Secret Whispers Read online

  She tilted her head and changed the tone of her voice as if she were now talking to a very young child.

  “Do you think your father got to where he is today by being naive and avoiding reality? Hardly. He is one of the most emotionally centered and one of the strongest men I have met, and it’s for that as well as his other wonderful qualities that I love him so dearly.”

  “Neither Mrs. Dobson nor Doris ever lied to my father or me about anything,” I insisted. I would never even consider the alternative, no matter what she said.

  She kept her smile, but the warmth left it so that it looked more as if she wore a photograph of her face.

  “Whatever you choose to believe you can believe,” she said. “I simply want you to understand your place in this historic and important mansion and family. It’s one thing to treat your servants decently and fairly but quite another to place yourself on their level. There has to be a professional distance between you, me, and your father and them, Semantha. Some servants understand that distance well, and there’s never a problem. Some really resent being servants themselves, and no matter how they smile or speak to you, they really hate being at your beck and call.”

  “But . . .”

  “And there are some who don’t even realize themselves how much they resent being servants. Mrs. Dobson and Doris strike me as like that.” Her face hardened, her eyes more steely cold. “Now, I grew up with house servants, too, and most of my friends did the same. I know a quality servant when I see one. I’m not sure Mrs. Dobson and Doris are up to what’s required in a home this prestigious, working for a family this important.”

  “Oh, but they are!” I cried. “Mrs. Dobson has worked in the homes of lords and ladies in London.”

  “Titles are bought, and some are so thin they border on the ridiculous.”

  “Whatever. Mrs. Dobson has been more like a grandmother to me, and—”

  “Exactly. That’s my point.” She pounced. “A servant is not a member of your family, Semantha.” She relaxed her shoulders and smiled again. “However, let’s not talk about this right now. There are too many far more important things to discuss. We’ve got to lay out the wedding and reception as intelligently as we can on these grounds.” She looked at her watch. “Mr. Manglesthorpe, my wedding planner, is arriving soon. There’s enough time before dinner. We’ll walk the grounds and design everything. I’d like you to walk with us. Here,” she said, sliding the notebook across the table. “You can look over the set pieces, and if you have any suggestions, don’t hesitate to make them. I love seeing things through younger eyes. Sometimes innocence has a refreshing point of view.”

  “How come you don’t ask my father to help with all this?”

  “How come? Simple. He’s thrown the whole thing in my lap, which is fine,” she said, smiling. “I only hope I live up to his expectations. Your opinions are very important to me, Semantha, not only in relation to the wedding but also for how the house will be run.”

  “The house?”

  “We’ll have to make changes to keep up with the times and our needs, won’t we?”

  “I suppose,” I said, though I had no idea what she meant by “our needs.” It seemed that my father’s and my needs were very well attended to as it was. “Daddy doesn’t like to change much in the house, though.”

  “Nothing will be so dramatic a change, something that would detract from the Heaven-stone image or anything, but a house is more than a furniture collection, statuary, and paintings. This is like a living, breathing animal.” She narrowed her eyes. “That’s why I really want you to take your time deciding what to do next, why I suggested you don’t rush right into working at the stores. I’ll have a great deal to do in and out of this house, and I’ll be depending on you to be involved and alert about what goes on within it.”

  Now what was she talking about? Involved and alert about what? Neither Daddy nor I nor even Cassie thought the running of our house was so complicated.

  She finished her wine. “In the meantime, peruse the wedding planner’s book. I want to run in and change these shoes. We have time before it gets too dark, but I’m sure I’d break a heel traipsing over the lawn.”

  She rose and leaned over to kiss me on the cheek.

  “I’m so glad we had this little chat. I look forward so much to our intimate little chats to come. We’ll be each other’s trusted confidant and in no time be comfortably revealing the deepest secrets in our hearts.”

  She turned and hurried into the house. A moment later, I felt Cassie standing beside me. I didn’t look at her and spoke before she could.

  “That’s the sort of woman you would have become,” I told her.

  When I turned around, she was gone.

  Not ten minutes later, I heard Mrs. Dobson greet Mr. Manglesthorpe. Lucille came down the stairs quickly and introduced him to me.

  “I asked Mr. Manglesthorpe to come now, which will be about the time we begin the reception,” she explained. “It’s the best way to see how it will be.”

  “Let’s hope we have a night as beautiful as this one’s promising to be,” he said, more to me than to Lucille. “However, I have provided for large tents.”

  “It won’t dare rain. Semantha and I won’t permit it, right, Semantha?”

  I nodded. Ordinarily, I’d have thought that was a really silly thing to say, but Lucille sounded and looked as if she actually believed she had the power to control the weather.

  We began the tour. I felt a little silly walking behind Lucille and Mr. Manglesthorpe, even when Lucille would turn around to me and ask, “Don’t you agree?”

  To me, it didn’t seem to make much difference if the soft-drink kiosk was just down from the second bar or not. I certainly wasn’t going to disagree with their decision to form a U with the tables so that more people could actually view the dais, and what was so complicated about where the altar should be so as not to have the guests looking into the sun?

  She surprised me, however, when she told Mr. Manglesthorpe that the dance floor should be in front of the dais so I could feel more involved in the activity.

  “I don’t want any of us shoved off to the side, especially the younger people at this wedding. We want to be right in the thick of it, right, Semantha?”

  “Yes,” I said quickly, even though I had no idea how I would be in the thick of it. She smiled at me as if she knew something I didn’t.

  Afterward, at dinner, Lucille described the wedding arrangements to my father, again making it seem as if I had been an integral part of the decisions. Daddy was in a much better mood and applauded every decision Lucille had made. The only moment that gave him any hesitation was when she asked if he was certain he wanted my uncle Perry to be his best man.

  “Of course I do. He’s my brother,” he said, holding his smile. He glanced at me. I was sure I looked quite shocked that she would even think to ask.

  “Well, I was just thinking . . . I know how close you have been with Senator Brice. Just imagine what it would look like, how impressive it would be.”

  “What? You mean to have Captain Brice be my best man?”

  “He was a war hero, and I know he would wear his uniform for the occasion,” she said. “What a picture that would make in the newspapers.”

  Again, he glanced at me, and then he smiled. “It sounds as if you’ve already broached the subject with him.”

  “Not him, exactly. You know I’ve been friends with Meg Brice for years.”

  He was silent. I said nothing, but I was sure he could feel my eyes on him.

  “I wouldn’t want to hurt Perry’s feelings,” Daddy said.

  I was grateful for that and stopped holding my breath. I didn’t think Lucille would go on with it, but she surprised me.

  “Perry is a pretty astute man. He would certainly see the political benefits, I’m sure.”

  “Political?” I asked. The word just shot out of my mouth, as if Cassie had propelled it. “I mean, it’s a wedding, not an elec
tion.”

  Lucille smiled that smile she gave when she wanted me to feel like a much younger girl, someone who needed doors and windows opened so she could see what was going on in the real world.

  “When you reach your father’s and my social level, Semantha, everything we do has political implications.” She turned back to Daddy and gazed at him with admiration as she slipped her right hand into his left. “Your father knows I have secret ambitions for him.”

  “What secret ambitions?”

  “Oh, Lucille,” he said. “Let’s not talk about any of that now.”

  “No, Teddy, she should know. She’s a grown woman now, and besides, she should be part of every important family decision.” Lucille turned back to me. “There’s been some serious talk about your father running for governor at the end of the present governor’s term. He has a little more than two years left, and he’s made it clear that he won’t run again.”

  “But . . .” I turned to Daddy. “How can you be governor and still run the Heaven-stone Corporation?”

  Lucille looked to him for his answer, too.

  “Well . . . Lucille is coming aboard to assume, assist, and take on some of my executive responsibilities,” he replied. “In time, she can take on more.”

  It had the sound of a rehearsed and memorized answer, one she had planted in his head.

  She nodded, released Daddy’s hand, and turned back to me.

  “Which is why I urged you earlier to give second and third thoughts to your getting yourself involved with your uncle in a rather minor part of our business right now. As I assume more business responsibilities, it will fall more and more on your shoulders to manage this great house. I’ll help you gain more of the needed experience as soon as we return from our honeymoon, but don’t underestimate how important this is to the Heaven-stone image and reputation.

  “And,” she added, reaching across the table to take Daddy’s hand again, “how important this house and its history are to your father. I’m sure he would want someone he could trust, someone who understands the heritage, to take charge while we’re off doing our work. Naturally, after your father is elected governor, we’ll all move into the governor’s mansion, but we won’t let a single dead lightbulb go unchanged here.”

  She looked at me again.

  “Unless, of course, you’re romantically involved with someone and perhaps still living here. Then all our problems are solved.”

  I stared at her, stunned. She wasn’t only planning her own future with my father. She was planning mine as well.

  Daddy widened his smile. “She’s quite an executive thinker, our Lucille,” Daddy said. He patted her hand. “Okay, I’ll have a talk with Perry and smooth it over. You go forward with Senator Brice.”

  I felt the breath get caught in my throat again. Of course, if Daddy asked him, Uncle Perry would step aside, but I knew in my heart that he would be terribly and deeply hurt. How could Daddy not realize it, too?

  “That’s wonderful, Teddy,” Lucille said.

  They stared at each other lovingly for a moment, and then Daddy stood up.

  “I’ve got some work to get back to at the office,” he said. “There were a few things I had left to do and would rather have done before morning.”

  “I’ll walk you out,” she told him, and put her arm through his. When she looked back at me, I thought she wore an expression of utter self-confidence and power. It was as if she said, See, he’s putty in my hands.

  I watched them leave and then went out to the rear patio again and looked over the grounds toward where the altar was to be set up for them to take their vows. The bottom of my stomach felt full of worms. I took some deep breaths and stepped down to walk toward the pool and cabana. Cassie stepped out of a shadow cast by one of our great old oak trees. She said nothing at first. She just walked along with me.

  “Still want to close doors in my face and shut me up?” she finally asked. I said nothing, just walked. “When a man makes that much of a fool of himself over a woman, you can’t depend on him for anything. The fact is, Semantha, you’ll have to become Daddy’s eyes and ears. It will fall to you to wake him up.”

  I continued walking, even though she paused.

  “You’re going to need my help!” she shouted after me. “Do you want my help or not? I’m not going to beg you, Semantha. Well?”

  I paused, thought a moment, and turned around. “Yes,” I said.

  She caught up with me, and we walked side by side, neither of us saying much. It was like the old days before everything terrible had happened, the time when I used to think we could be wonderful sisters, the Heaven-stone sisters, the most famous two sisters in all of Kentucky, with our picture together in the newspapers and magazines. Underneath, the caption would read Beauty and Brains. We would be thought of as two parts of one wonderful person.

  I felt Cassie slip her hand into mine. “Don’t worry,” she whispered. “We’ll save him and save ourselves.”

  “What about my little girl?” I muttered. “Who will save her?”

  My hand felt empty, and when I turned to look, she was gone.

  But the stars were bright now, and when I looked up and studied them, I saw my angel. That sight, more than Cassie, buoyed my hopes for tomorrow.

  I returned to the house, intending to go up to my room to watch some television, but when I entered and started toward the stairway, Lucille called to me.

  “Is that you, Semantha?”

  I went to the living-room doorway. She was sitting in the living room in Daddy’s favorite chair.

  “I went looking for you after your father left. Where were you?”

  “Just taking a walk,” I said.

  “Now, listen to me, Semantha,” she began. “Come in here,” she ordered. “Sit.”

  “What do you want?” I asked, but walked in and sat across from her.

  “I don’t like it that you spend so much time alone. It’s not natural for a girl your age with all of your attributes to be so withdrawn. And don’t tell me about your therapy and all the rest. I have eyes and ears and can see and hear you. There’s nothing wrong with you. You can be happy, too.

  “Now, I know you were a little upset at dinner, but you must believe me when I say I’m looking out for all of us now, including your uncle Perry. Don’t you think he would be proud of his brother if his brother was elected governor? Don’t you think his life would improve and he would benefit, too? Well?”

  “Yes, I suppose.”

  “Good. So don’t sulk about this little change in the wedding plans. He’ll be fine with it.”

  “I’m not sulking,” I said.

  “You’re not exactly a secret wrapped in a riddle, Semantha. You wear your heart on your sleeve, so to speak. I haven’t lived with you very long, but I can see and feel your emotions almost as well as your father can. When he left, he was upset that you were upset.”

  “He was?”

  “Yes. He asked me to talk to you a little more about it. He’s very sensitive to your feelings and what bothers him bothers me. Don’t you want him to be happy?”

  “Yes, of course.”

  “So make an effort to see things our way. Don’t make any petty displeasures so obvious. When you show your hand, you lose the game. My mother gave me that advice, and I never forgot it. Will you try?”

  “Yes,” I said quickly. At this point, I just wanted to get away from her.

  “Don’t tell me things I want to hear just to get rid of me, Semantha. I want to do what’s right for everyone, including you. I want you to be happy, too, very happy. I’m determined to help you have a full and productive life. It will please your father, and he’ll be happier as a result. Now, it’s not good that you have no friends your own age and you are not doing things girls your age should be doing.”

  “I went to a private high school for three years. I’ve lost contact with anyone I knew here.”

  “Well, maybe we can fix that.”

  “How?” />
  “Give me time to think about it. I’ll come up with something. You’ll see. Just give me a chance to be all I can be for you. Give me a little trust, okay?”

  I started to nod, but it was as if Cassie had her hand under my chin and wouldn’t let me dip my head. Lucille looked displeased at my silence.

  “Okay,” I finally managed.

  “Good,” she said. “You can go up to your room if you like.”

  “Dismissed,” Cassie whispered.

  I rose and walked out slowly. My head felt as if it had turned into a hive filled with angry bees. Thoughts, feelings, memories spun around, twisting and turning everything into tight knots. I felt like screaming to rid my ears of all the voices I was hearing.

  One of the voices I heard was real, but I didn’t realize it for a few moments.

  Mrs. Dobson was standing in the kitchen doorway, calling to me in a whisper and beckoning. I looked back at the living room to be sure Lucille wasn’t watching and then went into the kitchen. Doris was sitting at the kitchenette, her hands wrapped around a cup of tea. She looked up. Mrs. Dobson stood beside her.

  “We want you to know we absolutely did not break Mrs. Bennet’s jar of skin cream,” she said.

  “I know you didn’t,” I replied.

  “We just wanted you to know we wouldn’t do anything to hurt your father or you, Miss Semantha, and we’re both quite upset that your father is so upset with us.”

  “I know, Mrs. Dobson. I spoke to him about it. He said we should forget it all for now.”

  “We thought you’d stand up for us. Didn’t we, Doris?”

  “Yes, thank you,” Doris said. “I’d hate to lose this work over something I didn’t do.”

  “You won’t,” I promised. I smiled at them and started out.

  Mrs. Dobson followed me to the stairway. I turned to reassure her again, but I could see there was something more.

  “What is it, Mrs. Dobson?”

  She looked toward the living-room doorway first and then leaned in to whisper to me. “I saw Mrs. Bennet looking at the mail and taking an envelope that was addressed to you,” she said.

  “When?”

  “Yesterday. I thought she might have taken it by mistake, but I wanted to be sure. Did she give it to you?”