*Anna*Something is wrong with my husband.Even though Grant rarely talks to me, and we hardly ever spend more than a few moments awake alone in a room together, as he goes about getting ready for bed tonight, I can tell he’s troubled.I did not go to family dinner tonight. After what happened last night, I may never show my face there again. It’s been difficult for me to put a single bite of food in my mouth since the family humiliated me about that cake–even though both my eyes and the scale tell me I’m not overweight. Nevertheless, it’s easier to believe a lie told by others than it is the truth we find in our own heart.I lie on my little bed, listening, as my husband goes about getting ready for bed. This is the same routine as most nights. I’m already tucked in when he finally escapes the rest of the family. But tonight, he’s acting marginally different. Grant sighs for maybe the third time since he walked in five minutes ago and sets his cufflinks in a box on his dresser. He’s
*Grant*I lie awake most of the night, staring at the ceiling, listening to my wife breathe. Her inhales and exhales are steady, which gives me hope that, unlike me, she is fast asleep.I’d like to fall into slumber as well, but I can’t at the moment. I keep going over everything Anna suggested tonight when I accidentally woke her. If she was ever actually asleep. Sometimes, I think she just pretends to be asleep so she doesn’t have to speak to me.Find out what Mr. Savage wants that he doesn’t have. It’s an interesting thought. I don’t know if I’m capable of pulling that off by myself, but if I suggest it to Grandmother Trudy, I might earn some respect from her. I know she’s looking for someone to take over the company when she retires. While it only makes sense that it would be my father or Uncle Fred to do so, I’m certain Carson will throw his hat in the ring–so why shouldn’t I.I try to ignore the answer that pops into my head. “Because you’re not capable, Grant. You can’t even ru
*Anna*I run a dust towel over the coffee table in one of the many parlors in the Young family’s large estate, but my eyes are focused out the window. I’m not really looking at anything, though I do see some beautiful birds flittering about the bird bath in the garden. Still, my mind can’t focus on anything–except my husband.I let out a sigh and spray some more Pledge on the table, maybe dragging my towel through it, maybe not. I have no idea. I just keep thinking about how stupid it was for me to attempt to get involved in Grant’s business. Trying to give him advice on how to do his job was idiotic of me. When it backfires, and he ends up looking ridiculous in front of the entire family, he will blame me. And with good reason. He will have every reason in the world to run off with Barbara then.“Well, good grief!” I hear Hattie’s voice, and my head swivels around to see her coming into the room, stomping her feet like an angry buffalo. “How long does it take one worthless idiot to d
*Grant*“That’s all right, Ms. Green. Thank you for your time.” I sigh and hang up the phone. I’ve called about fifteen people now who have properties for sale in areas where Savage Enterprises operates frequently to see if any of them can tell me if they’ve been approached by Sam Savage. So far, all of them have said no.It’s quite strange. It’s almost as if Savage Enterprises isn’t working on anything at the moment–except for keeping a stranglehold on the property Grandmother Trudy so desperately wants.Another thought occurs to me, and I find myself picking up my cell phone and dialing a number I haven’t contacted in many years. But the fact that this was Anna’s idea in the first place reminds me of someone who might be able to help.“Cliff Jones,” the man on the other end of the call says. “Who is this, please?”I guess it’s been so long since I’ve spoken to Anna’s friend from her university days that he no longer has my number in his phone. We had a class or two together, but we
*Anna*“Mom? Mom?” I shake my mother’s shoulders, but she’s not budging. She’s still out cold. I’m not sure if I should be worried, irritated, or laughing. I rush into the kitchen to get some smelling salts and come back to her, slouched in her chair.When I wave them under her nose, she flails, her hand catching me in the cheek and knocking me backward. The blow stings a bit, but I’ve been slapped in the face enough from members of the Young family in the last few years that it doesn’t really faze me.“Oh, Anna!” Mom says, springing back to life. “I’m so sorry. Did I hurt you?”“I’m fine,” I assure her, placing the lid back on the bottle. “Are you okay?”“Yes, yes,” she says, holding one hand to her head. “I guess I… blacked out.” It’s clear she’s still a bit disoriented. “I must have heard you wrong, dear.”I take the smelling salts into the kitchen, get my mother a cup of cool water, and put the kettle on for tea. She’s gonna need something soothing now. “You didn’t hear me wrong,
*Grant*The viewing is a somber occasion. Mr. Savage looks regal in his suit inside of a very expensive looking coffin, but seeing dead bodies creeps me out, and I really don’t want to be here.Unfortunately, Grandmother Trudy chose me to represent the family. She called me into her office just before she left work, a little early today, to tell me I needed to be the one to show my face here. I was the only one she trusted to not make the Young family look silly, considering this is our biggest rival. I make my way through the line, shaking the hands of Mr. Savage’s friends. He has no family, none that anyone knows of, anyway, so these people are here to thank us all for coming and allow us to view the body to say our goodbyes before the funeral tomorrow. Grandmother Trudy believes she will be well enough to attend that, thankfully.I shake the hands of three or four people, whispering my condolences, and then reach the end of the line. The older gentleman dressed in a very nice suit
*Anna*“You call this clean! What the hell is the matter with you, you numbskull?” Hattie shouts, tossing the skirt I just labored over for five hours in my face. “If you can’t get that stain out, then go down to the department store and buy me another skirt! With your own money!” My sister-in-law stomps away. I can only assume she’s glaring at me. It’s kind of hard to see with her 3X skirt draped over my head.With a grimace, I pull it off and take another look at the spot where she spilled wine at dinner last night. I honestly don’t see one trace of the red stain now, but who am I to argue? This is the Young household, and she is a part of the family. Granted, she isn’t any more a Young than I am since we are both married to brothers whose grandmother owns this enormous estate, but for some reason, Hattie is accepted into the family, and I’m… well, I’m just Anna.“Do you need another brush?” Winnie, the head housekeeper, who is one of the only people who lives here that is ever kind
*Anna*I take a few steps backward–and bump into one of Grandmother Trudy’s priceless vases. The stand tips, wobbles, and the vase teeters on the edge, but my quick, athletic husband reaches out a hand and catches it before it can slip and fall on the marble floor.“Thank you,” I stutter, moving away from the stand before I have another accident. “You’re so… fast.”My own husband, Grant, whom I’ve been married to for almost two years briefly glances in my direction, nods, and then walks around me to go down the hallway, giving me a wide berth–like maybe I have some kind of disease.I let out a sigh, hoping he’s walking briskly enough that he’s out of earshot by now. I drop my head into my hands and stand there for a moment. I’m such a failure. Even my own husband thinks I am worthless.“Are you all right, Anna?”I hear the kindest voice I know and immediately perk up. My mother is coming down the hallway toward me, her eyes slightly narrowed in concern. She has the prettiest face, and
*Grant*The viewing is a somber occasion. Mr. Savage looks regal in his suit inside of a very expensive looking coffin, but seeing dead bodies creeps me out, and I really don’t want to be here.Unfortunately, Grandmother Trudy chose me to represent the family. She called me into her office just before she left work, a little early today, to tell me I needed to be the one to show my face here. I was the only one she trusted to not make the Young family look silly, considering this is our biggest rival. I make my way through the line, shaking the hands of Mr. Savage’s friends. He has no family, none that anyone knows of, anyway, so these people are here to thank us all for coming and allow us to view the body to say our goodbyes before the funeral tomorrow. Grandmother Trudy believes she will be well enough to attend that, thankfully.I shake the hands of three or four people, whispering my condolences, and then reach the end of the line. The older gentleman dressed in a very nice suit
*Anna*“Mom? Mom?” I shake my mother’s shoulders, but she’s not budging. She’s still out cold. I’m not sure if I should be worried, irritated, or laughing. I rush into the kitchen to get some smelling salts and come back to her, slouched in her chair.When I wave them under her nose, she flails, her hand catching me in the cheek and knocking me backward. The blow stings a bit, but I’ve been slapped in the face enough from members of the Young family in the last few years that it doesn’t really faze me.“Oh, Anna!” Mom says, springing back to life. “I’m so sorry. Did I hurt you?”“I’m fine,” I assure her, placing the lid back on the bottle. “Are you okay?”“Yes, yes,” she says, holding one hand to her head. “I guess I… blacked out.” It’s clear she’s still a bit disoriented. “I must have heard you wrong, dear.”I take the smelling salts into the kitchen, get my mother a cup of cool water, and put the kettle on for tea. She’s gonna need something soothing now. “You didn’t hear me wrong,
*Grant*“That’s all right, Ms. Green. Thank you for your time.” I sigh and hang up the phone. I’ve called about fifteen people now who have properties for sale in areas where Savage Enterprises operates frequently to see if any of them can tell me if they’ve been approached by Sam Savage. So far, all of them have said no.It’s quite strange. It’s almost as if Savage Enterprises isn’t working on anything at the moment–except for keeping a stranglehold on the property Grandmother Trudy so desperately wants.Another thought occurs to me, and I find myself picking up my cell phone and dialing a number I haven’t contacted in many years. But the fact that this was Anna’s idea in the first place reminds me of someone who might be able to help.“Cliff Jones,” the man on the other end of the call says. “Who is this, please?”I guess it’s been so long since I’ve spoken to Anna’s friend from her university days that he no longer has my number in his phone. We had a class or two together, but we
*Anna*I run a dust towel over the coffee table in one of the many parlors in the Young family’s large estate, but my eyes are focused out the window. I’m not really looking at anything, though I do see some beautiful birds flittering about the bird bath in the garden. Still, my mind can’t focus on anything–except my husband.I let out a sigh and spray some more Pledge on the table, maybe dragging my towel through it, maybe not. I have no idea. I just keep thinking about how stupid it was for me to attempt to get involved in Grant’s business. Trying to give him advice on how to do his job was idiotic of me. When it backfires, and he ends up looking ridiculous in front of the entire family, he will blame me. And with good reason. He will have every reason in the world to run off with Barbara then.“Well, good grief!” I hear Hattie’s voice, and my head swivels around to see her coming into the room, stomping her feet like an angry buffalo. “How long does it take one worthless idiot to d
*Grant*I lie awake most of the night, staring at the ceiling, listening to my wife breathe. Her inhales and exhales are steady, which gives me hope that, unlike me, she is fast asleep.I’d like to fall into slumber as well, but I can’t at the moment. I keep going over everything Anna suggested tonight when I accidentally woke her. If she was ever actually asleep. Sometimes, I think she just pretends to be asleep so she doesn’t have to speak to me.Find out what Mr. Savage wants that he doesn’t have. It’s an interesting thought. I don’t know if I’m capable of pulling that off by myself, but if I suggest it to Grandmother Trudy, I might earn some respect from her. I know she’s looking for someone to take over the company when she retires. While it only makes sense that it would be my father or Uncle Fred to do so, I’m certain Carson will throw his hat in the ring–so why shouldn’t I.I try to ignore the answer that pops into my head. “Because you’re not capable, Grant. You can’t even ru
*Anna*Something is wrong with my husband.Even though Grant rarely talks to me, and we hardly ever spend more than a few moments awake alone in a room together, as he goes about getting ready for bed tonight, I can tell he’s troubled.I did not go to family dinner tonight. After what happened last night, I may never show my face there again. It’s been difficult for me to put a single bite of food in my mouth since the family humiliated me about that cake–even though both my eyes and the scale tell me I’m not overweight. Nevertheless, it’s easier to believe a lie told by others than it is the truth we find in our own heart.I lie on my little bed, listening, as my husband goes about getting ready for bed. This is the same routine as most nights. I’m already tucked in when he finally escapes the rest of the family. But tonight, he’s acting marginally different. Grant sighs for maybe the third time since he walked in five minutes ago and sets his cufflinks in a box on his dresser. He’s
*Anna*I’m sitting in my room, staring out the window, trying to figure out what to say to my husband when he gets home in a couple of hours when there’s a knock on the door.I know from the soft, nonintrusive noise exactly who it is. Anyone else in this family would basically knock the door down, and the maids usually call my name when they’re fetching me for someone else in the family.It’s my mother. Part of me wants to pretend I’m asleep or not in my room because I’m not really in the mood to speak to anyone, but I can’t bring myself to ignore her. I cross the room and open the door.Mom is standing there with a small smile. “May I come in, Anna?”I look around. It seems a bit strange to have anyone in my husband’s room. After all, this isn’t really my space is it? But if I say no, she’ll wonder why. “Of course.” I pull the door open and gesture to the couch that will become my bed in a few hours. Mom has no idea that I don’t sleep with Grant. “Is everything all right?”She lets o
*Grant*“That’s all right, Ms. Green. Thank you for your time.” I sigh and hang up the phone. I’ve called about fifteen people now who have properties for sale in areas where Savage Enterprises operates frequently to see if any of them can tell me if they’ve been approached by Sam Savage. So far, all of them have said no.It’s quite strange. It’s almost as if Savage Enterprises isn’t working on anything at the moment–except for keeping a stranglehold on the property Grandmother Trudy so desperately wants.Another thought occurs to me, and I find myself picking up my cell phone and dialing a number I haven’t contacted in many years. But the fact that this was Anna’s idea in the first place reminds me of someone who might be able to help.
*Anna*I run a dust towel over the coffee table in one of the many parlors in the Young family’s large estate, but my eyes are focused out the window. I’m not really looking at anything, though I do see some beautiful birds flittering about the bird bath in the garden. Still, my mind can’t focus on anything–except my husband.I let out a sigh and spray some more Pledge on the table, maybe dragging my towel through it, maybe not. I have no idea. I just keep thinking about how stupid it was for me to attempt to get involved in Grant’s business. Trying to give him advice on how to do his job was idiotic of me. When it backfires, and he ends up looking ridiculous in front of the entire family, he will blame me. And with good reason. He will have every reason in the world to run off with Barbara then.