Dream Country (40 page)
“Do you want to tell me about it?” Sophie whispered in a voice too low for Nell to hear. “Did he find another woman?”
“No,” Maria said. “We just stopped loving each other.” That was the truth, but who could believe anything so bizarre? She had been brought up in a town choked with Puritanical roots, where decent people divorced only after suffering heartbreak, betrayal, flagrant infidelity. She and Aldo had been student and teacher, then lovers, then husband and wife, now friends. Maria believed that everything would be easier if they were not, if she could hate him. The discoveries of treasure and civilizations had made their days wild and exciting. But at night in the tent she would fall asleep alone while Aldo shared his rapture with his students.
“I can’t imagine it,” Sophie said. “I’m sorry. I could never stop loving Gordon.”
“Then you’re doing something right, you two,” Maria said.
“We all thought you were so happy,” Sophie said.
“I know,” Maria said. She had heard that so many times already from professors and archaeologists and students on the dig: Maria Dark and Aldo Giordano, the husband-and-wife team known for their meticulous excavations, their investigative approach. One critic had called them archaeological detectives, saying that they uncovered lives—the people of the culture, not only the artifacts. Their faces and stories had been in
Geo
,
National Geographic
,
Smithsonian
.
“The good part is, you’re coming home,” Sophie said.
“Home” to Sophie had always been Hatuquitit. She had commuted to college in New Haven, married a man from the next village, persuaded him to cross the town line and build a house on Bell Stream.
“How’s Mom?” Maria asked.
“You know Mom,” Sophie said in a voice inviting Maria to complain about their mother. Maria recalled Sophie once telling her that she could not remember her mother ever hugging her, not once, all through her childhood.
Nell sped them east on the New England Thruway. They flashed through blocks of orange light thrown by the highway lamps. Snow fell steadily. Maria shivered slightly and Sophie tightened her grip. Plows heading in the opposite direction sprayed snow into the air. Nell switched on the radio, found a jazz station. Maria felt the rhythm lulling her, felt herself nodding.
She must have slept. The sound of paper rustling wakened her. Her head rested against the Jeep’s door; her neck ached in the thin stream of cold air blowing through a crack. Maria opened her eyes. Sophie was bent forward, rummaging gently through Maria’s bag of presents. Maria watched, and from Sophie’s measured movements Maria knew she was trying not to disturb her. Suddenly she stopped, as if she had found what she was looking for. She withdrew her hand and there, closed in it, was the small Chavín goddess. Her eyes wide open, Maria watched Sophie slip the gold statue into her pocket. Then, just as Sophie was turning toward her, Maria closed her eyes again and pretended to sleep.
COMING THIS SUMMER
Celebrate the Season with
Two Unforgettable New Novels from
New York Times
Bestselling Author
Luanne Rice
Beginning with
Summer’s Child
On sale everywhere in paperback
May 31st
At the time, it was the biggest story in the country. Every newspaper covered it on the front page. Her face was as well known as the president’s. The excitement in her blue eyes, the enormous smile, the way she positively shimmered with life, radiated goodness. She looked like everyone’s favorite sister, best friend, and girl next door, all rolled into one. The fact that she was pregnant when she disappeared gave the story a terrible jolt of shock. . . . On the first night of summer, adorable five-foot nothing, pregnant-as-could-be Leila Jameson went out to water the garden. She was never seen again; no body was recovered. No baby was born—or at least not with a mother named Leila Jameson listed on the birth certificate. What could have happened? Who could ever forget that smile? That smile that would never be smiled again . . .
CONTINUING THE STORY . . .
On sale in hardcover June 28th
Summer of Roses
Capping a sensational summer that began with the release of
Summer’s Child
in paperback,
New York Times
bestselling author Luanne Rice brings the story full circle in an unforgettable novel destined to take its place as one of her most beloved works.
Acclaim for Luanne Rice
“Few writers evoke summer’s translucent days so effortlessly, or better capture the bittersweet ties of family love.”—
Publishers Weekly
“Exciting, emotional, terrific. What more could you want?”—
New York Times Book Review
“Rice has an elegant style, a sharp eye, and a real warmth. In her hands families, and their values . . . seem worth cherishing.” —
San Francisco Chronicle
“Luanne Rice has a talent for navigating the emotions that range through familial bonds, from love and respect to anger. . . . A beautiful blend of love and humor, with a little bit of magic thrown in.” —
Denver Post
DREAM COUNTRY
A Bantam Book
PUBLISHING HISTORY
Bantam hardcover edition published February 2001
Bantam paperback edition published January 2002
Bantam reissue / January 2005
Published by
Bantam Dell
A Division of Random House, Inc.
New York, New York
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2001 by Luanne Rice
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 00-058529
Bantam Books and the rooster colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.
Published simultaneously in Canada
eISBN: 978-0-553-90111-5
v3.0