Previous chapters of the River Road story:
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

How should the story continue? Voting is open on the current chapter!

Last time, the DeLorcas, the Trotters, Mrs. Conn and the kids had decided to find the museum curator, Miss Whiteside, so that they could get into the museum to view Theodosia Westwick’s journals. Upon finding, Miss Whiteside, they saw that she was talking to Mia Duomo! Mia spotted the group and invited them to join the conversation where the former model proceeded to chatter on in her usual way. Mia managed to insult everyone even though she didn’t really mean to. Miss Duomo insisted that the museum curator must be a fan of hers; she called Eben by the name “Vincent” because she thought his actual name was too ugly. Mr. DeLorca was tired of Mia’s rambling and asked the woman for the truth—was she really lost. Mia admitted that she couldn’t find her way back to her hotel, but swore that Miss Whiteside was going to offer to drive her back to the hotel. Fed up, Miss Whiteside declared she had no intention of driving Mia anywhere. What happened next? Here’s what you decided.

Chapter 10:
Boiling Point

“So, you are lost.” Mr. DeLorca smiled. “You see that up there?” He pointed to the convention center on the hill. “That’s where your hotel is.”

“Oh.” Mia nodded. “That’s what I thought.” She studied the distance. “It is a long way though. While my legs are strong and very shapely and I could walk that without a problem because I’m in excellent condition, I do think that’s a very long way. It didn’t seem so long when I came down here.”

“You were walking down hill.” Eben smiled.

“That must be it. You know, I used to walk on catwalks that were downhill sometimes.” Mia continued.

“That must have been difficult.” Eben shrugged.

“It really was, Vincent.” Mia smiled. “How kind of you to think of me.”

“My name is Eben. Not Vincent.” Eben corrected the woman.

“I know. I have a perfect memory. But, I think I’ll call you Vincent. It’s a much nicer name. Much prettier.” Mia smiled. She went on without another thought about Eben.

“Thankfully, my fan here has volunteered to drive me back to my hotel.” Mia gestured toward Miss Whiteside.

“No, I didn’t. I was just going to point you in the right direction.” Miss Whiteside waved her hands.

“Oh, don’t be shy.” Mia tilted her head to one side.

“We have to do something.” Mrs. DeLorca whispered to her husband. “We need to talk with Miss Whiteside. And, besides, it’s clear she doesn’t want to be anywhere near Mia Duomo.”

Uriah took his wife’s hand. Annie nodded slowly. She knew what her husband was thinking.

Annie sighed.

“Mia,” Uriah began, “my wife, my sister and I have a house guest—Eugenia Victoria.”

“Oh,” Mia smiled. “I know exactly what you’re going to say.”

“You do?” Annie asked.

“Of course, I do.” Mia nodded happily. “Now, come on and smile. I’d love to see your beautiful teeth. I have to say, they did an excellent job.”

“They?” Annie asked.

“Yes. Whatever dentist fashioned those gorgeous false teeth for you did amazing work. They’re almost as beautiful as my teeth. I have perfect teeth. But, then mine are real.”

“Uriah?” Annie squeezed her husband’s hand desperately.

“It’s all right, Annie.” Uriah smiled patiently.

“Of course, it’s all right.” Mia grinned purposefully—showing off her own teeth. “And, I really, really am flattered. I’m not surprised, mind you.” Mia continued. “Of course, you want me to stay at your mansion.”

“We do?” Annie exclaimed.

“Of course you do. Who wouldn’t? You want me to stay in your mansion so that I can bring some light and joy into that gloomy old place. I truly can see why you would want me there. But, as I recall, though grand and elegant, that old place is rather drafty. And, really, a drafty old mansion isn’t the right place for a delicate flower such as myself. I might catch a chill and, come on, think about it, no one looks beautiful when they’re shivering. Well, okay, okay, I do. I look stunning when I’m shivering. It makes my hair shake and catch the light in the most gorgeous golden shimmer. It’s like the ornaments on a Christmas tree.”

“Mia, I don’t think you understand.” Uriah began.

“Of course, I understand.” Mia laughed. “I always understand. I’m as smart as I am eye-catching.”

“Make it stop, my sympathetic sibling.” Violet Trotter barked.

Mia Duomo, however, continued talking. “But, I would prefer to stay at the hotel. All of my makeup is already unpacked there. And, the hotel has a spa where I can receive beauty treatments and get my hair professionally styled—not that I need it. Unless of course your houseguest is a professional stylist. Then, I might consider it.”

“Eugenia Victoria is a homeless woman we brought back with us from Juniper Hill.” Mrs. DeLorca smiled. “I don’t think she knows how to style hair.”

“A homeless woman?” Mia Duomo asked—wide-eyed. “You brought back a homeless woman?”

“Yes,” Annie spoke up. “She’s staying with us at the mansion.”

“Why would you want to do that?” Mia asked.

“Because it was the right thing to do.” Mrs. Conn said.

“Violet Trotter is letting a homeless person stay in her mansion?” Mia asked.

“My magnificent mansion is a happy haven for any sensible soul.” Violet Trotter frowned.

“But, Violet, what about your art collection and your jewels? Aren’t you afraid that the woman will steal from you?” Mia asked—shocked.

“No.” Miss Trotter shook her head.

“Just because a person has fallen on hard times, doesn’t mean she’s a criminal!” Annie said firmly—surprising herself and her friends and family. “Don’t forget, Mia Duomo, that before I was Mrs. Uriah Trotter, I, myself, was homeless for quite awhile. That didn’t make me a thief or a criminal of any sort!”

Mia looked from face to face before shaking her head so that her hair danced around her shoulders. “I see.”

“Do you?” Annie asked, feeling anger rise in her stomach. “If you did, you would know that we weren’t going to ask you to stay with us. We were going to volunteer to drive you to your hotel because we have to leave for awhile anyway to check on our houseguest.”

“Oh.” Mia nodded. “I see. That’s kind of you to offer.” Mia sounded sincere. “I appreciate that you thought of me—especially since this evening is rather humid and, really, the humidity isn’t kind to my amazingly gorgeous hair. Well, not that my hair would become frizzy. My hair is perfect. But, a walk in the humidity might make my make-up run. And, we can’t have that. I have to think about my public.”

“Do you think about anyone?” Annie grumbled.

“I say, then. This is ripping.” Mr. DeLorca smiled. “Looks like Annie’s about to boil over like a lovely pot full of tomato sauce. That reminds me of a time I tried to varnish my sweet potato shoes with tomato sauce. Didn’t work, you know. But, the mistake was delicious.”

“I remember.” Mrs. DeLorca nodded.

“Annie, are you well? Would you like some of my lovely wife’s purse candy?” Mr. DeLorca asked. “It’s delicious and fortifying.”

“No, thank you.” Annie answered.

“Good show. Me—I can’t resist the purse candy. But, I admire your will power. That’s something you and my dear Shakuntala have in common. You see, I can put out an entire bucket of mackerel and she will only eat until she’s full. I can’t tell you how many buckets of pie filling I’ve eaten just to eat them—not even hungry. Sometimes I’ve eaten from a bucket of pie filling until I’ve almost made myself sick. Don’t know when to stop. That’s what we can learn from our feathered friends. Strong reserve, pelicans.”

“I didn’t know pie filling came in buckets.” Isaac chirped happily.

“You have to go to the right stores.” Mr. DeLorca answered seriously.

“Oh, Annie’s just concerned about her weight.” Mia Duomo smiled. “You know what they say, a moment on the lips, a lifetime on the hips. It’s important for women of a certain age not to eat too much candy.”

“That does it!” Annie shouted.

No one had ever heard Annie raise her voice. Usually, shy and quiet, Annie was always kind and polite to everyone. But, Mia’s rude rambling had pushed her to the limit. Annie didn’t like the way Mia had spoken to everyone that evening.

“What? What? What?” Mia exclaimed. “What’s going on? People are shouting. That can’t be good for my delicate, tiny ears.”

Miss Whiteside laughed loudly at that. After everything that Mia had said about her, Miss Whiteside was hoping to see Annie tell Mia off.

“Annie, are you all right?” Eben asked.

“No, Eben,” Annie began. She turned to Mia and frowned. “And, his name is Eben. Not Vincent. It’s a fine name. A family name. An important name.” She took a deep breath and continued. “I am not all right!”

Uriah put his arm around his wife.

“Mia Duomo, we were just going to offer to help you. We’ve always tried to help you. Miss Whiteside was only offering to help you, too. We’ve all been nothing but patient and kind…” Annie paused.

She wanted to tell Mia exactly what she thought. She wanted to tell Mia that no one cared that she had been a model. She wanted to say that no one thought Mia was famous, that no one thought she was exceptionally beautiful. Annie wanted to shout that Mia was rude—whether she meant to be or not. And, most importantly, she wanted to say that she took back her offer to drive Mia to her hotel and that she never wanted to see Mia again.

However, something inside Annie worried that she’d hurt Mia’s feelings and she certainly didn’t want to be as rude as Mia had been.

What should Annie do?

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