South of Superior - Ellen Airgood [83]
Gladys was at the car ahead of them, flushed with victory. Madeline stayed silent in the backseat all the way home, wishing she could go see Walter. Just sit with him and listen to a baseball game. She’d always loved baseball, had been a Cubs fan as long as she could talk, and she’d discovered that Walter was the same way. His team was the Detroit Tigers. He’d get such a happy look on his face when the games came on. He’d look at Madeline, eyes glowing, and she’d return his joyful look with one of her own and they’d settle in to listen. He had a nice radio in his room. Lately they’d been visiting there instead of the sunroom. More comfortable, more like—family.
She yearned to go see Walter, really, to soothe her wounded feelings with his company, but it wasn’t going to happen. Arbutus was shifting in the front seat, sore after spending so long in the car and then in the courtroom, and Gladys was afire with her victory. She couldn’t wait to get home and start reliving it with her friends. Madeline didn’t blame her. She had done a beautiful thing, a wondrous, Unparalleled thing. Madeline didn’t begrudge her the sweetness of that triumph.
“Madeline, dear,” Arbutus began later that night when they were alone. Gladys had walked over to Mabel’s to continue gloating. “I wanted to say, don’t pay too much mind to Tracy York. She lets her mouth run away from her, but she’s not a bad person, truly she isn’t. Smaller in her mind than she ought to be. But not bad.”
“Why do you always have to defend everyone?”
Arbutus bit her lip. After a moment she said, “She’s jealous, dear.”
“Jealous.”
“Your mother was a firecracker. Oh, how the boys liked her.”
“I’ll bet,” Madeline said, thinking, This does not help.
“Tracy was always so plain. I’m afraid there was a rivalry there. Well—not a rivalry, because your mother never paid Tracy any mind at all.”
“Wow. What a great reason. Now I get it.”
Arbutus sighed. “She’s had a lot of disappointments. She was a smart girl, you know. She had a scholarship for college, but her mother took ill. Tracy stayed back to look after her, and then one thing led to another and she never did leave.”
“Yeah, well. I know how that goes, and it’s not an excuse. Turning into this nasty, hateful person—that’s her own choice. Some people are just plain rotten, you know. You don’t have to find the good in everyone.” Madeline kept washing dishes, hating how irritated she was getting with Arbutus. She wanted to destroy something. Something of Tracy’s and Terry’s, specifically. She’d waited on some shady people at Spinelli’s over the years, even got passing friendly with some of them. People who could probably arrange—oh, arson, for example. A nice, Untraceable fire. That would be beautiful.
“But, Madeline, truly, Tracy is just so angry about the way her life turned out. She can’t help herself. She never left and your mother did—”
“She died on the streets!”
“I know that, dear. So to Tracy, your mother wasted her opportunities, an opportunity she herself would not have thrown away. And now here you are.”
“Here I am,” said Madeline flatly.
“And you’re your own person, making your own way, well liked here already, successful despite everything. So Jackie still wins, don’t you see?”
Madeline could not find it in herself to answer.
“You’re very upset.”
“Yeah.” Madeline shot a grimace of a smile over her shoulder.
“Everyone knows she’s just a terrible gossip, no one will pay two cents’ attention.”
“Yeah.”
“I don’t know what gets into her.” Arbutus sounded vexed and troubled, and this only irritated Madeline more. Bitchiness! she wanted to yell. That’s what gets into her. It’s not rocket science. Arbutus sighed again. “You never can believe a thing she says anymore.”
Madeline turned full around. “The thing is, it sounded way too much like the truth.”
Arbutus’s expression was tellingly unsurprised. “Oh dear.”
“Yes, oh dear.” Madeline spun around to lean back over the sink, hide her face, the tears that were brimming. Damn it. Of course it made sense,