“The wrong turn we took earlier,” Ellis said, remembering an option. “Where was it?”
“Which one?”
“The last one.”
“It’s…to the right…another half mile maybe.”
“Tell me when you see it.”
She lowered her window, getting ready.
Ellis swiped fog from the windshield with his coat sleeve, but the damp fabric smeared his view. Shit. He rolled down his window and poked his head out, squinting and blinking to watch the road ahead. Rain pelted his face. He tried not to imagine a shot to the back of his skull.
“There it is!” Lily pointed. “Down there.”
He saw it. At the bottom of the hill, he swung a right. Almost immediately, he swerved into the graveled lot they’d passed on their last wrong turn. A feed store closed for the night. He came to a stop behind the building and killed the head lamps. Over his shoulder was a partial view of the main road.
Lily squeezed Ellis’s hand.
Seconds stretched and thinned like endless strings of taffy. Darkness amplified every sound. The rain splashing the roof. The idle motor ticking. The blood pumping in his ears.
And the engine of the truck. Its roar gained power and momentum, louder and louder, like a rocket preparing to launch.
But Ellis, too, was prepared. He’d face the man with his fists, if nothing else. Though Ellis was no Jack Dempsey in the flesh, he’d fight till the end to keep Lily and Calvin safe.
Finally, as if in slow motion, the shadowed truck rode into sight.
First the hood…the cab…the flatbed…
Then it passed them right on by.
Chapter 40
Decisions had to be made: where to take Calvin, how and what to tell Geraldine, when Lily would go back to Philadelphia.
Answering the last one, as far as Lily was concerned, was the easiest. She would leave only when both children were in the safety of their mother’s arms, and not a minute before. That would mean arriving late to the paper, but the chief would simply have to understand. If not, so be it. After the day she’d had, there were few challenges that would ever again make her cower.
Now settled at Ellis’s apartment, she should have been exhausted, but her mind was still buzzing. She had navigated their escape, keeping them off the main roads until they crossed the state line, and spent the rest of the drive holding Calvin while periodically looking back.
Ellis had been wise to assume the duty of phoning Geraldine. Given Lily’s state of mind, she’d have rambled on with far too many details. It would have been cruel to unload the full summary in a single dose. They could share more tomorrow in person when Geraldine arrived at nine, after Ruby was back in their care.
“How did she take it?” Lily inquired as Ellis hung up the phone. In the lamp’s soft glow, she couldn’t immediately read him.
“She’s pretty shaken.”
Lily nodded. Weren’t they all?
He gestured toward his bedroom. “Is Calvin asleep?”
“Out like a light.”
The child had been so groggy when she carried him in that they didn’t trouble him with food or a bath. All of that could wait—save for the shackle. Ellis’s first priority had been to remove that despicable cuff. He had carefully maneuvered with a screwdriver and pick, then flung the rusted links aside. On the boy’s ankle, the red, circular mark left from the band would undoubtedly fade faster than his memory of the ordeal.
Spurred now by the target of Lily’s gaze, Ellis gathered up the chain and stored it in the entry table, beside their drying coats. “Evidence,” he explained awkwardly as she watched. It went without saying that, at the moment, he might not be viewed as the most reliable witness.
“I’d be glad to speak with the police myself,” she offered. “The Gantrys should never be allowed to adopt again. Not ever.”
“They won’t. I’ll make sure of it.” Ellis’s tone said there was no alternative. “Let’s just get both kids where they belong. I’ll handle the rest later.”
She agreed. With such uncertainty in the days and weeks to come for Ellis, it was best to face one issue at a time. “Thank you, by the way.”
“For…?”
“For not arguing about me going with you to fetch Ruby.”
He smiled at her. “I figured you’d refuse to stay put, even if I told you to.”
She gave it some thought and confessed, “That’s true.”
They both laughed a little. In the quiet that followed, a thread of remorse spiraled through her. They were on the last stretch of a marathon. In a handful of hours, she would board a train at Penn Station and they would go their separate ways.
It was a smart choice, of course.
Still the right one—despite her doubts crowding in.
“Go on, now.” Ellis sent a nod toward his room. “You should catch some shut-eye.”
It did feel odd to have him relegated to the davenport in his own apartment, particularly since she wouldn’t be sleeping a wink. She was certain of that. Although, she imagined he wouldn’t be either.
Resting beside Calvin was at least a sensible way for her to pass the time.
“Well…good night, Mr. Reed.”
He smiled again. “Night, Miss Palmer.”
• • •
Lily had guessed wrong. After she jolted awake, she realized she had fallen sleep. Beside her, Calvin’s rhythmic breaths had certainly added to the comfort from Ellis’s downy pillow.
How long had she dozed off? A dark gap in the curtain confirmed it was night.
Then a knocking sound reached in from the next room, and she discovered what had woken her. She pictured Mr. Gantry at the front door, rage warping his face, shotgun in his grip.
But he couldn’t have known where they were.
Unless he’d managed to trail them.
She scurried off the bed, fending off waves of dizziness and terror, and peered out of the room, only to find that she wasn’t alone in her suspicions.
“Is it him?” she whispered toward Ellis’s back in the entry. A large kitchen knife glimmered in his hand. She risked a few steps forward for an answer. “Is it?”
He showed her his palm, an order to stay back.
More knocks reverberated with force, and Lily had a terrible notion of who else it could be. For Max, a few henchmen could solve his sister’s issues in another way. Ruby’s transfer could have all been a ruse.
Ellis stooped for a look through the peephole.
Breath held, Lily mentally prepared to nab Calvin. They would flee down a fire escape outside the bedroom window—if there was one. Heavens! Why hadn’t she checked?
But Ellis lowered his knife and unlocked and opened the door. He spoke with the caller, blocking the person’s identity, until he stepped back to welcome a familiar guest.
Lily burst into a grin. “Oh, Mrs. Dillard, it’s you.” In the whole of her life, Lily had never been so happy to greet anyone.
As Ellis locked the door, Geraldine scanned the room. “Where is he? I gotta see him. Where’s my Calvin?” Wringing her hands, she seemed almost frantic.
A glance at the clock affirmed she was several hours early. It wasn’t yet four in the morning.
Lily had to remind herself of what Geraldine, as a mother, had to be going through. She moved closer and replied quietly, “He’s in the bedroom, fast asleep.”
“And he’s not hurt? He’s all right?” Geraldine’s moistened eyes pressed for the truth.
“He’s fine.” Or he would be, Lily hoped.
Geraldine turned to Ellis, as if in need of confirmation. But when her gaze dropped to his hand, he relinquished the knife onto the entry table. “Only a precaution.”
Lily continued with Geraldine, detouring from a more daunting explanation. “It’s such a lovely surprise to h
ave you here already.”
“After Mr. Reed called, I just wasn’t gonna be able to wait. Doc Summers let me borrow her car, as I used to drive some…and seeing as…I’d be…” Her attention splintered, landing on a sight behind Lily.
In the bedroom doorway, Calvin stood in a grungy shirt and overalls, rubbing his eyes.
Geraldine’s gasp held a quiver. She started toward him, but paused and folded onto her knees. Slowly she held out her hands, a gesture of yearning lined with fear of scaring him away. “Cal, baby…it’s me. It’s your mama.”
He was stunned or confused. Likely both.
According to Ellis, Ruby had been aware of her mother’s illness all this time. But had Calvin known as well? Did he believe his mother simply didn’t want him?
Had Sylvia filled him with even more crushing lies?
Dread from such questions appeared to crease Geraldine’s features. Seconds later, however, the answers became apparent, as much as needed to be, when Calvin’s tentative steps soon hastened to reach his mother. He threw his arms around her neck, and Geraldine heaved a sigh. Together, they hugged and cried as she rocked him from side to side. She kissed his cheeks and hands and told him she loved him again and again.
“I love you too, Mama,” he told her.
They were the first words he had uttered all night, the first words Lily ever heard him speak.
And they were perfect.
Ellis looked on with his hands in his trouser pockets. His expression reflected the sense of healing that stirred within Lily, a bond that permeated the room.
Drying her cheeks, Geraldine came to her feet, and Calvin clung to the side of her skirt. This would likely be his favorite spot for a long time to come. “Now, then,” she said to Ellis, “I need to see my daughter. Where’s Ruby at?”
“At the Millstones’. We’ll be there at eight.”
“No. I’ll be going there now.” Her staunchness clearly surprised Ellis as much as it did Lily.
“Mrs. Dillard,” he said, “you need to trust me on this. The brother who arranged this… Let’s just say he’s not a guy whose orders you break on a whim. Besides, I think him being there could be a real help.”
The reason for that wasn’t difficult to fathom. Presuming Sylvia wasn’t happy with the arrangements, Max taking the lead would ensure a smoother transfer.
“So, she expects us at eight,” Geraldine said.
Lily chimed in to assure her. “Only a few hours to go.”
Geraldine crossed her arms, showing a rise of agitation. “And what makes you so sure she didn’t up and leave already? Haul Ruby right off with her? Way I see it, if her mind’s all that troubled, I doubt she’d give any advice much weight. Now, I’m real grateful for what you both done tonight. But I’m Ruby’s mother. If I gotta drive all over the city to find that house myself, and even track her down from there, I’ll do it. With or without the two of you.”
Lily and Ellis traded looks. The day had towed them through more loops and turns than the Cyclone on Coney Island. They hadn’t had a chance to even consider disrupting Max’s plan. Nor the possibility of others outright defying him.
What if Geraldine was right?
What if her daughter was long gone?
“We’ll take my car,” Ellis said, already grabbing their coats.
Chapter 41
On the drive to jersey, Ellis weighed his options against the potential costs. If the Millstones had managed to spirit Ruby away, finding her again could prove impossible. They could take on new names, a new residence, new lives. All they needed was money and the right connections. The couple had both. But offend Max Trevino, and the possibility of any help, now or later, could vanish.
And that was the best-case scenario. It wasn’t hard to imagine the worst, with the visit to the Royal still vivid in Ellis’s mind: the big goon from the kitchen, a bloodied towel in his hand, the punching and groaning beyond the swinging door.
“Lights are on,” Geraldine announced anxiously from the back seat. They’d barely rolled to a stop in front of the house, it was true. Windows were illuminated on both floors. An odd thing given the early hour.
Calvin, nestled like a kitten in his mother’s arms, rose to see for himself.
In the front seat, Lily twisted toward Geraldine. “They’re probably up early to get Ruby all ready for you.” She masked the uncertainty in her voice fairly well.
Ellis tried to sound just as casual. “Why don’t you all stay here? I’ll go first and take a peek.” Avoiding an objection, he headed right out to catch a glimpse through a window. It would be easier to do now that the rain had taken a break.
He had just climbed the steps when he spied a figure entering the parlor room.
Ellis ducked from view.
There was one voice, then a second. The glass panes muffled the conversation, but its intensity was clear. He inched himself upward.
Already dressed for the day, Sylvia was grabbing picture frames from the mantel. Alfred appeared to be pleading with her, his high forehead flushed. He was in nightclothes of plaid pants and a buttoned shirt, its collar askew.
Ellis murmured his gratitude that the couple was still there.
But then Alfred forced Sylvia to face him by holding her arms. She strove to break away, and the frames plummeted. Glass shattered against the marble floor.
“How could you?” she wailed distinctly. Pushing him off, she fell to her knees and worked to salvage the photos from the shards, slicing her fingers and yielding drips of blood. Her attempts to wipe the images seemed to make them worse. A guttural sob brought a stream of tears.
Alfred joined her on the floor, where she held a picture helplessly. He drew her in, and she let him, the photo falling free. He rubbed her back and spoke in her ear. For a moment, Ellis felt intrusive enough to back off. But with an abrupt shove, Sylvia scrambled away to stand, angling toward the window.
Ellis dropped down. From this distance in the dark, his view of Lily and Geraldine was indiscernible, but he could sense their gazes trained on his every movement, anticipating, questioning.
“Victoria!” Sylvia’s summons traveled easily through the panes. “Victoria, come now! It’s time to leave!”
Oh Christ.
There was no sitting back and waiting. Tracking down Max would take far too long. Ellis couldn’t risk the chance of Sylvia sneaking Ruby out. The bargain was off.
He marched over to the front door and pounded with his fist. Pounded again.
The door swung open. Alfred’s face sparked with relief, snuffed out by his recognition of Ellis. “What are you doing? You shouldn’t be here yet.”
The hell he shouldn’t. “Where’s Ruby?”
“Alfred,” Sylvia called out, “who is it? Who’s there?”
Alfred shifted into a hush. “You have to wait outside,” he told Ellis. “Now, go. Go.” He was shutting the door, his hands and pajamas tainted with blood from the frames, when Ellis pushed forward and stopped him.
“You want me to go? Then hand Ruby over.”
Sylvia appeared at the door and forced it open the rest of the way. Tears had streaked her makeup, blackening the rims of her eyes. Her gaze ricocheted from her husband to Ellis and back. “You phoned him…” She was exasperated, accusing. “You told him to come early.”
“Darling, no. Don’t be silly. I thought it was your brother at the door.”
She shook her head, backing away, betrayal further darkening her face. The situation was on the brink of a free fall.
Ellis stepped toward her in the entryway. “Mrs. Millstone, let’s just sit down and talk. Could we do that?” He needed to keep things calm, for Ruby.
But Alfred raised a hand to hold Ellis off, a signal to let him manage this. “Please, Sylvia, don’t make this more difficult. We’ll get through this together, the two of us.”
“The two of us?” The phrase had a souring effect. She stared at him, a sudden revelation taking hold. “That’s it, isn’t it? It’s what you’ve wanted all along. To get Victoria out of the way.”
Alfred gaped at her, stricken. “That’s absurd. How could you suggest… You don’t know what you’re saying.”
“You told me to say it was me. That I was the one driving, because you drank too much brandy. But it wasn’t me at all.” Her voice sharply turned to ice. “It was you. You’d planned all of it, didn’t you?”
“What? No. I wouldn’t… It was an accident.” Alfred grew more flustered, emotion choking his voice. “The roads were slippery. You were there. You know this. I never meant to hurt our daughter. I loved her…”
For Ellis, the staggering exchange only cemented that the Dillard kids never belonged with these people. He glanced around for Ruby, prepared to tear the house apart to find her.
Sylvia abruptly bellowed toward the stairs. “Claire!”
“Darling, listen to me.” Alfred proceeded toward Sylvia, who went scuttling to the staircase, a wild animal evading a trap. Blood from her fingers dotted the white floor.
The housekeeper emerged above, already dressed in her uniform. “Ma’am?”
“Where is Victoria? I instructed you to bring her down!”
“She’s collectin’ her belongings. They’re…not quite ready.” Claire spoke with her gaze low, but it wasn’t solely from being timid. Ellis recognized the effort to stall. He envisioned Ruby hiding somewhere in a corner, a closet.
Would she try to slip out a back way, venturing alone in the dark?
“You deliver her this instant, or I’ll come and get her myself!” Sylvia commanded, spurring Ellis to intervene.
“Claire, you keep her right where she is.” He was about to start for the stairs, hoping force wouldn’t be needed to keep Sylvia back, when Ruby’s small, groggy face poked out from behind the housekeeper.
“Ah, Victoria,” Sylvia said. “There you are.” She sighed with a smile, a disturbing switch of mood. “Come along, my dearest. We’re going back to California, our real home.”
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