Charred, p.28
Charred, page 28
“Okay then. Thursday it is.” Helen fidgeted with her purse and stared at the ground.
“What’s wrong?” Charlie put his finger under her chin and lifted her face up so he could look into her eyes. “If you have second thoughts about marrying me, I’d appreciate it if you tell me now, not six months from now after we’re husband and wife.”
Helens’ eyes widened and almost bulged out of her head. “Charlie, how could you even think such a thing? There’s not a hint of doubt in any fiber of my being about us getting married. I’ve never been more sure of anything or wanted anything more in my life.”
“Well then, what’s bothering you? Because something is. Usually I, at least, get a peck on the cheek when I meet you. Today, you won’t even look me straight in the eye.”
“Oh, Charlie.” she threw her arms around his neck and cried.
He rubbed his hands up and down her back and waited for her to regain her composure. “Feel better?” he asked after the sobs turned to deep breaths and sniffles.
“It’s Carolyn.”
“Thought she was a lost cause.”
“Maybe more lost than either you or I realized.” Helen pulled away from his embrace, took his hand, and walked him to the corner. “Can we go to the park?”
“Sure. Maybe we’ll even recreate our first date and grab a hot dog.”
A wisp of a smile didn’t take away the frowns digging deeper into her face. On their walk across town, Helen told Charlie about Carolyn’s visit that morning. He let out a low whistle and shook his head.
“She gets herself into more and more trouble every day, doesn’t she?”
“And now she wants my help.”
“To do what?”
They reached the park entrance and stopped at the hot dog stand. Charlie ordered for both of them, then led Helen to a nearby bench.
“Does she expect you to go with her when she tells Gino?”
Helen took a bite of her hot dog, swallowed it, and said, “She’s not going to tell him.”
Charlie coughed, gagging on his food. Gulping his soda to help him swallow, he wiped his eyes. “Doesn’t she think he’ll notice in a couple of months?”
“Don’t be so dense. She plans on having an abortion.”
His mouth dropped open and he stared wide-eyed at Helen.
“I know. That’s how I felt too when she told me. And she wants my help.”
“How?”
“She wants me to find a doctor or nurse who’ll do it.”
“Oh, sweetie.” Charlie put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her in close, his chin resting on top of her head. “No wonder you’re so upset. And I made you feel worse thinking you didn’t want to marry me.” He kissed the top of her head. “Why would she think a perfectly respectable professional, like the ones you know at the Foundling, would get involved in something illegal?”
“I don’t know. And why she thinks I can just go around asking people if they do something like that is a mystery to me. She knows we have a whole ward just for single pregnant girls who come, stay, have their babies, then put them up for adoption. Certainly, if there was someone willing to perform abortions, that ward wouldn’t be full all the time. I don’t know what to do.”
Charlie unwrapped his arm from her, took the cold hot dog from her hand, walked to the nearest trash can and threw both of the dogs away. He came back and pulled her up from the bench. “A nice brisk walk will do you a world of good.” Looping her arm through his, they started down the path that would lead them to the boathouse. He hoped someone would have a model boat in the water to distract her for a while.
While they walked, he thought about Carolyn’s problem. He was furious she had put Helen in the middle of the situation. He could feel the tug-of-war that was going on in her mind between wanting to help her sister and taking part in an illegal operation. He knew Helen couldn’t, and wouldn’t, dare approach anyone at the hospital for help. But maybe between his contacts and Joe’s, they could find someone who wouldn’t butcher up the foolish girl and ruin any prospects of future children for the rest of her life. It would cost plenty, he was sure, but that wasn’t his problem. Carolyn would just have to get the money somehow without telling Gino why she needed it. He had no doubts she could manage that. Even though he wanted to find her and tell her exactly where she and her wise guy boyfriend could go, he calmed himself before he tried talking to Helen. She didn’t deserve any of this. And she didn’t need to see how angry he was. He took a deep breath.
“Helen, you don’t need to get involved in this.”
“But I promised Carolyn.”
“What I mean is, you can’t go around the hospital asking if someone performs illegal operations on the side. You’d be fired before you could blink, if not arrested.”
“But—”
“Stop.” He held his hand up, palm out. “Listen to me for a minute. Boxing has a very dirty side, as I’m sure you’ve heard. I’ve steered clear of most of it, but you can’t be in the game for as long as I was without hearing some of the sordid details of other guy’s escapades. Between me and Joe, we might be able to come up with a name. I’m not sure if we can do it by Wednesday, but we’ll try. How about I call Joe now and the three of us can go to dinner and talk it over?”
“That’s a terrific idea. I feel like a giant weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”
The smile she gave him made his heart jump. He knew he would move heaven and earth to keep her that happy forever.
“Peg!” Helen said, “what are you doing here?”
“Gee, what a warm welcome. Joe and I had plans for dinner tonight, so when Charlie asked him to join you two, he asked if I’d mind and I said it would be fine. Why? Is there a problem?”
Helen looked at Charlie then rubbed her temples. “I didn’t want you to get involved in this mess.”
“What mess?” Peggy looked at Joe, but he shrugged his shoulders and shook his head. “Should I leave?”
Everyone looked at Helen. She took a deep breath, eyes cast to the ceiling. “I guess not. Carolyn’ll just go to you if we can’t come up with a solution, so you may as well stay.”
“Carolyn?”
“Please sit,” Helen said, “and I’ll fill you in.”
Charlie took her hand and rubbed his thumb across the back of it. She took another deep breath and told them about Carolyn’s visit that morning. Halfway through her story, their waiter came to the table to take their dinner orders. Charlie gave his and the others said they’d have the same.
“Go on, Helen,” Joe said.
She ended by telling them that Carolyn would stop back for a name on Wednesday and that if she didn’t have one, she planned on asking Peggy to find someone.
“Otherwise,” Peggy said, “I guess I’d be kept in the dark. Why do both of you think you have to shield me from everything? Do you really think I’m so innocent I have no idea what’s going on between Carolyn and Gino? Or that I didn’t think this was a real possibility? I just assumed that if it did happen, they’d get married. I guess that was childish thinking on my part. But, being realistic, I guess if she’s going to hang around with a criminal, she may as well become one herself.”
“Peggy, that’s a terrible thing to say about your own sister,” Helen said. “And that’s not why I didn’t plan on telling you.”
“Then why all the secrecy?”
Helen squirmed in her seat and looked around the dining room before she said, “Because you have a terrible habit of telling Mom everything. You never could hide anything from her. One look at your face, and she knows something’s up. Then all she has to do is stand there with her hands on the hips, tap her foot, and say, ‘Out with it,’ and you blab everything to her.”
Peggy’s face turned red. “That’s not true.”
“Yes, it is and you know it.” Helen reached across the table and grabbed Peggy’s hand. “You’re just too honest. There’s nothing wrong with that, but sometimes I wish you could conceal things. Mom doesn’t always have to know everything about us.”
Peggy couldn’t look at Helen. She knew she was right. She wasn’t sure if it was because her mother put the fear of God in her or because she wanted her to know what her two older sisters were up to. They always seemed to think she was too young to understand anything, even thought there was only a year’s age difference between all of them. And she resented being treated like a baby.
The tension at the table was palpable. Joe’s eyes wandered around the room. Charlie took tiny sip after tiny sip of his beer. Helen held onto Peggy’s hand and wished her sister would look at her.
“Well,” Peggy said, raising her head and staring into Helen’s eyes, “this is one time Mom won’t find out what’s going on from me. I’m not going to be the one who gives her a nervous breakdown or puts my sister in jail. Carolyn’ll have to find a way to do that by herself. And if she keeps up with what she’s doing now, that probably won’t be too far down the road.”
Helen had never seen this steely look of determination and resolve that came over Peggy’s face. She looked at her sister with newfound respect. This was a side of her that Helen realized Peggy kept hidden from her family. For this was the part of Peggy that got her through all the discrimination she faced in college and medical school from her male counterparts. She had underestimated her little sister. Peggy was the strongest one of the three of them. She had a steel will that wouldn’t bend when she needed or wanted it, and this was one time she would use it.
“I believe you, Peg,” Helen said. “And I apologize for not giving you the credit or respect you deserve for so many things. I promise not to treat you like my innocent little sister anymore.”
“Thanks. Now, I guess we’d better get some kind of plan together to get Carolyn out of her latest jam.”
There was almost a collective sigh of relief as everyone relaxed. Tight shoulders loosened. Charlie downed the rest of his beer in one gulp. Joe smiled at Peggy. And Helen released her grip on her sister’s hand.
With perfect timing, the waiter appeared and set their dinners on the table.
“Another round of drinks, please,” Charlie said.
Over dinner, Charlie and Joe bandied names and situations back and forth trying to narrow down the possibilities of reliable sources. By the time everyone had cleaned their plates, they had settled on three people who could probably give them a doctor’s name.
“I think we should talk to these guys together,” Joe said. “Gives our... um, request a little more weight.”
“Agreed. When and where?”
“Meet me at Stillman’s tomorrow. Ten o’clock. That will give us two days to get this done, and get a name to Helen before Carolyn shows up.”
“Thank you both,” Helen said.
“Yes, thanks,” Peggy said. “I guess every occupation has it’s seedy side, even the lofty world of medicine.”
“Unfortunately, that’s true,” Joe said. “But sometimes these charlatans can actually wind up doing something good for someone who needs a break. I’m not totally convinced that’s the case with Carolyn, but I’m willing to give her the benefit of the doubt if only for the reason that it’ll ease both your minds.”
“I know I’ll feel better thinking she’ll be going to someone who’s not doing this on the kitchen table in some filthy tenement,” Peggy said.
“Does that really go on?” Helen asked, her eyes widened and she raised her hand to her mouth.
Peggy shook her head, her lips drawn into a tight line. “Now who’s the innocent? You wouldn’t believe some of the butchery and horror stories we hear in the emergency room at the hospital. Believe me, if I was ever an innocent, I’m not now.”
“I never realized.”
“And hopefully, you’ll never have to witness anything like it.”
“I think we could all use a brandy,” Joe said, signaling the waiter.
When the drinks came, Joe reached over and poured a little water into Peggy’s glass.
The mood was considerably lighter now, even though there had been a major realignment of Helen’s and Peggy’s relationship. They looked across the table at each other and, in that moment, they knew they had moved on to a more equal standing, a friendship that went beyond, and was deeper than, just being sisters.
By the second day, the men had the name of a doctor in Brooklyn who agreed to see Carolyn that Sunday at eleven o’clock. When Carolyn showed up at the Foundling, she found Charlie leaning against a parked car.
“Charlie? What are you doing here?”
He looked her over from head to toe. “Seems like you learned how to spend Gino’s money pretty quickly. That outfit probably costs more than you used to make in a week.”
“What of it? Gino expects me to look my best all the time.” She tried to look down her nose at Charlie, but since he was a good head taller, she only looked foolish.
“Nice to see he’s getting his money’s worth.”
Before they could start an all-out brawl, Helen opened the hospital’s front door and bounced down the steps. “You’re both here. Great.”
Charlie pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket. “Here’s the name, address, and phone number you asked for, and your appointment time on Sunday.”
“Sunday? I don’t know if I can make it on Sunday. And I prefer to make my own doctor appointments.”
“Suit yourself, but that’s the only day he’s willing to do abortions,” Charlie said.
Carolyn and Helen both winced at the word.
“The rest of the week, he sees legitimate patients. Ones who don’t ask him to commit a crime. So, it’s up to you. You can call and cancel if you want. I gave you his phone number. Oh, and he said to bring five hundred dollars. Cash.”
“That’s outrageous. How am I supposed to come up with that much money by Sunday?” Carolyn asked.
Charlie glowered at her. “You’re asking the man to perform an illegal operation. If he gets caught, he could go to jail, lose his license, and never be able to ever practice medicine again. I’d call it a bargain. Ready, Helen?” He took her hand and started to walk away.
“Wait a minute,” Helen said, tugging on his arm. “Carolyn, Charlie and Joe spent two days trying to find a doctor for you. The least you can do is thank him. How you get the money to pay for this is none of our business, but showing some gratitude would be nice.”
Carolyn stared at the slip of paper in her hand. “Thank you, Charlie. And thank Joe for me too. Helen?” She looked at her sister. “Would you come with me? I don’t want to be alone.”
Helen sighed. “I don’t know. If anyone finds out, I’ll lose my job.”
Carolyn stood slumped and defeated, all bravado evaporated. “Please. I’m scared.”
Helen looked at Charlie, but he shrugged his shoulders. “I’ll give you two a minute.” He walked down the street and waited at the corner.
Carolyn grabbed Helen’s arm. “Please. I don’t think I can do this on my own. And what if something goes wrong?”
Helen took a deep breath. “You know this goes against everything I believe in.” Carolyn waited for an answer while Helen paced the sidewalk for a couple of minutes. “Meet me after Mass at Ed’s coffee shop.”
“Thank you.” Carolyn hugged her and kissed her cheek. “You’re a good sister and a good person. See you Sunday.” She gave her another quick hug and left.
Charlie shook his head as Helen joined him. “You’re a pushover, you know that?”
“She’s my sister.”
He took her hand. “What do you want to do tonight?”
They wandered the streets talking about their plans for tomorrow. They’d go to the city clerk’s office first thing and get their marriage license. Then, Helen wanted to go to their new apartment and rummage through the basement for furniture they could use.
“I still think we should buy new stuff,” Charlie said. “Nothing down there will be any good. That’s why people left it.”
“You never know. Maybe someone died and the family didn’t need their stuff. So, they put it down there until they could figure out what to do with it, then forgot all about it. Some of it might be okay for now. There are still so many things we have to buy. This will just save us a little money. And we won’t have to spend the time shopping. We can always replace the pieces. Little by little.”
“I can see I’m not going to change your mind, but if I go with you, I might keep you from taking everything upstairs.”
“That would be perfect. This is exciting. We’re really going to be married and living there soon.”
“Next week.”
“Really? That soon?”
“When’s your day off next week?”
“Thursday, again.”
“Then Thursday it is. We’ll go down to the city clerk’s office and get married.”
“I can’t believe this is happening. Oh, Charlie, you’ve made me the happiest woman alive.” She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him.
“Keep this up and I won’t wait till Thursday,” he said, kissing her again.
“I guess we should behave. We are on a public street.”
“You’re making it very difficult for me to do that, but I’ll try.” He pulled away from her but didn’t let go of her hand. “Want to go see a movie? We can sit in the last row and act like teenagers.” He wiggled his eyebrows up and down.
Helen slapped his arm. “You’re terrible.” They walked a few more steps and she said, “What’s playing?”
Charlie roared laughing. “Who cares?”
They stopped at the first movie theater they passed and spent the next couple of hours enjoying the last row and the dark privacy of the theater, blissfully ignorant of whatever was playing on the screen.
