1929 (22 page)

“It’s really getting cold,” he commented.

“What?” Caleb asked.

“Nothing.”

They walked on in silence until they were
about a block from their building. Caleb stopped and pointed.

“Hey, look at that. I used to have one just
like that!” he said, pointing to a black Packard parked on their
side of the street. “Wonder what it’s doing in this
neighborhood?”

“Maybe they’re moving in,” Jonathan said
sarcastically. Caleb didn’t take his eyes off the car even as they
passed it.

“Damn, I miss that car,” he said longingly.
They were a few steps beyond it when the rear car door opened and a
woman exited, taking several strides to catch up to the men.

“Jonathan!” she called when she was a few
paces behind him. He looked back and did a double take. He took a
deep breath before he turned to face her fully.

“Hello, Ruth,” he said flatly.

Caleb’s eyebrows almost hit his hairline.

“Hello, Jonathan,” she said sweetly and took
slow steps toward him. “It’s been a long time.”

“It has.”

“How have you been?” she asked casually.

He looked around the neighborhood and then
back to her with a phony expression of glee.

“Wonderful. Just fabulous, Ruth. Just thought
I’d spend some time seeing how the other half lives,” he said
mockingly.

“I heard. I’m so sorry about what happened to
you. I know how hard you worked. I watched you pour your heart and
soul into your brokerage,” she said soothingly.

“I’m sorry, why are you here?” he asked her,
slightly annoyed.

“I just wanted to make sure you were all
right. Like I said, I heard what happened and I just feel
awful.”

“Does Victor know you’re here?” Jonathan
asked coldly.

“Oh. I didn’t know you knew we were married.
No, he doesn’t. He’s out of town. It’s best that way, given our
history. You’re not his favorite person.”

“Believe me, the feeling is mutual.”

“I only married him because I was pining over
you,” she blurted out. Jonathan didn’t know what to say to that, so
he focused on the ground in front of his feet. “I was
brokenhearted.” She touched her heart and attempted a pout.

“I sent you a letter.” He looked up at her
impatiently. “I explained everything.”

She waved her hands. “You know what? None of
that matters. It’s all in the past. I came here today to let you
know that I still care for you, Jonathan, and if you need anything,
anything at all, you can come to me. I have money, resources, and
people. I could have you out of this neighborhood tonight if you
wished.” He glared at her. “Here’s how you can get a hold of me
without having to deal with him.” She held out a piece of paper. He
reached out and took it even as the voice in his head screamed at
him to turn and walk away.

She was inches away from him now, looking up
at him through her lashes.

“I do mean anything you might need,
Jonathan,” she cooed and reached one arm around his neck, the other
around his waist to hug him.

He didn’t return the hug and pulled away
after a brief second. Before he could say anything, Caleb stepped
in.

“Ava’s waiting at home, Jon.”

“Maybe I’ll see you again sometime?” she
asked hopefully.

At the top of the landing, Caleb reached into
Jonathan’s left pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper,
holding it up for Jonathan to see.

“She slipped this in when she hugged you,” he
informed. Jonathan opened it up and read it aloud.

“Thanks for the memories. I will always love
you, Ruth. She put a lipstick kiss on it.” He looked at Caleb in
frustration. “I really don’t need this shit right now.”

“I know. Here,” he said. “I’ll get rid of
them for you.” He held his hand out for the second note.

“Thanks. See you tomorrow.” Jonathan turned
toward his door just as a woman’s scream echoed in the hall. Caleb
snapped his fingers.

“Arianna – Rat.” Caleb knew that yell in
particular, and he broke into a jog to rescue Arianna from the
vermin.

∞∞∞

Aryl spent an hour looking in alleys and
behind stores. It only slightly paid off. He got enough splintered
wood planks and broken crates to last for a few hours. He was
freezing when he walked in, set the wood on the hearth and warmed
his numb hands by the fire that Claire already had glowing.

“Dinner’s almost ready,” she told him as she
handed him a mug of steaming tea. He nodded, too cold to converse.
A few minutes later, she brought a big bowl of soup over to him, so
he could eat while warming.

“What kind of soup is this?” he asked.

“Chicken noodle,” she said, handing him a fat
chunk of bread.

“Where’s the chicken?”

She leaned over and poked around with her
spoon.

“Oh, there’s a piece,” she said and grinned.
“Shannon showed me how to make three dinners out of half a
chicken,” she said proudly.

“I really appreciate you being so good about
this,” he said affectionately. “Even though this latest idea didn’t
work out, eventually something will and we have to be ready.”

“I know.” They sat on the brick hearth,
eating their soup and talking about every possible way to increase
their savings.

November 27th 1929

Jonathan got home amazed that he had made it
through the day without a confrontation, with his lunch, without a
prank, and with his coat. They had even walked after work to
Victor’s office to pay December’s rent before the Thanksgiving
holiday, and Victor had been out of the office as Ruth had
mentioned. It bordered on a good day.

“They furloughed tomorrow,” he told Ava over
dinner.

“Don’t they always?” she asked referring to
the Thanksgiving holiday.

“I have no idea. I’ve heard they do and they
don’t, depending on who you ask. For now, they are consolidating
shipments to save on labor. We get tomorrow off, without pay, of
course,” he said, his brow furrowed with worry. He pushed the mix
of cubed potatoes and ham around with his fork. “Caleb won a turkey
in the raffle, so I guess he’s hosting Thanksgiving. He asked each
of us to bring something. I’m not sure what you want to bring.”

“I’ll figure something out,” she said, not
exactly looking forward to the first major holiday in the tenement
either. They ate while listening to the radio.

Later that evening, Jonathan sat reading on
the couch, and Ava joined him after she finished another letter to
his parents. Picking up a blanket on the way, she nestled next to
him, covered them both and closed her eyes trying to ignore the
sounds of the city outside. She concentrated on the slow, rhythmic
sound of Jonathan’s breathing and the soft crackles of the fire.
She was just drifting off on his shoulder when they heard angry
shouting coming from down the hall. They looked at each other then
quickly toward the door, identifying one of the voices immediately
as Arianna’s.

“Think we should go over there?” Ava
whispered.

“No. And why are we whispering?”

“I don’t know,” she whispered back and
giggled. Jonathan intended to let Caleb and Arianna work out
whatever had her shrieking today, but he changed his mind when he
heard the crashing of what sounded like shattering glass.

∞∞∞

Looking down the hallway, he saw Caleb backed
up against the wall of the hall with his hands up, trying to calm
Arianna. She stood in her own doorway with a frying pan.

“Hey, now!” Jonathan inched his way in front
of Caleb and faced Arianna. “What’s going on here?” he asked her
and glanced back at Caleb.

“This son of a bitch is stepping out on me!”
she screamed, pointing at Caleb with the pan.

“Arianna.” Jonathan held up his hands. “If
he’s not with you, he’s with me, and I can tell you that all he
leaves this apartment to do is work. I swear to you.”

“Oh, yeah? Then what in the hell is this?”
She threw Ruth’s notes in Jonathan’s face and then tried to get
around him with the frying pan aimed at Caleb. Jonathan grabbed her
from behind and held her back. “Arianna! Calm down!” he yelled.

“Let me go!” she screamed, kicking behind
her, aiming at his shins.

“Arianna, those aren’t mine!”

“Liar!” She wriggled and grunted, trying to
get out of Jonathan’s grasp.

“I swear to you, they aren’t!” Caleb
pleaded.

“Not yours, huh? Then who the hell do they
belong to? They were in your pants pocket, Caleb! Well, whose are
they then?” she demanded. Caleb looked helplessly at Arianna.

“I can’t tell you,” he said.

“You’re lying! They’re yours! I know they’re
yours! I’m leaving! Soon as Jon lets me go, I’m packing and going
home!” she sobbed. Jonathan closed his eyes and took a deep,
frustrated breath.

“They’re mine, Arianna,” he said through
gritted teeth. She stopped fighting him immediately.

“What!?” She twisted her head around to try
to look at him.

“Jon–” Caleb started but didn’t know how to
finish. Either way, one of them was in trouble tonight.

“They’re mine, Arianna. Caleb was just
getting rid of them for me, so Ava wouldn’t see them.” He slowly
let Arianna go, sliding his hand down her arm to take the frying
pan from her. Just in case.

“Yours?” she whispered in disbelief. He
nodded.

“You son of a bitch! Stepping out on
Ava!”

Now Caleb grabbed her to keep her from
pummeling Jonathan, who raised his arms to protect his head and
spun around. Ava was standing behind him with a strained
expression. Arianna stopped fighting, and they all watched Ava
cautiously. She walked past him and picked the notes up off the
floor.

“Ava. Don’t,” Jonathan begged. “Let me
explain first.”

“You should have explained in the first
place,” she snapped at him and unfolded each note, her spine
stiffening as she read them. She walked by Jonathan with a hard
face, dropped the notes at his feet as she passed and then slammed
their apartment door. Jonathan leaned against the wall.

“This is great, just great,” he growled, and
banged the back of his head on the wall twice.

“Jon, I’m sorry. I should have thrown them
out the window first thing,” Caleb’s voice trailed off.

“You were helping him hide an affair!”
Arianna’s voice was scratchy from screaming.

“It’s not an affair, Ahna. It was a set-up.
Don’t you remember Ruth?” Caleb asked her. Jonathan took over the
explanation.

“Blonde, blue eyes, talked a lot, I was with
her just before Ava. She was always going around with us, and then
suddenly she was gone?” Arianna’s eyes lit up.

“I remember now,” she whispered.

“Well, she found Jonathan,” Caleb
interrupted. “Not that hard to do being married to Victor. Well,
she showed up outside last night. I guess she’s still smitten. She
slipped a note in Jon’s pocket, and I saw it. I pulled it out and
offered to get rid of it for him, so it didn’t cause any problems.
Like this,” Caleb sighed. Arianna looked toward Ava’s door.

“Oh, boy,” she said, understanding fully now.
“Maybe I should go talk to her first and explain things.”

“I think that’s a good idea,” Caleb
agreed.

He pulled Jonathan inside, where he sat down
hard at the dining table. Caleb poured hot coffee and sat down
across from him silently.

“I had just let myself relax, too,” he said
with a mocking laugh. “I was sitting on the couch reading and had
the passing thought that I’d gotten through one day without some
sort of dramatics.” He shook his head helplessly.

“I’m sorry. If I hadn’t been preoccupied with
trying to catch that rat yesterday, I wouldn’t have forgotten to
toss them out the window,” Caleb apologized.

“How’d she find them anyway?” Jon asked.

“I was changing, and they fell out of my
pocket. She picked them up, and, well, you saw the rest,” he said,
cringing.

Jonathan nodded, and they sat in silence
until Arianna returned a half-hour later.

“All right, I explained everything to her.
Everything you guys told me anyway. I think she’ll at least talk to
you. You’ll have to fill in the details, Jon. There’s a lot more
she wants to know.”

“Thanks.” He patted her back as he walked
past her.

She sat next to Caleb at the table, quiet for
a moment and then took his hand.

“I’m sorry,” she said quietly.

“It’s okay. I know how it must have looked,”
he admitted.

“It didn’t look good, that’s for sure.”

“You were really gonna club me with that pan,
weren’t you?” he asked, half-smiling.

“Yes. Yes I was.”

“I would never do that to you, Ahna. Step out
on you, I mean.”

“I know that deep down, Caleb. I don’t know
what came over me.”

“A woman scorned is a very scary thing,” he
breathed.

∞∞∞

Jonathan sat down on the far end of the
couch, eying Ava tensely. On her end, she sat with crossed legs and
her arms crossed over her chest, staring at the fire.

“If I had a nickel for every hour we’ve spent
staring at this fire,” he said quietly.

“Who is she?” Ava demanded. He took a deep
breath and sat back, attempting to get comfortable. He had a
feeling he would be there a while. “She is someone I was with
before you.”

“Why have you never mentioned her
before?”

“There was no need to. The minute I met you,
she was ancient history.”

“You were with her when you met me?” she
asked with a look of surprise.

“Yes. At the dinner party. I deserted her
when I left the party with you. She was the drunken annoying one,
remember?”

“I was upset that night. But you took me for
coffee later, and you didn’t mention that you were seriously
involved with someone.”