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"You understand," Patsy said "It was the-- " She shuddered "You can't iine "

Without taking his eyes off Patsy, Lestat told Cindy that Patsy was fine n

ow

Patsy turned her eyes to the Oriental rug and she appeared to be tracing its patterns Then she looked up at me

"I hated you so much," she said "I hate you now I always hated you You killed it "

"Killed it! How --?" I was stunned

"Yes," she said "You did it "

"What are you saying?" I asked "How did I do that?" I wanted to probe her mind, but I'd never used that poith her and so it

"You were so big," she said "You were so healthy, so nor And then that other little one, iven you all his blood inup all his blood! It was so awful, and he was so small Just three pounds Oh, he was the most terriblest, pitifulest creature you ever saw in your life "

I was too amazed to speak

The tears were rolling down her cheeks Cindy took out a clean Kleenex and wiped them away

"I wanted so badly to hold him, but they wouldn't let me," Patsy went on "They said he was the donor twin, that's what they called hi And there he was, too tiny hardly to live They put him in an incubator They wouldn't even let ht, day and night And Aunt Queen kept callingto say to me! Like this tiny little baby in the hospital didn't need me! Like this little pitiful creature in the hospital didn't need ive my milk to a ten-pound monster of a baby I couldn't even look at you! I didn't want to be in the same house with you! That's why I moved out back "

She wiped angrily at her tears Her voice was so soft I don't think hus could have heard her I'ht beside her could hear her

"I sat there in that hospital day and night," she said "I begged them to let me touch that tiny little baby, and don't you know he died in that machine with all those tubes and wires, andHe died! That little baby, that poor little Garwain, ht, that's what I called hiht, and then they let me hold him, when he was dead, that poor tiny infant, I held him in my arms "

I had never seen her like this, never seen her cry such tears, never seen her in such abject sadness On she went: