The House of Eve, page 15
White-gloved waiters strolled the room, clutching silver trays containing champagne, crisp wine and succulent seafood hors d’oeuvres on toothpicks. Rose and William Pride Senior stood in the middle of two couples. Rose, as usual, was dressed in a silky one-of-a-kind frock, dripping with heavy diamonds and strings of pearls.
“William, darling, you remember Judge Mosley and his lovely wife? Their daughter, Beatrice, was a debutante at the alumni ball you went to in eleventh grade.” Rose gestured for William to join their circle.
“Good to see you again,” William said. “This is my wife, Eleanor.”
William Senior added, “And today is their one-year anniversary. Congratulations.” He raised his glass to them, and the Mosleys did the same.
“They are expecting their first child,” Rose offered, and Eleanor noticed that her glass rested at half-mast.
“You must be so excited,” Mrs. Mosley cooed, her gray hair bouncing against her shoulders. “Are you hoping for a boy or a girl?”
“Just a healthy baby” was Eleanor’s standard answer.
“Well, may God bless you.” The woman patted Eleanor’s elbow.
“Oh, William dear, come with me. I want you to meet someone,” Rose insisted before ushering William away and leaving Eleanor to fend for herself.
Alone, Eleanor made her way to her assigned table, where she sat and watched as the who’s who of Washington, D.C., swarmed around each other. They buzzed with laughter, showing off brand-new suits, frocks, expensive jewelry and hats. She overheard chatter about new cars parked outside, and the summer homes on Martha’s Vineyard and Sag Harbor that would take them far from the hot city’s reach for the months of July and August. Eleanor longed for a familiar face, someone to pass the time with, but there was no one, and she recalled Greta’s long-ago threat:
You aren’t one of us. You will never fit in anywhere. I’ll make sure of it.
In her first year of marriage to William, Eleanor had not made a single friend at these exclusive events. A few hellos and quick goodbyes, but nothing substantial. There were no invitations to tea, or baby showers, or lunch that she could grab onto. But with her baby growing inside of her, she could only hope that things would change. She moved her fingers in soothing circles under the table, reminding herself that she was never truly alone.
This one had to be the charm.
Eleanor and William had waited until after the wedding and honeymoon to tell his parents that she had lost their first child together at ten weeks. Rose gave her deepest condolences, but once she thought Eleanor to be out of earshot, she told William how she really felt.
“Perhaps we should get the marriage annulled and fix this whole mess,” Rose Pride admonished him.
“Mother, there is nothing to fix.”
“If she’s not having your child, then what’s the point?”
“The point is that I love her, and I need you to accept that.”
“She doesn’t fit.”
“We fit just fine. I made a vow before God that I intend to keep. Now, drop it.”
Eleanor didn’t want to get caught eavesdropping while she stood just outside Rose Pride’s den. When she turned to back away, one of the servants stood sweeping the floor behind her. She had heard the outburst, too, and offered Eleanor tight lips before fixing her eyes on the imaginary dust on her broom.
Rose was never outwardly rude to Eleanor. After all, control was her strong suit. When Eleanor became pregnant the second time, Rose hired a housekeeper to clean behind them once a week. She insisted that Eleanor give up her beloved job at the library, and even wanted her to pause her education, but Eleanor refused to give in to the latter. Her mother had worked too hard selling her baked goods to get her to Howard. Eleanor owed her a degree. To accommodate her new life, she had arranged all her classes on Monday, Wednesday and Friday to cut down on how often she needed to travel to campus, and then pushed on. She would finish the semester after the baby was born, but she would finish.
The sound of glass shattering pulled Eleanor’s attention back into the room. A dark-skinned man with large eyes was apologizing profusely as he stooped to pick up a flute that had tipped from his tray to the floor. Eleanor looked for William and spotted him in the center of the room, standing in a circle with Greta Hepburn, her parents and his parents. Greta was chuckling, then put her ringless hand on William’s arm as a pretense of steadying herself. Even from where Eleanor sat, she saw Rose’s face brighten in Greta’s presence. Greta was the daughter-in-law that Rose had wanted, and to Eleanor it felt like she was waiting in the wings for Eleanor to slip up.
She pinched her thigh in order to keep herself from imagining what Greta and William’s life would have been like together, had William not met her, had she not gotten pregnant, had he not done the right thing by her, but she forced herself to let that nagging thought go. She flipped over her new watch and read the inscription again.
Our time is for eternity,
Love WP
When she glanced back up, William looked across the room and winked at her. The five-piece band had taken the stage, and the music played a steady upbeat rhythm as he moved toward her.
“Mrs. Pride, may I have this dance?”
Eleanor giggled despite herself and allowed her husband to spin her body across the dance floor. She nestled her face in his neck and whispered, “I love you.”
* * *
They had barely made it through the door before William found the zipper at the back of her neck and tore her frock from her. The stairs to their bedroom would take too long, so they found their way to the living room. Pressed against the settee, William parted her thighs and sank into her flesh. They arched, clawed and moved against each other with the ache of that first-year fever that just never seemed to flicker out.
“Happy anniversary,” William gasped, then collapsed against her breasts.
“Did I hurt the baby?” he asked, with his chest poked out.
Eleanor rolled her eyes playfully. “Always fishing for a compliment.”
“You know I aim to please.” He kissed her cheek.
“Well, accomplished.” She retrieved her panties from the floor. “But our little girl is famished.”
William stood naked in the dark living room. A sliver of moonlight caught the twinkle in his eyes. “Peanut butter and jelly sandwich coming right up.”
It had become Eleanor’s favorite midnight snack, and as William fumbled around in the kitchen, she licked her lips and thought, once again, how lucky she was.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN HEAVEN HELP
Ruby
Aunt Marie had consulted with her “girls” at Kiki’s and came home with several ideas to help me. Janice, who spun the 78 records on the jukebox, sent me a thermos of potent herbs that I was instructed to drink in one sitting. The concoction was meant to force a miscarriage, but instead I got the runs. Paulie from behind the bar recommended a scalding-hot bath that did nothing more than scorch my skin and kink up my hair. For three days straight, I had swallowed quinine, an anti-parasite pill courtesy of Sweetie Pie from the fry station, and I was in the middle of throwing my guts up when Shimmy knocked on the door. I dragged myself to open it.
He took one look at my blood-drained face and puffy eyes. “What’s wrong?”
I couldn’t look at him. My plan was to take care of this on my own, not burden him with it. Shimmy had enough going on keeping up with his college work and running back here on the weekends to help out his family.
“What can I do?” He touched my arms. “Do you need something from the pharmacy?”
A wave of nausea came over me and I reached for my knees. I wished that a few drops of Mercurochrome from M.D. Pharmacy on Columbia Avenue would make it all go away. If only it were that simple.
“I’m… pregnant,” I whispered, fighting the sting in my eyes. It seemed that all I did these days was cry and feel bad.
“What?” Shimmy’s voice cracked. “You’re what?”
“You heard me.” I glanced up, and his face had gone pasty white.
He started running his hands through his hair, something I had noticed he did when he was nervous, but I had no energy to comfort him. I walked hunched over to the couch.
“I’ve been trying to get rid of it, but nothing works.”
“How could you’ve let this happen?” Anger rushed his words.
“Me?” I shouted. “Please stop acting like you weren’t there.”
Shimmy sank onto the sofa next to me and dropped his head in his hands. “My mother is going to kill me.”
“Well, my chances of becoming anything but a maid are out the window. I’ll have to kiss Cheyney goodbye.” My voice quivered with frustration. I had ended up just like Inez after all.
Shimmy sat next to me as still as a statue, and I wanted to reach over and shake him. I didn’t know what to expect now that he knew the truth about my situation. My heart wanted to believe that we were in this together, but Inez’s story made me painfully aware of how easy it was for men to just walk away. My father jumped town, and he was the same color as me. I could expect even less from a white boy.
“But you don’t have to concern yourself. This is my problem and I’ll handle it,” I said. “You should go.”
Shimmy turned toward me. “Ruby, I’m not leaving you to handle this alone. What kind of person do you think I am?”
Comfort washed over me as he put his arm around my shoulders and embraced me. I blinked back the tears and offered hoarsely, “Aunt Marie’s working on another lead in Delaware. She’ll let me know tonight. I’m sorry, Shimmy.”
“Like you said, I was there, too.” He pressed his forehead against mine. “We’ll get through it.” Then he stood abruptly. “I hate to leave you like this but I gotta run.”
“So soon?”
Now that everything was out in the open with him, I didn’t want to be alone, and hated the desperate sound of my voice. I was afraid that if he left, he’d never come back.
“My pop is in the hospital. His legs swelled up really bad and the doctor said something’s wrong with his liver.”
“How long will you be around?”
“I don’t know. Ma is falling apart, and the kids need me.”
I needed him.
“I’ll call you as soon as I can.” He leaned down and pecked me on the cheek.
After a few minutes passed, I stood and locked the apartment door. I searched for something to soothe me, so I put on my apron and started to paint. I needed to disappear into Ruby Red’s World, my personal sanctuary where I had control of everything, and stay there. Forever.
* * *
Aunt Marie, Fatty and I had worked out a schedule to care for my grandma Nene. Since I was on break from We Rise for the summer, my Saturdays were free to help out more.
“ ’Bout time you got here,” Fatty said, meeting me at the door, repositioning her pageboy wig.
“What you talking about, you ain’t even got to work today.”
“Still got things to do. Running to the avenue to do some shopping and then I’m meeting a friend for a drink. Be back this evening.” Fatty grabbed her purse, dropped in a tube of lipstick and was out the door.
The kitchen sink reeked from the overflowing dishes, and the trash smelled of musty collard greens. Even though it burned me up when Fatty left her mess for me to clean, there was a comfort in being back in the apartment where I’d spent the first eight years of my life. It was only a two-bedroom, and I had shared the back room with Fatty.
I crushed a cockroach with my shoe and made my way to Nene’s room. She was in her rocking chair, padded with three pillows so it would be easy for her to get up. Her curtains were pushed open, and I could see the paint-chipped houses across the street and their rusted gutters.
“That you, sweetness?” Nene called to me.
“Mm-hmm. How you feeling today?”
“Oh, just dandy.”
She had her family quilt pulled over her lap even though it was hot. Her nightgown was worn thin, but she insisted on one of us washing it by hand so that she could wear it daily. During the day, she perched sunglasses up over her nose, which I didn’t understand since she couldn’t see. A baseball game crackled from her rickety radio, and I reached over and fumbled with the dial.
“Gon’ fix my hair?”
“I can. Let me get the comb and grease.” I pulled out the right-side drawer where she kept her bobby pins, hair combs, oils and supplies. Nene had a slight smile fastened to her face as she listened to the game. I stood behind her and she rested her head against my belly as I raked the comb through her white brittle hair.
“Hot damn.” Nene clapped her hands together. Ernie Banks of the Kansas City Monarchs hit a home run with the bases loaded.
The window was propped open with an old two-by-four, and a steady breeze caressed my skin. Dipping my finger in the hair grease, my mind wandered over to Shimmy.
An entire week had passed without a word from him. I knew he was dealing with his father, but I was dealing with the egg, and as each day passed it became harder for me to make believe that things would be okay. Aunt Marie still hadn’t heard from the contact in Delaware, and thank goodness she hadn’t brought home any more homemade remedies for me to try.
“How’s that scholarship program working out?” Nene’s raspy voice brought me back into the room.
“Pretty good. I should know something in a few months.”
“That a girl. Be the first in our family to go to college. You make me so proud.”
Guilt made my shoulders stiffen. “I ain’t get it yet.”
“But you on your way.” She twirled a corner of the quilt with two fingers. “Last night I dreamt that I could see again and all the pain from my body, gone. Hallelujah! I was standing at the stove frying us up a fat piece of shad. Just a crackling and popping in the skillet.”
“Nene, you the only one like that bony fish.”
“Maybe,” she said, and I could tell by the way her head got heavy in my hands that she liked the way I moved my fingers through her hair. We were quiet for a while. Nene and I could always be together in silence.
She sat herself up straight. “You know what they say when you dreamin’ ’bout fish, don’t you?”
It took my full concentration so that my fingers didn’t stutter step.
Nene left her comment hanging in the air. I looked out the window at the pigeons pecking at the trash on the street.
“You can always tell me anything,” she said softly.
My insides fluttered in response, but I couldn’t bring myself to tell Nene the very thing that would crush her. She had already been down this road with Inez. I couldn’t break her heart, too.
“Naw, Nene, nothing I know good. Except your hair is growing like weeds.” And then I got working on the plaits at the nape of her neck.
* * *
When I pushed the door open to Aunt Marie’s apartment, three dimes wrapped in numbered paper were on the floor, which meant her money man was out and she was back in business. Maybe now she wouldn’t have to work so many shifts at Kiki’s. I bent down and placed them in the jar next to the telephone, just as it began to ring.
It was Shimmy. “Meet me in the alley in ten minutes.”
“Where you been?”
“Long story but I have a solution. Be there soon.” He hung up the telephone.
I couldn’t imagine what he’d come up with, but I was excited to see him. I changed into a clean blouse, and then stood in the bathroom mirror pinning my hair with the ruby comb he had given me on the day we broke up. Aunt Marie had fished it out of the trash those many months ago, and I now wore it all the time.
True to his word, Shimmy was in the alley waiting for me. He drove us to the back entrance of the candy store. After he kissed my hand, he led me inside. A single candle burned on our makeshift table in the storage room.
“What’s all this?” I asked.
Shimmy reached into his pocket, and before my very eyes got down on one knee.
“What are you doing?” I gasped, as he held up a bow band gold ring.
“Marry me, Ruby.”
I laughed, then covered my face with my hands. “Stop being foolish.”
“This isn’t a joke. I’ve thought about it long and hard and I’m serious.” He held the ring up to me and I pulled him up off the floor.
“Have you lost your cotton-picking mind? I’m still in high school and your family will disown you.”
“Let them.” His face was dead serious.
“Shimmy.”
“You love me. I love you. We are having a baby. It’s what people do.”
He was right, but not people like us. From opposite sides of the universe. My legs felt all of a sudden heavy and I sank down onto the floor. Shimmy slumped next to me, resting his head in my lap with his ear against my stomach.
Oh, how I desperately wanted to believe him, but I had not been raised on fairy princesses being rescued by the handsome prince. No one I knew was living their happily ever after.
“You’re my girl,” Shimmy said, smiling up at me.
For the ease of the moment and to relieve all the stress I had felt in the past two weeks, I pulled Shimmy’s face close to mine. Other than the back of his father’s car, the storage room was the one place we could be Ruby and Shimmy. In that moment I needed to feel good, and Shimmy was the one person who could make me feel that way. Pulling him on top of me, I kissed him fanatically and reached for his belt buckle.
After the rhythm of our breathing had returned to normal, Shimmy threw a tablecloth around us.
“I’m scared to dream so big with you,” I confessed.
“Don’t be, I’ve figured it all out.”
