第23部分(第1/8 頁)

all　her　perfumed；　turquoise　jewelry…wearing　glory；　acting　like　her　presence　was　really　no　big　deal。

Jesus。　Jenny　had　seen　their　mom　in　Prague。Why　hadn？t　shewarned　him？

Dan　brought　in　his　mother？s　packages　and　placed　them　gently　on　the　kitchen　floor。　Vanessa　tried

to　make　eye　contact　with　him　but　his　eyes　were　glued　downward；　and　he　was　seemingly　deep　in

thought。　Or　in　a　trance。　Maybe　his　mother　had　hypnotized　him？　Maybe　she　was　a　New　Age

gypsy？

？Now；　Dan；？　Jeanette　began；　as　she　rooted　through　the　cavernous　bags；　pulling　out　assorted

packages　and　placing　them　on　top　of　the　piles　of　newspapers　covering　the　kitchen　table；　？Jenny

told　me　all　about　your　special　announcement；　and　I？m　here　to　help　you　celebrate！？　Vanessa　stifled

a　nervous　laugh　as　Dan？s　face　turned　sheet　white。

Rufus　held　the　spatula；　piled　with　what　Vanessa　was　now　convinced　was　dog　food；　even　though

they　didn？t　have　a　dog。　？What　announcement？？　？Coffee！？　Jeanette　chirped　excitedly　opening　a

large　pink　box　and　shoving　the　contents　under　Dan？s　nose。　？Will　go　perfectly　withthese　。？　Dan

craned　his　neck　and　peered　inside。　Cradled　in　white　wax　paper　was　a　chocolate　？clair。　Two　plump

cream　puffs　nestled　on　either　side　of　the　long；　frosted　pastry。　His　face　flushed　red　with

embarrassment。　Maybe　he　was　just　being　paranoid　or　perverted；　but　that　looked　a　whole　lot　like

a？？It？s　a　penis！？　his　mother　trilled；　as　i