MANDY: Since I won’t talk to him.
MANDY: But also, because I keep leaving the classroom to throw up. That might have something to do with it, too.
Amelia’s head felt heavy with sorrow. As she lifted her phone to answer with words of compassion, she heard a rap at her office door. Ordinarily, her secretary bustled in and out at-will. This time, however, the hand behind this knock seemed masculine and powerful. Amelia lifted her chin and said, “Come in?”
At that moment, her boss, Zane, appeared in the doorway. He looked strangely bloated, as though he’d had a hard night out at the bar and hadn’t yet recovered, and it was clear, from his midriff, that he needed to purchase a belt with an extra bit of leather. He glowered at Amelia as though she was an obstinate student and he was the principal. Naturally, this seemed off since Amelia did about ten times the amount of work he did.
“Zane. Hello,” Amelia said, forcing a fake smile. “What can I do for you?”
“Amelia, could I have a word?”
His voice was cold and somber. Amelia set her phone on the desk, crossed her arms over her chest, and said, “Absolutely. What’s up?”
“Perhaps in my office?”
“I’m on my way somewhere, Zane,” Amelia said. “My schedule is about as jam-packed as always. Do you mind just telling me right here?”
Zane glanced back toward Amelia’s secretary. He looked nervous, and the color drained from his cheeks as he stepped into her office and pushed the door closed. Amelia’s head stirred with curiosity. It wasn’t like Zane to be so confrontational.
“Sit down, please, Amelia,” he said, gesturing toward her chair.
“I can stand, thank you. Like I said, I’m on my way somewhere.”
“I would really prefer it if you sat.”
Amelia half-rolled her eyes. In the back of her mind, she again assessed the number of humdrum tasks she’d had to do for him over the years, as he’d struggled with scheduling, staying organized, and getting to places on time. He was her cross to bear, in human form.
“Okay,” Amelia said in annoyance. She tipped herself into her chair to sit just at the edge. She then folded her fingers on the desk and blinked at him. In a steady voice, she said, “What can I do for you, Zane?”
Zane reached into his back pocket, gripped a handkerchief, and dabbed his nose. “Amelia, something pretty dreadful has come to my attention.”
“Oh? You just saw that pothole on Main Street? I have a crew headed there later today,” Amelia said with a cheeky smile.
This seemed to fluster him even more. He glanced toward the ground and then added. “Thank you for that. Yes, I’ve heard a few complaints about the pothole.”
“Don’t mention it, boss.” Amelia nodded with a smile.
He then cleared his throat. “I took it upon myself this morning to investigate where we stood with the Oliver Krispin project.”
Amelia’s heart jumped slightly. “Yes.”
“And I see that it hasn’t moved forward. At all, in fact.”
“No. It hasn’t.”
“So I went ahead and called him,” Zane continued. “And he mentioned that he was unable to get together the appropriate paperwork. I have to say that I was floored when he said that. Because isn’t it your job, Amelia, to ensure that men like him find ways through some of these bigger obstacles?”
Amelia arched her brow. “It was my understanding that it was my job to keep the island of Martha’s Vineyard’s interests at heart above everything else. Above, most definitely, the affairs and interests of some overly rich man from the city.”
With every word that Amelia spoke, Zane seemed to grow in his anger. He lifted his shoulders toward his ears and then said, “Amelia. We discussed this at length. His resort was staged to bring in a huge amount of money to this island. It wasn’t something to scoff at.”
“And I didn’t scoff at it,” Amelia retorted. “He didn’t bring in the relevant paperwork. Permits are required to build in certain areas, as you know.”
“Yes, but Amelia. We have the power to push past some of those rules.”
“And why on earth would we do that?”
Zane puffed out his cheeks. Amelia thought that maybe if she didn’t tell him to breathe, he might collapse to the ground.
“Amelia. You know this island better than anyone.”
“I would say so, yes.”
“And then, you know that these resorts and this industry, this gives the people of Martha’s Vineyard a number of jobs. We need these places to keep going.”
“I know that very well. But he planned to build in a protected area. The wildlife of Martha’s Vineyard is my responsibility, as well. And, Zane, if I might add — it’s your responsibility, too.”
“You don’t have to tell me what my responsibility is, Ms. Taylor.” His words were dangerous, now. He looked like a dragon, on the verge of blowing fire.
“I know that,” Amelia said softly, although, in actuality, she hadn’t seen Zane do much of anything in years.
“In fact, I feel that you’ve gotten a bit too big for your britches as of late, Ms. Taylor.”
Amelia wanted to laugh. Instead, she asked, “What do you mean?”
“I mean that you think you have much more responsibility than you do,” Zane continued. “The fact that you never consulted me about this permit issue is certainly worrying.”
Amelia had about a million responses to that — like, for example, the fact that Zane was hardly ever in his office or available for such “consultation.”
“Excuse me?” she finally mustered.
“You heard me,” Zane replied. “You made the island of Martha’s Vineyard lose out on the potential of hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue. And you did it without a second thought.”
“Hang on. You know that I do everything with a second thought. Or even a triple thought.”
“No. You’ve gone too far, Amelia. This time, I can’t just sit back and let you pretend you run the show,” Zane sputtered. “In fact, I think I will take it upon myself to call Oliver Krispin back to the island. And I think it would be best that, while Mr. Krispin and I arrange breaking ground on the new resort, you take a leave of absence. This will give both you and I time to consider your role here and what exactly it should look like in the future.”
Amelia’s jaw nearly dropped to the floor.
A leave of absence?
What did that even mean?
That was something that happened to other people. Amelia had gotten all the way through middle school and high school without a single detention. She’d never once gotten into trouble. Her parents had always called her “the golden child,” and Daniel had never even refuted it. Since she’d gotten her job at city hall, she had hardly missed a single day of work and had hardly bothered at all with dating, which meant she’d never really found Mr. Right. Her life had been tied up at city hall.
And now, where would she take that life?
“You have to be kidding me, Zane,” she said, hardly loud enough for her own ears to hear it.
“If you think I’m kidding, then you’re sorely mistaken,” Zane shot back. He then cut back toward the door, where he paused with his hand on the knob. “Make sure you share your schedule with one of your colleagues to make sure we don’t miss any relevant meetings.”
And with that, he stomped out into the hallway and left Amelia all alone.
With every moment that passed, Amelia’s confusion mounted. She placed her files back in her folder and then lifted the folder to her chest. On second thought, she placed the folder in a drawer as she realized the meeting she’d been heading to would now have to be rescheduled. It was somebody else’s problem.
Even the pothole on Main Street was someone else’s problem.
Her heart dropped into her stomach as she reached for her coat. Zane’s words echoed through her skull. Had she really overstepped her position? Had she actually gotten too egotistical to perform her job correctly?
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When Amelia appeared in the foyer, her secretary peered at her curiously.
“Shouldn’t you be on your way to that meeting?” she asked.
Amelia tilted her head as her eyes filled with tears. “Actually, could you please call them and reschedule? Give them Zane’s number. It’s — it’s up to Zane, now.”
Her secretary laughed at that. “Right. Is it up to Zane? Then all of Martha’s Vineyard will go up in flames.”
But a moment later, her secretary realized the serious tone of Amelia’s voice. She stood slowly, her eyes focused on Amelia’s.
“Amelia, you’re not serious, are you? What is going on?”
Amelia just shook her head somberly. “You’ll need to reschedule all of my meetings this week. Pass them off to others, or ask them to wait until — until I’m —”
She couldn’t bear to say it. Her fate was in Zane’s hands. He’d taken everything from her.
When Amelia stepped out of the building, she realized that her vehicle wasn’t in the parking lot. She’d taken it to be repaired that morning, as it had been far too long since her strange accident with Nathan Gregory. When she’d placed the keys in the guy’s black-stained hands, she’d told herself: The nightmare is over. Your light will be fixed, and you can get on with your life now.
Ah. But the nightmare had apparently only just begun.
Amelia walked toward the center of Edgartown in a kind of daze. The days had drifted toward the end of March, and there was a strange humidity to the air. She blinked up to catch the brewing dark clouds, which steamed over the bright blue stretch of sky. Rain approached, and she was nothing if not ill-prepared. She remembered her umbrella, where it still hung on the coat rack in her office. She thought to turn around and head back up to grab it, but the last face she wanted to see was her boss. God only knew what she might have done.
The first raindrops pelted her nose, her shoulders, and the top of her forehead. Her hair deflated beneath the drips, and she turned her eyes toward the sidewalk as she continued to walk on. She wasn’t so far from her house, not really, and she knew the moment she arrived, she could draw a bath and weep as loud as she wanted.
After all, it wasn’t like anyone was at home to hear her.
Suddenly, a horn blared directly beside her. Amelia nearly jumped from her skin as she yanked her head around to spot the driver.
Mila.
Hurriedly, Mila brought the passenger window down and called, “Amelia! What the heck are you doing out here?”
Amelia stuttered. She had absolutely no idea how to describe what had just happened.
“Are you having some kind of breakdown?” Mila demanded.
Amelia’s lower lip quivered slightly as she continued to struggle not to cry.
“Don’t just stand there, Amelia! Get in the dang car!”
Amelia did as she was told. She collapsed in the passenger seat as a car pulled up behind Mila and blared its horn to demand that they drive forward. Annoyed, Mila hollered out her own window, “Hold your horses!” She then reached over, gripped Amelia’s hand, and said: “Whatever it is, we’ll take care of it. We always do.”
Chapter Fourteen
“Amelia, you don’t have to talk to me,” Mila said as they eased toward Amelia’s house. Raindrops splattered across the windshield, and Mila’s eyes danced from the road in front of them, over toward Amelia, to keep tabs on everything at once. “I just need you to know. I’m not leaving until I get you all set up in a warm place surrounded by all your favorite snacks, okay?”
Amelia’s chin quivered. She couldn’t speak.
“You’ve spent all these years taking care of everyone else,” Mila scolded. “But you probably wouldn’t have called any of us about whatever this is, would you have? Good thing I found you.” She then pressed a button on her dash to call her esthetician salon. “Hey. It’s Mila. I need you to reschedule all of my appointments for the rest of the day. It’s an emergency.”
When Mila hung up, Amelia let out a deep sigh and said, “You shouldn’t have rescheduled.”
“What?” Mila sounded borderline angry. “Listen, Amelia. You can’t tell me what to do right now. You’re the one in the catbird seat.”
“I never really understood that expression,” Amelia said softly as she gave Mila the slightest of smiles.
Back in her house, Mila bustled around the kitchen to prepare Amelia a cup of tea. Amelia stood with her shoulders hunched and her hair still dripping. She then found her phone and began to text Mandy back.
“What are you doing?” Mila asked. “Who are you texting?”
“Just Mandy,” Amelia said.
Mila stopped dead as the kettle began to blare. “Isn’t she at school? Let her teachers take care of her for once. And isn’t she eighteen years old?” She buzzed her lips, annoyed.
“She needs me, Mila,” Amelia said as she rubbed her eye with her index finger.
When she removed her finger, Mila furrowed her brow, annoyed, and said, “Now, look at you. You have eyeliner all over your face. And what did I tell you about rubbing your eyes?”
“Can’t you just de-wrinkle me later, Mila?” Amelia asked.
Mila rolled her eyes. “I’ve told you, girls, over and over again. You have to take preventative measures!”
“Today isn’t a day for preventative measures,” Amelia said. “It’s a day for tea. And brownies.”
“Did someone say brownies?” Jennifer’s voice rang out from the foyer as the door slammed shut behind her.
Amelia eyed Mila suspiciously. “How did you even get the news out that we were here?”
“When you went to the bathroom, I got to work.”
Jennifer appeared in the kitchen with a platter of cookies, brownies, and little pieces of cake and pie, all from the Frosted Delights. Her eyes narrowed at Amelia’s appearance. Amelia knew better than most that she always looked A-okay. Obviously now, with the eyeliner streak and the wet eyes and the sagging shoulders, she hardly looked at all like herself.
“Hey honey,” Jennifer said finally, as she placed the plate of goodies on the counter and wrapped Amelia up in a hug.
Amelia placed her chin on Jennifer’s shoulder and shook slightly. She was reminded of being a very little girl when she’d scraped herself up after a bike accident and fallen into her mother’s arms. It was a funny thing — the fact that those open arms were no longer so open when you turned forty. Sometimes, there was nothing to do but cling to yourself in the dead of night.
Just then, the front door opened again. Olivia’s voice rang out, as did Camilla’s. They arrived, one-after-another, to the kitchen, and together, the five of them formed a circle, with their arms wrapped around each other’s shoulders.
“Look at us, all here together in the middle of the day,” Olivia said brightly. Her eyes found Amelia’s curiously.
“You didn’t have to leave school like that,” Amelia insisted.
“Oh, but I did,” Olivia said. “I received the call from the sisterhood. I took the oath. We were all there.”
“That’s right,” Jennifer affirmed. “You can’t just expect that we’ll ignore one of our girls when she’s in trouble.”
Amelia felt like a wandering, lost child. She sat on the floor of the living room while Camilla and Jennifer sat across from her. Jennifer leafed a bottle of wine from her bag and poured hearty glasses for everyone, while Mila perched on the couch behind Amelia and toyed with her hair. Olivia took a phone call from Anthony and remained standing with her hand on her hip. “I think that dark green tile is so interesting, Anthony,” she said. “It reminds me of the forties. Yes. It will look so good in that downstairs bathroom.”
Amelia tried to avoid Jennifer and Camilla’s eyes, even as they bore into her. She lifted her glass of wine but then returned it to the ground near her feet. She had never been particularly fond of “drinking away her problems.” She didn’t like losing control.
“Amelia,” Jennifer said softly. She reach
ed over and placed her hand on Amelia’s knee. “You know, you can tell us anything.”
“We’re always going on and on about our problems,” Camilla interjected.
“Seriously. We never shut up about our problems,” Olivia added as she hung up the phone and slipped it into her pocket. “If something happened — with Mandy? With Daniel?”
Amelia sniffled. Again, she felt the crushing weight of what she’d potentially lost. She again lifted the glass of wine but placed it back on the ground, as she felt she just couldn’t drink it.
“Zane thinks I overstepped at work,” she said finally. “And he told me to take a leave of absence.”
Jennifer snapped to her feet with rage. “What the hell? Are you serious?”
“That idiot never does anything!” Olivia cried. “I recently spoke to him at the grocery store, and he barely even knew about any of the projects you were hard at work on! I didn’t want to mention that to you because, well, I figured you knew already what an idiot he is...”
“I know. I mean. Idiot is maybe too strong of a word, but, yeah. He really doesn’t know what’s happening up there. All he cares about is money. And he thinks I don’t have the best interests of the island at-heart,” Amelia breathed. Her hand shook as she placed it over her cheek. “I just keep thinking about all the sacrifices I made over the years for that job, you know?”
Nobody spoke as everyone stirred in the same, crazy thoughts. Amelia had never fallen in love. She’d never had her own family. Her life had been her job and then, she’d had to pick up the pieces of Daniel’s failed marriage and family. Nobody wanted to say these words aloud, of course, but Amelia could see them written across each of her best friends’ faces. How awful.
Why hadn’t she taken just a sliver of time for herself?
Why had she allowed any of this to happen?
“I just thought I was smarter than all this,” Amelia said softly.
The girls basically stumbled over themselves to attempt to fix this. Jennifer said she didn’t mind going to scream at Zane if that’s what it took, and Mila said she would give his wife some bad botox the next time she came to the salon.
37 Peases Point Way Page 9
