Sparring Partners(30)
The moment passed, and Margot stiffened her spine, smiled, and gritted her teeth. A tough kid, whom Mack was proud of.
She said, “Of course, I’m not making it any easier for her. Yesterday I asked if I could make this trip to Memphis by myself, told her I had an appointment with an admissions dude at Rhodes, and so on. Which is true. She didn’t like the idea, said no, I couldn’t come alone. We had dinner last night in the big house and she told Hermie and Honey about me coming to Memphis alone. They freaked, as usual. You’d have thought I wanted to walk naked through a ghetto. It turned into a pretty good fight. I reminded them that I’ve had my license for two years and have driven to Tupelo, with friends, several times. Hermie was growling and hissing and said I didn’t know how to find Rhodes College. So I asked him where in the big city it’s located. He guessed, got it wrong, then I laid it out perfectly: take Highway 78 into Memphis, fifty-four miles from here, stay on 78 after it becomes Lamar Avenue, then turn right on South Parkway, follow it north past Union, past Poplar, turn left and go west on Summer Avenue for about a block, the zoo’s on the left and Rhodes is on the right. I nailed it. Helen even laughed. Mom smiled. Needless to say, I didn’t mention the little detour here to the Varsity—left on Park, north on Highland, two blocks east on Southern—where I planned to meet you. That would’ve really upset them.”
“So my name is still mud?”
“Worse than that. Anyway, Hermie was not impressed with my navigational skills. He said no, I couldn’t go to Memphis alone. I decided to fight him because he’s got to respect me. Before long, Helen and I will be living under his thumb and I can’t stand the thought. He is not my father and he is not going to be my boss.”
Mack had to smile. Atta girl.
“So we had a brawl.”
“Who won?”
“Nobody wins a family brawl, you should know that. Everybody loses. I got up this morning and left the house. I stopped at the square, called Mom, told her I was on the way to Memphis. She told me to be careful and we swapped I love yous.”
“So your grandparents don’t know?”
“Well, I’m sure they know by now. Don’t get me wrong, Mack. I love my grandparents but I cannot imagine living with them. I pray every day that Mom can hang on for just a few more months. I know it’s a selfish prayer, but then most of them are, don’t you think?”
“I suppose.”
Two large platters of cheeseburgers and fries landed in front of them and they spent a few moments fiddling with the condiments. The waiter was quite attentive and eager to flirt with Margot. Mack glared at him and was ready to bark.
After the waiter disappeared, Mack asked, “You’re certain no one knows we’re meeting, right?”
“Well, I’ve told no one. Can’t speak for you.”
“No suspicions?”
“None. I mean, a month ago you were hot news, but that sort of blew over. I heard Hermie tell Honey the other night that as far as he knew no one in Clanton has laid eyes on you.” She ate half a fry, chewed like a teenager. “So you’re living in Memphis, huh?”
“For the moment.”
“What are your plans, Mack?”
“Don’t know that I have any. I’ll hang around for a while, make sure things are safe.”
“Safe? How so?”
“I want to make sure no one is looking for me. There are some skeletons in the closet and I’d like to keep them there.”
“That’s what I figured. You stole a bunch of money and disappeared, right?”
“That’s fairly accurate. I’m not proud of it.”
“But you’ve kept the money, right? Why don’t you just give the money back to the people you stole it from?”
“It’s not that easy.”
“Nothing is easy with you, Mack. Everything is so complicated.”
To avoid a response, Mack took a large bite of his burger and looked around the restaurant. Two college boys at the bar were gawking at his daughter. After he swallowed, he said, “Yes, Margot, I’ve done a fine job of making my life extremely complicated. I’d rather skip the past and talk about your life, college, stuff like that. It’s far more exciting.”
“When will you ever tell me the truth?”
“Yes, when you turn twenty-one, I’ll visit you in college and we’ll have a long dinner, with drinks, and I’ll tell you all the bad stuff I’ve done. Fair enough?”
“I suppose. I probably won’t care by then.”
“Let’s hope not. Have you picked a college?”
“I’m looking. Rhodes might be fun, but it’s too close to home. When Hermie was snarling last night he made it clear that ‘the family,’ as he likes to call it now, like he’s in charge and making all the big decisions for us since Mom is on her deathbed—anyway, he said ‘the family’ will not pay private school tuition. He says it’s ridiculous when there are so many good publics in Mississippi. I think the real reason is that he can’t afford private tuition.”
“That’s hard to believe.”
“I’m telling you, Mack, money is tight and getting tighter. Things are tense around there. And I get it. Their daughter is dying. They’re about to inherit two teenage girls nobody really wants. Hermie’s got competition with his business. Instead of planning a nice retirement, they’re looking at the next few years and don’t like what they see.”