26. Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Six
David and Eddie were able to get all the presents in the trunk and back seat of the Rolls-Royce. As David was holding the front passenger door open for Jane, Eddie, who’d disappeared a few moments earlier, came running out with a blanket draped over his arm. “Don’t forget this!” he said, holding a plaid blanket similar to the one she’d given away.
“So you did have another one of those!” she said, giving him a smile.
“I told you—we have a dozen or so. I think they multiply in the closet on their own. Feel free to bestow this one on another cold child if need be. We won’t suffer from its absence.” Jane’s hand rested on the window frame, and Eddie’s fingers brushed against it as he handed her the blanket, giving her a thrill. “You take care of yourself, Jane. I hope we meet again.”
“I hope so as well.”
He was still looking at her as David started up the automobile and pulled away from the house. She glanced backward as they went down the driveway, and he was still standing there, his hand raised in a goodbye.
When the automobile turned onto the road, David said, “I think Eddie is going to miss you. Funny, you look just like my sister and the two of them never got along, but he seems quite taken with you.”
Jane wasn’t quite sure what to say. She’d found playacting as Jacquelyn to be awkward and fraught with emotion, so much so that she and Eddie hadn’t really gotten a chance to talk and get acquainted. She’d only just met him that day, but oddly enough, she was now sure she would miss him. Finally, she said, “He seems like a fine young man.”
“He is. One of the best. And I can tell he really likes you.”
And I can tell he really likes you. She wanted to take those words and put them in her pocket and take them out on gray days when she needed a bit of cheer. Would anyone ever look at her like that again? It was hard to imagine.
Riding in the front seat of the Rolls-Royce was a different experience than being a passenger in the back. The dashboard was polished wood with dials that reminded her of clocks. One was labeled “Oil,” and another seemed to indicate how fast they were going. Others were a mystery. She didn’t have a lot of experience being in automobiles and was fascinated by the mechanics of it, the pedals on the floor and the way David strong-armed the steering wheel in order to turn a corner. She had the sense that she should be taking in everything while she could. Very soon, her life would be back to her old routine. She’d be braiding hair and doing laundry and tucking little girls into bed. All admirable tasks and certainly necessary, but now that she knew how big the world was, it all seemed a bit small.
David said, “A penny for your thoughts.”
She smiled. “I’m not sure my thoughts are worth a penny.” They’d left the wealthy area of the Sheridans’ neighborhood and were heading toward the city. She remembered doing this ride in reverse earlier. Had it really been the same day? So much had changed in so little time.
“I’m sure whatever you’re thinking about is worth much more than a penny. Tell me about your life. How did you come to work at the home?”
He seemed sincerely interested, so before she knew it, she was recounting her whole life story—her missing father and the death of her mother, how her aunt had sent her to Newtonville, promising she’d have fun with the other girls. From the way David kept asking questions, one would have thought she was the most fascinating person in the world. “You were six years old and they put you on a bus all by yourself?”
“Well, I wasn’t completely by myself. There were other people on the bus.”
“I know, but . . .” They were at a stop sign, and he turned to look her way. “You were so little. That must have been very frightening.” His eyes filled with sympathy.
“It was.” She remembered climbing the steps to the bus. The driver had extended a hand and helped her up the stairs, then took charge of her suitcase. She’d wanted to turn and run, but there was nowhere to go. “I was afraid.”
“You’re very brave, Jane Shaw,” he said solemnly.
“I didn’t have a choice.” No one had asked her what she wanted. She’d been a child. Life had just been inflicted upon her. “It was hard, but things got better eventually.”
By the time they saw a sign saying, “Newtonville, 2 miles,” Jane had recounted the details of her entire life, including that morning. She ended by saying, “And now I have a question for you, Mr. Sheridan.”
“Please, call me David. And feel free to ask any question you’d like.”
“How is it that you plan to call Eddie and Mildred once we arrive at the home? If Mary and Jacquelyn couldn’t make a call because the telephone was locked, it stands to reason you’ll have the same trouble.”
David grinned. “I’m not worried about that. They used to secure the phones in the university offices in the same way, and a friend and I figured out a way to jimmy the locks.”
“Really? There’s a way to do that?”
“There’s a way to do almost everything if you want it badly enough. ”
Jane wanted to believe he was right, although personally she hadn’t found that to be the case in her own life. Maybe in his world that’s how it worked.
David slowed as they approached the downtown area. “If you don’t mind, I’d like to make a few stops and see if anyone has seen my sister.”
“Of course. What a good idea.”
He steered to the side of the road and shut off the engine in front of the Mule. “I’ll only be a minute. If you don’t mind waiting? It doesn’t look like the sort of place a lady should be entering.”
No one had ever called her a lady before. She suppressed a grin at the notion. “I don’t mind at all. Take your time. I’ll be fine.”
While he was inside, Jane arranged the blanket over her lap, thinking of how Eddie had remembered that she might get cold while traveling. So thoughtful of him. The interior windows were beginning to ice up by the time David returned. He slid into his seat and said, “It seems Jacquelyn was here more than an hour ago, trying to hire someone to drive her home.”
“No one would do it?”
He shook his head. “She didn’t have much money on her, and no one believed she was rich. They laughed at her, is what I was told. My poor sister must be nearly hysterical by now. Jacquelyn can be bossy and loud, so she seems strong, but believe me, she’s not nearly as capable or brave as you are. She’s used to having things come easily. ”
Wearing Jane’s clothes hadn’t done Jacquelyn any favors. Jane felt a pang of guilt. “Oh, I’m sorry to hear that. Maybe she returned to the home, then?”
“Maybe,” David said. “One of them suggested trying the church. Everything else is closed right now.” He held his palm to the foggy window to clear a spot.
Jane followed suit, doing the same on her side. Now there were two circles of visibility on the windshield. “Pastor Mitchell would have helped her, I just know it. He’s a very kind man.”
“I hope she’s there,” David said. “If not, she might have returned and is now with Mary and the girls. She couldn’t have gone far.”