'Was Pierce with somebody? Presently, I mean? When he passed on?'
She shuts her eyes. Indeed, then, at that point.
'Somebody nearby?'
A grunt, an out-breath loaded up with a sort of dull, funny contempt – the sort of jollity you arrive at when all expectation, all regard, all love for an individual has gone. She fixes me with a shrivelling look. 'There was nobody nearby left.'
Chapter 17
Eliza
September 1994
'Try not to look.' Out on the path, Pierce turns her ninety degrees, his fingers oily and soggy over her eyes. Rock replaces the smooth landing area, crunches underneath her feet. They make five or six strides before he advises her to stop.
'Prepared?' he inquires.
'Indeed.' obviously she's prepared. More than two years of letters, calls, grabbed kisses, presentations, well-ma
