The Other Side - J. D. Robb [106]
“Grief-stricken, are they?” The old woman looked from her grandson to his wife.
“Deeply.” Ted drew an arm around his wife’s shoulders. “It doesn’t help that Tyler has no way to communicate his feelings. But Christina is doing all she can to reach him. What worries us is the way she’s dithering. One day ready to pick up the pieces of her life, the next wanting to do nothing more than walk the gardens with her little brother. It isn’t like her to be so indecisive.”
“She’s suffered a life-altering blow, Ted. It takes time for mortals to sort things out.”
“If she waits too long, we’re both afraid she’s going to drive Mark away.” Vanessa caught the older woman’s hand. “Would it be possible for us to take a few more days here? Just until Christina gets her bearings?”
Sarah Graham Crenshaw smiled gently. “I’ve been authorized to tell you to take as long as you wish.”
Her image seemed to glow like the sun before fading completely.
“Miss Christina.” Mrs. Mellon paused in the doorway of the library.
Chris looked up from her father’s desk, where she was busy recording checks in a ledger. “Yes?”
“I just saw Mr. Deering’s car pulling up the drive.”
Before Chris could stow the ledger, Mark strode along the hallway and paused behind the housekeeper. She stepped aside, and his tall figure seemed to fill the doorway.
His tone was incredulous. “Now what’s this about hiding out here in your parents’ place indefinitely?”
“Mark.” Chris rounded the desk and flung her arms around his neck. “You didn’t have to drive all this way. I thought I’d made myself clear on the phone.”
“Clear as mud. You’re giving up your apartment in the city? You actually think you can run your father’s complex company from an office here in your family home? Come on, darling. Get a grip. That doesn’t make any sense, and you know it.”
“It makes perfect sense to me.” She caught his hand and led him toward the leather sofa across the room. “Sit here and let me tell you what I’ve been thinking.”
Mrs. Mellon cleared her throat. “Would you like me to make some tea, Miss Christina?”
Chris turned. “Yes, please. That would be nice.” She glanced at Mark. “Have you had lunch?”
He nodded. “On my way up here. But I could use a vodka and tonic.”
The housekeeper crossed the room to the wet bar and began fixing the drink. When he took a seat on the sofa, she handed him a crystal tumbler before hurrying from the room.
While Mark sipped his drink, Chris paced in front of him. “Every night, when Bonnie and I tuck Tyler into bed, we see him looking past us toward the doorway. We’ve talked it over, and we both feel that he hasn’t grasped the fact that Mom and Dad are gone for good. He thinks they’re off on a trip. He still expects to see them coming in to kiss him good night.”
“That’s natural enough. He’s just a kid. He’ll get used to it, in time.”
Chris sighed. A long, deep sound that rose from the depths of her soul. “I know, Mark. But you can’t imagine the pain I feel when I see my little brother watching for someone who’s never going to come into his room again.”
“Look.” He set aside his drink and caught her hands in his, drawing her down to sit beside him. “I know Tyler isn’t like other kids his age. I realize that he requires a lot of extra care. But he has an expensive tutor and caregiver in Bonnie, and he also has Mrs. Mellon. They were good enough for him when your folks were alive. Now that they’re gone, you’re acting as though you have to hover around him every minute of the day, just to get him through his grief. But in fact, you’re not even certain he is grieving. For all you know, he’s off in some fantasy world, waiting for fairy dust to land on his shoulder.”
“Don’t, Mark. Don’t make light of this.” She placed a hand on his chest and pushed a little away. “I may not know exactly what’s going through my little brother’s mind, but I can see that he’s suffering, and I want to help.”
“You’re suffering, too.” He lowered his voice. “And I want to help you.”
“Then try