Read Online Zigzag by Ellen Wittlinger - Free Book Online Page B

nastiness for your own good. But now it looked like the misery had infected her whole body, which perched tensely on the edge of the dining room chair.
    Marshall, on the other hand, seemed to be in a great mood. Hetold us a long, silly story about a movie he’d seen while he washed down a sandwich with a glass of tea. Then, with a shy grin he said, “Aunt Karen, do you have any ice cream in your freezer?”
    Mom and Dory both laughed. “Do you remember that from the last time you were here?” Mom asked him. “It’s been years!”
    â€œSure, I do! You had three different kinds and I ate all of them!”
    â€œI think it’s the only thing he does remember about that trip,” Dory said. “He still asks me why we can’t have ice cream at our house like Aunt Karen has at the farm.”
    â€œYeah, and you never give me a good answer either.”
    Dory’s smile faded slowly as she thought about the question. “Hmmm. Well, you know, Daddy never liked to keep ice cream around. He liked it too much.”
    â€œIf he liked it, he should have kept it around.”
    Iris looked annoyed. “He didn’t want to get fat, you idiot.”
    Dory gave Iris a look, but didn’t say anything to her. “More likely he didn’t want me to get fat,” she said with a little laugh, as if she was telling a joke. But I guess it’s hard to joke about somebody you love who recently died when you weren’t even expecting it. All three of them got quiet and looked at their plates.
    â€œMarsh, you can go get yourself a dish of ice cream if you want to,” Mom said, breaking the tension. “And if you still like cats as much as you used to, there are about eight of ’em out in the barn.”
    â€œThanks,” Marshall said. He headed for the kitchen fast, without looking at either his mother or his sister.
    Dory played with her paper napkin, shredding it into long strips. “It hasn’t gotten any easier yet. People keep telling me it will.”
    Iris pushed her chair back from the table as if she wanted to be farther away from her mother’s problems.
    Mom put a hand on Dory’s arm. “It will, sweetheart. It just takes time.”
    â€œOne of the reasons I wanted us to take this trip together was so we could see that it was possible to have good times with just the three of us. To prove we could do it.”
    â€œThen why did you want Robin to come?” Iris said.
    Dory shot me a look of apology, then shrugged. “What I meant was, to prove we can function without your father. Robin is coming along to up the fun quotient!”
    I thought I was coming along to help drive. If my job was to keep everybody laughing, I wasn’t sure I was up to the challenge. I wasn’t sure Whoopi Goldberg would be up to the challenge.
    â€œOh, so we’re driving across the country to prove to ourselves that we can waste our time just like any other inane tourists, even though we have no father?”
    Mom jerked back in surprise at the meanness in Iris’s voice. I felt like slapping her to Peoria myself. She was even creepier than I remembered.
    â€œIris, don’t torment me, please. Not today,” Dory said, massaging her forehead with her hand.
    â€œFine. Let me know when I can torment you, okay? I’m going outside, too.” She got up and slammed her chair into the table so hard the glasses shook.
    â€œTo the barn?” Dory asked.
    Iris snickered. “Yeah, I think I’ll go milk me a couple of cows.”
    The screen door slammed behind her and Dory groaned. “And she’s not even the one I’m worried about.”
    â€œTeenage girls,” Mom said. “It’s not unusual behavior.”
    And I was sitting right there! “Hey,” I said. “I never . . .”
    Mom lasered me with her eyes. “I think you should go outside and try to get reacquainted with your cousins. Show