“Also while we are on the subject. Katie I need you to create a ‘build up’ sheet for the office supplies. That way when we are at the half way point it will be easier and more efficient to get them stocked once a week, instead of at the last minute because we did not plan ahead. If you need help doing this I will be glad to show you an example.” I can see her emotions run across her face. She should learn how to conceal them better.
“As a final aside Katie is responsible for taking care of the trash and I am certain that she would appreciate it if you would notify her when your cans need to be emptied. Any questions?”
The guys shook their heads. They had no idea what prompted this and just wanted to get to their work. That means the problem was only with Katie. Beverly was smiling so I guessed I was doing all right.
“Katie, please show me the ‘build up’ sheet by noon. Thank you.”
This hit her from left field. She didn’t know what to say. I knew she would stew all day. It would eat at her soul to have to submit anything to me for approval. Glad to hear it. Although she opened this dance, I am the one who ended up calling the tune.
Chapter Nine
I worry more about Bill every week. Some days Ann goes to his house to keeps him company. I visit often, even if it is just for a little while. He enjoys telling tales of his past and Ann and I enjoy listening to them. Beverly asked us to keep her updated on how he is doing. She cares too. I asked her why Bill’s family didn’t check up on him or seem care. She said the main problem with them is simply that they exist. Enough said about that.
Bill has been a stand-up guy all his life. Men like him are hard to find. We need to show we appreciate them. Speaking of men who need to be appreciated. Dave heard us speak about Bill often and wanted to meet him.
We suggested Dave should ‘stop by’ one day when he saw our cars out front. Bill was glad to meet him. But did put him on the spot when he looked him steadily in the eye and asked what Dave’s ‘intentions’ were towards me. Ann and I hurried to change the subject, but it is nice to have an older man care like that.
Rico also one day ‘happened to stop by’ and got along wonderfully with Bill. I think Bill believes Rico is Ann’s boyfriend. We neither confirmed nor denied, because the actual situation would probably bother him.
Finally the spring semester is over and I can shelf philosophy stuff for something important. On the down side I have to take a mandatory course in religion. I chose ‘religions of the world’. My thinking is that since this is a nine week course we will only be able to cover the high lights of each individual faith. At least that’s my theory. I do not want to get bogged down in theoretical theology. Especially with someone who could turn out to be a fanatic about things.
As a happy surprise I learned Ben’s wife is taking the same class with me this summer so I have somebody I know with me. This will be her last course until the baby comes. Truth be told she will cut her time close but because the course is mandatory she has to complete it.
My question is will it be over before, or after, she has the kid. I think women should support each other at times like these so I try to get there early and carry her books. She has enough of a strain just carrying her kid. (Better her than me.)
Ben’s notes helped me pass philosophy so I figure this is my way of paying him back.
Finally spring is here. Virginia will always be a northern state to me, no matter what the people here claim. When I went to see Bill I had another pleasant surprise. When I drove to Bills place I saw that the bushes were neatly trimmed and the walkway was edged. There was new red mulch where fresh flowers were planted. The lawn was mowed neatly. The clippings were bagged and on the curb ready for rubbish pick up.
I offered to mow his lawn several times during the past month but he refused saying it was men’s work to take care of the outside of the house. According to Bill “Ladies should only take care of the inside”. He also said that men should help there too. Old fashioned with a touch of class.
Usually he paid neighborhood kids to mow. Let’s just say that their work ethic and attentiveness to detail left something to be desired. There is no way that they could have done this job. Bill was sitting in his chair looking at his lawn and beaming with pure happiness.
When I walked up the drive he stood and gestured to the yard saying “Guess what happened.”
“Did your yard gnomes begin to earn their keep?” Bill had a couple of them near the tree out front and I always liked kidding him about them.
“Even better! Your fiancé and Ann’s boyfriend came by here first thing this morning. They brought their own tools and wouldn’t even let me pay for the gas.” He was so happy that I couldn’t bear to correct him on the fiancé comment.
“Wow.” That was all I could say at the moment. “Maybe I will have to cook a nice dinner for them tonight.” Which really means I am going stop by Taco Bell or somewhere similar.
“Both of them seem to be good men. A woman could do worse than them two boys.”
“I agree Bill, I agree.” Time to change the subject before he begins to make plans to give me away at a wedding. Although, come to think of it. Bill is the only older man in my life who could have a claim to “give me away.” Strange thought.
“Don’t wait too long. Time has a habit of slipping away from you.”
I managed to get him on the track of telling stories about this area when Phoebus was its own city. He grew up there when the nickname of the area was ‘Little Chicago’. Then he mentioned Mr. Kostas. That was a name I recognized.
“Do you mean the Mr. Kostas who owns Spartan Automotives?”
“Yes that’s him. Back after the war he was a real young fellow. He had a gas station and taxi stand near Mellon Street. There was a 24 hour crap game in the back room. If you ever wanted to find the Chief of police you would look for him there first.”
“Was he a friend of yours?”
“I don’t think he had many friends. Back then people didn’t like the Greeks much. Especially that snobbish Fox Hill bunch. Folks from that part of town always looked down on us ‘Phoebus Boys’, if you know what I mean.
Kostas fixed a car of mine a couple of times and did me right.” He paused to think for a minute. “I remember one so-called tough guy tried to cheat him on something once. No one wanted to say what happened but the tough guy up and disappeared one night. The next day his car showed up at Kostas’s gas station with a ‘for sale’ sign on it.”
I guess my instincts about him were right.
“The person you need to ask is Beverly. Her brother and fiancé were caught cheating folks and filing false paperwork and stuff. Word was that Kostas pulled strings somewhere and kept Beverly out of jail. Those other two tried to set Beverly up to take a fall for what they did, but she was too smart for that. They even came here one night and offered me money to change the dates on some of the things I had notarized for Beverly. They wanted me to help frame her.”
Whoa….How much of this do I really want to know?
He kept on talking, his eyes were looking at something that was both a long time ago and far away. “They threatened me and I told them to get out of my house. They were laughing until I pulled out the gun I keep in there.” He was pointing to the top drawer of a tool box he kept by his chair. “They quit laughing then. They ran away like the scared little cowards they were.”
He had a satisfied smile on his face when he was remembering this. I had no trouble believing that Bill wouldn’t back down from people he considered scoundrels. I only wished I could have seen it.
“What happened to them?”
“Last I heard they ran away to Canada, or Mexico, or someplace like that. Good riddance. Poor Beverly. She managed to pay everyone back they had cheated. It took a while and she bankrupted herself doing it. She had to start again from scratch. I am glad to see that she has people like you working
with her. The two of you are more alike than you know.”
“Bill, you have no idea what hearing that means to me.”
* * *
When I left his place Bill was still beaming at his yard with a pride of ownership that is rare these days. I took numerous pictures and sent them to Beverly so she could see that Bill was all right and happy. I even sent her photos of his garden gnomes. Dave wasn’t home when I got there so I went to see Ann and tell her about the yard. But nothing else about Beverly. Somethings don’t need to be shared.
We called Marie to see what we could bring over to her and Rico’s house warming party. Then told her in glowing details how much Rico’s work today meant to an old man. I also texted Dave to let him know he had done a wonderful thing today and I was thankful.
Early the next morning Bill passed away.
I always took a slightly longer way to drive to work so I could wave at Bill as he sat in his driveway reading the morning paper and drinking coffee. This time there was an ambulance and a couple of police cars there with their lights flashing. I pulled over and rushed up to them. They had Bill covered up on a gurney and were putting him in the back of the ambulance. I went to one of the officers claiming to be family and wanted to know what happened. The police officer was a woman. She could see the grief on my face and knew I wasn’t some nosey onlooker. She told me that Bill had walked outside and collapsed. When the neighbors saw him fall down in his driveway, they ran over to help but he was already gone.
I think this is the first time in my life I have ever come close to fainting. All I could see was black spots in front of my eyes. Then heard a rushing noise in my head. The police officer helped me sit on the curb and watched to make sure I was going to be all right. A medics came over but I waved him away, I needed time to process this.
People were talking to me but I couldn’t make sense of anything for a moment. Finally I snapped out of it. The police asked if I was going to lock everything up. They said they were finished. I hadn’t even seen the ambulance leave. I just nodded yes.
My legs felt numb as I slowly walked over to what Bill called his ‘Office Chair’. Not sure how long I sat there staring at nothing. I remembered hearing a ringing sound and thought someone should answer that.
Slowly I began to recognize sounds around me. I was aware of cars driving by and of the birds singing. I pulled out my phone and saw that I had several missed calls from Beverly and Ann. I guess it was my own phone’s ringing that I had heard.
First I called Beverly. She answered on the second ring and sounded irritated wanting to know where I was. When I told her what happened there was silence on the line. After a moment she said “I will be right over.” The catch in her voice echoed my emotions. I texted Ann and told her too. I wasn’t up to talking.
Guess I zoned out again because the next thing I knew both women were kneeling in front of me. Most people say if you cry and let out your grief then things will be all right. I saved my tears for later. Right now there were things that needed to be done.
I asked Ann to check inside to make sure the stove wasn’t on and to turn off everything in the house. She stared at me for a second then said “Okay” in a quiet voice.
Beverly was looking at me and when Ann walked away I simply asked “Do you need any of Bill’s records or ledgers? The ones your brother and fiancé wanted him to falsify.” This is probably the first time I have ever shocked her. She recovered well but it put it off her step for a minute.
“Yes. That would probably be a good idea.” Then she just stood there.
Standing up I looked at her “What time period would this cover? I know how he kept his records. After all he is the one who taught me how to be a Notary.” I was working to keep my voice calm and level.
Ann came back and said the house was secured. She watched me, wide eyed and taking everything in. She knew something was up.
Beverly told me the year and I went to the place inside the garage where they were kept. Finding the ledgers was easy. They were in chronological order. The problem was the one I wanted was missing. I looked at the shelf and studied it. There wasn’t an empty space that would show where it had been. Everything was neat and orderly so there hadn’t been a search, except my own. That means he had hidden it somewhere.
I stood there in the middle of his garage/office and slowly looked around me. Trying to think like Bill, what would he have done? The answer was obvious. I went to his tool box and opened the top drawer. It was right there underneath his old pistol. This is a man who would have fought to the death for his principles. The only way anybody was going to get this ledger from Bill was to fight for it. The other guys had recognized this in him. That’s why they ran.
Ann stood there quiet as a mouse, she knows we were going to have a long talk about this later, but not here and not now. I turned to Beverly and asked if she was going to call his family or should I. She got in touch with someone who said they would be there ‘in a bit’. Ann had tears running down her cheeks. I held her while she cried. My own eyes were dry. I knew if I started to cry right now I might not be able to stop.
It took two more hours but finally some shirt-tail cousin’s nephew showed up. He said he was in a hurry and didn’t want to miss any more work than he had to. I looked around casually at the toolbox but someone had moved the pistol. Good call on their part.
Beverly gave him a brief report on what happened. He didn’t seem to care. He was complaining that now he would probably have to throw all ‘of the old man’s junk’ out so the trash man could collect it tomorrow. Both Beverly and Ann stood between me and the man. Ann finally spoke up.
“If you are going to throw everything out can I have those yard gnomes?” she was pointing to the ones Bill had at the base of the tree in his front yard. “I always liked them and they remind me of him.”
“Yeah, sure. Just get that junk out of here.”
Ann went to get them. I could tell she had started crying again. Beverly guided me towards her car. I started to protest but she said I was in no shape to drive anywhere. She took me to my house, asked me for my keys and let me in. When Ann got there the two of them went to get my car. However Ann held on to my car keys that night. I didn’t even think until later but this was the first time I had missed a day of school. Somehow I didn’t care.
This was also the first time since I’ve known her that Ann called off work. She and I sat in the house, not talking. Just being together helped.
Beverly told the office staff and they avoided looking at me the next morning. Although to be fair Christopher did walk up to me and say “I am sorry for your loss. If there is anything I can do please let me know.” That was decent of him, from the other two – nothing.
Beverly called me into the office and closed the door so we could talk. She had been in touch with the family and found out there would be no services for Bill. He wasn’t religious and neither were they. He was going to be cremated and his ashes would be scattered out at sea. Not sure how I felt about that.
Then Beverly did something she had never done before. She came around her desk and hugged me. We held onto each other for a minute. We both loved that man. Then she pulled herself together to become the old Beverly again. She admonished me not to miss any more school then I had to. Bill had been very proud of my grades when I told him I was getting straight A’s. Keeping up at school is necessary. I realize that. But there is a hole now in my chest that feels like a part of me is gone. I guess I hadn’t realized how much he meant to me.
Beverly has not asked me how I knew about certain things, and I am never going to broach the subject. Growing up where I did taught me very well the old adage of ‘Silence is Golden’.
Dave and Rico are worried about Ann and me. What they did for him at the end may not have been that much to a lot of people, but it meant all the world to Bill. No matter where we all end up in life Dave and R
ico will always have a place in my heart because of it.
It is now the deeply humid part of summer. Thank God for A/C. Rico’s and Marie’s house warming party is Sunday. Ann is going to make them a strawberry cake. I offered to make a casserole but she tactfully said that it would probably be too much at one time and suggested I bring store bought ice cream instead. Probably a good idea.
I understand why Marie is nervous about having a lot of people over to her new home. It must be difficult for her to always worry about being judged and accepted by everyone. I only know two things about her. The first is that she is a fun person to hang with. She knows how to make people laugh and feel at ease. The second is that she makes Rico happy and that is all I need to know. Ann feels the same way too.
It is really more of an apartment warming than a house warming but the effect is the same. Your friends show up and everybody eats lots of food and drinks plenty of booze. Perfect.
Ann and I have a system where one of us can drink all they want while the other one doesn’t so she can drive home. Today was her turn to drive so Dave and I could relax and enjoy ourselves. It feels funny not to be obsessing over school but sometimes you just have to let go.
Watching Rico from across the room I thought he looked different somehow. It took a moment but I finally realized that he looked at ease and not tense. This is a new look for him and he wears it well. I made sure to point that out to Marie when I had the chance.
Marie, Ann and some of the other women were deep into a talk on the merits of various type of fabric for curtain liners. (I never even knew curtains had liners, much less that there were different types) I listened for a few minutes then slowly drifted in to where the guys were watching a show about a Mixed Martial Arts competition. They were comparing each fighter’s style and how they did things and using terms I couldn’t wrap my head around. I will admit it is fun watching them be so serious about something I think of as trivial. Cindy’s husband Phil asked me which one I thought would win the next match.
Opening the Door Page 15