Part 22 (2/2)
How could Wally figure out where that hiding place was?
Wally continued her frantic pacing, trying to stimulate some sort of eleventh-hour epiphany. She had only one thought and picked up the phone again, hitting redial.
”Yes, Miss Stoneman?” came the doorman's voice.
”Raoul? Sorry I hung up before ...”
”That's okay, Miss Stoneman.”
”Can you tell me what was my mom was wearing?”
”Uh ...” The doorman considered, then answered uncertainly. ”A jacket, I think? A warm one? And a cap. Boots, maybe?”
”Thanks, Raoul.” Wally hit the end b.u.t.ton on the phone. Claire's choice of outdoor clothing did not suggest a bank or other indoor location like a storage locker. As she ran through the possibilities, Wally had a thought. She was staring at the portable phone in her hand. The LED panel was lit up with the last number called: the phone number of the desk downstairs. Wally hit the down arrow b.u.t.ton and the screen scrolled down to the list of the numbers called last, past the calls Wally herself had made to Raoul at the front desk. Wally saw the number listed for the last phone call Claire had made-she had called outside the building just five minutes before she left. The phone number looked vaguely familiar, but it took a minute or so before Wally finally recognized the area code and then the full phone number. Wally herself had dialed that number just a few days earlier. She hit redial and the phone rang through. Voice mail picked up on the other end of the line and a message played. Now Wally knew where Claire had gone and where Johanna would be found.
Wally went to her room and quickly dressed in warm clothes, including Tevin's jacket and the good boots she had found in the Quonset hut. Once she was ready to go, a quick calculation told her she had time to make one important stop before driving north to Shelter Island.
THIRTY-ONE.
Ella and Jake heard the key in the lock and bolted up from their makes.h.i.+ft bed. They didn't dare use their flashlight to see who it was, for fear of giving themselves away in case it was not either Wally or Tevin, coming home.
”Guys?” Wally's voice, quiet.
”In here, Wally,” Ella said.
Wally moved into the back room of the old laundry, where an ancient steam-press bench had been left behind and where the crew had set up their bedrolls. Ella and Jake greeted Wally, sleepy-eyed.
”What time is it?” Ella asked with a little yawn.
”Just after two,” said Wally.
”You were gone so long,” Ella said. She studied Wally for a second, noticing that she was wearing Tevin's jacket. ”Where's Tevin?”
Wally hesitated. She used her flashlight to dig around and find the bag of cheap tea candles they had bought at a discount import store. She lit three candles, which gave the room a warm, flickering glow.
”Where's Tevin, Wally?” Jake asked warily, sensing something ominous in Wally's manner. On the drive there from Claire's apartment, Wally struggled over what she would tell Ella and Jake about Tevin.
”He's gone,” Wally said finally, because she knew no other way. ”Tevin is dead.”
Ella and Jake stared at Wally in disbelief, needing a moment to process her words. Silent tears began to stream down Ella's face, while her features remained frozen.
”What?” Jake looked like he had been kicked in the gut.
”Those men ...” Wally said. ”We went to a place to find my mother, and they were there.”
”Oh no ...” Now Ella shook her head, almost violently, trying her hardest to deny what she was hearing.
”Tevin protected me.”
”Of course he did. This was all for you, Wally,” Jake suddenly blurted, enraged. ”This was your own private party. You should never've taken him with you.”
”I know.”
She kept herself as emotionless as she could, refusing to cry, not allowing herself the privilege of grieving with her friends precisely because she was the one responsible for this terrible thing.
”He loved you, Wally,” Jake went on, caught between sorrow and anger. ”Is this how you love people back?”
”Jake, stop it ...” Ella pleaded with him, grabbing him by the arm. ”She didn't mean it. ...”
”And all for what?” Jake would not be dissuaded. ”Did you get what you wanted? Did you find her?”
Wally paused before answering, feeling ashamed. ”Yes.”
”Oh yeah?” Jake almost laughed. ”How'd she stack up? Was it a good trade?”
”Jake!” Ella pulled at him.
”d.a.m.n it!” Jake shouted. He jumped up and kicked at the plasterboard wall, caving it in again and again and then punching it with his bare fists as well, a dozen violent strikes at least, until he was exhausted and gasping for air. Overcome, Jake dropped back down to the floor and buried his head in his arms, his body trembling. Ella slumped beside him and wrapped him in a tight embrace. For several minutes Wally kept her distance, allowing them their grief, then sat down beside them on the floor. She reached out carefully and laid her hand on Jake's back. He sobbed as he felt her touch. After a moment, Wally spoke.
”I could never explain how sorry I am,” she said.
They did not answer, and after a moment Wally continued.
”The thing is,” Wally said, ”I've been lying about something, to myself and to you. The lie was that we were all in the same situation, but that's bulls.h.i.+t. You two-and Tevin-you've been through so many hard things in your lives. I was feeling sorry for myself and pretending that it was the same for me, but it wasn't. I've had some pain, but I've been loved and supported too, and had so many advantages. I don't really understand why I've made the choices I have, but it's time for me to put things in order, you know?”
”We've been a family,” Ella said. ”That was never a lie.”
”No, it wasn't,” Wally said. She looked hopefully at Jake, hoping to see some sign that he might forgive her, eventually. He managed a small, sympathetic smile, and Wally smiled back gratefully. She reached into her bag and pulled out a letter-size envelope, setting it down in front of them.
”There's two thousand dollars in here,” Wally said. ”That's for both of you. You know Lois Chao, at Harmony House? She's been telling me for a long time about this place upstate, called Neversink Farm. It's a bus ride, maybe three or four hours. The directions are inside there with the money. It's a different kind of residential setup-a working farm. You help out around the farm and do a couple of hours of school every day so you can get a GED.” Wally paused. ”I'm not telling you what to do, but it's a chance for you both to start again. The money is yours, for a nest egg, for whatever.”
Ella and Jake didn't know what to say, not sure at first whether they were being given a gift or brushed aside. The two shared a look for a moment, and Wally thought she could see a sense of relief pa.s.s between the two of them, a sense of willingness to give themselves over to something new and hopeful.
”What about you?” Ella asked.
”I have to see this through,” she said, struggling not to break down. ”Just me. I'm already responsible for what happened to Tevin. If anything happened to either of you ...”
Ella reached out and took Wally's hand, holding it close to her. Wally squeezed her hand back, grateful. She checked the time on her phone.
”I can take a few minutes,” Wally said to Ella. ”Let's do our thing?”
”Okay.”
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