She started up from the chair, smiling. Smiling. She was still smiling when she saw the gun. The smile stayed, giving a little twitch with each shot. Half sitting, half standing, she seemed to be waiting for me to finish. I dropped the gun even before she dropped into the chair.

No one moved, perhaps because she was still smiling. Even with the low gurgling in her throat and the languid closing of her eyes, she smiled, drawing my breath away. The room turned inside out and there were only shadows. One of the shadows moved immediately to Vivian, bent over her, mumbled something to the other shadows, and then came to me. It was Frank. His arm went around me, and Gloria took my hand. Two figures appeared on the staircase. There was a scream, and the room went right again.

“You crazy bitch! You killed her! You killed her!” Regina broke away from Virgil and started toward me. “You ruined everything—you always ruin everything! You killed her, you bitch!”

Frank jumped up and held her away from me. She saw the gun at my feet and began kicking at Frank in her effort to get to it. My one hand stayed with Gloria while the other went forward to retrieve the gun. Gloria called my name, made a move for my other hand, but I slid away and held my arm up in warning.

I leveled the gun on Regina.

“Don’t come near me,” I said. “Don’t touch me or so help me I’ll put a bullet in that machine that’s supposed to be your heart.” She drew back. When the momentary shock slid from her eyes, a grin slid into her face. “So help me.”

“You’d really like to, wouldn’t you?”

“Right this minute, yes, I would like to very much. Just don’t touch me. I don’t ever want you to touch me again.”

“Who in hell do you think you are!”

“I know who I am, Regina.” Don’t cry, stop crying. “And what I am is not superior at all if you’re my daughter. Now get away from me and stay away.”

She yanked herself free from Frank and joined the huddle surrounding Vivian. Leo came out of that huddle. His lips were white, his face nearly purple. He started toward me.

“You stay away from me too,” I said. “I want everybody to stay away from me.”

Jack grabbed Leo’s arm and pulled him back into the huddle. Frank sat down next to me and stroked my arm.

“Give me the gun, Irene. I won’t let any of them near you.”

I gave it to him and collapsed against his chest. Gloria stroked my hair.

“I love you, Frank, I do love you.”

“Shhhh. I know. I’m here.”