Come at the King

by Sherilyn Decter

  “Bill? Are you here, Bill?” The wind carries his words. Feeling foolish, he turns away from the river to go up the hill.

  Standing on the ridge is his brother.

  Frank, astonished, and doubting his own eyes, stands still and stares. Bill raises his hand in salute. Frank starts to run toward him, driving his walking stick into the ground to keep his balance. “Bill. Wait. I’m coming.” He stumbles on the rough ground, falling to his knees. He looks up and is alone. His hands and knees are on the ground. “Billy. Wait for me. Please. Wait.”

  Chapter 41

  T hat evening, at supper, Maggie clears her throat to get everyone’s attention.

  “I have an announcement to make.” Everyone looks at her expectantly. “We’re going to get a new lodger for a few months who’ll be staying in the room off the kitchen—your old room, Dick. She’s moving in tomorrow and is going to be doing some light housework and cooking, probably the laundry as well, in exchange for room and board.”

  Archie and Dick share looks.

  “Oh, a girl. That’s neat. You won’t be the only one anymore, Mother,” Tommy says.

  “That’s true. It will be nice to have another woman around the house,” Maggie says, nodding.

  “Is she old, young?” “Where’s she from?” “What’s her name?” “Does she like cats?” “Is she a good cook?” The questions from Tommy come thick and fast.

  “You’re awfully quiet, Dick, Archie. What do you think of having a live-in housekeeper, of sorts?”

  “I’ve got used to it being just the four of us,” Archie says.

  “Somebody new is good, Arch. And Maggie needs a hand around here with the accounting business so busy. I’ll help her out anyway I can, Maggie. To make sure she feels at home,” Dick says.

  “I appreciate that, Dick, and hope that Archie and Tommy will also make her feel welcome.”

  “Of course we will, Mother. But you’ve not told us anything about her. Not even her name.”

  “Here’s what I know. Her name is Sadie. She’s in her early twenties. She’s from Philadelphia. I’ve been told she’s a very good cook. An excellent baker of breads and desserts. I imagine she’ll love your cat, Tommy. Dart is adorable,” Maggie says.

  With every pronouncement, they chatter. Maggie holds up her hand to get their attention again.

  “There are two things you should know. First, she’s Jewish.” The three faces stare at her, silent. Finally, Dick speaks.

  “What does that mean for us, Maggie? Will she work on Fridays?”

  “It means we’ll never get ham again,” says Archie. “And you can forget about bacon and eggs on the weekend.”

  “What’s the other thing, Mother?” Everyone braces. If Maggie leads off with the new tenant being Jewish, what was next?

  “She’s going to have a baby.”

  Archie and Dick sit silently, absorbing the news.

  Tommy looks from Archie to Dick to his Mother, surprised by the reaction. “Oh, that’s great, a baby. Isn’t that great? When will it be born? Can it stay in my room?” Tommy, an only child, is thrilled with the idea of a baby in the house.

  Her adult lodgers regard her solemnly. They are more familiar with the story of a young, pregnant girl showing up to cook and clean in a stranger’s house. Somewhere, there’s shame.

  “The baby will be born at the end of summer, in August.”

  * * * *

  Sunday morning, Henry holds Sadie close. She’s trying not to cry, but she clings to him desperately. “I’m going to miss you so much.”

  “I’ll see you all the time. That’s the great thing about going to Maggie’s. She’s close by.”

  “And she’s nice?”

  “One of the best. And she has a boy. So you’ll have a new family around you.”

  “Oh Henry, I don’t want to go.”

  Henry kisses the top of her head. “You told me you did. If you’ve changed your mind, I’ll call it off and you can stay here with me. I’ll let Maggie know myself, right now.”

  Sadie stares up at him, eyes and nose red from crying. “No. Don’t do that. I need to do this. I’ll be fine.”

  “You’re sure you don’t want me to drive you?”

  “No, I want to say goodbye here. Where no one can see.”

  The doorbell rings.

  “That’s Mickey. I asked him to drive you. He knows Maggie, and will make sure you get settled in.”

  * * * *

  The Duesenberg is parked in front of Maggie’s house. Mickey turns toward Sadie. “Okay, this is it. Nice house, eh?” Poor kid, looks scared out of her wits. What’s Henry thinking, not putting a ring on the girl’s finger right away?

  Sadie takes in the row house. There are flower pots on the wide veranda; they line the sidewalk as well. “It looks nice. It’s awfully close to Marshall Street, isn’t it? My folks live just off Marshall.”

  “You never have to go there. I’ll make sure Maggie understands. Come on. Let’s go meet her and get you settled in.”

  Together, they walk up the front step. A boy’s face peaks out the window and then disappears. The front door opens and Maggie is standing there, a welcome smile. Behind her, Tommy is grinning from ear to ear.

  “Hello, you must be Sadie. Please come in.” She gives Mickey a questioning look as he brings Sadie’s suitcase in. She’d been expecting Edith.

  “Where shall I put this?” Mickey asks.

  “I’ll take it, Mickey. I mean Mr. Duffy. Mother didn’t tell me you’d be the one dropping off Miss Bloom.” Tommy grabs at the handle.

  “How about you lead the way, sport, and we’ll let the ladies get acquainted.”

  Maggie listens to Tommy happily chatter all the way to the kitchen. He misses him. Maybe I was hasty laying down the law about them not seeing each other.

  “Let me take your coat, my dear, and I’ve got lemonade in the living room. I remember when I was carrying Tommy, I couldn’t drink coffee. Just the smell of it would set me off.”

  “I’m fine with coffee. But not cabbage. I can’t manage cabbage or onions.”

  “We don’t eat a lot of cabbage or onions, so you should be fine.” The two women chat on the sofa, comparing pregnancies, talking about babies. Maggie, desperate to ask about the father, doesn’t. The fact that Mickey brought her, does that mean anything? Why is Edith so interested?

  Tommy comes into the living room with Mickey following. “I put your case in the back room, Sadie. Nice place ya got here, Maggie.”

  “Mother made cookies. Would you like one, Mickey? They’re good.” Mickey laughs, ruffling Tommy’s hair. “I’m sure they are, Tom.” He sits down, and Tommy perches on the arm of the chair, almost on top of him.

  “Tommy, give the man some room,” Maggie says, smiling.

  “Oops, sorry.” He slides off and sits in the chair next to him. Frank is standing by the fireplace, also curious about the new member of the household.

  Maggie has another thought. If Mickey’s the father, that would make the baby related to the Inspector. Oh, my goodness.

  “Have you two known each other long?” Sadie asks, glancing between Mickey and Maggie.

  “I’ll say. What is it, Maggie, six-seven years? One of the fellas who used to work for me lived here. That was how Maggie and I first met. And there was another fella who used to live here I know real well. What was that copper’s name?”

  “That’s Joe Kelly, Mickey. He’s a detective now,” Tommy says.

  “Yup, Maggie and I go way back, don’t we?” Mickey winks.

  He must be feeling more like himself to be teasing me like this. “Why don’t we let the boys finish up the cookies and lemonade, Sadie, and I’ll show you the kitchen and your room. And where the bathroom is. There are stairs, I’m afraid.”

  “I’ll be fine, Mrs. Barnes.”

  “Please, everyone calls me Maggie.” And off they go to explore the women’s territory.

  Chapter 42

  M ickey comes in the fro
nt door, slamming it shut. Edith’s voice floats from the living room. “Did you get Sadie all settled in, Mickey?”

  “You wouldn’t believe the jerk that tried to cut me off on the turnpike. I almost drove him off the road to teach him a lesson.” Mickey comes into the living room and stops. Henry is sitting there.

  “Mercer. I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

  Henry gets up and goes over to shake Mickey’s hand. “Thanks for taking Sadie, Mickey. I really appreciate it. Getting her settled in and all.”

  Mickey ignores Henry’s gesture and goes to pour a splash of whiskey in a glass. “You drinking?” There’s almost a snarl in Mickey’s voice.

  Henry, puzzled, shakes his head. “Nah, Edith made coffee.”

  Edith is on high alert. This is the new-old Mickey, not her quiet, passive husband. Mickey, glass in hand, paces the room. “So, whaddaya think. Swell place, eh?”

  “It’s a beautiful home, Mickey.” Henry is picking up on the strange energy in the room as well.

  Mickey takes another long drink and goes back to the bar cart to top it up.

  “I dropped your girl off. Maggie will look after things. Saw the set up. Looks real nice.” Mickey finishes the second drink in a couple of quick swallows, banging his glass down on the table. He wipes his mouth with the back of his hand.

  Henry and Edith exchange glances.

  “I’ll leave you two to finish your tea party. I’m going upstairs,” Mickey says. He takes the stairs two at a time.

  Edith shrugs. “I have no idea what’s going on. Maybe the trip home set him off?”

  “He’s taking those drops the doc gave him?”

  “Every morning, in his orange juice.”

  “I don’t know, Edith. Something’s up. Maybe you should get him back to the doc or something. You can’t let this get any worse. Remember last time?”

  They can hear Mickey upstairs, banging around, slamming doors and drawers. He shouts down the stairs, “Edith, where’s my gun?”

  Edith stands, flustered. “Please wait. I’ll just go see what’s going on.”

  Henry sits, hands resting on his knees, a worried look on his face. This isn’t good at all. Don’t they say once burned, twice shy? I don’t want to have to deal with all this stuff again. I got out because I was sick of it. Mickey’s like a drowning man, and he’ll pull me under if I get involved again.

  He soon hears shouting, more banging. Mickey roaring. Maybe I should go? Edith’s got her hands full here. There’s more shouting, and then a loud crash.

  He stands to go and hears Edith cry out, “Mickey, no.” There’s a thud as something, or someone, hits the floor.

  Enough of this. Henry also takes the stairs two at a time. He pauses at the top, trying to get the lay of the land. Doors are open, a trail of garments strewn in the hallway. “Edith?” he calls. There’s silence.

  He peers into one room, which is torn apart. In the next room there are more emptied drawers, an overturned chair, and a lamp on the floor. “Mickey?”

  Henry finds Edith’s bedroom. Edith is on the floor, unconscious and bleeding. Mickey’s standing over her, fists clenched, shirt untucked, breathing heavily. His eyes are wild. “She wouldn’t tell me where my gun is. She musta hid it.”

  Henry has a flashback to the hallway at the Ritz the night that Mickey killed the two goons from AC. Mickey standing over their bodies, just like this. He holds his hands out to show Mickey they’re empty, and walks slowly into the room. “It’s just me, Mick. Henry. How ya doing, pal?” he says in low, soft tones. Mickey looks at him and then around the room. “Where is it, Henry? I need my gun.”

  “I don’t know, pal. How about I check on Edith here. You okay with that?”

  Mickey moves away, standing by the window. Henry kneels down. She has a pulse. Edith moans. Henry can sees she’s been knocked around, the head wound bleeding into her white carpet.

  “Edith, honey. Wake up. It’s Henry. Wake up, Edith.” He gives her a gentle shake, and then pats her hand. Her eyelids flutter and she moans again. “You’ve hit your head, doll.”

  She stares at him, eyes unfocused. “Mickey?”

  Henry looks up. Mickey is still at the window. “He’s here. Come on, let me help you up. I’m going to lay you in bed and get that head looked at.”

  Henry stands and helps Edith up, supporting her the few steps to the bed. He lowers her, and then swings her feet off the floor and onto the bed.

  “Mickey, where’s the bathroom? Can you bring me a cold cloth?” Henry asks.

  Mickey doesn’t answer, but goes through a doorway and returns with the cloth. Henry dabs at the cut. She’ll have a shiner tomorrow, but the head wound is slight. Just bleeding a lot. “You okay for a minute, Edith? I’m going to get you some ice.”

  “A steak. She should put a steak on it.” Mickey is speaking to no one in particular. Henry stands and grabs Mickey’s arm.

  “Come on, Mickey. Let’s go downstairs. Did you look for your gun down there?”

  As they leave the room, Henry looks back at Edith, who gives him a wan smile. She turns her head and closes her eyes.

  Downstairs in the kitchen, Henry puts Mickey in a kitchen chair and rummages for cloths and ice. “That housekeeper of yours around?”

  “Day off,” Mickey mumbles.

  “You got her number? She have a phone? Someone should sit with Edith.”

  “Why?”

  “Because of the knock on the head you gave her.”

  Henry looks at Mickey sitting there and shakes his head. This is why I left. He’s just as bad now as he was before. Is it my job to look after them both? I can’t have my child raised next door to this crazy man.

  “Wait here. I’ll just take this ice up to Edith.” He is holding a bowl with ice wrapped in a dish cloth.

  Mickey sits, doesn’t respond. Just stares at the floor.

  Henry goes back upstairs. Edith is awake but groggy. She gives him Hilda’s telephone number.

  When he comes down to make the call, Mickey’s gone, and so is his car. Thank god he never found his gun.

  Chapter 43

  M aggie stands on the veranda waving goodbye as Ron pulls away. It’s Monday. Tommy had come to the office after school, and Ron has run Maggie and Tommy home. Tommy’s already gone inside, leaving the front door open. Manners.

  Maggie smells chicken. Roast chicken and apples? Lovely. Maggie puts her coat and hat on the hook and follows her nose into the kitchen.

  Sadie is standing by the stove, apron on, stirring the gravy. Dick is sitting at the kitchen table, supervising. Tommy stands shyly in the doorway to the dining room.

  “It smells delicious, Sadie. A lovely way to come home after a busy day.”

  “Just a roast chicken. I put apples and herbs in the stuffing. I hope it tastes all right.”

  “How was your first day?” Maggie says, taking down the plates from the cupboard. “Here, Tommy, why don’t you set the table?”

  “Oh, I can do that. I meant to have it done before everyone got home,” Sadie says, turning away from the gravy.

  “Don’t worry about it, Sadie. Tommy is very good at setting tables, and clearing them, too,” Maggie says.

  Sadie goes back to stirring, watching for lumps. “Next time, I’ll be more organized. Everything today took a bit longer than I was expecting, not knowing where things are. I think it went well. I got a bit of dusting done, and popped down to a grocery store. Howard’s is it? I decided to make something special for supper, seeing it was my first day and all. I even did a bit of baking for dessert.”

  “I see you’ve met Dick. Is Archie home?”

  “I heard someone come in around four o’clock and go straight upstairs.”

  “That’ll be Archie. He’s grumpy, but basically a good guy.” Dick snorts.

  “Now that everyone is here, I’ll get dinner on the table.” Sadie stoops down to lift the roaster out of the oven.

  “Here, let me do that,” Dick say, jump
ing up. Maggie smirks. Men and babies. Dick hovering and Archie hiding. Typical.