Neighbors and acquaintances buzzed in, bringing pies, brownies, and cakes, which stacked the kitchen counters for the visitation after tomorrow’s service. An aura of cloistered intimacy swirled around them. Damp-eyed, they hugged her and kissed her and squeezed her arm. Jenny thought of a power failure, when people huddle with candles, except behind her visitors’ sincerity she detected a discreet assurance that, for them, the power hadn’t really gone out.Patti Halvorsen called to verify Jenny was on track. Jenny assured her she was.Bluff Vicky had assumed the function of Il Duce, making sure the funeral trains ran on schedule. Mom took a supporting role, overseeing questions pertaining to food and dress.Miss Vanni, Molly’s piano teacher, whom Paul had helped, two years previously, with a tangled insurance dilemma involving her house, donated her time to help Molly master the bridging of the “Moonlight Sonata.” She would sit beside Molly tomorrow at the service and carry her through the difficult piece.
