Bessie hears shouts coming from behind the door at Ash’s parents’ house. She hesitates before she knocks again. Perhaps she should leave?
The door flies open. Sophie dashes out, slamming it behind her. “Sorry for that,” she says, rushing to her car. Once on the road, she seems to relax, smiling over at her passenger. “Gianni and I, we … we argue a lot these days.” She pats Bessie’s hand. “We have different ways of coping with our …” She lets the sentence hang in the air. “But you and I are on our way to see Dorothea again and I’m very happy for that.”
They don’t talk for the rest of the trip to the modest home of the spiritual medium in the next town of Dixtowe. Autumn is in full glory – the maples, oaks, and elms blaze with shades of orange, yellow, purple, and scarlet. The air is crisp
