”
She smiled and walked off with that Cassie confidence that she wore like a dress. I had to conclude that she was probably right, because when Uncle Perry arrived, he was surprised that neither Daddy nor Cassie was home.
“I left a message for Teddy that I’d see him this weekend. He never called back to tell me about any trip to Lexington, or I would have stayed home and joined him.” He thought a moment and then added, “But I imagine he had a lot on his mind.”
I had prepared us a nice lunch, and because it was late spring, I had set the table on the patio. Uncle Perry was genuinely delighted and insisted on helping me bring everything out.
“This is a terrific shrimp salad, Sam,
” he remarked as soon as he tasted it. “I had no idea you were so clever in the kitchen.”
“I hadn’t been until recently, but we’re doing everything we can to help Daddy cope.”
“That’s good.”
I told him about Daddy’s drinking and how it worried me.
“I’m concerned, too, but I’m sure he’ll be all right in time.”
I almost expected him to add, We’re Heavenstones, after all, but he stopped short of that.
“So, how did you learn to be a gourmet cook overnight?” he asked.
“Cassie’s been tutoring me. There isn’t much I can’t make that she can anymore.”
“Oh?”
“Actually, I do most of the cooking now, Uncle Perry.”
“Really?”
He nodded and looked away for a moment to sip his iced tea.
“I notice Cassie has made a number of changes,” he said, not looking at me, and then he turned quickly to see my reaction. “She’s wearing different clothing, jewelry, makeup. Has she found a boyfriend?”
“I don’t think so. She doesn’t go anywhere at night.”