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Show 189 But of course she could not. The girls came in for the evening, their faces ruddy from the winter air, and went to the back to watch television. Oscar left for work, and a few minutes later, Katie came home. The evening settled into its routine. It was when she was putting Marty to bed, making sure that he had his drink, that she went into his and David's room. David was lying crouched up in his bed, his back to the room, listening to his radio. He glanced over his shoulder at her, his face quick and peaked, like a cornered rat. She gave Marty the water, trying to think of something to say to David. Wouldn't her silence be interpreted as an accusation? But what could she say? Nothing. There was nothing she could say. So she turned from the back of his huddled form, leaving the room, filled with that empty sense of not being able to comfort him. Was this the sense of defeat which had taken Oscar earlier in the evening? Which he had carried with his slumped shoulders? The only thing she could do, she decided, was to simply act natural around him. Until it was forgotten. It would take awhile. |