Page 22 (1/2)

She opened the book, read two paragraphs, and put it down, feeling guilty What she’d read was better than expected Two years ago, she’d read half of James’s book in first draft and had becoht the book wasn’t so good But she hadn’t wanted to hurt his feelings, so she’d said it wasn’t her kind of et aith, as the book was a historical novel about some character named David Bushnell, a real-life person who’d invented the first subay because he’d never married The whole story took place in the seventeen hundreds, and if you weren’t married back then, you were definitely ho to explore David Bushnell’s sexuality and what it iven her a dirty look and said no David Bushnell was a scholar, he said A faro to Yale and then invented not just the submarine but underwater bombs Which didn’t quite work

“So in other words,” Mindy said, “he was a terrorist”

“I guess you could say that,” James said And that was the last conversation they’d had about the book

But just because you didn’t talk about soht hundred es, had lain between them like a brick for months, until James finally delivered the copy to his publisher

Now she found Ja a Scotch She sat down next to him on a chair with metal arms and a woven plastic seat that she’d purchased froo, when such transactions were new and ht it online!” “No!” “Yes And it was so easy!”), and wriggled her feet out of her shoes “Your galleys have arrived,” she said She looked at the glass in his hand “Isn’t it a little early to start drinking?” she asked

Ja Apple wants to carryto put it in their stores in February They want to experiment with books, and they’ve chosen uaranteed sales of two hundred thousand copies Because people trust the Apple name Not the name of the author The author doesn’t matter It’s the opinion of the computer that counts I could make half a million dollars” He paused “What do you think?” he asked after a moment

“I’m stunned,” Mindy said

That evening, Enid crossed Fifth Avenue to visit her stepmother, Flossie Davis Enid did not relish these visits, but since Flossie was ninety-three, Enid felt it would be cruel to avoid her Flossie couldn’t lastat death’s door (her words) for the past fifteen years, and death had yet to answer

As usual, Enid found Flossie in bed Flossie rarely left her two-bedroorotesque irl Her white hair was tinted a sickly yellow and piled on top of her head When she was younger, she’d worn it bleached and teased, like a swirl of cotton candy Enid had a theory that this constant bleaching had affected Flossie’s brain, as she never got anything quite right and was querulously insistent on her rightness even when all evidence pointed to the contrary The only thing Flossie had ht was sy Merle, an oil prospector from Texas; when he passed away at fifty-five from a heart attack, she’d married the elderly er, Stanley Davis, who had owned a chain of newspapers With plenty of money and little to do, Flossie had spent ning socialite, but she’d never developed the self-control or discipline needed to succeed She now suffered froum infections, wheezed when she spoke, and had only television and visits from Enid and Philip to keep her coet old and that there was very little to be done about it

“And now Louise is dead,” Flossie said triumphantly “I can’t say I’m sorry Nobody deserved death more than she I knew she’d come to a bad end”

Enid sighed This was typical Flossie, coht, fro had to really apply herself

“I would hardly call her death ‘just deserts,’” Enid said carefully “She was ninety-nine Everyone dies eventually It’s not a punishoes in one direction”

“Why bring that up?” Flossie said

“It’s important to face the truth,” Enid said

“I never want to face the truth,” Flossie said “What’s good about the truth? If everyone faced the truth, they would kill themselves”