The Witch and the Borscht Pearl (45 page)

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Authors: Angela Zeman

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Bella’s inheritance from Solly, derived mostly from income stolen from Pearl, held up in court as belonging to Bella. She sold the house and promptly gave everything to Pearl, who, after settling a portion on Ilene, split everything else down the middle with Bella. Bella then moved in with Pearl. You get the idea. Simon is officially Pearl’s new manager, a nice choice, in my opinion. Steve is thrilled to stay on as her accountant.

Bella’s taken charge of a new physical fitness regime for her sister, demanding that they become part of the new ‘mature’ weightlifters’ club and other alarming—to Pearl—groups of a similar nature. Pearl says she’s getting all kinds of new material out of it.

Mrs. Risk, disturbed that I hadn’t taken her consideration of Ilene for granted—that matter of ‘trust’—has formed a new custom of explaining her actions to me in detail before doing them. She’s pushing this new habit to such a boring extreme that I’m not sure if she’s trying to help or taking revenge, but that’s okay. It won’t last and I wouldn’t want it to. She’s extremely fond of her dramatic moments and I wouldn’t want to rob her of her pleasures. Our friendship survived this rough testing and has reached a new level of understanding and tolerance.

Charlie, realizing it’ll be some time before I’ll be ready for a romantic relationship, has promised not to push me for anything whatsoever. Which suits me just fine.

Daniel and I are blissfully busy these days. A good part of the shop’s success comes from Daniel’s hard work, and I know it. He and I got to talking one day about qualities a person needs to succeed, and right then it just seemed natural to go to the bank and set up a college fund for him. I know we’ve got just two years to build it up, but you have to start somewhere. Seems right to lend a shoulder for a friend to stand on if he puts it to good use.

Mrs. Risk, after surrounding herself with wine catalogs, has announced a plan to enlarge her wine cellar next spring. Aisa Garrett and Black Dan Harrington can’t wait to help her make selections. Ernie vows he’ll do the construction with his own hands, no others are good enough.

As we settle in to enjoy the sleeping countryscape, the warm firesides, and our good friends, it promises to be a good winter in Wyndham-by-the-Sea this year.

In Gratitude

A
FEW YEARS AGO,
I knew I wanted to take Mrs. Risk and Rachel into a novel-size story, but no subject had yet occurred to me as interesting enough, fun enough, to write. Then my husband took me to see
CATSKILLS ON BROADWAY,
the brain child of Borscht Belt comic
Freddie Roman.
We even managed to get seats in the best section of the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, right in front of a bus-load of obviously well-to-do Japanese tourists chattering in Japanese to each other.

The lights dimmed, and to a film backdrop of Route 17, the Red Apple Rest, kochalayns, and the various resorts, one by one out came four comedians:
Freddie Roman
, of course;
Mal Z. Lawrence; Dick Capri
; and
Louise Duart
—all top names in the comedy field, all top specialists in the special warmth of Borscht Belt humor. Cries of love and recognition greeted each comic. The audience even shouted out the punchlines of beloved jokes. Like the cliché so aptly states, we laughed until we cried. And when I turned around, to my amazement and enlightenment, the Japanese tourists were crying just as joyously … and that’s when I knew.

Borscht Belt humor might be fading into fond history, but Mrs. Risk might help Freddie keep it alive a little longer in her new book length tale,
THE WITCH AND THE BORSCHT PEARL.
Pearl, my invented comedienne, would be an amalgam of all those wonderful comics who have over the years poked gentle fun at the humanness in us all, and who should never be forgotten.

Thanks Freddie.

Thanks also to the unforgettable
Mrs. Helen Kutsher,
whose love and warmth infects the sprawling Kutsher’s Country Club, and who generously shared with me her memories and her entire establishment. Thanks to
Dr. Ken Fishberger
for his wise advice, one of the few really great doctors in this world. Also bows to the gracious Mikimoto company experts who helped me ‘invent’ a necklace worthy of the love of my heroine’s husband for his wife, Pearl. Special mention must also be given to
Miki Loiacono
and
Chris Pierce,
who do so much to bolster my public confidence. Special thanks to my sometimes partner in crime, research librarian
Barbara Sussman,
who’s great fun and a good sport.

And above all else, my love and thanks go to my daughter
C.J.
and my husband
Barry,
without whose truly fierce support this book would never have seen publication.

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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

cover design by Mumtaz Mustafa

978-1-4532-5703-6

This 2012 edition distributed by MysteriousPress.com/Open Road Integrated Media

180 Varick Street

New York, NY 10014

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