by Tolsma, Liz;
“You preyed on her in her weakest moment.”
As she came to her feet, color rose from her neck and suffused her face. “I don’t care for what you’re insinuating.”
He worked to keep his breathing steady and even. “My heart goes out to the woman.”
“Feelings are for weaklings. In this business, you learn how to be calloused and jaded. Otherwise, the things you’re forced to do, like separating children from their mothers, would be too painful. You’re too invested in Mrs. Dowd’s case. What is it? Do you fancy her?”
Fancy her? No. The stirrings in his heart were nothing more than compassion for his fellow human being, a vulnerable woman with no one to watch out for her or to help her. “You took advantage of her.”
“Beware of the accusations you are leveling, Mr. Vance.” Her nostrils flared. “They could land you in serious trouble.” She rounded the desk as he backed against the wall. “You like your life now, don’t you? And you don’t want to lose the luxuries you enjoy. Your spacious home. Your Packard automobile. Your tailored suits.”
The very same words Mrs. Dowd had used against him. After coming from such humble beginnings, where a chicken on the table on Sunday was an unheard-of feast, his living quarters, his car, his clothes were nice. Very nice.
His father’s shouts and his mother’s screams rattled in his mind. Hadn’t he longed to be delivered from that situation? “All I’m saying is that I believe Mrs. Dowd was a loving mother in a bad position. One who deserved a little time to learn how to provide for herself and her daughter.”
Beet-red took on a whole new meaning in comparison to Tann’s face. “And now you are a licensed social worker? Thank you for enlightening me on how to do my job. The state of Tennessee believes I’m capable of making these decisions.” She jabbed herself in the chest. “Me not you. And what about the child? Isn’t that who should be foremost in this situation? Was it fair to make her live without a loving family while her mother may or may not be able to get a full-time job and suitable living arrangements?”
“She should never have been removed from the home in the first place.” He almost gasped as the words passed his lips.
“You have no right to question what I do. I control your destiny, Mr. Vance. I made you what you are. I can ruin you. Is that what you want?” She reached for her telephone.
“Who are you calling?”
She twisted her lips into a smug smile and gave an almost imperceptible nod. “Miss Stewart, would you please get the Tennessee Bar on the phone for me?”
Percy stepped closer to Tann and raised his voice. “What are you doing?”
“Thank you. I’ll hold.”
“Why are you calling the bar?” His tongue went dry.
She covered the mouthpiece. “It has come to my attention that you are engaging in some rather unethical practices, sir.”
“Unethical practices?”
“Yes. You take cases that are clearly conflicts of interest, you’ve been known to accept bribes, and there’s the matter of that tryst between you and one of your clients.”
“Tryst!” Percy fought to control his words. “You wouldn’t dare. You can’t substantiate any of it.”
“Oh, but I can.”
“How?”
She tipped her head.
Oh, by whomever she paid off.
She clutched the phone to her large bosom. “Back off, Mr. Vance. Do your job and nothing more, or I will notify the bar. Have nothing more to do with Mrs. Dowd or her daughter.”
With a single call, she could ruin him forever. He’d never again practice law in this state or any other. He’d lose everything. He held up his hands. “Fine. You win. I’ll drop it. We won’t speak of it anymore.”
She returned the receiver to its cradle. “Good choice, Mr. Vance.”
He left the office a whipped puppy with his tail between his legs.
Had he just sold his soul to the devil?
“Momma, Momma.”
Darkness enveloped Cecile. Not a single sliver of light pierced the heavy blackness. But Millie’s voice resonated loud and clear. Despite the tightness in her chest, Cecile answered, “I’m here, Millie Mae. Momma is here. I’ll never leave you.”
“Momma, I can’t see you.”
She couldn’t see Millie, either. Where was she? Cecile screamed, “Here! In front of you!”
“But it’s so dark.”
“I know. I can’t see you. But I’m here. Reach out. I’ll find you.” Please, God, let me find her. The blackness threatened to consume her.
“Where are you?”
Blood pounded in Cecile’s ears. She had to locate her child. Had to help her. “Just grab for me. I’ll get you.”
“You’re not here!”
Millie’s cries tore a hole in Cecile’s heart. “I am, sweetie, I am.” Though she gestured high and low, she couldn’t touch Millie. Where was she? Dear God, where was she?
“They’re hurting me, Momma. Make them stop. Please! Help! Help!”
Cecile awoke with a jerk, sitting straight up in bed. Though a blanket of blackness covered the bedroom, a thin stream of moonlight filtered through the window overlooking the alley. She wiped a band of sweat from her forehead. Beside her rumpled mattress, the little alarm clock ticked away the seconds. Quite a number of them passed before her heart’s rhythm slowed to match that of the clock.
She threw aside the bedsheets and padded barefoot through the thin stream of moonlight, across the tiny room to the crib in the corner. Millie had been too big for it when she’d been here, but it had been a godsend when she’d been nursing Nathaniel in his final days, before Millie learned how to climb out.
She picked up Millie’s little pillow and held it to her nose. The lingering scent of talcum powder and baby shampoo filled her nostrils. Was there anything sweeter than the smell of a child?
Millie should be here. She should be sleeping in the big bed beside her.
The dream was so strange. Had it meant something? Was Millie trying to tell her that she was in danger? Being harmed?
Cecile flipped on the kitchen light and glanced at the clock on the wall. Four o’clock. She was wide awake. There was no point in going back to sleep. Even if there was, she wouldn’t. If she closed her eyes, the nightmares would start again as they had every evening for the past week.
Instead, she brewed herself a cup of strong, black coffee and sat at the little table and sipped it. She fingered the satin ribbon at her wrist, and for a moment, her daughter was nearer. Almost a physical presence. “When, Lord, when are You going to restore her to me? I beg You to give me back my daughter.”
The silence of the empty apartment was her answer. All that long, long day, though the laughter of small children circled her like a hug, the dream haunted her. Where was Millie? Her heart crushed. What if someone was hurting her? Her poor, poor baby.
Cecile should have demanded Miss Tann return Millie. Done her bodily harm if necessary. No matter what the consequences. Well, she would remedy that.
Today, because she had come into work early, she left the school by three o’clock. On a normal day, she would take care of her laundry and grocery shopping but not today. No, an invisible force, strong, compelling, unable to be ignored, pulled her to the Tennessee Children’s Home Society offices.
This time, she didn’t stop to admire the building’s impressive facade. She didn’t allow the butterflies to infest her stomach. She didn’t think at all. Instead, she marched right inside the building, up the stairs so she wouldn’t have to speak to the elevator operator, and straight to Miss Tann’s office.
When she entered, the much-too-cheery secretary peered up from her paperwork. “Can I help you?”
“I’m here to speak to Miss Tann. About my daughter.”
The slender young woman pushed her chair back to stand then hesitated. “Wait a minute. I remember you. Mrs. Dowd, right?”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry, but Miss Tann isn’t i
n the office at the moment.”
From beyond the inner door came the slamming of a drawer. “Don’t fib. She’s here, and I will see her.”
“She’s with someone now and has a full itinerary for the rest of the day. I can schedule an appointment next week if you’d like.”
Cecile stood straighter and aimed her narrow gaze at Miss Stewart. “No, I don’t want one next week. I will speak to Miss Tann. Today. Right now, in fact.” Her pulse pounded in her neck. Cecile stomped toward the office.
Miss Stewart moved in front of her and blocked the door, arms and legs splayed. “I cannot allow you in there.”
“Help me, Momma.”
Millie’s pleas from the dream propelled Cecile forward. “Out of my way.” She growled like a lioness about to spring on her prey.
“I will call security.”
Just like at Judge Kelley’s office. Fine. Let her ring them. Cecile could speak fast. With a single thrust, she shoved the secretary to the side and burst into the office.
Miss Tann, in a gray tailored shirt, sat behind her desk. Mr. Vance stood beside her, a sheaf of papers in his hand.
“Get her out of here.” Miss Tann pointed a crooked finger at Miss Stewart.
Cecile lengthened her spine and raised her chin. “No need. This won’t take long. Tell me where my daughter is. Now. Or I will turn this place upside down to find the file.”
Miss Tann honeyed her voice. “Have a seat, Mrs. Dowd. Miss Stewart, please leave us and hold off on that phone call.” She returned her attention to Cecile. “Now, what can I do for you?” Like a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
At the change in disposition, Cecile lost a bit of her wind. “My daughter. Millicent Mae Dowd.”
Mr. Vance stood by, silent.
“Mrs. Dowd, do you remember the conditions in which we found your living quarters the day we took custody of Millie?”
Yes, all too well. “Those weren’t my usual circumstances.”
“Do you have a new place of residence?”
She shook her head.
“And what about your job? Will you have the energy to care for such a demanding child after your shift?”
Would she? Even now, her feet throbbed inside her white T-strap shoes.
“If Millie were returned to you, how would you manage to care for her? Children are so energetic. And she is a rambunctious, wild child, into everything, never giving you a moment’s peace.”
“But she’ll learn. Grow up.”
Mr. Vance swallowed hard but didn’t come to her defense. Not that she expected him to.
“When you had a husband, you weren’t able to see to her needs. What makes you think now that you’re on your own, you’ll be able to do any better?”
Hadn’t she been a good mother to Millie? Maybe not. Millie was full of mischief and into everything. Scolding her or spanking her was difficult for Cecile. Especially once she’d lost Nathaniel’s guidance. Maybe it would be too much for her. Perhaps Millie was better off without her.
Chapter Seven
Percy paced between the headstones in Elmwood Cemetery in the dying daylight. Mist and fog cloaked the crooked, chipped, and weather-worn headstones. Moss covered many of them.
In a tree above him, a screech owl screamed. Off in the distance, its mate answered. Despite the cloying humidity, Percy’s flesh broke out in goose pimples. The half-dead tree branches stood as skeletons against the pale pink sky. The rancid taste of death lingered on his tongue.
Though he had struggled to put Cecile out of his mind and get some sleep last night, it proved impossible. Her story, her pain, her desperation to find her daughter resonated with him. Drove him to ask her to meet him in this place today. Despite Tann’s threats.
Perhaps this wasn’t the best choice of sites to meet Cecile. When he’d sent the note, he’d only thought of privacy, somewhere Tann was sure not to see them together. But he could have picked a jazz club on the edge of town.
Instead, here he paced in front of Kit Dalton’s grave. Everyone in Memphis knew the famous outlaw’s final resting place. The man had ridden with Frank and Jesse James. Five governors had once put a price of $50,000 on his head.
He turned from the marker. He didn’t have any assurance Cecile would even show up. Because of his association with the Tennessee Children’s Home Society, she had no reason to trust him. That much, she’d made clear. And judging from the glares she shot him yesterday in Tann’s office, she hadn’t forgotten.
Why was he even here? He must be a dog who liked to be kicked. Probably why he still worked for Tann.
But then an image of Cecile’s countenance that day in Overton Park flashed in front of his eyes like a picture show. Her round face, deep-set eyes, and sweet, almost innocent mouth. And the tears streaming down her face, those tears that brought out a side of him he thought extinct after the death of his sister. Or maybe it had been there all along but lay dormant to protect himself from the pain of losing Tenny. Hard enough as it was to lose a sibling, the pain must be magnified a hundred-fold to lose a child. And in such a manner. No wonder Cecile was frantic. He couldn’t allow a mother and child to be separated from one another for no good reason.
Through the gloom, there she came, her gray dress blending in with the lead-colored markers, her brown purse swinging by her side, the veil on her black hat pulled over her eyes.
He gulped. Never in his life had he seen such a beautiful woman, one who stirred him deep inside. He shook his head. No, she was his client. Nothing more. If he allowed himself to become involved with her, it would complicate the case. Muddy relationships that should be well defined. And give Tann all the ammunition she required to place that call to the Tennessee Bar.
He waved at her. She frowned. No worry about a relationship between them. She couldn’t stand the sight of him. That much was clear.
“Mrs. Dowd. I’m glad you came.”
She approached him then stopped short as if afraid to get too close. “Seems a fitting place for you. Did Miss Tann arrange this?”
“No, she doesn’t know I’m here. If she did, I would lose my job and my law license.”
“Then why did you ask to meet me?”
“Since your visit to the office yesterday, I’ve been contemplating you and your plight.”
“Oh yes, my plight. Well, Mr. Vance, I’ll have you know that I’ve given up. I have no husband, and when I did have one, I wasn’t a very good mother. Besides, I thought you didn’t believe me.”
“No one said you weren’t a good mother.”
She gave a half-chuckle. “They didn’t? Weren’t you in the same room yesterday?”
“You were, are, in a difficult situation.”
“And perhaps Mrs. Ward and Miss Tann were correct. Maybe removing Millie from my care was best for her. Might still be best for her.”
Why this sudden switch in her thinking? Yesterday, she’d been ready to storm the Bastille for Millie. Today, she’d called off the search. “Please, don’t stop seeking her.”
“And if I do locate her, how will I raise her? I have very little money, time, or energy to devote to her. Maybe she deserves a better home, one where she can wear lacy dresses, play with a multitude of toys, and attend the best private schools.”
“Those are Miss Tann’s words.”
Tears formed in the corners of her seafoam-green eyes, and she turned her head. “I’m tired, Mr. Vance, and scared. Frightened that I’ll never find my daughter and that, if I do, she won’t love me anymore.”
“You were her world. I saw that the day we took her. She screamed and fought with a strength I didn’t know children possess.”
She turned to him again, a smile crossing her face, and in it, he caught a certain radiance. One that had his heart tripping over itself. He shook his head. Had to stop this nonsense. “She’ll never forget you. Don’t forget about her.”
“I could never forget her funny laugh, her silken hair, the feel of her soft body in my arms.”
; “Fight for her with the strength she fought for you.” Why did he push the matter? In the long run, it would be better to let the situation alone. His involvement was risky at best.
But Tenny had not given up on him. He couldn’t allow Cecile to give up on Millie.
Cecile hugged herself. “She is a handful. You never knew my Nathaniel. He possessed boundless energy, a dreamer always on the move, could never sit still, always had something to do, somewhere to be. Millie reminds me so much of him. I have to do what he would agree is best for her.”
“Would he say that living without you was the right thing to do?”
She shrugged, her mouth working up and down. “How am I supposed to know what that is?”
“Were you managing before?”
“Yes. Barely.”
“Do you love her?”
“With all my heart.”
“I can help you bring her home.”
“And then what? How do I raise her?”
“With all the love you can give her. You, the woman who gave her life.”
A cloud passed over her face, snuffing out the light. “You operate under Miss Tann’s thumb. If I search for Millie, how do I know you won’t block me at every turn?”
“Would I be here if I didn’t mean to help you? I wasn’t kidding when I said I could lose my livelihood.”
She rubbed her forearms. “Then why do you want to help me?”
He couldn’t relive that pain. The pain he’d labored so hard to dull, to leave in the past where it belonged, untouched, forgotten, nonexistent. “Let’s just say I can’t stand to see little ones hurt. Every child deserves happiness.”
She parted her lips. “Do you have information that Millie is in danger? That her adoptive parents are cruel?”
“No, no, that’s not what I meant. My apologies if I alarmed you. I just meant that …” He couldn’t explain without touching that very tender place inside. “That Millie deserves to be with the mother who loves her.”
She touched his arm, her fingers light against his suit coat. “Thank you.” Some of the hard lines around her eyes softened, and her mouth relaxed.