Page 35 of The Women of Oak Ridge
She paused, her brow furrowed. “I knocked over a box that was sitting on the counter. Papers fell out. When I picked them up, I noticed some had ‘Confidential’ or ‘Secret’ stamped on them inred ink. I thought it was strange that he’d brought them home, being that everythin’ around here is so hush-hush.”
I couldn’t agree more.
“When I picked up the last paper, I saw it was handwritten, but I couldn’t read the words. I don’t think they were English.” Distress washed over her face. “Clive walked in while I was tidying up the mess I’d made. He got real angry, Mae. Angrier than I’ve ever seen him. He grabbed me by the arm and hauled me outside. It... it scared me,” she said, ending on a shaky whisper.
I didn’t know what to make of the strange story. As far as I knew, Clive’s job allowed him access to restricted areas throughout the Reservation. It made sense that he’d have access to classified documents too. But why become angry with Sissy for simply seeing them?
“He gave you no explanation about the papers?”
She shook her head. “He drove me straight home. We didn’t speak the whole way back to town. I’ve been too afraid to bring it up again.”
My alarm deepened. “I don’t think you should go to Knoxville with him, Sissy. I don’t have a good feeling about this. About Clive.”
“I know he can be a little peculiar, Mae,” she said, her brow knotted, “but I really do care for him. He’s not like the farm boys back home, all rough and rowdy. He’s smart and has tons of book learning. I like listening to him talk, even if I don’t always know what he’s talkin’ about. It was my fault he got upset. If I hadn’t been snooping, I wouldn’t have knocked the box over. He has an important job, and I wouldn’t want to do anything to mess that up for him.”
I didn’t like where this was going. “He didn’t need to get angry about an accident, and he shouldn’t have grabbed you. It’s not like you were trying to discover the big secret by looking at the papers. You said yourself he scared you, Sissy. That isn’t good.”
She opened her mouth to reply, but a knock on the door interrupted us. Prudence Thorpe appeared in the opening.
“Clive is downstairs, Sissy.” The nosey young woman’s eyes traveled the length of my roommate, who looked lovely in a new dress, with her golden hair fashioned in a becoming style. “Gracious, Clive looks like he’s dressed for a hike in the woods, but you’re ready for a party. What gives?”
Sissy stood. “Would you please tell him I’ll be right down?”
Prudence pouted, clearly miffed she didn’t get an answer to her inquiry. “Sorry, hon, I’m not going downstairs.” She exited the room without closing the door behind her.
Sissy picked up her purse and coat. Now that the weather had turned cold, her identification badge was pinned to the lapel of the outer garment instead of her dress.
“Sissy, please reconsider—” I began, only to be stopped by her raised hand.
“I’m going to Knoxville with Clive, Mae. I probably shouldn’t have said anything to you. I’m sure I’m just being silly. He’s very sweet, and... I love him.”
Was she trying to convince herself or me?
“Clive said we’d have dinner in town, so it may be late when we get back. Oh, and thank you for offering to do my laundry, Mae. You’re the best.”
I stood and gave her a tight embrace. “I hope you have a fun day,” I said, pulling away to look her in the eye, “but will you do something for me?”
“What’s that?”
“Call Mrs. Kepple if Clive does anything that makes you uncomfortable. She has a car, and we’ll come get you.”
She nodded, her blonde curls bouncing. “I will, Mae. I promise.”
The door clicked closed behind her.
