Storms 01 - Family Storms

fries.”
    She rose, which the others took as the signal that the day at the March mansion had ended. Ricky screamed that he didn’t want to leave. Boyd pulled him to his feet, and then everyone walked together to the front of the mansion, where Boyd had parked. Before they got into Boyd’s car, they all kissed Kiera, and then, to my surprise, they kissed me, too. We watched them drive off.
    “I have completely crazy friends,” Kiera said. “But I wouldn’t have it any other way. What do you think?”
    I nodded. Who was I to challenge her, anyway? I could barely remember the names of any classmates I had once considered friends. As Mama might have said, beggars can’t be choosers.
    And I was still feeling like a beggar.
    I had no way of knowing, but it wouldn’t be long before that feeling would change.

21
Night Out
    M rs. Duval looked nervous about my spending the day with Kiera. When Kiera told her we were going out for dinner and a movie, she wanted to know if Mrs. March was aware of it.
    “I spoke to her this afternoon, and she didn’t say anything about your taking Sasha anywhere,” Mrs. Duval said.
    Kiera groaned. “I’ll call my mother and have her speak to you again, Mrs. Duval. Chill out.”
    To my surprise, Mrs. March did not call Mrs. Duval after Kiera spoke to her. She called me. “What’s Kiera up to, Sasha?” she asked as soon as I went to the phone.
    How could I even begin to explain what had occurred? I certainly felt funny doing it over the telephone in a quick conversation. Instead, I simply told her what we had been doing. “Kiera offered to show me how to play tennis, and then we had lunch by the pool with some of her friends and went swimming. Now everyone is going to dinner and a movie. Should I say no?”
    She was quiet so long that I thought she might have lost the call on her cell phone. “What brought on this sudden generosity on her part?” she finally asked, but it sounded more like she was asking herself a question aloud.
    “Her therapy,” I said, looking for a shortcut.
    “Is that what she said?”
    “Yes.”
    I heard Mr. March in the background asking questions. She must have put her hand over her phone, because it all sounded muffled.
    “All right, but I want you to be very careful, Sasha. I wish I was there to decide about all this, but I can’t be.”
    “I’ll be all right, Mrs. March,” I said.
    “Yes, you will, or someone is going to hear about it,” she said. “I’ll call you first thing in the morning.”
    Not long after I hung up, Kiera came to my suite. She had clothes in her arms. “My mother hasn’t bought you anything worth wearing,” she began, “and Alena’s things are okay for just getting around, but there’s nothing for going out. You’ll look great in this. I’ve outgrown them but hardly wore them.”
    She held up the skirt, which didn’t look as if it would cover much. Before I could say anything, she pretended she was running a fashion show.
    “I have one of our newest creations, Madam. This is a red and black buffalo plaid miniskirt with what they call flirty inverted pleats and a black scalloped lace hem.”
    She put it up against me.
    “You must surely agree, Madam, that this will be perfect for you with this black top,” she said. “Please, try it on, orour designer, Monsieur Daddier, will have a stroke and a half.” She snapped her fingers and called for champagne.
    I laughed at her antics.
    “That’s not too much of an exaggeration. I’ve been to these fancy-schmancy boutiques and fashion shows with my mother. It’s enough to make you puke. Go on, try it all on already.”
    I did. The skirt was the shortest I had ever worn, and the top was so tight it felt like another layer of skin.
    “Beautiful. Only you can’t wear a bra with that. It looks stupid. It’s no big deal anymore, Sasha,” she added when I showed surprise. “Don’t worry about your nipples. I’ll show you a little trick, no shows,” she said. She stepped back and looked at me hard for a moment. “You know, I think I remember Mother buying Alena some boots that would go with this. Let me look.”
    She went into the closet and was out so quickly that I suspected she had known exactly where they were. They were a pair of high black boots with black fur at the top.
    “Try them on. You look like the same shoe size.”
    I had secretly tried on some of Alena’s shoes, and they had fit, so I knew these probably would. After I put the boots on,