Sins and Needles Read Online Free PDF

talking about identical twins here, are we?”
    â€œNo, of course not. For one thing, she’s nearly five years older than I am.” Jan cocked her head sideways. “And that would mean Uncle Stewart, if he is her father, became a father at the age of twelve.” She snorted. “Not very likely.”
    Betsy hesitated, then said, “Could your father…?”
    Jan immediately shook her head, then the movement slowed as she thought about it. “I don’t think so,” she said. “It would have happened when they were dating, before they got married.” She counted on her fingers, eyes rolled upwards. “Of course, he would have been seventeen, which is old enough. And unwed mothers back then put their babies up for adoption, didn’t they?”
    Betsy nodded. “That could account for it.”
    â€œStill, it’s hard to think of my father doing something like that and never mentioning it.”
    â€œWhy would he tell his children about it?” asked Betsy. “If he told anyone, it would be his wife.”
    â€œWell, Mother never said a word about it.” Jan grimaced. “But why would she?” She put her change into her wallet. “I’m having lunch with Mother today,” she said. “I’m going to ask her.”
    Â 
    J AN met her mother for lunch an hour later at Antiquity Rose, a combination tearoom and antique shop. “Mother, I want to ask you something,” she said over the house salad.
    â€œCertainly.”
    â€œThere’s a woman visiting here from Texas. She came into Crewel World, and Betsy mistook her for me. Mother, she looks enough like me to be my sister. Now, I know both Jason and I look more like Dad than you. Is it possible that he…you know?”
    â€œNo, it is not possible!” She looked indignant at the very idea.
    â€œWell, is there something you haven’t told me about the rest of our family?”
    Her mother stared nonplussed at her for as long as it took to take a breath. Then she said, “Certainly not! Anyway, no one in our family ever went to Texas.”
    â€œShe wasn’t born in Texas. She discovered she was adopted after her parents died and has been trying to find out something about her biological roots. She says she came from a Minnesota adoption agency, but she can’t find any records of her birth parents.” Jan smiled. “I wasn’t one of a pair of identical twins, was I?”
    Recovered, her mother smiled back. “No, I think I would have noticed if you were. So this person is your age?”
    â€œShe says she’s a few years older, though she doesn’t look it. But it’s the oddest thing: we not only look alike, we are alike, in a lot of ways. We have so many things in common! If she’s not yours, or Dad’s, I wonder where she came from?”
    â€œWell, it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if there were children with a family resemblance scattered all over the place, thanks to your Uncle Stewart!”
    â€œ Mo -ther! How can you say that?”
    Her mother offered a pained smile. “Oh, you’re right, of course. His two most obvious faults argue against that. First, he is possibly the laziest human alive. Anyone lazier couldn’t be troubled to breathe or blink, and so wouldn’t have survived. Second, he drinks. And as a nurse, you know what drink does to male, er, capability. Who was it who said, ‘Liquor enhances desire while diminishing performance’? So even if he fell over a willing female, or one fell over him…no.” She shook her head with a regretful smile.
    â€œHe has four daughters, so…” Jan boggled at getting even more specific. “And anyway, he’s not an alcoholic, not really!”
    â€œWell, it’s true that I don’t remember seeing him drunk until he got into high school.” Jan’s mom gave her daughter a sardonic look as she took a drink