The Greeks of Beaubien Street (30 page)

“I better get to work,” she said, stretching. “I wish I could take a long weekend. The lake sounds awfully good to me right about now.”
That’s what I’ll do
, she thought.
Maybe Alex will want to go to Lake Michigan tomorrow after work.
Gus got his daughter’s lunch for her, and another mug of coffee. Life would go on in Greektown, even if the rest of the planet came to a crashing halt. Gus walked her out to her unmarked car and waited with her mug of coffee while she got in and buckled her seatbelt.

“I’m sorry about everything,” he said. “I know you are disappointed in me.” Jill didn’t argue, knowing she might later regret it, but the truth was that she
was
disappointed in him. She was sorry that he was so out of touch with his wife that she could have sex with his brother and he wouldn’t know it. Or that, as she suspected, her mother may have carried on an affair with Uncle Nick up until the day she died. Was Nick her father? What would it change if he was
?
Gus gave in to the tyranny of the urgent. He put his love of his grocery store above that of his family. He allowed his wife to drive an hour away every day of her life to see the son he knew was not his. Did that knowledge make it easier for him to have Christopher institutionalized? She patted her father’s cheek as she had daily, and drove off.
I guess it’s time for me to grow up
, she thought.

Chapter 39

The last week of August ended up being a quiet one for the Detroit Homicide Squad, except for the Gretchen Parker case. She would be laid to rest in the afternoon. Albert was going to go to the visitation just to see who would be there. Jacob and Marianne had organized the festivities before their incarceration, but Albert was curious who would be in charge. He went into Dearborn after lunch. The parking lot was full of cars, and as he walked up to the funeral home he recognized the women who worked at the bank with Gretchen walking ahead of him. They must be spending their lunch time paying respects.

Leah Hachem was standing at the head of the closed casket, shaking hands with visitors. She looked up the minute Albert walked in and smiled at him. The line was short, and before long he was shaking Leah’s hand. It was clear she had been crying for a while, her eyes red, and the lids swollen. She hadn’t bothered with eye make-up and those who knew how proud she was about her appearance would understand what that omission cost her. She stepped aside so she could have uninterrupted time with Albert.

“Thank you for coming, Detective Wong. I can’t believe we are here. This is the last thing in the world I ever thought I would have to do.” She was visibly shaken.

“It’s very kind of you to do this for your friend,” Albert said. “Above and beyond.” He couldn’t imagine it; his family were Buddhists and the funerals were long and drawn out. He followed Nana Wong’s precepts and never attended one if he could help it.

“With Jacob in jail there was no one else, and I wanted her to have a special ceremony. I wanted people to feel badly about her dying the way she did. It makes me sick. I hope Jacob rots in hell,” she said through gritted teeth. Then, as an afterthought, “Would you have coffee with me sometime? I feel like I need to make an attempt to stay in touch with you for some reason.”

“Okay, we could try. I know that feeling and it tends to fade. You may not want to lay eyes on me after the trial.” Albert didn’t say any more, the fear that Jacob Parker may walk looming large. But he wasn’t going to give into fear. He and Jill had done a good, thorough job. Now it was up to the prosecutor.

“By the way, that snake Mike Ahmed showed up with his parents,” Leah said. “I wanted to slap him across the face. He sure is a player. Gretchen was ripe for someone like him, I hate to say.” Albert was sorry he missed Mike Ahmed. He didn’t take their advice and never made it to the precinct. Let him ignore the warning; it would serve him right if they framed him. Although it would be a tragedy if Jacob Parker walked free, all the people he could hurt were dead now.

Albert said goodbye to Leah and left the funeral home. The good thing about a slow Friday in homicide is that the detectives were able to clean off their desks before the weekend. But first, he wanted to see his grandmother. Nana Wong had plans for the weekend after all, so she wasn’t going to accompany Roger and Albert as they house hunted in Saugatuck.

Jill was already at the office, catching up. She’d decided after leaving her father’s that she was going to go to the family lake house that weekend. Hopefully, no one would get killed before then; she’d have time to clean off her desk and do whatever her boss wanted her to do. She’d file papers, or do a patrol route if he needed her to. The day sped by and she’d conquered her depression by hard work she realized, relieved. She wanted to talk to Alex about the weekend, but there was no answer at his apartment when she called, probably walking Fred or had the ringer turned off while he painted. She’d stop by on her way home, something she rarely did. It was time to spice things up.

There was a parking spot in front of his building, and she saw his car parked down the street. There was no sign of him or the dog. She had a little thrill about being there; they’d had a wonderful night of lovemaking the last time they were together and she found that in spite of the years together, she was still excited to see him. The wonderful painting he’d done for her popped into her mind and it brought the same joy as it had the first time she saw it. She skipped up the stairs to his door and tapped on it, singing “Alex!” She heard him walking to the door, her smile stretching across her face when he opened it.

“Hello!” she said. “I couldn’t wait to see you,” she said as she stepped across the threshold. Alex had opened the door to allow her entrance, and sitting on a stool next to his kitchenette was a pretty young woman Jill recognized from the hospital.

“Jill, this is Patty,” Alex said. Jill stepped further into the apartment with her arm outstretched to shake Patty the nurse’s hand. Later she would think the unreality of what she had walked in on hadn’t hit her yet; she was all about cheerful propriety.

“Hi, Patty,” Jill said, shaking her hand. And then she noticed Patty had wet hair. She was wearing a white shirt that looked like a large, man’s shirt. Jill looked over to Alex and he had wet hair, too. Jill let a laugh slip out.
Oh, oh
.

“Well! Oops! I guess my timing sucks.” She wanted to hear what he had to say, but knew her calm irrationality was very, very fleeting, and that if she didn’t run out of there fairly soon, she would succumb to shrilly screaming.
What the fuck?
And then the final indignity.

“Jill, it’s not what you think it is,” Alex said with a grimace.

“You
didn’t
just say that,” Jill replied. She looked at him, at his lanky frame and tattered undershirt, and then to the lovely young thing with her long legs crossed on the high stool. There was an expression of triumph on her face, but it confused Jill because she hadn’t known that they were competing for anything. The ludicrousness of the situation hit her, and she calmed down and smiled, first at Alex, and then at the unfortunate Patty.

“Good luck,” she sing-songed, her heart pounding wildly. Gratefully she realized that Alex didn’t follow her as she went out into the hallway although he would try to do damage control later. He softly closed the door behind her and Jill walked down the stairs, the anticlimax shocking. She was still smiling, feeling in control. She went to her car and unlocked the door.
Where’s Fred
? She thought, imagining him locked in the bathroom so he couldn’t sniff at Patty. The temptation to break down hadn’t hit her yet, because the insanity of what she had just witnessed hadn’t fully penetrated her brain. She slowly and carefully drove home. Her apartment was waiting for her and she was so glad Alex didn’t have a key.

Letting herself in, she heard the phone ringing, went straight to it and pulled the plug out. It went silent. She didn’t want to talk to anyone, especially not Alex. Negative thoughts and memories flooded into her head, about her own vulnerability, her lack of self-esteem. She had spent the past twenty years with Alex. Probably longer; since they were children. She had been able to rationalize each of his idiosyncrasies. She made excuses for him, allowed him room for behavior that no other woman would have allowed. Why? Why had she supported him through all of his failures? What did she get in return? She understood that questioning her rights and privileges was a symptom of her hurt. She needed to get angry, but didn’t want to waste the time yet. She dug her cell phone out of her purse to call her dad; she was going to skip dinner with him tonight, the presence of the little boys too much for her. She decided that although she might regret it later, she was going to be honest with him. She was finished making excuses for Alex.

“Papa, I won’t be there for dinner tonight because I’m having a problem with Alex that I need to work out alone,” she explained. Gus was silent for few moments.

“Is there anything I can help you with?” he asked. She’d never admitted any of her boyfriends’ failings to him and he didn’t want to start pressuring her for details now.

“No, but thanks, I really appreciate it.” They said goodbye. She would head out to the west side of the state as soon as she was able the next day. She packed a bag with clothes for two days, including a bathing suit. And then she remembered that she needed to get the key from her Aunt Maria. She called her before bed.

“The uncles will be there with the English,” she said when Jill told her the plan. “That doesn’t mean you can’t go, but I wanted you to know in case you thought you’d get some privacy.”

“I’m coming alone, Aunt,” she said. She didn’t feel like having to deal with a party though.

“Well then come stay with me,” she offered. “Uncle Jim will be gone fishing all weekend and I have to work.” She had a small book shop in town and made the bulk of her profits during the summer months when the tourists were there. Her children were scattered all over the state and Sunday dinner wasn’t celebrated at their house. “You will be alone during the day and I can arrange to be gone Saturday night, too.” She giggled; it was a little known fact that Aunt Maria was among the colorful barflies that frequented the many local saloons. Jill said she would be there about eight-thirty. Even if she left right at five, traffic was bad at that hour, worse on Friday. She got through the evening and fell asleep quickly after changing the sheets and pillowcases and eliminating all evidence of Alex from her bedroom.

The next morning, the first tinges of sadness began. The most difficult part was not having anyone to talk to about the betrayal. She’d done such a good job of covering for Alex over the years; she’d have to start from the beginning with her family. And that was just too exhausting. She didn’t have any girlfriends she could confide in. The only person she could say anything to was Albert. After she had a quiet breakfast with Gus, she suffered through the same teasing from the bull pen about the smells of her lunch but didn’t reply this time, and sank into her office chair. Albert was looking at her with curiosity.

“What? No smartass comeback? You’re losing it, girl,” he said, shaking his head. He looked down at the pile of papers in front of him, dreading having to start reading, but knowing that once this job was accomplished, he would be free for the next forty-eight hours.

“I walked in on Alex with another woman last night. Actually, a girl. She couldn’t have been more than twenty-five.” Jill sat expectantly, looking at Albert and waiting for his reply.

“When you say ‘walked in on,’ was he humping her?” He asked.

“No, not then,” she replied. “They both had wet hair though, and she had one of his shirts on with no pants. Or shoes. They were both barefoot, come to think of it.” Neither said a word for several, long thoughtful minutes.

“I don’t believe it,” Albert said. “I mean, I don’t believe Alex was being unfaithful. It just doesn’t fit his persona.”

“I know. I think I’m in shock. It’s so unlike Alex, I was ready to make all kinds of excuses for him.” Albert looked up at her with a smirk. “Yes. Like I always do. And I decided not to because another woman is the one thing I cannot overlook.” Jill wanted to put her head down on the desk and cry, so she stopped talking. “Let’s get to work.”

At five, they said good bye to each other, promising to get in touch in Saugatuck. They were surprised that they had similar plans, happy to be going to the same place.

Jill so rarely left town and the circle of five blocks between work and her father’s house that getting on the road was exciting. She was sad about Alex, but determined not to contact him or to think of him or allow him to spoil one second of her time. She had no idea how he was spending the weekend; it could be anything from going on a bender to taking his new girlfriend clubbing.

The trip west would take about three and a half hours, maybe a little less if traffic cooperated. She’d stop for dinner once she got there, having remembered to tell Aunt Maria not to worry about any food preparation for her. She got off the expressway and began winding her way up through the Allegan Forest, going through all the small farming towns she remembered as a child. Keeping her deer eyes on, she saw several slender does step out of the shadows, and retreat when they saw her car. Finally she reached the Blue Star Highway and her favorite burger joint, Christo’s Roadhouse. She’d order a beer with her meal ensuring that she would sleep like a baby. Inevitably, the pain of what she saw at Alex’s apartment would have to be dealt with, but for now, the numbness was a pleasant alternative. She’d had enough to deal with in one week to last a while.

~ ~ ~

By the time Albert arrived home from work, Roger had the car packed for their romantic weekend at Lake Michigan. They were lucky enough to have gotten a room at The Dunes at the last minute. Roger had Albert’s dinner ready, so all he had to do was eat and they could head out. But Albert wanted to go to the pool when they arrived and it didn’t stay open past nine, so he grabbed his plate of food and a fork and said he would eat in the car. They’d get there with plenty of time to use the pool.