"Close enough to smell her mother's shit and see her tongue hanging out her mouth when you cut her down, hauled her ass upstairs and conspired with your other lying friends to make believe the woman died in her sleep. No wonder your daughter lies to you. She's had a great teacher!" I couldn't help myself. I'd spewed it all out and now I began to sob.
"God, how could I know?" He was sobbing as much as me. It was several minutes before he leaned against me. I didn't push him away.
"Please, Sarah. Start at the beginning." When I didn't respond, he added, "I'm begging you."
I took a deep breath and related all the details I'd gleaned from Karen the night before. Paul didn't interrupt me once and when I finished, I asked, "Why? How could you let it happen?"
"It was simpler, easier . . . "
"Simpler for whom? You? Surely not ten-year-old Karen! Lord knows what hell she's carrying around in her head. Paul, your daughter needs help badly. Our daughter needs help and she's going to get it!"
"God knows, I can see that now. At the time, I was so mad at what Carol did to her family, in our house, I couldn't think straight. It was Dr. Graham's idea. He said no one would care, and it would be easier on everyone; all of Carol's friends."
"Whoopee! Your wife should have thought of that and been considerate enough to swallow arsenic or pills instead of going out in a pile of piss and shit and vomit. I'm sorry, I never even met the woman but I hate her for what she did. I know it's tacky for a new wife to trash the old one and I apologize but I have no sympathy for cowards who kill themselves and leave their so called loved ones to clean up their mess."
"It all happened so quickly. Dr. Graham took charge. He'd been Carol's doctor for years; her only doctor. I never considered for a second Karen might learn otherwise, or God forgive me, know what was happening at the time."
"You forged documents! That's against the law, for God's sake."
"The doctor did that." As I started to protest, he added, "I know, I was a party to it."
"It was stupid, Paul. And unnecessary. Karen could have been told the truth . . .the glossed-over truth, that her mother wasn't herself or in her right mind. I don't know; anything but an out in out lie." He looked as petulant as second grader. "Who else knows?" I asked.
"Thatcher Wright. He handled the funeral arrangements."
"Good old lie-for-a-living Thatcher," I grumbled.