After Bitsy met up with Helen outside, they headed back to the Waikiki Grand Hotel in the hopes that they would make it in time for the breakfast buffet. It was about ten in the morning when they finally made it back to their room. The breakfast buffet was supposed to close in about one and a half hours, so they decided to stay in their room in the interim. While they did so, Bitsy decided to show Helen the photo of her late mother that she'd retrieved from Ruairí's house.
"Is this a photo of your mother, Bitsy?" Helen asked.
"Well, duh," Bitsy replied. "Why wouldn't it be?"
"Okay, that makes sense. Where did you find this, though?"
"In Daisy's closet."
"Where in Daisy's closet?"
Bitsy's eyes darted down. "I don't know if what I'm about to tell you will help, but here goes."
Bitsy took a deep breath before recounting to Helen everything that had happened before she'd met up with her. As she spoke, Bitsy could feel a mix of emotions resurfacing: sadness, confusion, a lingering sense of betrayal... all of them putting her into a chokehold that was hard to break away from. Sharing this newfound information with Helen somehow made it all feel more real than before, solidifying that her life had been changed forever by these revelations.
"Oh..." Helen trailed off for a moment. "That's rough."
Bitsy nodded, feeling a lump in her throat. She felt a sense of relief that the burden of this knowledge was now shared. She took a deep breath, trying to regain her composure. "You have no idea."
Some time passed where they did and said nothing as the reality of the situation sank in for them. Both knew it was something they needed to talk about and figure out, but they didn't know where to start. Suddenly, a knock on their door interrupted their thoughts. Startled, they looked at each other before Helen got up to answer it.
Finally, Bitsy broke her silence. "God, I hope it's not Grandpa. I don't want to talk to him right now."
When Helen opened the door, though, she didn't see Ruairí standing at the doorway. Instead, she saw a heavy-set fair-skinned brunette woman who looked to be in her mid- to late forties.
"Hi... uh, who are you?" Helen asked, confused.
The heavy-set brunette just chuckled. "Oh, right. I should introduce myself first, huh? Well, my name's Donna Stotch, and my family and I just checked into the hotel for spring break. Never mind me, though. Who are you?"
"Well, my name's Helen Squillace, and I've been staying here with Bitsy Brandenham for her grandmother's funeral… well, actually, it was her great-grandmother's funeral."
"Oh, okay." Suddenly, Donna's face lit up. "Oh yeah, that's right! You work for her, don't you? She also runs the Brandenham Hotel back on the mainland, right?"
Helen nodded and smiled. "Yes, that's right. Bitsy inherited it from her father a few years ago. We're also staying here until the end of the week."
Donna nodded back, her face still beaming. "I knew you looked familiar." Donna's cheerful demeanor seemed to lighten the heavy atmosphere in the room, much to Helen's relief. "Hey, you mind joining me and my family down at the breakfast buffet? We could use some company."
"Okay."
And so Bitsy, Helen, and Donna headed downstairs to where the breakfast buffet was being held. So many choices to behold: there was French toast, waffles, pancakes, sausage, bacon, hash browns, eggs, biscuits, gravy, all sorts of condiments (from ketchup to honey), and even cereal. While Bitsy and Helen decided to just have some scrambled eggs and bacon, Donna decided to get her hands on some cereal (more specifically, Fruity and Cocoa Pebbles). Once they managed to get their continental breakfast, they sat down at a table in the dining room area where Donna's family happened to be waiting.
At the table was a blond man who looked to be in his mid- to late forties like his wife and their two brown-haired sons. The older of the two, twenty-year-old Bud, wore a light blue button-up shirt over a plain white T-shirt. The younger of the two, seventeen-year-old Stephen, wore a drab olive-green shirt, a distinctive white tie, blue jeans, a brown belt, and black sneakers.
The man raised his eyebrows. "Oh my God, is Bitsy Brandenham sitting with us?"
Donna nodded. "She sure is, Bill."
Bill gave his wife an annoyed look. "Bitsy Brandenham? Are you kidding me?" He squinted at the two young men, who were now staring at the two presumed strangers joining them. "Oh come on, you two! This is the druggie hotel heiress we're talking about here. Are we really going to let a crackhead join us at the table?"
Donna glared at him. "Bill."
Bill's face dropped as she continued to glare at him. "Fine, she and whoever that is can sit with us."
Helen piped up. "Uh, my name is Helen."
"Right, right, right." Bill gestured at the two unoccupied seats at the table. "You two can sit with us."
Bitsy and Helen exchanged a glance before the former shrugged and took the offered seat, with the latter reluctantly following suit. Helen could feel her cheeks flush as she sat down in the seat next to Bitsy. She took a deep breath and smiled at Bill, trying to ignore the awkwardness of the situation. Bitsy, on the other hand, seemed completely at ease. Maybe she was glad she didn't have to think too hard about her family dynamics for a while.
As the group settled in for breakfast, the awkward tension lingered in the air. Bitsy nonchalantly poured herself a bowl of Fruity Pebbles, seemingly unfazed by Bill's earlier remarks. Helen, on the other hand, tried to engage in small talk with Stephen, who only responded to her with short and indifferent answers. Donna attempted to lighten the mood by sharing a funny anecdote about their road trip so far, but it only elicited a half-hearted chuckle from Bud.
Eventually, Bitsy tried to break the awkward tension. "So… Uncle Solomon told me last night that he gets bad vibes from you."
Donna peaked an eyebrow. "Did he now?"
"Yeah, he did."
"What about us gave him bad vibes?"
"Actually, he didn't say. All he said was that you gave off the opposite of aloha and that Stephen might abuse Linda like what Grandma's first husband did to her."
Stephen dropped his plastic spoon into his bowl of Fruity Pebbles, dumbfounded. The rest of the Stotch family stared at Bitsy, equally dumbfounded by what she'd uttered.
A few seconds later, Bill broke out of his apparent trance and just laughed out loud. "Oh, Bitsy, you're such a cokehead. Our little Steve just isn't the kind of guy who gets violent with people. Hell, he can't even decide if he's gay or straight."
Helen wanted to speak up, but she kept silent instead. In all honesty, she wasn't sure she wanted to butt into this conversation without escalating things. Still, it was nice to see that Bitsy's mood had improved, even if marginally so. Helen decided that it was best to just let her talk in the meantime. She needed to find a way to make Bitsy feel better about the situation, and that meant giving her the space to do so.
"Well, as long as Helen and I are staying for the week, what do you think we can do around here?" Bitsy asked Bill.
"Well, you have the option to visit Waikiki Beach while you're here," Bill suggested. "It's where Donna and the boys and I went last summer."
"Oh yeah, you'll absolutely love it out there," Donna chimed in. "I certainly did."
Bitsy and Helen just looked at each other, intrigued by Bill's suggestion. It sounded like it would be a nice reprieve from the family drama and thoughts of Queenie's death. Why not just do it? They thought on it for a little bit before deciding on their ultimate choice.
"Sure, that… sounds nice," Bitsy finally replied.
"Great!" Donna exclaimed. "You will not be disappointed!"