It sounded reasonable, but was she merely rationalizing? She could tuck it back in her mind and chew on it later or she could do something about it now. Break all ties. She moved slowly toward the verandah. Of course, she couldn't simply quit and disappear from their lives. No, that would invite an immediate search. Like the time an accountant had embezzled some money from O'Hara Enterprises. Mr. O'Hara had solved the problem without going to the police. He had hired a young law student to track the woman down. Given free rein to improvise as he saw fit, the law student had found the employee and created his own sting. The law student now had a secure job with the firm and any future episodes of embezzlement had been discouraged. No doubt, Mr. O'Hara would be as successful searching for his daughter. He would have to be told where she was going - unless he thought she was on vacation. Hadn't he ordered her to take a vacation?
She kicked at a piece of gravel. But she couldn't leave the company without notice. Of course, it wasn't as though they would be left in the lurch. Clarissa could fill in until someone could be hired. She smiled. Why not take an extended vacation? Four weeks should convince everyone, including herself, that she could run her own life. After twenty-five years in the concrete jungle, what could be so difficult about living in the rustic hills of Arkansas? Drawing water from a well and cooking on a wood stove would be inconvenient, but how complicated could it be? The climate in the south at this time of the year was probably hot, but surely it couldn't hold a candle to the week she had spent in the desert. It would be nice getting away from the smog and traffic for a while. Maybe she was getting a little tense.
She wandered toward the verandah, considering everything necessary to prepare for the trip. Of course, the first thing would be to talk to Scott Muldrow about renting the cabin. Then she would have to buy some clothes suitable for climbing in the hills. Camping equipment would be fine for her meager cooking needs. And what about a car? She could drive her car out and back, but by that time she would have used precious vacation time. No, it would be best to fly out and then lease a car for a month.
She rejoined the party and even danced a few times with Denton, who was perplexed by her sudden change in mood. As they gathered around the cake she smiled up at her father.