Pretty Hate (New Adult Novel) (35 page)

“Merry-Bell had a little issue with the tint reacting to her color. I offered to dye it back, but she seems to like it. Are you okay?” my mother said as she stared at Ivory-Lou.

“He’s having a bit of panic,” Rebel Love said.

“What do y’all think of my coat?” Merry-Bell said and twirled around.

“Um, it’s colorful,” Rebel Love said.

“It’s blue,” I said.

“Yep,” she said and looked at Ivory-Lou. “I got it in that Goodwill on Carnover Street. I asked the lady to show me stuff pimps wear. She took me to this and I knew you’d love it. You should go in there.”

“I do not shop at the Goodwill,” Ivory-Lou said as he stared at the plane and closed his eyes.

“I’m guessing you should,” Merry-Bell said and brushed her hand against the shoulder of Ivory-Lou’s suit jacket. “You’d find something there a lot more exciting than this boring, old thing.”

“This is an
Armani
suit. It is a two thousand dollar, Armani suit. And may I remind you, we are going to a funeral, not a rave,” he said and yanked the price tag off the arm of Merry-Bell’s jacket.

“Actually, I don’t know what a reabsorption ceremony entails,” I said. “Knowing them, it might be a lot like a rave. Merry-Bell could be the most appropriately dressed out of all of us.”

“Doubtful,” Ivory-Lou said and shook his head.

“Let’s try and act normal,” I said. “The pilot is coming.”

“Hi, folks, I’m David,” David said as he approached us.

“You the pilot?” Merry-Bell said and took her sunglasses off.

“Yes, ma’am. I’ll be flying you,” he said and smiled.

“You ever have any trouble with the FAA?” Merry-Bell said and walked up to him.

“No, ma’am,” he said as he stared at her hair. “No trouble at all.”

“Me neither. Don’t know about this one though,” she said and tilted her head toward Ivory-Lou.

“Okay, well,” David said and smiled, “your flight attendant Laura is just doing her pre-service checks. Should just be a moment.”

“You have brandy?” Ivory-Lou said and lit another cigarette.

“I think we’ll have everything you need, sir,” he said.

“What’s the weather going to be like?” my mother said.

“Weather should be fine. We’ll get you there in no time at all. There’s Laura,” David said and pointed at the flight attendant in the doorway of the cabin as the plane’s staircase lowered to the tarmac.

“We have to walk up those?” Ivory-Lou said and pointed to the narrow flight of stairs.

“How did you think we’d get up there?” I said.

A baggage handler drove up beside us in a cart and loaded our bags. Mama looked at me and smiled.

“You look really pretty today, Beth,” she said.

“Thank you. So do you,” I said.

“I don’t know if I can do this,” Ivory-Lou said. “I mean, I’m really feeling poor.”

“Hey!” Merry-Bell said and grabbed Ivory-Lou’s arms as she tried to shake him. “Get it together! Shit, for a big ol’ boy you sure are a pussy!”

My mother and I laughed and Rebel Love shook her head.

“Merry-Bell,” Rebel Love said, “it’s perfectly natural to feel anxiety about flying, especially when you’re used to bigger planes.”

“Sakes, alive,” Merry-Bell said and opened her coat as she stepped away from Ivory-Lou. “Look at this shirt.”

Ivory-Lou looked at Merry-Bell’s shirt and frowned.

“Frankie Says Relax
,” he said and closed his eyes. “You get that at the Goodwill too?”

“Yep,” she said and nodded, “I surely did.”

“Thought so,” Ivory-Lou said.

“Now, I don’t know who this Frankie is, but I figure if they made a shirt out of him, he must be good. So...relax,” Merry-Bell said and walked toward the plane.

“I’m sorry,” my mother said and touched Ivory-Lou’s arm, “we’ll get her some scotch or something.”

“See, baby,” Rebel Love said and giggled, “I told you all you had to do was concentrate on Merry-Bell.”

Ivory-Lou stared at me as he took deep breaths.

“You’re a warrior,” I said. “You can do this.”

He looked over his shoulder and watched Merry-Bell as she climbed the stairs to the plane’s cabin.

“Looks like a goddamn Smurf. And that cotton candy hair, fuck,” he said as he walked toward the plane. “Frankie says relax...”

“Well, girls,” my mother said and grabbed my arm and Rebel Love’s arm as we walked toward the plane, “this is going to be very interesting.”

As we walked into the plane, my mother gasped.

“Holy shit! These aren’t even like normal seats,” she said as she sat in one of the large, swivel captain-style chairs. “We can all face each other. I think these are real leather!”

“They are,” Laura said and smiled. “Now, what does everyone want to drink?”

We ordered drinks and I looked around the plane and pictured Declan walking around, greeting his guests and making out with Laura the flight attendant. I felt sick as I sat down in the seat next to Ivory-Lou.

“What’s wrong?” Rebel Love said.

“I just had a vision of Declan,” I said and closed my eyes. “I hadn’t thought about him in a long time and I just did. I just feel humiliated all over again. I think I have PTSD.”

“It’s like one big room, Tandy,” Merry-Bell said and as she took off her coat.

She sat in one of the seats and twirled around and around. Ivory-Lou looked at her and shook his head.

“Stop doing that,” he said, “you’re shaking the plane. There are no aisles, nothing but space. If the plane tilts or something, we’re all gonna go crashing into each other. You know, that’s how you go, right? It’s not from the impact, it’s when another body goes flying into yours and breaks your motherfucking neck!”

“Hey, scaredy-cat,” Merry-Bell said and pointed at her shirt, “
relax
!”

Laura handed us our drinks and asked us if we needed anything else.

“When are you going to do that safety bull...speech,” Ivory-Lou said and gripped the arm rests of his chair as our plane began its taxi.

“Oh, we don’t do it,” she said and shrugged. “Private plane has different rules.”

“You need to do the safety speech,” he said. “How are we gonna know where the emergency exits and oxygen masks are?”

“We’ll be sure to let you know if anything happens, sir,” she said and smiled. “Anything else?”

“Yes,” I said and held up my iPod, “I’m listening to
Tuesday’s Gone
by Lynryd Skynyrd.”

“I’m sorry, what?” Laura said.

“You know, the song?” I said and held up my iPod.

“The fuck?” Ivory-Lou said as he stared at me.

“Oh, Beth, I love that song!” my mother said.

“Well, we can put your iPod on the docking station,” Laura said and pointed to the ceiling. “There’s a row of speakers right above your head.”

I looked up at the ceiling of the plane and saw the speakers as my eyes watered and I thought about India.

“Yes, that would be really nice,” I said and smiled and held my iPod toward her.

Ivory-Lou put his hand over mine and shook his head.

“The hell you are,” he said. “No, we’ll listen to whatever it is you play that does not cause this plane to crash, Laura, thank you.”

“No,” I said and yanked my hand out from under his. “We will listen to
Tuesday’s Gone
!”

I handed Laura my iPod and stared at Ivory-Lou.

“You really have lost your motherfucking mind,” he said and stared at me. “We are not listening to no goddamn song, sung by a goddamn guy, who died in a goddamn plane crash, while we are on a goddam plane!”

“The hell we’re not,” I said. “If we do not listen to that song, this plane might crash! If we do listen to this song, I
guaranty
that this plane won’t crash! Play the song, Laura. He’s fine. Oh, make sure you put it on repeat.”

“Why is it necessary that we tempt fate when we already have the fucking cards stacked against us?” Ivory-Lou said and stared at Merry-Bell.

“Because, fuck it, that’s why,” I said and smiled.

“You are crazier than her. If we crash, I promise you, I will haunt you in the motherfucking afterlife, Beth. I surely do promise you that.”

As the plane tilted up toward the sky, I put my hand over Ivory-Lou’s as the music began and I looked around the cabin. My mother and Merry-Bell laughed louder and stronger than I ever heard them laugh before as they swiveled around in their chairs and looked out the window. I knew Rebel Love was thinking that she could get used to the lifestyle as she held her crystal glass, filled with expensive champagne, up to me and smiled. And Ivory-Lou stared at me like he wanted to strangle me.

I finally felt that feeling of doing good for someone else, even if that thing causes you pain.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

When my mother saw the limousine waiting for us on the tarmac as we got off the plane at Montauk Airport she threw her arms around me.

“I cannot believe this, Beth, a
limo
? Those old gals back at the bingo hall should see me!”

“Are you the Munroes?” the driver said as he approached us.

“Well,” Merry-Bell said, “me and her, we’re sisters, our last name is Gershon, we never married. This black feller here is called Ivory-Lou, um, Franklin, yes, Ivory-Lou Frankin, though can’t say it’s his real name. But these two pretty gals here, they’re my nieces, they are the Munroes. Actually, the younger one here, her last name is really Sexual, but we don’t like to talk about that.”

The driver stared at Merry-Bell and then looked at Ivory-Lou.

“Yeah,” Ivory-Lou said and sighed, “we’re the Munroes.”

We all stared out the window as we drove down the two-lane road past Ditch Plains Beach.

“I’ve never in my life seen the Atlantic before,” my mother said as she touched the window.

“It’s beautiful,” I said and smiled as I stared at her. “Roll down the window and take a deep breath.”

“You think I should?” she said and looked at me.

“You can do whatever you like, Mama.”

As we pulled past the gate and drove toward India’s house, I looked around at everyone and they all had the same looks on their faces as I’m sure I did when I first saw the mansion.

“Holy shitballs!” Merry-Bell said.

“Yep,” I said. “I told you.”

“Beth,” my mother said and looked around, “I don’t think we’re dressed for this. I mean, Jesus Christ, Merry-Bell’s wearing a blue, fake fur coat.”

“Well, I am,” Ivory-Lou said adjusted his tie. “Don’t lump me in with your raggy asses because y’all don’t understand the rules of social fucking decorum.”

“We all look fine,” I said. “All of us.”

The driver got out of the car and ran around and opened our door. As I got out of the car, I looked up at the third floor where India’s room was.

“You okay, Bethy?” Rebel Love said as she put her arm around my shoulders. “We’re all here, right?”

“Yeah,” I said and took a deep breath, “we’re all here.”

“What’s the mother’s last name?” my mother said as we walked up the steps toward the front door.

“Zamani,” I said. “Lucia Zamani.”

Tilda, one of the maids, opened the door with Sahara in her arms and stared at me and smiled.

“Hello, welcome,” she said as she stepped aside to let us in the house, “we are just about to begin.”

My mother walked up and threw her arms around Tilda and Sahara.

“I cannot tell you how sorry I am for your loss, Mrs. Zamani,” my mother said as she hugged her. “I just cannot imagine the pain--”

“Mama, that’s not Lucia,” I said.

“Oh, I didn’t know,” my mother said and looked at the ground.

“It’s okay, Mama,” Rebel Love said and held her hand, “how on earth would you?”

We all walked into the first living area and Merry-Bell stared at the ceiling.

“I can’t even see where it ends,” she said.

“Close your mouth, Merry-Bell.” my mother said, “We look like a bunch of hicks. Sorry, except for Ivory-Lou.”

“We look fine, Mama,” I said.

Baron Richter walked around the corner and stared at us.

“Oh, hello,” he said. “Oh! Jess, glad you could make it.”

He walked up to me and shook my hand as he looked around.

“And who have you brought with you?” he said as he stared at Merry-Bell’s coat.

“This is my family,” I said. “I, uh, I’m really sorry.”

“So are we, Jess,” Baron Richter said and looked at the floor. “It is a tragic thing when someone dies so young.”

“Her name is Beth,” Ivory-Lou said and stared at him.

Baron Richter looked at me and cocked his head.