temples beneath his curly brown hair. âThe leech had wiggled out of the tube wrong and bloodied up the womanâs lip, so your father was trying to get the little bugger to travel down to her gums. His hands were smeared in bright red blood.â
I lowered my shoulders and steadied my breathing. The fact that the blood was leech related and had nothing to do with fangs and lacerated throats was the best news Iâd heard all day.
âI STILL CANâT BELIEVE HOW MANY TIMES YOUâVE READ
Dracula
,â said Frannie from beneath a hissing gas lamp in the dim hallway of my house. âOne too many times, thatâs for sure.â
The soles of Fatherâs house slippers whispered their way from his office in the back. I kept my face turned toward the tan rug by the front door as long as I could, but then Franniegave my back a gentle pat, and I gained the courage to raise my chin.
Fatherâregular Father, not the cadaverous fiend with the rat-fur beardâfrowned at me in the hallway.
âYouâre not reading that ghastly novel again, are you, Olivia?â he asked. âHavenât you had enough of
Dracula
by now?â
âYes.â I gulped down a nasty taste of bile. âQuite enough.â
Carl stuffed his hands into his coat pockets. âYou should come to supper again on Sunday, Livie,â he said. âOur parents are celebratingâwhat is it, Frannie?âtheir hundredth anniversary now?â
âTheir twentieth,â said Frannie with a roll of her eyes at Carlâs exaggeration. âYes, come. Weâre planning to sit down at five oâclock. Weâd love to have you join us.â
âIâd love to be there. Thank you.â
Carl opened the door to take his leave, but before following him, Frannie grabbed my hand and leaned in close with a whisper: âCome back to my house if you need anything else. At any time.â
I mustered a weak smile. âThank you.â
They closed the door and went on their way.
I stood with my back to Father, facing the exit through which my friends had just vanished while the cool taste of the outside air lingered on my tongue.
âI was so worried about you this afternoon,â said Father in a voice cozy and warm with paternal concern.
Despite his tone, I didnât dare turn around.
âWhy did you run away like that?â he asked. âYou just left me standing there.â
âWhat did you expect me to do?
Thank
you?â
âNoâbut you made me worry something had gone terribly wrong. Mr. Reverie assured me he found you. He said you had simply been spooked by your new view of the world. But still . . . I was troubled.â
I stared at the door.
âWhy wonât you turn around and look at me, Olivia? Do I look different to you?â
I squeezed my eyes shut and swallowed. âI . . . um . . .â
âWhat?â
âI . . . I see the world . . . the way it truly is. The roles of men and women are clearer than they have ever been before.â I slipped my hands inside my warm coat sleeves and clung to the woolen lining. âI saw a storefrontâwomen, suffrageâa cage.â
âWhat?â
âI saw a cage.â
âSuffrage is like a restrictive cage, you mean?â
I pursed my lips. âAll is well.â
âYou understand your place in the world, then?â
I opened my eyes and again peered at the door to the world beyond. âYes. I understand precisely where I do and donât belong.â
Father breathed a sigh. âThank heavens. It worked.âAnother deep sigh, this one accompanied by a small belch. âWell, in light of this new outlook on life, Iâll be more than happy to allow you to accompany Percy Acklen to the party tomorrow evening. As long as you promise to be well behavedâand to represent our family with utmost care in front of both Percy and the