She grinned. "Well, if you find a good one, I'll pay your tuition."
"Thanks a lot."
"And while you're at it," Jackie said, "see if Mathew has a girlfriend."
"Or five or six," Carl muttered.
"Who do we know in the Atlantic City casinos?" Michael asked.
"Good idea. I just happen to know someone." Jackie picked up her cellphone and began to look through her contacts.
*
For their fifth movie of the day, Teresa chose a British comedy she hadn't seen before. She laughed, but when she looked, tears were streaming down Laura's cheeks. Teresa paused the movie and took Laura's hand. "What's wrong?"
"I miss my father so," she sobbed. "Daddy would know what to do."
"About what?"
"About Mathew."
"You are tired. Perhaps it is time to go to bed."
"What time is it, dear?"
"Almost ten," Teresa answered.
"Oh."
"Can you walk, or should I throw you over my shoulder and carry you?"
Laura finally smiled. "Sounds like fun."
Teresa let go of Laura's hand and flexed the muscles in her arm. "I could do it, I am very strong. I had to be, to beat up the other…"
"I believe you, but you need not carry me. I can walk."
Teresa stopped the DVD, got up, offered her a hand, and helped Laura stand. Just as she said she could, Laura walked to the elevator on her own, and then down the hall to her bedroom. She let Teresa help her change into a nightgown, and then got into the bed.
"Good night," Teresa said as she turned off the light and closed the door.
At last, Teresa's time was her own. She hurried to her room, bolted the door, pulled the album out from under her bed, and curled up in a chair.
It was not the kind of album she expected. There were only two wedding pictures, and although the couple looked happy, it wasn't the kind of wedding the daughter of an extremely wealthy man would normally have. The wedding license was on the opposite page. Teresa carefully pulled the plastic back and studied the license.
The Connellys were married in Los Vegas, in a simple civil ceremony officiated by a justice of the peace. Their birthdays were verified by photo IDs, which was no doubt required by law to prove they were old enough. The signatures of the two witnesses were unreadable, but that didn't matter. She jotted down the dates she found on the marriage license, meticulously put the plastic back in place and turned the page.
There were a few more pictures of the two of them together but that was all, until Teresa turned to the last page. On it was an 8 x 10 photograph of an older man. Teresa pulled the plastic back and turned it over. The notation on the back simply said, "Daddy." She stared at it for a long moment, and then put it back. As quietly as she could, she left her room and put the photo album back in the library where she found it.