Twist of Fate

by Sheri L. Brown

  But finding Skylar was her priority in the moment, so she’d have to relay the details to her mom and be assured everything would turn out just as Zia would have wanted. Of course, Zia wanted a wake with an open casket, a funeral with a Catholic Mass and a big celebration at the local Italian Club. She wanted to be buried with her Rosary beads in a velvet-lined walnut casket next to Stefano in the plot they paid for two or three decades ago.

  The plan was if Skylar didn’t turn up between now and the funeral, Claire would head back to the city and search for her, post-funeral service. She really hoped it wouldn’t come to that.

  Claire grabbed her purse and headed out the door. Her phone rang as she hailed a cab.

  “Greenwich Village, please.”

  “I need an address.”

  “Christopher and Bleecker.”

  The driver nodded and took off.

  Claire’s phone rang.

  “Any news yet?”

  “Nothing, Mom, I just got to Rachel’s and dropped off my stuff. I’m taking a cab over to Bleeker, heading toward the address Felicia’s mother gave me. How’s it going with Zia’s arrangements?”

  “The wake is Tuesday and the funeral is Wednesday. So, I’m thinking maybe you could come up with Rachel early Tuesday morning.”

  “Yeah, that sounds good. I’ll talk to Rachel and we’ll plan on that. Hey, Mom, what’s the story with Rachel’s penthouse in Tribeca?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “I don’t remember her living in one.”

  “Oh, well, that’s right, you wouldn’t know. She bought the building she lives in… some tax thing came up and she needed to spend some money. So, she bought the building and added the vacant apartment above her to her space… knocked out a ceiling, thus, a penthouse was born. You know your grandmother. She actually had an elevator put in that goes right to her apartment.”

  “It looks really cool,” Claire said, “it’ll be interesting to be living with her while I look for Skye. She’s so different from Zia.”

  “Well, maybe in addition to finding your sister while you’re in New York you can spend time discovering your grandmother, too.”

  Claire hesitated. She felt like in some weird way she was leaving Zia to bond with Rachel. It was strange, as though she was feeling guilty about betraying her unique and sacred relationship with Zia,like she had moved on to another grandmother figure.

  “Look, honey, this is a really emotional time for you. I would tell you it’s a great time and opportunity to bond with Rachel, but I don’t think you need to think about that right now. Find Skylar and everything else will fall into place. You haven’t even had the chance to mourn Zia dying yet.”

  “You’re right. I need to have a one-track mind right now, Mom. I can’t think about discovering a new relationship when I’m trying to say goodbye to one, or maybe two, relationships right now.”

  The tears began welling up in Claire’s eyes again as she thought about the last few days. She was sure no one ever wanted to say goodbye to someone they loved, but she couldn’t help but wonder why it all had to happen at once.

  “Hey, Mom, I’m here. I’m going in, wish me luck and I’ll call you as soon as I can.”

  Claire hung up before Sarah could utter another word or ask what the place looked like. The building was brick and old and looked like it was four stories tall. Not a cute brownstone, but not entirely scary, either. She buzzed the apartment number and waited. Nothing. Claire stood outside until someone came out of the building. She smiled at the guy and went in.

  Claire walked up to the third floor and looked at every door to make sure she would knock on the door with a “D” on it. Her heart was racing. It was so strange. She had known Skylar her entire life and loved her to pieces. Why on earth, she wondered, did it feel like she was looking for a stranger?

  Part of her trepidation, she thought, came from the vibe that Felicia put out. She seemed awfully domineering and had a way of manipulating Skylar in a way that Claire had never seen before. Claire was afraid that Felicia had turned Skye against her. She was afraid that Skylar would take Felicia’s side over hers. The consequences of the choices Skylar was making right now would manifest however they might manifest, but Claire was feeling like things might never be the same between them.

  Claire made a fist and hit the door lightly at first, suddenly realizing no one would respond to such timidity. She rapped harder. She waited. Between her commute to the city and the drive to Rachel’s, Claire still hadn’t gotten a grip on her approach to handling Skylar or Felicia. She wondered if the forceful big sister angle would further drive Skye away or that maybe it was necessary to be effective. She prepared herself for a confrontation. No one answered.

  Claire banged again.

  A neighbor popped her head out of the door from across the hall, “Hey, can I help you with something?”

  “I’m looking for the woman who lives here.”

  “Who?” The neighbor asked.

  “Felicia,” Claire tried to not swallow hard.

  “Oh, well, don’t even bother with Felicia. She has a new girlfriend… a cute little thing from upstate.”

  “Where are they?” Claire asked.

  “Well, who are you and why the hell would I tell you that?” The stranger said.

  “I’m sorry, what was your name?” Claire smiled, deciding she needed to take it down a couple of pegs.

  “Well, my name is Olga, but I prefer to be called Candy.”

  It didn’t take long for Claire to figure out that Candy might not have been the sharpest tool in the shed, but she seemed all right and Claire needed to get as much information as she could. Skylar was there… that was HUGE.

  Candy was above average in height and way below average in weight. Claire guessed Candy was in her late thirties, but was so completely weathered, or something, that she appeared to look twenty years older. Her arms were bruised and her scraggly dirty-blonde hair barely covered a couple of patches of dirt on her face. Claire thought she would look completely in character if Candy were an artist, but the smudges marring up her skin looked as if Candy was a chimney sweep.

  “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Candy.”

  “How do you know Felicia?”

  “Well, actually,” Claire paused, “I just moved here from upstate and I’m enrolled at NYU for the fall… I met Skylar on-line in a college chat room. I think she and I are close in age.”

  “Well,” Candy eyed Claire up and down, “you do look like you’re on the young side, closer in age than Skylar and Felicia, that’s for sure.”

  Claire wasn’t sure why she decided to lie about who she was. She thought maybe if she told Candy she was looking for Skylar that she’d run away again. She couldn’t decide if she were paranoid, stupid or completely legitimized. Her phone chimed as she stood in the hallway trying to figure out what to do.

  “Well, you can come in and hang out with me until they get home,” Candy offered, “I’ll make us some tea while you answer your messages.”

  Claire thought about it for a second, “You know, I do have somewhere to be, so maybe I’ll just come in for a few minutes if that’s okay.”

  “Sure, mi casa es su casa.”

  “Okay, then,” Claire smiled and walked through the door.

  The apartment was predictably small and equally as disheveled as Candy, but it wasn’t filthy or scary the way Claire envisioned. Claire glanced around the room without notice. There were two cats each sitting in a window in the living area. They weren’t actually on the windowsill, but instead were lying on cot-like beds attached to the window. The kitchen was to left and about the size of Claire’s bathroom at home. Two cat food bowls sat on the tile floor, one labeled ‘Romeo’ and the other ‘Juliet’. An electric water bowl creating a small waterfall for the cats to drink out of took over most of the counter space in the kitchen.

  “Do you like Shakespeare, Candy?”

  “No, actually, well, I mean I have nothing again
st Shakespeare.”

  “You named your cats Romeo and Juliet, though,” Claire said, puzzled.

  Candy giggled. It reminded Claire of how Ryan used to make her giggle. It was a simple, genuine testament of being happy in the moment. Claire was starting to think Candy was all right.

  “I had a past life in Verona, thus the names of the cats,” Candy said naturally.

  Claire looked at her phone. Ryan had texted her. She was distracted, but was sure she heard Candy telling her she had a past life in Verona. Claire’s heart began beating faster. She was excited that someone could talk so openly about such things. She smiled at Candy and glanced at her phone.

  Hey, I’m in Arizona. Are you okay?

  Claire wasn’t sure why Ryan seemed farther away than the geographic distance separating them. He was moving forward, pursuing his dream in a nice linear path, lined with happiness and simplicity. While Claire thought she was on the verge of falling over. She wondered what the hell she was doing. The only thing saving her in the moment was her curiosity about Candy.

  “Sorry, Candy, that was my boyfriend. He’s moving to Arizona.”

  “Holy crap, man!” Candy exclaimed, “Now that is fuckin’ awesome!”

  Claire shook her head to remind herself she was actually in the conversation. Things had suddenly become surreal.

  “Have you been there?” Claire asked.

  “Well, no, but I knew this really cool couple from Sedona, they’d tour around the country and teach people to levitate, meditate… whatever, anything spiritual. The guy, in fact, his name is Randall, he used to channel this entity… God, I can’t think of the name of it... him.”

  Claire was intrigued and relieved at the same time.

  “For a second there I thought you were going to say that Randall channeled God,” Claire said smiling.

  “Well,” Candy asked, “don’t we all?”

  A million thoughts popped up in Claire’s brain and she was sure the most remarkable one in the moment was the fact she was in New York talking to this woman whom she clearly underestimated. She felt like she was exactly where she was supposed to be.

  “You know, I never thought of it like that. Maybe we do or at least maybe we can,” Claire said.

  “Right on… so, you have a boyfriend. I thought maybe you were interested in Skylar.”

  “No, I’m not interested in Skylar in that way.”

  “Hey, I never did catch your name, are you all right?” Candy asked.

  “Ugh, no, not really.”

  Candy handed Claire her tea, “Sorry, I don’t use dairy. I hope the tea is good, it’s just chamomile. I felt like you needed to calm your nerves.”

  “You know, Candy, I better get going after all. I’m sorry.”

  “You don’t like chamomile?” Candy asked, “I can make you something else, it just felt right.”

  “You’re so nice and welcomed me into your home. I mean, I wanted to ask you about your connection to Verona, but I haven’t been honest with you.”

  “Oh, well, you’re being honest now, right?”

  “I mean, okay…. How can I say this?”

  “Just say it.”

  Claire took a deep breath and let it out, “Well, okay then. My name is Claire Sinclair. Skylar is my sister. She’s seventeen and she ran away to New York to be with Felicia. I haven’t heard from her in days. My Aunt just died and she’d want to know. And on top of it, my boyfriend just moved out west and I’m not going to Vanderbilt because all this shit is going on in my life.”

  “Holy shit, Claire,” Candy said, “I don’t know what to say, but I think you need that tea more than I thought you did.”

  Candy walked into the living room and placed her tea on a small coffee table before sitting down in a paisley papasan chair. She motioned for Claire to sit in another one opposite her. Claire really needed to text Ryan. She blew him off once when everything was going down and she needed to tell him what was going on. For some reason, she didn’t want to appear flippant to Candy, even though she wasn’t sure why. Maybe she had been so nice and… Claire was sure there was something else going on. The Verona reference, Claire openly spilling her guts to an oddball sort of stranger… she already liked her.

  “You’re being so nice, Candy, are you sure I’m not taking up your time?”

  “No, I really didn’t have anything planned this afternoon. Your timing is perfect.”

  “Would you mind if I respond to a couple of texts then?” Claire asked.

  “No, go right ahead,” Candy said, as she got up to swap a cd out of her boom box, “mind if I smoke?”

  “No, it’s your apartment,” Claire pulled out her phone and quickly texted Ryan.

  Life is a little hectic here, Zia passed away this weekend and Skye ran off with her girlfriend. I’m in Manhattan looking for her. Will be home Tuesday for the funeral. Miss you!!

  Claire slid her phone back in her pocket and looked over at Candy who wasn’t smoking a cigarette. In the time Claire had her down looking at her phone, Candy had put on some unidentifiable music and lit a joint.

  “Hey, Claire, do you party?”

  Claire wasn’t sure what to say, “Thank you, Candy, but I’m afraid it’s the worst thing I could do in the state of mind I’m in.”

  “Maybe next time,” Candy said as she held the smoke in her mouth.

  Claire thought it was funny that Candy thought there’d be a next time.

  Maybe there would be.

  Chapter Eighteen

  Skylar sat in an oversized chair in the formal sitting room in Felicia’s client’s Upper East Side apartment. She could hear kids laughing and screaming down the hallway, begging for a balloon animal from Felicia. Her stage name, ‘Clara the Clown’, was reinforced by the shrill calls of the excited children begging, “Clara! Clara! Make me a dog! A pirate! A bunny!”

  Skylar wasn’t impressed. She understood Felicia was an artsy type and she was open to doing almost anything with her, but hanging out at a children’s birthday party, she decided, wasn’t one of the activities she had in mind. Since Skylar didn’t have a costume, Felicia thought it would be better and less confusing for the kids if she sat in another room away from the festivities. Skylar sat and thought about why the entire scene genuinely rubbed her the wrong way.

  The car ride over was impressive. The parents, Evan and Robin Arden, who were both attorneys, sent a limousine to pick them up in the village and bring them to their apartment. Once the excitement of the ride itself was over and the reality of the situation crept in, Skylar couldn’t help but feel as though she didn’t belong there. She thought maybe Felicia was just being over-protective not wanting her to be alone in their apartment at night. She was seriously hoping her intentions were altruistic because Skylar didn’t want to think Felicia had some weird control issues going on.

  Maybe she jumped the gun a little too fast. Skylar was living in the moment and embracing her new life being gay. Felicia had been incredibly helpful to her in making the transition, acting like Skye’s biggest fan. But she really didn’t know Felicia at all. And it was as though they had to make a mad dash to get out of her parents’ house before they got home. So fast, in fact, that Skylar left her cell phone behind. She must have laid it down somewhere and Felicia said they didn’t have time to look for it.

  Skylar had a sick feeling in her stomach wondering what Claire and her parents were thinking or doing, if they were worried or looking for her, trying to call or text to make sure she was all right. She was so used to making her own decisions and having no problem with her free-spirited ways, but she started second guessing herself.

  Felicia bounded into the living room moments later. Her curly rainbow wig matched her rainbow knee-socks. Felicia explained giant shoes and fake noses were not a part of the contemporary clown costume like it was when Skylar was a kid. Face painting, cotton candy machines and temporary tattoos had replaced the old-school garb.

  “Hey, there, gorgeous!” Felicia shouted.<
br />
  “Hey, yourself.”

  “Uh, sorry you had to sit here for so long. Evan is writing me a check and we can get out of here.”

  “Oh, okay,” Skylar smiled.

  “You can’t be upset that I asked you to sit in here while I worked, are you?”

  “No, not really.”

  “Well, you can’t just stay in the apartment alone.”

  “Why, Felicia, is it dangerous?”

  “Well, no, but wouldn’t you rather be with me?”

  “I would, you know I would,” Skylar smiled.

  “Good,” Felicia said as she took off her wig, “that’s what I thought.”

  Robin Arden walked in the room and handed Felicia a check, “Here you go, Felicia. Thanks so much for entertaining the kids. You were great.”

  “Thanks, Robin. I’ll send for the cotton candy machine to be picked up tomorrow.”

  “Don’t worry, I’ve got the housekeeper taking care of all of that.”

  “Okay, then,” Felicia smiled and leaned in to give Robin a hug, “so, I’ll see you soon.”

  “Yes, you will, my favorite clown,” Robin said as she patted Felicia’s back.

  “Let me call down so the car is ready for you. And Skylar, it was nice meeting you. I hope you were okay hanging out in here.”

  “Oh, it was fine. Thanks for letting me stay sans costume.”

  “You’re welcome,” Robin smiled, “hey… Evan and I don’t need the car until morning. I can call down and let my driver know you can have him for the night.”

  Felicia laughed, “Well, why not? I’ll go out as a clown.”

  “Or we could go home and change first,” Skylar chuckled.

  Skylar hopped in the car after Felicia. It was exciting being in New York and in a limo. Her misgivings about leaving her family and the way in which she did it began to fade, especially when Felicia found the bottle of Champagne Evan and Robin left for them. Skylar was feeling like her old self again.