Later, when Marissa drove home, her mind was in disarray. It had been a strange day with roller-coaster emotions and unexpected happenings. Within minutes of leaving an excited Wendy, she began to question the reasonableness of going to Australia at the present time. Although the concept of getting away had a lot of appeal, the idea of considering such a journey was a fitting end to a mad day. Besides, she wasn’t sure she could manage Robert as handily as Wendy managed Gustave.

Marissa pulled into the garage, not sure how to proceed. For a few moments she sat behind the steering wheel and tried to think. Without a specific plan, she finally got out of the car and entered the house. She took off her coat and hung it in the hall closet.

The house was still. Robert was up in his study; she could just barely hear the click of his computer keys as he typed. She paused again in the darkness of the dining room.

“This is ridiculous!” Marissa said finally. She’d never had so much trouble making up her mind. With a new but fragile sense of resolve, she mounted the stairs and walked into Robert’s study.

“Robert, I’d like to talk to you about something.”

Robert turned to face her.

“Wendy and I have been thinking,” she continued.

“Oh?”

“It may sound a little crazy . . .”

“These days, I’d expect as much.”

“We thought that perhaps it would do us good to get away for a short time,” Marissa said. “Like a vacation.”

“I can’t take time off now,” Robert said.

“No, not you and I,” Marissa said, “Wendy and I. Just us girls.”

Robert thought for a moment. The idea had some merit. It would give him and Marissa time to cool down. “That doesn’t sound so crazy. Where were you thinking of going?”

“Australia,” Marissa said. She winced as the word came out of her mouth.

“Australia!” Robert exclaimed. He snatched off his reading glasses and tossed them on top of his correspondence. “Australia!” he repeated as if he’d not heard correctly.

“There is an explanation,” Marissa said. “We didn’t just pull Australia out of a hat. I found out today that the only concentration of cases of TB of the fallopian tubes like Wendy and I have is in Brisbane, Australia. So we could do a little research as well as have some fun. It was Wendy’s idea. She’s a diving enthusiast and the Great Barrier Reef—”

“You were right!” Robert said, interrupting her. “This sounds very crazy. This is the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. Your practice is in a shambles and you want to fly halfway around the world to continue a crusade that came close to landing you in jail. I thought you meant a little vacation, like a weekend in Bermuda. Something reasonable.”

“You don’t have to overreact,” Marissa said. “I thought we could talk about this.”

“How can I not overreact?” Robert demanded.