Chapter 23

Martha eased open the door to the room her son had slept in for most of his young life. The sun was still up but the shade was drawn, making it difficult to see if her friend was awake or not. She was finally able to make out the shape of Liz's body, and she could see that she was under the blanket on her side, facing the wall with her head on the pillow. She had begun backing quietly out of the room when she heard a sigh.

"I'm awake, Mar," Liz said sleepily. She rolled to her back and adjusted the blanket, pulling it up over her chest then laying her arms at her sides over the top. Martha raised the shade high enough to allow in a sliver of the late afternoon sun and still keep the room relatively dim. Liz patted the side of the bed, encouraging Martha to join her.

"How are you feeling?" Martha asked as she perched on the edge of the mattress.

"You know, it's funny," Liz replied, "Most people who ask that question aren't really looking for an answer; they just want to sound caring. But not you, you really do want to know how I feel."

"Of course I do," Martha answered, patting her hand. "So, tell me, how are you feeling?"

"You must be very proud of your son," she said, dodging the question. "I would never have thought of the solution he offered. Making you my representative has to be the greatest relief I have ever experienced. Remind me to thank him for that."

"I am proud of him," Martha said, "For many reasons. I wasn't always, but I have to tell you, that girl of his has helped straighten him out. Me, too, if I'm honest."

"Oh? And which one of them was it?" Liz asked slyly.

"You saw that, did you?" Martha asked, smiling gently. "The taller one, Elaina. She didn't put up with any of my guff, and I think that inspired Rob to stand up for himself more."

"Yeah, she is a tough one, isn't she?" Liz replied thoughtfully. "There's something odd about her, too. I can't quite put my finger on it."

"I noticed that, too," Martha said. "But I think it might be that she's not from around here. She told us she was from Russia ... the Ukraine I believe she said. That would explain the differences."

"Yes, yes, that could be it," Liz said wanly. "That Dawn, though. She's a gentle soul if I've ever seen one. Billy had no trouble accepting her, did he?"

"But it was the strong one he turned to when he needed support," Martha noted.

They were quiet for a moment as they contemplated their own thoughts.

"Jillian was a surprise," Martha commented. "Who would have thought she'd take to Rob like that."

"I think perhaps Patty may have filled her head with stories of Robby, the white knight," Liz answered. "I think if anyone had regrets, it was Patty, especially toward the end."

Martha had her doubts. She thought that perhaps Patty regretted Gerry, if she regretted anything. She kept those doubts to herself.

"I don't think that was it," she said instead. "If you had seen the way Jillian went after Rob last week, you wouldn't believe that. She asked him why he'd made her mother cry. Does that sound like a 'white knight' to you? I think it's because she needs her father, and the bastard's not here."

Liz sighed. "You're probably right. Gerry hasn't been much of a help, has he?" Martha snorted. "Okay, he's been no help at all, but he's still their father."

"Then maybe someone should remind him of that fact," Martha said angrily. "The children need their father, and unfortunately I don't see that happening." She shook her head.

"Liz," she chided gently, "You still haven't told me how you're feeling."

Liz sighed. "It was such a waste, her dying like that." She sighed again and stayed silent for a moment.

"She was an only child, you know," Liz continued. "She wasn't even supposed to be born."

"What do you mean by that?" Martha asked, astonished.

"The women in my family have a history of female problems. Mostly cancer, but sometimes something less intrusive or fatal. In a way, I lucked out. The doctor told us that my uterus was preventing conception and I would likely never get pregnant. Five years later and we got a surprise: I was pregnant.

"The pregnancy was a nightmare, and we nearly lost her twice. After she was born, I had my tubes tied, because the doctor said the next pregnancy would kill me. We had our baby girl, so that was enough.

"After Jillian was born, I told Patty about our medical history. She scoffed at it, saying she obviously didn't have a problem. After she had Billy, she wouldn't even listen to me anymore.

"Don't you see, Martha? If I could have just made her listen to me, she'd still be alive."

Martha stared at her with absolute incredulity on her face. "How could you possibly believe that?" she asked. "That girl had had a mind of her own since she was a child. You can't hold yourself responsible for her choices."

"But, Mar..."

"No, absolutely not!" she proclaimed. "This is not your fault." She stared at her friend's face. "But something tells me it's going to take a long time for you to believe that." Liz let her head hang down. Martha patted her leg. "Okay, if that's how you feel, that's what we'll deal with. Now that Rob has given us a way to smooth things out, we can work on making you feel better."

Liz looked up. "Speaking of Rob, which of those two women do you think he'll settle on?" Martha snorted then tipped her head.

"Did you see the way those two watched him?" she asked. "I don't know if they're going to let him make a choice."

"Oh. I thought it was just me," Liz replied. "Then did you notice the way they looked at each other?"

"Yeah," she said consideringly. "I saw that. There's more than sisterly love there, that's for certain."

"What are you going to do about it?" Liz asked curiously.

"Do? What makes you think I should do anything?" she asked in surprise. "What makes you think I would want to? That boy is happier than I've ever seen him, even when he was with Patty." She shook her head. "Nope. I am going to do absolutely nothing. If nothing else, I'm almost guaranteed to get a grandchild out of one of them."

Liz laughed. She knew of Martha's obsession with acquiring grandchildren, and she saw this as just another facet of that. Martha joined in a moment later when she realized how it sounded.

"All right," Martha said, "Now that I've taken some of the burden from your shoulders, we need to concentrate on making you feel better. Now, I've heard you crying in here at night when you stay over, so this is what we're going to do. You are moving in with me." She held up her hands and shushed her when Liz started protesting. "The children will stay here with us. First, you can't be alone, so you'll be sleeping with me. We'll put Jillian in here and Billy can have the convertible in the den to himself. He'll probably look on it as an adventure."

"Martha, I can't put you out like that!" Liz objected.

"You've seen my bed," she countered. "George insisted on it, and now I'm stuck with a bed that could sleep a family of four. Trust me, that's no imposition." She put her hand on her friend's face, both to make her point and to get Liz to be quiet. "Do you think the children can't hear you? If you can't do it for yourself, do it for the children. All right? It'll all work out, trust me."

"I do trust you, Mar," she sighed. "Okay, let's do that, but it's only until I get back on my feet, understand? I will not be a burden on you." Martha smiled and nodded her head.

"Well, then," she said as she stood, "Let's get started on dinner, then we'll tell the children our plans."

Jillian was dubious about the whole thing when it was brought up at dinner, but she quickly changed her tune when Martha mentioned that Uncle Rob was more likely to stop by for visit here than anywhere else. As she'd thought, Billy loved the idea of 'camping out' in the den.

Liz smiled at her grandchildren's enthusiasm, wondering how she would break it to them when it was time to go with their father. Martha conspired to convince her friend that she should stay permanently.

"So, let me see if I got this right," Rob said as they gathered their laundry after eating dinner. "I'm not allowed to see your panties when they're in the dresser because they're private and naughty, right?"

Dawn nodded her head, blushing as she tried to sort out her dirty laundry without Rob seeing what she was sorting out.

"And, I'm not allowed to see them when they're dirty, because, well, they're dirty, right?" he continued.

Dawn nodded again, keeping her head down. Elaina was sitting on a corner of the bed, trying not to laugh.

"I am allowed to see them when they're on your body, provided I have your permission," he carried on. "And, considering how horny you get, that's pretty much anytime I want."

"Hey!" Dawn protested. "That's not nice."

"But true," Elaina interjected.

"Stay out of this, you," Dawn said, pointing at her. "You're as bad as he is. I think my rules should apply to you, too."

Elaina stood up and approached her saucily. "And just how do you think you're going to do that, little one?" she asked seductively. Dawn gulped and tried to marshal her defenses. It wasn't working.

"I, I, I don't know," she finished, whispering. Elaina ran the back of her hand down Dawn's cheek, and she shuddered. "But that's the way it is."

"Perhaps we should forbid you ever wearing panties again," Elaina purred to her ear. "Then we could put them where no one would ever see them. Would you like that?" Dawn was reduced to stammering.

"I think you would," Elaina continued huskily. "I think it would make you feel very naughty, wouldn't it, Dawn."

"Y-y-yes, it would," she was able to get out.

"Did you think you could get away with forbidding your master anything?" she asked, her hushed voice sending shivers down Dawn's spine.

"P-p-please?" she begged.

"Please what, little one?" Elaina asked, a little puzzled by her request.

"I-I don't know," Dawn answered. "Just please?"

Rob recognized Dawn's submissive persona and strolled over to her. She had a bra hanging from her hand, so he plucked it from her grip and held it up. She didn't protest.

"I think our little girl wants us to forbid her underwear," Rob speculated. He watched as she shivered at the suggestion. "So be it," he continued, throwing down the bra. "No more panties for you, Dawn. Ever. You can wear bras, but only to work, and you're to remove them as soon as you get home. Is that understood?"

"Yes, sir. I understand," she whispered.