“I don’t think I would have ever left James and the girls if it wasn’t for an incident that happened a month later. You see, James never took to Eddy, but he wasn’t cruel to him either. Then, one day, he accused Eddy of something he did not do, and in a fit of anger, he struck him and called him a bastard loud enough for the staff to hear. I knew Eddy would be tarnished with that title for the rest of his life if we remained in Sandwich. I also knew how much Angelo loved Eddy. I decided that it would better for Eddy to have a warm father who loved him than a cold, distant man who thought of him as a bastard every time he looked at him. That’s when I made up my mind to come to New York with Angelo.
“I intended to take all my children with me, but James refused to let Eliza go, and Dolly would not leave without her. It was the hardest decision I have ever had to make. My only consolation was that James is a very wealthy man who cared deeply for both my girls, despite his dislike for my son. Eliza has a wonderful nanny. Both James and Dolly dote on her, and I promised I would return in a year’s time. I intend to keep that promise.”
“Do you intend to stay there?” Nonna asked.
“I am not sure what I am going to do, Nonna. I have made rather a mess of things, haven’t I? But I will tell you this: I love all my children equally, and I pray we can all be together in America someday.
“That is my story. I know that Angelo and I did not tell the truth when we said we were married, but I have heard from James and he said that his lawyer is working very hard to obtain our divorce, so it shan’t be long until Angelo and I can marry. James is also seeing to it that Eddy can have his proper last name.
“Now, your friendship means a great deal to me, and I promise I shall be perfectly honest with you from now on. Goodness knows, I’ve been running away from the truth ever since I left Old Nichol. I do not want to run anymore. When Angelo and I are legally married and Eddy has his proper name, it will be the beginning of a new life for us, and, for the first time since leaving Old Nichol, I shall be proud of who I am.
“In spite of the poverty we lived in, there were good memories. I’ve had years to think about it, and I know now that Ma and Da would have been good parents if it wasn’t for their dependence on alcohol. At one time, Da was about the strongest man in Old Nichol, and yet he was also the gentlest. And Ma kept her house cleaner than most ladies.
“She wasn’t very big, but she could work all day, then sing and dance all evening. I can still hear her and see her too. She had curly red hair, and when she danced, twirling around and around, it seemed as though she wore a halo of flames. And Angelo, everyone who remembered your father considered him a hero. He saved a little girl from the third floor of a burning building then returned to try to save her sister. He suffered so terribly from the smoke that day that he couldn’t work and did not live very long. Then your dear mother worked hard looking after you until she passed away.”
Gladys glanced at Isabella. When she saw the pain on the woman’s face, she suddenly realized how difficult it must be for her to hear of her daughter’s tragic life. She embraced her and said, “Oh, Nonna, I am so sorry. How dreadfully thoughtless of me!”
Isabella shook head. She looked up at Gladys and said, “Victor told me that Maria had died in the slums, but I had no idea it was such a horrible place. I blamed her husband for her death, and I was very upset when Angelo used his father’s name instead of changing it to Rossini. Now that I know Hugh Matthews was a very brave man, it helps me to understand why Maria fell in love with him. Don’t feel bad, Gladys, dear. If anything, your story has caused me to see everything more clearly. You have a great deal of spunk, my girl, and you shall not receive any criticism from me. In fact, I think you deserve to be congratulated for what you have accomplished. Don’t you agree?” she addressed the rest of the group.
Sandy was the first to clap, and everyone else joined in, including Lottie. When they finished, Sandy said he would make a fresh pot of tea and Gladys asked if anyone wanted to ask her any questions.
Lottie was the first. “What happened to that awful landlord’s body? Did your parents get arrested?”
“No one except Ma and Da knows what happened to him. I don’t think they ever told anyone,” Gladys answered.
“I remember that a constable came looking for him a few times, but even if anyone had known what happened, they wouldn’t have said anything,” Toughie said.
There were many more questions, and by the time everyone left, they all felt as though they had been a part of Gladys’s life and that she was now part of theirs. Lottie and Victor were the last to go and Gladys could tell that Lottie was still a little hesitant about their relationship, so she put her hands on her shoulders, looked into her eyes, and said, “Carlotta, I know I have no right to ask you to be my friend, but the minute I saw you, I admired you. I think we are very much alike, and, if you will allow me, I shall do everything I can to earn your trust. Do you think you can do that?”
Lottie bit her lip and looked down at the floor. Gladys felt she had failed to change the woman’s mind, but then Lottie looked up, held out one hand, and started counting on her fingers as she spoke, “I might forgive you if you do some things for me. Number one: teach me some of those lovely songs my uncle is so fond of. Two: teach me how to sew on that strange machine you have. Three: promise to take me shopping for material. Four: promise to look untidy sometimes. Five: and this is the most important one, you must promise never to call me Carlotta again. The name is Lottie. Now come here so I can hug you.”
The International Café soon became one of the most popular dining facilities in New York. The wall murals and the variety of ethnic foods that Sandy served, with the help of Gladys and Lottie, were so popular that they had to take reservations and look for more waiters within four months.
Chapter Thirty-Two
A month before Christmas, Angelo was working at the restaurant desk when the evening customers started to arrive. A well dressed, middle-aged man he had never seen before came in, so Angelo asked him if he had a reservation.
“No, I don’t, but I do have a dear friend who I would guess happens to be your wife,” the man said.
“My wife?”
“You are Angelo, are you not?”
“Yes. And you are?”
“Percy.”
“Oh my goodness! Gladdy is going to be so happy to see you.” Angelo sat him down at one of the tables. “Just pretend you are a customer, Percy. I want to surprise her,” he said before going into the kitchen.
Gladys was about to ladle out two bowls of soup when Angelo came in and said, “Gladdy, there is a customer out there who refuses to allow anyone but you to wait on him. Sorry, but he is most insistent.”
“Oh fiddle, not one of those again! All right, but I hope he doesn’t want to do anything but eat.” They all laughed and she took off her apron and went out.
The man had his back to her when she approached him. “Yes, sir, may I help you?”
Percy turned around.
“Percy!” she squealed before throwing her arms around his neck.
After the restaurant closed, Gladys and Angelo took Percy up to their flat. After Eddy went to bed, Angelo poured them each a glass of wine, raised his glass, and said “This is indeed a pleasant surprise, Percy. I’ve heard so much about you, and now here you are.” They clicked their glasses then Gladys began asking questions about Dolly and Eliza. She didn’t want to stop, but finally, Percy said that he had told her all he could.
“Don’t you want to know why I am here?” he asked.
“Of course. I am sorry, Percy. It’s just that I miss them so much. Why are you here?”
“I’ve come to bring you an early Christmas present.” He got up, opened his briefcase, and handed her an official-looking envelope. “Can you guess what that is?”
Gladys had a good idea. She looked at Angelo then back at Percy. “
Is it really?” was all she could say.
Percy nodded. “Yes, my dear, it’s your divorce. We have to see an old friend of mine tomorrow. He’s a lawyer who studied in England, and he has some papers for you to sign, then you will be free to marry this good man.”
Gladys hugged him and then she offered to make up a bed for him in the adjoining flat, but Percy said he had already checked in and left his bag at the Fifth Avenue Hotel.
“I had wanted to stay at the Metropolitan, but a delegation of Japanese is there and there were no rooms available.”
“I heard that the Fifth Avenue is grander anyway. I went there for tea once with Lottie’s aunt, and the dining room is quite elegant,” Gladys said.
Percy said he would come for Gladys in the morning, and they would go to his friend’s office to get things signed. Before he left, Gladys asked him how long he intended to stay in America. She was happily surprised when he answered, “Just long enough to see you two wed. That is, if you think you can arrange it sometime in the next two weeks.”
“What do you think, Angelo?” Gladys asked.
“It sounds too good to be true.”
“Would you give me away, Percy?” Gladys asked.
“If you hadn’t asked, I would have been very disappointed,” he replied.
They wanted to be married quietly with little fuss. Angelo asked his uncle Victor to be a witness, and Gladys said she would like Lottie there as well. Gladys had finally found someone almost as dear to her as her old friend Millie had been—someone she could confide in—and Lottie felt the same toward Gladys.
Gladys and Angelo were married on the fifth of December, 1860, in the front room of Reverend Reginald Field’s home in Manhattan. Victor, Lottie, their twin boys, the Ruttens, and Sandy celebrated their wedding in a private reception room at the Fifth Avenue Hotel, courtesy of James Hornsby and Percy Hudson.
Gladys had been right. For the first time since leaving Old Nichol, she knew exactly who she was, and she even felt confident that her girls would soon be with her again.
Gladys knew Percy was anxious to get back and spend Christmas in England, but bidding him goodbye was more difficult than she had anticipated. It had begun snowing as they stood on the pier, and Percy was worried she would catch cold so he suggested that she not wait for the ship to sail.
“I shall find my cabin and get settled, my dear. That is if there is any room in it for me among all those Christmas presents you have given me for the girls. I don’t want you to stand here and catch a cold.”
“I’m fine. I really don’t want you to go, Percy. Tell the girls that I said it is going to be a sad Christmas for me without them. And please tell them I shall be thinking of them every minute, and it won’t be long until I am with them again. I don’t know if James shall insist we meet in London, but it doesn’t matter as long as I can be with them.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he invites you to Four Oaks. You would like the new James, Gladys. I’m certain he is going to be happy when I report that you are keeping well and that Edward has had no trouble adapting to his new surroundings. I am sorry, Gladys, but I never had time to discuss this with you before, because I only met with the man a few minutes before I left the hotel this morning. You see, James still feels guilty for misjudging Edward, and he’s determined to make up for it. He wants to ensure that the boy has a good education, so, according to his instructions, I have arranged for a tutor.
“But he doesn’t have to do that. He is going to see that Eddy will have Angelo’s name, so please tell him that is more than we could hope for. He doesn’t need to feel he owes us anything else.”
“It is something he wants to do, Gladys, so I’ve taken the liberty of hiring a teacher. His name is Arthur Van Dyke, and he’s well qualified. He has agreed to be at your flat every morning from eight until noon. I am certain the boy will gain more knowledge during that time than he would at a public school in a full day, and when he is old enough, James wants to pay for his higher education as well. The choice of wherever that may be is, of course, up to you and Edward.”
“It is far too generous an offer, Percy, but I can hardly refuse seeing as it is Eddy’s future we are talking about. Tell James I will see to it that his generosity is not in vain, and thank him for me, please.”
“I shall. Now we must say goodbye.” Percy hugged her then boarded the ship and entered his cabin so she wouldn’t stay on the pier. Wiping the tears away, Gladys walked back to the flat.
There was a large stove in the restaurant and Angelo had gone to fetch a load of wood that day, and since Eddy had begged to go with him, they had said goodbye to Percy the night before. When Angelo came home for dinner that night, he asked if Percy had sailed. When Gladys said he had, Angelo remarked, “I sure hope he has good weather. When it’s snowing, the sea is often the calmest so that’s a good thing, but it’s not the best time of the year to be on the ocean.”
“Thank heavens we have steamships now, and it doesn’t take weeks to get there,” Gladys replied. She knew she would have to tell Angelo about the tutor coming for Eddy, but she had a feeling he wasn’t going to like it. She waited until they were getting ready for bed before approaching the subject.
Trying to be as diplomatic as she could, she began, “Percy said James is a different man now, Angelo. I think he meant that he was much more understanding and tolerant than he used to be. Percy even said that he wouldn’t be surprised if James invited us to stay at Four Oaks when we go back to England.”
“That would be nice, but I wager I shan’t be included in that offer.”
“You never can tell. And Percy said that James still feels guilty for misjudging Eddy. He wants to make it up to him and has offered to pay for his education.”
“I hope you told him to tell James that I am Eddy’s father now and I intend to pay for everything he needs.”
“He knows you are his father, Angelo. That is why he is having Percy see that Eddy has your name. He just wants to do something to make up for his mistake. He asked Percy to hire a tutor for Eddy, and he has offered to pay for his higher education too, when it’s time.”
“You can write and tell him thank you, but I will be taking care of all that.”
“Percy has already hired a man. He is coming after Christmas every weekday morning for four hours.”
“He is not going to tutor my son, so you had better put a stop to it right now!”
“The twins had a tutor and I hear the public schools here are not that good.”
“They are good enough for my boy and I don’t want to hear any more about it!”
“Well, your boy can go to public school. My boy is going to have a tutor.”
“We shall see about that.”
Gladys and Angelo had promised each other they would never go to sleep without saying “I love you,” and they were determined to keep that promise, but the “I love you” they each said that night sounded more obligatory than loving.
This would be Angelo’s first Christmas with his son, and, although he knew Gladys’s enthusiasm was tempered by the absence of her daughters, he couldn’t contain himself. It was still two weeks away, but he wanted to put up a Christmas tree and decorate the apartment. Gladys told him the needles would all fall off before Christmas morning, so he reluctantly agreed to wait. He and Victor had bought a horse and wagon for the business and one week before Christmas they loaded it down with hay and blankets and both families went out to the woods behind the Ruttens’ farm to find their trees.
There was a small amount of snow on the ground and a sprinkle of it on the trees causing them to look as though they were already decorated. They sang carols all the way there, but when they left the wagon alongside the road and began looking for the trees, Victor looked up at the sky and warned the boys, “You will have to choose your trees in a hurry, boys. It looks like we could have more snow and Pr
ince could have trouble getting us home.”
“We will need a big one for Auntie’s parlour too,” Lottie reminded him.
“Can’t we get one for the restaurant too?” Gladys asked.
Victor said they would get one if they had time, otherwise they would have to settle for boughs as greenery. The boys ran ahead of the adults and when they found one they liked, they would call out “Over here. I found a dandy,” or “Here’s the perfect one, hurry, bring the axe!” Most times the trees they found were far too tall, but they finally selected ones the right size. Eddy insisted on trying to carry his out by himself, but when Gladys said he would spoil it by dragging it in the dirt, he allowed Angelo to help him. Victor chopped a large one down for the Ruttens, and Angelo chopped down a medium one for the restaurant.
Rosy-cheeked and boisterous, the three boys knocked at the Ruttens’ back door then hid behind the tree they were holding up and called out, “Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas!”
Bess opened the door and, having a good sense of humour, she threw her hands in the air and exclaimed, “Land’s sakes! It a talking tree! Now you stay right there, mister tree, ah’m going ta fetch Mrs Rutten. Ah wager she’s never laid eyes on a talkin’ tree before.” The boys couldn’t stifle their giggles and snickers, but Bess didn’t let on she heard them. She hurried away and came back with Theresa Rutten. “Look, missus, it’s a talkin’ tree, jist like I told you. Now what was it you all said, mister talkin’ tree?”
The boys called out, “Merry Christmas, Merry Christmas!” Then they stuck their heads out so Theresa could see them, and Paulo said, “It’s your Christmas tree, Auntie. Do you like it?”
Theresa was delighted and invited them all in for hot chocolate and cookies, but Victor insisted they leave, so the cookies were put in a bag for them to have on their way home.
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