It wasn’t concern.
It wasn’t surprise.
It was amusement.
“Beatrice!” I shouted. “What is that thing doing in my room?”
She walked toward me slowly.
“Lower your voice, Helen.”
“There’s a snake on the bed!”
“I know.”
The two words struck me harder than a slap.
“You know?”
She nodded.
My stomach twisted.
“Did you put it there?”
Beatrice’s expression became unreadable.
“Come inside, and we’ll talk.”
“Are you insane? I’m not going back in there!”
She glanced toward the open doorway.
“It’s a python, Helen. It’s not going to chase you down the corridor.”
“You don’t know that!”
She sighed impatiently.
“You’re behaving as though you’ve never seen anything dangerous in your life.”
I stared at her.
“Why is there a snake in the room where I’m supposed to meet a man?”
For the first time, her smile disappeared.
“Because you need to understand something.”
“Understand what?”
“That the world you’ve chosen to enter isn’t as glamorous as you imagined.”
