...And Never Let HerGo

sweeping in from the northeast. Wilmington was muffled and chastened by snowdrifts, the whole state blanketed with white upon white for weeks. Gerry Capano bought a snowplow and did a land-office business. But his brothers talked him out of his plan to buy a fleet of snowplows, pointing out that Wilmington had snow-clogging winters only once in a blue moon. What would he do with all his plows during the other years?
    Gerry had more toys than any of them, as it was: classic cars, a boat, trucks, guns; he even bought guns for his toddler son, “to save for him.” Gerry still spent a lot of time big-game hunting and deep-sea fishing. He was usually one of the top contenders in the shark derby in the Atlantic.
    A NNE M ARIE ’ S thirtieth birthday, on January 27, was fast approaching. She had mixed emotions about that. She was still single and still childless, and thirty was a watershed. It didn’t matter that, in the nineties, women were marrying later and having children later. If she had to turn thirty, at least she would be doing it with great fanfare.
    First, Kathleen was having the “surprise” birthday party for her. It wouldn’t be much of a surprise because Anne Marie knew about it, although she didn’t let on to Kathleen. In fact, she would be celebrating with her family and friends a night early because her actual birthday fell on the date of one of the biggest events in Wilmington’s social season: the Grand Gala Ball. And almost in awe at her luck, Anne Marie had confided to her sister that she would be going with Mike.
    The Grand Gala was a wondrous affair that drew the crème de la crème of society—from the du Ponts on down. Even though tickets sold for as much as $500, they weren’t easy to come by. That year, the festivities would open with a performance by “The Velvet Fog,” Mel Torme. Then there would be a gourmet dinner, followed by dancing in five ballrooms at the Hotel du Pont.
    Anne Marie felt like Cinderella. Wearing the perfect dress, she would attend the Grand Gala with the perfect man. It could be the most unforgettable night of her life and a way to bury, at last, the residual memories of that poor, lonely little girl in a cold house, rolled into a ball under a table to avoid the wrath of her drunken father.
    Anne Marie had been thrilled when Mike asked her to go to the Grand Gala. She talked to all of her friends and all the other women employees in the governor’s office about what she should wear. Even though they were work friends rather than social friends, the governor’s executive assistant, Sue Mast, even went with Anne Marie to shop at Morgan’s for a suitable—but smashing—gown. She chose a long black dress that showed off her beautiful eyes and complexion. It wasn’t a “little black dress,” it was a dynamic, sweeping black dress.
    Although she knew about her birthday party at Kathleen’s house, Anne Marie didn’t expect to see Mike there. He had told her he wouldn’t be back from Bolivia until the day of the Grand Gala, and he gave her his arrival time so she could pick him up at the Philadelphia airport. In fact, he had arranged to come home a day early so he could be a surprise guest at Kathleen’s party.
    There was one surprise that Anne Marie dreaded: she did not want Tom at the party. Because she didn’t know who had been invited, she called Kim Horstman in a panic. “She was very concerned that there was a possibility that Tom would be invited to the party,” Kim said.
    Kim had reassured Anne Marie, and then she called Ginny Columbus because Ginny knew who was coming.
    “Who’s on the guest list?” Kim asked.
    Ginny told her and Kim sighed with relief. Tom, of course, wasn’t invited.
    It turned out to be a wonderful party. Anne Marie did an obligatory whoop of feigned surprise when she walked in to see all of her family and friends, but she was
really
astonished to see Mike grinning at her. She started screaming and ran up to Mike and hugged and kissed him. “She was in a great mood, really happy,” Mike recalled. “That was her night.”
    And so was the next. It seemed that Anne Marie was almost too happy.
    The Grand Gala was black tie, and Jill Morrison had been in on the final selection of Anne Marie’s dress and shoes. She went by Anne Marie’s apartment early on Saturday evening, the twenty-seventh, to wish her happy birthday, and was shocked to find her very upset and angry.
    “I wish you wouldn’t tell Tom Capano what I’m