Arthur frowned.
“I offered assistance.”
“You issued instructions.”
“They were practical instructions.”
Helen turned to us.
“He has never understood the difference.”
Something about the way she spoke to him made the room feel less frightening.
“Can we see Grace now?” Annie asked.
“Yes.”
Grace looked tiny beneath the hospital blanket.
Her brown hair was tied badly behind her head, and there were shadows beneath her eyes, but when we walked in, she immediately pushed herself upright.
“Where have you two been?”
There it was.
Annie smiled.
“You’re mad.”
“Of course I’m mad!”
Grace looked at Arthur.
Then at me.
Then back at Arthur.
“What happened?”
I told her.
Not everything at first.
Just the garden, the food, the ring.
Grace listened with one hand covering her mouth.
When I finished, she looked as if she didn’t know whether to hug us or lecture us.
Probably both.
