Broad Street Goddesses

by Williams, DeAnna

  Flopped on the couch, Etta numbly flipped through the cable television line up. Not one thing worth watching. Pursing her lips, she shook her head and tossed the remote to the floor. A soft wrapping on the door snapped her out of her pity coma. She raised up, it might be Will coming to redeem himself.

  Paige stood at her door in khaki shorts and a plain white tank with a bottle of vodka in her hand. Etta opened up the screen door, grabbed the bottle and turned to the kitchen, “Thanks,” she called over her shoulder. “I was almost dry.”

  “You started without me…” Paige said lightly to hide the alarm she felt.

  “Well, I couldn’t find the damn corkscrew…” Etta slapped the counter with her open hand, “So I found something with a screw lid.” She fiddled with the top of Paige’s bottle and smiled when she found that the cork came out without a cork screw, “Finally something that makes sense around here…” Etta said as she poured herself another drink.

  “Clearly, the cranberry is for color only.” Paige was trying to read her friend’s face.

  “Clearly!” Etta’s affirmation was enthusiastic, “Which is the only fucking thing that’s clear to me these days.”

  “How about I make us something for dinner.”

  “Not hungry.” Etta blinked her eyes slowly, shook her head and swayed, trying to focus on Paige.

  “Oh, I think it’ll do you a world of good. Besides, I’m starving.”

  Paige opened up the fridge to see what would be quick and easy. They had an emergency situation on hand. She looked on the shelves. Yogurt, juice boxes, finger cheeses, all baby friendly foods. She flopped a bag of string cheese onto the counter and turned to get some crackers out of the pantry. Then Paige saw for the first time, really understood, what Etta had been doing. Three walls were completely gone, down to the studs, exposing her bedroom to the rest of the house. Etta, with intuition as her guide had ripped her precious house apart to accommodate a man and child that were obviously not here. Paige nodded to herself as if she understood and then turned back to Etta, who was fumbling with the cheese, unable to open it.

  “Let’s sit down over here and have something to eat.” Paige moved to the kitchen table and sat with her friend.

  ~

  “What have you done, Will?” Jake was standing over his friend, his brother on the bank of the creek.

  “I took my son fishing. The day got out of control and this, as you well know, where I come to think,” Will said. His eyes were straight ahead into the water of the creek. His jaw set in iron.

  “Don’t you dare ignore me, Bro,” Jake shoved his shoulder.

  “Come on Jake,” Will turned to make eye contact and pointed to Jon playing with rocks along the water’s edge, “Not now…. Not cool.”

  “What I really want to do is beat your self-important ass for what you’re doing to the family. Do you think beyond yourself at all? Has it occurred to you to ask Etta why she’s tearing her house apart?”

  “She’s always doing something goofy,” Will shrugged and stared back out into the water.

  “You sure can be a world class narcissistic ass.” Jake jerked his thumb towards town, “She’s creating a nest for your family. You know… the instant family that you sprung on her. The reason you left her holding her heart in her hands over a year ago without a word. You know, for the stripper you had a one night stand with and then a kid?”

  “You’re right.” Will looked solemn, “I’m an asshole.”

  Jake started to pace, “No, no no… That’s not going to fly, Will, you agree to just shut me up and then go about your business. I can’t believe what you’ve put those women through because you won’t open up and talk to them, tell them what’s going on in that self important head of yours.”

  “Fuck you, Jake,” Will was furious, but thoughtful, “I can’t stand to see the looks of pain on their faces!”

  “So you just don’t look at all!” He threw his arms out, “While you’re pursuing your martyrdom, we’re here trying to make sense out of all of it. I see it all. I’m the one picking up the pieces. Yeah, I’m talking about your mom too. She’s been beside herself; Etta could have withered and died for all you cared over the last year. And, here you are… wondering why anyone would be pissed off at you, golden boy.”

  “Why are you busting my balls?” Will yelled.

  “Because I love you, Brother,” Jake let his shoulders fall, “I love those women you are torturing. I don’t understand it. In your life you’ve been handed talent, good looks, charm and humor. You got it all. You are adored by everyone. But when things get tough you duck off alone. I’m telling you it leaves the rest of us scratching our heads. You are always here for us when we need you.” Jake moved around to face Will, “Who was there for me when my granddad died? Who was there for us when our grandmother went into a home and we needed a place to stay? You know better than this! We stand together. What makes this situation any different? Why is it so hard for you to accept help? You’re killing us!”

  “JON!” Will yelled out staring at the empty bank of the creek where he’d just been playing with rocks.

  ~

  “I thought I saw Will over here this morning,” Paige said, as she handed Etta a piece of string cheese.

  “He was here for a few…” Etta said around the cheese in her mouth, “He’s infuriating!”

  “I imagine he can be. Do you want to talk about it?”

  “Oh Paige…” Etta started, “I’ve fucked up my whole life! I should have never let him sleep with me. It seems like another lifetime ago.”

  “You two had a troubled year or so…”

  “I can live without a lover. But I cannot imagine my life without my friend. Will’s always been my best friend. He’s my life. Now I’ve gone and turned woman on him. Seriously, Paige, I used to laugh when he’d tell me stories about the women in his life getting so emotional on him. It made him crazy! He would describe scenes exactly like the one we had here this morning and tell me he left in a heartbeat, couldn’t stand the drama. He’d tell me it just wasn’t worth it. Now I’ve turned into that drama.” Etta’s head fell helplessly to the table top with a thud. Paige winced.

  “Well, you know I love your family… and the situation is complicated to say the least. But Etta,” Paige reached across the table to stoke her hair, “Have you considered for a moment that if Will’s had the same situation over and over, that he is obviously missing something?”

  “You mean I am not being a typical woman?” Etta snubbed.

  “Of course you’re a woman! Will just seems to bring out the worst in our gender at times I would say. It’s his pattern to be non-communicative.”

  “He’s not a bad guy, Paige…”

  “Of course he’s not, Honey! He’s in a bad spot and he’s overwhelmed. He’s hurting you and that’s intolerable to me. I have every right to be pissed off at him. Jake’s going to come unhinged when he hears about this.”

  “He already has.” Etta looked up through her hands, “He was here earlier. All I have to say is, I hope Will’s hiding out somewhere safe, because Jake was fuming when he left.”

  “He’s got every right.” Paige hesitated, “But it’s not going to help things if he uses Will as a punching bag.”

  “Oh God, Paige, what have I done?” Etta looked straight up into Paige’s eyes, “Something’s wrong.”

  “Yeah, something’s wrong…”

  “No, I mean really wrong… OH NO! It’s a panic.” Etta was out the door, mechanically moving down the street. Paige was confused and hoped it was not the alcohol making Etta act crazy. She followed her. Then Etta broke out into a run.

  ~

  Both men set out in different directions. Will sprang over the huge rocks along the edge, searching for his son downstream, yelling for him with every breath. “Oh my God… Jon… JON!” Will frantically scrambled over each rock in his way. Super human strength filled his lungs as he yelled again, “JON!” Buzzing in his head, nothing would come
into focus as he scanned the shore and water for his son.

  Jake went the opposite direction toward the covered bridge. Dodging trees, rocks and washes in his path, his eyes darted into every crevice as the panic built in his chest. It was close to dusk. He looked out over the water, dreading that he might see Will’s tiny little man floating, too late to save him. His heart stopped as his scan caught something bobbing in the water. It was white and red. “No…” he cried out in dread springing out into the chilled flow to find, not a baby, but a fast food bag floating by. He dismissed the pounding he felt in the ground as his own heart beating, but the heavy breathing sounds were not coming from him. He looked up just in time to see Etta fly over the edge of the creek like a wild woman. Jake said, “Jon… we’ve lost Jon.”

  “Up this way…” Etta moved quickly through the brush, whacking the weeds away with her hands as she squatted down to see things from Jon’s perspective. “He went this way...” She was like a hound dog on the trail weaving side to side. Stopping for a few seconds to fine tune her senses, then she’d push on, “He’s up this way, but he didn’t take the path.” Jake and Paige trailed behind her creating a wild eyed search crew. Light was growing dim. Paige felt the sting of tears working but willed them to stop. Jake pointed to a higher trail and they spread out.

  “I can feel him. He’s up here,” Etta yelled out, “under the bridge.”

  They followed the trail and rushed through all the obstacles to find they had risen above the creek by at least twenty five feet. It was a sheer rocky drop to the water from where they stood. Paige held her stomach before she looked over the edge. The water was rushing as it came over the rocks, “Oh no…”

  Jake was fast behind her and took her hand into his, “I’ll go.”

  Etta was up ahead about fifty feet at the covered bridge entrance looking down into the gully. She began sliding down the steep trail to the base where she was fixated on something. They followed behind her again.

  Will had turned to come upstream, which was against all logic to him. His intuition wouldn’t let him ignore the feeling. Darkness was falling. He’d scaled some huge boulders and spotted small little spaces where a baby could navigate through. He followed his heart, which was beating like a homing pigeon in his chest. He whispered to himself, “Home to my boy… where are you Jon?” It felt like a hundred miles when in fact it was only about three hundred yards. He followed the water’s edge almost to the covered bridge. He could see movement in the brush and rushed forward.

  A huge oak had fallen across the creek creating a solid barrier to where Will knew he’d find Jon. He spotted a crawl space underneath, but he wouldn’t fit. He grabbed limbs and scrambled over the top of the humongous tree in his path. What he saw as he landed on the other side of the tree fixed both of his feet to the ground. He was petrified to move an inch. Jon was forty feet ahead, crawling out onto a log in the violently rushing white water. If the baby fell in, he would be swept away and pummeled immediately. He couldn’t take his eyes off of Jon, but he could make out people coming down the trail toward the baby. Will moved forward with mental calculations of how he could walk in the water, up to Jon to prevent him from falling in. He was about thirty feet away when he realized the people coming down the hill were Etta, Jake and Paige. Etta reached the edge of the water first.

  Will held his breath that she didn’t bump the log or startle the baby. If either happened Jon would fall into the water. He planned for the worst and struggled into the rough and rushing water. He stopped at the path of least resistance, where he imagined Jon would flow if he fell in. He wasn’t sure Etta knew he was there, she hadn’t looked at him, she wouldn’t take her eyes off the baby. He didn’t want Jon to turn at his voice, so he stayed quiet.

  Gingerly, Etta approached the precariously perched baby on the log. Jon went from crawling to sitting on his padded behind. She didn’t make a sound, didn’t say a word. She didn’t want to startle him in any way. Jon was patting his hands making baby sing-song noises from the barnyard animal movie, oblivious to danger he was in. Her heart rocked at his innocence.

  Etta took in a steady breath and reached slowly for the back of his overalls. Jon looked around to see her and he smiled happily, “Ma!” he held up his hands and fell backwards into the rushing water. Etta screamed, “NO… Jon!” he slipped under the water’s surface. She dove over the log and into the water, feeling the denim of his overalls brush her hands and then rush away.

  Will had prepared a barricade which Jon could not pass through but he jumped out into even deeper water when he realized Jon had taken a different path. Will dove under the water to grab his son. For a moment he was confused and came up empty handed. Then he saw the top of his head bobbing. Jon was stuck in an eddy between himself and where Etta was trying desperately to get to Jon. It was Jake who jumped in and pulled the baby out. He was limp and blue, hanging over Jakes arm like a noodle. A site that paralyzed both Will and Etta.

  Paige took the baby from Jake, gently laid him on the ground and began pumping the water out of his lungs. Life guard certification from high school came back to her in a flash. Jon started to vomit and cough and breathe! When he reached for his father in a frightened cry, Will pulled his son to his heart and held him, crying into his tiny shoulder in a huge gush of relief.

  Will opened his eyes and looked at the dripping, frenzied, beautiful bunch of family surrounding him. Paige shaking and covered in baby vomit, Jake looking like a frightened wet dog and Etta, sweet Etta, with her hands over her heart, her eyes closed in a sacred moment of thanks. Instinctively he reached for her and pulled her into a hug with the baby between them. Etta reached for Paige, Paige reached for Jake and soon they were all huddled and shaking together.

  CHAPTER 28

  “Etta, you’ve got to put him down. The doctor said he’s fine.”

  Etta rocked Jon mesmerized by his baby soft breathing against her chest. How close they were to losing him in the water. The stone hard panic she felt when her feet started running down the street and then finally getting a clear image of what she had been pulled toward. When her intuition switched on like that there was no way to explain it to another rational human being. Her body just started to move until her mind got a clear picture of where she would be going. It was a nightmare she would never forget. Right now she couldn’t imagine anything more precious than holding Jon in her arms and watching the miracle of breath as he slept.

  “The crib is in the hall closet… can you set it up?” she whispered to Will.

  “It’s already done,” he motioned to the other room through the bare studs that used to be a wall. He took Jon out of her arms and then placed him in the crib. Etta trailed behind not wanting to let Jon out of her sight.

  Will turned and whispered, “All snuggly.”

  Her head fell against his shoulder and the warmth of his arms pulled her next to him.

  “I’m sorry,” he said softly against her ear.

  “Let’s talk in here,” She pulled him towards the kitchen.

  Trying to keep her hands busy, Etta clicked on the tea kettle and rested at the kitchen table.

  Placing her hands in her lap, she looked directly at Will. She’d know him her whole life, but the emotion on his face was a mystery to her. She continued to wait, staring straight into his face.

  He looked thoughtful before he spoke, “I’d sure like to know what you’re thinking right now.”

  She let out a snort-laugh, “Honestly?” She shook her head, “I’m thinking you’re not likely to bolt out the door and disappear with your son sleeping in the front room.” She placed her hands on the table and leaned forward, “So I better say everything now, while I have the opportunity”

  “I deserved that,” he nodded, tired and waiting for his licks.

  “I think we’re both raw and exhausted. Maybe this should wait.”

  “I think you should load up all of your misgivings and let me have it right now.” He tried to put on a brave face,
“Everyone else has… let her rip.” Will sat back in his chair folding his arms defensively, wiggling under the penetrating stare, he then letting his hands fall into the table top and leaned forward, exhausted.

  Etta reached across the table. His hands were warm under her cool touch, “I can live without you as my lover, Will, but I cannot live without you as my friend.”

  Will looked down at the floor and closed his eyes, “Wait…”

  “Wait for what Will? What is it that I’m waiting for?” Her voice had the squeal of frustration.

  “Let me start by saying that I’m… I’m sorry Etta.” His eyes were red rimmed when he looked back to her face, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about Darla when she called me here.” He slid his chair closer, “After the night we had…” He took both of her hands into his, “I mean, it took me a while to realize what happened. It was an amazing night… the best night I’ve ever had, actually. But you can’t even imagine how quick that memory got buried in San Francisco. The baby, then Darla, and then court… I didn’t know which end was up.”

  “Will, do you remember me going to school all those years?” Etta sarcasm bubbled up, “Well, I did graduate with a degree in family counseling. I could have helped. I’ve got an office and clients and everything. I’ve come to the harsh reality that you think you’re above it all. I would have been there with you every step of the way.”

  “I’ve pissed off the people who love me the most.” Will hung his head again, “How can I make it up to you, Etta?”

  “You can hold your head up and look me in the eye and tell me what we’re going to do now.” She said, her voice boldly rising, “And then I have a lot to tell you. If you’d stuck around this morning...” She looked back toward the sleeping baby.

  Will looked toward the front room, “Jon can sleep through a football game… he can handle a little family chat.”

  “Ok, it’s your turn. I’m planning my life, William.”