How could she be such a hypocrite? Wallace was innocent. He had no car, he didn’t even know how to drive. Except. How did he total the Lamborghini? He must have taken driver’s ed when he was in school, had a junior license. There were at least six cars in the big garage on the Romola estate. Who’s to say he couldn’t go up there and take one when he wanted to?

Wallace, she thought suddenly, could be one of those people with a split personality. What if part of him was good and wanted to warn her about the part of him that was bad? The part that hung around looking up at Muriel’s windows, the part that might possibly do the bad things he was so busily denying right now?

No. She didn’t believe it. Refused to believe it. She pushed open the door and walked up the flight of stairs to the studio.

Fifteen

Muriel was talking on the phone in her office when Rose reached the top of the broad flight of wooden stairs. It must have been an important call because her hand was clenched on the receiver and she was hunched over in her chair, frowning.

“You can’t keep doing this to me,” she was saying. She looked up, saw Rose and swiveled her chair around. “Not now, she’s here,” Rose heard her say. When she hung up, her face was flushed.

“Sorry. I obviously interrupted… .”

“No, you didn’t,” Muriel said shortly, then brushed back her hair and seemed to relax. “You look so rosy!” She laughed. “Rosy Rose, did you walk? Want some hot tea?”

She chatted about the recital as she filled her electric kettle and plugged it in. She got herb tea bags from the desk drawer and took two earthenware mugs down from the bookshelf.

“You will be strong enough to dance in two weeks, won’t you?” she asked.

“I’ve been sneak practicing in my bedroom. I wouldn’t miss this chance for the world.”

Muriel seemed distracted for a moment. The kettle began to whistle. She pulled the plug and poured steaming water over the tea bags. “I don’t know how to say this, Rose. …”

“Say what?”

“The person I told you might come from New York ..

Rose’s heart sank. “He’s not coming. I knew it was too good to be true.”

“I’m sorry.” Muriel handed her a mug of hot tea. “It’s disappointing but it isn’t the end of the world.”

“Right.”

“It’s my fault. I shouldn’t have got your hopes up.”

“What happened, anyway?”

“Oh … he’s very busy.” She waved her hand airily. “He has a lot of commitments.”