“Maybe someone else removed them?”
Robin stepped back and put her hands on her hips. “No one knew they were there.” She put her hands on the sides of her head. “Tony … “
“It’s okay, cara. No reason to panic. We have a full three weeks before the wedding. That’s plenty of time to replace anything.” He put his hands on her shoulders and squeezed.
“That doesn’t change the fact that they were here and now they’re gone.”
Barry popped his head around the corner of the door. He started to speak but looked at Robin’s face. “Something wrong?”
“All my jewelry is missing.”
Barry looked behind him and stepped into the room, shutting the door to a crack behind him. His presence seemed to occupy a third of the room. “Where was it?”
“In this drawer,” Robin said, looking into it again as if the jewelry would somehow magically appear. “Always in this drawer.”
“Could someone else have packed it up?”
“No one knew it was here.”
“Okay. It’s just things,” Tony said. “Unimportant in the long run.”
“Things worth several thousand dollars, I imagine,” Barry said. “Diamonds, sapphires, rubies … things that would be tempting for someone to take.”
Robin narrowed her eyes. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying that there have been a couple of people in and out of here that we don’t know for certain we can trust just yet.” Barry crossed his arms over his massive chest.
“A couple of people?” Tony asked.
Barry shrugged. “Sure. Craig, Derrick – I like them both and if they’re sincere, they’ll really do great things. But, what if they’re not so sincere? What if the temptation of such a huge payday was too much to resist?”
Tony shook his head. “I trust Derrick implicitly – that is to say, as much as I trust you, Barry.” He cocked his head. “And you and I both know how much I value and trust you.”
Robin nodded. “I agree. There’s no way Derrick would do that. I also think that if Craig – if my dad – were to take something like that, he wouldn’t have stuck around for the theft to be discovered. He’d already be gone. So, I trust it wasn’t him.” Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She pulled it out and saw Sarah’s face on the screen. “Hey, Sarah.” she said as she answered it.
“Hey. I’m so sorry. I feel so stupid. I forgot to tell you that I packed your jewelry and passport up in my leather chest and locked it. The key is taped under the ice tray in the freezer. I just knew that boy Derrick was all over the apartment this morning and I just didn’t trust him not to take them.”
Robin felt her jaw clench. “I wish you would have told me before now,” she said. “I have been in a panic looking for them.”
“I’m so sorry. This test is really messing with my brain. There’s my train. I love you. See you soon!” Sarah disconnected the call.
Robin put the phone back in her pocket. “Sarah packed them in that trunk you guys just took down,” she said. “I knew no one would have taken them. At least, none of us would have.”
“So did I,” Tony agreed.
Barry gave a brief nod of his head. “I’m glad. Glad you found them.”
OBIN tossed her chopsticks into the empty carton of noodles and leaned back against the cushion on the floor. Sarah looked at another California roll and Robin watched her debate before she finally picked it up and ate it. Maxine took a sip of her water and leaned against the wall.
“This apartment is fantastic,” Sarah said.
“It was a steal of a find,” Maxine agreed. “I am so excited about furnishing it and painting it. That wall over there,” she said, pointing to the main interior wall of the living room, “is going to be red brick. I have a friend, well, a guy I dated once. He’s a demolition guy for a construction company. I called him and he has a pile of bricks I can buy off of him from an old building on this street.”
Robin said, “What about the other apartment, the one that you put the air mattress in for me?”
“I’m going to knock out some walls that join the two apartments, then make that one into an art studio.” Maxine stood and started collecting empty boxes and cartons.
“This is like a dream for you, Maxi,” Sarah said. “Everything about it, from Newbury Street, to your plans for a brick wall, everything is just so totally you.”
Maxine grinned. “I know, right?”
She left the room with the empty containers and returned empty handed. Sarah stood and walked to a window, looking out at the pedestrian traffic. “Just think about how different things are now than just a year ago.” She wrapped her arms around herself and turned to face her sisters. “I just want to say out loud, how much I needed you in my life, even when I didn’t know it. I didn’t know how to take it, that day you showed up. I didn’t know how to relate to you when I started living with you. But the longer I am around you, the more I love and admire both of you.” She gestured with her hand. “Maxi, I absolutely cannot wait to see what you do with this place.”
“Thank you.” Maxine went to her and hugged her tight. “I love you, too. You completed our family. I missed you so much when we were apart.”
Robin pushed herself to her feet and joined her sisters at the window. “You two have been my life for so long that I don’t know how to shift that focus to a husband.”
Sarah reached out and tucked a strand of Robin’s hair behind her ear. “The first thing you need to do is to quit resisting it. God brought you and Tony together with a very obvious purpose. Let Him work. Quit worrying about the little things.”
“Like reporters who ambush me with questions they shouldn’t ask?” Robin felt her breath hitch with the memory.
“It doesn’t matter. Just cling to Tony, and you two will weather anything.” Maxine slipped an arm around Robin’s waist and Sarah’s waist.
F Don Roberts felt contrite in any way, his contrition did not manifest in his outward appearance. He looked calm and collected as he waited in the reception area in front of Margaret’s desk, eager for a second chance to interview the future Mrs. Viscolli. He didn’t greet Robin as she walked through and entered Tony’s office, seemingly entirely focused on his legal pad and his phone. Robin found it a bit amusing that Margaret occasionally eyed him as if he were an unruly child whose parents had momentarily stepped away leaving him to create mischief.
Robin tapped on the door and entered in the same heartbeat and immediately felt more at ease when not only Tony greeted her, but Barry Anderson as well. Barry nodded his blond head and greeted her with a warm smile and a simple, “Robin.”
She had no idea if she would make it through the next hour, but she had endured coaching and prompting for three hours yesterday at the hands of Linda Cross. Linda had instructed her in a process by which if Robin detected any emotional response to a question, she had to first silently deal with her emotions then, secondly, restate or rephrase the question for the sake of clarity. Only when she fully understood the question being asked was she to take the most important step. The most important thing she had to do was silently ask herself, “Do you feel comfortable answering this question?” Only if she felt comfortable answering did she even need to do so because if she wasn’t comfortable answering a question, she could very easily refuse.
Robin had also learned the very valuable meaning behind the interrogative phrase, “Is this off the record?” They had practiced scenarios and Linda had coached her in many practical ways. To be fair, Robin felt considerably more prepared for this interview. However, none of that set her nervousness aside.
Tony took her hands in his own and guided Robin to his very own chair behind his very own desk. Robin took her seat and nervously fiddled with her ring as she placed her hands in her lap, until she remembered that she was simply playing a part and folded her hands neatly in her lap. She adjusted her posture, squaring her shoulders and breathing deep to relax her diaphragm. Tony gave her a confi
dent wink. “Are you ready my darling?”
“I’m still very nervous.” Robin confessed.
Tony shook his head, “You’ll do fine. I know it.”
The phone buzzed and Margaret announced, “Linda is on 3, sir.”
Tony answered, “We’re ready. Put her on speaker.” There was a click and Tony asked, “Linda?”
Linda answered, “I’m ready.”
Tony smiled, “All right. Let’s pray.” He gently retrieved Robin’s hand before he closed his eyes and bowed his head. As he began to pray, Robin followed suit. “God in heaven, we petition You that all of our speech and actions during this interview glorify and bring honor to Your holy name. We pray in one voice that You remove any fear, any doubt, any anxiety and we also pray for Don Roberts that he will see and hear only Your mighty voice. Father, we have petitioned You and we are faithful that You hear this prayer and that You will use us to work for Your kingdom in a glorious and miraculous way because we love You so and we ask these things in Your holy name, in the name of the Holy Spirit, and in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.”
With his concluding word, Robin suddenly realized that all of her butterflies were gone. She opened her eyes and realized that Barry had moved to take Tony’s other hand. She had not heard him even move which, for a man of his size, could be disconcerting. They released hands and her fingers didn’t tremble. Robin literally could not have been more ready for this interview and she said as much. “I didn’t realize you were going to pray, Tony. I should have realized it. I’m ready, now.”
Tony announced to the speakerphone, “Linda? Go ahead and bring Don in when you come up.”
Before she disconnected, Linda acknowledged, “Yes, sir, Mr. V.”
The office door opened and Robin calmly observed Don Roberts precede Linda Cross as they entered the space. Her thick square glasses turned toward Robin and she gestured Don to the chair in front of the desk but Barry intercepted him.
“Mr. Roberts. My name is Barry Anderson. I am the corporate attorney for Viscolli Enterprises.” Don Roberts naively took Barry’s offered handshake, a tactical error the journalist would regret over the course of the next several minutes.
Barry kept his voice even and emotionless as he gripped the man’s hand. “As you know, I’ve already spoken with your editor and he assured me that he has already spoken with you as well.”
The color began to drain from Don Robert’s face when he suddenly realized that he had inserted his right hand into an inescapable vice. Barry didn’t even increase his grip because that would have likely broken bones, but his grasp left no doubt as to who was in charge of the conversation.
“Miss Bartlett is prepared to answer every civil question you have for her today … provided they are questions …” When Barry paused for effect, Don’s knuckles turned bright red, his fingertips turned a funny shade of purple, and his fingers themselves turned chalk white. “… and civil.”
Don Roberts nodded his head energetically, clearly wishing he had not taken the giant’s hand in the first place.
Barry cocked his head and asked, “Must I elaborate, Mr. Roberts, or have you a sufficient understanding of what will occur should this interview take an unexpected turn?”
Clearly trying not to let his discomfort seep into his voice, Don assured, “I’m good.”
Barry grinned and released the smaller man’s hand, admiring the newshound’s mettle despite himself. “Then we should probably get started.”
Linda walked around the desk and flanked Robin’s left. Standing to her right, Tony casually placed a hand on the back of her chair. Barry waited until Don had seated himself before likewise taking his seat.
As Don set his phone out, he said, “Miss Bartlett, we obviously got off on the wrong foot last time. I want to apologize for that. I also want to thank you for asking me back today. I want you to know that I really do have your best interest at heart. I am not an unethical man.”
After a few heartbeats, Robin licked her lips and said, “Okay.”
Don fiddled with his phone and set it down then consulted his legal pad. Robin assumed that he had once more set his phone to record the interview. “So do you go by Robin or does Tony have a nickname for you, Miss Bartlett?”
Robin said, “Tony calls me cara. But Robin is fine.”
Don jotted something then asked, “Robin, our readers will certainly want to know how the two of you met.”
Robin spent a minute processing the essay question. “The first time we were formally introduced I was waiting on his table at a Chamber of Commerce breakfast that he sponsored. We had actually met the night before when he came to Hank’s Place where I tended bar at the time.”
“And that was last fall?” Don prompted.
“Yes, last fall.”
“Then, he proposed on Christmas Eve while the two of you were vacationing in the Florida Keys?”
Robin said, “No.”
Don looked up from his legal pad, “No?”
“The two of us weren’t vacationing. Tony sponsors a trip to the Florida Keys for several foster children every year. This past Christmas season, he invited my sisters and me to join him on that trip. Since all of us came from a similar background as those kids, we took him up on his generous offer.”
Don scribbled out something and said, “Oh, I see. So it wasn’t just the two of you.”
Barry shifted in his chair, crossing one giant leg over the other. Tony’s face remained impassive. Robin didn’t say another word.
“That’s really nice,” Don smiled. “Could you tell me more about the foster children?”
Robin processed the question and realized that the Holy Spirit was guiding her answers, “One of the things I admire about Tony is his heart for children. He supports hundreds of homes like the one here at Boston Bible that give children like my sisters and I once were a clean, safe, loving environment. I can’t wait to support him in those ministries as his wife.”
“Do you think the fact that you and Tony share such similar childhood experiences helped draw the two of you together?”
Robin tilted her head slightly and considered the question, “Are you asking if the fact that Tony and I both came from poverty is part of the attraction we feel for each other?”
Don nodded, his pencil poised. Robin said, “It certainly doesn’t hurt.”
Don asked, “So, if that’s part of it, what’s the rest? What do you think is his most attractive quality?” If he felt any discomfiture at posing the question with Tony Viscolli standing to her immediate right hand side, he showed none of it in his tone or expression.
Robin took a deep breath and decided to tell the truth. “Believe it or not, I didn’t think I really found him that attractive at first. In hindsight, I realize that what I found most attractive – and still do to this very day – is his faith.”
“His faith in you?”
Robin nearly laughed, “Certainly not, Mr. Roberts. His faith in God, specifically Yahweh, Jehovah, the creator of all things seen and unseen. His abiding and unshakable faith and his faithfulness to God is certainly the most attractive thing about my fiancée. Now that we share that faith, our lives can only get better.”
Don sat back and lifted his pencil. “Well, I can’t tell our readers that.”
Robin considered that reply, then said, “I see. Naturally, that is entirely up to you, Mr. Roberts. Of course, it is my answer – and it also happens to be entirely true.”
Don considered that and said, “So are you guys Catholic or Protestant or what?”
Robin smiled and said, “If forced to answer I would have to say we are ‘or what’ since those kind of labels largely mean divisions and divisions usually mean disunity in the body of Christ. We’re Christians.”
The reporter consulted his notes, clearly having gone into an area he didn’t want to explore further. “So you guys have set the date for April. Where are you registered?”
Robin smiled, “I can put you in touch with ou
r wedding coordinator for all of your questions about those kinds of details. She’s the best and I really can’t imagine we’d be ready by April without all her hard work.”
Don didn’t even jot a note down. “Robin, our readers are going to want to know about your father. Anything you want to tell me about that?”
Robin pursed her lips. “Just that I’m proud of him.”
Don sat up a bit straighter, “You’re proud of him?”
Robin said, “Absolutely.”
“Robin, your father was in prison for most of your childhood and has since confessed to the slaying of your mother and another man when you were fifteen. Can you tell me what you’re proud of?”
Robin said, “Sure. The Craig Bartlett of my childhood was a thug. He was an addict and a very, very violent man. I never even really knew him as a child because when he wasn’t in jail he was never a part of our lives. If he were still a violent addict, there would be almost nothing about him I could find honorable. The Craig Bartlett of today, the man I know, is not the man in the tabloid stories. My father turned himself in and confessed to all of his crimes without even trying to strike a deal. He is doing what he can to make restitution for his past wrongs. The way he has turned his life around despite his past, I have to say I’m proud of him. And I pray for him every day.”
“Your parents were both addicts, Robin. Have you ever used drugs?”
Without hesitation, Robin answered, “Thankfully, I have not. I think the fact that most of the adults in my childhood succumbed addiction is one of the big reasons I never wanted to experiment.”
“But you were a bartender. Alcoholism is a much larger social problem than drug addiction in this country.”
“You know, after Tony bought Hank’s Place where I tended bar, one of the changes he made that really made me angry was he demolished the bar.” Robin admitted. “At the time I didn’t understand. All I saw was the loss of potential income from the higher tips a bartender can get. Now I understand, and I am so happy to have learned. I’m proud to manage Hank’s Place without the bar.”
Greater Than Rubies, a Novella inspired by the Jewel Trilogy Page 10