Looking For You All My Life Part 22

truth. Back at the Times it might even have been nominated

for an award. But she wanted no accolades for this project.

All she wanted was justice!

n Monday Maggie silently presented Clyde with a

copy of her TS Development expose', and then

 

walked grimly back to her office. She wished she

could blame her frustration purely on the circ.u.mstances of

the story, but the truth was she was still getting over her con-

versation with Leah during their drive into town that

It had probably started with Jed taking Maggie out

toorning.

lunch after church yesterday. He'd invited Spencer and

Leah as well, but Spencer had already made plans and Leah

had simply shrugged it off, saying she'd "rather not"

without offering any explanations. Well, now Maggie sus-

pected that Leah had felt left out after all. And although

she'd only hinted at it this morning, and politely enough,

Maggie sensed the hurt behind her voice. So she had simply

suggested that perhaps in the future, Leah might try to corn-

municate better, for instance if she really wanted to go to

lunch with them to just say so. But then Leah had become

very quiet, pulling into herself as if Maggie's words had hurt

her even more. And even after Maggie sincerely apologized,

Leah still seemed withdrawn, climbing silently from the car

as if mortally wounded. That's when Maggie had recalled

her mother's words about how raising teenaged girls was

39.

40Melody Carison

never as simple and straightforward as raising boys. Perhaps

this was what she meant. At least Spencer usually came right

out and said what he meant, whether or not it sounded

pleasant and nice. Just the same, Maggie promised herself

she'd try harder to understand Leah. She knew it wasn't easy

being eighteen, and it seemed reasonable that Leah could be

struggling with all the recent changes in her life-relocating

from Arizona, discovering her father for the first time, a new

job. It was a lot for anyone to adjust to all at once.

"Maggie!" exclaimed Clyde as he stormed into her office.

"This story makes me sick to my stomach!"

She dropped her pencil and stared up at him in horror.

"What do you mean, Clyde? I.. .1 thought it was pretty good.

I tried really hard t~"

He waved the papers wildly in the air. "Not the writing,

you silly ninny! The writing is incredible-brilliant even! I

mean what Snider and Tanner have done to poor old Arnold.

Why, I'd like to take those two boys Out in the middle of

Main Street and have them publicly tarred and feathered for

the whole town to witness!"

She suppressed a smile. "Now that'd be worth seeing. But

I think we have laws prohibiting such things nowadays,