The Happiest Day (15 page)

The summer flew by
and Rachel found herself at the newspaper every day of the week, sometimes up
to twelve hours at a time.  Shockingly, she loved it.  The staff was extremely
kind to her and trained her on every aspect on producing a newspaper.  She
found that she had a head for numbers and saw circulation grow as the weeks
passed.  The newspaper was thriving and she had found a purpose in life.

Laurie found his
niche in the printing department and his quiet, hard-working demeanor was well
appreciated.  Peter and Bert began spending more time at the newspaper, as
well.  Rachel expressed concern that they were ignoring their own practice but
they both assured her they were handling their responsibilities easily.  She
reported to Norris every day and even though he didn’t respond beyond head nods
and one word answers, she felt that he appreciated the work she was putting
into the paper.

One day in early
August, Rachel was working late into the evening and the building was quiet. 
She knew that three floors below, the printing department was hard at work and
in just a few hours, the carriers would be arriving to bundle the newspapers
for delivery.  The administrative staff, however, was gone and she had to admit
that this was her favorite time to be at work.  She enjoyed the peace and the
large stack of work in front of her.

“Well, Madame
Editor, another late night?”

She smiled before
even looking up.  Peter.  “I could say the same about you.”  She sat back and
looked at him.  “How did court go today?”

He shrugged,
entering her office.  “Nothing fascinating, just seating a jury.”  He leaned
his arms on her desk and gazed down at her.  “How is it possible that you grow
more beautiful every day?”

“You are a
flatterer, sir,” she responded, but felt a warm flush sweep her body.  It had
been so long since they had been together intimately and every day grew more
difficult.

“No, just
truthful.”  He reached over the desk and brushed an errant lock of hair off of
her forehead.  “Come home with me.”

“Home?”

“My apartment, I
mean.  Two years ago, I had the chance to make love to you there and I turned
it down.  I’d like to make that up to you.”

She closed her
eyes and tried to think of Norris.  He still remained in his room, either
sleeping or staring out of the window.  He was often unresponsive and always
hopeless, and in some ways no longer alive.  He needed her.  She made sure that
he ate and bathed and she visited him every day.  If she didn’t see him
tonight, would he notice?

“There you go,
thinking again,” he teased.  “How come every time I proposition you, the wheels
of your brain go into overdrive?”

She opened her
eyes.  “I don’t know.  I’m not very good at just letting go.”

“I noticed.”  He
leaned closer.  “I love you and I need to be with you.  Please, Rachel, I will
beg if I have to but please come back to my apartment with me tonight.”

She gave in.  She
called her driver and let him know that she would not need him that night. 
Laurie worked until well after midnight in the printing department and would
not even know that she wasn’t home.  She and Peter walked the four blocks to
his downtown apartment and fell into each other’s arms.  It had been since the
night before Geoff’s death that they had been together and they were ravenous
for the feel of each other.  He took her against the door the first time and on
the couch the second time.  He scooped her into his arms and took her to his
bed, remembering the night he had done that and left her alone.  Tonight, he
would not leave her.

            Around two in the
morning, finally satiated, Peter pulled her into his arms, her back to his
chest.  “Sleep,” he said tiredly.  “I’ll wake you up around six and I’ll get
you home to clean up and change.”

She nodded against
his chest.  As she drifted off, she felt the oozing stickiness against her
upper thighs and thought belatedly that they had not used anything to prevent
pregnancy.  Next time, she promised herself, she would not let herself get
carried away before insisting that they use protection.  They could not afford
to make a mistake, not at this point.  There was too much to lose.

He woke her up as
promised and drove her home with the sun slowly making its appearance in the
eastern sky.  “Will Blanche care that you weren’t home?”

He nodded.  “No, I
often spend the night at the apartment.  She won’t care.  What about Norris?”

“I visit him every
night but I don’t know if he cares or even notices.”

Peter looked at
her sympathetically.  “This isn’t much of a marriage for you.  How long can you
keep this up?”

“As long as I need
to.  He’s my husband.”

“What does Dr.
Miller say?”

“He says that he’s
losing weight and losing touch with the real world.  He thinks he should be
committed and receive professional care.”

“What do you say?”

“I won’t do it,
unless I begin to worry that he’s going to harm himself.”

“Norris knew what
he was doing when he married you, didn’t he?  Loyalty to the end.”

Rachel sensed a
touch of bitterness in Peter’s voice.  “Would you expect any less from me?” she
asked gently.

His tight
shoulders relaxed and he said resignedly, “No.  I just wish that he wouldn’t
have put you in this position.”

“It was necessary
at the time,” she said, referring to the damage to her reputation caused by her
lies on the stand.

“Not if you had
come to me and let me protect you.”

“Peter, let’s not
do this.  Not now.”

He pulled up to
the house and pulled her into his arms.  “I’m sorry.  I don’t want to argue
with you.”

“You love to
argue.  You do it for a living.”

“I don’t love to
argue with you,” he disagreed.  “I just worry about you stretching yourself too
thin.  Listen, don’t go into work today.”

“I have to.”

“You don’t have
to.  Go upstairs and get some sleep, then work from home.  Norris used to do
it, you can, too.  I’ll swing by the office on my way back into town and let
them know that you’re can be reached here.”

She was tired.  It
was tempting to think of sleeping in for the first time in months.  “I guess I
could as long as I don’t make a habit of it.”

“I’m sure you
won’t,” Peter chuckled.  “Just this once, Rachel.”

“All right.”  She
kissed him.  “Thank you for taking care of me.”

“In more ways than
one,” he retorted with ribald humor.  “And it is my pleasure.  Anytime, ma’am.”

They said their
good-byes and she climbed the staircase tiredly.   She slept until noon then
got up and checked on Norris, who barely nodded at her from his perch at the
window.

“I’m going to work
at home today, Norris.  Call if you need anything.”

She waited for a
response but got none.  She found Laurie eating lunch and he looked up in
surprise.  “What are you doing here?”

“I’m going to work
from home today.  I’m tired.”

“You deserve it. 
I’ve got to head in, though, unless we move the printing press here.”  He
kissed her swiftly and headed out.  “Get some rest,” he called over his shoulder.

She ate a little
then retired to Norris’ study.  She rarely spent time in here and didn’t
necessarily feel comfortable working at his desk.  She worked for hours until
the phone jangled.

“Hello?”

“Hi, Rachel, it’s
Jerry.  I was hoping you could do me a favor.”

“If I can.”

“Norris has an
address book.  It’s small and black with gold lettering.  It has the number of
one of our associates in Cincinnati that I need.  I checked his desk here but I
didn’t see it.  By any chance, do you have it there?”

“Uh…I don’t
remember seeing it, but I’ve never really looked through his desk here.  Hold
on…” She pulled open the drawer on the left.  “No…these are just
supplies…writing paper and envelopes.  Let me check the other drawers.”  She
opened the right drawer and rummaged.  “No….”  Her fingers hit a solid wood box
and pulled it out.  “I found a small box, let me see…”

“Hey, by the way,
I heard back from that Bressler fellow.”

“Who?” she asked,
trying to open the box but it stuck slightly.

“Bressler.  That
photojournalist you had me contact.  He’s not interested.”

“Oh, that doesn’t
surprise me.  Oh well, we tried.”  She finally was able to lift the lid of the
box.

Her mother’s
locket was nestled in a velvet lining.

“Jerry, can I keep
looking and call you back?” She was amazed at how calm her voice sounded.

“Sure, Rach.  Take
your time.”  He disconnected.

Rachel held the
locket in her fingers, watching it twirl slowly.  Her thoughts were in
turmoil.  Why did Norris have her mother’s locket in his desk drawer?  She
closed her eyes and tried to remember that last night.  They had dinner
together as a family and she remembered that her mother seemed subdued.  When Julia
had come to kiss her good-night, Rachel remembered the locket swinging from her
neck, the cool gold brushing against Rachel’s cheek.

“Love you,
Mama,” she said, inhaling the soft powdery scent of Julia.

“I love you
too, my dear.  Sleep tight.”  The smile on her lips did not quite reach her
eyes.

“Is something
wrong?  You look sad.”

Julia pulled
back in surprise at the astuteness of her eight-year-old daughter.  “I…no,
everything is fine.  Don’t worry about me, Rachel, I’m just tired.”

Rachel remembered
that she slept until she heard her mother’s screams in the middle of the
night.  She had crept into the hallway and heard the scuffle, her father’s
angry voice, two loud pops, and then silence.  A deep fear had overcome her and
she had run into Laurie’s room and half-dragged him to cupboard at the end of
the hallway.  They had huddled there until Norris had opened the door.

Norris.

Rachel climbed the
stairs, clutching the locket in her hand.  She wasn’t even sure what she was
going to ask him but she knew that there were secrets that needed to be
uncovered today.  The first time Norris had called her “Julia” while making
love to her, she had known that there were things she had never understood. 
The day she looked at Geoff and Laurie standing together on the train platform,
turning to wave at her and realizing with a shock that they looked enough alike
to be brothers, alarm bells had gone off in her mind.  Now, though, the locket
hidden away bothered her more than she thought anything could.

She opened Norris’
bedroom door and searched the darkened room for her husband.  He sat in the
corner, in a wingback chair, head bowed and forearms resting on his thighs.

“Norris?”

“Mm?” he
responded, not lifting his head.  She was surprised that he answered but maybe
he sensed the seriousness in her tone.

“I need to talk to
you.”

“Maybe later,” he
said wearily.  “I’m so tired.”

She came in and
closed the door behind her.  “May I turn on a light?”

“No!” he snapped. 
“No lights.  If you do, I’ll see him.”

“You’ll see who?”

“Geoffrey.”

A chill swept her
body.  “Geoff is dead, Norris.”

“He won’t leave me
alone.  He’s here.”

“Norris, you’re
exhausted.  You’re seeing things that aren’t there.”

“He’s here.  He
knows what I did and he won’t leave me alone until I pay for it.”

“What is it that
you think you’ve done?”

Norris looked up
at her finally.  “Leave me alone, Rachel,” he pleaded.

“What happened to
my parents’ belongings after they died?”

He hadn’t been
expecting a question about Thomas and Julia Warner.  “I sold everything. 
You’re father had debts and I wanted to set aside money for you and your
brother in the event something happened to me.”  His voice was hoarse from
disuse.

“How did you know
they were dead?”

“Your mother
called me.  She told me that someone had broken into the house and she needed
my help.”

“Were there ever
any suspects?  Was anything taken?”

“No.”

Rachel lifted her
hand and let the locket dangle in front of his eyes.  “Why do you have my
mother’s locket?”  She saw his Adam’s apple bob and knew then that he was
trying to think of a lie.  “Don’t lie to me, Norris!  After all of this, I
deserve the truth!  I know that you were in love with my mother; I figured that
out every time you were inside me but calling her name.  I know that Laurie is
really your son.  I figured that out when I saw he and Geoff standing together
and I realized that they looked like brothers.  You lied to me about so much
but don’t lie about this.  Not here, not now.  Why do you have my mother’s
locket?  Did you kill her, Norris?”

He shot up from
the chair, ripping the locket from her hand.  “Kill her?  No!  I loved her!” he
sobbed, clutching the locket to his chest.  “God, I loved that woman with all
my heart, and she loved me.  After Laurie was born, I begged her to leave your
father but she wouldn’t do it.  She said she loved him too and couldn’t hurt
him like that.  She was pulling away from me and it hurt so badly.”

“Did my father
know?”

“No.  He was so
stupid!  All you had to do was look at Laurie and see that he belonged to me.”

“What happened
that last night?”

Norris stumbled
over to the bed and sat down on the edge.  “I had come to see your mother that
day and told her that I couldn’t live this lie any longer.  I wanted to be with
her, I wanted to raise my son.  She told me to leave, that it was over.  She
told me that it had all been a mistake and she didn’t want me coming back at
all.  Ever.”

“What did you do?”

“I hired someone
to kill your father.”