“Are you coming to the visit next week?” Cara asked. “I hope to see you again.” Lisa thought about what it would mean to be at the safe house with a supervisor watching them.
“Let’s meet again next Thursday,” Lisa replied. “No one needs to know about it. It will be our secret. The next day you’ll get to see baby Dan.” Lisa’s heart went out to Cara, looking forward to the visit a week away.
“Okay, I’d like that very much,” Cara said. “Hopefully, I’ll have news about a job by then.” She doubted it, but was trying to stay positive. “My attorney tells me that if I don’t have a job, I’ll never get custody of the baby again.”
“That doesn’t seem right to me,” Lisa said, frowning. She didn’t work. Millions of women had children and didn’t work; some collecting public assistance or getting child support from their children’s father. Dan would certainly pay to take care of his child. She’d talk to him as soon as she could.
They said good-bye, parting ways. Lisa rushed to get her shopping done in the usual orderly way and was soon finished. Deciding to drive into Babylon before she went home and say hi to her mother, she might even stop by Dan’s office to surprise him.
Turning onto Sea View, the fountain came into view and she burst out laughing. “What was she thinking?” There was a big, expensive extended-cab pickup truck in the driveway along with construction debris piled up along the walkway. Having forgotten that Pam was redoing the kitchen, Lisa was excited to see the transformation.
“Knock knock,” she yelled from the open door. A short man in a welder’s mask stepped out into the hallway from the kitchen. “Oh! Is Mrs. Smith around?”
“Miss Pam, outside,” he said, motioning toward the door.
“Thank you,” Lisa said, walking toward the veranda. She paused before going in. All but the top of Pam’s head was hidden by an arm thrown across the back of the couch. “Mom?” Pam and her companion sat up and turned around, startled.
“Lisa! What a pleasant surprise,” she said, standing up and coming around the couch. She embraced her and kissed her cheek.
“Meet John Zapelli,” Pam said.
“Ah,” Lisa said. “Zapelli Construction.”
“That’s right,” John replied, extending his hand.
“So what’s with the fountain? I thought I was at Versailles.”
Pam burst out laughing. “Do you like it? It’s John’s addition to our front yard.”
“It’ll take some getting used to, but yes! I like it.” Lisa laughed, hoping she wasn’t too harsh. The fountain was so not her mother, all she could think of was that there was a new relationship building and she was happy for Pam.
“My decorating style is a little over the top,” John said, laughing.
“Your style is fine,” Pam replied. “Come and see the kitchen.” They went back into the house and Lisa raved about the new counters and refinished cabinets.
“Hopefully, it will be finished before the grandmothers return from their cruise.”
“Very nice,” Lisa said, thinking of her own fabulous kitchen, paid for by Pam. “You’ve had the same kitchen for twenty-years! It’s a much-needed improvement. You must be happy, Mom.”
“I like it! Even if I don’t cook much anymore, it was an eyesore to look at. Can I get you something to drink?”
“No thank you. I won’t keep you, just wanted to pop in and say hi. I think I’ll go to Dan’s office and surprise him. I have a car full of groceries rotting in the heat so I’d better make it snappy.”
They walked out to Lisa’s car with her, Pam giving her another kiss on the cheek and watched her back out of the driveway, John’s arm going back around Pam’s shoulders. Lisa was happy about it because it meant her mother might be able to put what Lisa had done with Dan behind her again now that Jason was out of the picture.
“Bye bye,” she called out the open window. “It was nice meeting you, John.”
Calling Dan first to let him know she was coming over hadn’t occurred to her until she pulled into the parking lot next to his office and realized his car wasn’t there. Leaving the motor running so the air conditioning would stay on for the food, she ran around to the front door.
“Hi, is Dan out to lunch?” she said.
“No, he hasn’t been in all day,” the receptionist said apologetically. “Do you want me to call him for you?” Lisa was holding on to the door, trying to stay calm. He’d called her that morning, and she assumed he was at work. Where else would he be?
“No, that’s okay, I’ll talk to him tonight. I was in the neighborhood so I thought I’d pop in. I have ice cream in the car, so… Have a great afternoon.” She gave a little smile and wave and ran through the parking lot. Where in the hell was Dan? At least she was sure he wasn’t with Cara, another positive thing about running into her today. What bothered her the most was that she wanted to catch him in something. Instead of calling him and asking him where he was, she would play possum and wait for the receptionist to tell him tomorrow. Oh Dan, your wife stopped by yesterday, but you probably already know that. She’d keep her mouth shut.
As she entered their neighborhood, the hope that his car would be in the driveway gave her a surge of relief, but it was premature. Daniela’s car was there, and Gladys’s was on the street. But no Dan.
Grabbing as many bags as she could handle out of the back of her car, Lisa was glad for the distraction of her family. Daniela would bring the rest of the groceries in. It was that chaotic time of day; babies up from naps and little girls, tired and ready for dinner, baths and bedtime. Glancing at the clock, it was four-thirty; the time Dan usually called her each day before he left the office for home. Preoccupied, her children responded to her detachment by being more demanding and whiny than usual. Needing to nurse the boys, she struggled to put imaginary concerns behind her
“I’ll finish putting this stuff away and feed the girls their dinner. Why don’t you hide out in the den?” Gladys suggested. Lisa walked to the kitchen windows in the front of the house and looked out over the yard and driveway. If she discovered he was cheating on her again, could she be able to stay with him? Wasn’t one, grave indiscretion enough? Selfishly impregnating Cara, who became so distraught that she hit with him a frying pan only to spend a year of her life behind bars? The unfairness; that Dan had been as guilty of the betrayal, yet he was off free while Cara suffered, separated from her baby screamed volumes to Lisa. She initially wanted Cara in jail because she got pregnant with Dan’s baby. But that wasn’t why she did prison time. Assault with the intent to do bodily harm seemed like an over exaggeration for hitting someone who deserved to be beaten with a frying pan. Cara was angry with Dan, just as Lisa was. Filled with regret, Lisa’s loyalties were switching from Dan to Cara.
“Maybe I will go to the den,” she replied absently, picking Dan Junior up off the floor, kissing him. “Come on baby Marcus, you can come, too.” He toddled along side of her as she quietly retreated to the den, Daniela and Gladys watching her. When she was out of earshot, they whispered to each other.
“What do you think happened?” Gladys asked. “I haven’t seen her that distracted for a long time.”
“I don’t know what it is, but I do know that his majesty is late, and that might be what’s got her going.”
“Things are certainly tense around here. I thought they’d get better; they were getting better. But something’s not right.”
Daniela leaned in and in barely a whisper told Gladys what she suspected might be a problem. “I overheard them arguing a few days ago. I know I shouldn’t repeat this, but only to you.” Evidently, Dan had been remiss in his husbandly duties. Gladys raised her eyebrows in acknowledgement. If she knew anything after being married all this time, it was that men needed to pay attention to their wives or all hell would break loose.
“Okay, gotcha,” Gladys replied as they looked toward the den.
Lisa shut the door, leading Marcus to his toy pile. Dan Junior was grabbing at her blou
se as she sat down and started to unbutton. “I can’t imagine not having a little one to nurse,” she said tenderly, offering him her breast. Every few seconds, he’s stop nursing and lookup at her with a big smile. “You are cute! And so are you, Marcus cutie.” Glancing at the clock, each minute that passed brought her closer to the conclusion that she was going to do something drastic if her marital situation didn’t change right away.
Chapter 16
Alone in the brownstone with baby Brent and the nanny, Sandra plotted out the rest of her weekend. She remembered life before children, before Tom. Time off from work meant her own time, and time for Jack. Don’t think about him, she commanded.
The wonderful apartment on the Upper West Side; why’d she ever give it up? She should have sublet for just a time as this. Then, when faced with eviction, which she knew was on the horizon, she’d have a place to go. Reaching for her address book, she thumbed through the alphabet until she came to the G’s. Gorman Agents. Dialing the number, she listened to the message and then waited for the beep.
“This is Sandra Benson, formerly in 1-D on 82nd St. I’m looking for a unit in the same area, two bedrooms and baths. Please call me if you have anything available.” She left her phone number less than hopeful. The thrill that she would be leaving Brooklyn for the last time lifted her spirits. Earlier that week, she’d run into Tom and his wife at Waldbaums. Standing at the baby food display, she looked up just as they passed her, the wife very pregnant. A bolus of heat struck her in the face and traveled down her body, shame and regret and jealousy all rolled into one giant ache. If she’d encouraged it she could have thrown up, it was that intense. He glanced over at her and didn’t change his expression except maybe a tensing of his jaw, his hand on his wife’s back.
Pushing her basket away quickly before they stopped to browse, Sandra was angry at the physical response. I did nothing wrong, she thought. Snippets of things she did do wrong tried to wedge in her mind, flirting with Brent number one, but she fought it. He raped her. Brent Smith drugged her and raped her. She didn’t have an affair with him.
Frustration growing, her goal was to pay for her groceries and get out of the store before she ran into the happy couple again. Walking quickly, the tears came unbidden, angering her further. Why in hell are you crying? Tripping over the pavement, she made the decision then that leaving Brooklyn, even if she were forced out, would be a good move for her.
Valarie was getting ready to leave, interrupting Sandra’s memory inundation. “Okay Miss, I’m almost done. A load of clothes to fold and that’s it for tonight.”
“See you tomorrow,” Sandra muttered. Brent was reaching for her earrings, determined to pull them out.
“No, no you little monkey,” she whispered softly looking off into space. “What are we going to do tomorrow?”
Jason was no longer an entertainment option after his tragic accident. Would he expect Sandra to visit him in the hospital? Would he even know who she was? Maybe after he was out of danger she’d venture down to Delaware to see him.
The beach was probably out of the picture; Pam’s icy demeanor when she’d called that morning with Jason’s news left little for Sandra to hope for. Being with Jason had bordered on the insane; it was definitely juvenile. How could she explain it to Pam? Then Sandra thought of something; she’d use the baby as an excuse, saying that she wanted to bring Brent to the beach. For the sake of a weekend at the beach, Sandra hoped Pam could find it in her heart to forgive her.
Reaching for the phone, she kissed Brent and tried to hold it away from his grasp while she dialed. Pam answered right away.
“I am so sorry about everything. I’m sitting here with the baby and we miss you. Please, Pam, won’t you forgive me and let me bring Brent to the beach?”
“Who is this?” Pam said, winking at John.
“It’s Sandra! Are you kidding me?”
“Yes, for heaven’s sake! I’m kidding you.” She wanted to say no to her, that the house was torn up and that she had company, but she did miss the baby.
“So, what do you think?” Sandra asked, feeling silly begging Pam but wanting to visit, needing to get out of the house and needing to reconnect with what had been Jack’s, but not realizing it fully.
“Sure, come over. I might be in and out all day; my friend John and I are doing some projects around the house and we keep going out for supplies.”
“John? Is this someone new?”
“You got it,” Pam said cagey but proud.
“What are you doing? I mean to the house?”
“You’ll see when you get here. I’ll leave the garage door unlocked if we have to leave,” she said. Sandra thanked her and they hung up. Like a fire had been lit under her, Sandra sprung into action.
First, she yelled up the stairs for Valarie. “I know it’s late but can you come to the beach with me?” Coming to the top of the landing and thinking for less than ten seconds, Valarie nodded, rolling her eyeballs in pleasure.
“Heaven. Of course, I’ll come.”
Sandra gave a rare howl of laughter. “I was thinking the same thing. When’s the last time we got away?” Valarie could have told her it was just last weekend when she was left in the city with the baby while Sandra took off to be with Jason, but she was being paid to do it. “I’ll get the baby’s clothes packed up and you do his food.” Like a synchronized team, the women had everything ready to go within an hour. They settled in the limo, enjoying the trip to the beach as subtle changes from urban asphalt and concrete segued to sand on the pavement and a decided resort feel in the air. Determined to be a perfect houseguest, Sandra promised herself to keep the conversation benign at all times.
Grabbing Valarie’s hand, she giggled. “I’m so excited! We really need this.”
“Oh, you know it,” Valarie agreed. The limo pulled in front of Pam’s house and both women gasped.
“Oh my, that’s a shock,” Sandra said as the fountain came into view. “I wonder what she had in mind.”
“I think it’s fabulous, just fabulous,” Valarie said, her island esthetic more liberal when it came to garden statuary. While she was gathering her belongings from the car, Sandra glanced up and saw a big truck with Zapelli Construction decals on the side parked in Pam’s driveway.
“That name is terribly familiar,” she said, frowning, hoping this guy Pam was with wasn’t someone she’d dated in the past. Dread sat like a stone in the pit of her stomach.
The next minutes were spent unbuckling baby Brent out of his seat and pulling all of their belongings out of the trunk onto the sidewalk. Sandra took the baby and walked up to the door while the driver helped Valarie haul everything else.
Pam and John were still talking on the veranda when the doorbell rang. “Who can this be now?” she grumbled. Peeking in the sidelight, shocked, she saw Sandra standing with the baby.
“Hello,” Pam said shocked.
“Surprise! We talked, remember?” The stone in the pit of her stomach turned to a boulder.
“We did, but I thought you meant tomorrow,” Pam said, opening the door wider and then reaching for the baby, standing aside so they could enter the house. “It never occurred to me that you were so desperate to get out of the city that you’d pull it together when it’s almost bedtime.”
“Desperate is right,” Sandra said, slumping over. She straightened up again and sniffed the air. “The ocean smells heavenly.”
Pam led them into the kitchen to see the work. “I won’t be offering you anything to eat so if you’re hungry, we have to order. We were going to go out, but it’s no big deal to change our plans.”
“Oh, please don’t change them on our account. I’ll order a pizza for us. You go back to what you were doing. Where are the ladies?”
“They’re on a cruise, believe it or not!”
They chatted a bit and Pam directed them to go to the guest rooms upstairs. “I’ll order dinner for all of us. Italian okay?”
“Pizza is fine,” Sand
ra said. “Pizza from Shore Pizza.”
Smiling, Pam patted her arm. “Pizza it is.” She watched them climb the staircase and then went back out to the veranda.
“There goes our quiet evening,” she told John. “I’m sorry.”
“I heard. I guess we have to be ultra specific anymore.”
“Yes, you’re not kidding.”
Getting settled upstairs, Sandra tried to ignore the depressing feeling she had; Jack wasn’t there any longer. It wasn’t even his house. When she had a chance, she’d snoop a little, look into the den and the veranda and try to find something of him. Pam had done a great job eradicating Jack.
When dinner arrived, Pam called upstairs for Sandra and her entourage to come down to eat. Everyone took their place around the table in Pam’s dining room, now cluttered with kitchen paraphernalia, making the meal more relaxed.
“John, this is my grandson’s mother, Sandra Benson and Brent’s nanny, Valarie.” John offered his hand, not knowing if it was appropriate or not to shake. Both women were young, the same age as his daughters and he had little to say to them. The baby was cute.
“He looks just like you,” John said, looking at Pam. She didn’t respond, afraid to go into the baby’s appearance too deeply.
“Let’s eat,” she said, opening pizza boxes and containers, explaining what everything was.
A look came over Sandra’s face, grabbing Pam’s arm. “Oh my, now I know why the name Zapelli is so familiar to me. I saw the name on the truck and it rang a bell. Do you have a daughter Violet?”
“Yes,” John said, frowning. “Why?”
“We went to Marymount together.” John brightened up hearing the name.
“Of course! Were you friends in school?”
“Not exactly,” Sandra said. “I was one of the poor commuter girls.”
“So was Violet! Boy I can’t wait to tell her I saw you. What’s your name again?” Sandra and John chatted through dinner and Pam just accepted it. Sandra commanded attention wherever she went, even if it meant dredging up some half-baked college roommate story. Observing them talking, she relaxed. If there was going to be anything untoward between the two of them, it was better if it happened right then.
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