Garnet’s mother took a sip of her morning coffee and set the mug on the table. “I got some news from the detective this morning.”
Garnet looked up from her bowl of cereal and gave a blank stare. “The detective?”
“Yeah, you know. I hired that detective. Sam Braun. I’m sure I told you about it.”
Of course she had. But that was days ago and the only thing she’d been able to think about since yesterday was Dan and going to the formal. “So? Is your father still alive?”
“No,” Garnet’s mother replied. “In fact, it’s probably good that he isn’t. He died years ago during a police chase, if you can imagine. And according to the reports, the police had been looking for him for several months before that.”
Garnet’s eyes widened. “Why?”
“Oh, assault, extortion, forgery, theft. No mention of murder, but then again, who knows?” Garnet’s mother put her elbows on the kitchen table and held her head in her hands. “When I started my search, I never dreamt I would find information like this. And you were right, all along, Garnet. My father was a criminal.”
“I was only kidding!” Garnet exclaimed, horrified that she’d been so close to the truth. “When did he die?”
“1952,” her mother replied. “The same year the divorce papers were signed.”
“No wonder Nana never told you. She probably wanted to spare you and tried to forget about it herself.”
Garnet’s mother nodded. “I know. But why did she marry such a man? Auntie Janet told me the family didn’t like him and warned her against him. Was her love so blind that she ignored all the warning signs?” Her mother held her hands open in question. “Still, I can’t imagine how she must have felt, being a war bride in a foreign country and finding out she had such a man for a husband. She would have been too proud to go back to England, yet she couldn’t stay with him, either.”
“Poor Nana.”
“I know.” Garnet’s mother bit her lip. “And the detective had more.”
“More?” Garnet asked warily, wondering how much worse things could get.
Her mother sighed. “He had a sister. The detective doesn’t know if she’s still alive. She married and moved around a lot. He asked if I wanted to find her.”
Garnet’s mother shrugged. “I don’t know. What if I come from a whole line of criminals? What if that’s why she kept moving? Maybe she was trying to elude the police, too.”
“Maybe she just moved a lot,” Garnet said, trying to console her.
Her mother stood up and patted her on the shoulder. “I’m going to have to think about how much further I want to go with this. Right now, though, I wish I’d never found those papers in the desk.” She glanced down at her watch. “Oh my gosh. I’d better run.” She gave Garnet a quick kiss and left for work.
Garnet pulled the collar up on her jacket. Not even the drizzle could dampen her mood today, she thought, as she headed downtown after school. Last night, upon hearing that Dan had asked her to the formal, Garnet’s mother had whooped and hugged and kissed her, then reminisced about memories of her own formal in a decorated high school gymnasium before telling Garnet to start looking for a dress. Garnet could still scarcely believe she was going. The formal would not be in their school gymnasium, but in a hall called Bingeman’s. A flutter went through her whenever she thought of it.
But as she walked along King Street, peering into the store windows, she wondered where Dan had been today. She hadn’t seen him at all. Not between classes, which wasn’t that unusual, but not even in the cafeteria at lunch.
A window display with mannequins dressed in formal wear caught Garnet’s attention. She read the sign above: MARISA’S. She pushed open the glass door and heard a bell tinkle.
“Hello. Is there anything I can help you with?” the tall sales clerk purred before baring her teeth in a fake sales smile — the cue that this store would be expensive.
“No, just browsing,” Garnet replied as she walked over to the nearest display. She tugged at the skirt of a lime green dress, being careful not to glance at the tag, and pretending that the price of the designer dress was of no consequence to her, all the while aware of the clerk’s eyes on her. But Garnet refused to be humiliated. Anyway, she really was “just browsing.” She had no money with her and if she did happen to find a dress she liked, she would come back with her mother another time.
The truth was, being an only child, Garnet had a better-than-average clothing allowance that she rarely took full advantage of. Her mother had a penchant for stylish clothing herself, and always let Garnet buy what she wanted. Sometimes on their shopping trips her mother even urged Garnet to try on more for “just in case” occasions. In addition to her mother’s income, Garnet’s father sent support payments and, of course, now they had the inheritance from Nana. However, until now, clothing had never seemed that important to Garnet. It was only something you wore.
“Well, let me know if there’s anything I can show you,” said the sales clerk.
“Sure,” Garnet said. She tried to ignore the clerk, who continued to hover nearby, rearranging the perfectly aligned stack of folded sweaters as she kept an eye on her. Garnet had just spied a strapless lilac gown when the phone rang. The clerk returned to the cash desk to answer it and Garnet saw her chance. She pulled the dress down and held it up to herself in the mirror, then reached for the price tag. Her jaw dropped. Eight hundred dollars. Even with a generous budget, she doubted her mother would agree to that. She returned the dress to the rack and looked up through the storefront window.
To her surprise, she saw Dan walk by ... with Laura. Only Laura looked different. Her eyes were red and slightly swollen, as though she had been crying. Garnet hurried to the window and watched as they crossed the street and continued up the other side. Where were they going, and what were they doing together? She pushed open the door and stepped out of the shop.
The rain was coming down harder now. It trickled down Garnet’s neck and made her shiver as she stood at the corner and waited for the traffic light to change. She pulled up her hood. Across the street, Dan lifted his jacket above his head and held it over himself and Laura in an attempt to keep them both dry. Then the dark clouds burst open and drenched everything. Everyone scurried for cover, ducking under the store eaves and canopies as sheets of rain pelted them.
Garnet heard Laura shout something, her voice halfway between a laugh and a scream as they reached Dan’s car, parked on the street. They both howled with laughter as they jumped inside, wet hair plastered to their heads. Dan started the engine and pulled away from the curb. They never even saw Garnet.
She shoved her hands into her pockets and started to walk home. So, he was still seeing Laura. Then why had he asked Garnet to the formal? She remembered Dan’s cancelled plans on Saturday when he had arrived late at Elizabeth’s house. Family crisis, he had said. Probably more like a date crisis, Garnet decided. Did Dan and Laura have a fight? Had he asked Garnet to the formal on the rebound?
What an idiot she was. How could she have been so stupid as to think that she even stood a chance with someone like Dan Peters? Like a fool, she had let him kiss her and had even kissed him back when all she had been was a diversion. Garnet wiped the rain from her face with the back of her hand. How could she have been so taken in?
Well, Garnet was sure of one thing: she would not be going to the formal with him.
She passed by the window of the Walper Terrace restaurant and slowed as she recognized two familiar faces inside. Gerdie sat across the table from Stan, her eyes downcast, gazing nervously at her folded hands. He scowled at Gerdie as though expecting an answer from her. Garnet turned away from the rain-streaked window. Elizabeth had said that Gerdie had been alone for a long time before she met Stan. She should have stayed that way, thought Garnet. It seemed that no couple ever stayed happy forever. The magic always seemed to wear off eventually.
When Garnet arrived home, she pulled off her soggy shoes and threw her dripping knapsack and jacket onto the floor. The house was empty. Her mother wouldn’t be home until at least seven; it was her evening to work late. Garnet climbed the stairs to her bedroom, and stripped off her wet clothes. She pulled on her pyjamas and threw the covers over herself. The rain pounded on the roof, and the water churned through the eavestrough and Garnet let her tears flow. Never had she felt more alone.
Some time later, she awoke with a start.
“Garnet? Garnet! Are you here?” she heard her mother call.
The light had changed and the rain had subsided.
Garnet’s mother poked her head into the room. “Oh, there you are! I was looking for you. I’ve got some good news.” The smile froze on her face. “What’s the matter? Are you sick?”
Garnet shook her head.
“What’s wrong then? You’re in your pyjamas.”
“Nothing,” Garnet snapped.
Her mother frowned, then sat down on the bed and laid a hand on Garnet’s arm. “Do you want to talk about it?”
“Not really, but I know you’re going to ask, anyway.” Her mother flinched and pulled away. “If you don’t want to talk about it, Garnet, that’s fine. I’m only trying to help.”
Garnet felt tears prick her eyes and she took a deep breath. “Okay. You know how Dan asked me to the formal yesterday? Well, today, I saw him with this other girl, Laura.”
“I’ve seen them together a lot at school and I know they’ve gone out before. But when I saw them today, she looked like she’d been crying. I think he might have told her about the formal. The thing is, I don’t know why he even asked me when he’s still seeing her.”
Garnet’s mother shrugged. “Hmm, why don’t you ask him?”
Garnet sat up. “Ask him? It’s pretty obvious. He’s a cheater! I’m not going to the formal with him. I’ll tell him I’ve changed my mind. I should’ve known he was too good to be true. He’s just like everybody else at that school.”
“Oh, Garnet,” her mother said. “Don’t let one incident colour your whole outlook on life. I don’t think you’re giving him a chance. He seems like a nice guy. Talk to him and find out what the situation is. How do you know this girl isn’t merely a good friend and he was simply giving her a ride? Think of it: he asked you.”
Garnet rolled her eyes and let out a huff. “Don’t you understand? She’s his ex — or not his ex — I don’t even know! How can I trust him?” she wailed. “Mom, I hate this place. I hate the school. I hate this city. I just want to move back to Owen Sound!”
Garnet’s mother fixed her violet eyes steadily on her daughter for a long moment before she said in a quiet, even voice, “Well, that’s not going to happen. That’s my news. It finally happened. In two weeks, it’ll be official: I’ll be the new district manager for Prosperity Trust. We’re definitely staying.”
“Staying?! How could you do this to me?”
“How could I do this to you? I’m doing it for you! I thought you’d be happy. We can finally settle down. We can buy a house. No more moves.”
“Happy? Are you kidding? In case you haven’t noticed, Mom, I have no friends! Oh, except for an old woman who’s eighty. All I want is my old life back!”
“Garnet, it’s time for you to face it. We’re not going back and I never said we were. It’s my job and my career and, I might add, it helps pay the bills. I’m sorry you’re having such a tough time, but you haven’t exactly had a good attitude right from the start. The way I see it, you don’t want to make new friends. You barely even try. So, may I make a suggestion? Change your attitude. And the sooner the better, or you’ll only be unhappy.”
“I tried to make friends but it didn’t work. Amy was my friend, but she’s not here.”
“I know. But we’re not going back. You can visit her and keep in touch with her, but you have to move on. Now, you can choose to be miserable or you can choose to reach out. It’s up to you.”
“Don’t you get it? I don’t fit in around here.”
“Garnet, you have to give things a chance. You have to make the effort. You’re being unreasonable.”
“I’m not being unreasonable. You are! And I don’t want to give things a chance!”
Garnet’s mother pressed her lips into a thin line. “Then I’m afraid you’ve already chosen to be miserable.” She paused before continuing. “Look, I understand you’re angry and I may not be the one you want to talk to right now, but you should talk to someone. Why don’t you give Amy a call? It might do you some good to hear a friendly voice.”
Garnet shook her head. She couldn’t do that either. It would depress her even more. Another “I’ve got a life and you don’t” moment. “No,” she replied.
“No? Well, suit yourself,” her mother said, rising from the bed and leaving the room. Garnet watched the room grow darker until the pink glow of the streetlight invaded. She closed the blinds and lay back down. She did not want to think about anything. Or anyone. She wanted to feel completely numb. If any thought entered her head she would push it right back out again. She would feel nothing.
Absolutely nothing. Numb.