Fancy Dancer (12 page)
“Until?” Zeke said.
“After your third birthday, Selma told Jonah that he was not your father. Then she told me about you. But she warned me that if Jonah ever found out who I was, he might kill me, so I should please, please, stay away and not try to see you. For years, I lived in fear of what Jonah would do.
“And then, years later, about six months after Selma died, Jonah paid me a visit in Washington. It was the year I became chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. I was at home, putting some books on a shelf, when he walked in. No one was there but me, and when I saw him lock the door, I knew what was coming. I wanted to die. I really did.
“Jonah pulled out a picture of you. It was a Polaroid shot of you opening your birthday presents. He threw it at me and said how he wanted me to see you the day he learned that you were not his son, the day he lost everything he cared about in his life.
“I was so intent on what he was saying, looking at the picture of you at the age of three, that I didn’t care about anything else. He damn near beat me to death, and I didn’t defend myself. What I did was cry like some sniveling little pantywaist. I took the beating because I deserved it. All I asked was that, at some point, I would get to meet you. Before I blacked out for the last time, Jonah bent down and said that if I ever tried to see you, get in touch with you, he would... he would . . .”
The three men stared at Trousoux as each of them tried to imagine the beating the man had undergone.
“What did he threaten you with?” Jake asked.
“He said he would... kill you. Mother of God, I believed him. That’s why I never tried . . .”
Jake drew a deep breath. He moved then and placed his hands on the arms of the big chair. He leaned so close, his nose almost touched Trousoux’s. “The question at the moment is, did you
want
to get in touch with me?”
want
to get in touch with me?”
“What kind of stupid question is that, young man? Of course I did. I went to as many of your high-school football games as I could, and every one of your college football games your freshman year at LSU. But I couldn’t take the risk that Jonah meant what he said.
“I will go to my grave loving your mother. How could I risk his killing her son—my son?
“Do you see that big, battered steamer trunk in the corner? It belonged to my grandfather. That’s what I’m leaving you in my will; that and nothing more. In case you haven’t figured it out yet, I’m dying. I’m on borrowed time right now. According to my doctors, I should have been pushing up daisies this past Easter. I’m still here but not for long. I’m tired now. If there’s nothing else, I’d like to be left in peace.
“Oh, there is one more thing. When your mother was in the hospital, I went to see her. More than once, actually. She said she forgave me. We had long, comfortable conversations. She had mixed feelings about the situation, but she was heavily medicated. She told me that Jonah knew that he was not your father but that she had never told him who was. One minute she wanted you to know the truth, then the next minute, she didn’t. She made me promise not to tell you until after she was gone. And she said it would be all right with her if I took the secret to my grave. She was so guilt-ridden.
“And she never, never stopped loving Jonah. That was the day I finally accepted that she hadn’t loved me at all. So many lies. So much unhappiness. From everything I’ve seen and read about you, it appears you have a good life. The whole state, my state that I’ve worked to serve all my life, appreciates all you’ve done for our people.” A second later, the man’s head drooped, and he was sound asleep.
Jake knuckled his eyes and turned to leave. Alex had unlocked the door and was holding it open. They let themselves out, but not before Zeke commented on the one-of-a-kind marble staircase that held absolutely no interest for either Jake or Alex.
“Anyone feel like talking?” Zeke asked.
“I’m talked out,” Alex said, climbing into the backseat of his own car so Zeke could drive.
“I need to think,” was all Jake could come up with.
“Next stop, the Sizzler, boys,” Zeke said.
Jake’s emotions were all over the map on the ride to the Sizzler, where he picked up his truck. He didn’t know what he felt when Alex wrapped his arms around him in the parking lot and said, “It’s going to be okay, Jake. I just feel it.”
Zeke clapped Jake on the shoulder, then looked him in the eye. “This ain’t the end of the road, son. You need to think of it as going around a bend with miles and miles of highway still to be traveled. Don’t you go doing nothing stupid, you hear me? I don’t want you making me ashamed of you. You listening to me, Jake?”
“I always listen to you, Zeke. You know that. I’m going to the SPCA now to get a dog. Call me when you want to hang out.”
Zeke cackled. “Well now, that might not be for a while, son. Miss Sophia and I have a—”
“Say what?” Alex roared.
“Settle down, young’un. Your mama has a right to pick her friends, and she told me straight to this ugly face of mine that she could see in my eyes I was a good man. That means good enough for her. You got any more to say, you take it up with your mama. See ya, boys.” With that, he walked to his truck and drove off.
“Your mother can’t do any better than Zeke, Alex. Just so you know. Can’t you just be happy for your mother if that’s what
she
wants?”
she
wants?”
Alex clapped Jake on the back the way he’d seen Zeke do. “I was just jerking his chain and talking to hear myself. I like the old guy, I really do. I’ve wanted Mom to find someone for years, but she was too busy looking after me. She said I had to come first, no matter what. The SPCA, huh?”
“Yeah, come by later and see my new roommate.”
“I’ll do that. How about I bring some Chinese? You like Chinese beer?”
“How about some sweet tea instead. I think I’ve had enough beer to last me a good long time.”
“Gotcha. Seven okay?”
“Seven’s good.”
“I still feel like you’re my brother, Jake. For whatever that’s worth.”
Jake grinned. “Funny you should say that. I was just thinking the same thing.”
“Go on, get out of here and save some dog that needs saving.”
Jake did just that, stopping once at a local gas station to ask where the SPCA was. He took a long moment to wonder why he didn’t already know that. Whatever . . .
He got lost twice but finally pulled into a gravel parking area, where he could hear the sounds of dogs barking. He got out and walked over to a fence against which a group of dogs were slamming their bodies. One lone dog hung back, skinny, with big, sad eyes. Jake could count the dog’s ribs. It looked tired. As tired and as sad as he felt. He stood a moment longer, watching her, before he walked into the small, cramped, outer office. A long discussion followed, and thirty-five minutes later, Jake walked out with the skinny dog in his arms. As he walked to his truck and opened the door to climb in, he held her close because she was shaking so badly. He crooned to her the way his mother used to croon to him when he was crying and upset over something. She calmed down slowly, just as they reached a vet’s office on Old Trolley Road. He knew the vet, Donny Gamble—he’d gone to school with him.
“Do whatever you need to do for her—all the shots, the microchip, a bath, clip her nails. And perfume her up a little; she smells pretty bad. Her name is Lucy Red. I’ll wait in the waiting room, okay?”
That’s when Jake saw Fancy Dancer, sitting off to the side by an enormous fish tank. She was crying.
“Fancy? What are you doing here? Is one of the animals sick?”
“Jake! I’m sitting here trying to get up the nerve to... to put Jethroe down. A huge tree limb fell on him, and his back end... I don’t have the money to pay for the operation.” She started to wail then and couldn’t stop.
Jake sat down next to her and pulled her close. She was shaking the way Lucy Red had been shaking. He crooned to her, whispering all kinds of things that later he couldn’t remember. What he did remember saying was that he would pay for the operation because little Charlie loved Jethroe. “Wait here, Fancy. I’ll take care of this.”
Jake ran down the hall, shouting Donny’s name. “Damn, Jake, people can hear you in the next county. It’s only been five minutes.”
“No no, it’s Jethroe. I’ll pay for the operation. Do what you have to do. You better do a good job, too.”
“I’ll get him prepped right away.”
“You can save him, can’t you?”
“Hey, Jake, does the Pope pray? Go on, get out of here so I can get to work.”
Back on the bench by the fish tank, Fancy was holding a wad of sodden tissues. “What did he say?”
“Well, when I asked him if he could save him, he said, ‘Does the Pope pray?’ I think that was a yes.”
“I don’t know how to thank you, Jake. What are you doing here, anyway?”
“I went to the SPCA to get a dog. Save a dog, actually. I brought her here to get cleaned up, get her shots, and get microchipped. Her name is Lucy Red, and she’s all skin and bones.”
“That’s a good thing,” Fancy said, tears rolling down her cheeks. “It will take me forever to pay you back, just so you know.”
“I don’t want to be paid back, Fancy. Consider it a donation. I was going to call you in the next few days. I’d like to come back and finish out my... sentence. I know, I know, I don’t have to do that, but I want to. Consider me a volunteer, and I can go home at night and not put anyone out. Of course, if you don’t want me, that’s an entirely different matter.”
“Oh, we do... I do... We can use all the help we can get. We got two new children, four-year-old twins. Charlie appointed himself as their big brother. He misses you, Jake. I mean he
really
misses you. When he says his prayers at night, you are at the top of his ‘God bless’ list.”
really
misses you. When he says his prayers at night, you are at the top of his ‘God bless’ list.”
“No kidding,” Jake said, immensely pleased at what he was hearing. “Listen, do you want to go get some early lunch? It’s going to be a little while. How about we get a pizza at Alex’s mom’s restaurant? We’ll come right back here afterward.”
“Okay, but I have to call my mother. She was so upset about Jethroe, and it’s not good for her to get upset.”
While Fancy called home, Jake walked over to the desk, signed a blank check, and told the technician where they were going. He left his cell-phone number in case Donny needed to call him. “We’ll be back in about an hour.”
The young technician with a fat pigtail hanging down her back smiled and motioned that it was okay to leave.
Jake looked across the room at Fancy, who smiled at him. Suddenly he felt as good as he had the moment he heard the first notes of Miles Davis’s “So What.”
In his new truck, with Fancy settled in the passenger seat, the first words out of Jake’s mouth were, “Do you like jazz?”
Fancy burst out laughing. “Does the Pope pray? Of course. I love jazz. Do you?”
“One of my true loves.” Jake grinned.
Chapter 12
J
ake was five days into his new life with Lucy Red. He took his responsibilities so seriously, Zeke and Alex could only gawk and listen in amazement. Cooking special food for a dog. Amazing. Exercising with the dog twice a day. Interesting. Sleeping with the bony creature with the sad eyes. Heartwarming. The house had become a glorified doghouse catering to the four-legged creature. Beyond amazing, interesting, and heartwarming. The best part, though, both men agreed, was that the haunted look was gone from Jake’s eyes. And they agreed that Jake was a happy camper.
ake was five days into his new life with Lucy Red. He took his responsibilities so seriously, Zeke and Alex could only gawk and listen in amazement. Cooking special food for a dog. Amazing. Exercising with the dog twice a day. Interesting. Sleeping with the bony creature with the sad eyes. Heartwarming. The house had become a glorified doghouse catering to the four-legged creature. Beyond amazing, interesting, and heartwarming. The best part, though, both men agreed, was that the haunted look was gone from Jake’s eyes. And they agreed that Jake was a happy camper.
Jake was ladling out Lucy Red’s lunch when the phone rang. He set the bowl that said LUCY RED on it, a gift from Fancy Dancer, on the floor and picked up the phone. It was his friend, the vet, Donny Gamble. He listened.
“I can leave now and come and pick up Jethroe. I agree with you that it wouldn’t be wise to send him back to Fancy’s until he’s fully recovered... Of course I can handle the harness and get him out and about... Lucy Red could use some company... Maybe he doesn’t like being in the clinic. I didn’t know dogs could get depressed. Do you have a pill for that?... I have an idea, Donny. There’s a little boy out at Fancy’s who is very attached to Jethroe and he to Charlie. It’s the weekend, so I can take a ride out there, pick up Charlie, and bring him here so Jethroe can see him. Fancy called me yesterday and said Charlie was in a funk over the dog. Let’s give it a shot . . . Look, I can keep him as long as necessary, and now that I’m such an authority on all things pertaining to dogs, you don’t have to worry about a thing. Do I owe you any more money? ... No? Okay, I’ll pick up Charlie when the kids’ lessons end, and swing by for Jethroe. Three-ish.”
Lucy Red nosed her bowl toward the sink to show she was finished. She looked up at Jake, then sat back on her haunches as she waited for him to get the leash. Jake obliged, and man and dog walked around the block three times. Back at the house, Jake handed over a dog treat, and Lucy Red carried it to the pink polka-dotted dog bed that a salesgirl had talked Jake into buying. There were dog beds in every room in the house. Girly beds. Alex had guffawed when he saw them. Bushels of toys that squeaked and whistled were everywhere. By the end of the day, Jake’s back hurt from bending down to clean up and store the plush toys in the purple laundry baskets that were also in every room in the house.
The bottom line was that Jake St. Cloud loved Lucy Red more than he’d ever loved anyone, except possibly his mother. The hours until it was time to head out to Fancy’s loomed ahead of him. He looked around to get his bearings, opened the refrigerator, and took stock of the ingredients. He could mix up a meat loaf, cook some vegetables, and have it all ready for when he brought Jethroe back. It bothered him that Donny Gamble had said Jethroe wasn’t eating.
First things first. Put on some music. Call Fancy and ask about bringing Charlie out to his house, explain about Jethroe and his harness and the wheels that would enable the yellow Lab to get around while he healed. Then he could make his meat loaf. Or two or three.
Jake wondered what it would be like to have a little person, namely Charlie, underfoot in the house. He hadn’t been at Fancy’s long enough to form any real bonds with the kids or the animals, but he had interacted with Charlie. The little boy seemed to like him, and he liked Charlie, too. He grinned when he remembered Fancy telling him that he, Jake, was at the top of Charlie’s “God bless” list at night.
Fancy Dancer. Jake squeezed his eyes shut as he remembered the feel of her in his arms at the vet’s. She’d smelled sweet, flowery, and oh-so comfortable in his arms. Like she was meant to be there. Suddenly, he felt warm all over as he wondered what it would be like to take Fancy out to dinner, then maybe go for a walk afterward, where they would stroll along, holding hands. Then, at the end of the evening, a kiss at her door. At which point he’d probably go home and take a cold shower, with Lucy Red poking her nose in the shower door wondering what was going on at that hour of the night.
Lucy Red had become a creature of habit these last five days and had his routine down pat. Lucy Red did not like curveballs thrown at her. That’s when Jake realized he was going to have to find a dog sitter if he wanted to have any kind of social life. A dog sitter he could trust. Where did one find a dog sitter? Did employment agencies have dog sitters? Of course he’d want to interview whomever they recommended. He couldn’t hire just anyone, not for Lucy Red. He’d want them bonded, that was for sure. Well, he could think about that later. At the moment, he had to call Fancy; and then he had to make a couple of meat loaves for the dogs. Dogs as in plural. Charlie, too. Jeez, what if Charlie didn’t like meat loaf? Chicken nuggets. Didn’t all kids like chicken nuggets? He thought he’d seen that on TV not too long ago. Just to be on the safe side, he’d pick some up on the way home from the vet’s.
Off in the next room, Jake heard a series of squeaks and squeals as Lucy Red played with her toys. He dialed Fancy’s number, relayed the gist of Donny Gamble’s phone call, and waited for her reaction.
“I’m more than okay with all of that, Jake, if you’re willing to help me out yet again. As for Charlie, he’ll go over the moon when I tell him. And of course you can keep Charlie for the weekend. I’ll pack his things. If it’s crucial to Jethroe’s recovery, I can have Charlie’s teacher make up a lesson plan for next week and even two weeks if you think it’s necessary. Charlie’s a quick learner and is doing extremely well in school. In fact, he’s way ahead of the rest of the kids his age. You realize, though, that you will have to sit with him and help out.”
“Sure, no problem. What does he eat?”
“Anything, Jake. We aren’t fancy here, no pun intended. The kids eat what’s put in front of them. We serve nourishing food, and they all get vitamins. I’ll pack some for Charlie.”
“Does he like meat loaf?”
“Are you kidding? Charlie loves meat loaf.”
Jake’s fist shot in the air. “Okay, then, I’ll be out around three. By the way, when and if I can find a reliable babysitter as well as a dog sitter, would you consider having dinner with me one night next week?”
“I’d like that very much, Jake. Nowhere fancy, though—again, no pun intended. I just don’t have any fancy duds. Again, no pun intended.”
Jake’s fist shot in the air once again. “I know just the place—jeans, sneakers, and T-shirts and we’ll look like everyone else, and I hear the food is amazing.”
“Then I’m your girl.”
I’m your girl.
Jake loved the sound of those words. “Okay, I’ll see you in a little while. You’re sure now that Charlie will be okay coming here?”
Jake loved the sound of those words. “Okay, I’ll see you in a little while. You’re sure now that Charlie will be okay coming here?”
“As long as Jethroe and Mr. Jake are there, he’s going to love it and feel pretty special at the same time. Guaranteed.”
“Okay, then, I guess we’re good to go unless there’s anything else about Charlie you think I should know.”
The hesitation Jake sensed from the other end of the line brought a frown to his face. He suddenly felt anxious.
“Well, there
is
one thing. Charlie is obsessed with finding a grandmother. He doesn’t have one, and he desperately wants one. He has a picture in his mind of a grandmother and . . . we simply haven’t been able to come up with a volunteer who meets his requirements. It’s all he talks about and prays for before he goes to bed at night. He is convinced she’s searching for him and just hasn’t found him yet. I’ve had one of our volunteer therapists talk to him at length, many times, and the little guy is as stubborn as they come. The bottom line is he wants a grandmother. Period.”
is
one thing. Charlie is obsessed with finding a grandmother. He doesn’t have one, and he desperately wants one. He has a picture in his mind of a grandmother and . . . we simply haven’t been able to come up with a volunteer who meets his requirements. It’s all he talks about and prays for before he goes to bed at night. He is convinced she’s searching for him and just hasn’t found him yet. I’ve had one of our volunteer therapists talk to him at length, many times, and the little guy is as stubborn as they come. The bottom line is he wants a grandmother. Period.”
Jake felt out of his depth. He knew as much about grandmothers as he did about dogs and kids. “I assume at some point there must have been a grandmother in his life.”
“That’s just it—there wasn’t. At least not that we’ve been able to find in our searches. Charlie’s parents were killed in a car crash during a really bad rainstorm. Charlie was home with a sitter, and he was only two. He doesn’t remember his parents at all. His mother was adopted, from what we know, and we have absolutely no information on the father at all. It’s almost like he hatched from an egg. We did try, Jake, but our resources are limited. Anyway, if Charlie brings it up, just do your best.”
They spoke for a few more minutes about nothing important.
There was a smile a mile wide on Jake’s face when he ended the call to Fancy Dancer. Yes sir, his world was looking up. The ugly black hole he’d fallen into after his visit to Clement Trousoux had, somehow, magically spit him back out. He could think clearly again, and he gave all the credit to Lucy Red, Alex, and Zeke. He knew in his gut he’d still be in that ugly black hole if it weren’t for the three of them. And now, something even better was happening—he was going to take Fancy Dancer out on a casual date. Who knew what would come of that?
Jake shifted into what he called his neutral zone as he started to mix up the meat loaf. Half his mind was on the music he was hearing, the other half on Fancy, Charlie, and the dogs and finding someone who fit Charlie’s definition of a grandmother. He was in a good place mentally, and he knew it, reveled in it.
“Mr. Jake, is it true that I’m coming to stay with you for a little while? Where did your hair go? Jethroe isn’t an angel, is he? I can carry my books; you don’t have to help me. I like meat loaf.”
“Whoa there, big guy! One question at a time,” Jake said as he tossed a battered green duffel bag with Jake’s clothes and the other duffel bag with his schoolbooks into the backseat of his new truck. “Yes, Miss Fancy said you can stay with me for a little while, but you still have to do your schoolwork every day. I had to shave my hair off because it smelled bad from the oil. It’s starting to grow back in. Before you know it, I’ll have as much hair as you do. No, Jethroe is not an angel. He’s missing you a lot. We’re going to pick him up right now. I need you to help me take care of him. And I am more than happy that you like meat loaf.”
Jake settled Charlie in the passenger seat, made sure his seat belt was buckled, and turned around and smashed right up against Fancy. “Oops. You really are light on your feet, aren’t you? I didn’t hear you make a sound.”
Fancy laughed. “Charlie has a way of taking over a situation. Thanks again for doing this, Jake. My mother and I both appreciate it. Call me after you get Jethroe home and let me know how he is.”
“I will do that,” Jake said, feeling slightly drunk at how close he was standing to Fancy and how sweet she smelled. Like a meadow full of flowers on a warm summer day. He shuffled his feet. Fancy shuffled her feet and was the first to step back so Jake could walk around to the driver’s side of the truck.
“Mind your manners, Charlie. Make sure you do all your homework, and do not forget to brush your teeth. Give Jethroe a hug for me and tell him we all miss him, okay?”
“Okay, Miss Fancy.”
Fancy leaned over and whispered in Charlie’s ear. He grinned from ear to ear and gave her a thumbs-up. Fancy laughed out loud and waved as Jake backed up his truck and left the parking lot.
“I bet you want to know what she whispered in my ear, huh, Mr. Jake?”
“Is it a secret? If it’s a secret, then you’d better not tell me. Not unless she told you I am the best-looking guy she’s ever seen in her life even though I’m bald right now. If she said that, then yeah, I want to know,” Jake said, laughing.
“No, she didn’t say that, Mr. Jake. Miss Fancy didn’t say it was a secret. If it’s not a secret, should I tell you?”
“What do you think, Charlie? Do you think it’s something Miss Fancy would want me to know?”
Jake thought he could see the wheels spinning inside the little boy’s head as he contemplated how best to answer the question. Finally he said, “Miss Fancy said to be sure to tell you I like your meat loaf.”
Jake roared with laughter as he tousled Charlie’s blond curls. “You only have to tell me that if you mean it. I’m not a very good cook, but I’m learning. I can use all the help I can get.”
“Do you know how to make raisin cookies?”
“I can’t say that I do, Charlie.”
“You can go on the computer and ask it. That’s what Miss Fancy does. She sees it, then writes it down. Miss Alice, who cooks, said she makes a big mess when she makes cookies.”
“Does she now?”
“They’re good, too. Miss Fancy used to dance. Did you know that, Mr. Jake? She showed me pictures of her in her costume and her special shoes. Miss Angel was a dancer, too, a long time ago. You have to have good feet to dance. Did you know that, Mr. Jake?”
“Well, yes and no. Aren’t you lucky that Miss Fancy is taking care of you now and not dancing?”
“Oh no. Miss Fancy said she wanted to dance more than anything in the whole world. She said God had other plans for her. She cries, Mr. Jake. When no one is around. I seen her with my own eyes crying.”
“
Saw
her, Jake. Not
seen
.”
Saw
her, Jake. Not
seen
.”
“Saw. Okay, I can remember I saw her and not seen her. It’s sad when ladies cry, isn’t it, Mr. Jake?”
“Very sad,” Jake said. “But we aren’t going to worry about that right now, Charlie. Right now we are at the vet’s office, and I bet old Jethroe is already picking up your scent.”
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