Dead & Forgotten

Ch. 24

That night before going to sleep, I started writing a letter to Mom and Dad, telling them the good news about the upcoming Christmas play. In the letter, I also told them I had found many interesting yet mystifying facts about clues leading to Rachel's death. I wanted to surprise them by mentioning that. Since we were on good terms now, I decided why not write to them. It practically felt like a long, long while since I'd written to them. I didn't know what came over me then, but I was glad that everything was back to normal again. After I wrote, I had the letter mailed before I decided it was time to hit the sack. Then Donna decided to start a conversation with me. "So, did you enjoy yourself today?"

"Certainly," I replied. "Couldn't have been better."

"It's because you, Marvin and I have found a lot of clues leading to the details, is that it?"

She could always read me quite well; that's one thing about Donna you ought to know. "You can always read me very well, can't you?" I said.

"Well, it's either that or nothing," she said with a shrug.

"All right, I'll admit it. The Eighties Trio have done a lot of work today," I said with a sigh. "Now I'm all pooped out." Then I yawned to express my exhaustion. Yeah, a lot had happened today, but you couldn't say as much for yesterday.

"Try not to wake me up in the middle of the night," Donna said in a jokingly kind of way, but I could tell she was being serious. Let's hope I had no nightmares this time.

"My very hardest," I promised, and with that we both went to sleep.

The next day was Saturday the fourth and just a slow, lazy day because it was the weekend. Today was the day that we as the Eighties Trio start putting two and two together and solve the Rachel Lang case once and for all. And Headmistress Rogers was part of this adventure. Meanwhile back at home, Mom was giving Dad the silent treatment, due to what had happened yesterday with the Goldbergs. There was more family drama heading our way, and I was thankful to not be a part of it, as long as I was here at Marshall Academy. "Oh, come on, Vivienne!" Dad groaned. "Are you really considering not talking to me ever again for the rest of your life?"

She gave a little "Humph!" as if to answer his question.

"Okay, this is ridiculous. Viv, you can't be serious, and you know it. You're the one who actually forced me to reconcile with Quincy Goldberg and have the two of us clean up the entire living room together while you and Ella just had your own little....tea party play date."

"Oh, a tea party play date, huh?" Mom said bitterly. "You wanna know something, Aristotle? Ella and I at least had some level of maturity between us. She's such a very sweet lady. Maybe not a pushover, but she's still what you would call an agreeable person. Meanwhile, you and Quincy decide to display some juvenile behavior, with you making offensive Jewish remarks and both of you strangling each other in the throat and creating havoc on the living room furniture. You're just so damned lucky we're rich, Aristotle! And while I don't agree with the Goldbergs' decision to force us to sign a lease with them so they could live in our house, we still need to learn to suck it up and move on. And one more thing---I'm not faulting only you for the cause of yesterday's mess; I fault both you and Quincy Goldberg!"

Uncle Shawn came into the kitchen, scanning the refrigerator. "So, both of you still at it again?" he said.

"Yes," said Mom and Dad in unison.

"I said it first," Mom said bitingly.

"I see," said Uncle Shawn. Then he held out an envelope and said, "You also got a mail from Marshall Academy Boarding School. Must be from Cassandra."