Page 2 of The Present

“Oh, I’m not going to tell him.” She licked her lips. “You are.”

“What?” Tess couldn’t have heard that right.

“I’m leaving for the party by 8:30. Hal’s flight doesn’t get in until nine. He’s supposed to come here to pick me up, but obviously, I won’t be here.” Janice stared directly into her eyes and Tess shivered. “But you will.”

“I won’t do it, Janice. You can do your own dirty work.” Tess strode back to the abandoned vacuum cleaner and flipped the switch. The noisy machine drowned out any protest Janice may have made. Tess turned her back and began pushing the vac in short, sharp strokes. Like she was stabbing the bitch she was related to. Her movements escalated in their violence until she almost took out a small end table. Don’t look her in the eye. It’s all over if you make eye contact. If Janice wanted to end her affair with Hal, she would do it without Tess’s help.

Sudden silence descended as the vacuum stopped dead. Tess whirled around to find Janice holding the disconnected plug. “You will do it or your employment with me ends immediately. With no payment for services rendered to date.”

It was a threat Tess had to respect. Six months before, the company she’d been working for had been bought out by a larger company. Despite Tess’s five years of devoted service, her position had been taken over by an employee from the new company, and Tess was suddenly unemployed. She’d gotten benefits—not nearly as much as she’d been used to getting in her paycheck—which were now exhausted. Economizing had helped a little, but the bald truth was she counted heavily on the money she got from cleaning her sister’s apartment every week. Without that money, she might seriously have to think about finding a cheaper apartment. But damn it, this was going too far. “It’s not in my job description, Jan.”

“It is now.”

“Look, just call and tell him you don’t want to see him anymore.”

“I can’t do that. He’s on the plane, remember? Not going to be here until after nine. Besides, if all goes according to plan, by that time I’ll be dancing with the hunky Kevin. When I saw him earlier, he said he especially wanted to dance with me. Who knows where it could lead?”

Tess knew good and well where it would lead Janice. Straight back to Kevin’s apartment.

“So, I don’t plan to be home before one o’clock.” Her eyes glittered like cold stars. “If I’m really lucky, I won’t be home at all. And when Hal shows up, you can just tell him I decided we weren’t right for each other.”

“This is low even for you, Jan.”

Her sister stared at her, beady-eyed, as she waggled the cord back and forth. “Up to you, Tess. Stay here, let Hal down for me, and there’ll be a nice bonus in your envelope tomorrow. Leave and….” Janice’s smile could have wilted the poinsettias. “Well, I can always find another cleaning lady. It’s two days before Christmas. If you want it to be a merry one, I suggest you stay and talk to Hal.”

She bent and plugged the vacuum back in, so the sudden noise masked the “Bitch!” that slipped out of Tessa’s mouth.

Janice headed to the bedroom, leaving Tess to contemplate the merits of sororicide and starvation. At least they feed you in prison.