by Becky Durfee
Jenny retrieved some tissues for Elanor, who dabbed her eyes. Eventually she looked back at the ID card and said lovingly, “Oh, there he is. Shit. I’m crying again.” The tears of joy, sadness and laughter continued to stream down her face. She eventually closed her eyes and hugged the ID card in to her chest. “Oh, my beloved Steve.” Elanor looked at Jenny through blurry eyes. “I can’t wait to be with him again.”
“I know you can’t,” Jenny said solemnly.
While dabbing her eyes again, Elanor asked, “Do you have anything else in that bag? I’m not sure my heart can take it.”
“Just one more thing,” Jenny said, producing a small black box. She handed it over to Elanor.
“Is this what I think it is?” Elanor asked bewilderedly.
“Open it,” Jenny whispered.
Elanor opened the box to find a gold ring, enhanced with the tiniest speck of a diamond. Neither woman spoke as Elanor absorbed the intensity of the moment. She took the ring out of its box, placing it on the appropriate finger. She held up her hand like an excited new bride, inspecting it from various angles. “It’s the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen.”
Jenny knew Elanor had probably never seen a diamond so small, but this ring represented the happiest time of her life. Countless hours of Steve’s blood, sweat and tears paid for this ring, which to him must have cost a small fortune. “It’s perfect,” Jenny added sincerely.
“But it’s too big,” Elanor noted. “I’ve lost so much weight.” She turned her hand downward, and the ring slid off onto the bed.
“You could put it on your middle finger,” Jenny suggested.
Elanor laughed. “But I would flip everyone off every time I showed it to someone. Hey, check out my ring. And by the way, fuck you.” Elanor giggled again. “Too bad I like everyone here. Otherwise that could be useful.”
“Yeah, I guess that’s not the solution,” Jenny confessed. “Besides, it’s an engagement ring. It needs to be worn on the right finger. Hang on, I’ve got an idea. I’ll be right back.” After a disappearing for a short while, Jenny returned from the front desk with a roll of tape. “Here…we can add a little bit of bulk to the ring. Then it will stay on.” Jenny wrapped the tape around several times until the fit was snug. “Is that better?”
Elanor smiled as brightly as her failing health would let her. “Much.” She couldn’t take her eyes off the ring. After a short while, she raised her tired eyes to Jenny and said, “Can you help me lay back down, dear?”
“Sure thing, Miss Elanor.” Jenny helped Elanor lie back down with much the same difficulty and awkwardness she’d endured while sitting her upright. Once fully reclined, Elanor rolled over onto her side, placing her ringed finger in front of her face, admiring it as her eyelids began to grow heavy.
Jenny rubbed Elanor’s arm. “Why don’t you take a rest, Miss Elanor. You’ve had quite an exciting afternoon. And you were tired when I got here.”
“I don’t think I have a choice,” she said with a weak giggle. “My body is crapping out on me.”
“Well, go ahead and sleep.” Jenny’s tone became mischievous. “I can see myself out.”
Elanor quickly drifted into sleep, but rather than leave right away, Jenny stayed in her chair and looked lovingly at Elanor. The end was inevitably near, and Jenny was well aware that any given visit could be the last. She wanted to drink in these moments while she still could.
Jenny smiled sincerely as she looked at the ring. The tiny diamond was endearing—a gift from a man who knew the promise was more important than the token. At that moment, a funny feeling took over her. Growing accustomed to the visions, Jenny was able to relax and become receptive to the message. She closed her eyes and found herself standing at a counter in a jewelry store.
“The lighting is so much better now,” the woman behind the counter said. “And the fresh coat of paint makes such a difference. Thank you for doing all of that.”
The same voice from the previous visions resonated through Jenny. “No, thank you for agreeing to barter with me. I tried to make this same arrangement with a lot of different stores, but they all told me no.”
“Well, this works out for both of us. I needed work done. You needed a ring. We both benefit.” The woman flashed Jenny a smile. “Sue is in the back getting it for you. I think you’ll be pleased with how it turned out.”
At that point a commotion caused Jenny to look over her shoulder. A young giggly woman was beaming as she held a giant diamond necklace in her hand, ready for purchase. Her other arm was wrapped around a man who was clearly twice her age but tried to mask that fact with over-the-top black hair dye.
Jenny knew that man. She recognized him from the picture at the sub shop. It was Arthur Larrabee.
Arthur locked eyes with Jenny, looking like a deer in headlights. Jenny had met his wife before; this was not her.
Jenny wordlessly turned back to the jewelry store employee who received the ring from her coworker. The woman opened the ring box, showing Jenny what was inside. “Do you like it?” she asked.
Jenny looked down at the ring which, sixty years later, would finally adorn the finger of the woman for whom it was intended. “It looks great. Thanks.”
Then, as quickly as it had come, the vision vanished.
“Dear God,” Jenny whispered to herself at Elanor’s bedside. “Do I have this all wrong?”
Chapter 19
Jenny dialed Zack’s number as soon as she exited Elanor’s building. “Luther Whitby may not have done this,” she proclaimed the second he picked up the phone.
“What?”
“Luther Whitby,” she repeated. “He may not have been the one who paid off Brian Larrabee. It may have been Arthur after all.”
“What makes you say that?”
“I had a vision. Just now,” Jenny couldn’t speak fast enough. “Steve figured out that Arthur was having an affair. That just might have been reason enough for Arthur to want Steve out of the picture.”
“Get out.”
“Yeah…with a sweet little thing half his age.”
“This shit just keeps getting crazier and crazier. Who knew my family history was so scandalous?”
“Kind of gives you a whole new perspective on the old peoples’ table at the reunions, huh?”
“Hell yeah it does.”
Jenny went through the motions of entering and starting her car with her cell phone on her shoulder. “So how will we know which one was behind it?”
“Uhh…” Zack remained silent for a long time. “You’re the psychic, you tell me.”
Jenny started on the familiar route home. “I’ve got nothing.”
“I guess all we can do is wait and see if Steve gives you any more insight.”
“What if Steve doesn’t even know who it was?”
“Then we probably won’t either.”
Not the answer Jenny wanted to hear.
“I need to meditate,” Jenny said to herself after she hung up with Zack. “Where can I go that’s peaceful?” Home certainly wasn’t the place; even though Greg wasn’t there, they had no comfortable furniture. Then it hit her: Lake Wimsat. There’d be no better place in the world.
She pulled into a store parking lot, typing Lake Wimsat State Park into her phone. She went in and bought herself a few things to eat and drink, and then she was on her way.
At the park she found a nice picnic table near a patch of trees. While it was hot, the combination of breeze and shade made the temperature somewhat bearable. She nibbled at the grapes she’d bought from the store and tried to quiet all the noise that perpetually cluttered up her brain. With a few deep breaths, she felt a layer of stress melt away.
“Okay, Steve,” she whispered. “This is it, my friend. We’re running out of time if you want to give Elanor answers. I’m ready for you, baby. Fire away.”
Jenny closed her eyes, resting her chin on her fists on the table. Soon enough she was able to see Arthur Larrabee materialize in front
of her, sitting behind a large mahogany desk in an elaborate office. “About what you saw the other day,” Arthur began. He paused, waiting for a response from Jenny that never came.
He laughed nervously. “What were you doing in a jewelry store out in Braddock, anyway?” Arthur posed. “There are plenty of jewelry stores closer than that one.”
Jenny folded her arms across her chest without a reply.
Arthur got a playful look on his face, clearly trying to appeal to the bond guys often share. “Well, I guess you know my dirty little secret now, don’t you? But she was quite a looker, wasn’t she? Old Arthur’s done pretty well for himself.” He smiled proudly, but that smile faded when he noticed Jenny didn’t react.
He cleared his throat and continued. “I know it looks bad.” He fidgeted in his chair. “But Marguerite’s been impossible to live with lately. She’s so fucking moody. She can be nice one minute and then be a bitch the next. I never know what to expect from her. It’s like living in Hell.”
Again, no response from Jenny.
Arthur’s discomfort grew more apparent. “And she doesn’t put out anymore. At all. If I didn’t get some on the side I’d be getting it five or six times a year. A man can’t be expected to live on that. You understand that, don’t you, son?”
Silence.
Arthur leaned forward across his desk, reducing his voice to a whisper. “Surely a virile young thing like yourself gets where I’m coming from. I know you’re fucking Luther Whitby’s girl. He told me last weekend. He asked me to find a reason to fire you so you’d be forced to leave town.”
While Jenny felt her insides grow hot, she remained outwardly stoical.
Arthur sat back in his chair, placing his palms dominantly on the table. “I don’t have to find a reason to fire you, you know. I can keep you on the payroll forever. And you don’t have to go telling anybody what you saw in the jewelry store, either. You get what I’m saying?”
Nothing.
“In fact, you might even deserve a raise for all that hard work you’ve been putting in.” He gave Jenny an exaggerated wink.
No reaction.
Clearly, suddenly, Arthur’s patience ran out. “Listen, you little fucker.” Arthur once again leaned forward, lowering the volume of his voice, but this time in anger. “I am a very important man in this town. I can buy and sell half the people in Evansdale. I will not have my reputation ruined by some little piece of shit, dime-a-dozen construction fuck like you. You will keep your mouth shut, do you hear me? Or mark my words, I will have you ruined.”
More silence.
Arthur put his finger in Jenny’s face. “You think about what I’m saying, O’dell. And don’t you breathe a word of this to anybody or you’ll be sorry. Now get the fuck out of my office.”
Jenny got up to leave, heading toward the door, turning at the last minute to note, “Maybe your wife is acting like a bitch because she knows you’re fucking other women.”
Jenny walked out the door of his office.
Slowly the sounds of nature took over Jenny’s ears, the heat of the day once again feeling oppressive against her skin. She opened her eyes, concluding her vision, feeling both enlightened and confused at the same time. Two men. Two motives. One outcome. “What exactly took place all those years ago?” she whispered, looking around, wondering if Steve himself even had the answer.
Chapter 20
Jenny heard the door close downstairs and an immediate, “What the fuck?”
Greg was home.
Jenny braced herself for a second and walked nonchalantly down the stairs. “Did you have a good trip?”
“Where is all of our furniture?”
Jenny tucked her hair behind her ear. “Well, do you remember a couple of weeks ago, there was that apartment fire on Columbia Avenue?”
“Yeah.” Greg was seething.
“One of the families there lost everything. They had no renter’s insurance, and they have two little kids.”
“And…”
“And I gave our furniture to them.”
“God damn it, Jenny, I thought we agreed to sell the furniture.”
“We didn’t agree to that.”
“Yes,” Greg said impatiently, “we did.”
“No, we didn’t,” Jenny replied calmly. “You said you wanted to sell the furniture, and I said I wanted to donate it. We never came to any resolution.”
“Then why did you donate it?”
“To prove a point.”
“The point being…?”
“That you always assume we’re going to do things your way. For once I’ve insisted on doing things my way, and look at how you’re reacting. You’re acting like I’ve done something wrong.”
“You gave away our furniture while I was away for the weekend. You don’t consider that wrong?”
“Not under the circumstances, no.”
“You didn’t even check with me.”
“What would you have said if I did?”
“I would have said we can’t afford to give it away.”
“Exactly,” Jenny said. “That’s why I didn’t check with you.”
“I can’t believe this,” Greg said with disgust. “I haven’t even gotten through the door yet and already I’m dealing with this shit.”
Jenny sat down on the stairs and lessened the intensity of her tone. “Greg, I’ve been doing some soul searching while you’ve been gone. I really think we need to see a marriage counselor.”
“We can’t afford one. You gave away our furniture, remember?”
Despite her disgust, Jenny remained calm. “Can you please stop fighting with me for a second and have a meaningful conversation?”
“You’d like that, wouldn’t you? You give away our furniture behind my back and then you want to not fight about it. It doesn’t work that way Jenny.”
Jenny rubbed her eyes. “We are clearly not going to resolve anything here. We are at an impasse, and I think we need an objective third party to listen to us and let us know which one of us is being reasonable.”
“I can tell you which one of us is being reasonable.”
Brick wall, Jenny thought, It’s like arguing with a brick wall. “So are you willing to go to a counselor?”
“Depends. How much is that going to cost us?”
“It’s cheaper than a divorce lawyer.”
“Ha!” Greg sneered. “That’s an empty threat if I’ve ever heard one. You would never file for divorce.”
“You know what?” Jenny said softly. “You’re right. Second-grade-teacher-Jenny from Kentucky never would file for divorce. But psychic-Jenny from Georgia would. In a heartbeat. So I’ll ask it again. Are you willing to see a counselor?”
“I’ll think about it.”
Once again, Jenny thought, he feels like the decision is his.
“Look what I have,” Jenny said cheerfully as she approached Elanor’s bed. She was holding up her recently-purchased Choices magazine and making it dance around.
Elanor smiled feebly. “Oh, a Choices. You are reading them.”
“Yup,” Jenny proclaimed. “Sure am. And, I’m going to fill out this little subscription card in the middle so I never miss an issue.”
“I’m so glad to hear that. Not only do I hope it will toughen you up, but I hope it reminds you of me.”
“Oh it will,” Jenny said enthusiastically. “On both counts.”
Elanor looked so frail in her bed. Jenny’s heart was breaking, but she didn’t want to let Elanor know that.
“Do you have any exciting news for me today?”
Jenny considered telling Elanor the latest development but thought better of it. Elanor was at peace with the way things were. Jenny didn’t want to raise any questions that Elanor wouldn’t live to see answered. “Nope. Just a visit.” Jenny twisted her face. “Actually, I’ve come to ask you a question.”
“What is it, dear?”
Jenny let out a sigh. “I remember when you were talking about Steve you m
entioned that you knew it was love because it always felt like home when you were with him.”
“That’s right.”
“Well, with Ronald and Mike…how did you know it was wrong?”
Elanor thought quietly for a moment. “For me it was indifference,” she confessed. “At least with Mike, anyway. With Ronald I knew it wasn’t right from the beginning. He was just a toy I was playing with.” Elanor snickered. “Oh, God, isn’t that awful? I have to be careful or I’m going straight to hell.”
Elanor still managed to make Jenny laugh.
“But as dear as Mike was to me, I could easily picture him in the arms of another woman and it didn’t bother me. In fact, the image of him making googly eyes at a woman who was madly in love with him made me happy. I wanted that for him, and I knew I couldn’t provide it. Anyway, I guess it isn’t normal for a woman to be able to picture her boyfriend with another woman and not be bothered by it. I think that’s how I knew.”
Jenny gave those words a little silent thought.
“Does this have to do with your husband?” Elanor asked softly.
Jenny nodded slightly. “Yes ma’am.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, honey. I remember being in that situation, and it’s a terrible place to be,” Elanor said compassionately. “Oh, the mental tug-of-war I had going on before I broke up with Mike…Is this the right thing? Is this the wrong thing? Will I regret it? Oh, it was awful.”
“But it was your indifference that ultimately made you decide to go through with it?”
“I think so,” Elanor said. “It was hard, though, because I couldn’t really give a good reason why I was indifferent. The best I could come up with was ‘It’s just not there.’ Was that really a reason to break up with someone? Or was that just an excuse to avoid the scary prospect of marriage? It was so hard to tell.”
“But I guess you didn’t regret your decision after you did it.”
“No, I didn’t,” Elanor said. “Mike deserved better.”