by Bella Knight
“Call me Harriet.” She looked around. “This yard sucks,” she said.
“That’s what teen boys are for,” said Ace.
Henry held up a key. “Shall we look inside?”
Harriet snorted, “We’re trying to sell the house, aren’t we?” she said.
She hopped up the little step, bobbled, and righted herself. She took out her own key and unlocked the door.
The smell hit their noses first, dust and urine and unwashed male. The kitchen had disgusting brown cabinets that were sagging and broken. The plastic laminate on the counter had deep gouges. There were holes in the walls, and once-bright white walls had black marks and were stained yellow from nicotine. The living room was a good size, with cable hookups. There were two bedrooms along one hallway, and an extra space through a wide entryway off the den.
“Be easy to stick a wall in here,” said Ace.
“Or leave it open,” said Lily.
There was a master bedroom with holes in the wall and the carpet ripped up, especially in the walk-in closet. There was a full bathroom off the master bedroom. The sink had been partially ripped out, and the bathtub ceramic was absolutely ruined.
The smaller bedroom was slightly smaller than Ace’s current one. The small half-bathroom was filthy and damaged, with wide gouges in the walls.
The backyard was huge, with big trees that were surprisingly undamaged. The back porch had cracked concrete. There was a large doggy door and a smaller cat door. The backyard had dirt and some pea gravel covering the dirt.
“Can widen the porch, put down artificial turf,” said Ace.
“Dog runs can be wide or narrow,” said Henry.
Lily pulled on gloves and walked around everywhere, poking into cabinets, and even pulling down the cord and going into the attic.
“This is full of stuff,” she said. “You want any of this stuff, Harriet?”
“Wasn’t my house, so no,” said Harriet. “My friend Edna left the house to me.” She sighed. “Pity. She’d holler at me if she could see the way this house looks, now. She and Vince had a great life here. Now, look at it.” She raised her hands and dropped them.
“I’ve seen your price,” said Ace. “Have to sell my place and fix this one up. How much to hold it?”
“A thousand,” said Harriet. “Or just start fixing it up, if you agree to eat the cost if you decide not to buy.” She cackled a laugh. “Or if someone comes by with a better offer.”
Ace looked at Lily. She nodded infinitesimally. “Done,” said Ace, going over to shake her hand. Lily came over and surprised Harriet with a hug.
The old woman laughed. “Leggo my eggo,” she said, quoting a commercial about two boys who select the same waffle.
Both women laughed, and Ace let go of her hand.
Harriet nodded, once. “Be good to get this done.” She pointed to Henry. “Give that woman the key, and she’ll make a copy and give it to her man.”
Lily nodded. “Woman just met me, and she knows me.”
“Excellent,” said Henry, handing Lily the key. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to swing Harriet back and go teach Grace and Hu, and the rest. Two peas in a pod, those two.”
“Who’s Hu?” asked Lily. “That’s a Chinese name.”
“Attached to a Chinese girl,” said Henry as they walked out. Lily locked the door. “Apparently, she’s the granddaughter of the lady running that Chinese restaurant. She and Grace are as tight as twins.”
They waved goodbye to each other, and they all left.
Lunch Lady
After Ivy drove off to work, Callie walked Daisy, then went back to the club.
“I need a job,” she said to Grizzly, the enormous man behind the lunch counter in a Harley vest.
“You Ivy’s woman?” asked Grizzly.
“Yeah,” said Callie. “I’m also Grace’s mom and Hu’s… auntie,” she said.
“Who?” asked Grizzly.
Callie pointed toward the room where Henry was located. “Two of the kids in there. Grace is seven and Hu is six.”
“Oh,” said Grizzly. “We need a lunch lady.”
“What are they eating?”
“Normal stuff,” said Grizzly. “Sandwiches and soup and veggies and fruit. But we need someone to, you know, actually make the lunches.”
“How many kids?”
“Seven,” said Grizzly.
“I’m on it,” said Callie.
“You’ve got a broken arm. How can you do it?”
“Very carefully,” said Callie.
He snorted. He pulled a C-note out, and carefully wrote out a receipt.
“Double that,” said Callie. “I also need to buy the lunchboxes.” He sighed and took out another hundred-dollar bill.
“Any allergies? Peanuts, strawberries, wheat, dairy?”
“Nope,” he said. “But it’s bound to happen.”
She bought healthy food: wheat bread, corn tortillas, grapes, strawberries, lunch meats, jam, potatoes, real cheese, cases of assorted 100% juice boxes, assorted nuts in sealed packets, assorted fruit yogurts, cottage cheese, lettuce, tiny round tomatoes, cucumbers, eggs, whole grain mustard, mayonnaise, tomato sauce, whole wheat crackers, sugar-free puddings and fruit gelatins. Then cans of chicken, tuna, beans, and soups. She also bought toothpicks, wooden skewers, a melon baller, cheap plastic containers, and biscuit cutters in many shapes; circles, squares, and stars. She was unable to find the bento-style divided lunchboxes. She bought the stuff and filled up the car. She went to another store, and used her tip money to buy the bento boxes, and made a picture of the receipt, on her phone.
She went home and watched YouTube videos on bento box lunches. She washed the fruit, pulled the grapes off the vine stalks, and beheaded the strawberries. She impaled them on toothpicks. She made sandwiches, alternating between ham and cheese and turkey and cheese sandwiches and tortilla wraps. She cut out the sandwiches with the biscuit cutters. She took out seven of the yogurts. She also cut the cucumbers into circles and put them on a toothpick with tomatoes. She washed out the bento boxes, boxed up the lunches, and took them back to the clubhouse.
She came back and boiled the eggs. She used the melon baller to turn the cantaloupe and honeydew melon into little balls that she put into a plastic container. She made both egg salad and chicken salad. She diced grapes and put them into the chicken salad. She diced strawberries and put them in the cottage cheese, and resealed the container. She used a small biscuit cutter to slice Cheddar into little stars. She did the same with slices of ham and turkey. She put the food in a large, cloth, reusable bag and ran them back to the club.
Henry was washing out the bento boxes in the sink. “Good God, woman,” he said. “They ate like wolves.”
She put the bag on the counter, swung around to the sink, grabbed a clean cloth, and dried the boxes.
“Just gotta package healthy food right,” she said. “You can also heat any of the sandwiches.”
“We did,” he said, watching as she finished drying, and filled them up with the cottage cheese/strawberry combo, crackers, meat and cheese stars, melon balls, and more tomato/cucumber skewers.
“You’re making me horribly hungry,” he said.
“You want a bento box, fine, I’ll make them. I need to be reimbursed for these boxes, and I’ll make the teachers’ lunches too if they like this stuff.”
She held out her receipts. Henry took them, and she filled up the refrigerator with the egg and chicken salads and the veggie and fruit skewers.
He pulled another C-note out of the drawer. “Done,” he said. “There’s four teachers; three of them work at the same time. Most of the parents work swing. The ones that work graves are the ones with infants; so we just let them sleep, and feed them when they wake up. They’re on formula; the parents provide that. So, four teachers. Actually, five, but we rotate.” He smiled. “Keep track of your hours. We’ll pay twelve an hour.”
“Do I have to fill out anything for Grace and H
u?”
He went and found emergency contact cards. “I didn’t have you fill one out this morning because Ivy said she lived with you.”
She sat down at a table to fill them out.
“If you need more work,” said Henry, “You can supervise the boys. They’re doing the initial cleanup at the house.”
“What house?” said Callie.
“Ace and Lily are buying a house for the kids and dogs,” he said. “But the house is trashed. Seriously, wear ancient clothes and a mask.”
He pulled out his own wallet and passed over three twenties. He then pulled out his cell phone and sent a text to Lily.
“Here’s the address. Feed the boys whatever they want. Drive them home at dusk. Get yourself something to eat. Come back at nine, and pick up the girls. Just don’t, under any circumstances, lift anything with that bad arm,” he pointed at her cast. “Or drop something on your foot. I am terrified of making Ivy angry, as is every other person on the face of the earth. Anyone who hurts you is dead. Just dead.”
“Yeah,” said Callie, remembering how Ivy had made mincemeat of her ex. “That’s my Wonder Woman.”
“Oh, yeah,” said Henry. He sent her a text. “Here’s what Mrs. Fa uses to teach Chinese here; twenty-five minutes a day, four days a week. Hu will learn English fast, but it is imperative that she keeps her Chinese language skills.”
Callie’s jaw hit the floor. “My daughter is learning Chinese?”
“And Spanish, and Paiute,” said Henry.
“How much is the school?” she asked.
“Well, the meals and the tablet,” said Henry. “But the tablet’s already there, and you’re making the meals. Maybe chip in on gas, or help drive the kids, if we take a field trip.”
Callie started to tear up and found herself shaking. “Why is everybody so nice to me? And where the fuck were you all for the past seven years?”
Henry patted her hand. “I know it’s been hard. It can get harder to be taken care of if no one has done it. I know you want to pull your weight. But, injuring your arm makes it less likely, not more, that you will be in a position to stand on your own.”
Callie wiped at her eyes. “I am gonna find a way to pay you back.”
“The way we tend to pick up strays around here,” said Henry, “human and dog, you’ll have plenty of opportunities to pay it forward. Wouldn’t you like to do this for another woman?”
Callie nodded and wiped more tears. “I can do that,” she said.
“Unsolicited advice of the day: Don’t try to pay back Ivy for anything. She’ll get offended, and no one wants an offended Ivy.” Callie laughed.
“So, just love her. Even though people love her, and put her on a pedestal, people don’t actually date her. Either they still see her as the lady of the night she was, or they see her as the rock mistress who kicks ass and takes names. But, she’s a real person who needs someone strong enough to love her back. That’s worth far more than anything else, money included.”
“Thanks, Henry,” said Callie.
Henry stood, and so did Callie. He hugged her.
“Now, give poor Lily a break with those boys.”
Callie saluted, then went back for the cloth bag. “On it,” she said.
Lily was overjoyed when Callie showed up. “Now I’m not going to be late for work. Luckily, Ivy gets it if I were.”
She handed over a mask, hopped in her car, and drove off. She left a bag with work gloves and a brand-new mask behind. Callie put them on and went to help the boys. They were disassembling an old washer.
“Hey, Callie,” said Keiran.
Pavel waved. He handed her a screwdriver, and she got to work. They put the parts in a plastic box.
“Why are we taking it apart?” asked Callie, when she had trouble with a difficult screw.
“We got people who will buy the good parts,” said Keiran, “and we can sell the scrap.”
“Is good plan,” said Pavel.
They did the same with a rusted bicycle and a dead dryer. The boys carefully labeled each box, and put each part in its own bag with a sticky on the outside with a label.
They broke for a run to Sonic for chicken strips, poppers, and cherry slushes. They then picked up the trash in the front yard. It got dark, and they walked the trash to the side of the house. They washed up with wipes, and Callie took them home. She went home, showered, drank cold, mint, apple tea, and went to pick up the girls.
They chattered about their day in both English and Chinese. Their voices started to slur, and Callie was afraid they would sleep before she got them into bed. She got them singing and managed to get two awake girls up the stairs and into pajamas. Daisy laid down next to them, receiving pets from the girls before they slid into deep sleep.
The next days were a daze of breakfast for Callie with Ivy and the girls. And taking them on a walk with the dog, dropping the girls off at school, making love to Ivy and seeing her off, then making lunch and dinner for the school. She bought more bento boxes and made time for helping the boys with the house. They cleaned the front yard, then went to the back.
Gregory came by with a truck and took away the stuff. The next day, they then went in with a bunch of people from the club, and did demo with sledgehammers, taking out everything to the studs. Callie was permitted to sweep and pick up very small things, and to rescue good nails and screws and put them in jars. She was also in charge of keeping the coolers filled with ice water and Gatorade, and keeping food from Sonic coming as well.
She was exhausted and filthy when she took the boys home. She took a shower, ate a huge salad, and went to pick up the girls. She was starting to pick up Chinese; the YouTube videos she watched when she broke for meals or when she was chopping vegetables were excellent. The girls seemed to be excited about learning to write Chinese characters.
She helped the girls walk the dog, then they took baths and went to sleep. Callie went to bed, studied some Chinese, and fell asleep.
She opened one eye the next day. The girls were singing in Chinese, something about flowers. They put their heads together and giggled. Callie stumbled out of bed. She found Ivy making French toast in the kitchen and singing head-banging rock under her breath. She put the plates on the table with a bowl of cinnamon sugar and put out the juice glasses. Callie poured the orange-mango juice.
Ivy slid bacon on a plate, and said, “Girls! Breakfast!” They came in and devoured the toast and bacon. “Stay here,” said Ivy, kissing Callie’s forehead. “Finish your breakfast.”
Ivy took Daisy and the girls to walk the dog. Callie finished breakfast in deep, blessed silence.
She cleaned up the kitchen and was delighted to find that the double batches she had made the day before allowed her to make the lunches and dinners before dropping off the girls. She put on some rock, the Guns N’ Roses song, Sweet Child O’ Mine that Ivy had been singing, and got them done.
She drove the kids to school, came back, and dragged Ivy into the bathtub with her. They filled up the tub with water and lavender oil and slipped in. They washed each other’s hair and rubbed in conditioner. They soaked, and washed each other’s feet, hands, and breasts. They came together slowly, languidly, their kisses long, and slow, and deep. They stroked each other, slipping fingers in between each other’s legs. Their breaths caught. They kissed each other’s necks, and stroked each other’s hair. They came together, arching their backs, then both fell into relaxation, sliding into the water. Ivy added more hot water, and they soaked more, laying in each other’s arms. They washed each other’s bodies everywhere, rinsed their hair, and got out. They blow-dried each other’s hair. Ivy braided Callie’s hair and twisted her own. She dressed, and then she was gone.
It almost physically hurt to put on scruffy clothes and go to work with the boys. The dumpster on the side of the house was full. She went in and found people lugging out the last of the mess. She grabbed a giant broom and swept up, with her mask firmly in place. She stopped to fish out good scre
ws and nails. The boys had their own large brooms, and they worked together, going room by room. Framers came in to inspect and reinforce the frame, and to frame the new, wide, office door. The wire monkeys came by to reinstall the electrical and the blue “Smurf wire” for cable television. There was sawing and a lot more sweeping and masks against the sawdust.
Callie learned Chinese when they got physical. She brought lunch; pulled pork barbecue sandwiches, potato wedges, corn on the cob, and sodas.
It was well after dark when she brought the boys home. She ate dinner, walked Daisy and petted her, and listened to a book while making a double batch of lunch fixings. She picked up the kids. Grace was excited about math and programming, and had learned two words of Paiute and two Chinese characters. Then she started on about a book about a goose.
The girls amused themselves making honking noises as they prepared for bed. They played with the dog for a time, and Callie read them a story about a monster hiding under the bed that became a little girl’s best friend. She kissed the girls and toddled off to bed herself. She fell asleep reading a book on her phone. Ivy came home, humming softly. She took a quick bath and joined her girlfriend in bed.
Revelation
They were eating breakfast in the bright morning sun when Ivy smacked her hand to her forehead. “I’m a complete idiot,” she said.
“You can’t call someone that, not even yourself,” said Grace, eating her strawberry-wheat cereal with a banana on top.
“Exactly, kiddo,” said Callie, rubbing her daughter’s hair.
“You’re exactly right. How did you get to be so smart?” said Ivy. Grace beamed.
Ivy looked at Callie. “Sweetheart, I forgot something really important. You’ve got to get your cards,” she said.
“My cards?” asked Callie.
“TAM, that’s Techniques of Alcohol Management and a health card. It’s like being at the DMV, only worse. Especially for the health card, because the DMV doesn’t give you a TB test. TAM is a class you must attend.” She sighed. “Probably good to get you a sheriff’s card too, get you fingerprinted.” She whipped out her cell phone and texted Callie the websites.
Callie looked at them as she ate her cereal. “Looks like I’m going to be occupied for the next few days.”