by Rita Lakin
“You shouldn’t have gone into his car,” says Evvie. “Big mouths, both of you.”
Ida adds, “And then you don’t tell us about it?” “Enough already,” says Sophie, thoroughly dis-gusted. “You never would’ve cracked the case if we hadn’t. So as far as we’re concerned”—she puts
her arm around Bella—“without us, you never would’ve made the skeleton connection!”
“Yeah!” echoes Bella, “we’re the heroines here.”
“Some heroines. You’ve put Enya and Glad in danger,” Evvie says angrily.
Joe says, “We’re close. We’ll watch over Enya, won’t we, sugar pie?” Evvie nods in agreement.
Ida adds, “And I’m sure Jack will take care of Gladdy.”
I glance over at her, listening for her usual sarcasm, but I don’t detect any. Maybe she means what she says.
Jack salutes Ida.
We’re spinning out of control. I rap on the dining room table. “Enough with the bickering. Let’s put our thoughts in order.” Jack leans back in his chair, watching me trying, yet again, to keep the girls on track.
Evvie reaches in her purse for the notebook that’s always there. “Okay, shoot. I’ll get it all down.”
“First,” I say, “and most important—as far as everyone outside this room is concerned, Enya did not have an... episode. She has the flu. All that banging was a call for help. We need a cleanup crew to put her apartment back in some order. Anyone asks questions, repairs are still from the hurricane.”
Ida comments, “Lucky you were the only ones to walk in and see the mess. Hey, what about Mary?”
Evvie says, “We can trust her to keep quiet.” She glares at Sophie and Bella. “Unlike some others.”
Joe says to her, “Don’t start again.”
“Okay, okay.” Evvie backs off.
Ida paces. Everyone watches her do laps around the table. She says, “What did she say, his face was different?”
Evvie says, “That could have been because of the beard.” She starts to do stretching exercises. And of course her shadow, Joe, leaps off the couch to follow suit.
Now Sophie moves into the living room area and jumps up and down in place. And here goes Bella, who has to copy her actions.
Evvie adds as she does neck rolls, “And she said that he was big and heavy.”
Sophie says, puffing, “So he lost weight by the time he got here.”
By now they are all moving in different directions. “Could we all stay in one place?” I ask. “You’re making me dizzy. Do you want to take a break?”
Everyone hurries back to their seats. “No, let’s keep on,” Evvie says.
However, we do take a few minutes to refill coffee cups and water glasses.
“But Abe is Orthodox,” Bella says.
Evvie says what I guess some of us are thinking: “What more evil way for a Nazi to hide?”
We are quiet for a few moments, imagining the horror of that.
Jack asks, “What are your thoughts on discussing this with Stanley?”
Again everyone talks at once.
“He’ll have a heart attack,” says Bella.
“He won’t believe us,” says Joe. “Not in a million years.”
“He’ll go right to Abe and tell him!” Ida says. “Stanley will never forgive us.”
I hold my hands up. “Okay, table that. We don’t say anything yet.”
Jack says, “Let’s review our logic. The skeleton is unearthed because of the hurricane. Stanley assumes, by where the body was found, that it had to have been buried at the time the condos were built, in 1958. A worker, a guy named Johnny Blake, went missing, so it was deduced that it must be his body. First we suspect some kind of accident. The police tell us, no accident—his head was crushed— it was murder.
“Gladdy and Stanley go to Tampa and find out Johnny Blake died six months earlier than that fateful night, right off the dock near where he lived and his body was found, and buried at a nearby church. His sister, Lucy, says she believes foul play.
“The forensics lab reports what they discover from the bones. Their findings show that it couldn’t have been Johnny Blake of Tampa, nor could it be the man posing as Johnny Blake here. However, because of Lucy’s P.O. box number, we know for sure there is a definite connection. So now let’s call this unknown man X.”
I add, “Lucy also tells us the ship her brother was on came from Argentina.”
Sophie jumps in. “I read that that’s where the Nazis went to hide from being caught as war criminals.”
Jack continues. “Maybe X realizes somebody’s stalking him in Argentina. So he stows away on the ship and picks Johnny as the one to kill to get a new identity. He throws him overboard and easily makes it off the ship with Johnny’s ID. He wanders around and arrives at Fort Lauderdale, gets a job working on building these condos.” Jack stops to take a drink from his glass of water.
I continue for him. “But maybe this stalker catches up to him. It could be someone from the camps who wanted revenge for killing his family. A Jewish man named Abe Waller.”
Bella gasps. Hearing his name in this manner is chilling.
Evvie can’t wait. “X probably murdered the en-tire Waller family so nobody ever comes looking for the real Abe Waller.”
Jack continues. “We can imagine that in the middle of a terrible storm the two men fight to the finish. X is the stronger and he kills Abe Waller. So X has killed two men to keep himself safe.”
Ida says fervently, “All right. But why didn’t X keep using Johnny Blake’s ID?”
Jack says, “My guess is, he kept track of Tampa news and found out about Johnny’s body turning up. Here was a golden opportunity. He can’t remain Johnny Blake, so now he becomes Abe
Waller. When he leaves Johnny’s stuff behind, it probably must be because he couldn’t get back into his locker and he figures those old clothes would get thrown out.”
Joe says, “Which Stanley, the pack rat, never disposed of. Safe for fifty years until you, Gladdy.” He tips an imaginary hat to me.
Ida says, “But why would he do something so crazy and then move in and live where he buried the body? It doesn’t make any sense.”
I say, “We can only speculate. He comes back a year later, thinner and with a beard and mustache. No one would recognize him as the guy who worked on the construction site. Maybe he decided to hang about awhile to make sure the body wasn’t found. Then he just stayed on. It’s amazing how utterly realistic he’s been playing the part. I mean, why take on such a difficult role? Fifty years of going to temple consistently with Stanley. Not just being Jewish, but Orthodox, the most rigorous and devout form of Judaism. Why didn’t he leave when he was sure he was safe?”
Jack says, “Maybe he thought this was the ultimate disguise. No one would ever again recognize him. And he was right.”
It gets very quiet and I say, “Time for a reality check. What if we’re totally wrong and our imagination made up this entire scenario? What if Enya’s behavior was irrational and we’re reading Abe’s actions incorrectly? Maybe Enya, cracking up, is delusional and for some sick, sad reason, she’s picked on Abe. And what if Abe’s innocent?
This man has lived an impeccable, faith-filled, de-cent life. What if our carefully built-up assumptions are just that, assumptions—and we are about to destroy a man’s life?”
“One thing’s for sure,” Jack says, “without knowing his real name, we have nothing to go on. We have no proof. It’s all conjecture. But I have an idea...”
“Well?” says Evvie, never known for her patience. “Tell us. What?”
Jack looks at me and smiles. “We need to buy time. Glad, you’re not going to like this, but we have to get people’s minds off hurricanes and Enya and skeletons. Something to make Abe—if guilty—think he’s safe. Only way to do that is give everyone something else to get excited about. An event that will make them happy. Now we spread the word about our engagement and upcoming wedding. And have a
party to celebrate. That will give us time to come up with a plan.”
That startles me. I had no intention of having any kind of party, that’s not my style. I’m not thrilled with the idea, but Jack makes sense. I dread having to give the pool gang that ammunition. There goes romance. Goodbye, privacy.
Ida bursts into the laundry room on our floor, in a robe and with her bun unpinned, letting her salt-and-pepper hair fly. “What’s with the call to come over here right away? I was just about to take a bath.”
Now that our final partner is here, we turn to Evvie, who called this meeting for eight-thirty this evening. As if we hadn’t had enough discussion today. She’s busily filling a second washer with a load of clothes. “Thought I’d kill two birds with one stone,” she tells us.
Ida says, “It couldn’t keep ’til morning?”
With four of us girls already crowded in this small space, there’s hardly room to move an arm or leg. We all push backward to make room for Ida.
“I had something on my mind,” Evvie says, “and I wanted it settled tonight.”
I come to my sister’s aid: “Ev suggested that we cast our votes for whether we believe Enya is right about her fears. Or whether we don’t believe Abe is really a wolf in sheep’s clothing, so to speak.” Ida shakes her head. “But why here, now?” Evvie shrugs. “I didn’t want to hurt Joe’s feelings by telling him he didn’t have the right to vote.” She pushes her garments around in the tub so they fit in evenly.
Ida tries to put her hands on her hips. There’s no room, so she drops her arms.
Bella and Sophie watch the two of them bicker. Sophie gets bored and she examines her face in the small utility mirror, looking for new wrinkles. Bella plays with the coin lever, pulling it in and out.
“All right already, vote. My bathwater’s getting cold. And what’s with you and Joe anyway? Since when do you worry about his feelings?”
“Don’t ask,” Evvie says, looking toward me, who understands.
Sophie says, “My hand is ready to lift up, so let’s go.”
“Ditto,” says Bella, “not that I’m in a hurry to go back to Dora. She’s watching the reruns of the shows she watched this morning. I have such a headache from all the TV fighting and kissing and slamming doors.”
They all turn to me as usual, their reluctant leader, so I proceed. I guess it’s a good idea to see where we stand. “We heard a lot of stuff today and there was plenty to digest. If you’re not sure yet, say so. Okay, who believes Enya is right about Abe being the Nazi she knew in the camps?”
Sophie’s hand shoots up first. “I believe.”
Bella is next. “I believe.”
I say, “I believe.”
Ida hesitates, and then her hand goes up, too.
Evvie laughs as she raises her hand as well. “I believe, and now all we need is for Tinker Bell to show up.”
We all smile at that. A buzzer sounds to tell her the first load is dry.
“We done now?” Ida asks.
Evvie lugs out her dry clothes. “Done.”
The secret society meeting is over and it’s time to head for our homes. Except for me. Evvie beckons me to stay. She says, “We should go over and tell Enya. She must be on pins and needles. First I gotta finish my laundry.”
It’s past ten o’clock by the time Evvie’s laundry is done. Lights are out everywhere. Evvie and I tiptoe along the second-floor landing where Evvie and Enya live. I take a quick look at Abe’s kitchen window. No light there. Evvie leaves her filled laundry basket in front of her apartment.
Enya’s been told we’re coming, so she is waiting right at the door.
We slip into her apartment quickly. Enya looks a little better now that Mary is taking care of her.
“I’m so ashamed,” she says. “About the way I behaved.”
“Nonsense,” says Evvie. “You had good reason.
Enya leads us to the living room. Evvie and I sit down on her old horsehair sofa. “Do you want anything?”
“No, thank you,” we say.
Enya sits down at the edge of her chair and looks at us like she’s a prisoner at the dock, waiting to hear the verdict.
I say, “Enya, we believe you. But we have a very big problem. Without knowing his real name, our hands are tied. We have to have proof.”
Enya shakes her head. “If only I could remember. There were so many of them. We never knew their names. But this one, Der Bosewicht—we gave him that nickname because he frightened us more than any of the others—he was truly evil.”
Evvie adds, “We aren’t giving up. We’ll find a way to prove you’re right.”
Enya’s tears start to flow. The tension this woman has to be under must be unbearable. She comes over to us and grabs one of my hands and one of Evvie’s. “Thank you. Thank you.”
Still clutching our hands, Enya is lost in her troubled thoughts for a few moments. “The things they did, he did. I cannot bear to speak of them. I will not put you through having to listen to these abominations.” She pauses, wipes the tears from her eyes. “That he has lived freely among us for nearly fifty years horrifies me. That he lived as a Jewish man is unbearable.”
She stares into space. How she survived what she went through is almost unimaginable to me. I say, “I know you’re exhausted. Try to rest. We’ll keep bringing food to you. Stay put. Do not go out, and be very careful before you answer the door.”
“I am so frightened. Does he know I recognized him?”
She walks with us to the door. “Bless you for caring.”
We hug and kiss her and tiptoe out.
Party, Party, Party
Good news travels faster than the speed of light. At least that’s the way it seems in Lanai Gardens, Phase Two. This beautiful morning at the pool is the perfect place to hand out invitations to the Gladdy-Jack engagement party, which we had made up a few days ago. Bella and Sophie are assigned one end of the pool to dole them out, as far from Abe as possible. Evvie and Ida take the section that includes Abe, seated as usual behind the little black metal gate in the shade. Watching us, I now realize, always watching us.
My job is to wander about, showing off my ring, wearing a silly grin.
Sophie and Bella have on large, floppy sun hats, and huge wraparound very dark sunglasses, terrified of letting their faces show their fear. Any more mistakes in what they do or say could be dangerous. They’re in trouble, as it is, for spilling the beans to Abe. They especially won’t look in our alleged Nazi’s direction, afraid he can read them like a book.
From what I can see of his eyes, behind the thick glasses, they seem hooded. You don’t fool me, Oberftihrer. I know you’re watching us like a hawk. But you’ve met your match in Evvie Markowitz, who is heading over right now to hand you your invitation. I leisurely stroll by to catch the action.
He will try to stare Evvie down, but she, who believes she might have been an Oscar-winning actress had life not tossed her into marrying Joe, won’t blink. “This is for you, Abe,” says Evvie, playing an older Little Miss Sunshine. “And don’t you try to wiggle out of coming.” That’s said with a waggling hand demonstrating the wiggle. “Stanley and Esther already RSVP’d because they know we’re doing it right. Steinberg’s kosher restaurant is catering.”
Stanley was happy about my news and told me how he and Abe sometimes after temple go out for lunch at Steinberg’s, their favorite eating place. Perfect.
Abe manages what I read as a slick smile. “I wouldn’t think of missing it.”
Tessie arrives at the gate, carrying a now empty soup tureen. I knew she would be passing by, since it was I who planted this idea in her head, to bring the poor “flu” victim some chicken soup.
“How’s Enya doing?” I say, not looking at Abe.
I have to keep calling him Abe and thinking of him as Abe or I’ll lose my cool.
“A little better,” Tessie reports. “Poor thing. I can’t believe how high her fever went the other night. Lucky she didn’t die.”
Well done, Tessie. I couldn’t have scripted it better myself. But, of course, we’ve been spreading that “dangerous case of flu” story with “Enya becoming delirious” for days. Since Tessie knows nothing, she reveals nothing.
Hy, after immediately responding yes to the party, announces, “For this great occasion, a toast.” He lifts his Dr. Brown’s Cel-Ray tonic bottle and points toward Jack and me, the engaged couple. Jack, from where he lounges, reading a Michael Connolly detective novel, nods. I perform a silly curtsy.
I look around to see the response. Mary and Irving smile happily. Barbi and Casey grin slyly. Tessie sits down next to her hubby and shouts, “Hooray!” Sol shakes his head sadly. I guess marriage isn’t agreeing with him. Aha, Louise is sitting there with her mouth wide open in shock. Close your mouth, lady. As my mom used to say, You don’t want to let the flies in. Tiny Dora is jumping up and down. I can’t believe it, is that a TV clicker in her hand?
Directly across the way, in Denny’s garden, he and Yolie stop their planting and pay attention to what’s going on. They are thrilled at what they hear.
Tessie takes another look at her invitation. “Wait a minute. This Friday. So fast?”
Hy, annoyed at being interrupted, says, “At our age, who makes long-term plans?”
Tessie, suitably chastened, shuts up.
Hy instructs, “Those who have bottles to raise, get ’em up.” Water bottles and juices wave on high. Those without beverages just wave.
“To the engaged couple...” He indicates we should come to him. In order to make this plan of ours look like all is back to normal, we agreed earlier to put up with whatever nonsense comes up. Naturally, it would be Hy who finds a way to torment us. Jack rises from his chaise, and he and I walk over to where Hy is now standing. Jack kisses me and whispers, “Any excuse, babe.”
Hy hands Lola his drink and puts one arm across my shoulders and one across Jack’s. I grit my teeth.
Hy stares into my eyes and speaks loud enough for all to hear—and believe me, everyone is zoomed onto us and listening. “Here’s to the love that lies in a woman’s eyes—and lies and lies and lies.”
