Chapter 6 No.6

The VIP wing of Mount Sinai Hospital didn't smell like sickness. It smelled of fresh lilies and expensive coffee. The floors were polished to a mirror shine, and the silence was respectful, heavy with money.

Florrie's combat boots squeaked against the linoleum as she marched down the corridor.

She heard them before she saw them.

"I can't believe she did that to your pants, Boston! It's assault!" Deirdre's shrill voice drifted from Room 402. "And demanding the trust back? Arlin, you have to do something. Call the lawyers."

"I can't," Arlin Jefferson's gruff voice replied. "If she leaks that recording about the tax evasion, we're all finished. We have to let her have it."

Florrie paused outside the open door. Through the glass, she saw the tableau.

Asia was in the bed, propped up by a mountain of pillows. She looked pale, yes, but her hair was perfectly brushed, and she was wearing a silk robe, not a hospital gown. Boston sat by her side, holding her hand. He had changed into a pair of hospital scrubs pants-presumably borrowed from a doctor-which looked ridiculous with his dress shirt.

Deirdre was pacing. Arlin was rubbing his temples.

Florrie pushed the door open. It hit the stopper with a loud thud.

Everyone jumped.

"Did someone order a delivery?" Florrie asked.

She walked to the foot of the bed. She upended the brown paper grocery bag.

Clatter. Clink. Crash.

Thousands of dollars worth of diamonds and gold spilled onto the rolling table at the foot of the bed. The emerald ring spun on the plastic surface and fell onto the floor.

"My jewelry!" Genevieve, who was sitting in the corner, gasped. "You brought it in a paper bag? Like takeout?"

"It's what it deserves," Florrie said. She looked at Asia. "Here. You like my leftovers so much? Take them. Wear the ring. It's a bit loose, though. You might need to fatten up."

"Florence!" Arlin stood up, his face red. "Have some respect! Your sister is dying!"

"Is she?" Florrie tilted her head. She looked at the monitor. The heart rate was steady. The oxygen levels were 99%. "She looks remarkably energetic for someone on death's door."

"Get out!" Boston shouted, standing up. "You've done enough damage."

"Not yet," Florrie said.

She reached into her pocket. She pulled out the long, silver sparkler.

The room went silent.

"What is that?" Deirdre asked, her voice trembling.

"A candle," Florrie said. "For the happy couple."

She flicked the lighter. Click.

The flame roared to life. She touched it to the tip of the sparkler.

HISSSSSS.

A fountain of gold and silver sparks erupted from the stick. It was blindingly bright in the dim room. The smell of sulfur and burning magnesium filled the air instantly. The fire alarm on the ceiling began to shriek-a piercing, electronic scream-but no water came. It was a smoke detector, not a heat sensor.

"Are you crazy?" Boston screamed, shielding his eyes. "There are oxygen tanks in here! You'll blow us up!"

"Relax," Florrie said, her voice calm amidst the blaring alarm. She waved the sparkling wand like a conductor's baton. "I'm not an arsonist. I'm just creating a diversion."

She took a step closer to the bed, the sparks dancing dangerously near the silk sheets. Nurses and a security guard were now running down the hall toward the noise.

"Congratulations," Florrie said, her voice cutting through the chaos. "I wish you a long and happy marriage." She paused, her eyes locking onto Asia's. "Oh, wait. You don't have long, do you?"

She reached into her other pocket and pulled out a small, crumpled piece of paper-a pharmacy receipt she'd fished out of the trash at their shared Hamptons house last month.

She held it up. "Funny thing, Asia. Your chemotherapy drugs have a severe interaction warning. 'Avoid all contact with Lilium pollen.' It can cause anaphylaxis. Seizures. Sores."

She gestured with the sparkler toward the enormous bouquet of white lilies on the bedside table-Genevieve's contribution.

"You've been surrounded by your own personal kryptonite for hours," Florrie said sweetly. "And yet... not a single rash. Not one sneeze. You look radiant. How do you do it?"

Asia's face went white. Arlin and Deirdre stared, confused. But Boston... Boston looked from the lilies, to the receipt, to Asia's terrified face. For the first time, a seed of pure, undiluted doubt was planted.

"What is she talking about?" Boston asked, his voice low.

"She's lying! She's crazy!" Asia shrieked, but her protest was drowned out by the arrival of security, who grabbed Florrie by the arms.

Florrie didn't resist. She dropped the dying sparkler onto the linoleum floor, where it fizzled out. She had done what she came to do.

As they pulled her from the room, she looked over her shoulder at Boston. "Ask her doctor," Florrie called out. "Ask to see the allergy panel on her chart."

She was shoved out into the hallway, leaving behind a family frozen in a tableau of suspicion and a room that stank of smoke and lies.