Becoming Ellen (14 page)

T
hough Ellen was exhausted when she arrived home at seven a.m., she knew that Seth was supposed to come over at eight, and the appearance of the uncle had increased her interest and concern. So she had a cup of Justice's thick coffee, with a healthy dollop of heavy cream and two teaspoons of sugar to mute the taste. Considering the nervy tension from the night, she added a spray of whipped cream on top. Just watching the dense white foam as it whooshed out of the can calmed her.

She made herself breakfast, peanut butter toast with bacon, and watched Temerity fuss about. Justice came out, dressed, but his hair still wet from the shower, and asked, “Is he here?”

“Do you see him?” Temerity asked.

“No. Do
you
?” he responded testily.

“Maybe that's because he's not here yet. Obviously,” she shot back.

Ellen realized they were both feeling nervous and she intervened. “It's not eight yet.” It didn't work.

Justice said to his sister, “Oh, and you are Queen of the Obvious.”

“Better than being King of the
Oblivious
,” she retorted.

Ellen moved to the big windows and looked down at the street, letting the nervous tension blend away behind her. She didn't really expect to see Seth, but it always calmed her to watch from above.

“Someone got hurt at work last night,” Ellen interjected into the stream of quarreling.

That stopped them. “Who?”

“A guy on the docks, he was hit by a forklift and it broke his leg. Badly.”

“Ouch!” Justice exclaimed. “Is he okay?”

But at that moment, the buzzer sounded. Temerity jumped and then crossed the floor to the phone. “Yes? Oh, good morning. Come on up to the fourth floor, it's the only door. I'll open it now.” She hung up. “It's him,” she said, sounding excited and nervous.

“Okay,” Justice told her. “Just play it cool, like we practiced.”

Ellen was already at the hallway door and didn't hear the reply. She hurried up the narrow stairs and reached for her notebook, and then thought she'd better wait or she'd miss the meeting downstairs.

Turning around, she crept back down and positioned herself just at the end of the hallway inside the door, opening it a crack so that she could see and hear what was going on in the big open space beyond.

“Hi, come on in! My name is Temerity, and this is my brother, Justice.”

“Actually, we've met,” Justice said, affecting surprise. “Hi. Seth, right?”

Ellen couldn't hear the mumbled reply, which was lost under a rolling cough. Switching off the hall light, she opened the door a few inches more and sat down on the floor. From this angle she could see straight to the table area, where Temerity had put out juice, milk, cereal, and some pastries.

“Are you hungry? Help yourself. Would you like some hot chocolate or tea?” Temerity moved into the kitchen area. Seth's eyes tracked her like she was a windup toy and he was figuring out how she worked.

“Do you have coffee?” asked Seth, moving toward the table but keeping his distance from both of them. Ellen was reminded of a stray cat, curious and wanting, but too wary to approach. “Black,” he added, still studying Temerity with fascination.

“Yeah, I don't know if you want to do that. My brother's coffee is pretty much a punch in the gut. How about if I mix in some hot chocolate? I love a mocha, don't you?”

Ellen saw the boy's face relax slightly. “Sure,” he said. His eyes continually flicked to the goodies on the table. Justice was standing a few feet behind Seth and he stepped up next to him to take a bear claw. The boy feinted and slid away, around the other side of the table.
He's as fast as an alley cat,
Ellen thought. Justice pretended not to notice the reaction, just took a bite of the pastry and sat down, gesturing for Seth to join him. The boy reached for a donut, took a huge bite, and chewed with purpose.

“Sit down,” Temerity said. “Let's discuss terms. You available to run some errands today?”

“Sure,” Seth said, sitting, but leaving an empty chair between himself and Justice.

“Good. I was thinking maybe ten dollars an hour? Would that be all right?”

“Eleven would be better,” Seth said, almost automatically, and Ellen recognized the bargaining skill of someone who lived dollar to dollar. The boy began to cough again and Justice handed him a paper napkin. Seth blew his nose, a fruitful sound. His nostrils and upper lip were red and raw. Justice leaned behind him to a shelf under the bar and grabbed a box of tissues.

“Here, put a bunch of these in your pocket, they're the lotion kind. Easier on the nose. So, Seth, you live around here, I assume, because I've seen you in the neighborhood.”

“Are you in school?” Temerity asked.

Seth squirmed in his seat a bit, he was almost painfully thin, and though he hadn't taken off his jacket, he shivered slightly. “I'm on break right now.”

“In winter?” Temerity asked.

“Yeah. Split schedule. I go in summer.”

“That's right, public school is year-round now,” Justice commented. His voice had a slight warning tone directed at Temerity. She must have picked up on it, because she didn't ask any more questions about school.

“This won't be an everyday thing, probably about three times a week for . . . say, three or four hours. Can you do that?” she asked him instead, opening a cabinet. She found a round box and let her fingers run down the tape to identify it, though Ellen could read the powdered hot chocolate brand name from where she sat.

“Yeah, okay.” Seth was still considering Temerity with his runny but sharp eyes. “You're blind, right?” he asked bluntly and without embarrassment. “Is that why you need somebody to get your stuff?”

Temerity paused, and Ellen knew that her friend was fighting the impulse to declare her independence, but practicality won over and she said, “Only my eyes. But you're right, sometimes it's easier, especially when I'm busy.”

Now Seth's eyes played around the huge apartment. It was far less cluttered than most homes. Part of this was because of the size and open floor plan, but in fact, the lack of decorative furniture or knickknacks made it much easier for Temerity to negotiate, and were without value to her anyway. Justice seemed to like the sparse, open atmosphere, and Ellen, never a hoarder of
things
, preferred it as well. But Seth took in the comfortable sofa and chairs, the big-screen TV, the view through the huge windows, and a sort of hungry deficit showed in his expression.

“Nice place,” he said. “Must cost a lot.”

“Well, it's not free, but we actually own it,” Temerity told him. “We had grandparents who ran their own grocery store, then sold out to a big chain. So when they passed away, Justice and I inherited some money. Not a fortune, but enough to buy this place and fix it up. It used to be a garment factory. It was a real mess at first. You like it?”

“Sure. Except most people have, you know, stuff on the walls.”

“Most people have vision,” Temerity said lightly. “But maybe we should. If only for the sake of my more discerning guests, like yourself. Now, some sculpture,
that
I could appreciate. Do you like art, Seth?”

The boy shrugged and then realized that was inadequate. He said, “Don't know anything about it. I like the big pictures in the library on Grant, the ones of the ships.”

“Oh, those are great,” Justice said. “Tall ships.”

“I don't know how tall they are, but I like the sails,” Seth admitted.

“They are called ‘tall ships,'” Justice explained. “Have you ever seen one? I mean, in real life?”

Another shrug. “Never been to the ocean.”

“Well, then it's something to look forward to,” Justice said. “Cereal?” he asked, casually pouring Lucky Charms into a bowl. Ellen felt a smile cuddle up into her cheeks. Justice had bought the cereal for Seth. She'd never seen Justice eat sugary breakfast cereal in all the months she'd lived there. He added milk and set the bowl in front of the boy without waiting for an answer. Then he served up a small portion for himself and took a tentative bite.

Seth was shoveling the name-brand treat into his mouth, pausing only to gulp down some orange juice. When he'd gone through half the bowl, his hunger seemed abated enough for him to take another look around. He did so and then asked, “So, what do you do?”

“Me?” Temerity asked. She finished making the mocha and brought it over. She felt for the chair backs, and held out the mug in Seth's direction. “Here,” she said. He reached out and took it, placing the hot drink carefully on the table, and then letting his fingers slide around the warm ceramic, relishing the heat as a treasure he could feel through the pads of his fingertips and palms. Temerity pulled out a chair and sat down across from Seth and Justice with her back to Ellen, but not blocking her view of either of them.

“Both you,” Seth said through another full mouth of frosted-oat cereal and marshmallows.

“Well, I am a musician, I play for the city symphony orchestra, and Justice is an anthropologist.”

“A wha . . . ?” Seth's eyes had gone round.

Justice said, “An anthropologist is someone who studies humans, basically. Their behavior, like in society and stuff like that.”

“Is there money in it?”

Justice laughed. “Actually, yes, depending. Oh, by the way . . .” Justice leaned back in his chair and wiped his mouth with his napkin. “Some guy was asking about a runaway boy yesterday, blond, about your age, I thought the kid might be a friend of yours.”

Seth had tensed, but Justice was so casual, not even looking at Seth while he took an exaggerated sip of his coffee. Seth said, “No idea.”

“Didn't seem like the guy was too concerned anyway. He hadn't even told the police or anything,” Justice said, giving a dismissive shrug of his own.

Ellen saw Seth relax at that. “So, what do you want me to do?”

Temerity said, “First things first. You have a bad cold.”

A new coughing fit sent his face into the tissue again. “It's no big deal,” Seth said thickly, and blew his nose again. Justice pushed the tissue box closer and Seth took a few more.

“Maybe,” Temerity said. “I need you to go to the drugstore anyway, so you can pick up some cough syrup. I don't want you to be out sick on your first day!”

The boy dropped his eyes and stared at his dirty fingers. “I don't have money for that, not right now,” he said.

“Oh, that's okay,” Justice told him. “We'll buy it for you. You know, a job with benefits.” He smiled and winked at the waif.

Seth had started on the mocha. After a cautious sip, his eyes closed in delight, savoring the sweet, bracing heat, and he gulped at it eagerly. He held the mug's warmth to his chest, just under his chin so that the scent would rise. Ellen liked that, though she doubted he could smell or even taste very much with all that congestion.

Seth, now full of the hefty carbs that meant being sated for a few hours, looked around him more leisurely. “Who cleans this place up? It's big, you got somebody to do that?”

“Not really,” Temerity said. “We have a service that comes in once a month, but mostly we do it.”

“You need somebody,” the boy stated this as a well-known fact. “I could do it.”

“You clean?” Justice asked.

“Sure,” the boy said with forced ease. “I had to clean my last place, it wasn't this big, but I could do it.” His eyes roamed the big open room again. “Easy,” he added, and buried his face in his mug.

Justice was watching Seth thoughtfully. “It's certainly a possibility. We have a roommate who is a professional, maybe she could give you some pointers. Why don't we start with the errands and go from there.” In the dark, Ellen smiled again. She was a
professional
, it sounded good.

Seth immediately set down the mug and stood up. “I'm ready. I can go now.”

Temerity laughed. “No rush. I still need to make a list. Tell you what, you need to use the restroom or anything?”

“I could?” Seth asked, and for the first time, Ellen heard the defenselessness in his voice. She could guess how he was treated, sneaking into restaurants to use the facilities and being hustled out, refused admittance to anything but the most unmonitored of public restrooms. She wondered how long it had been since he'd had a hot shower or clean clothes.

Justice stood up. “Right this way. I'll show you. And there's some towels and soap in there. I notice your hands look a little dirty, you can wash up if you want.” He moved nearer to Seth, intending to show him the way.

“That's okay,” Seth said quickly, backing a nervous step away from Justice. Ellen cringed for him. To have been abused . . . in that way . . . made it hard for Seth to even stand near a grown man he didn't trust. And, she guessed, he trusted none.

Identifying the fear, Justice reversed his motion, sat back down, and pointed toward Ellen and the door. “I'm sure you can find it yourself, just go through there and it's the first door on the right. I have to go to work, so I'll see you later. Nice to meet you, Seth.” Justice extended a hand.

Seth stood a few feet away, looking at the outstretched arm. Then, biting his lip and watching Justice suspiciously for any sudden moves, he sidled forward, just close enough to touch the hand, shook quickly, and bolted for the far door.

Ellen barely had time to get behind the door before it opened and Seth came through. She watched him from the shadows as he looked nervously around before creeping down the hallway, his head rotating from side to side, scanning for danger. Finding none, he opened the door to the bathroom, switched on the light, and scoped it out. Ellen watched his eyes spot the huge tub. His mouth dropped open, and then he emitted a long, low whistle. His face hopeful, but cautious, as if even this treat of a clean bathroom could not be trusted and might be snatched away, he went in. Ellen heard the door close and lock behind him.