BLANCHE SAID. “I was only offering my advice as a friend. But I suppose you’ll be staying in town. That is, you’ll not go back to Peter’s place.” “No. I’ll be staying in town.” “That’s wise. I’ve been at the office all day. Work is a help.” “I haven’t been working. That is, I was fired this morning.” “Oh,” Blanche said. “Are you going to hunt for another job?” “Perhaps; not right now.” “You can’t just sit around your apartment all day.” “No.” Blanche waited a moment. There seemed to be nothing else to say. Finally she said, “I’ll let you know if I hear any news. If I were you I wouldn’t telephone to Peter. Good night.” Jenny had not intended to telephone to Peter. She hung up with a vehement click. Yet again, Blanche made sense; Blanche was right. A rope around Peter’s neck. You can’t tell what a jury will do, Peter had said. She went back to her scrambled eggs, which by then were cold and soggy. There was nothing new in what Blanche had told her; the possibility of Peter’s arrest on a murder charge and Jenny’s arrest as an accessory before the fact only seemed more imminent.
