The Whispering Room

Something shifted in her eyes and she put a hand to her heart. “You found her.”

“She found me. And let me just say, her recollection of the past is not exactly in sync with yours.”

“What do you mean?”

Evangeline lifted her gaze to the ceiling. “How do I put this delicately? She claims you’re the one who helped your mother murder your brothers.”

“She said that?” The woman walked over to the windows to stare out at the sparkling pool. “Rebecca is a very disturbed young woman.”

“Just to be clear—should I call you Lena or Ruth?” Evangeline asked with a trace of sarcasm.

“I’m not Ruth Lemay. I haven’t been in years. In every way that counts, I’m Lena Saunders.”

“Well, then, I guess it was Ruth’s sister who broke into my house and threatened my son.”

Lena whirled. “She what?”

Evangeline took a few steps toward her. “She let herself in using a key that my babysitter had hidden underneath a rock by my front porch. Which means that she not only found out where I live, but she also had my place staked out. Now, why would she do that? How would she even know who I am?”

“I don’t know.”

“Are you sure she didn’t find out from you?”

Lena’s eyes widened in distress. “Of course not. I haven’t seen or spoken with her in years. She must have seen you leave here and followed you.” The woman tugged nervously at the pearl necklace around her throat. “Which means she also had my house staked out.”

“Why would she do that?”

“Our relationship has always been very complicated.”

“But you just said you haven’t seen or spoken to her in years.”

“That’s true. You have to remember, though, that in Rebecca’s mind, things that happened thirty years ago may still seem like yesterday. And as children, she and I were very close. But being the oldest, I had more responsibilities on my shoulders. Mama counted on me, not just to help out with the house and the boys, but as moral support. After Daddy left, she leaned on me even more, and Rebecca grew jealous. She wanted to be Mama’s little helper, and sometimes I think…” She broke off and turned back to the window. Her fingers tangled in the pearl necklace as she closed her eyes. “I think that’s why she did what she did. To show Mama that she could count on her, too.”

What a twisted family, Evangeline thought. Even considering Vaughn’s problems with the law when he was younger and her parents’ impending separation, their family seemed positively normal by comparison.

“You told me when the authorities got to the house, they found evidence that Mary Alice—your mother—had given birth. Who was the baby’s father?”

“Our father. Charles Lemay.”

“Rebecca says she took the baby and hid in the whispering room until it was all over.”

Slowly, Lena turned. Something in her eyes sent a shiver down Evangeline’s spine. “She told you about the whispering room?” She walked away from the windows and sat down heavily on the silver sofa.

Evangeline followed her. “What’s the big deal about the whispering room?”

Lena closed her eyes. “It was a secret. We were never supposed to talk about it.”

“Why?”

“Because that’s where Daddy used to make us wait for him. That’s why we were never allowed to talk above a whisper. He didn’t want anyone to hear us.”

“By anyone, you mean your mother?”

She nodded and dropped her eyes to her hands, as if an old shame kept her from meeting Evangeline’s gaze.

In Evangeline’s mind, she saw the two little girls in the photo, huddling together, clutching hands and whispering to one another in the dark. Waiting for their father to come and claim their innocence.

“Rebecca would never go in there after Daddy left. She was scared to death of that place. She didn’t hide in there,” Lena said. “I did.”

“What happened to the baby?”

“I left it in the whispering room. I never even knew if it was a boy or a girl. Mama had it wrapped in a towel when I found it, and I never saw it again after that day. But even after all these years, I still dream about that little face. I still sometimes think I hear that tiny cry.” The hand that she touched to her wet cheeks was trembling.

Evangeline said softly, “Why didn’t you just tell me the truth before?”

“I never lied to you. Everything I told you was the truth.”

“But you neglected to tell me your real name.”

“My real name is Lena Saunders. I haven’t been Ruth Lemay since I was eight years old. I’m not part of that family anymore. I got out a long time ago.”

“You can change your name but you can’t change who you are,” Evangeline said. “Ruth is still in there somewhere. You can speak of her in the third person all you want, but that won’t make her go away. Ruth’s story is your story. Ruth’s truth is your truth.”

“But I can’t let it be. I have to keep myself detached in order to write about it objectively. And more than that, if I let myself become Ruth again…” She swallowed and blotted a tear on her cheek with the back of her wrist. “How would I be able to turn my own sister in for murder?”

“Is that why you told your story in the third person?”