by Liza Brown
“Speaking of which,” said Millard. “They should be working now.”
“You’re having security put in?” asked Harold as he sat forward.
“Yeah, bringing the building into the twenty-first century.”
“Doesn’t your brother own that place?”
“He does.”
“That’s got to be helpful for you.”
“Yeah, I get a little discount.”
“I had a friend who lived in that building for a few years. He lived on the second floor.”
“Oh? I don’t know many of the people who live there except for the people in my wing on my floor.”
“How many units are in there, anyway?”
“Twenty-eight.”
“What, seven on each floor?”
I nodded.
“He used to complain about yelling coming from the apartment above his.”
I raised an eyebrow and blushed. “How long ago was that?”
“Five years or so.”
“There’s a good chance that was me.”
“He was in the end to the left after you got off the elevator.”
“Yep. That’s where I am. Tell your friend I’m sorry for disturbing his peace. That part of my life is long over.”
“Oh, I will. Mae, when I started working for this guy, I did research into your background and realized that we have a common relative. I hope in some way this will help clean that slate.”
“Who?” I asked.
“Your Uncle Larry was my mom’s younger brother. What he did to you and your brother was unforgiveable. He left a lasting stain on our family. I know you never knew that side of the family since they’re really technically not your family, but my grandmother never recovered from the illness that came when that all went down. She died about a year after the trial. I knew the story of Uncle Larry being a bad seed and doing something ‘horrible’ to two young kids, but I never heard you or your brother’s names. Once I found the connection I knew I needed to do something to help make it up to you from my side of the family. I guess this is my way of avenging my grandmother’s death.”
I gripped onto Elsu’s thigh and squeezed. There are certain names I didn’t want to hear spoken in public situations, my childhood molester was tops on that list. Elsu was the only person sitting there who knew who Uncle Larry was and I had planned to keep it that way.
“I know you don’t know me, and I know I’m coming across as an unfaithful louse who would turn on his employer, but please know I only mean you the best, honest.” He looked sincere, but I wasn’t sure yet.
“And yet you show up in the Whoopsters’ locker room uninvited to get interviews? Can you see where I’m coming from as far as trying to wrap my mind around trusting you?”
“I get it completely, Mae. I wouldn’t believe me either. The news outlet I work for pays us based on the exclusivity of our reports. If I bring them back the same thing that everyone else is reporting, I get paid a lot less than if I come back with a story that no one else has. I was just trying to get ‘the big one.’”
Elsu sat forward and eyed Harold cautiously. “How much more?”
“Depends on the who, the what, and the where.”
“So an interview with the team captain of the new pro basketball team in the showroom of his girlfriend’s shop where resides the classic cars owned by seven of the Whoopsters players…how much would that bring you?”
It took Harold a minute to comprehend the question. “I-I-I guess that would be huge!”
“I’ll put this on the table. You prove yourself useful in getting this ass, I’ll give you that interview.”
“Elsu! You’re not selling yourself out like that!” I said.
He leaned into my ear. “I plan to finish what we started last night much sooner than later.” His sexy voice went straight between my legs and I squirmed. Ok, let’s get this ball rolling!
‘Fine,” I whispered.
“You’ve got my word Mae…and Elsu.”
“You’ve got until the end of this week,” commanded Millard.
There was no argument and Harold stood and rushed out the door.
We sat in silence for a while taking in what had just happened.
“Who’s Uncle Larry?” asked Aaron, finally breaking the silence.
“A man whose name shall never be repeated,” said Elsu as his hand laid gently on mine.
Aaron took the hint to not continue with his line of questioning and we all finished our meals.
Once I was done I spoke up. “Do I believe him? How do I know he’s not taking whatever information he gained back to his boss right now?” I asked.
“What did he learn that wasn’t already known?” asked Elsu.
I shrugged my shoulders as I sucked the last drops from my iced tea. He had a point.
“Is there a way to check his references?” asked Aaron. He was now as vested in this as anyone at the table, I could see it in his face.
“Yes!” I had an idea. “Let’s go! I need to make a phone call and I want to put it on speaker. I’d like for you to hear it,” I said to Elsu and Millard specifically. “It might give you some insight into…me.”
After much arguing, Aaron resigned himself to allowing Elsu to buy our lunch, even though it was supposed to be his treat. The argument was like watching an alpha lion arguing with an alpha Chihuahua. It wasn’t going to do the Chihuahua any good, but in the end he felt better about himself for at least putting up a fight and getting out alive.
Once in the Escalade, I pulled out my phone and reluctantly called my mom. “She’s my only hope. My mom’s sister, Uncle Larry’s ex-wife, died a few years ago,” I said as the phone rang.
“Mae?” I heard her voice and the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.
“Mom, how are you?” It never hurt to try and butter her up first.
“I’m…okaaay…” I could sense the hesitancy in her voice. I rarely called her.
“Mom, can I ask you a question?” I asked.
“Ok,” she was still wary.
“It’s about Uncle Larry’s family.” I waited for it.
“What the hell are you bringing him up for?” Her screeching hit my ear like a dog whistle.
“Because I need to know about his family, you’re the only one I’d know that might know.”
“Mae, you of all people should know better than to bring him up.”
“Do you really think I want to bring him up? What do you know about his mother?”
“I know she died not long after the trial. Her daughter said it was from a broken heart.”
My eyes got big at the mention of a daughter. “How many daughters did she have?” I asked.
“I don’t know, Mae. Two? Maybe? What is this about?”
“I ran into someone who claims to be Uncle Larry’s nephew. He says his mom and Larry were siblings.”
There was a long pause. “Mom? Are you there?”
“Yes I’m here! I’m thinking. I didn’t know them well. Most people don’t know their sister’s husband’s extended family.”
“I know, but I just need to know. Could one of the daughters have had a son, and could his name be Harold Stevens?”
“Stevens.” I could hear her gears turn. She would never admit to it, but she was the typical nosy neighbor. Even when she was off with my brother and sister in Hollywood, she knew all the gossip back home. She’d call my dad to tell him about something that happened next door before anyone ever caught wind of it here at home. She had a network of gossipy friends who kept her well informed.
“Yes mom, Stevens.”
“I think the oldest sister was married to Anderson Stevens from Stevens Heating and Cooling.” And the gossip began to spill. “He was a nice man, worked at the house a number of times. Yes, Anderson Stevens. They had a son and a daughter. The daughter is your age, you went to school with her. But then again, you probably didn’t know her. You didn’t have many friends, so well…you know.”
&
nbsp; Aaron’s face said it all. He mouthed “Oh no she di’nt.” And I had to keep from laughing.
“Yes mom, I know I didn’t have any friends. That’s been well established.”
“So the question is whether or not the boy could be Harold?” she asked. “Is he older than you?”
“I think so, mom.” I was pretty sure I had all the information I needed, but she continued to divulge everything she knew about the family she had just claimed to know nothing about. She knew more than the actual family knew, I was sure of it.
“They bought the house where Uncle Larry lived when my sister couldn’t take care of it anymore.” She continued to tell me about cousins, and aunts, and uncles that I had never heard of and technically weren’t even related to me.
When she stopped talking about them, I should have taken the phone off of speaker, but due to a momentary lapse in judgement the three men in the car with me had the pleasure of hearing the rest of the conversation.
“Mae, are you still dating that basketball player?”
“Yes mom.”
“He’s trouble, Mae.” I bit my lip and looked at Elsu whose body language had suddenly changed.
“How do you figure, mom?” I smiled at Elsu, hoping he knew I wasn’t going to agree with anything she said.
“He’s a basketball player, he probably has a girl in every city he goes to. How are you going to control him when he’s out of town?”
“Well mom, I’ll be at a good number of those games, and I trust him,” I said honestly. “Plus, he’s not a dog. I’m not trying to control him.”
“You are so gullible, Mae. You really should introduce him to Candice. She doesn’t work. She would be much better suited for him. She has plenty of time to devote to a man. She’s pretty and will look good in pictures. You work so much, he’s going to lose interest, and fast. Plus, I’ve told you this before, you’re well…on the homely side. What kind of guy wants a grease monkey for a girlfriend, anyway? I told you, girls like you aren’t made to find men at your age. You’re built for the men looking for second marriages in their forties.”
Aaron’s face was the ultimate mix of anger, frustration, disbelief, and utter amazement. I think he was turning purple as steam was about to burst from his ears.
Elsu’s hands were in such a tight fist his knuckles were white and Millard was banging his head on the steering wheel.
I was angry too, but I had heard all of this before so it really came as no shock at all. “Mom, stop. I like him, he likes me. I don’t know what’s so complicated about that. Not every homely girl waits ‘til they’re forty to marry. How old were you?” I couldn’t believe the words had come out of my mouth. Every eye in the car was suddenly looking at me as if I had just grown a third head.
“What did you say to me?” I was so glad I hadn’t installed the ‘let the caller spit venom through your phone’ app. Otherwise, I’d be covered.
“I um…didn’t mean it like that. I meant,” ah screw it. I couldn’t come up with a quick replacement.
“I will have you know I was twenty when your father and I married. I was a beautiful bride. Just because your memory of me is something else, doesn’t mean I wasn’t once a real catch. If I turned ugly, it’s because you and your older brother caused it. So much stress you two caused. Every gray hair has your names on it!”
At this point I was being thoroughly entertained by the faces I was watching. I could egg her on forever just to see how they reacted. “Speaking of which, dad was at the shop today. Him and Margaret.” This should be good.
“First Uncle Larry and now your father? Really, Mae? I can’t take any more of this!”
“He sends his love,” I lied. Elsu threw his hands up in the air in defeat, then buried his head in his hand.
“I’m sure he does, he loves me like a toothache.”
“Well mom, I have to go back to work. Thank you for your information about Harold.”
“Are you going to tell me why you wanted to know?” she asked.
“No, I’m not. And mom, Bart and his brother Jeremy are on the warpath, I should warn you. Just keep an eye out for them. It’s possible they’re involved in attempted murder right now.”
“Murder of who?” she asked.
“Me, mom.”
“Really, Mae? Bart was such a sweet boy. I don’t know what you did to screw him up so bad. He really loved you then you broke his heart and he went crazy.”
“Mom, he abused me for years! He locked me in his trunk and drove to Columbus like a madman.”
“It was five miles outside Columbus,” she had to be right.
“Ok, he drove five miles outside Columbus with me tied and bound in the trunk of his car. His erratic driving broke my collar bone, multiple ribs were cracked…”
“You don’t think I remember that, Mae? I was there when the ambulance brought you back! Your brother Christopher lost a good friend too, you know. Why do you always think about yourself, Mae? You are so selfish I honestly don’t know where I went wrong raising you!” Ok, that one stung.
“Goodbye mom,” I said as I hung up the phone on her. “And there you have why I wouldn’t make that phone call in public.” I forced a smile at everyone.
“Do you know how hard it was for me to not pick up that phone and give her a piece of my mind?” asked Elsu.
“I’m not sure about you, Mr. Benjamin but one more cut and I was about to throw the phone out the window,” said Millard from the front seat as he started the engine and we headed toward the shop.
“OK, my parents disowned me when I first came out. They’ve mostly taken me back since. But that pain doesn’t compare at all to what I just heard. Is she always like that?” asked Aaron, who was sitting in the front seat with Millard.
“Pretty much.” I nodded. “Pretty much.” I looked down at the phone I held in my hand. “Pretty…much…” I repeated a third time. I laid my head on Elsu’s shoulder and felt a tear begin to fall. I couldn’t hold it in and a silent sniffle escaped. No one heard it, but Elsu felt it.
“Hey,” he said as he pushed me away to get a look at my puffy face. A second and third tear were racing down my cheeks.
“Why do I let her get to me? I knew it was going to get ugly. It always does. But just once I want my own mother to say something nice to me. I want her to be happy for me when she sees me with you.”
Elsu wiped away my tears as he had done so many times before and pulled me back into his strong body. His warm arms surrounded me and I wrapped my arms around him. It suddenly sunk in that he would be out of town for the next three days and I wouldn’t have any of his hugs to run to.
“What time are you leaving tomorrow?” I asked.
“Early. The plane leaves at six in the morning. So, they want us there at four. I’ll ride with Brent and the guys,” he kissed me on top of my head.
“I’m going to miss you,” I sniffed again.
“You have no idea how much I’m going to miss you, Mae.” I felt his chin resting on my head as we pulled into the shop.
I saw Aaron’s sculpture again and I felt depressed. I needed to snap out of it. I had to get back to work. There was no going home early. The parking lot was full. I had a feeling the word had spread that Elsu was working today. There weren’t this many people in town in need of used steering wheels.
“Elsu, I’m blaming you for all of our business,” I said, trying to force a smile.
“Blaming? Aren’t customers a good thing?” he asked.
“I suppose.” I just wasn’t in the mood. “Do you mind working some more? You’ve really been helpful today.”
“I was planning on it,” he said and we got out of the car.
I said goodbye to Aaron and promised him another game in my second VIP seat. He left looking a lot more down than he had when he arrived. I had a feeling my conversation with my mom had done that.
I recognized one of the cars in the parking lot. “Max is here,” I moaned toward Elsu as he opened the door
to the shop for me. The front customer area was packed. I had never seen the shop so busy. Steve, Bonnie, and even Max were trying to help them. We only had three points of sale so I wasn’t sure what else I could do. I walked to my brother. “I’ll take it from here, Max,” I said.
“Nice of you to come back, sis,” he said. There was no sarcasm in his voice.
“I was only gone for an hour, aren’t I allowed to take a lunch?” Was he really making comments on my work ethics?
“That’s some sales tactic you have,” he said.
“What are you talking about?”
“Bringing him here,” he nodded toward Elsu who was helping a customer pick out a chop shop shirt. He then signed it for the customer. I had to smile.
“He’s loving it, Max.”
“I see that, so is your pocketbook.”
“I didn’t advertise this, he’s here because he wanted to be with me. Plus Millard is fixing some security issues around here.”
I scanned some items from a customer and took their payment while Max bagged them. “I didn’t come here to work, I have to talk to you.”
“Ok, Elsu can take over a point of sale. He’s been doing it all morning.”
“Seriously? And what if he gets hurt on the job? Do you have insurance for that?” asked Max.
“Oh my God Max! He’s helping!” Elsu was standing behind me. I didn’t have to turn to look, I could feel him.
“I’ll take it, Max. I promise not to sue if I get hurt lifting these t-shirts.”
“And when you do get hurt, who’s protecting Mae when the team sues her?”
“Just stop, Max!” I turned toward my office for the first time and noticed that Mitchell, my younger nephew, was sitting behind my desk. My gloomy day suddenly became bright.
I rushed into the room and scooped him up in my arms. “What are you doing here?” I asked as I gave him a big hug.
“I had a dentist appointment so daddy said I could take the rest of the day off.” He hugged me back. Boy how I loved my nephews.
“Daddy’s letting you play hooky?” I asked.
“Yep! He said I could help you.”
I looked at my desk nervously hoping he hadn’t tried to help too much. I noticed the large desk calendar had been colored in using my collection of highlighters and I hoped that was all I’d find. “Well, my month sure is looking a lot more colorful,” I said as I sat down in my chair with him on my lap.
