Abraham Squires cried silently as they covered his wife’s dead body with a white sheet. He couldn’t believe that she was gone. She was perfectly healthy, all up until the last few months of her pregnancy. They just married 6 months ago and they planned to live the life that they had always wanted together. They didn’t have any money but that didn’t mean anything to them. As long as they were together, everything was ok. But nothing was ok anymore. The pregnancy was so complicated that it killed his wife and their newborn baby. Now he was all alone.

The midwife gave him a hug,”My condolences”she said to him,”We tried our best and she tried her best. It was just too much for her. She was a fighter”

“She’s a fighter alright”he agreed with her. His wife always stood up for herself. That’s why they were married in the first place. Her parents didn’t approve of him being with her, so she left, not caring that they were going to disown her and not give them any money to help out. She would do anything for them and she loved him until the day she died.

“We have to take the bodies”the midwife said,”Get some rest…I know that’s easier said than done. Tomorrow we can talk about the funeral arrangements”she said to him. He had no family, they were all dead. He was all he had left.

Then they heard someone crying. Both of them got up and ran over to the smaller body that was under a white sheet. They lifted it up and his baby girl was laying there, crying….she was alive?

“She’s alive”the midwife said as she picked her up,”This is a miracle, let me wash her”she said as she picked up the crying baby. She ran some water and washed the blood and placenta off of her from the hard pregnancy that her mother went through. The color was coming back to the baby’s face. The pale and blue face was slowly getting its color back and was a little red. She dried her off and wrapped her in a warm blanket. The house was cold from the January weather. “This is a miracle, you ready to hold your baby girl?”she asked him

He nodded as he now cried tears of joy, instead of the tears of sorrow a few seconds earlier. She handed him his baby girl and she instantly stopped crying. He smiled as he looked at her dark brown eyes, just like her mothers.

“Well, what’s her name?”she asked him

“Im going to name her after her mother of course”he said,”Salomi Jane”

*_____________________*

Salomi (sa-low-me) Jane Squires was born at 12:11 am on January 25th, 1900. It was a cold night but her birth brought warmth to her father, Abraham Squires. 6 days later, her mother, Salomi Jane, was buried in their backyard on a cold day. However the sun was shining brightly. They both knew that she was watching over the both of them. Little Salomi, which is what Abraham called her, was a light whenever the days were gray. Without knowing it, this 7 pound baby was helping a grown man of 25 years get through one of the roughest times of his life.

He raised her as best as he could. However, they were dirt poor. They barely had any food for the both of them. Little Salomi was the priority. If there wasn’t enough food for the both of them, he would let her eat and he would go hungry. He sacrificed a lot for her. He even cut up a lot of his clothes to make them into baby clothes for her. Every day was a struggle for them, but they always got through it. Little Salomi was a fighter, just like her mother, that’s why she survived in the first place. Abraham believed in that.

He never left her side either. Since his wife’s death, he was afraid of losing Little Salomi, so he was a stay at home dad for as long as he could be. Little Salomi was his lung. He was there for her 24/7. He witnessed her first word, which was “Dah Dah”, her first baby steps and the first time she finally learned the concept of the outhouse. However, he needed to go back to work and make money for them so that they could survive. Once Little Salomi hit 5 years old, Abraham started working full time again. He got paid a measly 10 cents per hour working at a factory, but it did put some food on the table. While he was at work, Salomi would stay with their neighbors, the Millbrooks. This benefited her because their 6 year old daughter, Eveline, became her best friend and Mrs. Millbrooks was a teacher. Since Abraham couldn’t afford schooling, Mrs. Millbrook would teach Salomi for free.

Salomi was a quick learner and had a great vocabulary and memory skills for a young “uneducated” girl her age. However, she was also quick to get in trouble. She was the ringleader out of the two girls and would convince Eveline to try anything. She wasn’t afraid to get dirty and was a little bit of a tomboy.

“Thank you Millie”Abraham said as he walked inside their small house,”Now wheres my-“then he stopped when he looked at Salomi. She was missing a tooth,”What happened now?”

“They somehow constructed a wagon out of loose wood and some wheels that they found from who knows where”Mrs. Millbrook said,”Eveline said she got on it and went too fast and the makeshift wagon stopped,but Salomi kept going.She hit the ground and her tooth popped right out”

“Im sorry”Eveline said,getting teared up again

“Im fine”Salomi said to her and then she turned to her dad and held up her tooth,”See?”

“I see”he said

“I apologize,don’t think that I don’t watch them but its hard to do eight things at once-“

“Its fine Millie really. Every day its an adventure and its fun to try to figure out what she will get herself into”he said as he held Salomi’s hand,”I’ll see you tomorrow”

“See you tomorrow”Salomi said and followed her dad outside of the house and started walking to theirs.

“Hey you gotta make this easier ok? We cant have Mrs. Millie think that you are too much to handle. She babysits and teaches you for free. You got it made”he said to her

“Ok”Salomi said with a shrug.”Can I keep my tooth?”she asked him

“No,you gotta give it to the tooth fairy and then she will give you money for it”

“Really?”

“Yeah you gotta put it under your pillow when you go to sleep tonight”

Salomi smiled as she looked at her tooth, she couldn’t wait.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Early the next morning, Abraham woke up to find Salomi jumping up and down on his stomach and yelling,”Dah Dah! Dah Dah!”

”Ahhhh, Salomi that kinda hurts”he said to her but couldn’t help but laugh.”What has you so excited this early?”he asked her. Just like her mother, Salomi wasn’t a morning person and it took forever for her to get out of bed. She already had a late to bed, late to rise mentality.

“Look!”she said as she held up a penny.”The fairy came! How did she find me?”

“She’s magic, she somehow knows whenever a kid loses their teeth”he said to her,”Congratulations”he said to her, even though they were low on funds, he still took a penny out of their savings to fulfill this tooth fairy illusion,”You gotta spend it wisely”

Salomi shook her head,”No Im gonna keep it”

“Or you can keep it”he said and then looked outside. The sun would come up soon. “That’s my cue to get up”he said as he picked her up off of him and tried to get up.

However, Salomi wasn’t as excited,”I don’t wanna. Im sleepy”she said as she tried to lay back down. Then for the next 20 minutes, Abraham had to drag Salomi out of bed, just like any other morning.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abraham heard whistles as he unloaded another truck like he did everyday. He looked up and saw his friend, Vernon Greene, wearing some nice work pants. The other guys noticed and were whistling at him, he just smiled and did a few spins for everyone to see.”Well look at you. I didn’t know that you knew how to steal from department stores”

“Very funny”Vernon said as he put out his cigarette,”No this is what happens when you do a lot of overtime and you spend and save your money wisely”

“Does your wife know that you spend your life savings on pants?”he asked him

“Abe, she loved the idea and she wasn’t upset…well not until I showed her the new dress I bought her”Vernon said,”I don’t know what it is about dresses but the next thing we knew we were in bed like teenagers again”

“Ok spare me”Abraham said. Whenever any of the men talked about what they did with their wives or just their wives in general, it would make him think of Salomi. They were just like that. When they eloped, they went to a cheap motel and stayed in bed for days. The guys would try to convince him that he needs to move on and find someone new but her death was still fresh in his mind, even 5 years later. He would never get over her.”Well I work overtime, just like you and Im not waltzing around with new pants”he said, he wore the pants that he wore everyday.

“Im just a very hard worker”Vernon said

“Hey Greene, stop modeling and get your ass back to work!”their boss said. This made the other guys laugh.

“Yeah yeah”Vernon said and started to unload the trucks along with everyone else.”But seriously, you just gotta find a way to work enough to get a lot of money. Save a little to the side and have a big stack for just anything. I wanna get outta here. I wanna go to New York, Charleston, London….”

“Me too”Abraham said, California wasn’t really cutting it anymore.

“I mean imagine this…surprising your little girl with a new dress or a doll or something”he said to him,”That would light up her day, hell maybe her year”

Abraham nodded. Salomi’s last five birthdays were not filled with presents because he could never afford to buy her anything. Mrs. Millbrook would always make her a cake, but that’s all she got. The day was a mixture of joy and sorrow since Little Salomi was born but her mother died on that day. He wanted a big party for her, he wanted to get her a rocking horse, hell a real horse and teach her how to ride it. But he cant. Poor old Abraham cant do that.

“Its all about money management”Vernon said

“You gotta have money to manage first”Abraham said

Vernon looked at him and was about to say something, then decided against it. They finished unloading the truck and he said,”Lemme know when you want a lunch break, on me”

“No you don’t have to do that”

“Abe, put your fucking pride aside and just say yes”Vernon said

“Ok”Abraham said.He never ate lunch because all the food went towards feeding Salomi and he would get whats left. He didn’t have a wife to make him lunch either. He sighed, not wanting to think about her and went back to the heavy lifting.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Eeew”Eveline said as she and Salomi stared at the frog. It was all green, wet and slimy.”Lets go”Eveline said to her

“No”Salomi said as she walked towards it and the frog jumped and then made a croaking sound.They both jumped back and laughed,”I wanna catch it”she said

“Eeew you cant, its all slimy and dirty and it hops too fast”Eveline said

“Not too fast for me”she said as she jumped on the frog but he got out of her grasp. Eveline squealed and then Salomi caught it,”Look!”

“Eeeew!Put it down!”Eveline said to her

“Im gonna show your mom, she’ll love it!”Salomi said as she ran inside

“Wait, no ‘Lomi! She hates frogs”Eveline said as she ran after her. But it was too late, Salomi didn’t hear her and she was a fast runner. She got inside before her and then a few seconds later she heard a scream. When Eveline got inside, her mother screamed at the sight of the frog and that scared Salomi and made her drop it. Then the frog started hopping and jumping all over the place and chaos broke loose. They were all screaming and her mother was trying to throw things at it while Salomi was trying to get it. However it disappeared and her mother wasn’t happy.

“Great, now we have a frog loose in our house! Its probably shitting all over the place!”Millie said,”You two, outside on the porch now”

“We didn’t mean to”Salomi said putting on her puppy dog face,”It was a present!”

“Well I don’t like it!”Millie said,”You should have known better Eveline”

“I tried to tell her!”Eveline said

“OUT!”she said to them. They both accepted defeat and walked outside and sat down on the porch. They hated sitting there because they couldn’t move, all they could do was watch wagons go by.

“Thanks a lot”Eveline said to her. Salomi didn’t say a word and they sat there in silence playing with the dirt with their feet.

Later on, her mother came out with the frog on the end of a broom and threw it, “There goes your precious frog”she said to them.”Now sit here and think about what you’ve done”she said to them

“Yes ma’am”Eveline said.Salomi didn’t say a word and they sat there longer. They didn’t know how long but soon Eveline’s father came home.”Hey daddy”

“What are you doing out here?”he asked them.Whenever they were sitting on the porch miserably, he knew that they got in trouble for something.

“Salomi let a frog in the house”Eveline said. Her father chuckled and ruffled their hair and walked inside.

He walked into the kitchen and saw his wife cooking. He came up behind her and tickled her, which made her jump,”I heard about a killer frog attacking the house”

“Jesus, James you scared me”she said with a laugh as she turned to him.”It wasn’t a killer frog…Salomi let it in”

“That’s not a crime.These girls are young and very curious, they are always going to get into something. Don’t punish them for it”

“Well when I was a little girl, we didn’t go around chasing frogs, we did what little girls do”

“And whats that?”

“Knit, sew, learn how to read and write, stay quiet-“

“Times are a changin’”he said to her,”It’s a new century.Little girls do things differently now”he said as he kissed her on her neck,”Is it still here?”

“No I threw it out”she said,”Stop!Abe is gonna be here soon and I don’t want them to see you put a hickey on my neck”she said.However, James kept on sucking. “James!”she giggled as she pushed him off of her,”I swear you are still 13”she said and then sighed,”Shit, look what you did!”she said as she pointed to a red mark on her neck.

“It looks great”he said to her with a laugh.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Great, what did you do now?”Abraham said to her when he saw them sitting on the porch.

“I let a frog in the house”Salomi said

Abraham shook his head and saw James come to the door,”Eveline, come in now, its time to eat. Hey Abe, how are you?”

Eveline got up and said,”Bye”to Salomi

“Bye”Salomi said to her

“Im good. Tell them you are sorry about the frog”Abe said to her

“Oh don’t worry about it. Millie is such a girl. It didn’t harm anyone”James said, “Just keep the animals outside”he said,”Hey did you two want to stay for dinner? I think we have enough”

“No we’re fine”Abraham said. Not really, they just would have bread and water again but it was good enough. “We’ll see you tomorrow”

“Alright then”James said and they started to walk away.

They got back to the house and Abraham went out to the well to get some water, when he came back in, Salomi asked him the weirdest question.

“Daddy?Whats a hickey?”

“What?”

“A hickey? Is it bad? Because I heard Millie say that she didn’t want us to see her with a hickey on her neck”Salomi said

“I’ll explain it to you when you’re older”he said to her as he gave her a piece of bread and water,”Much older”he said to her

*______________________*

Soon it got colder and Christmas and New Years came and went and soon Salomi’s 7th birthday was approaching. However, this upset Abe because again he couldn’t afford to give her anything. It bothered him so much that it distracted him at work.

“A penny for your thoughts?”Vernon asked him

“Sure, Im broke as hell”Abraham said

“Ok so somethings wrong and it has to do with money”Vernon said,”What is it?”

“Salomi’s birthday is tomorrow-“

“That’s all I needed to know”Vernon said,”Tell you what. Abby hasn’t seen Salomi in the longest, bring her over and we will have a big feast in her honor”he said,”And don’t even object to it because we wont take no for an answer. Leave your pride aside and celebrate your daughter’s big day with us”

Abraham smiled,”Ok”

“Good, whats her favorite food?”

“Bread”he said,that’s all they ate.”Of course she loves candy”

“We’ll think of something.Bring her over tomorrow at around 8 ok?I havent seen the little bugger in awhile either”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Where we going?”Salomi said as her father washed her face and put on her dress. He combed her naturally wavy black hair and put on her shoes.

“We are going to celebrate your birthday the right way”he said to her

“The right way?”she asked him

“You’ll see”he said to her,”Lets go”he said to her as he took her hand and they walked to Vernon and Abby’s place.

“Theres my little girl!”Abby said as she ran out of the house to greet Abe and Salomi.She kissed Abe on the cheek and picked Salomi up and spun her around and gave her a kiss,”How’s my birthday girl?You are getting so big!”she said to her as Salomi giggled.

“Im fine”she said with a laugh

“Well come on in. I made a big dinner for you and its almost ready”she said to her. Abby’s cat came outside to see what the commotion was about and Salomi ran over and started to play with her.”How are you Abe?”she asked him

“Im good, Im alive, Im breathing”he said to her,”Its just weird seeing her get so big”

“Hey that’s the best way to be”Abby said to him,”Hey in a few years boys will be falling all over themselves to get to her”

“Just like her mother”he said. He was surprised when Salomi chose him. Out of all the rich boys that vied for her attention, she chose him. He didn’t get it but he was the happiest man in the world,”But please don’t say that. Shes still my baby”

“Ok I wont crush your dreams”she said as they walked into the house. Abraham looked around in shock. It was way different than when he last saw it. They had more furniture, gas lamps, they looked middle class. How could they afford all this?

“The place looks nice”he said to her

“I know,I love it. I was against Vernie buying all these things but now it seems like a real home”she said,”The factory is paying him really well”she said as she went back to cooking,”He’s in the bedroom if you want to see him”she said nodding back to a different part of the small house that was separated by a bigger and now nicer curtain.

“I see you redecorated-“he said as he pulled the curtain back and walked in but then stopped suddenly.

“Shit”Vernon said as he continued to hide little pieces of paper into a box and under the floorboards. Abraham saw that they were $5 bills.”I didn’t know you were here”

“Where the fuck did you get all of those?”Abraham asked him in shock

“Shhh”Vernon said as he closed the curtain,”Shit…now I gotta tell you”

“Um yeah!”Abraham said

“Just be quiet. They’re not real”he said as he put the box under the floorboards

“So if they are not real….they’re not worth anything…but you are hiding them like they are worth something”

“They’re counterfeit”he said and sighed.”I mean,fuck, Abe, did you really think that working at the factory helped me to afford the new clothes and everything in here?”

“I stopped believing that. Abby sure believes it”

“She thinks that I got promoted”he said,”You gotta promise to not tell anyone. It will kill me if anyone knows”Vernon said to him, looking panicked.Abe nodded,”These are counterfeit fives but no one knows, they still take them. I work for this guy on the side. Morietti. He’s this big shot Italian from Italy….well of course. He prints these bills and I deliver them to whomever and I get some for myself”he said

Abe sighed with relief, he thought that he robbed a bank.But then he stopped,”That’s still illegal”

“You think I don’t know that?”Vernon asked him,”But its making things so much better for us. This place feels like a home now instead of bunches of wood. Abby wants to have a baby, but we cant…..but there’s this doctor in New York that I read about….he could help”he said. Abby has had 2 miscarriages in the past 2 years. She has a certain condition but no one knows what it is. The doctors who know and could provide a cure need a lot of money for their services.”I want a boy of my own, hell I’ll take a girl too. But whats even better?Its those rich motherfuckers in town, they respect me when they see me buying nice things. They don’t give me dirty looks anymore. Im respected. Accepted”he said and paused,”You should help me”

“What?No-“

“No listen, a lot of these deliveries are hours away and I get in trouble for being late and Im late….a lot.Im only one person”he said,”Now that you know about this….you might want to consider joining me in this.Think of what it could do for the two of you.You can give Salomi the life you always wanted her to have”

Abraham shook his head,”Vernon,this is organized crime we are talking about here-“

“Just think about it. We could be a good team”he said as he went behind the bed and picked up a small doll and a dress.”I got this for Salomi”he said to him,”Now which one do you want to be from you?”

Abe sighed,”I’ll take the doll.She loves those”he said as he held it,”I just wish I didn’t have to lie to her”

“You wouldn’t if you joined me. You can buy her nice things-“

“Yeah and I’ll also get killed for it. I cant leave her alone. Its bad enough she doesn’t have a mother around, she needs me. I need her”

“Ok….I respect that”he said to him.”I’ll say this dress is from me and Abby”he said,”Just keep your mouth shut. Don’t tell Abby or anybody. What they wont know, wont hurt them”he said

“What are you two doing in here?”Abby said as she walked in,”Oh that is precious”she said as she looked at the little blue dress

“Its from us”Vernon said

“Baby, you bought these for her?How sweet of you”Abby said as she gave him a huge kiss. Vernon gave Abraham a knowing smile. Abe could see that Vernon was getting a lot of ass from all the stuff that he was buying.”Well dinner is ready”she said,”Salomi and I are setting the table now”she said as she walked back out.

The two of them walked out and left the doll and the dress in their room for now. They all sat down and dug in to the huge feast which was chicken, potatoes, veggies and milk. It was the most that Abe and Salomi have ever eaten. If he joined Vernon, they would be able to eat this everyday. He shook his head. He didn’t want to resort to crime to make it.

“Done!”Salomi said, she cleaned her plate quick

“Good girl, do you want anymore?”Abby asked her

“I want potatoes”she said

“She loves potatoes”Abe said with a laugh.

“I’ll give you a little more, but we gotta save room in your stomach for your cake”Abby said

“I love cake!”Salomi said happily. They all ate all of the food until there was none left. Then Abby brought out the cake and lit the seven candles that were on it. Salomi squealed with joy as the cake was set in front of her,”This is the best birthday ever!”she said,”Daddy can my 8th birthday be exactly like this?”she asked him

“Sure”he said with a small smile. He just wished by next year that he could afford this. He looked at Vernon and he gave him a knowing look. He looked away.

“Make a wish baby”Abby said to her.Salomi closed her eyes and did so for a long time.They all smiled, what was she wishing for? Then Salomi opened her eyes and took a deep breath and blew out all seven candles. They all clapped. “That’s my girl”she said to her and gave her a knife,”Lemme help you cut the first piece, you want the first piece?”she asked her.Salomi nodded.Abby nodded and then looked at Vernon,”Get the presents”she mouthed to him.

The both of them got the presents and walked back out with the two items behind their backs. By then they cut all the pieces. “That’s your piece daddy”Salomi said to him

“Thanks baby”he said to her and then brought the doll from behind his back,”And this is for you”he said to her

“Daddy!”she said excitedly as she put his cake down and jumped in his arms and hugged him,”Ive always wanted a doll like Evie has”she said to him and kissed him on the cheek,”I love you Daddy”she said to him

“I love you too”he said as he held her close, not knowing that she would be this happy over a doll.

“We got you something too”Vernon said,”You like dresses?”

“Yes”Salomi said and gasped when he showed her the little blue dress.”Oh my goodness oh my goodness!”she said as she jumped down,”Thank you-“she said as she touched the dress.

“You can have it on one condition”Vernon said,”If you call us Uncle Vern and Aunt Abby”

“Ok Uncle Vernie”Salomi said as she hugged him and then hugged Abby,”Thank you Aunt Abby”

“You’re welcome baby,lets try it on”she said to her and then led her to the bedroom.

“Will you at least think about it?”Vernon asked him

Abe nodded,”I’ll think about it”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abe sat up in bed and got up quietly so not to wake up Salomi. He lit a candle and went outside to the outhouse and did his business. He walked to the well and lifted up a small amount of water and washed his hands when he heard a sound in the bushes. He turned and didn’t see anything. He quickly put the pail back into the well and walked inside. He felt a small gust of wind blow against his neck. He stopped and turned and looked at Salomi’s grave. She was here. Was she trying to tell him something? This bothered him and he blew out the candle and laid in bed next to his daughter, he laid there and stared into the darkness and soon fell back to sleep.

But then something made him wake up, he saw that the candle was lit and sitting on the table. How did it get there? He got up and reached under for the gun that was latched under the bed. Then he saw her. He gasped.

“Salomi?”he whispered.

She turned to him,”Hey Abe”she said to him,”How are you?”

“Im officially going crazy but that’s fine….”he said.He wanted to touch her, he wanted to hold her, kiss her but this was his craziness getting the best of him.”I would ask how you were, but that’s a stupid question”

“No its not, just because Im dead doesn’t mean that you cant use your manners”she said

“Don’t remind me”he said to her sadly.”What are you-“

“Is that her?”she asked him,”Little Salomi right?”she asked him as she looked toward the bed.He nodded.She walked over to her.

“Don’t, you’ll scare her”he said

“She wont know Im here”she said as she knelt down and watched her sleep.”She does look like me….snazzy little dress she has on…..precious little doll she has…..precious little face, smile, hair….”she said as she ran her fingers through it. But Salomi didn’t stir. She gave her a kiss on the cheek and walked back over to him,”I gotta go but I was sent here to give you a message. I don’t understand what it means but you have to believe me”

“Is it a good message?”he asked her

“Yes. Now there’s a new business prospect in sight for you. Take it no matter what the cost”she said.

“That’s the message?”he asked her

She nodded,”So Im telling you to do so. I mean if it gives you a better life for you and our baby….go ahead. Fight for what you want”she said. That was her motto.

“What kind of prospect?”he asked her.”How will I know?”

“I don’t know”she said as she walked towards the door,”I have to go-“

“No stay….please….you left me so quickly-“

“I know”she said as tears came to her eyes,”I miss you so much, I would give anything to be with you two. But I know if I stayed I wouldn’t be too good. I would just be sick and wasting away. Death is whats best for me. Im always here. Im always watching over you. I love you Abe”she said and kissed him on the cheek and then disappeared.

He then sat up in bed suddenly, tears already rolling down his cheeks and sweat on his brow. It was just a dream but it seemed so real. Then he looked and saw that the candle was still burning. It was real. It was all real. But what was she talking about? He missed her. He laid back and looked at Salomi laying next to him. He sighed as he laid closer to her and held him in his arms. Whatever this prospect was, he would take it. If Salomi thought it was best, then he would do it. Even in death, he would do anything for her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Go home”their boss said to a select group of men, this included both Vernon and Abe.

“What?What the fuck are you talking about?”one of them asked.”I need the money, I have 5 kids to feed!”

“No one told you to fuck your wife that much”he said to him.”Look theres a rumor that some important people will be coming to the factory today.Higher in authority than I am. They wont like that all of you are here. Im not supposed to have so many workers.So if you want to keep your jobs then get the hell outta here and quick. Come back tomorrow”he said as he gave each of them 50 cents. Abe sighed and took it and followed the other angry workers out.

“Great, I cant even afford to get something for dinner”Abraham said.He then looked at Vernon. He had a smile on his face? “Why arent you upset?”

“Because this gives me more time to make some deliveries”he whispered to him

“Oh have fun”Abraham said

“Have fun with me….you said that you would think about it.Just think about how much money you would have? I mean we both can make enough money, quit the factory which would actually do em some good”he said,”This is the best business prospect ever, I don’t even see any cons to the situation….”

Vernon kept talking but Abraham couldn’t hear him. Once he said “business prospect”, his ears perked up. Was this what Salomi was talking about? She wanted him to do this? It was a sign from her and he had to take it. “Ok”

“Im not gonna take no for an answer”Vernon kept talking and then he realized that he said “ok”. “Ok….good then, lets go”he said. They walked toward town and took the trolley to get to town. They got off and Vernon said to him,”Don’t say a word.Let me do all the talking”he said to him as they walked into an office building, they went to the bottom floor and Vernon whispered something to a guy. He led them down a hallway and then he stomped on the floor three times and then lifted a big floorboard up.”Thanks”Vernon said and they descended down the small and steep stairs to a makeshift cellar. A makeshift cellar that was full of cash. Abraham stared in shock. He has never seen so much money in his life!

*_____________________*

“Who the fuck is that?”a big burly man smoking a Cuban cigar said as Vernon and Abraham came into the small room.

“This is the guy that I was talking about”Vernon said,”He wants to help.He’s interested”

“He knows the rules and stuff?He knows what goes down?”he asks him

“Yes”Vernon said.Abraham looked at him.He didn’t know a thing!

“Good”the man said and looked him up and down,”Morietti”he said to him,”Im your new boss”he said as he shook his hand.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“I cant believe it”Abraham said as they both left the office, each of them had a small box with envelopes in them. Some big envelopes had thousands of dollars of counterfeit cash. The smaller ones had a smaller amount.

“I know, what a rush huh?Welcome to the team”Vernon said to him

“No, I cant believe how many illegal things I saw in that office! The cash for one, he was smoking a Cuban cigar, you arent supposed to have secret offices-“

“Hey,get used to it”Vernon said to him,”You can follow me. We have time, just so you can learn the ropes”

“Yeah and by the way, I don’t know the rules and stuff! I don’t know what goes down, whatever that means”he said

“Well the rules are to not give the wrong person the wrong delivery, big trouble there. They have to sign for it. Don’t tell anyone else about the business, never steal or lose any money and never get caught. Oh and you cant quit”

“What do you mean I cant quit?”

“You are a delivery boy for life”Vernon said,”That keeps us safe”

“What if I want to quit one day?”he asked him

“Don’t”Vernon said to him

“But-“

“Just don’t….the others have never lived to tell, so just don’t”Vernon said. Abraham instantly shut up. They caught the trolley to the first delivery. It was a small middle class office space near the outside of town.”Now again, don’t speak.Let me do all the talking”he said.Abraham nodded.

They walked into the office and he went to the secretary,”I have a delivery for Mr. Antonio”

“Ok, which company?”she asked him. She looked young, like 13.

“Morietti Law Firm”Vernon said

“Ok hold on”she said as she hopped off the seat and went down the hall. A few minutes later, she came back,”Follow me”she said to them. They followed her down the hall and walked into the office. She closed the door behind them as a man stood up and greeted them but then gave Abraham a weird look.

“Who are you?”he asked him. Abraham didn’t say anything. Vernon told him not to speak. “Are you deaf boy? Who are you?”he asked him again

Vernon nudged him,”Im Abraham-“

“Hes the new guy”Vernon said quickly

“What do you mean new guy? You have always delivered alone”

“Im showing him the ropes”Vernon said

“How do I know that hes not a spy?”he said

“Now why would I bring a spy in here? That would throw my ass in jail and so would you. Im not that stupid”Vernon said,”I mean if you think he’s a spy…”he said as he took out a huge envelope and small slip of paper that went with it,”…then you don’t have to take the $1000 in this delivery….”he said.Abraham looked at Vernon in disbelief. He was holding $1000 in his hand? He’s never seen that much money! He thought that money didn’t even exist!

“Give me that”he said as he took the huge envelope and signed the slip of paper.He then opened the envelope and counted a thousand dollars worth of five dollar bills, which was a lot of counting. “I’ll be in touch”he said when he was satisfied.

“You do that. Nice doing business with you”Vernon said. Abraham nodded at him and they both left. They both waved to the 13 year old secretary and left.

“$1000!”Abraham said

“Shhhhh! You wanna let everyone know what we’re doing!?”Vernon said to him

“That was some nice talking, I thought that he was gonna kill the both of us”Abraham said

“Hey they usually complain. I mean he had every right to, he didn’t know you. This is top secret stuff we are talking about here. But they usually give in when I remind them whats in their envelopes”he said

“I wonder how much I have”Abraham said

“We are gonna find out, you’re next”Vernon said as they waited for another trolley. Soon it arrived and they paid the fare and traveled across town to the other stop. “Now I think you can do this, this one is easy”he said to him

“You think Im ready?”he asked him as they walked to a small brown building with no sign.

“Yeah, just say that you are from Morietti Law Firm, don’t tell them your name, make sure that you are in a closed office with only the client, no one else, and do the exchange, have them sign and be on your way”he said as they knocked on the door,”Its easy”

“Its easy”Abraham repeated as a woman with a corset and long tight fitting skirt opened the door. He gulped, what kind of place was this? “Um….Morietti Law Firm”

“Yeah yeah yeah come on in”she said as she walked through the dark building. There were lots of other women dressed like her. She walked down a few corridors and knocked on a door at the end of the hallway.

“YEAH!”came a female voice.

“Morietti Law something”the woman said

“Morietti Law Firm”Abraham said

“Let em in”the female voice said.

The woman smiled and before she opened the door she said to them,”If you ever need any pleasure, you know where to come. Just ask for me, my name’s Sugar”she said

“Thanks”Vernon said with a smile as they walked in. It was a big office space with other females in scantily clad clothing doing various housekeeping chores and a woman was sitting at a desk as a girl gave her a manicure.She looked up and then stood up and clapped.All the women smiled at them and left. They must have delivered to them before.

“You’re new”she said to Abraham

“Yeah”he said nervously

“Aww, nervous? You probably didn’t know that there was a whorehouse here in LA did you?”

“A what?”Abraham asked. Vernon laughed.

“Well now you know, so if you are single…or if you’re married and are in the mood any of my girls can take care of you”she said,”Im expecting $500, that’s what Im getting right? I had a little problem last week”she said

Abraham picked up the envelope that said “Whorehouse” on it and saw the slip of paper attached,”Yes….”he said as he cleared his throat and handed it to her.

“Great”she said as she signed for it,”I will be giving you a call. I know this will run out”she said,”And my name is Baby Jane. Remember that”she said with a smirk

“Um ok….nice meeting you”he said as he took the slip of paper and turned around and walked quickly out of the room. Vernon followed slowly behind, liking what he was seeing.

They finally left and Vernon started laughing. “You act like you have never seen breasts before!”

“I didn’t know they had whorehouses! I thought that they only existed in those westerns”Abraham hissed

“Hey art imitates life”Vernon said,”And they certainly had works of art in there”

“Ok, where are we going next?I don’t want to be surprised”Abraham said

“Last name is Bush, some rich family. Don’t know why they would need it”Vernon said as they walked away from the building.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

They did all of their deliveries in record time. Vernon was happy about that because that meant that he was in less trouble. Abraham was happy because he would get back to Salomi at a reasonable time. They walked down to the makeshift cellar and Morietti smiled, barely.

“You’s done already?”he asked as he took the Cuban out of his mouth

“Yeah, we’re a good team see?”Vernon said with a smile as they both handed the signed slips of paper to him.

“Alright you know the routine, check back in a few days”he said

“Um…sir?I have a envelope left….”Abraham said shyly. Great he broke a rule, he forgot to make a delivery.

Morietti chuckled, barely. “Its red right?”Abe nodded,”That’s yours, have a nice day”he said

Abraham smiled like he was a kid in a candy store. The envelope felt heavy. They got on the trolley and headed back home. Abraham started to open the envelope but Vernon stopped him,”Don’t count that here, you crazy?Do it at home”So Abraham waited, it was the longest ride he had ever taken and then he and Vernon went their separate ways.”I suggest you wear pants with bigger pockets, so you would have a place for them envelopes”he said and winked. Now Abraham knew the real reason why Vernon always had a new pair of pants. Abraham was all smiles when he walked to get Salomi and she was all smiles when he appeared. She was wearing her blue birthday dress, she loved it so much that she wore it everyday. He thanked Millie quickly and walked a fast pace home.

“Why are you walking so fast?”Salomi said.Even though she was holding his hand,it was a struggle to keep up.

“Oh sorry, guess Im in a rush I guess for no reason”he said with a little laugh

“Why are you so happy?”she asked him

“Life is just great, its turning around for us”

“How can life turn around?”

“It means its getting better, great, good”he said. They approached the house and walked in. “I’ll be back”he said to her and went outside to the outhouse. He opened the envelope quickly, but carefully, he didn’t want to rip the money or drop any. He then started to count and every 5 he counted, his knees got weaker and weaker. He finished and he counted $100. He’s never held this much money in his life! And now it was his!? He ran out and went over to Salomi’s grave and kissed her tombstone,”Thanks baby”he said to her and walked in the house.

“Daddy Im hungry”Salomi said to him.

Abraham smiled. He remembered what Vernon said about going into town and being able to afford the things that the rich could buy. Being respected and accepted. He wanted to have that feeling and he wanted Salomi to have that feeling too. “Ok lets go”

“But Daddy Im hungry”Salomi said as she picked up her doll and followed him

“I know baby, we are gonna go to town and get something to eat”

“To town?Really!?”Salomi asked in surprise,”Wow Daddy oh my goodness, oh my goodness”she said as they walked out the door.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Ice cream! Oooh lets go there”Salomi pointed. She had a lot of fun on the trolley and downtown was like a dreamland to her. And she fit right in with her new blue dress.

“Ok”Abraham said as they walked toward the small shop. Then a couple walked out the door and they looked at Abraham and quickly looked away. What happened to that accepted feeling? Then he looked down at his clothes. They were kinda dirty from working in the factory and riding around all day making deliveries. “Wait…we have to do something first”

“What?”Salomi said as they turned around and walked down the street.”Im hungry Daddy”

“I know but I don’t look pretty like you”he said to her,”I gotta look pretty too”

“Boys don’t look pretty, they look handsome”Salomi said with a giggle as they walked inside a store called Gent’s. The men working there instantly looked down on him but he didn’t care, once he pulled out the money they wont be. He found some pants with big pockets, like Vernon’s but in black. He got a buttoned up shirt and new shoes.”You look handsome Daddy”Salomi said

“I want to buy this”Abraham said as he motioned to the outfit that he was wearing

“Are you sure?”the man asked him

“Yes”Abraham said

“That whole outfit is $10”he said to him, knowing that he couldn’t afford it.

“Oh is that all?”Abraham asked him and pulled out two five’s.”Anything else?”he asked him

The man looked at him with surprise as he took the money.”No, have a nice day”

“Thanks”Abraham said, making sure not to return the favor.”Ok babydoll lets go eat”he said to her, walking out of the store a new man.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Now that Abraham got this new job, he was happier. Nothing could really bring him down anymore. Life was better than he could ever dream. Working at the factory wasn’t bad, it seemed more like a side job. He also started to do the deliveries on his own and made up a system on how to do them faster. However, some deliveries made him stay out later. This was suspicious to Millie since the factory always closed down at 5. He used Vernon’s lie and told them that managers always had to stay later. She believed that for now.

He spoiled Salomi even more. Whenever he had time, he would take her to town. He would buy her dolls and dresses. He started to fix up their place to actually start looking like a home and Abby came over to give it a woman’s touch. Abraham even considered about buying a car. Cars were the biggest thing since sliced bread and it would be great to have the first car out of all the families in the neighborhood. But first, he enrolled Salomi into school. James also enrolled Eveline as well. He wanted to see Salomi succeed at something real. This job was great no doubt but he never wanted Salomi to resort to crime when things got rough. The two of them did more traveling, they went to the beach for the first time and Salomi fell in love with it. They would go every weekend if they had time. When Christmas came around, he could actually buy her presents and on Salomi’s 8th birthday, she had an even bigger party. Vernon, Abby, Eveline, James and Millie and Salomi’s classmates were invited.

Even though Salomi and Abraham were having the time of their lives, some people were becoming suspicious and cautious of their new lifestyle.

“Whats wrong?”James asked as he and Millie ate Salomi’s birthday cake.

“I just didn’t know that managers at factories could make this much money”Millie said

James rolled his eyes,”Hey babe. Times are a changing. Pay has been going up, I mean I got my raise, he must have got one too.You sound like you’re not happy for them”

“I am….its just something fishy about it”Millie said

Vernon felt the same way,”Abe, can I talk to you outside for a minute?”he asked him.Abe nodded and followed him outside,”Snazzy shindig you got in there”

“I know, it feels so good to be able to afford to give my baby whatever she has ever wanted”Abraham said happily.

“Im happy for you. Really I am. I mean I want you two to succeed and be happy but…you gotta be careful next time. This is really flaunting your money and some people could get suspicious”Abe just nodded and patted him on the back and walked inside. He was so happy that he couldn’t really hear straight…or was the money getting to his head?

*_______________________*

Abraham stood on the doorstep of a new client. He had on a new pair of pants and a nice buttoned down shirt. The door was opened and he was let in, he was led to a back office, which was a bedroom in the first level of the house. A man stood up from behind his small desk and said,”You are going to be my new best friend”

“And you will be mine as well”Abraham said to him as he looked at the slip of paper,”$650?”

“Yes, that’s me”the man said as Abraham handed him the envelope,”Can I count before I sign?”

“Sure”Abraham said. He stood there as the man counted. He didn’t count with him because he knew it was the right amount. The man finished counting and paused and then counted again. This didn’t faze him, lots of clients double checked.

“I only have $640 here”the man said angrily

“Oh no that’s a mistake sir-“

“Are you calling me stupid?Did you not see me count this money?Twice even?”he asked him.”Are you trying to cheat me out of my money?”

“No….ok there must have been a mistake on our part…my part-“

“Well then fix it or I swear I will cut you right here, right now”the man said angrily as he picked up his letter opener, which looked very new and very sharp.

“Can I count it?”Abraham said, trying to sound calm

“Sure, make it quick, you have been here too long already”he said to him.

Abraham counted quickly and sure enough, he was short 10 bucks. Shit. He must have gotten lazy counting. He sighed.

“How are you going to fix it?I need that money now!”the man said threateningly

“I don’t know…I…you are my last delivery for today-“he said and then he felt himself thrown up against the wall and his box dropped to the floor and he felt the letter opener being held up to his neck.

“I don’t know!?That’s not a good answer! You need to fucking figure it out and you need to do it now!”he said to him

Abraham panicked, this has never happened before. He then saw a red envelope on the floor, that was his stash. Then he smiled, his stash! “I have extra money….just in case”

“WHERE!”

“Its in this red envelope in my box….but now its on the floor, if you let go of me I can give you your 10 bucks”Abraham said. The man let go of him, roughly and he quickly bent down and picked up his red envelope and pulled out two fives.

“You are very lucky”he said to him,”Get out”

“It was nice doing business with you”Abraham said

“Bullshit!”he said and slammed the door behind him.Abraham walked out of the house quickly. That was close, too close.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“YOU WHAT!?”Morietti yelled at him. Abraham told him about the 10 dollar shortage, he didn’t want to but he knew that the guy would probably make a call and complain.”DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT DOES TO OUR BUSINESS?!”

“I know but-“

“WAS HE A NEW CLIENT?!”

“Well yes-“

“DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT’S GOING TO DO TO MY REPUTATION!? HE COULD GET UPSET AND TELL THE COPS, HE MIGHT THINK THAT WE INTENTIONALLY WANTED TO ROB HIM OF HIS MONEY!”

“Well yeah that’s what he said but I don’t think he’s gonna call the cops-“

“HE SAID THAT!?”

“But I FIXED IT!”Abraham yelled back at him. This didn’t make Morietti any happier. The next thing he knew, Morietti pulled out a 38 revolver and threw him up against the wall and put the gun to his head.”SHIT! MORIETTI YOU DON’T WANT TO DO THIS!”

“SHUT UP!”Morietti shouted at him. Sweat running down his brow, eyes bloodshot. He was angry and about to go crazy.”See?If I don’t do this now, you will think that being short 10 bucks is ok. Then you will be short, 20 and then 30 and then I will have angry customers and that makes me angry”

“Look I fixed it, I took the 10 bucks out of my stash”Abraham said

“HOW VERY NICE OF YOU!”Morietti shouted in his face,”But giving money out of your stash aint gonna cut it! WHERE’S THE 10 BUCKS ABE!? WHERE IS IT!?”he shouted at him

“I didn’t lose it-“

“WHERE IS IT!? ARE YOU STEALING FROM ME!?”Morietti yelled as they heard three stomps come through the ceiling. Someone was coming.

“Someone’s coming, put down the gun, don’t do this. Lets talk like adults”Abraham said pleadingly

Vernon came down the steps and then stopped,”What the fuck is going on!?”

“Vern. Im ok”Abraham said

“NO HE’S NOT OK! HE STOLE 10 BUCKS FROM ME!”

“I DIDN’T STEAL IT! I MISCOUNTED!”Abraham shouted at him.”IM SORRY! I DIDN’T DOUBLE CHECK, I WAS IN A RUSH!”

“THAT’S NO EXCUSE!”Morietti shouted back as he cocked the gun

“STOP! THIS IS GOING TOO FAR!”Vernon said as he stepped forward

“DON’T MOVE! THIS GUN IS FULLY LOADED!”Morietti said to him as he pointed the gun at him and then put it to Abraham’s head,”YOU NEVER MISCOUNT YOU HEAR ME!? IF YOU EVER PULL A LITTLE STUNT LIKE THIS AGAIN….I WILL GUT YOU LIKE A FUCKING FISH YOU LITTLE FUCK! YOU HEAR ME!? I WILL SHOOT YOU, GUT YOU AND THROW YOUR BODY PARTS INTO THE PACIFIC YOU FUCKING HEAR ME!? BUT THIS IS A LESSON TO YOU, YOU LITTLE GOOD FOR NOTHING BASTARD, NEXT TIME I WILL SHOOT YOU. BE SURE OF THAT!”he said and then pulled the trigger.

“SHIT!”Vernon shouted

Abraham closed his eyes as the gun popped, but nothing happened. The gun wasn’t fully loaded. He let out a sigh of relief,”Oh fuck”

Morietti gave him a sick smile and pushed him away,”Guess it aint fully loaded. Guess I miscounted”he said to him.”Now get the fuck out of my sight”he said to them. He went over to Vernon and took his slips from him,”You too!Get the fuck outta my sight”he said

They both left quickly. Once they walked outside, Abraham tried to not look too shaken. “God Abe what the fuck did you do?”Vernon said to him

“I don’t want to talk about it”Abraham said,”You heard him”

“I heard parts of it….he was pissed”Vernon said

“You think so?”Abraham said sarcastically as he walked. They walked in silence towards the trolley and got on the next one. They sat there in silence, still shocked at the events that happened minutes before.”Have you ever pissed him off like that?”

“Ive pissed him off, Ive miscounted once, 5 dollars off but he didn’t put a gun to my head-“

“You must be the favorite then”Abraham said

“No, he hung me off the side of the balcony, threatening to drop me, we were 5 stories up. High enough to kill me if I fell”Vernon said

“Oh”Abraham said

“But I made it up to him. I never made a mistake ever again. I got my deliveries done early, before the deadline and then I found you. You made me look good…well before today of course”

“I apologize”Abraham said.”I miscounted. I was never good at math”

“Well you better educate yourself”Vernon said

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi smiled as the teacher asked them to subtract 8 from 10. She moved the 8 beads away. She raised her hand.

“Ms. Squires?”she asked her

“Its 2”she said

“Ok add 5”the teacher asked her

“7”she said without having to move the beads.

“Excellent work”she said to them,”Alright that is all for your arithmetics lesson. Time for lunch”she said to all of them.

Salomi smiled proudly as they all walked out of the schoolhouse. Salomi took the sandwich out of her paper bag and sat in the grass, waiting for Eveline. Eveline soon came out but a bunch of boys were following behind her, laughing.

“Eveline is stupid!”

“She cant add! She cant even read either”another said as he tugged on her hair a little bit

“Stop it!”Eveline said

Salomi got up quickly and went over to them, she pulled Eveline towards her,”Is there a problem?”she asked

“Oooh its little smarty pants. She thinks she knows everything about everything” he said to her

“I know that you are a dork”Salomi said to him

“Ooooh”the boys said

“You don’t scare me, you are just a girl that knows how to count. You cant do anything, go sew a blanket or go eat your little sandwich”he said to her

“Im just a little girl who knows how to count huh?”she asked him as she balled up her fists,”Whats 4 plus 1?”

“5 duh”he said

“Yeah and five fingers make a fist”she said and then punched him in the face. He fell to the ground.

“You little witch!”he said as he held his face

“Don’t ever tease me or my friend again!”she said to them as she and Eveline walked over to their usual tree.

“Ohmygoodness Lomi, you just punched him”Eveline said

“So?”

“Girls don’t do that”Eveline said

“Im not just a girl”Salomi said

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Ever since the incident, Abraham focused on getting his deliveries made early, however, it was hard when he worked 10 hours a day at the factory. Their business was secretly getting more popular everyday. Every day they had new clients. At times he would come home late which would make Millie even more suspicious. Salomi didn’t mind, this gave her more time to play with Eveline.

But Abraham realized that things needed to change. He couldn’t do the deliveries and the factory job but he was afraid to quit.

Abraham sat there as the coal got hot. He had to wait for it to heat up and then unload it. He was so tired, he scratched his head and waited. Without realizing it, he fell asleep.

“SQUIRES!”was what woke him from his well deserved sleep.

“What?”he asked and looked and saw his boss, and a few men watching.

“What the hell are you doing sleeping on the job!?”his boss yelled at him. The other men that were working stopped what they were doing and witnessed what was going on. Vernon looked up and walked over.

“It was a mistake sir. Sorry”Abraham said as he yawned and stretched. That was a really good nap though.

“You aint taking me serious boy. I don’t pay you to sleep on the job!”his boss yelled

“Ok I apologized I heard you the first time”Abraham said,”Now go back to your office”he said as he started to unload the big lumps of coal.

“I don’t pay you to get smart with me either”his boss said.

“You’re right! You are absolutely right! YOU DON’T PAY ME SHIT!”Abraham said to him. His nerves were going crazy, his sanity was slowly fading away. He was under a lot of stress over a job that didn’t pay him anything and was losing sleep because of a job that gave him everything he ever wanted. But the bottom line was he was cranky, tired and stressed. He didn’t need anything else to worry about.

“What the hell did you say?”his boss said to him

“YOU DON’T PAY ME SHIT! THIS JOB IS BULLSHIT!”Abraham shouted at him. He turned around and stood up on a chair,”YOU HEAR THAT EVERYONE!? THIS JOB IS BULLSHIT AND IT DOESN’T PAY SHIT!-“

“Shut the hell up Squires!”his boss said,”This job puts clothes on your back and feeds that precious little girl of yours. You better watch your mouth and get back to work before you say something you will regret. I can send you home”

“You can send me home huh?”Abraham asked him

“Yes! And then you will have to resort to shining my shoes…how about that? Little maggot”his boss said to him and started to walk away.

“Im a maggot huh?”Abraham said to him, anger and pride taking over. “I don’t need this stupid job! I quit!”he shouted at him. The other men stared at him in disbelief.

“What did you say?”

Vernon stepped up to him,”Hey Abe,be quiet. This is going too far-“

“No, Ive been wanting to say this for a long time now”Abraham said to him,”I quit! Im sick of carrying around sacks of dirt and only getting enough to buy one piece of bread! One piece! But Ive found something better, I don’t need this shit!”he said

“Fine, get out!”his boss said to him,”I’ll make sure that you never work in this town again!”

“Sure, like you got that much power”Abraham said to him as he turned around and put on his jacket.”You coming Vern?You don’t need this either”he said to him.

Vernon smiled,”I quit too!”he said loudly

“Oh please”his boss said,”I don’t need either of you”he yelled as they both walked out.”Anyone else wanna quit?”he asked everyone that gathered around.No one said a word,”Good. Get back to work!”he yelled at them.

“Ohmygod!”Vernon said as they both left.”I cant believe we didn’t do this sooner!We need to celebrate!”he said to Abraham as he put his arms around his shoulders.Abraham smiled, feeling the best he has ever been in a long time.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“I cant believe this, where am I going to hide these?”Abraham said to himself as he carried two big sacks of fives into the house. He was probably carrying two million dollars worth, that’s how big and heavy the bags were. He looked and saw that Salomi wasn’t around. She was old enough now to be in the house alone. She has become a responsible young lady. Just like her mother.

He tried to fit the bags under the small bed that they still shared. However,they wouldn’t fit. He tried to push it under but one started to rip.”Shit”he said, he then found a hammer and pulled some of the nails out of the floorboard and lifted it up. He dug through the dirt under it with his hands.Once he saw that there was a deep enough hole, he picked up the bags and put it in the hole.However, the rip widened and the money fell out.”Shit!”he said again and tried to put it in back in the bag. He knew that he would need to count it all again tomorrow.”Come on”he said as he tried to fit it all back. Then he heard a voice and it said something that he was afraid of.

“Daddy? Where did you get all that money from?”Salomi asked in shock
*_____________________*

It was getting dark and Salomi needed to get back home. She wasn’t going to bother to ask whether she could stay at Eveline’s. Sometimes her father wasn’t in the mood for her to stay there and sometimes Eveline’s mother wasn’t in the mood either. “Bye Evie”she said to her

“Bye, see you tomorrow”Eveline said to her

Salomi said goodbye to Millie and James and she started to walk home. She walked along the small dirt road as a few carriages and wagons rode by. She walked quickly since she was pretty hungry and she hoped that her dad bought her the candy that she ran out of. She loved how he spoiled her now. Then she heard a whistle and stopped as a wagon slowly rode beside her. Some teenage boys were whistling at her. She rolled her eyes. She was pretty developed for an eleven year old, her father said that she got it from her mother. She had breasts,hips and nice long legs. Her light caramel skin was greatly accented by her long wavy black hair and she had dark brown eyes that you could stare into for days and full lips that would tease any man. She rolled her eyes, she knew what they were whistling at.

“Hey girl, where you going?”one of them asked her

“Running home to your daddy?”another said and they all laughed,”Or your pimp?”he asked and their laughter got louder.

She tried to ignore them but implying that she was seeing a pimp also implied that she was one of those “dirty girls” that stood on the corner downtown.”I am not dirty”she said to them as she put her hands on her hips.

“Guess you running home to your daddy then”he said and smirked,”How about we give you a ride?”

“I am not going to get into that wagon with you”she said as she started walking again.The wagon riding beside her.

“Ok that’s fine, how about you ride me?”he asked her and the other guys hooted and hollered.

She didn’t really know what that meant exactly but she didn’t like the way they were laughing. They weren’t going to back off so she was going to have to make them. She picked up a rock and threw it at the horse that was pulling their wagon. It hit the horse on the back, pretty hard too, and the horse took off running at lightning speed. Some of the guys weren’t prepared for the force and some fell to the floor.”You little bitch!”one called after her as they tried to stop the horse. However, it wasn’t gonna stop and soon they were out of sight.

Salomi watched as the wagon disappeared down the road.”Im not a bitch either”she said to herself. Then she started to laugh and continued to walk home. The sun was setting just as she walked around the house and walked in through the back door. The house was dark but she heard something moving. It was coming from their bedroom. Abby decorated their place like theirs and they had a thin sheet that separated the bedroom from the rest of the house and she saw a silhouette of someone kneeling on the floor. It looked like her father, but what was he doing? She tiptoed over and pulled back the sheet quietly.

“Come on”he said as he tried to fit something under the floor. Then she saw that it was a huge bag of money?! She gasped, where did he get all this money from?

“Daddy? Where did you get all that money from?”she asked him in shock.

He turned around quickly. She saw in his eyes that she just caught him doing something that he didn’t want her to see. Then he sighed,”Shit”he said,”You weren’t supposed to see this”he said to her

“I know, that’s why you are hiding it”she said,”Daddy, did you steal that?”she asked him

“No baby I didn’t”he said and then sighed and sat down on the bed.”Here sit down. Daddy needs to start telling the truth”he said to her as he patted the spot next to him.

“So if you didn’t steal it, then why are you hiding it?”she asked him as she sat next to him.

“Let me start from the beginning”he said to her. “4 years ago, on your 7th birthday actually, I saw your Uncle Vernie doing the same thing, hiding large amounts of money under the floor. I asked him where it was from. He told me that he had a side job besides the one at the factory. His boss, who will later become my boss as well, makes counterfeit money”he said as he picked up one of the fives.”They look real but they’re not.How do we know?Some of the numbers here are missing. But no one looks for that…”he says.”That’s how Ive been able to spoil you lately. I wanted to give us a better life. I told Vernon not to do it but hes doing it because he wants to not be seen as some poor good for nothin’. He wants a better life for him and Abby.I felt the same way and I saw how happy you were when you got this doll”he said as he picked up the doll.She still slept with it.”You were so happy.I wanted to see you happy.So I joined in too.So for the past 4 years I have been delivering counterfeit money to other businesses, other mobsters.Its all hush hush. But its illegal, like if a cop came in here and found this money….I could go to jail”

“No Daddy”Salomi said in shock

“That’s why you have to promise me not to tell anyone. Not Eveline, not anyone at school, not Millie or James. Not even Abby, she doesn’t even know”Abraham said to her,”This is very serious. This pays for everything we have. Everything in here is paid for from all this, our clothes, our food, your schooling. If anyone finds out, this will all disappear”he said to her

“Why are you hiding it here? Ive never seen you hide it here before”she asked him

“We have gotten busy, more people have found out about us. Which is both good and bad for the business. We cant risk getting caught so now we bring our own banks of money home. This way if one of us do get caught….it will be just one of us going down and not all”he said as he started to put the money back in the hole.

“Can I help?”she asked him

“No”he said to her.”Never touch this you hear me?”he said to her sternly. She nodded. She sat there in silence as he hid the money and put the floorboard back to cover it.”We’re gonna need a type of carpet or rug to cover that”he said to himself and looked at her. She was too quiet. She was probably still shocked. He wasn’t surprised. She just found out that her father has been leading a secret life for the past 4 years, a life of crime no less. “Don’t look so sad babydoll”he said to her as he took her favorite candy out of his pocket and handed it to her,”I knew you would kill me if I forgot to pick this up for you”he said to her with a smile.

Her smile instantly came back as she opened the candy and popped one in her mouth,”Thank you Daddy”she said to him and got up and kissed him on the cheek,”I love you”she said to him

“Even though Im a criminal?”he asked her

She smiled a little,”You’re not a criminal Daddy. Criminals don’t make lives better. You made our life better”she said to him simply.

“Makes sense”he said,”You are too smart for your own good”he said to her as he kissed her on her forehead,”I love you too”he said to her,”Im gonna make dinner now”he said to her.She nodded and followed him to the kitchen table.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abraham looked at the paper in front of him. Since he was now doing his deliveries from home, he only needed to go to Morietti’s office to pick up the list of where his stops were and how much the client needed. Now he had to do everything himself, especially counting up the money.

“Wait…what’s half of 500?”he asked himself.It was probably a stupid question but he was so tired that he couldn’t even comprehend the easiest questions.

“250”he heard Salomi’s voice say as she walked in the bedroom

“Thanks”he said as he coughed.

“You ok Daddy?”she asked him. The weather got unexpectedly cold for March and there was a flu going around. Some of the kids at school got it.

“Yeah, just my throat is sore and I have a small cough, its nothing”he said to her as he counted out $250.”Half of 250 is….”he said to himself and then stopped.

“125”Salomi answered

“Thank you”he said as he coughed again.

“Im going to make the soup?Since your busy?”she asked him.He nodded.She went to the kitchen and prepared the soup, it was her specialty now. He loved the way she made it. She put the soup in a bowl and brought it into the room.

“Shit”he said as he put his head in his hands.

“What’s wrong?”she asked him

“I must have miscounted”he said to her and coughed,”Thank you”he said as he took the bowl and drank from it,”Ahh that hits the spot”

“Daddy?Can I help?”she asked him

“No”he said.She sighed and gave up. She got her bowl of soup and ate it and drank her milk and did her homework. She was done before him. She sat and stared at him as he counted the money out loud. “5,10,15,20,25,30,35,40,45,50,60-“

“You missed 55”she said to him

“Salomi…I am trying to count”he said to her

“You counted wrong Daddy”she said,”You don’t have 60 there, you have 55. You are 5 dollars short”she said to him

He narrowed his eyes at her and then handed her the small stack of money,”Ok show me”he said to her

She smiled at him,surprised that he was letting her touch it. Shes never touched this much money before! “5,10,15,20,25,30,35,40,45,50,55”she said

He laughed a little.”You’re right”

“I know”she said to him with a little smirk.

“I must be that tired if an eleven year old can count better than me”he said

“Eleven and 2 months”she corrected him

“Oh excuse me”he said to her,they sat there in silence,”Ok you made your point. You can help me but only to count behind me, just in case I miscount. I cant do that. I will get in trouble if I do”

“How much trouble?”she asked him

“A lot of trouble”he said seriously. She nodded,”You still want to help?”he asked her

She nodded and said,”Yes”

“Ok, this customer needs $125 and they also need a separate stack of $125 for their other office”he said to her. He drank some of his soup and then started to count,”Ok we have 55 here”he said to her,”55,60,65,70,75,80,85,90,95,100,105,110,115,120, 125”he said,”125?”he asked her

“Yeah that’s 125”she said

“Good”he said as he put a band around it and put it to the side,he picked up another stack of money and started again,”5,10,15,20,25,30…”

Salomi smiled as she counted behind him. She was happy that he was willing to let her help. She felt so grown up and privileged.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“So I heard that you made the fastest delivery yesterday”Vernon said to Abraham as they walked to his house.”You still trying to get on his good side after what happened a long time ago?”he asked him with a laugh. Ever since that first miscounting incident, Abraham has taken the job seriously. But now the two of them laugh about it.

“Im just a good worker, is that so hard to believe?”he asked him as they walked in the house.

“Its freezing out there”Vernon said,”But its oh so warm in here”he said,”Where’s Salomi?”he asked and then saw her silhouette behind the curtain and walked in the bedroom,”Hey you-“then he stopped when he saw Salomi surrounded by neatly organized small stacks of cash.”What are you doing?”he asked her

“Hey Uncle Vernie”she said to him,”Im helping Daddy count”she said to him

“Hey babydoll”he said as he walked in,”Wow you got a whole lot done”

“Im all done”she said proudly

“That’s my girl”he said to her

“I just finished up counting $1000 for some Antonio guy. That’s the most I have ever counted”she said excitedly

Abraham smiled,”Good for you-“

“Abe, can I talk to you for a minute?”Vernon asked him sternly

“Yes…”Abraham said, looking at him strangely.What was wrong with him?”Hey put those stacks in a neat little pile in one of those bags ok?”he told her. She nodded and he walked outside,”What’s wrong?”he asked as he picked up an ax and started to chop some more wood.

“She knows?”he asked him

“Yeah, I didn’t want to lie to her anymore and she caught me hiding money. Like when I first caught you”he said as he chopped the first piece.

“Abe, I know how much Salomi means to you-“

“Yes, shes my lung, my heart, my life, my everything….”Abraham said as he moved the pieces aside, picked up another piece of wood, picked up the ax and chopped it.

“Then why is she helping you?You just broke a rule! You told someone on the outside about us!”

“I was on the outside when I found out but you used me for your advantage and now Im in and helping out. She helps me count. I still miscount sometimes but she counts behind me and lets me know when Im wrong. That’s why Im always done before everyone else, she does the counting for me now. You don’t know how smart she is at math. That school is doing wonders, she can do division and addition so fast and easy”he said as he chopped another piece of wood.

“What if she tells one of her friends?Huh?She could get you killed!”Vernon hissed

“She knows how important this is-“

“Oh so you told her that you could die if you make another mistake and that her life is at stake since she knows about it now too?”

“I didn’t tell her that. I didn’t want to scare her. She knows its illegal and that if I get caught I could go to jail, that alone scared her”Abraham said

“But what if she makes a mistake!? It could kill you! Abe how can you be so stupid!”

“Im not being stupid”Abraham said to him,”Shes been doing this for months and I haven’t had one complaint. She’s doing much better than I have ever done and shes making me better. We are a good team”he said,”I think you should tell Abby about it and have her help you. Have a sort of Bonnie and Clyde tag team”he said with a chuckle

Then the next thing he knew, Vernon punched him in the face. He staggered back a little and then put his hand to his cheek.”Did that knock some sense into you?”Vernon asked him

“I don’t need any sense knocked into me Vern”Abraham said as he pushed him back

Vernon pushed him back.”You are letting this job get to your head! So bad that you let a twelve year old help you with organized crime!”

Abraham pushed him back.”Im not letting this job get to my head! But Im doing all I can to not make any mistakes and take this job seriously!”

Vernon grabbed Abraham’s shoulders and shook him,”You may be killing your own daughter!”he said to him,”Have you even thought about that? Do you want Morietti to put a gun to her head and pull the trigger just like he did to you? If he finds out, he will do that. He has gotten rid of people on the outside that have figured out the system and when I mean get rid of them, I mean that they arent around to tell about it”he said. He turned Abraham toward Salomi’s grave. “You want her lying there next to her mother?”

Abraham pushed him away,”Don’t talk like that”

“Why not?It could be the truth! You have to be careful Abraham! I cant believe that you would be so careless!”

“Im not being careless! I value her life more than my own and if anyone of us is going to lay beside her mother its going to be me first!”Abraham said as he could feel tears welling up in his eyes,”It was hard enough for me to bury one Salomi, but I cant bury another. She’s gonna have to bury me one day”he said to him,”I know what Im doing Vern and if something isn’t right….she will tell me”he said as he pointed to Salomi’s grave.”She told me to do this in the first place and she told me that this would be the best thing that has ever happened to me and it has. It isn’t perfect yes but nothing is and she would never lie to me”he said to him.He picked up the pieces of wood and walked inside, leaving Vernon still shocked.

*______________________*

Vernon walked home with the anger still inside him. He couldn’t believe that Abraham would be so careless. He would never even think of telling Abby what he was doing. She didn’t mind anyway, she was busy enough as it was working at a store on the outskirts of town.

He sighed, how could he get Abraham to change his mind? Now all he got were flashbacks of himself being hung over the balcony a few years ago for being short 5 dollars and of Abraham almost getting shot in the head for 10. This business was dangerous and whenever any shit like that happened, he sometimes regretted doing this. But hes never seen Abby so happy. Even, Abraham and Salomi were content with their lives since Salomi’s death. Abby was so happy that she wanted to have a child, hell she wanted as many children that she could. She felt that they had the money to basically have a whole empire of children. He would love to have a son or a sweet little girl like Salomi. So that’s what they did everytime he came home from work, they tried for a child.

But then he started thinking into the future, his children catching him hiding money. He shook his head, no, he wouldn’t be as stupid as Abraham and tell his child the truth. He stepped out into the road and he heard a shout. He looked up and saw a huge wagon coming at him. Just in time, he hopped out of the way milliseconds before he would have been turned into road kill.

“Watch where you’re walking!”the man shouted at him as the wagon continued past.

“Watch where you’re going!”Vernon shouted back. He then sighed with relief,”Shit”he said to himself. He needed to pay attention. He needed to get his mind off of Abraham. It was easier said than done so he rushed home as if he was running away from his own thoughts. He walked through the door. “Abby?”he said with a smile. No answer. She was probably waiting for him in the bedroom, that’s where she usually was. “Im going to get a drink of water before you devour me alright?”he said with a snicker and he went out to the well and got himself some water from the well. He was about to go inside when he heard a noise from the outhouse. He was about to ignore it because animals sometimes snuck in there. But then another noise came out from the outhouse. It was definitely human. It was the sound of moaning. He walked to the outhouse and slowly opened the door.

And there was Abby lying on the ground, she was pale and the whole place smelled like vomit. He rushed to her side and knelt beside her. “Abby? Baby? What happened?”he asked her

“Im….I don’t feel so good. I cant keep anything down”she said weakly. “I cant move”

“Then don’t, I’ll do it for you”he said as he picked her up and ran inside with her. He laid her down on the bed. “Stay here. Im going to run and try to see if a doctor can come”he said, hopefully it wasn’t too late.

“Can we afford it?”she asked weakly

“Of course we can”he said. Thank goodness. He ran out the door as fast as he could and ran next door.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The neighbors knew of a doctor and he was there within an hour. While they waited, Vernon put cold cloths on her head and gave her water. She stopped vomiting but she was complaining about being dizzy.

When the doctor arrived, Vernon waited on the other side of the curtain and paced. He needed to invest in one of those new telephones. It would be really expensive but he didn’t want to interrupt the neighbors late at night for emergencies like this. What if Abby had a disease? He shook his head. “Don’t think like that. Stop thinking”he said to himself.

“Mr. Greene?”the doctor asked him

“Yes?”he asked him

“May I speak with you?”he asked him. “I have a diagnosis”he said

“Will she be alright?”he asked. The doctor seemed calm. That was a good sign right?

“Yes, she will need a lot of rest. She should stay in bed for the next couple of days. Give her only liquids like water and soup. Bread’s safe as well-“

“Whats wrong?”he asked him

“Nothing. Your wife is pregnant. This is very common”the doctor said with a smile.

“She’s…..she’s pregnant?”Vernon asked excitedly. “Whooo!”he said as he clapped his hands and then hugged the doctor. He shocked the old man and his glasses almost fell off his balding head.

“Ugh….your welcome. Its important that your wife stay healthy and gets plenty of rest. The baby should be here by the end of the year I would say. I also suggest that she get a midwife. Hire someone or find someone who has plenty experience. Mother, grandmother”he said with a smile. “Contact me in the next month or so for a check up. Have a good night”he said to him

“Thank you, thank you, thank you”Vernon said and then ushered him out the door. He then ran to the bedroom and knelt at Abby’s side. “Did he tell you babe?”he asked her. She nodded. “Arent you glad? Excited? Our first child! It should be here by the winter he said. I wonder if it will be a boy? Or a girl?”he said excitedly,”Oh sweetheart. I love you”he said as he kissed her cheek. Then he realized that her cheek was wet. She was crying. “Whats wrong?”he asked her. Or were they tears of joy?

She looked at him and he knew something was wrong. She didn’t look happy at all. She looked pale. Scared, even. “Vern…what if….what if something goes wrong?”

“Nothing will go wrong. I’m going to take care of you. You aren’t leaving from this bed unless I say so and you are going to have a diet of liquids. Soup and water and maybe some bread if you are a good girl-“

“But something can still go wrong”Abby said,”Salomi was perfectly healthy and then…..what if…..what if I die?”

“You aren’t going to die-“

“How do you know? How will you know?”she asked him as she cried

“No you wont. I wont let you. Im going to get the best midwife to take care of you and the best doctor in California. I don’t care how much it will cost”he said as he held her close. “No Abby, don’t even think about it. We are going to have this child and it will survive”he said. Even if they had to use all their funds to do so, no, she wasn’t going to leave him. Not that way.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“That’s great news!”Abraham said to him when Vernon told him.

“Yeah I need to find a really good doctor and midwife”Vernon said

“Oh I can try to find where Samantha went off to. She was Salomi’s midwife”he said and then sighed, remembering how good and calm she was when the pregnancy happened. “She was very good”he said

“Oh no that’s fine”Vernon said. He didn’t want to take any chances. He wanted a whole new doctor and a whole new midwife, especially someone who took care of Salomi and then failed. Abby would certainly get in a dizzy if she learned that Samantha was in charge of Salomi’s birth.

“No, put your pride aside, Vern”Abraham said to him, quoting him many times. “Samantha is very good and very cheap too. If I could afford her then, you can certainly-“

“Im fine”Vernon said harshly, too harshly. Abraham looked at him in shock. “Im sorry. The past couple of days have been rough. Abby’s been kind of a basketcase”

“Has she been sick?”he asked him.

“Yes but shes much better”Vernon sighed and decided to tell him. “Abby’s very scared. She thinks….see, at first she was so excited about it. I mean we were in bed every night, hours and hours of just going at it, she really wanted this-“

“Spare me please”Abraham interrupted

“But now shes scared. She…she thinks she’ll end up like Salomi….”

Abraham was quiet, and he sighed,”That’s natural to feel that way. They were good friends”

“Im sorry. I just don’t want to take that chance. Ive been asking around and there are really good doctors in Los Angeles. I can afford them. We just don’t want to take any chances”Vernon said. However, now he felt like shit. He felt this whole conversation was a slap in the face for him. “Im sorry”

“You know what? I need to pick up Salomi. Let me know if you two need anything”Abraham said as he left some money on the counter and walked out of the saloon they were in. He hopped on the trolley and looked at the hills and valleys around him. He missed Salomi now more than ever. Its been eleven years. And its been four years since her last “visit”. He remembered when she told him that she was pregnant. He smiled at the memory.

*Flashback
April 1899

He heard galloping in the distance and he heard them getting closer. He smiled as he got up and went to the door. It was her. He opened the door and smiled as Salomi tied her white horse to the post and removed two paper bags that were attached to the saddle, she ran to him and gave him a huge kiss. “Someone’s happy”

“I am happy. Im very happy”she said,”I have some news for you”she said as she let herself in his small house and set the bags on the table. She turned to him and took his hand.

“Wait, this seems serious. Is something upsetting you?”

“No. But Ive been sick”she started

“No….”he said as he stepped away from her. He’s had this conversation to many times. With his mother, father, grandparents. Why couldn’t everyone in his life be happy and healthy and live?

“But baby Im alright”she said as she held his hands tighter. “I went to the doctor. Im pregnant”she said

He stared at her with wide eyes,”With child?”he asked her. She nodded. “How…are you sure?”

“The doctor was very sure. He’s very good you know. He helped my mother when she delivered me”she said. “Now Im going to be delivering a child to you”she said her smile getting wider.

Abraham held her close and then he kissed her long and hard. “God I love you”he said as he held her face in his hands. He looked in her dark brown eyes, caressed her long wavy dark hair which fell all the way down to her bottom, her soft caramel skin. She was going to be a good mother, a beautiful one at that. They were going to have beautiful children. “Wait….your parents”he said and this time she backed away. “Salomi, you know what they are going to think. You know that they disapprove of me”

“Forget them. They have nothing to do with this. I love you, Abraham. I want to have your child”she said,”They wont have to know”

“How will they not know? You still live under their roof!”

“We’ll run away together. Im sick of California anyway”she said with a laugh.

“Salomi. Be serious please. I don’t want you to have this child alone or out of wedlock. Your parents are serious about having you stay away from me. Why else are you here now? In the middle of the night? Im too poor for you. Im not worth it. You bring me food instead of the other way around. I wouldn’t be able to even support you”

“They cant keep me from you. Im not going to have this child alone-“

“They are doing a great job! Im not allowed to see you, cant come even close to your house. They’ve called the sheriff on me twice-“

“Then fight them! Why cant you fight them for me?! Am I not worth it? Our child’s not worth it? I want to be with you Abraham. I don’t care what they say. Im fighting for you”

“I want to be with you too Salomi. You know I do.”

“Then do it”she said simply.

He sighed as he ran his fingers through his dark hair. She said it so simply, like it was easy. But her parents were making their love so complicated. He was scared to death of them, but Salomi wasn’t. She gave him strength. If he could have it his way, he wouldn’t let her leave his house. She would stay with him forever, until the end of time, if he could. Then he got down on one knee. She gasped. “I don’t have a ring. And I bet young little rich girls like you have a huge ball and an announcement in the paper. I cant give you that. I can give you my love and a family. I’ll fight for you Lomi. Will you marry me?”

“Yes!”she said as she knelt down on the floor in front of him and kissed him tenderly. And soon he carried her into his bedroom and made love to her, without a care in the world.

Abraham was brought back to the present when the trolley went over a bump in the road. He looked out and realized it just past the stop near Millie’s place. “Shit”he said and jumped off the moving trolley. He was lost in his thoughts. He walked quickly back toward Millie and James’ place. He smiled to himself, remembering making love to Salomi. How good she made him feel. How she always moaned and screamed with pleasure. How she fell asleep in his arms, she was so small but fit perfectly, laying next to him. Tears fell down his face as he walked. He remembered what happened after. How scared they both were. How Salomi’s mother went absolutely crazy when Salomi said that she was marrying him and pregnant with his child no less.

Those thoughts came to a halt as he walked up to Millie’s door. He smiled when she opened it. “Wheres my little girl”he said

“She’s at home”Millie said. Then she sighed,”Great. I knew she was lying. She said she had something important to do, some chores. She said that you said it was alright-“

“Oh no. That was today? No…don’t worry about it Millie. She was right. I forgot what day it was…”he said as he backed away. “I’ll see you tomorrow”he said and rushed home. Salomi better be at home. And what chores was she talking about? He didn’t want to get upset in front of Millie. She was pregnant and didn’t need to worry about someone else’s child. Everyone was pregnant these days…

He got home and walked inside. “Salomi!? Salomi?”he shouted.

“Whats wrong?”she asked as she walked out of the bedroom.

“Why are you home? You know you are too young to be here alone-“

“I finished counting all the money”Salomi said. “I wanted to get started on it so that we could spend some time together. Maybe go into town?”she asked him

He kissed her on her head. “You are too good to me, you know that? You know what? Yes, lets go into town. You deserve it sweetie”he said to her

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Vernon and Abby visited several doctors in Los Angeles and they finally found one that was to their liking. He even set them up with a midwife. He gave them the green light on all their check ups. Nothing was wrong. That seemed to make Abby relax a little.

Abraham and Salomi would help whenever they could. Salomi would stay with Abby after school to help her out. Vernon didn’t want her to lift a thumb. Abby did anyway, since he requested her not to work, she indulged in her gardening hobby. Salomi would help her and then go home and help her father count as much as she could. She was excited about Abby being pregnant. She was an only child after all and she was looking forward to playing with her future cousins. This excitement made Abby happy as well and her fears subsided.

But then everything changed, it was a cool night in April and Abby woke up screaming at the top of her lungs. Vernon woke up with a start,”Whats wrong?”he shouted with her. Then he gasped, then he saw that they were both lying in her blood.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abby delivered twins that night but they didn’t survive. She had 2 miscarriages.

“How could this possibly happen?”Vernon yelled at their doctor. The doctor made it to their house as fast as he could, but it was too late. He also requested Abraham’s presence and he unfortunately had to bring Salomi with him. He was upset, mad at the world. He was supposed to be the best!

“We are trying to figure that out sir”the doctor said,”Ive never had a patient lose a child, let alone twins”

“Well Im glad to be your first!”Vernon said sarcastically. Then his rage took over him and he attempted to attack his doctor.

“Vernon! Stop!”Abraham said as held him back. The doctor backed himself against the wall with his hands in the air, with fear. “You have to be strong for Abby”he said. He knew all too well. Nothing will bring them back. “They tried their best”he said to him. “They tried their best”he repeated over and over and then Vernon collapsed and started to cry. The doctor went in to check in on Abby and once Vernon calmed down, he apologized and went in to see her as well.

Abraham saw Salomi sitting outside on the porch. Once he learned that there was trouble, he wanted her to stay outside. But it was no use, she didn’t see what happened, but she heard everything. He sat next to her on the steps and watched as she stroked Abby’s cat, not saying a word. “You alright, Lomi?”he asked her softly

“Why does God keep taking everyone away?”she asked angrily and started to cry.

Abraham held her close to him,”I don’t know….I don’t know…”
*____________________________*

Abby didn’t leave the house for months. She was very depressed due to the incident. She was irritable, she yelled, she threw things, cried at any given moment. Vernon tried his best to help her through it but it seemed like she didn’t want any help. It was like she had given up. He stayed with her as much as he could, but there were many deliveries to make. Abraham helped him from time to time but he needed to do his job. “Ask Abraham to take over. He understands. I need you here. I don’t want you to leave”she cried

“I cant do that. That’s not how it works”Vernon said with a sigh. “They have been very gracious to let me have a couple days to myself here and there. But it cant be a pattern. I have to go. I don’t want to but I have to. We need the money”he said. The damed doctor cost a fortune, he wanted to say. But he was careful with his words and his tone and inflection. Anything set her off.

“I don’t need money! I need my goddamned husband!”Abby shouted with rage

“Abby-“he said warningly

“Don’t Abby me! I don’t want to be alone! You care about that goddamn job more than me!”

“That job puts a roof over our heads, that job puts food on the table, that job has paid for every bill we have! Im still paying off those doctors bills”he shouted and then stopped. Shit, he yelled.

She looked at him with the most hateful look,”Some good them fancy doctors did us! I have no children and no husband!”she said and started to cry and ran into the bedroom

“You do have a husband Abby-“

“Just go! Just go to your glorious managerial job!”she shouted at him

So he did, when she got like that, he knew that she wanted space. But she confused him, wanting him to stay one minute and then stay away the next. It stressed him out and he drank at the saloon more to calm his nerves. He hoped that Abby would get out of this rut she was in soon.

Each time would be different, sometimes when he came home she would apologize profusely and cry for forgiveness. Sometimes she was still too upset to see him and she would disappear to her parents’ house, sometimes she was there for a night, sometimes days. Other times she wanted to just make love to him, it was those times when she acted like her normal self. Or other times, she would still be angry and give him a piece of her mind. He never knew what he came home to.

He opened the door cautiously after returning from drinking moonshine at the saloon. This made him calmer but sleepy. “Abby?”he asked

“Im in here”she said in a little voice. She was in the bedroom.

He stood in the doorway. It was almost a good sign, she wasn’t as upset if she was still around at least. “Are you alright?”

“I don’t know, Vern. I don’t know anything anymore”she said sadly

“Can I sleep in here tonight?”he asked her. Many nights he slept in the front room.

“Please?”she asked as she held out her arms to him. He hugged her close.

“I miss hugging you Abby”he said as he held her. “I love you, you know that right?”

“I don’t know why. Im so awful to you”she said. “Im an awful person”she said

“You’re not awful-“

“I am. I hurt you, I yell, I killed my children-“

“It wasn’t your fault Abby! Stop saying that!”

“Im not even a woman. Im incapable of doing what women do best, what we were made to do. I cant even have your children”

“Yes you can. The doctor said you can still have children”Vernon said. That was a good thing at least.

“I don’t want to listen to anything that man has to say”she said gruffly

“Well he’s right. He does know what he’s doing. We all tried our best. It just wasn’t our time-“

“I don’t care. It was our time. I was ready. Ive been ready to have your children. I still do”she said

“He’s even recommended someone and Ive read his articles. His name is Dr. Livingstone and he has many theories about miscarriages. He’s had many success stories from clients who have suffered through the same thing and then having children after seeing him”

“Can we see him?”Abby asked,”He can tell me whats wrong with me”

“Theres nothing wrong with you”he said,”I would like to but he’s very expensive and he’s all the way in New York City. That’s a four day train ride. We’ll have to save up and work on trying again for another child. Are you sure that you’re ready?”he asked her

“Im always ready”she said. She sighed,”I learned something from my mother today. She said that she’s had 2 miscarriages as well before me. I never knew that, she thinks that maybe its hereditary. All we can do is just keep trying until we get our child”she said to him. She shook her head,”I never knew that”

“That’s good for this Dr. Livingstone to know. Hes very keen on family history, diet, things like that”he said and kissed her,”I love you Abby. No matter what happens”

“I love you too”she said

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The months flew by and soon Abby was back to her old self. She was happy and smiling and she went back to work at the store on the outskirts of town. She continued her gardening hobby and even sold some of the vegetables. She called her garden,”The Baby Fundraiser” because it helped with their savings to see Dr. Livingstone. Vernon had written the Dr. a letter and he wrote back saying he was interested in their case and also sent his latest newsletter. The two continued to try again during the meantime and this made the couple closer than ever.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Summer came and went. School started back up for Salomi and Eveline and business seemed to be booming for Abraham and Vernon. Fall came and went and winter arrived with record heat. It didn’t even seem like Christmas when it arrived and Abraham, Salomi, Vernon and Abby took a short “family vacation” to the beach. They were all in high spirits but the time seemed quite bittersweet for Abby and Vernon, their twins were to arrive at this time if they survived.

They went to the beach again for Salomi’s 12th birthday and Abraham couldn’t believe how beautiful and grown she’s gotten. It was like Salomi herself came back to life, they looked exactly alike. Like Salomi was reborn, through her daughter of the same name.

A few weeks later, Vernon woke with a start when Abby wasn’t feeling well. She was going through the same symptoms she did last year. She was very nauseous and dizzy and they both hoped that this was a sign that she was pregnant. However, Vernon felt guilty, it took two to make a child after all and he felt like he inflicted this pain on his young wife.

They got a new doctor and her mother agreed to be a midwife and watch over her. The doctor confirmed that Abby was pregnant, they were both ecstatic. Vernon immediately wrote Dr. Livingstone and he wrote back with tips and suggestions. They were very close to having enough money to spare for their trip to New York and his visit. Vernon couldn’t wait. He has always wanted to visit New York and this was a good way as any to get it done.

And Vernon was going to get his wish…..sort of….

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Morietti smiled at the letter in his hand. This was going to be their biggest job yet. They requested their two top deliverers. But who would they be? Who would he choose? He smiled as he sat back in his chair and smoked a cigar.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abraham made his usual drop off and he was about to leave when Morietti stopped him. “I need you to stay here. I have something to speak with you about”

“Alright”Abraham said as he sat down. What could Morietti want to speak with him about?

“Im waiting on your friend”Morietti said as he smoked his cigar. Abraham nodded. Did he mean Vernon? What did he need with the both of them? Thirty minutes later, Vernon appeared and did his usual drop off. “Sit. I have a proposition for the two of you’s” They both sat there in silence. “It seems we have the biggest and furthest delivery yet. Some chap in London needs a delivery of one million dollars. If we get you on a train to New York, get you on a ship to London, make the drop off and come back, will you two do it? I chose the both of you because you have been with me for quite some time now and….somehow you have been making the quickest deliveries out of anyone. You’ll get a big bonus for this-“

“How much?”Abraham asked. Vernon kicked him.

“Make the delivery and bring back a special package they will send back to me…and you’ll find out. You’s in or not?”

They looked at each other and smiled. This was a way for Abraham to make even more money. This was also a way for Vernon to reach New York. “We’re in”they said.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Daddy? That’s a lot of money”Salomi said when she got home one night. She was able to come and go as she pleased, he trusted her. She also saw a suitcase. “You going somewhere?”

“We are”Abraham said with a smile. Morietti gave them the money and their deadline which was 3 weeks maximum. They needed to get a move on, but he couldn’t leave his best counter. They were dealing with more money and he knew that Morietti would kill them if they made any mistakes and with Salomi helping, he hasn’t made one. “We have a delivery in London. One million dollars. We will be taking a train in the morning for New York City and we will be taking the next boat to London. I want you to come. I want you to see the world and I need my best counter with me”

“New York City!? London!? A train?! A ship!?”Salomi said excitedly and hugged her father. She’s dreamed of being able to experience all 4 of those things and now she could. “Thank you Daddy”

“Get packing, we are leaving at dawn”he said with a smile.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

It was a different story with Abby and Vernon. Dr. Livingstone suggested that Abby not take any long trips. The baby surviving its first trimester was critical. So she couldn’t come along on the trip. However, Vernon did set up an appointment with him and once he reached New York, they would meet and decide what would happen next for them.

Abby was irritable and didn’t want to be away from Vernon for three weeks. She wanted him to be by her side through this pregnancy. She was scared to death. But she finally conceded and agreed that staying with her parents was the right thing to do, that way her mother can watch over her and write him and Dr. Livingstone if anything came up. Vernon was able to afford a wagon and he packed her things and sent her to stay with them. They had a tearful goodbye and he promised to write, he thanked her parents and then went back home to count the money and pack.

Early the next morning, he drove to Abraham’s place and was surprised when Salomi answered the door with a huge smile on her face. He thought she would be at Eveline’s by now. “Well, top of the mornin’ to you”he said to her,”Are you excited about your extended sleepover with Eveline?”

“No, Im excited about going to New York City, and London, and the train and the huge ships!”she said

“What!?”he asked and saw Abraham. “Abraham?”

“Yes? You ready?”he asked as he put three suitcases into his wagon

“Why is she coming?”he asked, indicating Salomi. “Its one thing to let her count for you, but its another to bring her on this trip! What are you thinking!? Get her over to Millie’s house before its too late. You’re gonna get us killed!”

“Look, this is a big job. Salomi is the reason why Morietti chose me in the first place. I make no mistakes with her around. She’s coming”

“No shes not!”

“Yes I am!”Salomi shouted

“We cant argue about this. We need to catch the first train”Abraham said. “We cant be late”Vernon sighed in exasperation and they finished loading the wagon and then rode into town. He was furious! What if Morietti found out? They arrived at the station and Abraham rushed to the ticket window. “One way to New York City, 2 adults, 1 child”

“The next train is leaving in five minutes-“

“Yes we want that one”he said hurriedly. And five minutes later they were on their way to New York City.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

New York City was quite an adventure and very beautiful. While Vernon had his meetings with Dr. Livingstone, Abraham and Salomi went shopping. They needed to look professional and rich. They were going to be riding first class on The Americana the next day. They bought tuxedos, evening gowns and several pairs of pants, shirts, skirts and shoes. They were going to be coming back with much more than what they brought and they didn’t mind. They could afford it.

The next morning they were in high spirits. Vernon had learned quite a lot from Dr. Livingstone and he told him it would be alright to bring Abby on his next visit once she survived her first trimester. He couldn’t wait to get this over with and get back home. They boarded the Americana and waved to the dock full of New Yorkers as they set off for London.

The three of them enjoyed the ship. There was entertainment such as puppet shows and music acts in the smoky nightclub on board. There was a pool where they could go for a swim, they played shuffleboard, cricket, golf. There were balls and first class dinners. They drank tea and coffee at quaint little coffeshops and tried crumpets for the first time, they weren’t all that good. The four days on the ship was heaven. When they docked in London, it was like traveling to another world. There was a huge crowd waiting for them and Salomi waved and cheered along with them. Out of the huge crowd, they were looking for one man. Then they found him, he was dressed all in black and holding a sign that said “Squires/Greene”. They went up to him and introduced themselves. Salomi wanted to giggle, the way the man talked was different and funny.

“And who is this?”the man asked in his British Cockney dialect, looking at Salomi. She looked about 16…maybe 17.

“She’s my assistant”Abraham said calmly. Vernon stood there and tried to be calm, but he feared this. Was this man going to tell?

“Oh. Alright”he said,”Follow me. I will chauffeur you to your hotel. You will be staying there as long as this takes”he said as they followed him to a car and got in and they were soon submersed in London traffic. Salomi smiled widely, she’s never been in a car like this and the man was driving on the wrong side of the car. How silly! He stopped in front of a grand hotel and Salomi had to hold in her excited squeal. He handed Abraham a slip of paper and said,”Read those instructions carefully. I will be back later this evening at 6 sharp. I will see you then”he said as bell boys approached the car and helped them with their luggage. They were led to their hotel suite and Salomi proceeded to jump on the bed. The instructions told them how the money was to be split up and Salomi calmed down long enough for them to do so.

The delivery went very well and the receiver who was a very rich man anyway, gave them the special package that Morietti wanted. “I suggest you all take the Titanic back to New York”he said to them,”The unsinkable ship. It will be her maiden voyage”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

While they were doing the delivery, Salomi walked around London, on her way back to the hotel, she stopped at a nut stand who was selling a bag of nuts for a nickel, or a shilling in their language. She bought one and saw two boys around her age, or a few years older, whispering about whether they should steal some. She overheard them. “Let me get another bag”she said and gave the seller another coin. She then tossed the bag to them and a boy, with the bluest eyes she’s ever seen,caught them. He stared at her with shock. “Have a nice day fellas”she said with a smile and then continued on into the hotel. The two boys following her, with their eyes…

“You should go for her”the other boy with brown eyes said

The boy with the blue eyes shook his head,”She’s one of those rich girls. Wouldn’t work”

Later that night, they went out on the town for dinner and requested the most expensive restaurant in the area. They were put at the top of the list. They were disappointed with the menu, a lot of it had stuff they didn’t want to eat, like frogs legs, or stuff they couldn’t pronounce. The restaurant was packed because a cast of Shakespearean actors were having a celebratory dinner. The cast as well as the crew were dining in the restaurant and there were many fans who requested to eat close by just so that they could get a glimpse of the stage actors. Reporters even tried to find their way inside but they had to stay outside. Everyone felt like a film star when they walked in with their cameras going off. Abraham went to the bathroom and bumped into one of the actors from the show, they said excuse me and went on their own ways. It didn’t faze him since he didn’t know who she was. “Lets call it a night. We are leaving first class on the Titanic tomorrow morning. We are going to need our rest”he said as he left a generous tip.

*__________________________________*

“You’re crazy Gabe”Adam Waller said to him as they looked at the huge liner that was the Titanic.”Your other stunts were crazy no doubt but we could really get in trouble for this, more like arrested”he said to him

“Look, I need to get back home”Gabriel Brewster said to him,”Those bastards convinced us to come overseas, saying it would be the best thing for us and then what happens? Theres nothing here for us anymore. Im going back to Memphis”

Both Gabriel and Adam were a part of a small circus troupe called The Cavaliers. When they both were little, The Cavaliers would come to Memphis and perform for a few days. Every time the two of them would show them anything, hoping that they could join the troupe. Year after year they were rejected, until a few months ago. Gabriel was strong even though he was an average sized 15 year old, slim and weighing almost 160 and he was almost at the 6 foot mark. He developed the ability to hold chairs, even tables on his chin and pick them up with his teeth. He has never gotten hurt. Adam knew how to juggle and he made it interesting by juggling candles, he later became part of the clown troupe as well. Soon they were scooped up and were touring America and then the best business prospect came for them, to travel around Europe. They all packed their things and got on the first boat to London and have been touring for a few months. However, the crowds weren’t as big as the ones in America so they made less money.Also unfortunately, a week ago, the ringmaster and the founder of The Cavaliers, Joseph Lincoln passed away. Everyone saw this as a sign to go their separate ways but this left Gabriel and Adam penniless and in another country no less with no way back home. That is unless they stowed away on the most popular ship ever.

“Look you wanna go home don’t you?”Gabriel asked him

“Yes more than anything”Adam said

“Then why not go in style?And who can say that they stowed away on the Titanic no less?Everyone back home wont believe it”Gabriel said,”Come on what do you say? Why sleep under a bridge and steal from restaurants when we have beds and good homecooking back home?”

“I do miss your grandmothers cornbread”Adam said

“Don’t remind me”Gabriel said,he missed his grandmother,she was all he had left.He now felt guilty for leaving her behind for a crazy life as a Carnie.

“Ok,so how are we going to stow away on this thing?”Adam said,”Its so big and theres so many people”

“That’s what makes it easier my friend”Gabriel said with a smile.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“How does it feel to be a part of this maiden voyage on the Titanic?”a reporter asked Dorothy.

“It feels terrific actually. It is like being a part of history. I don’t think I will have another trip like it. Im glad to be one of the firsts to check out what she can do. The most exciting thing about it is that I get to go home. Its double the pleasure”Dorothy said, making sure to fake the best smile she could possibly muster. If anyone else asked her about this damned boat she was going to scream. She didn’t know what was so special about it. It looked like the Olympique and wasn’t every boat basically unsinkable? She struggled to see what all the hoopla was all about.

The reporter and all the other ones around her tried to ask her more questions but the crowd getting on the boat for first class was thinning.”Thank you for all your questions”she said hurriedly as she walked away and walked up the ramp toward the deck, many bell boys following.

“Why did you leave so early?”Lucas asked her.

“I just didn’t feel like talking about this damned boat any longer. I just want to get to my cabin and relax for once”she said as she rolled her eyes, hating that Fate put him on the same boat as her. At dinner last night, Lucas announced that he was cast in a Broadway play in New York City and that he was leaving on the Titanic as well. He wanted to surprise everyone and he did. However, Dorothy was the only one that felt sick when she heard the news.

“Yes, this boat is getting a lot of press”Lucas said,”Which works out so well for us”

“For you maybe, quite frankly I don’t give a damn”Dorothy said quickly, she didn’t want to ever hear the word ‘us’ come out of his mouth. She quickly saw her cabin and opened the door.

“I will see you later for dinner”Lucas said to her

“Dinner?”Dorothy asked,”I was just going to order from the room-“

“No, there is a special feast for all the first class passengers. I already reserved us seats. See you later”he said and walked into his cabin, which was unfortunately next door.

Dorothy scowled. She hated when people made plans for her, especially Lucas, and he said “us” again. She closed the door and tried to gain her composure.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Bye London!”Salomi said excitedly as the Titanic left Southampton’s dock for the first time. She felt like a star even though none of those people were particularly waving to her. Once they were away from the dock, Salomi breathed in the sea air and followed her father and Uncle Vernon back into their cabin.

“Ok lets get this money stuff straightened out before we relax”Vernon said. Not only did they deliver $1.5 million, they were to return with another million, half going to a bigwig in New York and half going back to Morietti. They closed the door and locked it and they took out the briefcase with the money and began to count and separate it.

“Dad, can I please see the ship? Do I have to count?”Salomi asked him

“You know Im gonna need my expert counter. This is a lot of money we are dealing with here-“Abraham said

“Let her go Abe”Vernon interrupted,”Go ahead Salomi, Abe has got me, now you can go free”he said to her

“Thanks”she said with a squeal and then left the room quickly.

“Yeah thanks Dad”Abraham said to him sarcastically

“Let her be a kid, you are only on the Titanic once and besides, I don’t think she should touch anymore money until we get back to California, just to be on the safe side” Vernon told him

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel laughed out loud as he and Adam came out of their hiding spot and walked along the deck. He couldn’t believe that his plan worked and it was so simple too.”I cant believe it worked”

“Ok yes it worked,now we just have to be normal”Adam said as they tried their best to remain composed as a few workers walked past them.”We have to act like we belong here”

“That wont be hard”Gabriel said as he walked over to the front of the ship and looked out at the London skyline getting smaller and smaller.”Its just good to be going home”

“Where are we going to sleep?”Adam asked Gabriel,”There arent any bridges here that we can hide in”

“Theres probably an empty cabin somewhere that we can break into”Gabriel said,”But who wants to think of sleep now?”he asked,”Its only 9 am”

“Yeah meaning its time for breakfast, what are we going to do about food for the next 2 and a half days?”Adam asked him

“This is a luxury liner, theres probably lots of food waiting around to be taken”Gabriel said and then looked at Adam with a knowing look.

“No,Im staying right here, Im not going to steal anything else with you. I mean what happens if we get caught? They are going to throw us overboard!”Adam said

“Fine,I’ll be back with breakfast”Gabriel said as he walked off, looking for an unknowing victim.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi watched as some people played shuffleboard and some kids were kicking a ball around. She was on the top deck and this was where the first class passengers mostly leisured. She walked to the rail and looked at what little of the London skyline she could see left.

“Croissant madam?”someone asked her. She turned and saw a man in a uniform carrying a tray of what looked like fancy looking bread.

Salomi didn’t know what a croissant was but she was very hungry all of a sudden. They didn’t eat breakfast yet. “Sure”she said as she took three. The man gave her a surprised look and then left. She inspected one of the croissants and then tasted it.”Oh wow yum”she said as she continued to eat. She now loved croissants, whatever they were. She decided to sit down and went over to a lounge chair. She put the croissants on a small table next to her and sat in it and struggled when she tried to figure out how to get the chair to sit up straight. Then she thought she saw something out of the corner of her eye. She looked and saw that two of her three croissants were gone. She looked up and saw a boy running away. She picked up her other croissant and ran after him, not caring how she looked running so fast in such a frilly dress. She pushed past a lot of people, making sure she kept the blonde haired boy in sight. She caught up to him quickly and jumped on his back.

“Hey!”the boy said

“Give me my food you little rat!”she shouted at him

“You made me drop them now!”he shouted back at her as she flipped him over and sat on his stomach so he couldn’t move, then she gasped. She knew those baby blue eyes so well now, it was the mystery boy that she met yesterday,”Do I know you?”he asked her,then it hit him,”Oh the nut girl”he said and smiled

“And this is how you repay me? By stealing my breakfast?”she asked him,”Get your own, theres a guy with a tray walking around”she said to him

“Well I didn’t know it was you and Im third class, we don’t have people waiting on us”he said bitterly,”Can you please get off of me now?”

“No! I want my croissants!”she said

“You have one right there!”he said to her

“I want more”

“Someone’s greedy”he said

“You should talk!”she said,”Im starving, I haven’t eaten since last night”

“You? I haven’t eaten in three days!”he said to her,”Now will you kindly get off of me girl? Im not afraid to push you”he said to her

Salomi softened a little, she knew how he felt all too well. She knew how it felt to go days without eating, that’s how her life used to be. She never wanted to go back to that. “Sorry”she said as she got off of him

“Why are you apologizing? I just stole from you?”he asked her, confused

“Im apologizing because you haven’t eaten in three days”Salomi said,”They don’t serve breakfast in third class?”

The boy scoffed,”Psshh, have you seen third class?”he asked her,”Guess not”he said to her,”They treat us like dirt, like we’re nothing, Im not even supposed to be up here”

Salomi nodded, her father and Uncle Vernon felt the same way before they got into the counterfeiting business.

“Is there a problem?”a man in a uniform asked as he came up to them.”We had complaints about two young people running and causing a ruckus”he said and then he looked at the boy,”Wait….you arent supposed to be up here-“

“Yes he is….he’s my personal bell boy….my family has hired him”Salomi said quickly. She felt that she needed to defend and help this boy however she could.

“Oh….well keep it down”the man said as he looked narrowly at them and walked away.

The boy let out a nervous laugh.”Thanks you just saved my ass”he said to her,”You didn’t really have to do that….”

“Its fine”Salomi said with a shrug

“I gotta get back to my friend”the boy said,”Hes probably wondering if I got caught or if I got breakfast for us yet”

“Theres another one?”she asked him.That would explain why he was stealing two.Then she saw the waiter,”Excuse me sir…can I have two more?”she asked him. He nodded and she took two croissants,”Thank you”she said and he walked away,”Here. Next time, just ask, I don’t want to have to beat you down again”she said as she handed them to him

The boy smirked at her,”Oh really? Well you might not even catch me”he said to her as he took the croissants from her,”Whats your name?”he asked her

“Salomi”she said with a smile

“Thank you Salomi, Im Gabriel”he said to her

“I’ll look out for you Gabriel”she said to him

“I’ll do the same”he said and then bit into one of the croissants.He smiled at her and left the deck quickly. Salomi smiled as she watched him, she had a feeling it wouldn’t be the last.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Guess we are done then”Vernon said as he and Abraham packed up the million dollars that they counted. They were putting the last stacks of bills in when there was a knock on the door. They both looked at each other and tried not to panic.”I’ll take these into my room”he said as he picked up the briefcase and the rest of the money,”Answer it”he said to him and closed his door behind him.

Abraham took a few deep breaths. This business was full of surprises, you never really knew who you were delivering to, unless they were regulars and sometimes you never know what situation you put yourself into. You also never know or want to know if something goes wrong, like getting caught. He opened the door to find one of the workers on the ship. He greeted him with a small cart of breakfast food,he wheeled it in and Abraham stepped aside, checking to see if there was any evidence around.”Um…well we didn’t order breakfast-“

“Compliments of the captain. If you ever want to order, here are our menus”he said as he gave him the menus

“But we don’t know the captain…haven’t met him at all, why would he send us food?”Abraham asked him suspiciously

The man laughed,”He set this up for all our first class passengers. All of you are getting free and delivered breakfast this morning. Its on him don’t worry. Oh and since you speak of not having met the captain…”he said as he pulled out a small envelope out of his pocket,”Here is an invitation to a special dinner in the ballroom tonight at 8 pm. You will be able to meet the captain and the other first class passengers. It’s another way for him to say thank you for picking the Titanic. He has worked really hard on it. Would you like to reserve seats?”he asked him

Abraham smiled,”Yes put three down under Squires”

“Alright”he said as he wrote that down.”This is so we know how much to cook”he said to him and handed him the invitation.”That’s for you and its after five attire”

Abraham nodded,not really knowing what that meant.”We will be there”

“Alright thank you and have a great day”he said to him and left.

Abraham breathed a sigh of relief,then he went and knocked on Vernon’s door,”Its all clear”he said to him.

Vernon opened the door.”Good. The briefcase is under my bed.Who was that?”

“A worker. We got free breakfast-“he said as he nodded toward the cart

“Oh Im starved”Vernon said as he picked up a croissant and some grapefruit.”Oh this is heaven”he said with his mouth full.”How much?”

“It was free,compliments of the captain”Abraham said as Vernon stuffed his face,”I suggest you not eat that way tonight”he said as he made a plate for himself.

“What are you talking about?”Vernon said, mouth still full as he poured himself some milk.

“We have also been invited to a special first class dinner…with the captain”he said as he gave him the invitation,”What does after five attire mean?”

“Wow…snazzy”Vernon said and swallowed,”It means formal attire. The best tux you own and the best dress you own”he said,”Very formal”

“We are going right? You know we have to show off our riches”Abraham said and winked at him.

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world”Vernon said with a grin,”Just as long as they don’t serve that nasty caviar and roasted frog leg stuff. These Europeans eat the nastiest food”he said with a laugh remembering what most of the menu was on the night before at the Ritz. It was going to be fun, eating first class meals, dining with the rich and famous and being waited on hand and foot. This boat trip was going to be the best ever and most memorable. He had a feeling about that.

*_____________________*

Dorothy sighed as she popped one of the small pills in her mouth. She just didn’t feel like herself today and that has happened a lot lately. She was suffering from depression and these pills seemed to help her, at least a little bit. She felt that she needed something to deal with Lucas and more rich snobs asking about her personal life and what she did for a living. She had on a long black dress, her most expensive pearls and some black heels. Her wavy dark, reddish brown hair was down and it cascaded off her shoulders to the middle of her back.

She sighed as she picked up a small clip in the shape of a dragonfly. It was her mothers. She died while Dorothy was working in London, she has been very sick for a long time. But this made Dorothy even worse, she took the pills more often. Then there was a knock at the door. She groaned, it was Lucas.”Just smile and wave Dorothy, just smile and wave”she said to herself.She faked a smile and opened the door.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Ready toots?”Abraham said to Salomi as he fixed his tie. He was glad that they all invested in buying some formal attire in New York. Both he and Vernon were wearing black tuxedos and Salomi was wearing a navy blue dress.

“Yes”Salomi said excitedly

“I feel like a penguin”Vernon said with a laugh as he inspected his tux in the mirror one last time.

“Lets go”Abraham said as they left the first class cabin deck and walked to the ballroom. They walked down a huge staircase and went toward a huge room with double doors.

“Why are people staring at us?”Salomi asked

“They’re just jealous babe”Abraham said to her,”Remember you two. We found gold…lots of it”he said.

“Name sir?”a host asked him

“Squires, three”Abraham said to him. He nodded and they followed him inside. They walked past a band playing classical music, various waiters serving drinks and a fountain in the shape of a dolphin spitting out water.

“Here you are”he said to them as he approached a table with a young couple both in their 30s at the most and an older couple in their 60s.

“Thank you”Abraham said. Vernon nodded and Salomi smiled.

“Good evening”the older man said to them. “My name is Holmes Monroe and this is my wife, Betsy”he said as he motioned to his wife. She merely smiled. Then they went around the table and said their hellos, good evenings and nice to meet you’s.

Abraham shook the younger woman’s hand and realized it was the woman he bumped into the night before.”Dorothy Gibson”she said quietly as she shook his hand and gave him a look like she has seen him before.

“Abraham Squires”he said to her with a polite smile. The waiter then brought over glasses of red wine and poured each of them a glass, even Salomi. He was going to object but Vernon stopped him.

“Rich kids drink wine”Vernon whispered,”She has to fit in remember?She probably wont even like it”he said as they watched Salomi looked at the glass like it was something foreign to her. Abraham reluctantly nodded and Vernon smiled, it was cute.

“Before you three came over, Dolly here was telling us that she is an actress”Holmes said to them.

“Its Dorothy”she corrected him

“Really?”Salomi asked

Dorothy smiled at her,”Yes I am. Movies mostly. I went to London to do some stage acting-“

“Yes, she was in ‘Hamlet’ along with myself”Lucas said,”I played Hamlet”he interrupted proudly

“Oh very good”Holmes said

“What do you do?”Betsy asked them. She had that look that a lot of people have given them. The are-you-really-rich look.

“We’re farmers”Vernon said.

Lucas almost choked on his wine and Betsy didn’t look impressed. Dorothy looked at Lucas in disgust,”Farmers? Very interesting”she said politely. Holmes just looked at them like they lost a lot of points in the “rich” book. Salomi didn’t like that look and she stared at him with disgust.

Abraham had to fix this,”Yes we are farmers but we also got lucky. We are from California and we found gold on our land, lots of it. So now that we have found it, we want to travel the world”

“Oh interesting”Lucas said,”Rich farmers….interesting”he said with a small laugh. Salomi didn’t like this and stared at him with disgust, so did Dorothy.

Abraham decided to not even pay attention to that. Soon they could hear the clinking of someone’s glass and they saw a man stand up. The captain. “Good evening everyone”he said to them,”I am Captain Larson and I would like to welcome you all to the Captain’s Feast and I would like to personally thank you for joining us on our maiden voyage, we will do our best to make this a trip you will never forget. I would like to make a toast. To the unsinkable ship and all its passengers”he said as he raised his glass

Everyone raised their glasses and then drank the wine. Salomi slowly sipped on it. It didn’t really taste too good but she was thirsty. She also saw other kids her age drinking it so she didn’t want to feel left out. Soon the waiters brought out their first plates, which was a small salad. Salomi didn’t particularly like this either. The lettuce was cut into thick pieces and the dressing wasn’t too great either, she didn’t even know what it was. She forced herself to eat it, wondering if they were going to bring out the croissants.

They all ate in silence for awhile, listening to the band and hearing murmured conversations around them. Then Lucas broke the silence,”So what do you two grow on this farm of yours?”he asked her father. She looked at him with disgust again. She didn’t like this man, he was treating them like they didn’t belong here and the tone of that question made it seem like he wasn’t taking them seriously. What an ass.

“The standard vegetables mostly”Abraham said, noticing the tone as well and also not liking it but he decided to be cordial.

“Oh I see and you found a golden tomato?”Lucas asked and laughed

“Lucas please, I mean really”Dorothy said, looking annoyed, embarrassed and pissed that he said that.

“Tomatos arent vegetables”Vernon said matter of factly. Lucas looked at him and didn’t know how to respond.

“So where is your mother young lady?”Betsy asked Salomi.

“I don’t have a mother”Salomi said quietly

“Oh of course you do, then you wouldn’t be here”Betsy said, she must not have understood what she meant.

“Well yes, obviously. But I have never met her, she died giving birth to me”Salomi said a little too forcefully, without really meaning to.

Dorothy looked at the girl. She knew exactly how she felt, well not exactly. She knew her mother and they were very close. That’s why it hurt so much more knowing that when she got back home to America, that she wouldn’t be there waiting for her. She sighed, feeling herself start to deflate. “Im very sorry to hear that”she said breaking the silence.

Then the waiters took away their plates and soon brought out the main course. It was filleted lamb, potatoes, greens and bread. They all dug in and ate in silence. Then the band started to play a familiar song, a song that her mother once loved. She felt like her soul was slipping into a black hole, she couldn’t take it. She had to get out of there. She put down her fork and stood up.

“Where you going Dorothy?”Lucas asked her

“Im not feeling too good. Im feeling a little seasick I think I might need some air”she said to him quickly

“Let me walk you to your room”he said to her

“No please, just stay and eat. I’ll be fine”she said to him. She would actually feel much better if he wasn’t anywhere near her. She then left the room in a hurry.

“Well that episode came on quite fast”Betsy said as she watched Dorothy leave. Like she didn’t believe what Dorothy claimed.

“Yeah I guess your stomach can turn pretty quickly on these waters”Vernon said

Abraham looked at Salomi’s plate. Her potatoes were gone but everything else was barely touched,”You alright?”he asked her,wondering if Salomi’s stomach was like Dorothy’s.

“Yeah, I just don’t like the way this tastes. Its disgusting”Salomi said. Betsy heard this and shook her head in disapproval. Children should be seen and not heard unless they were asked to be.

“Did you at least try it sweetheart?”Abraham asked her

She nodded,”Yes and its disgusting. I miss Abby’s cooking”she said as she looked at Vernon and yawned.

He smiled,”I miss Abby period”he said. He wondered how she was doing everyday. He even sent her a postcard from London, telling her he would be home soon and that he wanted to bring her to New York as soon as possible. He just hoped that when he got home he wouldn’t have any bad news, he hoped he wouldn’t be too late.

“Who’s Abby?”Betsy asked

“My wife”Vernon said

“Why didn’t you bring her along? She probably would have loved a trip like this”Betsy asked

“She’s pregnant and we would be doing a lot of moving around. I didn’t want her to risk it”he said

“Hmmm”Betsy said as the waiters came over and took up their dishes.”What is the dessert for tonight?”she asked him

“It will be right out in a few minutes. Its apple pie”he said to her

“Oh splendid”Betsy said

“Eeew”Salomi said as she yawned again.

“Lomi”Abraham warned her,”Are you tired?”he asked her

“Yeah Im getting a little sleepy”Salomi said,”Maybe I’ll just go back to the cabin”

“I’ll walk you”Abraham said,he turned to Vernon,”Save me an apple pie. I’ll be right back”he said to him,”Say goodnight to the Monroe’s”he said to Salomi

“Good night”Salomi said quietly

“Good night dear”Holmes said

“Hmmm”Betsy said

“I don’t like her”Salomi said as they left the ballroom.

“I know that”Abraham said,”You have to watch what you say and how you act around these people. You see how they still look down on us?”he asked her,”Don’t give them anymore reason to”he said to her. They got to the cabin and he walked her in,”Do you need me to stay here?Will you be alright?”

“I’ll be ok. I bet the waves and the boat rocking will rock me to sleep”Salomi said,”I don’t want you to miss any apple pie”she said, knowing how much he loved it.”I’ll be fine”

“Alright. We will be back soon”Abraham said, he kissed her on her head and then left the cabin. He walked back to the ballroom, but walked slowly as he looked out at the full moon and saw how its reflection glistened on the waters surface.”Beautiful”he said as he stopped and looked over the railing. Then he heard a sound, he turned around to see what the source was and gasped.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy rushed back to her room, but the tears fell down her face before she was even close to getting there. She ran up to the top deck and ran toward the railing and cried as she looked out across the water.”Mom…I miss you”she whispered as she looked up at the moon,”Why….”she said as she sobbed. She tried to take deep breaths but couldn’t, she thought that the fresh air would help but it didn’t. It was actually a lot colder out, so cold that she could see her breath. She sat down on a nearby bench and cried some more. She didn’t want to be here, she didn’t know what to do. She didn’t even want to go home anymore, no one was there to greet her. “I have no one….I have nothing…”she said as she sobbed,”Theres nothing for me…”she said and then paused. Then quickly she got up and walked to the railing and looked at the water that was way below her. She then looked up at the moon,”Ok Mom….this is it”she said.

She took off her heels and then put her feet on the cold railing. She hissed and jumped a little bit because of the shock of how cold it was. Once she got used to it, she climbed up and stepped over to the other side, still holding on to the rail. She was one step closer, all she had to do was jump now and everything would be perfect.

“Please Lord, forgive me. But you never make mistakes and everything happens for a reason”she said as she looked up at the moon. She took a few deep breaths to try to calm herself down. This wasn’t as easy as she thought and it was so cold. “Ok….”she said as she tried to coach herself and then stopped. She then held on to the rail with one hand as tight as she could and used her other hand to take the dragonfly clip out of her hair. She needed it to be with her, that’s all she had left of her mother.

However, her cold and shaking hands weren’t as sturdy and she dropped it. Luckily, it fell where she was standing, all she had to do was bend down…but there was no room to bend down and reach, she barely had room to stand.

“Shit”she said, she took a few deep breaths as she slowly tried to bend down. However, she looked down and saw how far of a fall she was going to be taking and she gasped. This scared her so much that she slipped and fell…

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abraham walked quickly as he went toward the source of the sound.”I did not just see someone jump…this better be my imagination”he said to himself as he walked. He then heard someone scream and he looked down and saw Dorothy holding onto the bottom rail with all her life.”Ohmygod Dorothy!”he said to her,”Hold on let me help you”he said to her,”How the hell did this happen? Did someone push you?”he asked as he bent over and tried to grab her hand

“Don’t touch me!”she warned.”Im ok Mr. Squires, I don’t want to be helped”she said

“What?”he asked her. Did she intentionally try to jump? No, then she would have done it already. “Come on Dorothy, let me help you-“

“No!”she shouted, then she gasped,”Wait….give me that clip…I need that clip”she said as she nodded her head toward a hairclip that looked like a dragonfly.

“Dorothy, be serious please”Abraham said to her,”I think that the hairclip is the least of your worries…now give me your hand”he said to her

“No! That hairclip is all I have of her!”Dorothy said as she still held on for dear life, obviously in a panicked state. She was totally different than when she was at the dinner table. Did she have too much wine?

“All you have of who?”he asked, trying to understand and trying his best to help her,”Give me your hand Dorothy, we can talk about this”

“No I don’t want to talk about it! Im not crazy! Don’t talk to me like Im crazy!”she shouted at him,”Give me that clip. If you don’t, Im going to let go and fall to my death!”she warned

“Ok!”he said to her. He reached over and carefully picked up the clip, trying not to drop it. “Im not giving this to you until you give me one good reason why you are in this predicament in the first place”

“I have nothing to live for! She’s gone!”Dorothy said as she started crying.”And that clip is all I have of her and I need it with me when I go. I don’t need life anymore…its nothing but shit”

“Don’t say that”he said to her. She was trying to commit suicide. She lost someone close to her and she was having a nervous breakdown.He had to calm her down.”I know how you feel. I married the love of my life 12 and a half years ago, she was my everything. My heart, my lung, my soul, we were inseperable and so in love and then….she died. She died giving birth to my daughter and my daughter died as well. I thought the same thing. The two people in my life that I cherished were gone. I was alone. There was nothing left for me. I wanted to take my shotgun and shoot myself in the mouth….but then I heard a baby cry. My daughter survived and in that one second, that one cry, I knew that I couldn’t leave. I knew that I had to stay. God makes no mistakes and he wanted me to raise my daughter. Not someone else”he said to her.”I know how it feels to lose someone so close. But my wife wouldn’t have wanted me to end my life because of her, she would have wanted me to keep living because I know that one day we will be together again. Everything happens for a reason”he said to her

Dorothy looked at him as she listened to his story. It sounded so much like her own but what shocked her were two phrases that he said. “God makes no mistakes” and “Everything happens for a reason”. Those were her mothers motto’s. She couldn’t do this anymore, her mother wouldn’t want this.”Give me your hand please”she said to him and he grabbed one of her hands. However, the other one slipped and she screamed…

*____________________*

Salomi tossed and turned and then sat up and sighed. She thought that the slight rocking of the boat would put her to sleep but it instead kept her awake. She got up and found some left over croissants and ate some from off the breakfast cart. She then walked out the cabin and looked out at the water. It was the most beautiful thing, seeing the moon and the sparkling water.

However, she couldn’t stay out there long in her little nightgown. The temperature dropped so low that she could see her breath. She shivered as she walked back to the cabin. She put her key in the hole and unlocked the door.

But before she could walk in, someone covered her mouth and pushed her in and closed the door behind them.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel heard Adam’s whistle and quickly took what food he had already and ran.

The two of them heard of the big first class feast. They also knew that there would be a lot of food at this event and a lot of it would probably be wasted. And they were right, they snuck into the kitchen and the two of them picked several delicacies off of several dishes and hid them in napkins. Adam was also the lookout while Gabriel was in charge of stealing most of the food.

Gabriel ran out the kitchen but slipped on a puddle of water,”Ow! Shit!”he said

“Come on!”he heard Adam yell and then he was out of sight.

Gabriel struggled to get up and then started to run, but it wasn’t fast enough.”Hey! Get back here!”he heard someone call after him.

Gabriel picked up speed but the man was catching up to him. He ran out of the kitchen and ran up some steps to the top deck. He heard the man running behind him, he had to find somewhere to hide. He knocked over some chairs so it would slow the man down.

“Shit!”he heard the man yell. He tripped and fell over one of the chairs.

Gabriel ran faster and saw a figure ahead of him, they were unlocking a door. He could hide with them for a minute. He ran up behind them and covered their mouth and pushed them inside and closed and locked the door behind them. He turned around and then felt himself get kicked in the crotch.”Ahhhh!”he shouted as he fell to the floor.

Then the light was turned on and he saw Salomi standing there with a knife in her hand and she looked pretty pissed. He couldn’t help but laugh a little. This was the third time that he has run into her unexpectedly.

“You scared me!”she shouted at him and then looked down at him holding himself and realized what she did,”Oh Im sorry!”she said to him as she ran to him,”Are you ok?”she asked him

“Shhhhh…wait”he said as he heard footsteps running toward them from outside. They both sat there and then he heard the footsteps fade. The pain faded away a little too.”Im ok really”

“Ok…then what the hell were you thinking!?”she asked him.”What are you doing?”

He pulled the napkins out of his pocket,”Dinner”he explained

“And let me guess, you got caught and you were hightailing it out of there and you decide to assault me too…again?”she asked him

“No…well you were right about the first part”he said,”But I saw someone and decided that I would hide with them until the coast was clear. I didn’t know that it was you. Sorry about being so rough with you…but you understand right?”

“You weren’t that rough”she said to him,”I wouldn’t eat that stuff, it was nasty”

“Beggars cant be choosy”Gabriel said

Salomi sighed, feeling sorry for him. She got up and started putting croissants, sausage links and fruit on a plate.”Here”she said to him as she gave him the plate.”Do you need another one for your friend?”she asked him

“Oh no….Adam”Gabriel said as he slowly got up off the floor. Did he get caught too?

“Did he get caught too?”Salomi asked, reading his thoughts.

“I hope not. I don’t know”he said

“I hope not too”Salomi said,”What would happen if you get caught? Will you get thrown overboard?”she asked

“I don’t know and I don’t want to find out”he said,”Damn you have a mean kick”he said with a small laugh

Salomi smiled a little,”I used to be a bit of a tomboy….still am….kinda”

“I see”he said to her as he looked around,”Nice place you got here. Are you alone?”he asked her

“No Im with my father and my uncle”she said and then started making the other plate quickly. They could be back any minute and if they saw Gabriel here with her…alone…that would mean trouble.”Do you think the coast is clear yet?”she asked him

“Yeah I heard him pass the door”Gabriel said,”I should head out then. Don’t want you to get in trouble for helping me…again”he said

“Ok”she said as she walked him to the door,”And I mean it this time. If you two get hungry, don’t steal. Just ask”she said

“Really?”he asked her. She nodded,”Well thanks kid”he said to her

“Im not a kid”she said with a pout

“Me either”he said and winked.He opened the door slowly and looked around,”Ok thanks again Salomi”he said and ran off.

“Your welcome”she said mostly to herself as she watched him run off. She shook her head. What kind of trouble was he going to get himself into next?

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Don’t panic and whatever you do, don’t look down”Abraham said as he held on to Dorothy tightly. He had her by one hand and it was starting to slip.

“Ohmygod too late!”Dorothy said as she closed her eyes,”Help me!”

“I am”he said to her,”Give me your other hand!”he said as he held onto her other hand and tried to reach with his other.

“I cant!”Dorothy said in a panic,”Abraham I don’t want to die!”

“Be strong Dorothy,please, for your own sake”he said to her as he held onto her as tight as he could but their hands were both sweating from the pressure that they were under, he could feel her slipping due to that moisture.

Dorothy cried out as she held onto him and reached with her other hand towards his outreaching hand. “Uh…come on!”she said to herself as she reached closer and closer and then she grabbed his hand,”Yes!”she said

“Ok don’t move”he said as he tried with all his might to pull her up.He pulled her up and she grabbed a hold of the railing.

“Whats going on here?”he heard someone say. It was Lucas and right behind him was Vernon. “Dorothy!”he said as he ran over,”How did this happen?!”he asked her and before she could answer, he started to shout.”WE NEED HELP OVER HERE! HELP SOMEONE PLEASE!”he yelled.

“Lucas Im fine!”Dorothy pleaded but then more men came over. Soon Abraham was moved out the way and three workers helped her back onto the boat. Soon a crowd was surrounding them wanting to know what the commotion was.

“Oh God, Dorothy are you ok sweetheart?”Lucas asked her as he hugged her right when she got over the railing. He kissed her cheeks and then grabbed her face and pulled it towards him,”Don’t ever scare me like that again! What happened!?”

“I don’t want to talk about it”Dorothy said barely above a whisper. She was shaking since it was so cold.

“Someone get her a blanket. Now!”Lucas ordered,”Everyone get out of here! Give her some air!”he said to everyone that was standing around. Soon the crowd dispersed but Abraham and Vernon stayed behind. Abraham couldn’t leave. A worker brought over a blanket and Lucas wrapped it around her. He saw that Vernon and Abraham were still there and he said,”Back to your room farmers. The show’s over”he said to them

“Lucas!”Dorothy said to him

“Come on Abe”Vernon said as he pulled him away,”I saved us some apple pies”he said to him

“Lucas! How could you be so rude! Abraham saved-“

“What is wrong with you!? Why are you doing this to yourself again!?”he asked her,”Please tell me that you weren’t trying to commit suicide again!”he said to her angrily

The tears fell down her face, it was mostly tears of joy because Abraham was there to save her. But also tears of pain because she was still hurting inside. She watched as Abraham walked away. Lucas looked and saw him.

“It was him!?”he asked her

“No Lucas! Don’t be stupid!”Dorothy said angrily. Why would he think that Abraham would have the audacity to try to kill her!? He saved her life!

“Well I don’t trust him. None of them. That farmer story that they told us at the table, its bullshit. Theres something funny about those guys-“

“Abraham helped me ok!? He saved my life!”Dorothy said

“Well he sure wasn’t doing a good job at it”Lucas said as he helped her up.”Come on, you need…sleep and a lot more of those pills”he said to her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi looked down and saw Gabriel’s hat laying on the floor. Yep, she knew that it wouldn’t be the last seeing him. She would have to find him tomorrow and try to give it back to him. Then she heard voices and heard her father and Uncle Vernon approaching, in deep conversation. She quickly ran into her room and closed the door behind her.

“She was trying to kill herself?”Vernon asked Abraham in shock as they walked in. Once she heard him say that, she stood by the door and listened.

“Yes, but….damn I shouldn’t have told you. Its none of your business”Abraham said

“Why? Shes rich and an actress no less! She has a snob for a boyfriend but why would she want to do that?”

“People have their reasons”Abraham said,”I don’t know the details. But she lost someone. Recently and shes probably still mourning, whoever this person was, they were close. She kept saying she couldn’t go on without them”he said

Salomi sighed. He was talking about Dorothy.

“So she got so upset that she decided to jump ship?”Vernon asked,”How did you find her?”

“She was holding onto the railing. I tried to help her back up….then everyone came”he said

“Wow”Salomi said to herself. Dorothy tried to jump off the ship? She seemed so nice and polite at the table…

“Well thank God you were there. Lucas should have been thanking you not shooing us off like we’re damn rodents. See? Those rich people like him? They can all jump off the ship, I wouldn’t care”Vernon said

“I need to check on Lomi”Abraham said as she heard him walking toward the door. Salomi ran to the bed and got under the covers.

“Abe, please, don’t get all overprotective of her now. She’s fine. Salomi is happy, she has you”Vernon said to him

“I just need to check”Abraham said. What if Salomi felt the same way? She never met her mother but she must feel some type of remorse. Or guilt? Salomi died giving birth to her. Did that affect her mentally? Did she pretend to be happy sometimes? Has she ever considered suicide?

He walked into the room and saw Salomi sleeping in her bed. He smiled and walked over and sat on the bed next to her, he ran his fingers through her hair and then kissed her on her cheek.”I love you Lomi”he whispered. He then got up and walked out of the room and closed the door behind him.

Salomi opened her eyes,”I love you too Daddy”she whispered to herself and closed her eyes again and soon fell to sleep.

“I gotta get some sleep”Abraham said to Vernon,”Im going to try to relax for once on this trip”he said to him

“Alright see you in the morning…or early afternoon”Vernon said to him with a smile and walked into his room.

Abraham did the same and closed the door behind him. He took off his tie and tuxedo jacket and then heard something hit the floor. He looked down and saw Dorothy’s dragonfly clip. He had to return it to her soon. It was really important to her. Supposedly this clip was all she had of the person she lost. He put it on the small vanity table in his room. All he had left of Salomi was Salomi. It would kill him if he lost her too. He tried not to think of that as he continued to undress and get in bed and soon the boat rocked him to sleep.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Are you ok?”Lucas asked her for the 10,000th time it seemed.

“Lucas, Im fine”Dorothy said through gritted teeth as she brushed her hair and then drank some more water,”Can you just leave me alone please?”she asked him

“No, because the last time I did that, you tried to jump off a fucking boat!”he said to her

“Well sorry to cause you so much trouble!”she shouted at him. She got up and went toward her bedroom.

“No wait…..Dorothy…sorry. Its just…its crazy. Death is so definite and it kills me that you want that sometimes. Life is worth living”Lucas said to her as he stopped her. He took her hand in his.”All you need is love”he said to her and pulled her towards him and kissed her.

She pushed him away,”Lucas! Please! This is no time for romance!”she said to him angrily

“When is the best time Dorothy? I love you”he said to her

“Oh please-“

“No listen to me. I have loved you ever since you set foot on that stage at the Globe. Dorothy you are beautiful, talented….beautiful. Gosh I cant describe it-“

“I see”Dorothy said.”Its nice to know that Im only beautiful and talented”

“Dorothy. All you need is love. Why fight me? I know you want me, I know you do. If you just let down all those damned walls you have, you can love too. You will be happier and you wont even remember all the shit that has happened to you. It will all be in the past. Come with me to the future Dorothy, I will make you happy. When I hit it big on Broadway I will make so much money and I can support you and me…and the whole world if they wanted me to!”he said

Dorothy sighed as he rambled on about how rich he was going to be. How could any of his past girlfriends have thought that he was so romantic? He cant even compliment a woman without talking about himself. “Lucas please…Im tired”she said to him and walked into her room and closed the door behind her.

Lucas stood there and looked at the closed door.”You want me Dorothy. I know you do. You are probably laying there in that nice comfy bed of yours…thinking of me…laying next to you…holding you close…”he said. No response. “Fine…play hard to get…that’s right up my alley. I love a challenge, in anything I do. We can roleplay. You can play the actress who is hurting and I can play the cavaliered actor that will right his ways and win her heart…in time…once she comes around…but you will come around-“

Then Dorothy opened the door,”Lucas! Shut up!”she said and then closed the door.

“Ok…I’ll sleep on the couch”he said to her,”Don’t try anything funny you hear me?”he said to her. He then took off his tux and soon stripped down to his long johns and laid down on the couch. He took the afghan and wrapped it around him. He laid there in silence as he heard Dorothy move around. He heard her turn off the light in her room and he sat up on the couch.”If you kill yourself, I’ll kill you. You hear me!?”he said to her

“How romantic!”she shouted back.

He sighed and laid back down. He stared at the ceiling until he fell into a deep sleep.

Dorothy laid in bed, thankful that Lucas probably talked himself to sleep. She closed her eyes and let the waves of the Atlantic rock her into a deep slumber.

*____________________*

“Ahhhh”Gabriel said as he got out of the bed. He and Adam found a small spare room in third class. It only had one bed and it didn’t even have a toilet or anything but it was good enough for them. “That was the best sleep I have ever had”he said to Adam.

Adam only groaned as he pushed Gabriel’s feet out of his face. They both slept on opposite sides of the bed, just so they wouldn’t feel “funny” about sleeping together.

“And Im not hungry. This is the first time in a long time that I have woken up and wasn’t starving. Those chefs in first class sure know how to cook that….what was it?”he asked Adam

“I don’t know!”Adam said angrily.

“Geez,sleep on the wrong side of the bed?”Gabriel asked with a laugh as he got up.

“No….that first class food made me sick. I don’t feel so good”Adam said and groaned,”Ohmygod….my stomach”

“Well here, eat some of the breakfast food that Salomi gave us…that should make you feel better-“

“No Im not eating anything else on this damned ship!”Adam said

“Ok fine”Gabriel said. Then Adam got up and ran to the small leaking sink and threw up in it.”Oh great. I cant wash now”

“Glad to know that you care”Adam said and then threw up again. He then started running the water and washed his face and washed the sink out…almost. He then staggered back to the bed and collapsed in it.

“You are walking like your drunk, did you steal some moonshine too?”Gabriel asked with a laugh. Adam didn’t say anything. “You better not throw up in that bed”

“Gabe…please, my head is spinning. Can you leave or just be quiet!?”Adam pleaded as he laid there.

“Fine I’ll leave, but I think you should eat something. Now that you upchucked you probably feel better now…now you just gotta fill it back up again”Gabriel said. Adam shook his head,”Ok…”he said as he picked up some leftover croissants and walked out. He figured that he would be a good boy and not get into any trouble, at least until Adam was feeling like his old self.

He ate one of the croissants and realized that he didn’t have his cap. He must have lost it during his getaway chase last night. He walked up and saw the sun shining. A lot of people were walking on the deck and checking out the vastness of water all around them. He stopped and looked out at the water and then heard a familiar voice. He turned and saw Salomi, she hugged what looked like a father of hers and he kissed her cheek. He then walked off with another man and she sat down in a chair and started shuffling what looked like playing cards. He saw her lay some out in piles in front of her and from time to time she would look out at the water and then go back to the game.

He pulled a croissant out of his pocket and smiled as he walked over to her.”Croissant madam?”he asked in his worst French accent

She looked up and smiled,”You survived the first night I see”she said to him

“Well do you want it or not?”he asked her as he waved it in her face.

“No you can have it-“

“I have one”he said as he pulled one out of his pocket,”So…..?”

“Ok thanks”she said as she took it and ate it,”These are so good”she said with her mouth full

“Wow…where are the manners?”he asked her as he sat down next to her and laughed

“Manners? Whatever, Im not stuck up or stuck on manners like these first class people”she said as she flipped over a card and put a black 8 under a red 9.

“You’re saying that like you arent first class”he said with a laugh. She laughed a little and then was silent. He broke the silence,”What are you playing?”he asked her

“Oh…solitaire”she said,”I learned how to play it back home. I got pretty good at it and my father bought me some cards”she said

“Can I play?”he asked her

She laughed,”No you cant, its called solitaire for a reason. It’s a one person game….you know…..solitary?”

“Oh yeah”he said and laughed,”I guess you can tell that I haven’t played it before”he said as he scratched his blonde hair.

“Oh…did you lose something last night?”she asked him

“Um…my dignity…after you kicked me in my nuts”he said with a laugh, not really understanding her random question.

She laughed,”Well sorry but now you know you cant sneak up on me”she said and then reached down and pulled out his hat.

“I was wondering where that was”he said as she handed it to him.He put it on his head.”Thanks”

“Your welcome. Figured it was yours”she said to him,”So…did you and your friend have a divine feast last night?”she asked him as she continued to play

“Yes…oh and by the way, you are crazy because whatever that chicken stuff was…it was delish”he said with a smile

“Oh the filleted lamb or sheep or whatever”she said with a laugh as she put an ace of hearts next to an ace of spades.

“It was lamb? Hmmm…well it was good but my friend, Adam, he isn’t doing too good. Hes been feeling sick this morning, threw up all over the place and everything”

“Oh wow….did you think it was the food?”she asked him as she moved a red 5 under a black 6, she then flipped over a card and it was a king of hearts, she then moved a whole stack of cards under that one king card.

“It had to have been…he was fine before he ate”he said

“Oh…well did he take anything?”

“No. Hes just laying in bed. I mean we cant really afford anything”he said

“He should try taking a nice hot bath. That cures everything, well at least my dad thinks so”Salomi said,”Have him take bath”

“Not gonna happen”Gabriel said as he shook his head,”All we have is a sink..and hes been throwing up in it…none of us are gonna be clean today…”he said and then he checked his breath. It seemed fine.

“They don’t give you bathrooms in third class?”Salomi asked in shock

“They do…its just….our room is different”

“Why?”

Gabriel sighed. He didn’t think he should tell her but she wasn’t going to tell was she? If so she would have a long time ago. He looked around and then whispered,”Well don’t tell anyone but…we didn’t exactly pay to get onto this ship…if you know what I mean”

Salomi looked at him,”Really? You’re stowaways?”she asked in shock

“Yeah…”Gabriel said with a sigh. Maybe he was wrong about her…

“That’s so….wow….great! Spontaneous…must feel good. I mean the Titanic no less? You cant get any better than that”she said with a laugh

“My point exactly”Gabriel said, feeling relieved.

“So wait….if you didn’t pay that means….you don’t have a room do you?”she asked

“Oh we do, we broke into this room that is as big as a janitors closet”he said.”It has a bed and a sink…that’s enough for us…”he said

“Well now just a bed since your friend is throwing up all over the place?”she asked. He nodded and laughed a little,”Im sorry”she said and then got up,”Come on”she said to him

“What?”he asked her as he watched her pick up her cards. “It looks like you were winning”

“I was…but I will again. This is more important”she said as she started to walk.

“Where are we going?”he asked her as he followed her. She soon opened the door to her cabin.”Oh sneaky sneaky huh?”he asked her

“What?”she asked him

“Never mind”he said as she closed the door behind them.”Why am I here?”he asked her

“Because of this”she said as she opened a door and it was a fully operated bathroom, with a toilet, sink and bathtub.

“Now why would you tease me?”he asked her with a laugh and she gave him a towel.

“How can I be teasing you when you get to use it?”she asked him.”Don’t take too long”she said and closed the door.

He laughed to himself as he looked at the nicely decorated bathroom. He shrugged as he locked the door and started to run some water.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Oh yes Dr. Livingstone’s procedures have saved many lives. You went to the right person”a man said to Vernon. He and Abraham overheard some doctors having a conversation and Dr. Livingstone’s name came up. Vernon and this man have been conversing ever since about his articles and procedures.

“Yes and very expensive too”Vernon said

“Oh nothing you cant handle Im sure”the man said

Abraham started to block out their conversation when he saw Dorothy come out of one of the restaurants. She looked much better than last night. She went over to the railing and looked out at the water. He reached in his pocket and touched the clip and walked over to her,”Hello there”he said as he came up to her.

She turned to him and then smiled when she realized it was him.”Watch out, you cant sneak up on me like that….I just might jump”she said and winked.

He smiled, she must be in a really good mood if she could joke about it.”We don’t want that do we?”he asked her.”So…how’s your day been?”

“Its been alright. Last night was tough. But I finally got to sleep and when I woke up this morning and I saw the sun rising….it put everything into a more beautiful perspective…”she said as she looked out at the water,”I cant stop looking at this water…its beautiful isn’t it?”

“It is. I probably wont see it again so I try to lock it into many memories that I will have”he said

“Oh you’ll be back. Now that you found gold? You are set for life arent you?”she asked him with a laugh

“Yes basically….”he said to her and then he said,”You forgot something in all the hoopla last night”he said as he pulled the dragonfly clip out of his pocket.

She gasped when she saw it and tears came to her eyes. She then smiled through her tears and hugged him.”Thank you…I thought I lost it”she whispered in his ear. She pulled away and held it in her hand and kissed it. She then put it in her hair,”You don’t know how much this means to me”she said to him

“Then tell me”he said to her

She looked at him. After last night, she felt like she could tell him anything. He told her that he lost his wife. He revealed his true feelings. Maybe opening up to someone would help. She knew she needed it. “Do you want some coffee?”she asked him,”We can chat over that”she said and laughed at how it rhymed.

“Sure”he said to her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“You won!”Salomi said to Gabriel as he finished compiling four stacks of cards.

“Wow, solitaire is easy”Gabriel said to her. After he took his bath, he felt very refreshed. They walked along the deck and then Salomi taught him how to play.”So is this what you first class kids do? Play cards all day?”he asked her

“Im not a kid”Salomi said,”And…I don’t know…I mean its what I have been doing. Im not just a regular first class gal”she said

“Well first class gals arent regular if you ask me. But you’re right. You arent. Because if you were you would have hired someone to beat my ass for stealing your precious croissants, you would have hired someone to beat my ass again for using you as a scapegoat last night and you would have hired someone to beat my ass again for speaking to you this morning….and you have helped me everytime. So….no you arent regular”

“Thank you”she said,”I mean who really wants to be like everyone else?”she asked him

“So….what are you….I mean….”he said as he looked at her. She had a unique look to her. She was mixed when it came to race.

She laughed,”My mom was Cherokee native American and black. My father is Irish and Portuguese”

“Oh…sorry.It came out wrong”he said,”That’s very interesting”he said to her

“What are you?”she asked him

“Just plain white”he said with a laugh.”Where are you from?”

“California”she said,”You?”

“Tennesee”

“Wow….wheres that?”she asked him

“Um….about 300 miles from New York….further south and towards the west”he said

“What were you doing in London?”she asked him.

“Im a Carnie”

“A what?”

“A performer in a circus. That’s what they call us”he said

“Wow, a performer…what do you perform?”she asked him

“Are you asking for a free show?”he asked her,”Ok”he said,”Watch”he said to her. He knelt in front of the small table that was between them and he put his teeth on the edge and he slowly picked it up with his teeth.

“Oh shit”Salomi said as he put it back down.”That didn’t hurt?”

“Nope”he said with a laugh

“That was great”she said as she clapped,”I wish I had a special talent like that”she said,”I don’t have any talent”

“Oh you gotta be good at something”he said to her

“Well my dad always praises me for my math skills. He calls me the human register”she said with a laugh

“You’re that good huh?”he asked her. She nodded,”Ok whats….100 x 50?”he asked her

“5000”she said with a shrug

“16 x 35”

She thought for a second and then said,”560”

“Yeah…you’re good”he said with a laugh.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Well Im sorry to hear about your mother”Abraham said to her after she filled him in on everything as they drank coffee. “The first few….years will be rough. But you just have to remind yourself that they are better now”

“Yes, she was sick for a long time”Dorothy said.”She’s better now…she would have loved to be here. She loves….loved water”she said,”Whats your fondest memory of your wife?”she asked him

He smiled and he was about to answer when Lucas came over to them.”There you are Dorothy”he said to her,”I need you”

“Can it wait?”she asked him. However, he didn’t listen as he pulled her along with him. She looked back at Abraham and mouthed “Sorry” to him. “This better be good”she said to Lucas as she followed him to whatever was important.

*_______________________*

“This better be good”she said to Lucas as she followed him to whatever was important.

“Oh it is, the Captain wants to meet you”Lucas said

“Oh….wait why would he-“she asked but then there he was.She put on her best smile,”Hello”she said to him politely

“Well here is our superstar”Captain Larson said as he took her hand and kissed it.”I am Captain William Larson and I have to say that I am a big fan of yours”he said to her

“Why thank you Captain. Since you’re a big fan already then I don’t need to introduce myself then”Dorothy said and he laughed.

“Yes, I know all about Dorothy Gibson. I have even seen you in ‘The Tempest’ and ‘Hamlet’ back in London and I have seen plenty of your films”he said to her

“Well thank you for all your support. Fans like you, that’s why Im in the business”she said in a sick and sweet like voice.

“Now I have one question to ask you”he said to her,”I understand that you had an accident last night”he said

Dorothy groaned a little and looked at Lucas. He just smiled at her stupidly,”Yes but-“

“So you do believe that you can fly?”he asked her.”Because Lucas said that you were so curious that you leaned over too far”

Dorothy sighed inwardly with relief. She was about to kill Lucas. He had no business telling anyone about her almost self inflicted homicide last night. “I only believe that I can fly when I have too much wine in my system. You had some magic wine at that feast last night”she said with a huge smile, covering up her anger.

Captain Larson laughed,”Oh well I can only serve the best for my best passengers and speaking of my feast last night. I am having a debutante ball tonight in the ballroom for all the first class passengers. Theres going to be a live band, lots of dancing, lots of food and lots of that magic wine. I will see both you and Lucas there?”

“Yes you will”Lucas said as he put his arm around her. Dorothy sighed, he was answering for her again.

“Well I will see you there. We can chat later”he said as he kissed her hand.

“Alright, nice to meet you”she said. Once he was out of sight, she pushed Lucas’ arm off of her.

“Hey”he said

“Don’t tell anyone else about what happened last night!”she hissed,”Its none of their damned business”she said to him

“I didn’t tell him. He came up to me and asked, one of his workers must have let him know about it, they are supposed to do that you know”

“Well I don’t want anyone else to approach me about it, you hear me? If they do, I will kill you”she said and walked off

“That’s romantic”he called after her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Your grandmother sounds so nice”Salomi said as she and Gabriel walked another lap around the deck. They have been walking and talking for hours now, just learning about each other.

“She is. I cant wait to go back home to her”Gabriel said,”Do you have any grandparents?”

“Yes and no”Salomi said,”My father’s father died when he was young and his mother died about a year before he married my mom. My mom….well when she married my dad…her parents didn’t like it. They disowned her and we haven’t heard from them since so…technically I don’t have any grandparents”

“Wow…Im sorry”

“Its alright. Im better off anyway”

“Do they know about you?”

“They have to….maybe….I mean Im the reason why….”and then she stopped

“You’re the reason why what?”Gabriel asked her. Then he remembered what she said about her mother,”You don’t think that its your fault do you?”

“Well no…but sometimes I think….if my mother never got pregnant….she would still be alive…”

“Salomi…don’t think like that please. Because then you are going to spend the rest of your life thinking what if….I mean..you are technically a miracle. Your mother went through a rough pregnancy but you survived. Shes still alive…in you”he said to her

Salomi smiled,”My dad says that”

“Hes a smart man”Gabriel said as they looked out at the water. The sun was getting lower, it would set in about an hour.”Whats your favorite color?”he asked her

“Blue….light blue..navy blue…any kind of blue”she said

“Really? I love robin’s egg blue”he said

“Really? Like the color of your eyes?”she asked as she turned to him. He had the most beautiful eyes.

“I guess”he said with a shy laugh,”Favorite food?”

“I love potatoes”she said with a laugh

“Potatoes are good. I love my grandmothers cornbread”he said

“Whats your favorite hobby?”she asked him

“Stealing”he said. Salomi gasped,”No I just like to hang out with my friends, making pranks, cracking jokes…you?”

“Playing solitaire, shopping”she said,”If you could do anything right now, what would you do?”she asked him

“Perform somewhere. On any stage”he said,”How about you?”

“Relax on some tropical beach somewhere, I love the beach”she said and then her stomach growled.

“Someone’s hungry”he said to her,”Im not going to lie…I am too”

“Well then lets eat”she said to him as they walked toward the café.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“I hope they sell those croissants back home because that will be the one thing I miss when we dock in New York”Gabriel said as he and Salomi walked out of the café. She bought them lunch.

“Your welcome-“

“SALOMI!”she heard and she saw her father, she walked over to him

“Yes Dad?”she asked him

“Here’s some money for dinner”Abraham said to her,”Vernon and I are going to this debutante ball thing tonight for first class passengers-“

“Oh should I get ready?”she asked him excitedly

“No, its not for kids”

“Dad, Im not a kid”she pouted

“I know you arent”he said to her,”But be careful walking around here by yourself alright? Don’t wander too close to the railings and all that-“

“Dad I’ll be fine”she said to him

“Ok, well we need to get ready. You will probably be sleep by the time we get back, so I will kiss you now’he said as he kissed her cheek.”I love you”

“Love you too Dad”she said to him

“Don’t get into too much trouble Lomi”Vernon said as he ruffled her hair and they walked off.

She turned around and saw Gabriel standing nearby,”That’s your father?”

“Yes and my Uncle Vernon”she said

“So what do they do? I mean you arent rich for nothing right?”he asked her

“Oh, well we got lucky. A lot of the other first class passengers call us ‘new money’ because we just got our fortune”she said

“New money huh? So you found an old inheritance? A rich aunt came out of a coma?”

She laughed,”No we’re farmers and we found gold on our land”

“Sweet”Gabriel said,”And you came to London? Why?”

“My Uncle has always wanted to go so we all decided to take a trip. I love New York City”she said, but she felt kind of bad lying to him.

“Oh yes me too. Im not much of a city person but I sure don’t mind New York. A lot of opportunity is all right there”he said,”So what did they say to you?”he asked her and stopped,”Wow sorry”

“No its ok. They are going to some ball tonight for the first class passengers. I cant go because Im too young”she said,”They gave me money for food because I will be on my own tonight”she sighed

“Wow, sorry you cant party with the rich folks”

“Oh I really don’t mind, they are stuck up anyways. I just don’t want to be alone”

“Well hey how about we crash the party tonight then?”he asked her

“No!”she said with a laugh

“Ok, we can just eat. I mean why bother buying food when there will be plenty of food there? For free?”he asked her

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Im sick of this tux already. Give me my nice new pants any day”Vernon said as he and Abraham stood by the punch bowl. The ball was a huge success, lots of people showed up and were having a good time and the band was good. But they both didn’t have dates. Nor wanted to try looking for one.

“I agree”Abraham said as he fixed his bowtie. He looked up and saw a familiar dragonfly clip shining, he saw Dorothy dancing with Lucas. She didn’t look too happy. He watched as they danced and then someone came up to Lucas and started talking to him. She stepped back as they talked, she then slipped away and disappeared in the crowd and Lucas didn’t even notice her. Abraham tried to follow her with his eyes but he soon lost her.

“Oh shit”Vernon said

“What?”

“She’s here”Vernon said.

Abraham looked and saw a woman in a pink dress, she was blonde and she was very blessed in the breast department…hips too. She has been following Vernon around all day. “Oh your crush? Whats her name again?”

“She’s not my crush”he said,”Her name is Molly McIntire, shes an heiress to some huge estate in North Carolina or something. Don’t let her see me”

“Why hide? Have fun with her”Abraham said with a shrug

“Abe? Are you of all people telling me that I should cheat on my wife?”Vernon asked him in shock

“No Im just telling you to have fun, dance. I mean you are only on the Titanic once. Make a friend”

“I don’t want her as my friend. She doesn’t want me as a friend. She wants to get me alone and when she does, she will swallow me whole”Vernon said as he hid behind him, peeking out every now and then.

“Now how mean does that sound?”Abraham said with a laugh

“Oh shit, she sees me!”Vernon said,”Don’t tell her where I am or I will kill you!”he said as he disappears into the crowd.

Abraham shook his head and laughed as a waiter poured him more punch,”Thank you”he said

“Oh there you are Arnold!”Molly said as she came up to him.Her mouth was full of cake, she licked it off her lips and looked around,”Wheres your handsome friend?”

“Its Abraham”he said and then he turned around and gasped,”Oh I thought he was right next to me”he lied,”He must have run to the bathroom”

“Oh thanks”she said as she gave him a kiss on the cheek and disappeared into the crowd.

“Hmm…everyone loves Abraham”he heard someone say. He turned and saw Dorothy looking at him with an inquiring smile.

He laughed,”No she doesn’t love me, she loves my friend”

“Oh that’s too bad”she said as she sipped on her punch,”Having a good time?”she asked him

“Its alright. Just being a wallflower for now. I see you are having fun?”he asked her, but he knew that she wasn’t really.

“Its ok”she said

“Ok? You have your boyfriend here with you-“

“Lucas is not my boyfriend”she said quickly

“Oh….ok”

“Sorry….a lot of people have made that assumption and hes starting to believe it. Its my job to set the record straight”she said

“Well its straight then”he said to her. Then an upbeat song came on, he stood there and nodded his head to the music and tapped his foot

“You like this song too?”Dorothy asked him as she put her drink down.

“I like the beat”he said to her and she held out her hand to him,”Would you like to dance?”

“I thought you wouldn’t ask”she said as they went out on the floor and danced.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“I cant believe you talked me into this”Salomi said as she and Gabriel walked past the main doors of the ballroom. He led her to the back door of the kitchen and they hid behind a few boxes.

“I can. I know that you have a very curious and adventurous side of you”he said to her,”Ok, you be the lookout while I grab the goods”

“They probably wont be good”she said.”Last nights food was anything but”

“Well this is a ball. They probably have a lot of goodies”he said. Then a whole line of waiters left with trays of food,”See? Looks good. Ok lets go. Just whistle for me”he said to her. He ran into the kitchen and she looked around. She waited there for a few minutes. Then she heard someone coming and it was the Captain and some other high class people no less!

“Lets show you the kitchen and how our wonderful chefs have made such wonderful finger foods”they said to him as they approached.

Salomi tried to whistle but then she forgot that she didn’t know how! She panicked and then ran in and crawled toward him,”Psst!”

“What?I told you to whistle!”he said to her as he put some food in napkins

“I cant! I don’t know how and they are coming!”she said. Then they walked in and they crawled under the table and waited.”Oh shit”she whispered

“Ok…lets make a run for it now”Gabriel said as he quickly got up and ran. Salomi did as well but they saw them

“Hey get back here!”they heard someone yell. They both gasped as they ran for their lives. Salomi held her breath as she ran and they escaped through a door and down the steps toward the third class quarters.

*____________________*

“I think we lost them”Gabriel said as he ran behind Salomi. He slowed down,”Damn you run fast”

Salomi realized that she was holding her breath most of the time and she let out a huge sigh of relief,”Thanks…”she said breathlessly.Then she looked around,”Where are we?”

“Welcome to third class”he said,”Come on you can meet Adam”he said as they walked down the crowded hallway. The hallways in third class were small and narrow. You barely had room to walk. The walls were white and the floors were wood. No decorations, very plain. They stopped in front of a small door at the end of the hallway and he knocked twice and kicked the door. Then he walked in, Salomi followed.”Hey Ad we got some food….”he said and then stopped,”God it smells like throw up in here”he said

“That’s all I have been doing all day”a voice from under a small and thin blanket said.

“You’re not better by now?”Gabriel asked as he walked up to him

“No….and I don’t want any food off this damned ship. Im not hungry”

“Oh….well…”he said and then looked at Salomi who was standing by the door,”Oh you want to meet the person who saved me yestersday? The one who gave us breakfast?”

“Hi whoever you are”Adam said, not moving.”Sorry that Im not cordial but I feel like shit”

“Its ok…nice to meet you…”she said.”Do you need anything?”

“I need you two to stop shouting”he said as he pulled the covers back over his head.

Gabriel stared at him, he was getting delirious too. Should he worry or was it just some 24 hour thing? “Fine,um…we will leave you alone but heres some food in case you do get the munchies ok?” Adam didn’t answer. He mouthed “come on” to Salomi and they left the room quietly.

“I should try to buy him some medicine in the morning”Salomi said

“Well lets wait it out…its probably just some 24 hour thing. He should be better by morning”Gabriel said with a shrug. “Lets feast”he said. Then a huge group of people walked past them and they could hear music.

“Sounds like another ball is happening down here”Salomi said with a laugh

“Lets go see”Gabriel said to her as they followed the crowd.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

While fun was just beginning in third class, fun was going to soon end for the first class passengers. There was about 30 minutes left of the party but no one seemed to want to leave. The band played better music by the minute and the wine kept flowing.

“Whoooo!”Dorothy said as the band finished another uptempo. She jumped up and down a little and caused some of her wine to spill.

“I think you have had enough”Abraham said as he tried to take the glass from her.

“No I haven’t, this is only my….5th glass?”she said and laughed and finished the rest of it,”How many have you had?”

“You know what? I really don’t know….and I really don’t care”Abraham said as he finished his as well. Dorothy laughed.The band started to play a slower tune and he put his glass on a tray that passed by, Dorothy did as well.

“Help me”he heard someone whisper and he saw Vernon and Molly. Molly was holding onto Vernon like he was a life saver and she swayed to the music.

“You’re on your own buddy, this is kind of funny”Abraham said.He was too tipsy to deal with that right now and Vernon was too. He accepted defeat and put his head on Molly’s shoulder as she swayed a way through the crowd for them and soon they disappeared. He turned to Dorothy and held out his hand to her and said,”May I have this dance?”he asked her

She looked at him with tears in her eyes,”I need some air”she said and then rushed out.

Abraham stood there, confused, what happened? What was wrong with her now? Then he panicked, was she feeling suicidal again? He immediately turned around and went outside to find her. Some people were leaving and some people weren’t even close,”’Scuse me”he said as he walked through the crowd. He walked around and called Dorothy’s name but she didn’t answer. He didn’t see her. He tried to look for her reddish brown hair and emerald green dress. He walked up to the top deck and it was even colder than last night. He could see his breath even more now. He then saw her by the railing. She was crying,”Dorothy? Whats wrong?”he asked her as he came up to her.

She was shaking, shivering and crying. She looked like she wanted to say something but couldn’t. She then threw her arms around his neck and continued to sob into his chest. He sighed as he wrapped his arms around her. They didn’t say a word as they silently held each other.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Wow”Salomi said as both of them walked into a small room eating their stolen goods. There was a small band playing and people dancing.”Snazzy shindig we got here”she said as they walked and sat down at a small table in the corner of the room. The band had a singer and a few fiddle players and various men playing a drum and buckets and pails. Everyone was either dancing, or sitting down and drinking whiskey and watching the dancers.

“I guess they solved their problem”Gabriel said

“What problem?”Salomi asked as she finished the small hot dog.

“A lot of the third class passengers were upset that only the first class could party. So I guess they made their own”he said with a laugh. Salomi nodded. It wasn’t fair. It seemed like the Captain only cared about his first class passengers more than them. They both clapped along to the music and someone handed them a bottle of whiskey.

“Viva la third class!”he said to them with a laugh and went back out to dance.

“Viva la third class”they both said and laughed. Gabriel took a few sips of the whiskey. Salomi clapped along to the music but noticed that some of the women were looking at her strangely. Then she looked down at her nice and expensive clothing, that was why. All of a sudden she felt uncomfortable, they must hate her. She sighed as she took a sip of the whiskey and made a weird face, it tasted hot and strong!

“Whats wrong?”Gabriel asked her,”Don’t like it?”he asked her,”Its kind of an acquired taste”

“They’re looking at me funny”Salomi said

“What? Why?”he asked her

“Look at me. For one I am dressed different. I don’t belong here”she said, and that hurt her the most. If only they knew that she was like them. If only they knew that the clothes that she wore was just a cover up for their lie.

“Yes you do, don’t be silly”Gabriel said as the band ended the song and the crowd burst into applause.”All you have to do is mingle a little bit…”he said and then he stood up,”Dance”

“Dance?”

“Yes”he said as he pulled her out onto the floor. The fiddles started to play and the singer described his next song as his favorite.

The devil went down to Georgia
He was looking for a soul to steal
He was in a bind because he was way behind
And he was willing to make a deal
When he came across this young man sowing on a fiddle
And playing a fiddle hot
And the devil jumped on a hickory stump
And said,”Boy let me tell you what!”
“Well I bet you didn’t know it but Im a fiddle player too
And if you care to take a dare I’ll make a bet with you
Now you play a pretty good fiddle boy
But give the devil its due
I’ll play a fiddle of gold against your soul
Because I think Im better than you”
The boy said,”My name is Johnny and it might be a sin
But I’ll take your bet
Your gonna regret
Because Im the best there has ever been”

The fiddle players started to play and battle against each other and the crowd went crazy. This song was obviously a favorite. Gabriel proceeded to teach Salomi a dance that everyone else was doing. She soon clapped and did the steps along with everyone else and forgot about being ashamed at all. She turned around and noticed that Gabriel moved on and danced with a little girl. Everyone proceeded to switch partners every few bars and people were impressed that she picked up. She was one of them. Gabriel came back to her and danced the step with her and smiled. The fiddle players stopped battling and sang the last few verses of the song:

The devil bowed his head because he knew that he’d been beat
He laid that golden fiddle on the ground at Johnny’s feet
Johnny said,”Devil just come on back if you ever wanna try again!
I done told you once you son of a bitch, Im the best there has ever been!”

The fiddle players continued to fiddle as hard as they could and the music got faster and faster. Salomi kept up with Gabriel and did the steps just as fast. They played the last few chords and he grabbed her and dipped her. The song ended and the crowd burst in loud applause, shouting “Encore! Encore!” and stomping their feet. The band looked tired but continued to play a mid tempo song.However Salomi didn’t pay attention, all she could do was hold onto Gabriel and get lost in those baby blue eyes of his.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
“Its ok to cry”Abraham said as he wiped Dorothy’s tears.

“She is the reason why I did this acting thing in the first place. Now that shes gone. I have no passion to do it anymore. Sometimes I don’t have the passion to live”she said as she held onto him

“Then don’t do it. Do what makes you happy. Life will be better that way. Your mother will understand”Abraham said to her

Dorothy nodded, he was right. All her life she was doing this for her mother to make her proud and she succeeded in doing that. But now she has to live her life the way she wants to.”But I don’t know what to do…all I know is the stage. That’s all I have ever known”

“You’ll find something”Abraham said to her

Dorothy looked at him.”You’re so understanding”she said to him as she stroked his cheek. Then impulsively, she pulled him toward her and kissed him hard on the mouth. He hesitated a little out of shock and that made her pull away,”Oh God…Im so sorry”

“No its fine-“

“I need sleep”she said,”I gotta go..”she said and then ran off, leaving Abraham shocked but tingly all over.

“There you are!”he heard Vernon shout as he ran to him,”What the hell are you doing out here?Its cold!”he said to him,”We gotta get back to the cabin before Molly finds me”he said to him as he pulled him back,”And I don’t appreciate how you left me hanging in there. Some friend you are”he said as they walked into the cabin,”Im going to sleep. You go to your room and you think about what you have done to me”he said and closed the door behind him. Abraham walked into his room and sat down on his bed. Then the room got cold and he looked up and saw a white figure. He gasped.

“Salomi?”he asked her

“Abraham….I am here to give you another message”she said as she cried a little

“Why? What? Whats wrong?”he asked her

“You have to get off this ship”Salomi said to him,”I don’t know why…danger….you have to get off this ship”she said as she cried a little and then disappeared.

“Why!?”he asked but she was gone. He started to panic. What danger was she talking about?

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi and Gabriel were giggling like 5 year olds as they left the “Third Class Ball”. It ended because the band got too drunk to even play another note. Both Salomi and Gabriel were a little on the tipsy side.”Let me take you back”he said to her

“Ok”Salomi said reluctantly.She didn’t want to leave though. She wanted to spend all her time with him. She had so much fun with him. He walked her up to the first class quarters and it was very quiet. The total opposite of third class. The ball died down a long time ago and everyone had went to bed by now.

“Well…this is good night then”Gabriel said reluctantly as they approached her door.”Can I see you tomorrow?”he asked her

“Of course”she said to him,”I would love to see you. Thanks for everything. I had a really good time”

“Me too”he said to her. He then leaned in and gave her a kiss on the cheek.”Sweet dreams”he said and then he walked off quickly, not wanting to get caught. Salomi slipped into the cabin quietly and closed her bedroom door behind her. She sighed happily as she got into bed. She was in love.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abraham tried not to think about Salomi’s warning the next day when he tried to find Dorothy. He and Dorothy got very close over the last two days and it scared him. It was all moving so fast. They would dock in New York tomorrow and they would never see each other again. He had to check to see if she was ok, but she wasn’t in her room. He then saw her talking to some other first class passengers. She was faking a smile, which meant that she wasn’t really enjoying the conversation. He decided that he needed to save her. But then a worker got in his path.“Abraham Squires?”he asked

“Yes?”Abraham asked.

“We caught your daughter stealing food from the ball last night. She was accompanied by some boy in third class. Now we wont press any charges, we will just give you a warning but we suggest that you discipline that daughter of yours”he said to him,”Have a good day”he said and walked away.

Abraham nodded, getting furious. Salomi? Stealing? With a boy? He looked around and tried to find her. He walked around the deck and then saw her. She was talking and laughing….with a boy, that must be the troublemaker no doubt. He walked up to her and pulled her away from him.

“Hey!”she said and then turned to him,”Daddy?-“

“Go back to the cabin, this instant”he said to her

“What? Why!?”she asked him

“Because you need discipline obviously! Now go!”he said to her

“But Dad!-“she said but before she could finish, he slapped her across the face. She gasped as she held her cheek. The boy gasped as well. She then started to cry and ran off. He instantly felt guilty but then he looked at the boy.

“Stay away from her”he said,”My daughter is only 12, shes still a kid and shes a good girl and she doesn’t need to be hanging around with thieves like you. Now get out of here before I report you”he said to him. The boy nodded and walked off.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi ran to her room and cried for hours. Her father never came back to check on her and she was glad. She didn’t even want to see him. She hated him. Then she heard a knock on the door and she opened it, it was Gabriel.”Oh hi”she said. She was upset too. It was his fault that she got in trouble in the first place. It was dark and she could see big packs of ice floating in the water. She could also see that Gabriel wasn’t happy either.

”Im sorry ok? But…your 12?”he asked her

“What? Yeah”she said

“I thought you were older…”he said,”16 at least”

“I didn’t know that age mattered to you”she said,”Ok so go on, Im just a little kid right? But you know what!? Im not rich! This is all a lie! We arent farmers, we didn’t find gold. My father and Uncle work in organized crime! We could go to jail! We were dirt poor, we are third class without all this money we have been lugging around. There! Now you have more reason to hate me”she said as tears fell from her eyes. It hurt because he hated her now and even though she was mad at him, she still loved him,”It was nice knowing you Gabriel”she said. She started to close the door but then he stopped her. He then pulled her toward him and kissed her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“She’ll be fine. She doesn’t hate you”Dorothy said to him. After his argument with Salomi, he ran to Dorothy for advice. She was happy to give it since he has helped her out all along.”Just give her time. She has probably cooled off by now. Just don’t let her go to bed angry. Us girls don’t like that”she said and winked at him.

“I just feel so bad. I have never slapped her before. I feel so-“then he was interrupted when the boat shook violently, which caused them both to fall off the small couch in her room.”Are you ok?”he asked her. She nodded. They both opened the door and saw big packs of ice on the deck.”What happened?”he asked someone that obviously witnessed it.

“We bumped into one of those huge icebergs” they said.

*______________________*

Salomi didn’t hesitate as Gabriel kissed her. She wanted this to happen all day and she was just waiting for it. He pushed her inside and closed the door behind them and continued to kiss her. She didn’t care if her father walked in, it was such a high being with Gabriel.

Then the boat made a huge noise and shook. It shook so hard that they fell to the floor, Gabriel falling on top of her. He continued to kiss on her neck but screams from outside made them stop and then something hard hit the door. They both got up. They opened the door and a big piece of ice slid into the room.”What happened?”she asked

“We must have ran into one of those big packs of ice”Gabriel said.

“Oh…”Salomi said as they walked to the railing. It was freezing now.”There are so many of them”she said as they looked out. She turned to him and he was looking at her. She then realized that he knew everything about her. She told him everything.

“I don’t hate you if that’s what your thinking”he said to her,”Im actually relieved because you are just like me”he said to her,”But your father told me to stay away from you and that’s what I was going to tell you….but…..your so damn cute”he said to her as he stroked her face.”Its like I cant leave you alone”

“I don’t want to leave you alone”she said to him and then another big pack of ice dropped onto the deck.Gabriel pulled her away and held onto her tightly.

“You ok?That almost hit us”he said to her

She nodded,”Kiss me”she said to him.She was so close to him. She just wanted to kiss him all over.

“No…your father could be around-“

“Who cares!”she said

“I know you do. I don’t want him to hate me…but he already does.He doesn’t want you around a little thief like me”

“That’s what he said to you?”she asked him.He nodded,”Im sorry.He’s being an ass-“

“Watch your mouth. Hes just trying to protect his daughter. You are the most beautiful girl on this ship.If it was me I would say the same thing”

“You think Im beautiful?”she asked as she shivered a little. She didn’t have a coat.

“Yes….”he said and he looked around,”Come on,lets go get warm”he said to her and led her down the steps.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Both Abraham and Dorothy shrugged it off and walked back into her room. They continued to talk about anything. “You want some coffee?”she asked him. The room seemed to get colder for some reason. There must be something wrong with the heat. He nodded and she started to make some for him.

He waited in silence as she made it. He then decided to tell her,”I saw my wife”he said to her

She turned to him,”What? What do you mean?”

“She appeared to me. Like a ghost…”

Dorothy walked over to him,”Did she say anything? I read somewhere that when loved ones that have passed come back….they have a special message”

“She had a message alright”he said. He looked at Dorothy and she waited for his answer.”She said that Im in danger…and that I need to get off the ship….she was crying”

“Ohmygod”she said as she hugged him,”That must have been so….spooky for you…are you ok?”she asked him

“Yes…Im just trying to figure what could be so dangerous for me”he said as he held onto her.

Dorothy pulled away quickly.”You think she was talking about me?”

Abraham looked at her,”No…shes not the jealous type….why would you be dangerous?”

“Well I did try to kill myself…and whenever I get close to a man…its always disaster”she said as she walked back over to the stove.

“I think that it was something much bigger than us”he said as he walked up to her,”I just have to figure out what it is…”he said

“Us”Dorothy said with a laugh,”I like how that sounds”she said

“Me too”he said and then pulled her close to him and kissed her. It got pretty heated really quick and soon they were in her bedroom, helping each other get undressed.”Oh….God…..I haven’t….been with…..a woman…..in so……long”he said between kisses

“I haven’t been with a man either”Dorothy agreed as she kissed him.She then stopped as he laid down on top of her,”Are you sure you want to do this? You will just be one of many disasters”

“I don’t mind”he said to her

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Oh look I gotta show you something”Gabriel said as he took her hand and led her down some more steps that were below the third class quarters.

“What could be down here?”Salomi asked. Gabriel led her down a small hallway and the further they got, the warmer they got. She was feeling much better now. He opened a door and they walked into a big room full of coals heating big heaters,big loud machines that turned in circles and steam whistles.”Wow”she said

“I found this while I was wandering around aimlessly today, trying to decide what to say to you. Im guessing this is how this ship is unsinkable. This is some state of the art stuff. This is what keeps the ship going I guess”Gabriel said

“Wow, it seems like a lot of work”she said,”Its so warm down here too. It feels so good”she said

“You feel so good”he said to her and winked. He then pulled her close to him in a hug and soon it turned into a very heated make out session. They heard men working and shouting at each other over the noise and they proceeded to move to another corner of the room where,hopefully, no one would see them. They made out for what seemed like an eternity, when suddenly the ship seemed to lean over to one side. The force pushed them both right against a heater and they both screamed in pain,”Are you ok?”he asked her

She nodded,”Ahhhh”she hissed,”I burned my arm”she said

“Me too”he said and then a big rush of water hit them. It pretty much soaked them from foot to hip.”Ooooh! That’s cold!”he said in shock as Salomi gasped and held onto him. Then they heard a lot of the workers shouting and running out of the room. They watched this in shock,”Is something leaking?”he asked himself mostly.

Salomi watched as the water rushed around them,”Gabriel?”she said nervously

“Come on lets go”Gabriel said as he held onto her tightly and they left the room. Something wasn’t right.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Oh! Oh Abraham you feel so good!”Dorothy said as she held onto him and moved her body in sync with his.

“You feel so good too”he said as he thrusted himself in and out of her. They could hear the kettle whistling but didn’t move to stop it. She dug her nails into his back as he went deeper and he kissed and licked her neck. Then all of a sudden they both were thrown off the bed and landed on the floor,”Oh shit,are you ok?”he asked her

Dorothy laughed,”I guess we are rocking the boat that hard huh?”she asked him teasingly as they both tried to stand up.

“I guess we are”Abraham said as she wrapped the sheet around the both of them,”Now where were we?”he asked her as he kissed her neck.She held onto him and moaned. He picked her up so she could sit on her vanity table. She wrapped her legs around his waist and soon she was digging her nails into his back again,”Oh baby you feel so good…don’t stop”she said

Then the door opened and Lucas walked in and they both jumped,”Oh shit”Abraham said. Lucas gasped and instantly turned away.

“Lucas….cant you see that Im….busy?”she asked breathlessly as she tried to cover herself up with the sheet and still allowing some for Abraham.

Lucas held onto the doorknob and didn’t even look at them. He sighed and then said,”Get dressed.The Captain wants everyone to leave the cabins now and go to the top deck. Its an emergency”he said and then he left the room and slammed the door behind him, leaving the two of them standing there in shock.

Abraham broke the silence,”He’s not your boyfriend is he?”he asked her nervously

“No hes not”Dorothy said quickly with a sigh,”He’s just jealous”she said as the boat rocked again. Something wasn’t right. They both got dressed hurriedly in silence and walked out of the cabin. A lot of people were doing the same. Abraham saw Vernon walk out of their cabin, he had their “special” briefcase in hand.

“Vern, do you know whats going on?”Abraham asked as he and Dorothy came up to him.

“Theres something wrong,ever since we hit that iceberg, the ship has been acting up. I think we’re-“he then stopped and noticed that Dorothy’s lipstick was all over his face.”Wait…Lomi isn’t with you?”he asked him

“What?”Abraham asked as he walked into their cabin and went into her bedroom. She was gone. She probably ran off somewhere, she was probably still upset with him. The ship leaned again and he could hear people screaming. He walked back out,”We have to find Lomi”he said in a panic.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Do you think the ship is sinking?”Salomi asked as they fought their way through the small and now crowded hallway in the third class quarters.

“It cant be…this is the Titanic remember?”Gabriel asked her.”Oh we gotta find Adam”he said to her as they went towards their room. He opened the door and found Adam throwing up in the sink,”Adam!? I thought you were better?”

“I was until the ship started rocking…is there a storm?”Adam asked

“No….we don’t know whats going on”Gabriel said as Adam went back to lay down.

“Well wake me up when its over”Adam said

“No…the Captain said that we have to go to the top deck. Theres some type of emergency”Gabriel said

“Well go check and come back to me”Adam said. Salomi looked under the sink and found a sponge and put it under the faucet. She then sat down next to him and felt his burning forehead and put the sponge on it,”Thanks….who are you again?”

“Salomi”she said as she opened his shirt and put another washcloth on his chest,”Your burning up”

“Salami? Like the meat?”he asked with a little laugh

“No….Salomi….not like the meat”she said,”Hes worse than before”she said to Gabriel

“I know,we gotta get him upstairs”Gabriel said,”Come on Adam,we gotta go this is an emergency”

“There cant be an emergency on this ship. This is the unsinkable Titanic”Adam said.”You go check it out while your friend here takes care of me, shes pretty good at this”he said

Gabriel sighed, he wasn’t listening to him,”Adam, we ran into something and the bottom part of the ship is leaking!”he shouted. Adam stopped and Salomi did too. “We have to go, Im serious. We all have to leave our cabins”he said as he put his hat on. Salomi hurriedly buttoned up Adam’s shirt and Gabriel put his hat on.”Can you help me get him up?”he asked her. She nodded. They slowly helped him out of the bed and then the boat rocked violently again. This sudden force made Adam’s stomach feel worse and he ran to the sink and threw up. Gabriel sighed as he opened the door and then he heard someone scream. He then saw a small puddle of water make its way down the hall. Salomi gasped. Adam looked up and saw this.

“Oh shit…lets go”he said weakly.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“God damn it! I cant find her anywhere!”Abraham said anxiously as he held Salomi’s bag and overcoat. Who knew where she could be. She was probably scared, confused and freezing.

“Don’t panic Abe, she has got to be around here somewhere”Dorothy reassured him.

“Ohmygod…they are letting down lifeboats? What for?”Vernon asked as two half full lifeboats filled with women and children were being lowered into the water. “It must be an emergency drill right? I mean the boat isn’t really sinking is it?”he asked. They all looked at each other in shock, wanting to believe him.

“SALOMI!”Abraham shouted and then he saw her. She was with that boy again and she was helping another boy to walk. He must have hurt himself. “SALOMI!”he shouted to her as he waved his arms. She looked over to him and she could vaguely hear her yell “Dad!”

Salomi felt torn when she saw her father. She wanted to be with him but she didn’t want to leave Gabriel and Adam.”Go”Gabriel said to her

“I don’t want to leave you”Salomi said. They all knew that the boat was sinking, by the time they got out of third class, it was all flooded with about 3 inches of water.

“We’ll probably be on the same boat, just go with your father ok? He can take care of you better than I can”Gabriel said to her,”Please?Just go”he said sadly. They might never see each other again. “I love you”he said to her. Salomi gave him one last kiss,”I love you”she said and she hugged Adam, then she reluctantly ran off. He sighed, wishing that she would stay. For some reason, when she was around, he didn’t feel as panicked…until now. Adam leant over and threw up again in a nearby trash can. Gabriel sighed as he patted his back. At this rate, they would never get on a boat. It took them almost an hour to get through the crowd and carry Adam at the same time.

“Daddy!”Salomi said as she ran to him. She was never so happy to see him. She was worried about him. “Its total chaos. The boat is sinking!”she said to him as he helped her put on her overcoat.

The three of them gasped,”Don’t be silly Lomi. Its probably just some emergency drill…just in case”Abraham said, trying to make her feel better. But it was too late. Salomi knew what was happening and everyone didn’t want to believe it. The unsinkable Titanic was sinking.

Then some sort of fireworks were set off and some of the crowd cheered for it. The band that played at the ball started to set up and they started to play soft music to calm people down.

“Look fireworks”Vernon said excitingly, trying to cover up the fact that he was getting a little scared too.

“WE HAVE TO FILL UP THESE BOATS NOW! WOMEN AND CHILDREN FIRST!”one of the workers called. A lot of the third class guests were trying to make their way onto the boats but they were being refused. Only first class and some second were allowed. This scared Salomi, she looked around for Gabriel and Adam and couldn’t find them.

“Dorothy! There you are!”Lucas said as he came up to them.”Come on we need to get you on the next boat, now!”he said to her aggressively as another set of fireworks went off.

Dorothy didn’t look torn, she held onto Abraham’s hand. Salomi saw this. What was going on between her and her father? “No Lucas, Im going to stay with Abraham”she said

“WE HAVE ONE MORE SEAT LEFT! PLEASE WE NEED TO FILL UP THESE BOATS!”a worker called

“Dorothy, get on that boat! I will be on the next one”Lucas said to her angrily

“Lucas! Im not going with you, Im going with Abraham!”she yelled back at him

“Fine!”Lucas said angrily,he looked at Abraham like he wanted to kill him,”Go with the bastard, see if I care!”

“Don’t talk about my father like that!”Salomi said angrily and pushed him.

“LAST CALL! ONE MORE PERSON! FIRST CLASS ONLY!”a worker yelled

“You can all die, see if I care!”Lucas said angrily and then he pushed through the crowd and got onto the boat that the worker was calling for.

“Sir, only women and children-“

“Lower this fucking boat now!”Lucas yelled at him as he secured himself into one of the seats. The worker obeyed and started lowering the boat,”Have a nice life Dorothy!”he yelled back at her.

“How romantic”Dorothy said under her breath

*______________________*

“Come on Adam, we are almost there”Gabriel said as the both of them fought their way through a crowd of people surrounding one of the lifeboats that were about to be lowered.

“COME ON! WOMEN AND CHILDREN!”a worker called

“Us! Let us on!”Gabriel said as he waved his hand and as he pulled himself and Adam forward.

“First class only, stand back!”he said to them

“Please! My friend is sick! He needs a doctor and we need to get off this damn boat! Now let us on! We have the same right as anyone else!”Gabriel said getting angry. He was sick and tired of how the first class passengers got first priority over everything.

“Step back!”the worker said as he pushed him. Gabriel let go of Adam and he staggered back and another man caught him. Gabriel hurled himself at the worker and they started to fight. This helped a lot of people to get onto the boat as the worker and Gabriel wrestled around. Soon a lot of fights ensued. First and second class were fighting against the third for spaces on the boats. The band tried to play louder but no one was calm anymore. Everyone knew that the boat was sinking and if they didn’t, they were in deep denial.

Then the ship started to tip over and people were starting to slide down the deck. This helped Gabriel because the man slid away. He looked around and tried to find Adam. “ADAM!”he shouted.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Dorothy? You are willing to stay with me?”Abraham asked her, he took off his overcoat and gave it to her, since she left hers in the cabin.

“Yes Abe, I feel so….I like you Abraham, you understand me. I wanna be with you”she said to him,”I know its fast…”

“I know”he said as he hugged her close to him,”I want to be with you too”he said to her as he kissed her forehead.

Salomi and Vernon saw this. Salomi smiled, now finally her father could be happy and maybe she can finally have a motherly figure in her life. However, this made Vernon miss Abby terribly. He needed to get off this boat, he held onto the money briefcase tightly and saw that a few other boats were being lowered.”Come on there are some more boats at that end, we have to get out of here”he said to them, he took Salomi’s hand and they made their way through the crowd.

Abraham took Dorothy’s hand and led her through the crowd and then he stopped,”This is what she was talking about”he said to her

“Who? What?”Dorothy asked

“My wife…she knew that this was going to happen”Abraham said,”She would never lie to me”he said to her

“Ohmygod,we gotta get off this boat”Dorothy said

“Wait…”he said to her,”Before we do I have to be totally honest with you”he said to her,”If we are going to be together….you have to know who I really am”

“Ok…”Dorothy nodded

“Im not a farmer, we didn’t find gold on our land. We’re not even that rich, for now we can afford to buy fancy clothing and all that but…its all a lie. Vernon and I are in organized crime, that’s why we have money, that’s our income….”he said to her

“Ohmygod”Dorothy said

“If you want to get on another boat then…be my guest…it can be a dangerous business-“

“Im not gonna leave you”Dorothy said to him and kissed him,”I don’t care what you do for a living I just want to be with you”

Abraham smiled,”Ok…lets go”he said as they caught up with Vernon and Salomi.

“WOMEN AND CHILDREN!”they heard workers shout.

“Only women and children?”Dorothy asked,”Abe I don’t want to leave you”

“Daddy, Uncle Vern, I don’t want to leave you either”Salomi said as tears came to her eyes.

“We have to face it, we are going to be separated for a while until another boat finds us, we will be together again ok?”Abraham said,”For now, both of you need to get on this boat”he said to the both of them.”We need to get off this ship now”he said

Salomi shook her head no but Dorothy nodded. She understood,”We’ll see you later on? You promise?”she asked him. He nodded. Dorothy hugged him and gave him a long kiss and then hugged Vernon. Salomi accepted defeat and hugged her father and Vernon in a three way hug, she started to cry.

“I love you”she said to the both of them.

“I love you too Lomi”they both said to her.

“Now get in line for this boat here”Abraham said, trying not to cry. “We are going to try the first boat that will let men on it”he said. He gave them their last hugs and they both left.

Both Salomi and Dorothy cried as they waited in line for the lifeboat in front of them. The men helped various women and children onto the boats. Then they heard a lot of fighting, a lot of the third class were going crazy and they started taking over some of the lifeboats. “We have to find Daddy”Salomi said

“I agree, lets go”Dorothy said and they got out of line and went to look for Abraham and Vernon.

“There they are!”Salomi said as they made their way through the crowd.”Dad!”

“Lomi! What the hell are you doing!?”Abraham said to them.”You have to get off this ship!”

“We heard a lot of fighting and we had to check on you, we cant leave you”Dorothy said. Then the boat started to tip and people started to slip, they watched in shock as they saw some people sliding down the deck. They all held onto the railings.

“You two have to get off this God damn ship now!”Abraham said to them. Due to the tipping, a lot of the boats had trouble getting in the water. However, the boat kept tipping, the south end of the ship was starting to go underwater, people started to scream and run toward the north end.”Come on!”he said as he grabbed Salomi’s hand and they all made their way as well.

However, a lot of people were jumping ship trying to get onto the boats or workers were pulling anyone onto the boats against their will. Dorothy held onto Salomi’s hand as tight as she could but she could feel her slipping, the force of the ship tipping was making her lose grip. Then someone pulled her,”Hey!”she shouted

“Just get on the boat ma’am, you will thank us later”the man said as he put her onto a boat and they started to lower it

“ABRAHAM!”she shouted. She saw Salomi and Abraham and Vernon shouting for her but she couldn’t make it out. Then she only heard Abraham.

“WE’LL BE ON THE NEXT BOAT! I PROMISE!”she heard him shout and then he pulled the two of them through the crowd. She accepted defeat as she sat back in the boat, she wrapped Abraham’s overcoat around her as tight as she could. It smelled just like him. She could hear others on the boat crying and she started to cry as well. Hoping that she would see Abraham again.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“We gotta get Dorothy!”Salomi said as they made their way to the north end of the ship.

“No, she has to stay right there, shes safer now. Your next, we gotta get you on a boat”Abraham said to her

However, the boat was tipping faster and then some of the lights started to go out and people started to scream. Salomi screamed as well, this boat was definitely going under.

“Ahhh”Vernon said as he tried to steady himself and the briefcase full of money.”Abe, we gotta leave this behind, its slowing us down”

“No!”Abraham said,”If we return home without any money, Morietti will kill us!”

“Our fucking ship is sinking! I think he would understand!”Vernon said

“You of all people should know better than that”Abraham said. Vernon sighed. Money was Morietti’s number one priority, nothing else comes before it.”I’ll hold it for now ok?”he asked him. Vernon nodded and tried to hand it to him. Then the boat started tipping more. Abraham grabbed the briefcase but Vernon started to slip.

“UNCLE VERN!”Salomi screamed as he along with some others slipped down the deck.

“VERN!”Abraham shouted.”Oh God!”he said. Was he dead?

“Is he dead!?”Salomi asked as she started to cry.

Abraham tried to compose himself. He had to be strong for Salomi. “No, he’ll be fine, a boat will pick him up”he tried to assure her,”Hold onto me. Don’t let go”he said as they reluctantly continued on.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Shit!”Adam and Gabriel screamed as some of the lights went out and the boat started to tip.

“Ok Adam, I know it hurts, but you have to help me out here. You gotta get some strength back”Gabriel pleaded. His arms were getting tired of holding him. Adam nodded and then threw up again.”Come on”he said as they tried their best to get to the other side of the ship. However, the boat was tipping faster and more people were starting to slip.”Come on, hang onto the railing!”he said as they both climbed over the railing and held onto it.”Hold on tight Adam!”he yelled at him from time to time whenever he noticed Adam slipping.

Then the most unfortunate happened, they all heard a loud crack and lots of screams, most of the south end of the ship was underwater and almost standing up straight! The north end of the ship was starting to crack in half, separating itself from the south end.”HOLD ON!”Gabriel screamed along with everyone else. Then they could feel themselves starting to tip away, their side was going to fall into the water!?

“I cant”Adam said weakly, still feeling sick. He felt even worse, his nerves were also messing with his stomach. He was throwing up even more now.

“Adam, just hold on ok?Please!”Gabriel said as he wrapped his arms around him. The ship continued to break and they could feel themselves falling back. They both screamed. Then the north end seemed to jerk back up, that sudden force made Adam slip,”ADAM!”Gabriel screamed as he grabbed onto one of his hands.”COME ON ADAM! PULL YOURSELF UP! YOU CAN DO IT ADAM!”

“I cant”Adam said weakly as he held onto Gabriel’s hand for dear life, he looked down and saw that the ship was starting to sink into the water. Almost half of the ship was underwater and a lot of people were falling around him.”Help”he said weakly

“I CANT HELP YOU UNLESS YOU TRY!”Gabriel shouted pleadingly,”COME ON!”Gabriel said, he felt like his arm was going to fall off. Then Adam’s hand started to slip away from his,”ADAM!”

Adam then lost his grip and he fell,”ADAM!”Gabriel screamed and cried as he watched his friend fall to his death,”ADAM!”he yelled,he started to cry,”Im so sorry Adam….Im so sorry”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Hold on Lomi, hold on as tight as you can!”Abraham said as they laid on the railing. The briefcase laid on the railing, Salomi laid on the briefcase on her stomach and held onto the briefcase and the railing and Abraham laid on top of her, holding onto her and the railing. They witnessed the ship break in half and they survived their side coming back up and now they were sinking into the water.

“Dad!We’re going under!”Salomi cried

Abraham nodded,”Ok…once we hit the water, we have to let go ok? Then we have to swim as fast as we can….to our left….ok?”

“Dad….Im scared”Salomi cried

“I know baby….”Abraham said.That was the first time he ever heard her say that. She was like her mother, ready for anything. They started to sink faster,”Just stay with me ok? When I say ‘Go’ we let go ok?” Salomi nodded. Then they all screamed as the water approached them, soon it was right in front of them,”Ok……GO!”he shouted. They both let go and tried their best to swim away from the ship. However, Salomi couldn’t really swim. She held onto the briefcase as Abraham held her and swam for them. The water was freezing. He then saw a door, it looked like one of the doors to the ballroom. He swam toward that and demanded that Salomi get on it. This way she would be out of the freezing water. He put the briefcase on it and then tried to get on. However, the door started to sink. It could only hold Salomi and the briefcase.

“Daddy, just throw this in the water ok? So you can get on”she said to him as she shivered.

“No….we…..have to keep it…..”he said as his teeth clattered together. He felt like he was laying in a big bowl of ice. He sighed as he actually saw big pieces of ice float past him. Salomi held onto his hand and blew on it, trying to warm him up.”We….have….to wait……for help……they’ll find us….”he shivered. Hoping it was true.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy screamed along with the people in her boat as they watched the Titanic snap in half. Then all the lights went out, leaving them in cold darkness, then they saw the ship slowly but surely sink into the water. Dorothy broke down when she saw people jumping to their deaths. She prayed to God that none of them was Abraham, Vernon or Salomi. Were they alright?

Everyone gasped as the last part of the Titanic went underwater and they all sat there in cold, awkward silence. She couldn’t believe it. The unsinkable Titanic sank.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“You are my sunshine……my only sunshine……you make me happy……when….skies…….are gray”Abraham tried to sing to her as he held onto the side of the door that they were using as a flotation device. Salomi laid there listening to him, it was better than hearing various people moaning and screaming around them. Some of the screams and shouts for help died down after awhile, which only meant that the sources of the noise froze to death.”You know….your mother……used to sing that to you……..when she………was pregnant with you………she would sing……..to her big…..ol’ tummy”he said as he shivered and tried to laugh but coughed instead.

Salomi nodded as he told this story, she has heard it so many times but she was loving it right now. Her father’s voice was soothing, even though he could barely speak. She rubbed his hands and blew on them to make friction.

“Now…..you…….are so………big now……….you have…….your mothers…..everything……..personality…looks……..body……”he said and sighed,”Boys……they look…..at ya…….I see them……….that boy on the ship…….I knew he……….liked you……”

Salomi sighed, wondering how Gabriel was. She didn’t even want to think about if he was dead or alive, it was too hard for her to bear.”Dad….Im sorry. About the whole stealing thing…..I’ll never do it again…..Gabriel is really a nice guy……..really”

“I know baby……….that’s his name?……..Gabriel…….I shouldn’t be too mad……I was a……..troublemaker……..like……..him”he said as he coughed,”So…….cold”

“Daddy,lets just throw the money away. You are more important, you are gonna freeze yourself to-“then she stopped, she didn’t want to say death.

“No……we need it………”he said and then moaned,”Oh God…….you are my sunshine……my only……..sunshine……….happy………skies…….gray……..”he said and then he was silent.

“Dad?”Salomi asked,”DAD”

“I……..love……..you……”he said and then he was silent again. Salomi broke down and cried. Her father was dead. She put her hands to her face and screamed and then she turned away not wanting to look at him. Then he slipped off the door and started to sink. She cried as she watched his body sink to the bottom.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Salomi?”Abraham asked. She ran up to him and hugged him. Then he gasped,”I can touch you?….Wait….wheres Lomi?”

Salomi shook her head,”I tried to tell you….to get off the ship. But it was definite, it was planned. God makes no mistakes. My warning was just apparent”

“So Im…..”

“Yes…..you’re like me now”Salomi said to him

“What about Lomi?”

“She’ll be ok. Its gonna be hard……gonna be hard to watch, but shes like me. A fighter. Its gonna be rough for her but she will get through it all somehow”

“What?”Abraham asked as he started to cry,”I promised her that I would never leave her…”

“I know….but she knows you love her. Now all you have to do is be that angel on her shoulder. Be that guardian angel that she will need. Remind her every now and then of what she should do. Be her guide. That’s all you can do”

*______________________*

Dorothy sighed as she got off of the lifeboat and walked with the others along the deck. The next morning, another liner called The Starline, came along and picked up the survivors of the Titanic disaster. Dorothy didn’t want to be on another boat but what could she do? She was ushered into a room that was filled with cots and blankets. She sat down on one and she was handed a hot cup of coffee. She sipped it slowly. Lots of people around her were asking where lost loved ones were, but most didn’t know. She wanted to find Abraham but she didn’t have the strength.

“Dorothy?”she heard someone say.

She turned around, wanting and hoping that it was Abraham. It wasn’t.“Lucas?”

“Ohmygod….I was so worried about you”he said as he hugged her close to him

Dorothy pushed him away,”You? Worried about me?”

“Yes! I mean I know that you staying with those lowlifes would have killed you, but I see that you were smart. You got rid of them somehow”Lucas said

Dorothy slapped him hard across his face,”They are not lowlifes! They are good people unlike yourself. You are the one that left me! You didn’t care if I died!”

“Because you don’t even realize that Im alive! And that Abraham was a distraction….but…..Dorothy, baby you didn’t actually think that I meant that did you?”

“Don’t touch me Lucas. You are dead to me”she said as she turned away from him

“Fine……you’ll regret saying that….good luck getting back home”Lucas said cynically and stalked off.

Dorothy sighed as she sipped on her coffee. Just wanting this ongoing nightmare to end, she just wanted to wake up.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Look, theres one”a man said

“Is she alive?”another asked. They rowed the boat closer and he put his hand on her neck to feel her pulse,”Very weak but alive”

“Ok….pull her in with the others”another said. They picked her out of the water and got the briefcase along with it.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

All day, Dorothy watched as new groups of survivors from the Titanic walked into the room that was reserved for all of them. But none of those groups had Abraham, Salomi or Vernon. Every group that she saw made her even more depressed. After awhile, she laid under her blanket, not wanting to see anyone. She sighed as she pulled Abraham’s jacket close to her, it still smelled like his cologne. This was all she had of him.

Then she heard someone crying. Sounded like a little girl. She looked up and now saw that the cot in front of her was occupied. A little girl was sitting there, she was laying in a fetal position on the cot and she was crying. Something told Dorothy to get up and go to her.

“Its alright sweetheart, you are safe now….”she said as she walked up to the girl and then realized who it was.”Salomi?”

Salomi looked up,”Dorothy?!”she said and then pulled her toward her and hugged her and cried into Abraham’s jacket.

“Oh thank God, you are alright”Dorothy said as she hugged her, but her eyes were looking around for Abraham.”Its alright sweetheart”she said as she stroked her hair. But then she stopped, why was she crying? She pulled away a little and wiped her face. “This has been one of the worst nights of your life huh?”she asked her. Salomi only nodded. “Wheres….”then she stopped, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to hear it.

Salomi started to cry even more, then she said,”He’s gone”

“Who?”Dorothy asked, and then instantly regretting it. She didn’t want to know.

“His jacket”Salomi cried as she smelled it.”It still…..smells like him…..”

Dorothy felt tears come to her eyes,”Salomi?…..he’s not…..he cant be…..”

Salomi nodded,”My father’s dead”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Will I lose my dignity?
Will someone care?
Will I wake tomorrow?
From this nightmare?

Gabriel sighed as he sang that to himself over and over. That’s all he could say. This was all a nightmare and he wanted to wake up. But he knew it was real because when he tried to sleep, visions of Adam falling to his death would replay in his mind. He wrapped the blanket around himself and started to walk again. He could never sit for too long. He walked along the deck like a zombie, humming that song to himself, bumping into people every now and then, but he didn’t notice. He just kept walking.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“I’ll take care of you. Things happen for a reason and….since Vernon is gone too…I know your father would have wanted you to be taken care of”Dorothy said. She and Salomi cried for hours once she heard the news.They both then wrapped each other up in Abraham’s jacket and cried themselves to sleep. They then went to the cafeteria and tried to eat and they made their way back to the cots.”I mean unless you don’t want to…”she said to her,”I’ll give you time to think about it”

Salomi only nodded as someone bumped into her, but she didn’t even notice. Dorothy turned and saw a blonde boy walking by them. He didn’t really notice just like Salomi. Dorothy didn’t want to think of how many orphans came as a result of the sinking. She knew of one. She wrapped her arms around Salomi as they laid in her cot together. Soon Salomi fell asleep in her arms.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy woke up out of her sleep and sighed. She knew that she wasn’t going to have a good nights sleep for a long time. She then saw something move toward her and she looked up. Tears came to her eyes,”You’re alive!”she gasped

Abraham shook his head,”No…..great….this was a mistake…..”

“Wait….what?…..Im going crazy?”

“No….you’re not”he said,he walked over to Salomi,”God….thank God, shes ok. Shes been crying all day hasn’t she?” Dorothy nodded,”You too?”he asked her. She nodded again. “I just…..I don’t really have anything important to say….just….if she ever forgets….tell Salomi that I love her. I always will”he said

Dorothy nodded,”She knows”

“You said that you will take care of her? Will you?”

“Well I….I told her that she could think about it”Dorothy said, then she started to cry,”Abe I miss you”

“I miss you too. I didn’t want to leave….but it was God’s will”he said,”But you just have to remember that things happen for a reason. People come in and out of your life on purpose. God makes no mistakes…..it was his plan all along”he said and sighed,”God what a way to go”

“And just remember that you’re better off? Your better?”Dorothy asked. Was he?
Abraham smiled and nodded.”You found her?”she asked him

“Yes, she was there right after it happened. She’s been helping me get through this”Abraham said,”I’ll never stop loving my wife….”he said,”But I’ll always have a place in my heart for you….and she knows that…and I hope you know that too”

Dorothy nodded as she closed her eyes as tears fell down her face. She then felt a small gust of wind wipe away a tear and she opened her eyes. He was gone. Dorothy laid back down and cried. She wanted to understand why life was so cruel and unfair?

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Early the next morning, the Starline docked in New York and the whole world knew about the sinking of the Titanic and that some of the survivors were on the Starline and some were on the Olympique, which would dock the next day. Southstreet Seaport was packed with loved ones that were passengers on the Starline, surviving family members of the survivors and there was press everywhere.

Dorothy sighed as she saw all of the reporters. She didn’t want to speak to any of them. She saw the cab that came to pick her and Salomi up,”Alright, lets hurry up and get out of this madhouse”she said to her. Salomi nodded.

They walked down the ramp and Dorothy saw Lucas hamming it up to the reporters and cameras.”Oh it was a tragedy. Something that I will never forget. I tried my best to help in any way I can. No one ever saw this coming and I hope it will never happen again”he said

Dorothy rolled her eyes. What a liar. “Dorothy Gibson! Dorothy Gibson!”someone shouted. She sighed, great. Salomi turned away and covered her face.

“Dorothy Gibson, how does it feel to have survived? How does it feel to witness the sinking of the unsinkable Titanic?”

“It was horrible”Dorothy said as she pulled Salomi through the crowd, she opened the door to her cab and a bell boy put their bags in the trunk,”So horrible that I don’t want to talk about it”she said as she helped Salomi in the cab. She then got in and shut the door on them.

“Just one more question Dorothy!”
“Who is the girl with you?”
“Is there a romance brewing between you and Lucas?”
“Was the Titanic as beautiful as it has been described?” were more questions thrown at them. But they both ignored them as the cab drove off through the city of New York.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel sighed as he walked down the ramp. He pushed pass the many happy families and reporters. He saw many newspapers that read,”THE UNSINKABLE TITANIC SINKS”

He had to get out of here. He still needed to get home to Tennessee. He would give anything to see his grandmother at that moment. But the big question was, how was he going to get there. He was still poor as dirt. He walked to the train station and saw that a train that was stopping in Nashville was leaving in 30 minutes. He had to stow away once again. He looked around and slipped onto the train. He ran into the nearest bathroom and locked himself in. He would stay there until they reached Nashville.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy opened the door to her apartment in Manhattan. It was just how she left it. Clean and orderly, filled with the finest things in life. She sighed. The last time she was here she was leaving for London, pretending to be happy about the opportunities that the city would bring. She turned to Salomi,”Now you can stay here as long as you like….whether you have made a decision or not. If you want to go back to California, just let me know”

Salomi shook her head,”I cant go back there. All I had there was Daddy and Uncle Vernon…..it would just be….memories”

“Alright, that’s fine”she said to her,”Now I only have one bedroom. But I have this big comfy sofa here. I got it in Italy”she said and smiled. That was a great trip. Maybe she should go back.

“Its nice”Salomi said with a sigh, still holding onto the briefcase.

“Do you want me to take that?”Dorothy asked her

“No”Salomi said quickly. Dorothy couldn’t know about what her father and Uncle Vernon used to do. She might not like her anymore. She’ll probably get scared that she would get caught too and throw her out.”Im fine”

“Alright”Dorothy said and nodded. She reluctantly took off Abraham’s overcoat and hung it up. “Do you want something to eat? Soup? A sandwich? Are you thirsty?”she asked her.

Salomi shook her head,”Im not hungry”

Dorothy nodded,”Well if you do, I will leave some for you”she said as she started to boil some water for some soup. She didn’t like how Salomi didn’t eat. She didn’t know if she was supposed to make her eat or not. She’s never taken care of anyone before. Especially a child. However, she tried to remind herself that Salomi lost the two most important men in her life and she obviously had no one left. She was mourning. She, of all people, knew how mourning could be.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Ever since that Titanic ship sank, that’s all the papers ever talk about”Abby’s mother said from the kitchen as Abby laid in bed. Abby obeyed Vernon’s orders and didn’t get out of bed. She laid in bed all day, waiting for him to come back.

“It must be a big tragedy you know?”Abby said as she stared out the window,”A lot of people must have lost their lives”

“It sure looks big”her mother said. She then brought in a tray full of food.”Lunchtime”

“Im not hungry mother”Abby said as she shook her head.

“Abby, you need to eat. That isn’t going to be good for the baby either”her mother said sternly

“I ate like a pig the last few times that I was pregnant and see what happened? Anyway, Im only going to throw it up. Its just a waste”Abby said. She had so many theories on why she had those miscarriages. Was it because she ate too much? Too little? Was it because she was always on her feet? Or was she just sick?

“Huney believe me, I ate like a pig when I was carrying you and you turned out just fine”

“You didn’t have a problem though mother, you arent deformed like me”Abby said

“You arent deformed huney”her mother said,”But you will be if you don’t eat. That child is relying on you to take care of it. If you don’t eat, they don’t eat. At least put something in your stomach”

Abby sighed and took the mug off the tray and sipped on the tea.”You happy?”

“Almost”her mother said as she set the tray down on the nightstand beside her,”If you change your mind”she said to her. Then she remembered something,”Oh…something came in the mail for you earlier while you were sleeping”her mother said as she went into the kitchen and picked up a piece of paper.”It’s a letter……from London”

“London?”Abby asked. It must be from Vernon! “Give it to me”she said to her as a huge smile spread across her face. This was the first time that she smiled in days. She hasn’t heard from Vernon ever since he left.”Thank God”she said as she ripped it open. Her mother smiled and left the room, letting her daughter enjoy this moment.

“Oh his handwriting….still so sloppy”Abby said to herself as she unfolded the paper and started to read:

My Dear Abby,
This trip has been one of the wildest trips ever! I have good news. We took the train all the way from California to New York, it took a few days. New York City is a gorgeous city, you will love it. The next time I come back, you are coming with me. I talked to Dr. Livingstone, yes I met him in person! He has offered to take a look at you and help us have this baby. What news! We are leaving for New York tomorrow morning. We are going to travel on the Titanic, its supposed to be a legend. She’s taking her maiden voyage and she is unsinkable! We will be amongst its first passengers! We will be home on Thursday night, no day later. I want us to get to New York as soon as possible. Get packing. I want to leave Saturday morning so that we can see Dr. Livingstone first thing Monday morning. I can take you anyplace you want to go until then. I cant wait to see you, to hold you, to kiss you. Im coming home babe. I love you.

Vernie

Abby smiled, thank God, hes coming home! She was so ecstatic that she read it over again. Then she stopped. The Titanic? Thursday? She jumped out of bed.

“Huney!? Stay in bed, what do you need!?”her mother asked in shock.

“What day is it?”Abby asked anxiously as she picked up the paper.

“Its Saturday-“her mother asked,”Why?”

Abby picked up the newspaper and read the headline,”THE UNSINKABLE TITANIC SINKS!”

Abby gasped and then she screamed and fell to the floor holding the newspaper and the letter to her chest.

“Abby! Huney! Whats wrong!?”her mother asked her as she got on the floor and held her in her arms,”Abby! Please! Tell me whats wrong!”she pleaded

But Abby couldn’t answer. All she could do was scream and cry. Vernon was dead. He went down with the ship. Why! Why him!? Why did God have to take him away from her? Why couldn’t she see him one more time? She wanted him to come home like he promised in his letter.He couldn’t leave her, not now. Not when his baby was on the way. She couldn’t do this alone. She couldn’t live without him either. What was she going to do?! “NO!…..VERNIE!……WHY!”was all she could scream out as her mother held her in her arms.”VERNIE!……..VERNIE…….”

*______________________*

Gabriel sighed with relief when he finally approached Memphis. He took the train all the way from New York City to Nashville. He hitchhiked and walked all the way from Nashville to Memphis. He walked down the familiar streets. He passed the little soda shop where he and Adam used to hang out. The playground where they used to play and where he got his first kiss. The huge field where the Cavaliers used to pitch their tents when they came to town. He turned down the street where he and his grandmother lived. He was so tired, but now his strength was coming back. He just wanted to be in her arms again.

He walked up to the door and saw an unfamiliar toy laying in the yard. Must be the neighbors. He smiled and tears of joy welled in his eyes as he tried to turn the doorknob, but it was locked. He started to knock on the door,”Grandma! Its me! Its Gabe! Im back home Grandma! Open up!”he shouted as he pounded on the door.

Soon the door opened and a strange man was on the other side. Gabriel frowned, who the hell was he?

“Who is it Charles?”a woman asked as she held a baby.

“I don’t know”he said to her,”Can I help you son?”

“Im not your son”Gabriel said confusingly,”What are you doing here? This is my house, this is my Grandma’s house. What the hell are you doing here?”

“I have no idea what you are talking about. This house went up for sale a few months ago. We have been living here for a month now”the man said

Gabriel stood there, confused. Why would Grandma sell this house? She loved this house. She has lived here all her life! “Well do you know where Midge Brewster is? She is my grandmother”

“Im sorry. The realtors didn’t tell us anything about the previous owners”he said to him.

“Would you like to come in? Have something to drink?”the woman asked,”Looks like you have had a rough day”she said. The boy’s clothes were dirty and torn.

“No”Gabriel said and turned around and left. He had to find her. Where could she be? He ran next door, hoping that Mrs. Jennings still lived next door. He reached her door and pounded on her door,”Mrs. Jennings! Are you there!”he shouted

“What is all that racket!-“Mrs. Jennings said and then stopped,”Ohmygoodness Gabriel! You are alive! You’re back!”she said as she hugged him

“Of course Im alive. Why wouldn’t I be!? And yes Im back”Gabriel said with a smile, finally a familiar face.

“Look at you, you are so much taller and older! How old are you now?”she asked him as she stepped back and looked at him.

“15”he said,”16 next year”

“My goodness, looks like you have been through it. Why don’t you come in?”

“No, I gotta get to Grandma. I went home and this new family lives there now. Can you believe it? I don’t know why Grandma would sell the house, she loves that house. Is she ok? Did she run out of money? Where does she live now?”he asked her

“Gabriel…..ohmygoodness….you don’t know?”Mrs. Jennings asked him

“Well yes I know now that we don’t live there anymore. I need to know where she is. Did she move downtown? She once said that she wanted to live there so that she could be close to the drug store-“

“Gabriel!”Mrs. Jennings interrupted him. She hugged him,”My God…..my God I don’t want to be the one to tell you sweetheart”

“Tell me what?”Gabriel asked her,”Can someone tell me where she is? I took two trains, hitch hiked in three different automobiles and walked 50 miles to get here! Where is she?”he demanded

“She…..she’s gone to the Lord Gabriel. She passed this past December. She’s buried at the Baptist church. I am so sorry. We all wanted to find you but you were overseas with no address-“

Gabriel stepped back,”Don’t lie to me like that”

“Gabriel….I wouldn’t lie about that. You know Midge was like a mother to me-“

“She cant….she wasn’t sick. I mean she took medicine-“

“She passed in her sleep. We found her the morning after-“

“No!”he shouted as tears came to his eyes.

“Gabriel, come on, you have had a rough day. Lets sit you down”she said trying to pull him inside

“NO!”he shouted as he ran away.

“Gabriel! Gabriel! Lets talk about this please! Gabriel come back!”Mrs. Jennings shouted after him. But he didn’t listen, she watched as he ran off down the street. She shook her head as tears came to her eyes. She dreaded this day for months now. Someone had to tell him when he came back and she knew that it would be her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel ran as fast as he could. He ran to the lake where he and Adam used to fish, it was also where he used to just sit and think. He ran to the shore and stopped and fell to his knees into the dirt. He sat there as he tried to catch his breath. He couldn’t believe that his life was falling apart. Months ago he had a dream job traveling and performing with his best friend and he had his grandmothers support. Now he had none of that. He was all alone. The Cavaliers were gone, Adam was gone, Grandma was gone…..was Salomi gone too? He never saw her on the Starline. He didn’t want to think about that. He sat there and looked out at the water. Grandma loved this lake, they used to have picnics here.

He got up. He couldn’t stay here. There were memories of her and Adam all over the place. If he stayed, he would go crazy. He got up and walked away from the lake as fast as he could. He walked toward town and passed the Baptist church. The church where he was baptized, the church that he, Adam and Grandma used to attend every Sunday. He stopped, remembering that Mrs. Jennings said that she was buried there. He walked to the back of the church and toward the graveyard.

He saw her grave right away. It stuck out like a sore thumb. It had the newest grass and flowers. He got closer and read what her tombstone said:

Midge Brewster
A true saint and a mother to all
1835-1911

“Grandma”he whispered as he hugged her tombstone. He sat there as the first tear came down his cheek and more followed. He sat there for hours hugging her tombstone and crying.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi tried her best to go to sleep but she couldn’t. The sofa was very comfy no doubt but nothing helped. Everytime she closed her eyes she saw her father, or Uncle Vernon or Gabriel. They were all gone. All three of the men that she loved were gone. She sighed and sat up. She walked slowly and carefully through the dark as she made her way to Dorothy’s room. Then she heard a sound. She turned around and gasped and instantly started to cry when she saw her father standing there.

“Lomi….my little Lomi”he said to her

“Daddy?”she asked him

“Yes its me sweetheart…”he said as he nodded his head,”You arent going crazy ok? Im not a ghost, just a spirit. I just wanted to see how you were doing”

Salomi shook her head as she walked toward him,slowly,”I cant sleep Daddy”

“I couldn’t sleep when your mother passed. But the other part of that is due to the fact that you never stopped crying”he said and smiled,”And that’s why Im here. I just wanted to let you know that I love you and Im always there for you. I wanted to see how you are doing”

“Its hard Daddy….Im all alone”

“You’re not alone. Dorothy offered to take you in. Have you accepted?”

“Not yet…”

“I suggest that you do….unless you want to go back home”

“Theres no point. Home isn’t home without you there”

“Is there something wrong with Dorothy?”

“No….Im just scared Daddy….why did you have to leave?”

“Baby I didn’t want to…”he said,”It was God’s will”

“Why does he keep taking people away from me?! He took Mom, you, Uncle Vernon….Gabriel….who next!? Who next Dad? I hope its me…..I hope its me”

He came over to her, he wanted to touch her, hug her, but he couldn’t,”Don’t wish that. Keep living your life. Make me proud. Keep learning all of those math skills. I know you love this city, if you stay here you can have so many opportunities, more than I ever had. Baby, I don’t want you to think that your life is over because mine is. I’ll live on…in you”he said to her

“I just want you to live….is that so much to ask?”

He nodded,”I understand….me too, I wish I was there on earth. But…Im happy. No more crying….no more troubles….your mother says hello. I get to be with your mother again”

Salomi smiled through her tears,”Well at least that much is good”

“Don’t worry Lomi. I see good things in sight for you. There are going to be some hard times but you are just like your mother-“

“A fighter”Salomi finished for him

“Just make good decisions and learn from your mistakes. That’s all I ask”he said. “I love you”

“Dad….don’t leave….”she said but he was gone. Surprisingly, she didn’t cry. She actually had some closure seeing him, whether she was crazy or not. She felt a breeze brush past her wet cheek and she knew it was him. She turned and walked into Dorothy’s room and slowly climbed into her bed.

Dorothy stirred and looked up,”Salomi?”she asked her

“Sorry. I didn’t want to wake you”she whispered to her

“Are you ok? You cant sleep? Did you have a nightmare?”she asked as she turned on the gas lamp next to her

“I cant sleep….but that’s because I have been thinking”

“About?”Dorothy asked as she sat up in bed. She pulled the covers back so Salomi could slide under.

“Staying here with you. I think that’s what is best for me. If you will still take me?”

Dorothy smiled and hugged her close to her, she kissed her forehead and then pushed her dark hair out of her face.”That’s great actually. That is alright with me”she said to her

Salomi smiled,”Thank you….oh and one more thing?”she asked her.Dorothy nodded,”Can I sleep with you tonight?” Dorothy nodded again. She fluffed her pillow and Salomi laid back on it. “Good night”

“Good night Salomi”Dorothy said as she laid back and turned off the gas lamp. They laid there in silence and soon Salomi’s steady breathing let her know that she was finally asleep. That soon helped her go to sleep as well.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The Olympique arrived the day after the Starline. It also had survivors from the Titanic, as well as other passengers and some survivors that needed to be rushed to doctors.

Doctors were on call all night and all day for survivors of the Titanic that were in critical condition. Most were suffering from hypothermia due to the freezing water that they had to endure for hours. Soon there was chaos at the local Manhattan hospital as many bodies were wheeled in. Doctors from all over were called to help treat these patients.

“Damn it….we lost this one”a doctor said as he checked the pulse on one body. He ran some tests and the person couldn’t be revived. The person didn’t have any ID on him. They covered the body and wheeled him to the morgue.

“Hey we have another doctor in”a nurse said as she walked in with another doctor,”Here you go”she said as she showed him the room full of bodies.”Help yourself”she said to him

“Thank you”he said

“You can help me. Hello, Im Dr. Clark”a man said as he walked up to him

“Dr. Livingstone”he said as he followed him,”Whats the status so far?”

“30 dead so far, 45 in critical, 29 in stable and many more that we haven’t even looked at. We are trying all we can but we can only do so much you know? The more help the better”he said as they approached a man laying on a stretcher.

“Lets get to work on this one”Dr. Livingstone said. He frowned as he saw the man’s face. It was closer to blue than any other color. These poor people. “He has a very weak pulse”he said to Dr. Clark and then he got a closer look at his face as Dr. Clark set up some IV’s.

“Lets wheel him into a room. Is there any ID on him? Just so we can let his family know that he is alive?”Dr. Clark asked him

“No ID…..but I know him”Dr. Livingstone said as he put many heated water bottles on him,”He’s a patient of mine….his name is Vernon Greene”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Weeks past and soon Dorothy was used to having Salomi in her life. Salomi was used to it as well. They both started to sleep better and they both were slowly overcoming the recent deaths. However, there was one more thing for her to do. Go back to New Jersey, her hometown, where she and her mother used to live. She had closure with Abraham and needed closure with her mother as well. They took the train to New Jersey and soon they were at Turnpike Episcopal Church. Her old church. She approached her mothers grave and set down a full bouqet of daisies in front of her tombstone. Her mother’s name was Maisy. She loved daisies because they rhymed with her name.

“Maisy Marie Gibson…..”God makes no mistakes”…….September 17th 1859- January 13th 1912….”Dorothy said as she read her mother’s tombstone aloud.

“My dad used to say that”Salomi piped up

“What?”Dorothy asked her.

“God makes no mistakes”Salomi said.

Dorothy nodded as she kissed her mother’s tombstone. “I love you Mom”she whispered and stood back up. She looked at Salomi,”Yes,we may never understand why or the reason behind it….but he never does”she agreed with her.

They soon left and were back in New York City later that night. She had another telegram waiting for her. Lots of directors knew she was back in town. They all wanted her to be a part of their silent films. But her heart wasn’t in it anymore. She sighed and threw it away.

“Why don’t you want to act anymore?”Salomi asked her,”Its not fun anymore?”

Dorothy nodded,”I just cant do it anymore. I did it for my mother but shes gone now. Its time to live life my own way”

“And whats that?”Salomi asked her. Dorothy smiled a little as she remembered a conversation she had with Abraham.

“So if you didn’t have to act in any film or stage play, what would you do? Run away from entertainment altogether?”he had asked her

“No….I would love to be more behind the scenes. I would love to have my own theatre filled with acts that you would never see on any other stage. Out of this world, raw. I also love to paint. Maybe I could sell my paintings….”

He smiled,”Sounds like you have a back up plan. I would love to see one of your paintings”

“Im sure you will”she had said to him

Dorothy looked at Salomi. “From doing all these movies over the years, I have almost enough to retire. But Im young, Im not ready to do that. I have been shopping around for spaces. For a type of vaudeville theatre where there would be different performers every night or a place like an art gallery. I would love to head my own performance space or my own art gallery”

“You paint really well”Salomi said.

“Thank you. And that’s what I have decided on doing. I just signed for a space outside of Manhattan, more towards Harlem and I will start fixing the place up. During the day it would be an art gallery for my art and others. At night Harlem’s favorite vaudeville acts will take the stage, on my stage. That’s my plan”

*_______________________*

“Your awake, good morning sir. We were worried about you for a minute there”was the first thing he heard. Then he saw Dr. Livingstone staring at him, he was the first person that he saw.

“Wh…..what?”he asked

“How many fingers am I holding up?”he asked him

“Two”

“Good….you can see”he said as he wrote that down,”And obviously you can hear….so you passed those tests”he said as he gave him some water.

“Where am I?”he asked

“In the Manhattan hospital.You have been through a great tragedy. So big that the Titanic will most definitely go down in history as one of the worst ship wrecks ever. You supposedly fell off the boat, swam to the closest thing you could float on and passed out there. You have suffered from extreme hypothermia, which is caused from the freezing conditions you endured for the 4+ hours that you laid there in below freezing water. You were found and you were delivered along with the other survivors on the Olympique and you have been here for about over a week now. Its taken some a few days to wake up and some more. Now,a lot of people have suffered from memory loss. We have some records on you. If you just answer some simple questions, this will help us help you”

He nodded.

“Name?”

He took a deep breath,”Vernon Greene”

“Birthdate?”

“February 22, 1872”

“Place of birth?”

“Pasadena, California”

“I understand that you are married? Correct?”

“Yes to the love of my life, Abby Greene, well she used to be Abby Lane. Can I see her?”

“Well she isn’t here, we haven’t been able to contact her”

“Does she know that Im ok?”he asked him. Then he remembered,”Wait…its you?”

Dr. Livingstone smiled,”Yes its me. I have been brought in to help out here. Lots of casualties-“

“Can you still help me?”he asked him

“Well yes,Im helping you now. You seem to be much better. Your heartbeat seems to be on the regular. Your temperature is almost normal. I could safely say that in a few weeks you can go free”

“No. I mean help my wife? I was supposed to go straight home to her and bring her here so you can look at her. You promised me”

“Yes, yes of course. I am busy here but I gave you my word. But most importantly, before you even think about bringing your wife here. You have to get better”

Vernon nodded and sighed,”Wait…did you find a Abraham and Salomi Squires?”

“You had a party with you?” Vernon nodded,”Let me check the list. Some were unidentified, some were”he said as he opened the list of survivors that they found. “Squires…..Squires….nope….no Squires”

“So they didn’t survive?”he asked him

“Well if they arent in quarantine, either they are in the morgue or alive and waiting for you. However, no one has been waiting for you. Now your wife, that’s understandable. She doesn’t know that you were on the ship at the time? But since they were with you….if they are alive…I would only assume…..”

“Ok….”Vernon said,”Can I check the morgue?”

“I would, but you need to rest. The morgue….I wouldn’t even go in there. We don’t want you suffering from shock when you are just getting over your hypothermia. Are you related to them?”

“Yes….well not by blood. Abraham is like the brother I never had and Salomi is like the daughter I never had”Vernon said as his eyes welled up with tears. He hoped that they weren’t dead. He didn’t even want to think about it….

Dr. Livingstone nodded,”I will check the deceased with ID’s for you. If they don’t show up, if you are willing and better you can view the bodies that arent. How does that sound?” Vernon nodded,”Alright. Im going to give you some meds. Procedure”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Cant you do something!? I mean you are a fucking doctor, cant you read something in one of your little goddamn books about what could be wrong with my daughter!?” Abby’s mother asked the doctor.

After Abby found out the news of Vernon’s death, she had several nervous breakdowns and tried to commit suicide twice. Her parents couldn’t take seeing their daughter like this and called a doctor. But he obviously wasn’t helping.

“I can give her some medication but I cant due to her pregnancy. The medicine is so strong that it could kill the baby or do some extreme brain damage. Since she has had miscarriages in the past, we don’t want to risk that. She has an extreme case of depression. Her nerves are shot because her husband was taken from her suddenly, shes under a lot of stress because of the baby and his recent death and since she has tried to commit suicide twice,its her way of coping with his death….which isn’t healthy-“

“You told us that already! But what are we supposed to do? I am afraid to go to sleep because I feel like she would try to hang herself again in the middle of the night! How can we get her to stop this?”

“You cant afford to have a stress psychiatrist come to the house which means that you may have to admit her into Eastern State-“

“No! No! Out of the question! My daughter is not a nutcase. She is not going into a nuthouse!”her mother refused.

“Then I don’t know-“

“Fine! If you cant help us, get the hell out!”Abby’s mother said as she pushed him out of the house and threw his black doctors bag at him,”Some doctor you are! You were a waste of my time and money! Have a nice day you fucking lowlife!”she said and slammed the door. She leaned against it and sighed. Her husband walked into their bedroom, not able to look at her. He was a man of few words anyway but she knew how he was feeling. He was dying inside, just like her. She heard Abby crying, that’s all she did. She sank to the floor and cried. No one could help her and it was starting to drive her crazy as well.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Vernon sighed as he put the sheet over yet another body. Dr. Livingstone checked all the bodies with ID’s in the morgue, but none were Abraham or Salomi. Once he was better, he went to the morgue and checked all the unidentified bodies, which were many. None. “That’s the last body?”he asked. He wanted to throw up.

“Yes”Dr. Livingstone said sadly

“So what does this mean?”

“Either they are alive….somewhere…..or their bodies were never found…”he said,”Its probably the latter”

Vernon started to cry. Why? Abraham was like the brother he never had. They have been through everything together. He comforted Abraham when he lost Salomi and Abraham was there when he married Abby and helped them through their miscarriages. Salomi was the daughter he never had. Dying so young and so full of life was a tragedy in itself. He went back to his room and laid there and cried for the rest of the night.

The next morning he was still depressed. However, he still had a wife to get home to and he knew that she was probably worried. “Well I don’t see any reason why you cant leave”Dr. Livingstone said to him. “Just take your medications daily and you should be back to normal”

Vernon sighed with relief but soon that disappeared. He didn’t have anything.

“Whats wrong?”

“I lost everything….all my belongings, money. I cant get home without it”

“Are you still coming back to see me?”

“Of course, now that Im back on my feet, I want my wife to do the same. And I want to hear the pitter patter of little feet in 9 months”

“I have faith in you Vernon. I don’t know what it is. And you have faith in my work. Tell me how much you need”Dr. Livingstone said to him.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Please….keep an eye on her”Abby heard her mother say to her father. “I’ll be back soon. Im off to get the priest, I want him to pray over her” Then the door was closed and there was silence. She could hear her father walking around, peeking his head in and out every now and then. She was all cried out for now, if she wasn’t crying, she was mute.

Then all of a sudden, her stomach turned. She got up and ran to the bathroom and threw up. She hated feeling like this. She sank down to the floor and waited for the nausea to pass. Then all she heard was silence. Then she started to cry. She hated the silence because it sounded like death to her. Vernon was dead. She wanted to die too. She ran to the kitchen and opened a drawer and tried to find a knife. She found the first one she could find.

“Don’t”she heard a soft voice say. It was her father.

“Papa…I love you….but I cant go on like this anymore. Im killing you and mom. Im just a nuisance. Maybe I am crazy but its too late for me. Without Vernie….I cant….”she said as she raised the knife up to her throat. She was going to slit it.

“Don’t”he said to her, his eyes welling up with tears.

“Im doing you a favor Papa!”she said to him

“Abby!”she heard a voice say.

She closed her eyes,”See? Im going crazy! I even hear him Dad! I still see him but that’s the thing, he is never coming back!”she shouted at him.

“Abby! What the hell are you doing!?”she heard the voice say. She turned around and there was Vernon. He was healthy as ever and holding a small bouquet of flowers. He came towards her and she backed away,”Abby, put the knife down!”

“No! Don’t come near me! Don’t tease me like this! Stop haunting me!”she shouted at him

“What are you talking about!?”Vernon asked her,”Put the knife down before you kill yourself!”

“THAT’S MY PLAN! YOU DIED VERNIE! I DON’T KNOW HOW YOU ARE STANDING HERE BUT YOU DID! I CANT LIVE…..I CANT….”she shouted

“Im alive baby”he said as he came toward her. She backed herself against a wall. She had nowhere to go.”You are not crazy, you arent hallucinating, its me.Im here in all flesh and blood, I survived. I was sick from it but Im better now….”he said as he got closer to her.

She closed her eyes, she didn’t know whether to believe him or not. She has seen him all the time but she was so delirious that she didn’t know what was real and what was fantasy. Then she felt him touch her. She looked up and it was him. He was alive!? She wanted to faint but didn’t have the strength. Then she collapsed in his arms and they cried together. Thankful that God gave them another chance.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

* 2 years later *

“Thank you”Dorothy said as she shook hands with another favorite client of hers. Why? He just bought one of her most expensive paintings. She looked at her pocket watch and saw that it was closing time. She locked things up and put the closed sign on the door. She then went into the back room. “Guess what?”she asked

“What?”Salomi asked as she counted up some money. Once Dorothy’s gallery/theatre called Maisy, named after her mother, started to have more money coming in, Salomi volunteered to help out in the math department. Dorothy was a little skeptical at the time,she was only 13. But she was very good and soon, like her father, Dorothy was using her to her advantage. Salomi enjoyed it because Dorothy even paid her.

“You know the painting of the three ballerinas?”she asked her

“You mean the most expensive one?”Salomi asked her as she counted the money fast in her head. She could hold conversations and count at the same time.

“Yes, someone just bought it”Dorothy said as she gave her $200 in cash.

“Jackpot! Congratulations!”Salomi said,”$257 plus the $200 is $457! And that’s from the gallery alone! Wait until tonight!”she said. The vaudeville shows brought in more money. People paid not only for the performances but drinks as well. She hugged her,”We are going to be so rich by the end of this year!”

“You say that every year”Dorothy said. But the weird thing was, she was always right.

“Hey if we continue to make a profit like this we will double what we made last year”Salomi said as she put her little heeled shoes up on the desk.”Lets drink to that”she said as she raised an empty glass.

“Get your feet down”Dorothy said to her with a smile.”Oh and Velma told me that she caught you sneaking whiskey again?”

“It was just one sip! Ive had wine before”Salomi said as she rolled her eyes as she took her feet off the desk

“Whiskey is much stronger, believe me and you are only 14. Give yourself some time”Dorothy said,”So no we arent drinking to anything”

“Fine I promise not to do it again”Salomi said,”Lets drink to it…but with water”she said as she filled the glasses with water.”Cheers? To another prosperous year?”

“To another prosperous year”Dorothy said with a smile as she clicked glasses with her and drank. She shook her head, she loved Salomi like her own and she could never stay mad at her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“There you go sir. 25 cents please”Gabriel said to the man as he finished shining his shoes.

“Hmmm”the man said as he flipped the coin to him. He didn’t even look up from the paper as he got down. He put out his cigar and continued on his way.

Gabriel rolled his eyes. He hated that man but he had to love him, he needed his shoes shined almost everyday. He was one of his regulars. Soon another was sitting in the chair in front of him and he started to shine again.

After hearing about his Grandma’s death, he left Memphis. He stowed away on trains and decided to go back to New York City. Something told him to go there. There were so many opportunities there and he had to get one. And he did. He was a waiter….for about a month, until he got caught stealing food. He didn’t get paid enough to even eat there! Then he was a cook, but he was fired again when a roach crawled into the soup that he was making without him noticing. Now he was shining shoes. He longed to perform and he auditioned for Broadway shows but he never made it. He wanted to give up but he couldn’t. He had nowhere to go and something was telling him to stay.

He finished his shining for the day and started to head home. He bought a hot dog and then went on another route home. On the way he saw a vaudeville theatre/gallery called Maisy. He would have to check it out when he actually had enough money to.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Papa! Papa!”Vernon heard as two little pairs of feet ran into the bedroom to greet him. Soon they climbed onto the bed and jumped on it.

“Oh! Babies,please, Papa is trying to sleep”Vernon groaned

“Mail”Vernon Jr said as he gave his father an envelope.

“Mama cooked!”Vivian said with a smile and soon they jumped off the bed and ran out of the room.

Vernon sighed as he sat up in bed,smiled and opened the letter. Of course once Vernon was back, Abby’s depression disappeared. He took her back to New York as promised and Dr. Livingstone checked Abby out. She didn’t have any miscarriages and the babies survived and she had twins again, Vivian and Vernon Jr. They stayed in New York and they owned a small house an hour outside of Manhattan. He worked at a butcher’s shop and they were happy.

“Its good that you’re alive now. But don’t think that you still arent a member for life”- was what the letter said. And it was signed by none other than Morietti.

*_______________________*

Dorothy sighed as she watched the Tumbling Twins do their act. They were one of the first acts that she signed to perform, now they perform every night. The men that frequented Maisy couldn’t resist the two of them. They were about 20 years old and always wore small and revealing outfits while they did splits, flips and many other acrobatic tricks. They were grateful for Dorothy because the circus troupe that they performed for stopped traveling all of a sudden. However, Dorothy was getting bored watching them. They were doing the same old tricks. She told them to change their act up a little and they did….sometimes. But not tonight. But she felt that way with every act that has performed. She was getting bored. Were her clients feeling the same? The hall was packed due to it being a Monday night but still….

“Whats wrong?”Salomi asked as she came up to her,”I thought you liked the Twins”she said to her as she sat on the stool next to her at the bar

“Oh I still like them….Im just getting bored with them”

“Well yeah, that’s because we see them every night”Salomi said as she sipped on her water. Dorothy took the glass from her and sniffed it, just to make sure. “Hey!”she said,”Come on Dorothy, you don’t trust me! Im being a regular good ol’ 14 year old”she said to her with a smile as she took the glass of water away from her

“No a regular 14 year old wouldn’t be at a vaudeville club every night, especially on a school night”Dorothy said to her. Dorothy gave Salomi the choice to go to a public school or be tutored. Salomi chose the tutor so she could have special attention and wouldn’t have to deal with bullying classmates or long schedules.

“Fine Im a special 14 year old”Salomi said with a smile as the Tumbling Twins ended their act. The crowd applauded and she did too. “See? They like it”

“I know I still find it boring”Dorothy said as the Twins left the stage. She got up,”We need something fresh, new, something our regulars haven’t seen and something new clients will never see anywhere else. Im going to hold more auditions. I’ll make the flyer now. Go about your business as usual. Help out when you can and don’t drink”she told her

“Ok ok ok”Salomi said and sighed as Dorothy went into the back office. She loved her but hated how she babied her. She sat there and sipped on her water as a man came up to her.

“Hey little lady-“he started to say

“Little lady is right, Im only 14. Now get away from me”Salomi said in one breath. The man looked at her with surprise and walked off. Salomi laughed a little to herself. Every year she looked 5 years older than she was supposed to. Lots of men would come up to her, wondering if she was in her 20’s. Not even close. Maybe she shouldn’t wear anything too revealing anymore. Nah, scratch that. She liked looking pretty and she liked being looked at. She just wished that there was someone to look at. She looked around and saw a lot of regulars and few new faces. They were mostly men in their 40’s. Some women. No one her age, but then again, she wasn’t a regular 14 year old and 14 year olds don’t hang out at clubs on Monday nights. She sighed, “Dorothy’s right, we need someone fresh and new”she said as the Piano King took the stage and started to play.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“So what are you going to do?”Abby asked Vernon. Once Vernon got the letter, he waited for the right time to tell Abby. Once Vernon came back from the Titanic disaster, he also used that time to tell Abby the truth about what he really did for a living.

“I mean I have to go back. When you are a member, you are a member for life. If I don’t contact him….someone will look for me. I know it. I cant put you or the babies in danger”

“Wont we be in danger if you do go back?”she asked him,”They are the reason why you got on that stupid boat in the first place!”she said and then decided to calm herself down. The kids were sleeping.“Well….cant you tell him that you have a job at the butcher’s and we are doing fine without him?”she asked him,”We never needed him Vernie”

“Yes, Morietti is an asshole. Hes a liar and a criminal. But without all that money that I made working for him we wouldn’t have those two wonderful children. On my salary now or before Morietti I could have never been able to afford to have Dr. Livingstone look at you”he said,”I gotta go back”

Abby held him close,”I don’t want to lose you again Vernie”

“You never did and you wont. If I go back that is”he said to her,”I know it sounds crazy but its safer for us this way”he said to her as he kissed her

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“25 cents sir”Gabriel said. The man flipped the coin to him and went on walking. Gabriel put it in his pocket. He sighed, he has made $2.75 so far but his hands hurt like hell. Would he spend the rest of his life like this?

Soon he was walking back home. It wasn’t really a home. It was a small room that he broke into, no one knows he lives there….yet. When they do, hopefully he will be gone before they can call the police.

As he was walking he looked and saw the building named Maisy. There was a flyer on it, his curiosity got the best of him and he read it:

Got the talent that is out of this world?
No place to share it?
Now’s your chance to perform at one of
New York City’s hot vaudeville spots!

All you have to do is audition!
Come by Friday May 1st at 10 am!

Gabriel nodded his head as he read. He smiled as he walked away,”10 am May 1st”he repeated to himself. He made sure to not forget that.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“What if we don’t find anyone?”Salomi asked Dorothy as she helped her open up on Friday morning, the day of the auditions. She knew how picky Dorothy could be and who knew if anyone will show up, and if they do, if they will be good enough.

“We will. Im sure of it”Dorothy said,”Now I want you to watch the front door. Give each and every one of them one of these forms to fill out”she said to her,”Easy enough?” Salomi nodded. “Now I will have a few people in there with me and we will call them in order of who has the forms done first and so on”she said

Then there were a few knocks on the door. People were arriving.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy smiled as the 7 year old, Penny Simon, tapped her heart out for her. She glanced at her mother, Ms. Simon and she was watching her daughter intently, like she was waiting for a wrong move. Bernie, known as the Piano King, helped out if any act needed a piano player. He played the last few chords and Penny took a bow. Her mother instantly got up and clapped loudly. Dorothy smiled and clapped too. Her mother used to be just like that. Too supportive.

“Wow I must say Penny, you have some fancy feet there”Dorothy said as she looked over the form her mother filled out for her

“Thank you”Penny said shyly

“Yes she does, she has been tapping since she was 3. Im so very proud of her”Ms. Simon said,”So? When does she start? Contracts?”

Dorothy laughed,”Um well wait a minute. I didn’t exactly hire her yet”

“Why not!?”Ms. Simon said angrily,her cheery stage mom mood went straight to evil stage mom,”She was perfect!”

“I know Ms. Simon but have you ever been to Maisy? Have you seen the acts that perform here? A lot of them are burlesque, a lot of girls are half….don’t wear a lot of clothes, do you want your 7 year old daughter to be around that?”

“Yes! Don’t think that this is her first job, shes very professional. She has seen everything”

“I know I see from her resume”Dorothy said,”Im just not sure if a 7 year old would fit what our crowd wants. The audience is mostly older men and women, the youngest is their mid 20’s and the best selling drink is whiskey….”she said

Ms. Simon let out a loud sigh, for once not knowing what to say and Dorothy could tell that she didn’t like it.

“Please? I’ll be good?”Penny spoke up, as if Dorothy was her mother and she was requesting to stay up past her bedtime. She then did some more tap dancing and Dorothy couldn’t help but smile. How could she say no to this little girl? She didn’t want to break her heart. The Piano King started to play and then Penny did one last little stomp and bowed.

“Now how can you say no to that?”Ms. Simon said to her

Dorothy sighed,”Ok I’ll make you a deal….I’ll sign her-“

“YES!”Ms. Simon said as she picked up her daughter and spun her around.

“But she has to be the first performance, which is at 7 and she has to leave right after that. It’s illegal for a girl her age to be in a bar like this”Dorothy finished. She couldn’t believe that she was bending the rules for this woman

“Deal”Ms. Simon said as she came up and shook her hand,”You wont regret this. Oh and by the way, I loved you in ‘Long Way Home’”

“Thanks”Dorothy nodded,”See you tonight”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi sat back in the chair as she gave the last few forms to Dorothy. It seemed to calm down now. They had a pretty good turnout. But it looked like no one was going to show up for the rest of the day. She got up and decided to go to the bar and get her some water, she was parched. She got a glass and ran the tap when she saw a basically empty bottle of Jack Daniels. She looked around and quickly drank the rest of it.”Ahhh”she said,she then poured some water into the glass and drank some of that. She felt better now.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel walked into Maisy and saw that no one was there. He saw a table with a stack of forms but no one was around. “Damn it”he said, he overslept, but he didn’t think that he would miss it. But he wasn’t going to give up. They were going to see him today. He was sick of shining shoes. He got a pen and wrote down the information on the form and he saw a door open. A pretty blonde in a leotard and tutu stomped out. She didn’t look too happy.

“Tough crowd?”he asked her

“No, blind crowd. Dorothy Gibson is crazy to think that Im not talented!”she said to him,”I never liked her films anyway”she said as she got her things together and slammed the door behind her.

“Dorothy Gibson?”he asked. That name was familiar. Then a door opened and there she was. She was a film actress, that’s why her name was so familiar.

“Can I help you?”she asked him

“I came to audition”he said

“I just had my last audition stomp out of here”she said

“Yes I saw her, she said you were blind”

She laughed,”Well I already have ballerinas in my show. She was no different, and had bad turnout….but Im sorry.You’re a little too late-“

“No please, just let me show you what I can do….on your flyer you wanted a hot new act that no one has ever seen…..well yes people have seen me perform in the circus but I haven’t seen anyone in New York City do what I do….just let me show you. Give me 3 minutes”he said to her

Dorothy sighed,”2 minutes”she said,”You better be good”she said as they walked into the theatre,”As you can see, this is the stage where you would perform, if I hire you-“

“Great”Gabriel said as he hopped onto the stage and found a small stool. Dorothy sat down at a table and looked over his form.

“Oh my piano player left for the day. So if you sing, you gotta sing acapella and if you have a routine, you might as well hum to yourself or whatever you dancers do”she said to him

“Oh I don’t need music”he said as he took out three small bean bags and started to juggle them,”I don’t need big costumes or my own dressing room or my own accompaniment…I just need me and my props which include these bean bags”he said as he started to juggle them between his legs and higher and higher above his head. Thank God for Adam, he taught him how to do this.

Dorothy laughed,”Wow pretty good-“

“You think so?”he said as he stopped juggling.”How about this?”he asked as he picked up the stool with his teeth and juggled the bean bags at the same time. Dorothy gasped in surprise and he sat the stool down. He then balanced the stool strategically on his chin and kept juggling,”I cant even get distracted!”he said,”La da dee la da daa”he said

“Alright put that down before you hurt yourself”Dorothy said.

“How much time do I have left?”

“30 seconds”Dorothy said

“Great”he said as he hopped off the stage,”I suggest you move that”he said as he pointed to his form sitting on the table in front of her

“What are you going to do? Dance on it?”she asked as she picked up the form

“Well if you want me too”he said as he steadied himself around the table and then put his teeth on it and slowly picked it up. Dorothy smiled and started clapping and he slowly put it down. He wasn’t rusty at all.

“Wow I have to say that was different than anything I have ever seen today. You don’t know how many fake opera singers I have seen, ballerinas, tap dancers….but you are new, fun, fresh…”she said and then looked at his form,”You’re 17?”

“I know that’s underage….but I can act 18?…”he asked her

“Hey Ive been bending the rules all day. I hired a 7 year old for God sakes”she said with a laugh,”You got a job….”she said and looked at the form,”Gabriel Brewster…”she said to him,”As long as you stay away from the whiskey”

“I will be totally sober”Gabriel said as he gave her a hug,”You wont regret this”

“Everyone said that to me”she said with a laugh,”I would like to use you as a filler, between acts and maybe use you to entertain the crowd. You are very comedic and clownish”

“Thanks”Gabriel said to her as he looked at her. She seemed so familiar to him, there had to be somewhere that he has seen her before. “So you do films? Where else have I seen you?”

Dorothy smiled,”Well I was in the chorus in off Broadway and Broadway shows”she said to him, but that didn’t do anything for him,”Um….Ziegfield Follies?” Still nothing,”I did some Shakespeare in London…”she said. Still nothing,”That’s basically it…besides all the silent films”

“You sure? You haven’t seen the circus? Havent been in one?”

“No”she said with a laugh

He nodded,”Ok I will figure it out then, see you tonight”he said to her,”Oh and the restrooms are where?”

“There”she said as she pointed to a door behind the stage and he immediately walked through it.

“Dorothy”Salomi said as she walked in,”Some man is here to see you-“

“I officially did my last audition. No more!”she interrupted her

“He doesn’t want to audition. Something about making another film”

“And I officially did my last film 2 years ago-“

“He wont leave until you see him. His name is David Flanahan”

Dorothy sighed, she knew one of these days he would hunt her down.”Fine. When Im done we can leave”she said to her as she walked out of the theatre.

Salomi nodded. She walked onstage and started to turn off the stage lights. She wanted to get out of here as soon as possible. She was hoping she could talk Dorothy into taking her out to the pub down the street, they had the best sandwiches and baked potatoes.

“The bathrooms look nice”Gabriel said as he walked back into the theatre,”The dressing rooms too. Oh and what I said about not having a dressing room, I can have one if you want….me….to…”he said as he realized that Dorothy wasn’t there. But a ghost of someone from his past. “Salomi?”he asked her

Salomi gasped, she knew that voice from anywhere. It couldn’t be Gabriel, it couldn’t be her Gabriel? She turned on the lights and there he was. Looking older, much cuter and very much alive.

“Salomi? Ohmygod…I didn’t think that you made it….”Gabriel said as tears came to his eyes and he walked toward her,”I still think about you everyday…”he said to her,”I still love-“But before he could finish. Salomi fainted.

*_________________________*

Gabriel had quick reflexes and rushed to her side when she fainted, he caught her right before she hit the floor. “Oh shit…Lomi?”he asked her as he held her in his arms and rocked her back and forth. “Lomi?....wake up…..Im shocked too but Im not becoming a narcoleptic”he said with a laugh as he gently tapped her face. She started to stir,”There you are. Im here, Lomi. Come back to me, Lomi. Its alright”he said. Then she opened her eyes,”Hey”he said softly as he stroked her face, hair. He figured that she was dead and he cried for days. He cried so much that he didn’t know who he was crying for- his grandmother, Adam or Salomi. He was so grateful that one made it. And he was glad it was her.

“You’re alive?”she asked him as tears came to her eyes. She couldn’t believe it. She must be dreaming. But he was holding her, he felt so warm and smelled so good.

“I am, and thankfully you are too”he said as he held her close and they both cried in each others arms. When they finally got a hold of themselves, the questions started.

“What are you doing here?”they both asked at the same time and laughed. New York City was a dream for both of them but a far cry from California and Tennessee.

“My father and Uncle Vernon died on the ship….I somehow made it”Salomi answered him. “Dorothy’s been taking care of me ever since. I don’t know if you met her on the ship…she and my father….they were like us, fell in love…she found me on the Olympique and said I could live with her. I agreed. California has too many memories of Uncle Vernon and my father”she said

“Wait, the Dorothy I just auditioned for?....shes your guardian?”he asked,”I knew that I knew her from somewhere”he said trying to digest all the information and then hugged her close,”Im sorry about your father and Uncle. I know how close you all were”he said as he wiped the tears away that were starting to fall from her eyes. Then he paused,”Wait…you two were on the Olympique too? I somehow got there….I didn’t see you….but I wasn’t all there….if you know what I mean….”

“Yes, I don’t ever want to get on a boat again. Staying in America is just fine with me”she said,”I remember the Olympique being packed with people. Im surprised that Dorothy found me. I bet people are still looking for each other…..”she said,”How’s Adam?”she asked, but something made her afraid to ask but did anyway.

“He died on the ship. Fell off. He was too weak…and I couldn’t….I tried my best but I couldn’t hold him anymore….I was weak too I guess”he said sadly

“No you weren’t. You tried your best”Salomi said,”Everything happened so fast…”she said as she held onto his hand. “What happened after? You decided to stay here?”

“No I stowed away on the first train back to Tennessee. Got to Memphis and then hitchhiked and walked the rest of the way”he said with a sigh, remembering the long trip. “I was making it back home to my grandmother…I got home…and she wasn’t there. She died a couple months before I got back. I didn’t know. No one could get in touch with me when I was traveling…”he said as he started to cry and Salomi held him. “Strangers answered the door saying the house was sold and it was theirs. A neighbor told me. I visited her grave and then left. Tennessee has nothing for me either, not without Adam and my grandmother”

“Im so sorry”Salomi said. “You’ve been here ever since?”she asked

He nodded,”Ive been shining shoes….Ive been a waiter….a cook….been trying to survive ever since”

“What about Broadway?”she asked him

“Tried it. Failed. This is the first audition where I didn’t get rejected….are you performing here too?”he asked her

“No no no”Salomi said,”I work here with Dorothy. Im her accountant and assistant. That’s what Ive been doing for 2 years”she said and smiled,”You’re 17 now. A grown man”

He chuckled,”I’d say that Ive grown a lot since…everything happened”he said. “And your 14?”he asked her and smiled,”Still too young for me”

“I don’t think so. Ive got a job, I go to a club every night”she said as she indicated the stage,”I may graduate early. Im pretty grown up”she said

“I know. Im just teasing”he said. “You’re perfect for me”he said and she smiled. “You know, now that I found you, I cant let you go. Now if you are married or seeing another man then you are just going to have to file for divorce or run away. Im not losing you, Im not letting you go”

“Im not married. Im not seeing anyone. No one….no one compared to you”she said

“Good. I still love you, Salomi. I always have. I fell in love with you when you kicked me in my groin on the ship”

She laughed at the memory,”Ive loved you since you stole from me….since we danced and drank moonshine….since you kissed me….”she said

“Can I kiss you?”he asked her. She nodded adamantly and he leaned forward and kissed her. Tears fell down her face as they did so. The kiss was so magnetic, so right, and surely missed. The both of them dreamed and wished that this would happen again and both thought it was a thing of the past. Something that was just a memory and would never happen again. Now they had a second chance and they were going to be careful and not let the other go away again.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy walked out into the front lobby of her gallery. She was anxious to see David, she hadn’t seen him since she left for London 3 years ago. But she was also dreading it, she knew that he probably had a script ready for her and even though she made an announcement to reporters at a press conference that she was quitting her acting career to indulge in other endeavors, many directors sought her out hoping that their ideas or scripts would make her fall in love with acting again. But she just didn’t have the strength anymore. And she didn’t have the strength to tell David no. She couldn’t really say no to anyone, it was hard for her since she was always aiming to please. But she learned that life was too short to be living her life for someone else. Even David. She would do anything for him. They used to be quite an item but her depression and their conflicting work schedules pushed them apart. Yes, it was going to be hard to say no to him.

She walked into the room and saw him standing there and she couldn’t help but smile. He looked a little older, his hair was starting to gray but he looked very much the same. She was surprised to see tears in his eyes and he held her close without saying a word. He started to cry, and she did too.

“I thought you went under. I thought you were gone….”he said as he cried. “I got your letter saying you were going to get on the Titanic and I got it the day I heard that it sank….”he said and then finally composed himself and looked at her, wiping his eyes,”Then the papers had pictures of you getting off the Olympique. Then you said you were retiring from film….I respected that decision. You have been going through so much and I hope that you are on your way to being happy or have found happiness”he said and then smiled,”Im rambling…Im so sorry….”

“No…your fine”she said as she wiped her tears,”You always ramble. Im used to it”she said with a laugh. “I survived. Im not doing film. I came to terms with Mummy’s death….I opened up this place and Ive been happy since….”she said. Almost. She missed Abraham everyday but it was easier dealing with it than it did 2 years before. She and Salomi would cry and hold each other in the middle of the night for him. Not anymore.

“Ive been really busy writing scripts and doing the Hollywood thing. Ive had some time off….I promised myself that when I had enough time to come back to New York, the first person I would see is you. Are you busy tonight?”he asked her

“I’ll be working tonight”she said sadly. He hadn’t mentioned a script yet, maybe she shouldn’t be worried.

“You have a 24 hour art gallery?”he asked her as he looked at the paintings on the wall. He knew how much she loved to paint and she was very good at it, he didn’t know that she would make a career out of it. He thought it was just a hobby.

“No, this building is bigger than it looks. I have a nightclub in this building too. Its open every night”she said.

“A nightclub?”he asked her. “What made you want to do that?”

“Ive always been interested in being behind the scenes. I wanted to let people in this area have an opportunity to perform in a performance hall every night. Like when I had my start. I get to see a show every night”she said

“Well Im happy you didn’t stray too far from the performing arts”he said, then he had to ask,”Do you miss it?”

She shook her head,”It’s a distant memory. I miss my mother”she said.

He nodded. He knew how hard it was for her, especially when her mother passed while she was in another country no less. “Its been tough, hasn’t it?”he asked her. “Im glad you are moving on with your life”he said. She used to scare him when she would talk about suicide. They had a heated argument one night. He didn’t want her to say things like that to him. He couldn’t take it. Then it got the best of both of them and they went their separate ways. “Well is it possible that someone can take your place? Or come by before your club opens. Im staying at the Waldorf”

“Well the nightclub opens at 10, show starts at 10:30. I open up at 9…I have enough time to see you before then. How about 7?”she asked him

He kissed her cheek,”I’ll have room service order us some dinner”he said. “Im in room 12”he said.”Im so glad I did this. Im so glad your doing well”he said to her as he squeezed her hand tightly.

“I’ll see you later David”she said with a smile and showed him to the door. Then he stopped,”Yes?”she asked him

“I want you to read a script. I wrote the part just for you. Now before you say no, I just want you to read it. Ive always loved your advice”he said. “Please?”

She sighed,”Fine. But no sneaky business. Im done with film. Im serious”she said. He nodded, kissed her cheek again and left. Her face turned red when he did so. She wondered if they could make it work again, but not with Abraham still on her brain. She went back into the performance hall to get Salomi and saw her kissing Gabriel Brewster! “LOMI! What on earth do you think you’re doing?!”she asked, not making the connection.

Salomi and Gabriel jumped back when they heard Dorothy. “I know what this may look like”Salomi calmly explained as she took his hand and held it. “You two have already met obviously, but we have met before. We met on the Titanic. We fell in love with each other and now hes back in my life. My father didn’t like the thought of me being with a boy when we first met, since I was only 12. But now….that we have this second chance Im not going to let him go Dorothy. We are going to start over…or pick up where we left off….I love him Dorothy. Theres nothing you can say-“

“No Lomi, I understand”Dorothy said. This was just too sweet and coincidental and a miracle basically. “I remember you Gabriel. I remember you now”she gave them both a hug,”Im happy for the two of you. I didn’t realize at the time….”she stopped. Still shocked at the situation. “Well, I will give you both sometime to catch up”she said as she gave Salomi some money. “Go out have some food, get something to eat. Be back here at 9 alright?”she said to Salomi. “Gabriel, all the performers are to arrive no later than 10. You’ll be second on the program, so you’ll go on shortly after 10:30. I have some errands to run before I get here. If Im late, you know how to open up, right sweetie?”

Salomi nodded, she expected a fight. She was shocked that she was taking this so well. “Yes I do. Are you alright Dorothy?”

“I am”she nodded,”Im glad one of us got to be reunited with a loved one”she said,”Im going to run some errands and then go and meet my friend David-“

“Are you going to do films again?”Salomi asked her

“No, we are just catching up. He hasn’t seen me in 3 years”she said. She hugged them again,”Have fun you two. Get here on time, you hear me?”she asked them. They nodded and they all walked out together and went their separate ways.

“Im glad she didn’t get upset. I didn’t want the fight you had with your father to happen again”Gabriel said as they walked down the streets of New York.

“She understands. We are both mature women”she replied with a smile.”Besides, if it was the other way around, she wouldn’t want anyone to get in the way of her being with my father. She loved him very much”

“Really? How did that happen?”

“I don’t know. Like us, we spent time together and fell in love. I think ships have that affect on people”she said. “My father apologized”

“To you?”he asked her. Gabriel held her close. “Im glad you two got to talk about it”he said

She nodded,”Me too”she said. “I wish you two could have talked to each other. He would have liked you”she said

“Me too”he said

She shook it off,”Ok, we are going to go to my favorite pub. You hungry?”she asked him

“I haven’t changed, Lomi. Im always hungry. And whats so great about it is that I wont have to steal it”he said. They laughed and walked toward the pub. Oblivious to the world around them but it still was brighter than ever.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy knocked on the door. Here it is, Room 12. She wondered what kind of script he would have for her now. But she tried not to think about that as the door opened and she was greeted with another hug and a kiss on the cheeks. She was soon ushered in. “Wow, lots of razzle dazzle in here”she said. The room was enormous and had expensive furniture in it.

“I have to be very comfortable if Im going to be 3000 miles from home you know. And you know me, Dorothy, you know I have a weakness for nice things”he said. Which he did. He would shop more than she did. He would always shower her with gifts as well as get something for himself. He liked looking nice and living in a nice looking house and driving a fancy car. That was just how he was. He took off her light coat and put her purse on the table,”Stay awhile. Ive ordered the food and it should be here any min-“then he was interrupted by a knock on the door,”And here it is. Perfect timing”he said as he went to the door. A very elaborate cart was wheeled in with two silver platters of food, wine, a vase with two roses and two lit candles.

“You went all out”she said with a smile. “But that doesn’t surprise me”

“Good”he said as he took the top off of her platter and smiled at her. She laughed. “What?”

“You ordered my favorite”she said,”Im surprised you still remembered”she said and squealed like a little girl when she saw the cheesecake. “Oh bless you David”she said

“Your welcome, you know New York does have the best cheesecake”he said. They then settled down to eat and they both caught up. He mostly talked about what he was up to but she didn’t mind. He knew her story, she hasn’t been up to much since she arrived in New York and decided to stay here and quit acting.

“Charlie Chaplin huh? Hes supposed to be the next big thing”Dorothy said. “Im impressed and you have worked with him twice already?”

David nodded,”Yes. Hes very great at what he does. Never seen anyone move like him. He can make any part of his body comedic. It’s a joy to watch”he said,”But he has a very scandalous personal life”

“Really?”

“Yes, he seems to enjoy younger women. And I don’t mean young like 20, 21. He likes them young like 15, 16”

Dorothy gasped,”You are fibbing!”

“Nope. He’s been sneaking around with a 15 year old girl. Parents caught her. They were so surprised. They didn’t know whether to call the police on him or ask for his autograph”he said as they both laughed. He shook his head,”Hollywood’s crazy as ever”he said and then turned serious and sighed,”Its different without you”he said

“Im happier here”she explained as she took a sip of her wine

“I understand”he said, they sat in silence for a few moments. “Like I said earlier, I wrote a script about you. I wrote many about you. Have you seen ‘The Thunder’?”he asked her

“Yes, it was wonderful”

“Remember Bessie? That’s you”

Dorothy smiled remembering the character in the film,”We have similar qualities, yes-“

“’The Ticket’?”he asked her. “The lead female was based on you as well”he said as he walked into his bedroom and brought out a stack of papers. “I didn’t bother you then because you were very clear about quitting. But I had to share this one with you”he said as he handed it to her. She looked at the title page and saw that it was called “Saved From The Titanic”. She gasped and looked at him,”It’s a love story”he said,”Please, go on….read….”

She saw the list of characters. The lead female was named Dorothy, a troubled actress from London that was traveling to New York on the Titanic for a better life. Then tears came to her eyes when she saw that her love interest that she meets on the ship was named Abraham. This was too coincidental. “How…..how did you know? About Abraham?”she said as she started to cry.

“Abraham?”he asked her,”I made him up Dorothy. I don’t know anyone named Abraham. Whats wrong? Why are you crying?”he asked her, deeply concerned. “Maybe I shouldn’t let you read this? Its too soon isn’t it?”

“I knew someone named Abraham. I met him on the Titanic. We fell in love, we were….we were going to come back to America and be together. But he died. He didn’t make it”she said,”Im sorry this script is so close to the truth-“

“Then don’t read it, you don’t have to”

“No. I want to”she said

*___________________________________*

Dorothy and David read the script together. It was a love story and it ended in tragedy, like "Romeo and Juliet". However, unlike real life, Dorothy and Abraham died together, sinking with the ship and declaring their love for each other. It was a beautiful script and Dorothy made many compliments about it.

"Where did you get the name Dorothy?"she asked with a smile,"That's a fascinating name"

"I chose the name Dorothy because I was sick of making up names when I was thinking of you anyway"he said to her. "I guess in my mind since I cant have you act in it, I can have someone with the same name..."he said and then sighed,"I would love for you to do it. Its kind of like backwards method acting, you've already experienced it but I cant ask you to do that..."

Dorothy smiled sadly,"I knew you were going to ask me, and you know that I could never say no to you. Im not much different"

"If you did it, I would change the lead characters name. Charlie Chaplin may play Abraham he wouldn't mind if I changed the name. Just so you would be comfortable"

Dorothy shook her head,"No no no no. Don't change anything for me"she said,"Let me think about it alright?"

"Alright, Im here through the rest of the week. Can you get back to me by then?"he asked her

"Sure. I will"she said

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Since Salomi had to open up at 9, Gabriel came with her. He watched her go over papers and do her numbers and math in her head and write things down. He smiled as he watched her. It was like when she was behind the desk, working, she was a different person. More focused, she seemed older and more mature. It was different from her young and vibrant spirit. "You aren't bored of this are you?"she asked him

"No. I could watch you all day"he said to her. She giggled and wrote a couple numbers down in a book and then continued looking over papers. Just a few hours ago, he thought that she was just an angel that didn't make it. Then she turned into a reality. It was crazy but it was like he was scared to leave her alone. Afraid that this was all a dream or she would disappear into thin air.

"Are you nervous?"she asked him.

"Nervous?"he asked slowly, he was afraid that he was distracting her from her counting.

"Nervous about the show tonight. It's a Friday night, usually tonight and tomorrow are packed. Many of Dorothy's fans come here to catch a glimpse of her. Some of her Broadway friends stop by or people she knew from Hollywood and it seems all of Harlem comes here sometimes. We get rather busy"she said as she did her math. She was multi talented she could hold conversations and count and not make a mistake.

"Ive performed for thousands"he said nonchalantly and smiled, remembering his circus days. "But I am nervous. But I need that to keep me going, you know? The nerves give me energy"

Salomi nodded as she counted money. "Makes sense"she said,"Do you know what you are going to do? Are you going to pick a table up with your teeth?"she asked as she put some money in a small stack and looked at him and smiled,"I remember when you first showed me that in first class"

"Yes I'll do that. That's what blew Dorothy away"he said,"Should I practice?"he asked her

"It wouldn't hurt. None of the performers are here yet. You should practice now before they all demand their time. You performers are so demanding"she said and winked at him

"Good idea"he said as he walked around the desk and leaned down and kissed her. "Will you watch me tonight?"he asked her

"Of course I will"she said,"I have a feeling you'll be my favorite"she said as she returned the kiss.

Then the door opened and a blonde girl stood there and gasped,"Salomi Squires!"

Salomi rolled her eyes,"What Ruth?"

"Who is this? You know Dorothy doesn't like just anybody in her office"

"Hes an exception"Salomi said

"Well who is he?"she asked her

"He's my boyfriend"she said

"Aren't you a little too young to have a boyfriend? You are only 14!?"

"And shouldn't you be married? Arent you old enough?"Salomi shot back.

"Im Gabriel Brewster. Im one of the new performers that Dorothy hired this morning"he said as he held out his hand, introducing himself.

However, she didn't shake it. She looked through the clipboard, that was piled high with papers, that was in her hand. "Gabriel Brewster..Gabriel Brewster..I don't have a Gabriel listed"she said, starting to panic. Ruth Watkins was Dorothy's other assistant. While Salomi did the books, Ruth was in charge of the club- she managed the bar and everything that went on backstage. She was a big fan of Dorothy and worked here so that she could go to college in the fall. She and Salomi didn't get along well. Ruth was quick to panic while Salomi was nonchalant. Ruth was quick to tell Salomi that she was a child or she should ask someone for help when Salomi knew she didn't need it. She wasn't a child. "I don't have your audition form"she said

"Oh here it is"Salomi said and handed it to her

"Why are you giving this to me now? An hour before the show starts"Ruth panicked. "Ive already set all the other new performers up with dressing rooms. Everyone gets 5 minutes of rehearsal time and that leaves just enough time for the show to start, now I have one more performer to worry about!?"

"I'll worry about him"Salomi said

"Im sorry. Whats your name?"Gabriel asked, trying to help

"Her name's Ruth"Salomi said with a sigh,"Calm down Ruth, its not that serious"she said to her

"Yes it is. I made a schedule and I don't think we have any empty dressing rooms-"

"Ruth? I need to talk to you"another blonde said as she came to the door. She saw Gabriel and smiled, ooooh a new guy? He sure was cute!

"In a minute Tina. Im busy trying to figure out this mess that somehow accrued"

"Dorothy forgot to give you his audition sheet. Just tell her when she gets here, she'll take care of it"Salomi said

"By the time she gets here, the show would have already started! She told me she will be running late"she said,"Which puts me in charge of everything. I need to open the box office in 30 minutes and I have so many things to do"she said. She hated when Dorothy put her in charge. She was always afraid that nothing will go right, that the whole club will come tumbling down and it would be all her fault. Like Dorothy, she aimed to please, especially if it was her favorite film star. She didn't want Dorothy to know that she made mistakes. Which was nearly impossible.

"Well Im her assistant too, you know, how can I help?"Salomi asked impatiently. Ruth wasn't making the situation any better by panicking.

"Ruth, this will only take a minute"Tina said impatiently.

"What? Yes? What is it?"Ruth snapped at her.

"Tess is sick-"

"Again!?"Ruth said, getting even more panicky

"Yes, shes pregnant. That's why shes been sick this whole time"Tina said. "The doctor suggested that she not perform until the baby arrives"she said. Tina and Tess were the blonde Tumbling Twins. The men loved them and they loved them right back. Tess probably got pregnant by any of the regulars. But now what would this do to her performance? Would they let her go on by herself?

"Are you serious!"Ruth shouted. "I cant believe this!"

"I was wondering if I could just go on..make the act a few minutes shorter"Tina said. Just because her stupid sister got knocked up didn't mean that her career had to go out the window.

"No! You are the Tumbling Twins! Which means we need two people!"Ruth said

"Ok lets just think this out"Salomi said,then smiled,"This is simple. Tina can be called Tumbling Tina. We'll make her act 5 minutes instead of 10. Dorothy wants Gabriel to be a filler anyway so he can fill that time. Gabriel can also take Tess's dressing room. Problem solved"she said rationally

"Thanks"Tina said, still eyeing Gabriel. "So your Gabriel?"she asked him. He nodded,"Im Tina, nice to meet you"she said and winked at him,"I'll be back"she said and then left.

"Now Ruth, calm down and go about your business. I'll set up Gabriel's dressing room and whatever he needs and I'll let Dorothy know about Tess's situation. We have a lot of new performers so it shouldn't be a problem"Salomi said,"I'll finish the books later"

"But-"

"Just say thank you Ruth"Salomi said,"Come on"she said to Gabriel and led him out the room, leaving a panicked Ruth standing there with her mouth hanging open.

"Thank you!"she shouted after them

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi set up Gabriel's dressing room while he warmed up and rehearsed onstage. He was still there when all the performers started to arrive and Ruth ushered them to their places, but she was so panicked, it was like herding cats. A lot of them were watching Gabriel and clapped after every trick. "That's nice Gabriel. But you need to get down off that stage now. Others need to rehearse and we are opening house soon"Ruth said hurriedly,"New performers! Please follow me, I need to give you your tour"she said. But she said it in a soft voice that no one paid attention to her and it took about 5 minutes for the new performers to start their tour.

Dorothy came in and found Salomi,"Things are running smoothly?"she asked her

"Not if you ask Ruth"Salomi said with a roll of her eyes

"Now be nice. Ruth is a hard worker and a good one. Shes very organized"

"Shes always panicking about something. She's a nervous wreck"

"People work different under pressure. People are different in general"she said,"What was she panicking over?"she asked

"Tess is pregnant"

"Tumbling Tess?"Dorothy asked

"Yes, her doctor said that she shouldn't perform until the baby arrives"

"Oh well Tina can still perform right? Its not like they're joined at the hip"

"That's what I said"Salomi said."So that's the way it will be, meanwhile Gabriel gets Tess's dressing room and he will fill the extra 5 minutes since Tina will only have a 5 minute show"

"Sounds reasonable"Dorothy said. She was very calm about it, which was great but it seemed that the only reason why was because she was distracted.

"You alright?"Salomi asked

"Yes"Dorothy said with a nod. "Now go help Ruth and be nice alright?"she told her. Salomi obeyed and Dorothy went to her office. She needed to be alone and really digest the decision that she made earlier.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy couldn't go back to the nightclub now. She needed to think. She called Ruth and let her know that she was going to be late and gave her instructions. She then went home. She sat down on her sofa and read the script. She read it from beginning to end and then she paced the room. Memories of her and Abraham danced in her head. She smiled,"Im going to do it"she said. Something told her to and she had a feeling it was Abraham. So that's what she told David, he was ecstatic, he said he was going to let her know of the schedule and get back to her.

"You wont regret this"he said to her

"I have a feeling your right"she said to him.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi smiled widely as the crowd cheered, hooted and hollered at Gabriel and his tricks. It seemed like anything he set out to do, he did it to perfection and the crowd went wild. When he was done, they yelled,"Encore!" and even threw coins onstage. He picked up every last one and danced offstage as The Piano King accompanied him. Tears came to her eyes as she laughed and clapped. She was so proud of him.

"He's very talented. And very handsome"Dorothy said,"You are a very lucky girl, Salomi"

"I know"Salomi said with a smile

"I need to talk to you"Dorothy said. She needed to tell her that she was doing another film. She knew how busy the schedules were and she needed to figure out what to do with her when she was gone. They walked into her office as Gabriel got offstage.

He was smiling widely and he felt like he could fly. Especially when he saw Salomi and Dorothy clapping for him. Now this was what his life was supposed to be like, making money doing what he loved. Performing. "Good job sugar"he heard someone say and he turned around and saw Tina. "Thank goodness Im before you, you are one hard act to follow"

"Thanks"he said as he looked around for Salomi,he was supposed to go on again in another hour or so. He wanted to hear what she thought. Her opinion mattered,"Tina right?"he asked her. She nodded,"Your not so bad yourself"he said."Excuse me"he said as he went off to find Salomi. Leaving Tina behind, if she got knocked up, she wouldna33;t mind if Gabriel was the causea33;.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

"We spotted him"Morietti's assistant said as he walked into his office.

"Be more specific? Spotted who?"Morietti asked impatiently

"The two deliverers that died with the Titanic"he said

"They are no good to me dead, especially when they had my money in that suitcase"Morietti mumbled

"One is still alive. Vernon Greene. And he lives upstate"

Morietti smiled wickedly,"I wonder why he didna33;t come back to work? When you work for me, you work for life"he said,"Find him"

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy told Salomi that she was going to do another film, maybe her last film. She was going to dedicate it to Abraham and Salomi was touched. She urged her it was a good idea and was proud of her. They agreed that she and Ruth would be in charge, even though Salomi didna33;t agree to the latter. Dorothy even decided to trust her with the apartment, she was a responsible young lady after all and she had her tutor, Ruth and Gabriel to watch over her. And when Dorothy left for Long Island to film the movie 2 weeks later, she knew she made the right decision.

Of course Gabriel didn't mind, soon his life went from worthless to worthy. He was no longer shining shoes and stealing food. He could afford to buy both. After Salomi finished her lessons, they would go out and eat. Several times they went to Coney Island, Salomi loved the wooden coasters. He hated how they threw him around but he rode them for her. They would go to the nightclub and then he would escort her home afterward. Most of the time he spent the night, it was always innocent. He wanted to go further but he wanted to savor just holding her in his arms and he wasna33;t sure that she was ready to.

Late one night, Gabriel waited outside as Salomi helped Ruth to lock up and he saw two men down the alley making some sort of exchange. What was it? Drugs? Money? "Ready to go?"Salomi asked. He nodded and he walked her home. They let themselves in and Salomi went straight to the cabinet and opened a bottle of wine.

"What are you doing?"

"Ruth stresses me out. I need this"she said as she took a couple of gulps. She handed it to him and he shrugged and drank as well. She turned on the gramophone and they danced around the room, laughing and kissing. They danced their way into the bedroom and she pushed him on the bed. She then started to take off her dress, he was about to ask if she was sure but she interrupted him, reading his mind. "Its alright. I love you. I want you to make me into a woman"she said.

Soon they both were naked and making love as the gramophone played a burlesque tune in the next room. Gabriel smiled as he felt her soft and small body against his, exploring every inch of it. In just 2 weeks his life changed for the better. He was in love, madly in love.

*_________________________________*

Salomi took deep breaths as she laid there in bed next to Gabriel. She couldn’t believe it, she was a woman now. She was no longer a little girl. She was finally grown up and not a child any longer. She sort of imagined it differently, it would have been on her wedding night in a luxurious hotel room like the one she, her father and her Uncle Vernon stayed in while they were in London. But now she realized that this was so much better,she rolled on her side and looked at Gabriel, she giggled and laughed and said,”Did we just have sex?”

Gabriel laughed,”No…actually…I thought we made love to each other”he said as he rolled over as well and looked at her and stroked her cheek,”Didn’t we?”

Salomi nodded,”Yes we did. I love you Gabriel”she said as she snuggled closer to him.”Stay the night? Don’t leave?”she asked him

“I wont, I’ll never leave”he said as he held her close and then they laid there in silence until they both fell asleep.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Ruth sighed as she walked down the busy streets of Manhattan. She was headed to Dorothy’s apartment to get some papers. Dorothy sent her a telegram to pick them up and send them to her in Long Island. She walked up the many stairs and came to the door and turned the knob and to her surprise it was unlocked.She frowned,”I hope Lomi is awake”she said to herself as she walked in.”Lomi!? Did you know that you left the door unlocked?”she asked as she closed the door behind her and walked into the living area.No answer.”Lomi!? Don’t you know how dangerous it is? Its bad enough that you are here by yourself at night. You know what? I knew this was a bad idea. Starting tonight I am going to watch-“but then she stopped.As she walked into the room,she saw Salomi and Gabriel in bed….together….naked.

“LOMI!”she yelled at her.

“Shit! Ruth do you knock? That’s so rude just walking in like that”Salomi said as she snatched the covers up to cover herself more. Great, now what?

“The door was unlocked!”Ruth said in her high pitched shriek. She did this whenever she was upset, nervous, surprised or in disbelief. All of those emotions were running through her right now,”Which is dangerous you know! And this! You are only 13!-“

“I'M 14!”Salomi yelled back at her as she put on her panties and slip under the covers. Gabriel hastily found his briefs and put them on in silence.”I'M 14 GODDAMNIT!”

“Lomi!”Ruth and Gabriel said in disbelief,”Watch your mouth Lomi! And being 14 isn't any better, you are still just a kid!”Ruth said to her

“Oh I'm a kid huh!?I run a bar every night! My tutor says that I may graduate early. I already know what I want to do with my life. You weren’t like that at 14! You were still obsessed about some little blemish on your face, child's play”Salomi said to her

“Gabriel talk some sense into her”Ruth said to him and then stopped herself,”No…wait a minute. All of this is all your fault! You talked her into it. Gabriel you are 3 years older than her! You should know better!”

“Now don’t play mother with me Ruth”Gabriel warned her,”Are you trying to tell me that I had to convince Lomi to make love to me? We both wanted it and we both agreed to it. That’s it. We love each other and this is what couples in love do”

Salomi looked at him, he was so sweet. Standing up for them.

“Gabriel, it’s a sin. You two aren't even married! The Bible is against it!”Ruth said,”What you have done is wrong and you need to repent your sins”

“Oh God shut up Ruth!”Salomi said, then she stopped,”Wait…so that means….you’re a virgin aren't you?”

Ruth looked at her,”Yes I'm saving myself, for the one. The one I will marry”

“Well isn’t that sweet? Because I know who I'm going to marry already. At 14. Imagine that? And you’re almost 20. Sounds like someone is a little behind”Salomi said to her

They all stood there in silence. Gabriel couldn’t say a word, what Salomi said was harsh. Ruth thought the same but instead of being silent, she slapped Salomi across her face, a slap that wasn’t so silent. Salomi staggered back and Ruth jumped back, like she scared herself. She gasped, not believing that she did it. Gabriel ran to Salomi,”Damn it Ruth, what are you thinking?”

Ruth shook her head,”No…she deserved it. What was I thinking? Did you hear what she said to me Gabriel? What was I thinking?! What was she thinking? That I would stand by and take that!? If she doesn’t want to be treated like a child then I will treat her like an adult. It’s a rough world isn’t it? Don’t come crying to me when being all grown up isn’t all that its cracked up to be!”

Salomi fought back the tears that attempted to form. She drew in a deep breath and then said,”If I want to have sex with someone I love, I will do it! You aren't in charge of me! Ok?! IF I WANT TO HAVE SEX I CAN!”she yelled back at Ruth

“Excuse me?”they heard a voice say. They all turned and standing in the doorway was Salomi’s tutor.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi sighed as she sat behind Dorothy’s desk at Maisy’s. The club had already opened and the night was going well. But she couldn’t concentrate. Ever since her tutor caught her admitting that she was having sex, she was convinced that he would tell, Ruth as well. Dorothy would be so upset and worst of all, disappointed in her. She probably would never trust her again. And now she was under watchful eyes. Ruth and her tutor even set up a schedule. A keep-Salomi-out-of-trouble schedule. He gave her extra homework and Ruth volunteered to spend every night at Dorothy’s place with her. She sighed again, her life was over.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Good job everyone, see you tomorrow”Ruth said to the performers as they prepared to leave. Maisy’s was officially shutting down for the night and everyone was prepared to go home. Gabriel sighed. He would usually be with Salomi right now. Helping her get things together, locking up with her, walking her home and then sleeping with her. That was all over now. Ruth made sure not to let the two near each other. He was more upset that Salomi had to suffer through this. It wasn’t her fault. He cracked his knuckles and then closed the dressing room door behind him.

“Pssst!”came a voice, and he turned around and felt himself being pulled outside in the alley behind the club

“What the-?”he said and then the moonlight hit her gorgeous face.”Lomi”he said with a chuckle,”What are you doing?”

“I'm seeing you”Salomi said as she pulled him toward her and kissed him passionately.”I'm breaking the rules”

“Lomi, this is only gonna make things worse”he said as he forced himself to pull away.”This is what got us into this mess”

“But I love this. And I'm going to keep loving this now and I cant wait until we do this again….and again….and again”Salomi said with a giggle as she tried to kiss him again

Gabriel pulled away, he had to be the mature and strong one here, before something worse happens. “Look Lomi, they could tell Dorothy if they haven’t done it already. Both of us are going to be in some deep shit. Dorothy is my friend and my boss. We need to lay low for awhile”

“And Dorothy is my guardian and my best friend and my makeshift mother”Salomi said,”I'm gonna have it worse. Don’t worry. I'm gonna get the blame anyways”

“And that’s what I hate. We both consented to it and now you are gonna be in trouble”he said to her.”If I knew this was going to happen we wouldn’t have done it. I am regretting that its come to this”

Salomi looked at him,”So…you regret sleeping with me?”

“Things were just better before it happened”

“Do you regret sleeping with me?”Salomi repeated

“I mean don’t you agree?”Gabriel said trying to ignore her

“DO YOU REGRET SLEEPING WITH ME!?”Salomi practically shouted at him

“YES OK! FINE!”Gabriel shouted back at her,”Happy?”he asked her. Salomi just shook her head and ran back inside.”Lomi”he called after her but the only answer he got was the sound of the door locking behind her. She locked him out. He sighed.”Unbelievable”he said to himself. He would just have to walk home from here, by himself.

He rounded a corner and then walked right into something that he shouldn’t have. “Shit”he said as he jumped back

“Shit!”a man hissed and ran off.

“Wait!”another man hissed after him. But the guy never came back. He turned and Gabriel tried to run but he caught up with him. He grabbed Gabriel by the shoulders and threw him to the ground.”You’re gonna pay! You made me lose a customer!”he said as he grabbed Gabriel by his collar,”Do you know what that means?!”

“You aren't going to get paid”Gabriel said to him,”I know what you are doing. Hustling something illegal that pays well. You always do it in this alley”

The guy stopped,”Wise guy huh? You’s a wise guy huh? You know what that means now huh? Don’t you kid?”

Gabriel shook his head.

“Either I get to kill you since you know so much, or you can work with me since you know enough….which is it gonna be?”the man asked him as he pulled out a revolver.

“I'm with you”Gabriel said quickly. The man chuckled as he put the revolver back under his overcoat and roughly pulled him to his feet.

“Then we have a lot of work to do then”he said to him

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Father! Father’s here!”Vernon Jr. said excitedly as he got off the blanket that he and Vivian were playing on and they ran to hug Vernon.

Abby frowned as she wiped her hands on a towel and walked out of the kitchen. And there Vernon was, in the flesh, home….early…before supper.”Vernie”she said to him with a smile as she hugged him as well. He pecked her on the lips and she laughed.

“Now I know why I love coming home. You all shower me with kisses, I feel like a king”Vernon said as he picked up his two children and had them hoisted on each hip and Abby hugged him.

“Well we are mostly surprised. You never make it home in time….what happened?”she asked him

“The rumors are true. There's a new guy that Morietti picked up”Vernon said as he put the kids down and they ran off.”He’s now sharing shifts with some of us, well more like taking over. He has apparently been put on some of mine and now I'm here”

“That’s good”Abby said as he kissed her,”I miss having you here. The dinner table is going to be complete tonight”

“Yeah but that means less money Abby. I don’t know if I like this”he said as he followed her into the kitchen.

She turned to him,”Oh? So you would rather be out working than be at home eating dinner with your family?”

Vernon sighed,”Abby I don’t mean it like that. Its just that when I'm home I cant….Abby…I didn’t mean it that way”

“No Vernon I think you did. You would rather be at work. That’s fine. You’re being honest. And I apologize that I, your wife and your kids are so boring that you would rather be out doing illegal crimes!”she said angrily, her voice rising.

Vernon sighed as he stood right in front of her,”Abby. Keep your voice down or the kids will hear”he said sternly but quietly

“Let them! Let them! Let them know the truth about their father. The truth being that he is an illegal hustler!”she said loudly

Vernon stared at her angrily. He couldn’t say a word. He was too upset to speak. But then he finally spoke,”I'm not hungry any longer”he said and walked out,slamming the door behind him.

“Mother? Wheres Father going?”Vivian asked her

Abby sighed, wanting to cry.”I don’t know baby. I honestly don’t know” And that scared her even more.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel yawned as he collapsed in his makeshift mattress made of hay and a few stolen pillows. But he smiled when he pulled out the huge wad of money in his pocket. This new business was very illegal. Counterfeit money to be exact. But it was great, he could be rich without being rich really. He could see the sun starting to rise. He had a long day ahead of him…and another long night.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abby tossed and turned as she waited for Vernon to make his way back home. She didn’t know where he went but he was gone for hours. He meant it when he said that he wasn’t hungry.He missed all of dinner and as usual, Abby had to tuck in the babies alone. She sighed as she closed her eyes, but still all she could see was him.

She was half asleep when she felt a rock hard body lay on top of her.Before she could open her eyes,she felt his lips on hers.She knew these lips all too well.

She opened her eyes as he pulled away and he stroked her cheek,”I left and I just drove….but I drove so much and I wasn’t paying any attention that I got lost. It took me more time trying to get home back to you than running away. But the whole time I was away…all I could think about was you Abby. Yes I was upset. And yes what you said hurt me. But what would hurt me the most is losing you. I would be lost without you”he said to her,”Forgive me?”

Abby nodded,”Yes…if you forgive me”she said.He nodded and she pulled him down toward her and kissed him passionately, soon they were undressing each other and they soon were making love.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi sat at the desk as she sighed. She finally distracted Ruth and finally found a place to hide. Ruth was always on her case. She knew that any moment that Salomi wasn’t in sight, she would be with Gabriel. That would have been true if he didn’t say those words the other night. Those hurtful words. How could he regret something that was so beautiful? She gave him a huge part of herself and he acted like he wanted to give it back. And that’s the bad thing. He couldn’t. She pulled open a drawer and saw a half opened bottle of whiskey that she snuck from the bar. That was her own stash. She got the glass out and poured some inside it and then sipped it slowly and just lounged in the chair. Peace and quiet. It was good to just have some “her time”.

Then the door opened and she jumped up and her moment was ruined. But when she saw that it was Gabriel, she was only half relieved. He wouldn’t tell on her if she was drinking but she didn’t feel like seeing him either.”What do you want Gabriel?”

“Look….I cant say it in words because lately my communication hasn’t been so swell”he said as he gave her an envelope.”Open it”

She sighed and opened it. There was a small card that said, “I'm lost without you” and also in the envelope was a small bracelet. Her heart wanted her to cry and pull him toward her and just lock him in Dorothy’s office with her and never come out. But her head said different. Thinking with her heart and being so hopelessly romantic and sensitive got her into trouble in the first place. She needed to be grown up and mature about this and give him space.”How sweet”she said unenthusiastically

Gabriel frowned,”Huh? That’s all you can say?”

“Funny, I think I asked the same thing when you admitted that you regretted having sex with me”

“Lomi…God…..I realize that I hurt your feelings but I'm sorry.Its true, I'm lost without you.I need my girl….and my best friend back”Gabriel said,”Can we just have it the way it used to be?”

“No things changed when you took my virginity”she said as she gave the envelope back to him,”From personal experience you tend to speak before you think so I'm gonna give you time to really think about how you hurt me…and some card and bracelet isn’t gonna help. I was never into material things, you know that. I didn’t start getting anything until a few years ago”she said to him and opened the door,”Now go….you should be performing soon anyway”she said to him.But he just stood there, dumbfounded. “Run along, go”she said to him

“Run along?”he repeated,”Look Salomi I don’t know who you think you are but I'm sick of you treating me like this! Stop trying to make yourself feel superior by treating me like a child. Being a child is your job”he said harshly and left the room.

Salomi frowned. That hurt. That really hurt and he knew it would. He knew how she hated being called a child. Now she stood there dumbfounded just like he was.”Ugh!”she said loudly as she slammed the office door and locked it. She saw the envelope and threw it in the trash and then found the whiskey bottle and filled her glass. She drank the rest of it in just a few gulps.

“Ahhhh”she said as she sat down at the desk.But soon she was feeling the alcohol getting to her and she was also feeling something else. Something that she didn’t want to feel. She was missing Gabriel. She wanted to apologize, she wanted him to hold her in his arms and take the pain away. She wanted to make love to him again and again. How did her life get so complicated? Especially her love life.

“Life stinks”she said to herself as she felt herself getting sleepy.

*_______________________*

Gabriel walked into his dressing room and wanted to just break everything. Why was Salomi treating him like this? He knew that she still loved him,he could see it in her eyes, but her stubborn self was getting in the way. He couldn’t bear the fact that it might be over between them. Everything was finally going right for him after the tragedy of losing his best friend and grandmother. He couldn’t bear to lose her too.

A knock on the door made him jump out of his skin,”What!”he said harshly

The door opened and Tina,one of the Tumbling Twins came in,”Hello Gabriel, how are you?”

“Not good,what do you want?”he asked her without looking at her

“Ruth told me to tell you that you are on in 5”she said to him

“Alright,thanks”he said quickly

“Are you ok?Do you want to talk about it?”she asked him,walking toward him and touching his shoulder

“No Im fine”he said shrugging her off

“Alright”she said quietly and left.He sighed,he didn’t have to be that mean to her. He didn’t know what to feel anymore. He got his props together and then he picked up a pencil and started to write a little.

Im lost without you
I cant help myself
How does it feel?
To know that I love you baby?

More knocks on his door made him stop his creative moment,”ALRIGHT!”he shouted back and the knocking stopped.He took a deep breath and put on his fake show smile and walked out of the dressing room and went onstage and wowed the crowd yet again with his antics.At times he looked to see if Salomi was watching but for the first time,she wasn’t there.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Salomi! Are you sleeping!?”Ruth said as she walked into Dorothy’s office and saw Salomi’s head on the desk. Salomi jumped up quickly.

“Shit Ruth,I was just resting for a little bit, can I have some privacy?”Salomi asked.Her head hurt now, she must have had too much whiskey. She quickly hid the glass and empty bottle before Ruth could see it, hopefully.She also made a mental note to find herself another full bottle of whiskey.

“I don’t know Salomi. Can you have some privacy?”Ruth asked as she looked behind the door, she then opened the small closet and looked under the desk

“What on earth are you looking for?”Salomi asked her. Then she sighed,”Or should I ask who?”

“I just have to make sure that you are behaving. Dorothy has trusted me-“

“I know Ruth, God!”Salomi said to her,”Besides thanks to you and recent events we arent doing so good anyway”

“What do you mean?”Ruth asked her

“Ever since you have been on Operation Babysitting we have been arguing. He came in here earlier to apologize for some rude things he has said. I said some back and he retaliated and said some more back to me….we are fighting again”

“So he was here. He snuck in here to see you?”Ruth asked

“Yes, but I didn’t tell him to and I kicked him out”Salomi said

“Oh…well thanks for being honest”Ruth said to her

“When haven’t I been?”Salomi asked her as she left the room.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Shit”Gabriel said as he looked at his new pocket watch. He had only 30 minutes to get downtown to swap another deal. He got his special bag and put on his hat. He had to get out of here.

“You did a good job up there Gabriel”Tina said as she stood at his door

“Thank you”he said hurriedly as he tried to find a few other things

“How did you get so talented?”she continued to ask

“Look Tina, I would love to talk but I cant. Im in a hurry”he said to her as he closed his dressing room door behind him.”See you tomorrow,oh and tell Ruth to slide my check under the door. I’ll just get it tomorrow”he said and then disappeared out the back exit.

Tina nodded, she turned around and walked right into Ruth.”Oh Gabriel had to run”

“Alright…wait run where?”she asked her

“I don’t know,he said slide his check under his door”

“Oh alright then”Ruth said with a frown

“Oh Ruth?”

“Yes Tina?”she asked him

“Gabriel and Salomi are together right?”she asked her

“They were, but they might not be…they are always fighting she says”Ruth asked,”Why?”

“Oh…no reason”Tina said with a smile and walked away.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

A week has gone by and Dorothy was arriving later that day. Salomi was actually grateful. Since she and Gabriel haven’t spoken to each other at all that week, she wanted someone to talk to. It was hard to confide in someone like Ruth, not after what happened. Salomi took a cab to Grand Central Station and waited for Dorothy’s train to come. Soon she saw her and smiled.

“Hello there sweetheart”Dorothy said as she hugged Salomi close,she pulled away a little and looked at her,”You are still in one piece! You look a little older too”she said with a laugh

Salomi laughed,”And you look very tan”

“Well we shot a lot on the water and the beach and it has been very hot lately”Dorothy said and then gave her a hat box,”This is a gift for you and I have a few other knick knacks in my other packages”she said to her

“Oh thank you Dorothy”Salomi said.She helped Dorothy to the cab and the driver packed everything up. As they waited, Salomi opened the hat box and saw a very beautiful formal dress,”Oh…its beautiful. Now I need a place to wear it to”Salomi said as she hugged her

“You do. The film premiere of course. Its in a few weeks. Want to be my date?”she asked her

“Oh really?Yes I would love to”Salomi said happily,”Thank you.I would think that you would take Charlie Chaplin with you”she said with a wink

“You believe the rumors?”Dorothy asked her and laughed,”News travels fast.But no we just have a professional relationship. Besides hes very reserved, much different than the characters he plays”

“That’s what I hear. Gabriel loves him…”she said and stopped.She needed to stop talking and thinking about him. He probably put her out of his mind by now.

“So how is your lover boy?I expected him to be here with you”

“He couldn’t come”Salomi said,”Things arent going so good”she admitted

“Why not?”

“We just fight a lot now over little things. Then he claims that I treat him like a child and he called me one. We haven’t talked since”

“Must be awkward”Dorothy said,”So…you are going to let a few name callings end your relationship?”

“He hurt me”Salomi said

“Well huney maybe you hurt him too”Dorothy said

“Im trying to do the adult thing and give us some space. Im trying not to be too attached either-“

“But you are huney. You have been ever since you two met on that ship. You know the adult thing to do is to put all that anger aside and talk it out. Apologize and get over it. Life is too short”Dorothy said to her

Salomi looked at her. She was right. “But it might be too late. I barely see him anymore-“

“Thank God for Maisy’s huh?”she asked her,”And maybe it is. But tell him how you feel and I have a feeling that he will at least listen. If he has moved on already, his loss”

“Or mine”Salomi said

“Don’t think like that”Dorothy said,”You are beautiful and even though you are really young, you can get any grown man in this city. Its scary actually”she said with a laugh.Salomi laughed a little,”Tell you what…”she said and then said,”Oh driver? Can you take us to Reed’s Pub?”she asked him,”Lets get lunch”she said to her

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

A week has gone by and the argument that Vernon had with Abby was still on his mind. Could he possibly do this anymore? When Abraham was still alive, it was like they were a tag team. They were having the time of their lives. But now that he was dead, it wasn’t fun anymore. It was just a job. The money meant nothing to him anymore. Now that he had Abby and his two babies, all he wanted was to be with them.

But he couldn’t just quit. If he did, he might as well kiss his heartbeat goodbye. He just wished that he could find a way to get his old life back. To not be a hustler anymore. But still be alive to tell the story that was.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

A week has gone by and Gabriel has been working overtime to forget about Salomi. However, whenever he showed up at the club and saw her, he always fell in love with her all over again. But he couldn’t talk to her. He was still upset with the way she treated him. Call it pride. He didn’t want to run back like a little child. Because unfortunately, that’s what she thinks he is.

Gabriel took a bow and walked offstage.”One down,one more to go”he said to himself as he walked into his dressing room.He sat down and then winced,he had a sudden pain in his neck. He tried to massage it out but it wasn’t working,”Ahhh”he said

“Good job again table boy”Tina said.He looked in the mirror and could see her standing at the doorway.

“Thanks”he said

“You hurt yourself?”she asked him

“I think so”he said

“Here let me, its dangerous when you do it yourself”she said as she ran up behind him,”Here?”she asked him as she pointed to the tense spot.He nodded,”Oh boy,you are tense”she said as she massaged his neck

“That feels good”he said to her.

“You’re welcome”she said,”So I hear you used to be in a circus?”

“Yes.I didn’t learn how to pick up tables with my teeth in school”he said with a laugh

“I think that its great”she said,”I wish I could have been in a circus.Was it fun?”

“Yes it was.We traveled up and down the east coast and we went to Europe for a few months. I didn’t think that I would have seen so much by the time I was 15 but I did”

“Why did you leave if it was so wonderful?”she asked him

“The owner died and it all fell apart then.It took us about a month to get back here”

“Who’s us?”she asked him

“Me and Adam….”he said and stopped

“Whats wrong?”Tina asked,”I didn’t hit a bad spot did I?”

“No…”

“So where’s Adam?Performing somewhere else?”

“No,he passed. We planned to leave Europe and go back home on the Titanic-“

“You were on the Titanic!?”Tina asked him,”Oh no….Adam?”

“Yes, he didn’t make it”he said.Tina hugged him.

“Im so sorry”she said to him and went back to massaging his neck

“Actually Im fine”Gabriel said as he stood up,”You worked out all the kinks”

“Well do me now”Tina said as she sat down,”I perform soon anyway and it will take your mind off of…you know.You can ask me anything”

“Alright….”Gabriel said hesitantly.He started to massage her shoulders,”So how’s your twin sister?”he asked her

“Still pregnant”she said quickly and then moaned loudly,”Oh that feels good” This startled Gabriel and he stopped,”No..keep going”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Salomi!”

“Huh? What?”Salomi asked

“Huney Ive been calling your name repeatedly”Dorothy said to her,”Look you are no good to me working if you are going to daydream all night”she said to her,”Gabriel is backstage, talk to him”

“I don’t know-“

“Go on”she said to her.

Salomi got up and took a deep breath and walked backstage.There was the usual hustle and bustle while the other acts prepared to go onstage.She went over and over in her mind what she would say.Well first she would say sorry right?

She approached his door and saw that it was open. Then she heard a loud moan. It couldn’t have come from his room could it? She stood at the door and gasped a little. There was Gabriel, massaging Tina’s shoulders, they both looked pretty cozy, having conversation while she moaned here and there.Her face got hot with anger.How dare she? She knew that they were together! Everyone knew!

“Shouldn’t you be getting ready to go onstage?”she said sternly

Tina and Gabriel both jumped.Gabriel saw her and pulled away from Tina, like she was a disease or something, which was right.”Lomi I-“

“Get ready to go onstage now Tina”Salomi said to her,not looking at Gabriel

“Who said?”Tina asked

“Oh I don’t know,the person who pays you to perform!”Salomi said.Tina sighed and got up and left.Salomi looked at Gabriel,not knowing what to say.

“Lomi listen…we were just talking.I had a-“

“Save it”Salomi said and walked off.She held her composure and walked quickly to Dorothy’s office and locked herself in.She sat down behind her desk and cried.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Got em boss”a man said Morietti.”They match the profiles we have on the lost suitcase of money”

Morietti looked at the pictures.”You sure that’s them?”

“Yes, these two women were seen on the Titanic with Abraham Squires before his death.They should know where the suitcase of money is”

“They do match”he said,”Ok,we gotta send one of our men to persuade them to give it up if they haven’t spent it already”

“And what if they wont?Or what if they already spent it all?”

“We kill them”Morietti said simply

*__________________________*

Salomi stomped away from Gabriel’s dressing room as he called after her but she didn’t pay attention. He wanted to throw himself at other people in her face? Tina even!? Then she can do the same! She stomped into Dorothy’s office and lifted up a loose floorboard. Three bottles of whiskey was hidden down there just for her. Now that Dorothy was back she couldn’t hide them in her desk anymore. She opened a bottle and took huge gulps of it, too much maybe. She stopped and put it back under the floorboard and made sure it was secure. Then the room got dizzy and she sat down quickly. She sighed as she tried to keep her eyes and whole body steady. She couldn’t look drunk in front of Dorothy or anyone for that matter.

She slowly stood up and took a few deep breaths,she walked into the ladies room and splashed some water on her face. Her eyes were a little red. She blinked a few times and waited for the redness to disappear. When it seemed like the redness was gone a little, she walked out into the bar.

She looked up onstage and saw Tina doing her stupid tumbling act. She so wanted to go up on that stage and pull all of her blond hair out. She saw how all of the men were staring at her, cheering. She caught eyes with one of them however, he always stared at her. He was always there every night. It usually freaked her out because he was old enough to be her father. He nodded his head, signaling that he wanted her to come to him. And she saw Gabriel go to the bar at the same time. She smiled.”Two can play at this game”she said to herself and walked over to the man

“Well look what we got here”the man said to her,”You usually ignore me or send that Ruth girl over here”

“Ruth’s busy”Salomi said to him,”What do you need?”

“I would like another beer…but I also need to get to know you better. You are the hottest thing in here. Hotter than that Tumbling Tina”

Salomi smiled,”Well at least someone thinks so”she said proudly. She looked toward the bar and saw Gabriel staring at her. She knew that he didn’t like it when she talked to that guy. He knew how he kind of scared her with his blank stares. She smiled and looked at him,”What do you want to drink?”

“Whiskey….Jack Daniels. My best friend”he said

“Mine too”she said,”I’ll be right back”she said as she walked over to the bar and told the bartender that she needed two bottles of whiskey.

“What are you doing?”Gabriel asked her

“I'm doing my job”she said without looking at him. She leaned against the bar and the man smiled at her from across the room, she smiled back and waved flirtingly

“You’re flirting with him? And getting him drinks? You said he scared you, whats the interest now?!”Gabriel asked her

“Well he wants to get to know me and hes actually really nice and he said that he would rather look at me than Tina….unlike some people. So hes kind of a priority when it comes to my attention at this moment”she said as she kept smiling at the man, not looking at him

“Ok if this is about Tina and how you are jealous then just tell me. Don’t throw yourself at 40 year old men-“

“Why!? Cause your jealous too?”Salomi interrupted him

“No because he’s 40! That’s illegal! Your only 14!”

“Well maybe I need to find a man that’s 25 years older than me than a boy who’s only 3 years older. He’s a little more mature about it”

“There's nothing mature about statutory rape…what if he tries to touch you? You know that the attention that you give to him may be misleading? That he may want to do something more than just talk to you?”Gabriel asked her. He was really worried about her now. He didn’t like that man at all. This was making him too uncomfortable.

“Well hasn’t your attention misled me?”Salomi asked him as she grabbed two of the bottles of whiskey and put them on a tray.”I mean you said everything I wanted to hear, got me to sleep with you and now….here we are. I'm finding older men and you are flirting with tumbling whores”Salomi said as Tina finished her act and bowed. Men were bowing for her like she was God or something,she rolled her eyes,”Well Tina is done with her act, you might want to standby and get ready to massage her shoulders. You know shes always wanted to. I'm happy to know that you have been spreading around that we aren't together anymore”

“Lomi you know I love you and you know the only reason why we made love was because of that!”Gabriel said to her

“Could of fooled me”Salomi said as she walked away and over to the guy. Every inch she got closer to him, he got sicker to his stomach

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Miss me?”Salomi asked him flirtingly as she put the two bottles of whiskey down on his table.

“I only ordered one…”he said to her

“The other ones on the house”Salomi said and winked at him

The man smiled,”I'm liking you already”he said with a smile,”My names Frank…you must have a gorgeous name”

“Salomi”

He raised his eyebrows,”Wow never heard that name before. Sounds exotic. You look exotic. Your mother picked the perfect name”

“I was named after her”Salomi said

“I bet she is beautiful too. Your father must be a lucky man”Frank said to her

“He….yes…”she said not wanting to correct him about her being an orphan basically, he didn’t want to hear all of that

Then Ruth rushed over to her,”Please go check on Andre, he’s gonna be late, hes next and I have to take care of something”she said to her and rushed off.

Salomi nodded, she sighed with relief though. Ruth was so freaked out that she didn’t notice that a 40 year old man was flirting with her.”Gotta get back to work”

“Come back and visit when you have free time”Frank said to her

“I will”Salomi said with a smile and then went backstage.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel slammed his fist down on the bar and walked toward his dressing room. He didn’t know how else to get through to Salomi. He didn’t want to get hurt anymore…or feel for her anymore. But he knew that was impossible. Should he give up on her?

He walked into his dressing room and saw Tina sitting on his vanity table. He sighed,”Tina…this isn’t a good time…”

“She hurt you didn’t she?”she asked him

“What?”he asked her

“I know what's going on. I saw her flirting with some old guy…who by the way doesn’t look anywhere near as good as you do. She’s playing games..and to be frank with you..its excusable. She's…what? 14? Shes still a baby. A little girl. They can do that. But not you, no you’re a man now. You are too old and mature to deal with that shit”Tina said as she came up to him,”You hate how she bosses you around. You hate how everything is going between you two right now. But shes not helping, shes only pushing you away. Now…me…I wouldn’t push you away. I'm 18 and I'm too old for games. I tell you what I want…when I want it”she said as she got closer to him,”And I want you Gabriel. Leave the kid behind and get with a woman”she said to him. And she ended her very dramatic monologue by pulling him toward her and kissing him as hard and as passionate as she could.

For a split second he almost gave in, but it was a split second and it was over quickly. He pulled away from her and pushed her up against the wall.”Look Tina…you are beautiful, talented, graceful..and you certainly have legs for days….but you have to leave me alone ok? I love Salomi. And I need to give us some space right now. But I cant do that if you are always around trying to get into my pants. You are being a hypocrite when you say I should stop playing games with Lomi…because if I were to give in to you. I would be doing the same with you. You have been playing games since you somehow found out about me and Lomi’s falling out. But its just a falling out, its not over”Gabriel said to her and then let her go.”You gotta go”he said to her,”I need to think”

Tina frowned and groaned,”Fucking child”she said and stomped out of the room

“Fucking child?”Gabriel said to himself.”That’s new”he said as he sat down at his dressing room vanity.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Now you know not to drink before you go onstage you alcoholic!”Salomi said to Andre as she walked out of his dressing room,”You are on in 10…I don’t care if you have to throw up on your banjo but you have to perform…they love you out there”she said to him quite frankly and closed the door behind him.

She walked back toward the bar and walked past Gabriel’s dressing room, his door was halfway open and she again heard something that she wished she didn’t.

”Look Tina…you are beautiful, talented, graceful..and you certainly have legs for days….”was what Gabriel was saying to her. Salomi blocked the rest of it out. That must be it. They are over. She held back the tears as she went out to check on her new friend Frank.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abby felt on top of the world..and so in love. Now that Vernon was home more often due to this new “golden child” that came into the hustle, they can actually be a family. She had her husband back and it felt so good. She snuggled against him and smiled,”I love you Vernie”she said to him

“I love you too”he said to her

They sat there in silence and listened to each other breathe as they held each other and laid there. Then Abby felt her stomach turn. She jumped out of bed and scared Vernon in the process and ran to the kitchen and threw up in the wash basin.

“Baby…whats wrong? Whats going on!?”Vernon asked as he ran to her. He comforted her as she threw up, rubbing her back as she did so. She then finished and sat on the floor, leaning her head against the basin. He handed her a glass of water,”Was it something you ate?”he asked her

She shook her head as she drank the water, she took big gulps and then took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. She sat there in silence as she tried to find the right words to say. He sat there staring at her, scared out of his mind. She looked at him and then…started laughing?

“Abby….what….whats….why are you-“

“Don’t you know whats going on?”she asked him as she laughed,”I didn’t want to tell you because I wasn’t sure…but….Ive been throwing up for days now…”

“Ok…?”

“Vernie. I'm pregnant. We are going to have another baby”Abby said happily

“Are you?…Ohmygod!”he said as he kissed her cheek happily.”Oh baby. You…we are just popping out babies like hotcakes”he said with a laugh

“Yes its so easy now”Abby said,”Oh it will be great. Vivian and Junior can have a little brother or sister to take care of and play with.We can be a bigger and better family”she said as she snuggled against him as he sat next to her on the kitchen floor

Vernon instantly got sad. Bringing another child into the world was a miracle indeed. Just a few years ago, doctors were telling Abby that she could never be with child. But now he had not 2 but 3 kids to keep away from his hustling and illegal life. His conscience was getting to him….he had a bad feeling that time may run out for him if he didn’t stop this feeling in his stomach soon.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Hey boss”Morietti’s bouncer said as he walked into his office

“What?”Morrietti said as he counted counterfeit money, not looking up.

“I got a new lead on those two girls with the suitcase. You wont believe it”

“So fast?”Morietti asked, finally looking at him.

“My girl of the week loves reading the papers. She has archives of them. Supposedly the older dame is a silent film star and real famous too. Supposedly she and Abraham had a real hot fling. My girl is a big fan of hers. The other girl is Abraham’s daughter….but look who’s with them”he said as he pointed to the old black and white photo on the page.

Morietti grabbed the paper from him and looked at the headline, “FILM STAR GIVES UP FILMS TO BE A NANNY”. The picture showed the woman walking the streets of New York City with the girl,next to the girl was a blond haired boy. He gasped,”Holy shit”

“Yep, it’s the Golden Child. He knows them”

Morietti laughed,”I knew that kid would be good to us. He’s been bringing in a lot of customers….and he’s gonna bring that million dollar suitcase right back to us. Its been too long”

“So,what do we do boss?”

“When he comes to the office, have him speak to me instead of dropping off his delivery. I have a proposition he wont be able to refuse…”Morietti said as he snickered evilly as he looked at the picture. The wheels were sure turning in his head and they weren’t turning up anything pretty.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel sighed as he sat down at the table, looking at himself in the mirror. However,it was funny, all he could see was Salomi’s face. He then picked up another scrap sheet of paper and continued to write what he couldn’t finish before.

Tell me how you love me more
And how you think I'm sexy baby
But you don’t want nobody else
You don’t want this guy
You don’t want that guy
You wanna…
Touch yourself when you see me
Tell me how you love my body
And how I make you feel baby
You wanna roll with me
You wanna hold me
You wanna stay warm and get out of the cold with me
I just love to hear you say it
It makes a man feel good baby
Tell me you depend on me
I need to hear it

He could write for days but then there was a knock on the door and Ruth came in.

“Shit can you knock?”he asked her.

“Sorry….your money for tonight”Ruth said to him

“Hey…can I ask you something?”Gabriel asked her.She nodded,”Did you tell Tina that Salomi and I broke up?”

“No…well…I told her that you two were fighting…why?”she asked

Gabriel just chuckled,”Nothing….never mind…forget it…”he said to her sarcastically as he got his things and rushed out the door. He should have known.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel finally finished all of his deliveries and went to headquarters to drop everything off and just go home. Tonight was just exhausting and he couldn’t stop thinking about Salomi. He dropped his bag off and nodded at Morietti’s assistant and started to walk off.

“Not so fast”he said as he grabbed him,”He wants to talk to ya”he said and pushed him into his office. It all happened so fast, and soon he was standing right in front of Morietti

“Uh…hi sir”Gabriel said to him

“Ok,I'm going to cut to the chase here”Morietti said to him and then he showed Gabriel a picture of him, Salomi and Dorothy walking down Times Square. ”You know these girls?” Gabriel nodded,”Good. You don’t lie. These two girls have something of ours. And they have had it for years, well ever since that damn ship sank. They have a suitcase filled with one million dollars of counterfeit money that is rightfully ours. Not theirs. A very important client wants it. Now we need a way to get to them but we find that you are already close to them. You need to get that suitcase immediately”

Gabriel sighed.He knew that Salomi cherished that suitcase because besides her father’s overcoat, that was all she had of him. She was barely speaking to him now. How could he possibly get it from her? “Um…I'm sorry but me and the girl…Salomi…we are barely speaking”

Then in a split second, Morietti had him pinned against the wall with a 9mm pointed to his head,”Listen you fuck! I don’t want any apologies. I don’t care if your fucking the girl or not! Whether you are talking to her or not! Bottom line is I need that fucking money now! Steal it, replace it with something else. Anything! I need that money by Friday night at midnight or both of those girls will die, you understand me?!” Gabriel nodded in fear,”DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME!?”

“Yes”Gabriel said and then ran out the office.What shit did he get himself into now?

*______________________________*

"The dress is wonderful Dorothy, thank you”Salomi said as she stood in front of the mirror and tried on the blue gown that Dorothy bought her for the premiere Friday night. Dorothy had to send it to a tailor since Salomi’s breasts grew since she last saw her, they had to fine tune the top part of the dress so she wouldn’t fall out of it. Now it was much more comfortable and it was still very beautiful.

“Your welcome”Dorothy said and she shook her head,”I cant believe your breasts are about as big as mine. I'm jealous”she said as she looked at it in the mirror with her. “Ok well take it off now, don’t want it to get dirty”she said to her,”I'm going to make us some lunch”she said as she kissed her on her cheek and walked out of the room and closed the door behind her.

Salomi smiled and twirled around and giggled a little. She felt like a princess in this gown. She didn’t want to take it off. She couldn’t wait to wear it on Friday night. After twirling around a few more times, she finally took the gown off and laid it on the bed and put her clothes back on. She put the gown in the closet and then looked down and saw the suitcase. Tears came to her eyes, she tried to close them tight so they wouldn’t fall but all she could see was her father’s face….

“Daddy,lets just throw the money away. You are more important, you are gonna freeze yourself to-“then she stopped, she didn’t want to say death.

“No……we need it………”he said and then moaned,”Oh God…….you are my sunshine……my only……..sunshine……….happy………skies…….gray……..”he said and then he was silent.

“Dad?”Salomi asked,”DAD”

“I……..love……..you……”he said and then he was silent again. Salomi broke down and cried. Her father was dead. She put her hands to her face and screamed and then she turned away not wanting to look at him. Then he slipped off the door and started to sink. She cried as she watched his body sink to the bottom.

Then she heard the door open and she opened her eyes and saw Gabriel standing there. She wiped away her tears quickly,”What do you want?”she asked him

Gabriel just stood there, staring at her. He tried to rehearse what he wanted to say to her, but he knew how much that suitcase meant to her. He knew that she was probably crying over it, she did that sometimes. “Why are you crying?”he asked her

“I'm not”she said as she sniffled

“It’s the suitcase isn’t it?”he asked her

“No-“

“Baby, why don’t you just get rid of it? I mean yes, it has memories of your father attached to it but….he loved you more than that suitcase. Its just a suitcase. All it does is sit there and make you cry”

“If he loved me more than the suitcase then why did he die for it?”Salomi asked him,”He didn’t die for me, he died making sure that suitcase was safe”

“Stop it Lomi”Gabriel said to her,”You know that isn’t true. Your father loved you more than anything. I mean why did he tell me to stay away from you? Why did he threaten to report me? He was your ultimate protector and that’s why he froze to death in that water…not for the suitcase but for you”

“He said he was just like you”Salomi said

“What?”he asked

“I remember our last conversation before he died. He mentioned how I looked like my mother and how boys looked at me. He mentioned that he shouldn’t be too mad about you liking me…that he was a troublemaker too”

“He said that about me?”Gabriel asked her. She nodded and then started to cry. He went to her and held her as she cried into his chest. Salomi was so headstrong that he forgot how fragile she could be. She was only fragile when something reminded her of her father and him dying right in front of her. Shes been through so much. He held her close as he looked at the suitcase. She cant go through anything else. Her father was her protector and now hes gone. He had to protect her now. And if he left that suitcase in her possession, she would be dead by next week. That couldn’t happen, he had to get it away from her and now. He let go of her and picked up the suitcase.

“What are you doing?”she asked him

“You don’t need this-“

“Give it to me!”she said as she grabbed the suitcase. But he didn’t let go,”Give it to me!”she said to him. She pulled with all her might but he was still stronger.

“Whats going on?”Dorothy asked as she came in and they both let go of the suitcase and it dropped to the floor and the clasp unlocked itself. Salomi started to cry again. She looked at Gabriel,”Gabriel, you should go”she said to him. He nodded and left, defeated. She only let him in so the two could talk but somehow they started fighting over Abraham’s suitcase. She sat down next to Salomi on the bed and held her. “Its ok…..its ok….”she said to her

Salomi cried for a few seconds at least and then toughened up again. “How dare he? He thinks he knows everything about everything”

“What happened?”

“I was crying over the suitcase…remembering…then he told me that I didn’t need it. That I could do without it and he tried to take it from me! Little thief”she said and then stopped. That’s what her father called Gabriel when he found out that they stole food from the banquet he went to on the Titanic.

“Well I understand where hes coming from. I also understand your attachment to it but baby, if the suitcase is here or not, you will always have your fathers memory. He lives in you. That suitcase is just material”

“Yeah material that he died for. It was important to him and Uncle Vernie and they died trying to keep it intact. Its my job to keep that going. No one can touch it, no one”Salomi said stubbornly

“Sweetheart do you even know whats in it? I mean is it Abraham’s clothing?-“

“Fine! Here!”Salomi said as she got up and opened the briefcase and they both gasped. It was filled with money. Salomi knew that money was in there but she didn’t know that it was that much.

“Oh my God”Dorothy said, remembering what he confessed to her before the ship sank. That he was in organized crime and that was why they could afford living in first class and all the fancy clothes. She just didn’t know that it was that serious. “I think you should close it now”she said. Salomi did so but couldn’t lock it. The lock was broken.”Just put it back in the closet”she said to her and Salomi did so.She didn’t know what to do or say but she had a bad feeling about it. That suitcase couldn’t stay in this apartment.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The rest of the day went by in a blur for Gabriel. He walked around the city aimlessly while he stressed himself out over what could happen to Salomi and Dorothy. He had to find some way to steal it. Or should he talk to Dorothy about it? No they both couldn’t get hurt in the process. He was in love with Salomi and Dorothy was like a motherly figure. He couldn’t lose them, they were all he had. He cant lose anyone…no one, not anymore. He sat in a pub and finished writing the song that he has been writing about Salomi while he had soup and a sandwich. He then went straight to Maisy’s and performed. He stayed away from Salomi and Tina. He just didn’t know what to do with himself. He then went on his deliveries as usual. Luckily when he dropped off his bag, Morietti was busy yelling at someone else, so he was able to escape unseen. What did he get himself into? He took his earnings out of his pocket. Was this money worth all this stress? Abraham died for it. Was he next? Salomi? Dorothy?

He was lost in his thoughts and bumped into someone. The person had money in their hand and it was sent flying through the air. “Shit watch where your going”he said as he picked it up

“I'm sorry”Gabriel said as he got down and helped him

“Don’t touch it. I got it”the man said and then looked at him. Then they both stopped and stared at each other with looks of familiarity. Gabriel had a feeling that he has seen this man before and the man felt the same about him.

“You the ‘Golden Child’?”the man asked him

“Yeah….and you…? I have seen you somewhere before this…”

“Yeah me too….”the man said and he slowly went back to picking up his money. “I just don’t know where I have seen you…I mean I have been doing this for a long time”

“How long have you lived here?”Gabriel asked. For some reason something told him to find out who this man was. For some reason it was freaking him out.

“About 2 and a half years”the man said

“Yeah me too….”Gabriel said. They came to New York at around the same time? “Where you from?”

“California….you?”

“Memphis….Tennessee”Gabriel said. The man nodded and he stood up and looked around and started to walk. Gabriel walked with him. “So…why are you here in New York? What made you come here, if you don’t mind me asking?”

“This”he said as he held up the envelope of money.”This all started in California but the police were onto Morietti so he moved everything back here. While he was moving, me and my partner were in London”

“London? Its nice there, Ive been there. I traveled around Europe for a few months”Gabriel said

“Yeah….London was great but the trip back to New York wasn’t. I was on the Titanic”he said to him as they walked onto the sidewalks of the city. Now Gabriel could clearly see his face from the streetlights. No, it couldn’t be.

“I was there too. On the Titanic. I don’t know how I survived sometimes but I did”Gabriel said to him,”Who was your partner?”

“Abraham Squires…he sank with the ship…”he said sadly.

Gabriel nodded,”He has a daughter? Salomi?”

Tears came to the man’s eyes,”Yes…he had a daughter. Little Lomi….how do you know all of this?”he asked him

“Because I know Salomi. We met on the ship-“

“So you were the troublemaker that she hung out with?”he asked with a laugh,”Wow now your face is very familiar. I saw you with her the night the ship hit the icebergs….God its unfortunate, she was only 12. She died so young”

“Salomi isn’t dead”Gabriel told him.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Once Gabriel told Vernon the news about Salomi, he wanted to hear everything that has been going on with her. He took Gabriel back to the house and made him tea and reheated the soup that Abby left for him. She was asleep when they got in. She needed plenty of rest, she was one month along now and they didn’t want to risk it. They were being very careful about this pregnancy, not wanting to be cavalier at all. Vernon explained the last time he saw Salomi, how he fell off the ship but managed to survive, how he was in a slight coma for weeks and the slight amnesia that he had. He mentioned that he looked for Salomi but she and Abraham didn’t show. He assumed they were dead. He also explained how he moved Abby to New York so they could be closer to her new doctor so she could have a smooth delivery, and she did.

Gabriel also explained how he found Salomi with Dorothy. How they have been romantically involved and how he ‘accidentally’ got into organized crime. Then he told Vernon about the suitcase and Morietti’s threat.”I went over there and tried to take it but Salomi wouldn’t have it. She feels that she needs to take care of the suitcase since her father cared about it so much. But it has a lot of money in it”

“A million dollars”Vernon said,”When I came back to work for him, I went through a lot of shit. I told him that the suitcase sank with the ship. I worked my ass off trying to make it up to him. I still haven’t, now how they found out about Salomi having the suitcase is beyond me. I cant let him do this. We cant let him do this”

“I know, but I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to steal it from her, but I know if I do she will be better off. She just may never speak to me again. I cant risk it-“

“Believe me, I think you would rather have Salomi not speak to you again than not speaking at all. I'm sure you love her or at least care a whole lot about her, but her life is more important. If she never speaks to you again…that’s a risk you have to be willing to take. That’s small compared to actually losing her. Her life is in danger”Vernon said to him. He shook his head,”Morietti has to go down anyway. I'm sick of this life. All this money?It isn’t worth it. Now at first it was great. I could give my wife anything she wanted. But what she truly wants is a family and she has that now…but now I'm barely home. I'm not happy anymore.I don’t want my children at risk. To tell you the truth, even though it was rough, life was so much easier when we were poor. I kick myself sometimes because I got myself into this mess and I got Abraham into the business and look where he winded up? Salomi cant wind up in the same place. She has her life ahead of her”

Gabriel looked at the clock. It was a little past midnight. It was Friday morning. “Well we gotta think of something and fast…or they wont be alive by tomorrow”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Look what I found boss”Morietti’s assistant said as he put another article on his desk

“If I knew any better I would say that you actually have been teaching yourself how to read”Morietti said as he kept on counting money,”It better be important”

“Its about the dames with the suitcases”he said to him as he threw a newspaper article on his desk. Morietti picked it up and looked at the article. There was a silent film premiere in New York City tonight for a film that was written about the sinking of the Titanic. Her name was Dorothy Gibson and she talked of her own experiences about the sinking of the ship, working with Charlie Chaplin, her break from films and blah,blah, blah. The reporter asked her if she and Charlie were dating and she declined and said that she was bringing “…a very special person that I have been taking care of since the accident. She is the reason why I did this film and why I'm at this stage of my life at this moment. Her name is Salomi Squires”

“So it seems these two dames are going to be very busy the night that we have to kill them. That Golden Child hasn’t pulled through so hes gotta go too. I don’t care if he brought in a lot of business…I cant trust him”Morietti said

“So…are we gonna kill em on Saturday?”his assistant asked

“No you idiot. Everyone who is at the premiere is gonna see two performances. One is gonna be some silent and stupid sappy love story on a ship and the other one is gonna be anything but silent. It will be a double homicide”he said,”Put on your best tux. We’re going to that premiere tonight”he said with a wicked smile.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Dorothy! Come on! We’re gonna be late!”Salomi shouted up to their apartment window.The movie was going to start in an hour and there was probably a lot of traffic. She was too excited to wait.”What the hell is she doing up there?”she asked as she got into the car.

“Yes, put it in there”Dorothy instructed the driver. He put the suitcase in the trunk.”I need to keep it there until I know what to do with it”she said to him and then got into the car and they headed to the premiere.

*_________________________*

“Good luck baby”Abby said as she kissed Vernon on his cheek.He told her everything about Salomi being alive and Morietti’s plan.”You better come back to me in one piece”she warned him.

“I will baby. Salomi too. Dorothy as well, we are all going to be fine”he said. He looked at Gabriel.”Lets go. We are running out of time”he said to him. They both got into Vernon’s car and drove off.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“If I wasn’t dead already, I would kill myself for getting Lomi into this mess”Abraham said to Salomi. Of course he has been watching over her but he never knew that this would happen. “How could I have been so stupid? I should have just let the suitcase go with the ship”

“Abraham you didn’t know ok? Trust me, we have a lot of people on our side. People who can do more than we can”Salomi assured him,”Our baby will be fine”

“She cant join us Salomi. She cant. As much as I miss holding her and playing with her, she cant be here with us. Shes got the rest of her life ahead of her. Shes only 14”

“She wont baby, she wont. She will come to us when shes ready. We’ll do what we can but those mortals can do more for her than we can. Good or bad. We just need to keep the good surrounding her and hope that prevails over the evil”Salomi said to him, “And remember, Lomi is a fighter just like I am. She may surprise us”

“She better”Abraham said with a sigh,”Lets just pray that when it comes to good vs. evil, we come out on top”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi smiled as Dorothy talked to many reporters, they posed for pictures and met other film stars. She felt like a star too. She almost wished that she had some type of talent instead of math skills but this was good enough. She got complimented on her dress a lot and she felt like a princess. She was getting a lot of attention from older men too. Gabriel was still acting up, he probably would never come around. What if she dated a film star?

“Are you proud of Dorothy, young lady?”a reporter asked her as light bulbs flashed in her face.

She stared wide eyed,”Yes I am. I'm happy that she is happy doing this and proud of it. I'm proud of her too”

“Come on Salomi. The film is starting in 15 minutes, we need to get inside and to our seats”Dorothy said to her. They thanked the reporters and walked inside the theater. Dorothy bought them drinks and candy to enjoy even though the film was only 10 minutes long. They had front row seats next to Charlie Chaplin and David Flanahan, who wrote the script. Salomi sat there beaming. This was gonna be the most exciting night of her life. She just had a feeling it would be.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

While Dorothy and Salomi were out, Ruth, as usual, had to take over. She had to take over the club as well as a few last minute things in the apartment. While the two were getting ready, Ruth was instructed to distract Salomi while Dorothy tried her best to get some suitcase out of the apartment. It wasn’t easy since Salomi was so excited and all over the place. It kind of brought her back to earth. They all forget sometimes that shes still just a little girl. She wanted to know what was in the suitcase but Dorothy said she would explain it when she had time to. Must have been very important though. “Ok everything is done here”Ruth said as she headed for the door. Then there was a knock. She frowned. Did they forget something? She looked through the peephole but then saw no one. She shrugged and opened the door anyway and there were two men dressed in black.”Can I help you?”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi cried as the ‘Titanic’ sank in the film and Dorothy and Charlie Chaplin went down with it. It reminded her of everything that happened that night. The loved ones she lost such as her father and Uncle Vernie and loved ones she gained, which was Dorothy and Gabriel. She tried to keep her cool. Dorothy was very close to not bringing her since she thought the film would upset her and it did. But it had a happy ending. She and her loved one went down together. Sometimes she wished she would have died with her father, that way she could see her mother again and be a family in the clouds, up in heaven. The film ended and the audience applauded as Dorothy grabbed her hand. She had tears in her eyes as well.

“You alright?”she asked her

Salomi nodded,”It was very good. It must have been hard for you to make”

Dorothy nodded and laughed through her tears,”Trust me, those tears weren’t that hard to muster. I think your father would be proud…don’t you think?”

Salomi smiled,”Yes….he should have been in it. You two would have had great chemistry”

Dorothy looked at her impressed,”Now what do you know about chemistry?”

“Ive been reading those acting books you have in the apartment sometimes. Just so I know what you and Gabriel talk about. I mean I do help you manage a theater. I think I would need to know what my workers are doing”she said and Dorothy hugged her.

“I love you Salomi”she said to her

“I love you too. I'm proud of you Dorothy”Salomi said as she hugged her back. Then David and the director said a few words about the film and informed everyone that it would be released into theaters in the next month. Then they all headed to the Hammerstein Ballroom for the ball that was held in the film’s honor for dinner and dancing. Salomi couldn’t wait, she was starving and she noticed some man staring at her. He was cute in a dark and mysterious way…maybe she will get to know him?

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Morietti punched a hole in the wall when the blond told him that the suitcase wasn’t there.”WELL WHERE IS IT!?”

Ruth swallowed hard, she had this feeling that if she told the truth, Dorothy and Salomi would be in danger. But she had a knife to her throat! “I…..I dunno….”

“Listen you little bitch, I will shoot you in the head if you don’t tell me where the suitcase is. We have been watching you and we know you know all about it. You are always here. NOW WHERE IS IT!?”Morietti said as he pointed his gun right at her.

Ruth started to cry and then she regretfully said,”They took it…”

“WHO’S THEY!?”

“Dorothy, she owns this place-“

“That’s the film star boss”his assistant said to him.

Morietti nodded,”Alright lets go”he said to the assistant. He turned to the two men that were still there. One who had been combing the apartment while the other held the knife to the girls throat.”Do whatever you want to her, shes no use to us anymore”he said as they left.

Ruth didn’t like the sound of that and started to cry some more. What were they going to do to her? Rape her? Slit her throat? Torture her?

“Well you heard him, go ahead and kill her”one said

“No. I ain't being charged with that. Ive never killed anyone before”the knife holder said.”Give me that chair”he said. He then sat Ruth down in it.”You got some rope in here or something?”

“I…..dunno”Ruth said, still crying. She did calm down a little since they weren’t gonna kill her.

“What are you doing man? Just shoot her then!”the other said.The man ignored his partner and tied her hands to the back of the chair with his handkerchief, very tightly in fact. He then found some other handkerchiefs and tied one around her mouth and legs.”You done?!”the other said impatiently,”If you would have just slit her throat we could be all the way on the other side of town by now!”

“I don’t see you doing anything!”he yelled back.”I'm not doing this.Morietti aint paying me enough to knock off some chick who don’t know nothing!”

“You know shes gonna tell! Shes gonna tell someone, that’s all these bitches do! They tell on us guys!”

“Yeah and that’s why your such a fucking fruit!”

“WHAT!?”

“Yeah, you heard me. I heard about you and some guy at that Rainbow Room club. Now if you wanna kill her, go on, go right ahead, you are already sinning enough for the both of us”

Ruth watched in shock as the two started to argue right in front of her. Then all of a sudden two other men burst into the apartment and a fight ensued. She then noticed that one of them was Gabriel and she tried to shout out to him but she couldn’t. The man that was with him took the “fruit” down easily. But the one with the knife was tougher, more trained. He didn’t want to kill her but he certainly wanted to kill Gabriel. Just as he cut Gabriel’s arm was when the other guy smashed a bottle over his head and he fell to the floor. He then ran over to her and untied her.”Ok where is it?”he asked her

“Who?”Ruth asked the man, she didn’t know who he was and her head was spinning.

“Ruth its ok. Hes with me. Wheres the suitcase?”Gabriel asked her as he untied her

“Whats in that suitcase!?”she asked in a high pitched voice.”What the hell is so important about it! These two men were trying to kill me over it!”

“Just tell us where it is Ruth please! We don’t have time! Dorothy and Salomi could die! Now where is it!”Gabriel said

“They took it with them. They have it. Dorothy was trying to get rid of it. Its in the trunk of one of the cars that took them to the premiere”

“Shit…”Gabriel said

“We still have time, as of right now,he may not have his hands on it yet”the man with Gabriel said.”These men must be working for Morietti. He probably has some other clone doing his dirty work”

“Morietti?He was here too.He….I'm so sorry…..”Ruth said and started crying

“What?! He was here? Where is he now?”Gabriel asked her

“They barged in here looking for it, they couldn’t find it of course….I was scared…I didn’t know what to do…he had a knife to my throat….I told him that they had it and they went looking for them. They just left like…5 minutes ago…I'm so sorry! I didn’t know what else to do!”Ruth cried

“Ok, do me a favor”the man said,”Wire the police and tell them that Morietti has been found. They have been on to him for some time now about the counterfeiting. Tell them that he is at that movie premiere ok? Can you do that for us?”he asked her. She nodded,”Are you going to be ok here by yourself?”

“Yes…oh the club! I'm late, I cant open it-“

“Forget it. Dorothy and Salomi’s lives are at stake you can go dancing another time”the man said to her,”Lets go”he said to Gabriel.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Forget it David. I told you, this was going to be my last film and the only reason why I did it was because you wrote an excellent script and…I wanted to do it for Abraham….I'm done”Dorothy said as she danced with David at the banquet. He had another script and he couldn’t see anyone being the leading lady besides her.”Aren't you going to respect my wishes?”

“I want to. I really do but Dorothy you are so young. Now I know this film will probably take care of you and your little girl for the rest of your lives but don’t retire and be all cavalier on me now”David said,”You admitted that you missed it remember?”

“Yes I did but that was after too many glasses of champagne”

“But its true, isn’t it?”he asked her

Dorothy nodded and then looked at Salomi who was dancing with Charlie. She was laughing and having the greatest time. He was good with kids, but who would be surprised? “I cant David. I promised him. I promised him I would take care of her. If I do another movie I will be away too much and if something were to happen to her while I'm gone being a film star….I wont be able to forgive myself”

“But shes in good hands right? I mean nothing major happened to her while you were away on the set correct?”

“But that was one time and that’s because I had her on lock down but shes getting older and more stubborn and more beautiful. I mean you see how the men are staring at her. I promised him David…”

“So Abraham would want you to be a babysitter for the rest of your life. He wants you to sit back and let life pass you by while it happens to her? I mean that’s a little selfish and very much unlike the Abraham you have described to me”he said to her.”I understand that promise and I know its dear to you. But don’t let that promise dictate your whole life. I mean you never go out anymore. You say that Salomi has found love, when is it going to happen to you?”

“I don’t know. I still love him”Dorothy said as tears came to her eyes.

“And I bet he loves you. And I sure as hell can bet that he doesn’t want you to pass up anything because it will interfere with you tucking her in at night”David said,”Just read the script, that’s all I ask. I mean you are gonna do what you want anyway…but can you please just read it?”

Dorothy nodded. What David was saying was true. Abraham just wanted her to be happy and she was. This film will help pay for the expenses of the club and gallery and there would be plenty of money she can set aside for her and Salomi. Another film can do so much more for them as well. Salomi said she was proud of her and as long as she was happy, she was happy too. She looked out into the crowd and she couldn’t see Salomi anywhere. She was probably making herself sick at the candy table. “I’ll read it. Send it to my office as soon as you can”she said to him as they continued to dance.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi smiled as she sucked on what was her 6th lollipop that night. She felt like a kid in a candy store, she was having the best time. She reached over to grab another one when another hand grabbed for the same one as well. She looked up and it was the mystery guy.

“Oh excuse me, after you”he said to her apologetically

“No, its fine. I think I have had too much anyway”Salomi blushed. “They are very good. You can have it”

“You sure?”he asked her

“Yes, they are the best thing they have here I must say”Salomi said with a smile

“I know of other things that are best here”he said to her

“Oh really? What is that?”she asked him

“Your smile….”he said and then laughed,”I have been watching you all night. I cant take my eyes off of you”

“I noticed”Salomi said

“Can I ask your name?”

“Salomi”she said as he kissed her hand.

“My name is Abraham. Abe for short. You can call me Abe”he said

Salomi gasped.His name was Abraham? He was also tall and handsome like her father. He was also very easy to talk to. He was older yes, but she missed having a fatherly type in her life. She was through with boys, she wanted a man. A man like her father. ”Nice to meet you Abe”she said flirtingly as she sucked on the lollipop.”So besides my smile and this candy, what else is so great around here?”

“Let me show you”Abe said as he took her hand. He led her out of the ballroom and up a flight of stairs. She followed him excitingly, her heart beating fast. Where was he taking her? What was so special? She loved surprises, she couldn’t stand it! He then brought her up to a balcony that looked over the Hudson River and downtown.”Isn't this view beautiful?”

Salomi nodded as the wind blew her dark hair around her.”Very beautiful.”she said as she kept on sucking on her lollipop. Then she smiled and threw it off the balcony, she didn’t hear it hit the ground, so she knew they were up really high.She sat on the edge of the stone railing. "If I fall…would you…save me?”she said as she acted like Dorothy in one of her roles as a damsel in distress.

Abe laughed,”Yes I will madam”he said as he walked over to her. He put his arms around her waist,”Do you trust me?”he asked her

She nodded, of course she did. She could see more of her father in him with each second that passed. He was the only man she could ever trust. He then leaned her back so that she was leaning over the railing.Her heart started beating quickly, she was so far over that if he let her go, she could fall. He started kissing on her neck and she moaned as she saw the Hudson River upside down. Then she felt herself slip a little, she got a little nervous,”Hey, don’t play with me. I'm not that heavy”she said but then she realized that he was slowly pushing her off more,”Alright….stop….I don’t…..I don’t think this is a good idea anymore Abe….pull me back up!”she said. But he wasn’t listening to her, she started slapping him, scratching him. This wasn’t cute and sexy anymore and neither was he. He was a totally different person now.”LET GO OF ME! PUT ME DOWN!”she shouted at him.

*________________________*

“Excuse me Ms. Gibson?”a man with an English dialect asked her as he approached her,”I just have a few questions for you about the film-“

“I'm sorry sir. But I'm not taking anymore questions”Dorothy said. She felt like she was repeating herself and all the reporters asked her the same questions.

“Please Ms. Gibson, I just wanted to ask you about your real love affair on the Titanic. Was he like Charlie’s character in the film?”he asked her

Dorothy stopped. No one ever asked about the real Abraham that went down with the ship. All they wanted was gossip. “Um…yes…he was. He was warm, kind, gentle…I'm sorry…what paper are you reporting for?”

“Oh for the London Forum. It’s a small paper in England”he said

“Ive never heard of it…”she said

“Would you like to go someplace more private?”he asked her. She nodded. It was just a few questions. He led her out of the ballroom and into a small office but when she walked in, there was another man there.

“Who’s this?”she asked

“Oh, hes my assistant”he said to her. “Now, next question. I understand that Abraham left a suitcase in your possession. Where is it?”he asked harshly, the English dialect totally gone.

“Excuse me?”she asked him. How did he know about the suitcase?

“Don’t play stupid with me. That dumb blond that you left at your apartment said that you have it with you now where is it?”he asked her through gritted teeth

“I…its been sent off…”Dorothy said. She had a feeling that these men were after the money in the suitcase, that they were involved or the heads of this organized crime business and they weren’t going to be nice about it. They could kill her if she pissed them off. She had to be calm and think fast. She couldn’t be the damsel in distress, she had to be the heroine.

“SENT OFF?! WHERE!”

“I um…had it shipped back to Abraham’s…parents in California. I figured there were clothes and possessions that they wanted to keep. Its at the postal office now, it wont be shipped until midnight”she said as calmly as she could while lying.

“SHIT!”he said angrily as he punched the wall.

“What do we do boss?”his assistant asked him

“Shut up”he said to him and then turned to her and grabbed her arm tightly,”Now you are going to take us to this postal office and you are going to personally hand that suitcase over to me you understand? There is something of value in that suitcase for me, not his fucking parents”he said to her.”If anyone asks, tell them you’ll be back. If you even wink or give anyone any reason to suspect me I will shoot you in your fucking back you hear me?”he said to her as he pulled out his gun.

She only nodded.He gave her his tuxedo jacket to cover the gun while he and his assistant escorted her out. However, no one suspected a thing. They just took pictures or stared in awe.

“Now get your car around here now”he said as they walked outside of the Ballroom.

“Can you bring my car around sir?”Dorothy asked the valet calmly. She gave him the license plate number and they stood there and waited. She tried her best to look around with her peripheral vision for an officer of some type. They were around before but they were nowhere in sight. She prayed that the valet would take some time to get her car. Her goal was to not leave the property.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Where could they be? There are a million people here”Gabriel asked Vernon as they walked inside the Hammerstein Ballroom. It was filled with the rich and famous of New York City and plenty of fans of Dorothy’s and Charlie’s. But where were Dorothy and Salomi? He looked up and then he saw her. Salomi was sucking on a lollipop as some man was escorting her up some stairs.”There’s Lomi”he said as he pointed her out as she disappeared down a hallway.”Lets go”

They both tried their best to get through the crowd and get up the steps as soon as possible. But there were so many hallways and doors. Where could the man have taken her?”You go this way…I go that way”Vernon said.”Godspeed”he said as he ran off to search for her.

Gabriel searched anxiously as he opened many different doors. Every door that didn’t reveal Salomi made him angrier. He knew that man must have been hired to hurt her. Then he heard someone shout and he ran towards the source of the sound. He ran out onto a balcony and saw the man trying to throw Salomi over! He ran at the man and tackled him which, luckily, sent Salomi falling onto the floor instead of over the edge. The two of them wrestled for some time but the other man was stronger. He kept punching Gabriel in the stomach and face, he was losing energy and strength.

“I’LL SHOOT!”Salomi shouted and they both stopped wrestling. The man obviously had a gun but didn’t want to use it on her. He probably wanted to have his way with her and then throw her off the balcony. It was quieter than a loud gunshot. It had fallen out of his pocket when Gabriel tackled him.”Don’t move”she said as she aimed it at the man.

The man chuckled,”You don’t wanna do this”

“Yes I do, if you move, I will shoot. I will”Salomi said. Gabriel stared at her with shock, she wasn’t scared of the gun at all. But did she know how to use it?

“Now baby, if you shoot, people are going to hear it and the police will come. They will have you arrested. Your fingerprints are all over the gun that was used to kill your chauffeur. You don’t want to be charged with first degree murder now do you?”Abe asked her

“Your lying”Salomi said

“Salomi, just give me the gun”Gabriel said to her as he laid on the floor, he could barely move, he was badly beaten,”You might hurt yourself now”

“Gabriel shut up. I can do this on my own”Salomi said angrily.

“Give me the gun baby. He’s right, you are only gonna hurt yourself”Abe said as he moved forward.

“WHAT DID I JUST SAY! I TOLD YOU NOT TO MOVE!”Salomi screamed at him as she backed away, pointing the gun at him. She didn’t want to shoot it but was she going to have to now?

“Salomi give me the gun!”Gabriel and Abe said to her. Abe moved a little bit closer and Salomi shot a bullet into the air. Abe jumped back.

“I TOLD YOU DAMN IT! DON’T MOVE!”she yelled at him. Then Gabriel got up and went toward Abe and tackled him again. He couldn’t stand to wait anymore, he needed to kill this guy now! “Gabriel stop!”she shouted at him as he wrestled with Abe.

“Shoot him Lomi!”Gabriel said as the two struggled

“I CANT!”Salomi said. They were too close and they kept moving! “STOP MOVING!” Then a figure came out of nowhere and came to Gabriel’s rescue and then before she knew it, Abe’s body was sent over the balcony instead! Then she realized who it was. Uncle Vernie!? In shock, she dropped the gun and it fired again. Gabriel and Uncle Vernie ran to her.

“Where’s Dorothy?”they both asked.But she couldn’t answer. What was Uncle Vernie doing here? Wasn’t he dead? Did that make her dead too? ”Come on”he said as they ran into the Ballroom. The two gunshots and with Abe falling off the balcony sent everyone into a frenzy. People were now evacuating the building.”We have to find her!”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“He's taking too fucking long. Don’t you film stars have faster valets or something?”the man hissed in her ear as he pressed the gun into her back. His patience was slimming and he just might shoot her in front of everyone.

“Its pretty packed sir. I…there are a lot of cars parked in that lot. I gave him the license plate number, he should be able to-“

“I know that! I just heard you”he hissed. Then there was a gunshot and people started to scream. Dorothy jumped and then the officers that she was looking for came out of nowhere to try to find the source. But he pulled her away from everyone and headed toward a car that was intended for someone else. Then a body fell from the balcony and hit the pavement right in front of them and then there was another gunshot. People started screaming and pointing upward. The officers ran inside to get the people out. Dorothy looked around, panicking, where was Salomi?

Then a group of police showed up right in front of the ballroom and the man surprisingly let go of her and he and his assistant started to run. Her courage came back,”STOP THEM! STOP THOSE MEN!”she told them. They split up and some ran after the two men and the others went inside.

“EVERYONE OUT! EVERYONE OUT NOW!”the police shouted as more showed up.

“SALOMI! SALOMI!?”Dorothy called out and then someone grabbed her. But it was only David.”Have you seen Salomi?”

“Thank God your ok”David said as he hugged her close to him. ”I saw you being escorted out the door and I tried to get to you but the lobby was such a mess. Then people started to scream-“

“Have you seen Salomi!?”she asked again

“No….no I haven’t”he said,”Don’t panic”he said as he saw the fear in her eyes

“Don’t panic!? This is what Ive been afraid of!”she said but then she saw Salomi running toward them with two other men. “SALOMI!”she shouted to her

“Dorothy, I'm so sorry”Salomi said, she had been crying and looked like she had seen a ghost

“Its alright”Dorothy said as she held her. Then she realized that Gabriel was there…with Vernon?. ”What…?”

“We’ll explain everything later, we need to get you both out of here”Vernon said. Then the valet finally pulled their car around and they all piled in.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Since there was a lot of security around the ballroom and surrounding buildings, traffic was horrible. So Vernon paid for two rooms at the Ritz-Carlton so they can stay the night. They informed Dorothy about the break in at her apartment and that Ruth was ok. They all decided that they needed to get rid of that suitcase, which was still in the trunk. After ordering room service, they all calmed down, well some of them.

Salomi was still in shock that the suitcase caused all this trouble and the fact that Uncle Vernie was still alive. She barely ate, she just laid in his arms and cried. They talked about the last moments on the Titanic, how she tried to find him on the Olympique and how he tried to find her at the Manhattan hospital, she described her life with Dorothy and he described his life with Abby and the kids and how he met Gabriel.

“She really wants to see you. We both cried endlessly when we heard that you were still alive. I mean I had to do something and I'm sick of this life. I’d rather be dirt poor than rich and having to deal with Morietti”Vernon said as he stroked her hair

“I want to see her too. How old are the babies?”she asked him

“They are both almost 2. And shes one month along with our third. It’s a miracle, we thought that we couldn’t even have one and now we are having three. I may have to take on more shifts at the butcher’s…if you would like to help Abby and babysit, the doors are open. I mean they are like your cousins”

“I would love to”Salomi said as she snuggled closer to him. She sighed,”I'm sorry I'm just…still in shock. I think I just got used to losing you and Daddy. And now your back”

“Me too”Vernon said,”I mean if it weren’t for Gabriel, this all wouldn’t have happened”

“You got that right”Salomi said bitterly.”I mean how else did Morietti find out about us? Gabriel probably bragged about us or something”

“No, now stop that, that’s nonsense. He was a mystery. He was known as the Golden Child and none of us saw him. We only heard how quick he was. But then Morietti found out about the suitcase, they have been trying to track it since the ship sank….lets not talk about that. He has been trying to get the suitcase out of your possession since Morietti threatened him”

Salomi sighed, that was probably the reason why he came over and tried to take it that day. “So you think hes only looking out for me huh?”

“Actually he loves you. I mean he is head over heels. Like how your father was with your mother, damn he was hooked. You look just like her. You look so much older too. Beautiful”

“Thank you”she said softly.”So you knew Daddy when he met my mother?”

“Yeah. I had just broken up with uh..my 20th girlfriend? I had just met Abby when he met your mother. She was so…rich and dignified…she was getting out of this coach downtown with her parents and her dress caught on the step, she almost fell but Abraham was right there. However, his hands were dirty and he got her dress a little dirty when he caught her. She didn’t think of it, she just joked about it and thanked him. She was all he could talk about. ‘Shes like an angel’ or ‘She’s the most beautiful woman in California.’ Then he met her again at some pub and she had too much to drink with her girlfriends and then they fell in love that night. They snuck off to see each other all the time…the four of us went on dates together…she and Abby became good friends. Then they got married and…all the disownment followed. A week later she found out she was pregnant with you..she was so happy…”

“My mother used to get drunk?”Salomi asked with a laugh

“Yeah she did…she just couldn’t hold them too well, she would get sick sometimes or walk in figure eights but she wasn’t sloppy. She had this grace to her”

“I wish I could see her, meet her”Salomi said with a sigh

“You’ll see her in time, its too soon right now. You have your life to lead, but she's everywhere, she's been watching over you. Abraham too”he said as he held her close to him. Salomi has been through so much with never knowing her mother, seeing her father die right in front of her and escaping death not once, but twice? Now that she was back in his life, he needed to help keep an eye on her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Damn, they almost got her. That was a low move”Abraham said to his wife. They both watched in horror as Lomi seemed to fall in love at first sight with this Abe character. He was almost her downfall.

“Well like mother like daughter. Those Abraham’s are fine men”she said as she hugged him. “But we prevailed baby, we won. Shes ok and Vernon is there now. Nothing can go wrong anymore”

“Do you know what this means?”Abraham asked her with tears in her eyes,”When she went off with that Abe guy…I saw that look in her eyes. Like she almost had me back.I know why she went off with him. She was searching for someone that could live up to me, to be like me. I thought that she could finally make peace with losing me. I don’t think she ever will”

“She will. Once she and Gabriel get married and have their own children she’ll be fine. Shes still young and a little lost but Vernon can fill your place as well. Don’t worry. I think its gonna be clear skies from now on”she said to him

“I hope so babe. I hope so”Abraham said

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel, David and Dorothy decided to leave Salomi and Vernon alone together. They had a lot to catch up on. However, it drove Gabriel crazy and all he could do was pace and explore the hotel. It was very luxurious but all he wanted was to hold Salomi in his arms again. He didn’t know how he could save her life and she still came out of it hating him? Has he really lost her?

Dorothy was thinking the same thing as well. Would Salomi want to move and live with her aunt, uncle and cousins? Where would that leave her? She knew in her heart that if Salomi did choose that route that she would be heartbroken. She was like the child that she never had. She stood out on the balcony as she looked at the still busy streets of New York. It was a little past midnight and everything calmed down some since the premiere fiasco.

“Can I join you?”David asked her as he came out on the balcony with her. She nodded,”Are you alright?”

“I'm fine. I just needed some tea, a warm bath and something solid in my stomach”Dorothy said,”I feel refreshed”but David gave her a look like he didn’t believe her.“I just have a feeling that things may be different now. I guess I'm trying to prepare myself”she said

“Can that difference mean my new film?”he asked her.

She laughed,”Oh I'm never doing your films again! If I do survive your films that only means that I wont survive the premiere!”she said and winked at him.

“Very funny. Your comedic timing is impeccable”David said with a chuckle,”The script is in your suite if you wanted to read it”

“You just wont let up will you?”Dorothy asked as she shook her head.

“I think you should be thanking me! I think you are the only talented film actress right now and I want you in my films and I wont stop until you say yes or give me a very good reason why you cant. I want perfection”he said to her.They looked into each others eyes and he wanted to kiss her and she sensed it but she moved away. He politely let her do so,”Just get some rest”he said,”Everything will be different in the morning”he said to her

*____________________________*

Gabriel was the last one to turn himself in for the night and he slept on one of the plush love seats in the sitting room of Dorothy’s suite. Salomi stayed in Vernon’s arms until she fell asleep talking to him. He fell asleep holding her while David felt it was best to sleep in the bed next to them and not near Dorothy. He didn’t know how she felt about their recent realization. They all slept soundly and Dorothy was the first to wake. She immediately called for breakfast to be sent to the room and the morning paper. When the breakfast cart came in, she grabbed for the newspaper first. On the front page was a headline that said,”COUNTERFEITER JAILED FOR LIFE”. She sighed with relief. The paper also talked about the film, the premiere and the arrest of Morietti and his men.

The smell of sausages was what woke up Gabriel and he went straight to the cart and began to eat. Dorothy laughed,”Well good morning”

“Morning”he said as he stuffed his face, he glanced at the paper and then stopped.”Thank God…guess I'm free”

“I guess you are. Now I'm offended that you had to resort to organized crime for monetary purposes. I thought that I paid you enough at the theater-“

“No Dorothy, please believe me its not like that at all”Gabriel explained but then Dorothy smiled.

“I'm just being silly Gabriel”she said as she hugged him.”I know you didn’t really have a choice in it and I know you wanted to tell someone but didn’t feel it was right. I'm just glad you are alive and well and I'm glad that you saved Salomi as well. If it weren’t for you….”she said and stopped,”You’re a good man”she said as she hugged him tightly

“Thank you Dorothy”he said to her. They then ate together in silence for a few moments as he read the paper,”So what are we going to do about the suitcase?”he asked her.

“I'm going to get rid of it. That’s what I intended to do last night I just didn’t really think it through. I could throw it in the Hudson…I just don’t want to have anything to do with it anymore”

“You aren't going to keep the money?”Gabriel asked her

She shook her head,”Not to be cavalier but I feel that I;m too good for that money. It isn’t mine for the taking anyway. I think Vernon or Salomi should have it but it needs to be put in the bank if they decide to keep it. But its counterfeit. Its all fake, the papers say that the president is trying to pass a new $5 bill so that money cant be used”she sighed.”I don’t know”

Just then Vernon and David walked into the room. They said their good mornings and they made their plates. They talked about what was in the paper and they were all pleased. It seemed that the nightmare was finally over.

“Is Salomi still asleep?”Dorothy asked Vernon

“No. She had a nightmare about the Titanic. I guess having me back brought back the memories. She cant sleep, shes still in shock. I'm going to see if shes going to try to eat something”he said as he made a plate for her

Dorothy sighed. She remembered the nightmares that they both used to have 2 years ago when they got back to New York. Salomi’s lasted for months. She would hate for them to come back and have her go through that turmoil all over again. Vernon took the plate into the adjoining room. They all ate together but Salomi never joined them.

Once Dorothy was done, she took a bath and then went to the front desk to wire Ruth to see if she was ok, Maisy’s to see how last night went if there was a go at all and the other stars in the film to see if they made it out of the premiere safely. Vernon did the same thing and wired Abby to tell her that everyone was alright. David left early since he got a wire from his attorney about the happenings at the premiere and the press was all over it. Gabriel used that time to bathe as well. He got dressed and walked back into Dorothy’s suite when a door opened and there was Salomi, wearing her gown from the night before. Her hair was disheveled, she looked like she didn’t sleep well and she was a little pale but she was still so beautiful to him.

“Hey you”he said to her

“Hey you”she repeated with a small smile

“You alright?”he asked her

“I honestly don’t know”she said as tears came to her eyes. He wanted to run to her and comfort her but didn’t know how to act around her anymore. Did she still love him? Can they ever be the same again? “Gabriel? Can you forgive me?”she asked him

He stared at her in shock.”Forgive you? Of course but what for?”he asked her

“For being a stupid little girl. All along I thought that you were just trying to take advantage of me when you have just been protecting me. I flirt with older men in front of you to piss you off and because I'm still searching for a man like my father. But I know that he is priceless and he isn’t like anyone I know right now. No one can take his place.”

“But Lomi I have been stupid too-“

“I love you Gabriel”she interrupted him.”I always will. And I know that no one can take the place of my father but I'm still…young”she struggled to say,”Ive been in a rush to grow up, to forget this childhood half filled with no mother and the other half without a father. But I still need to be held, to be told that everything is going to be alright. To be protected. That’s what you have been, that’s what you have always been. Can we go back? Can we….be a we again?”she asked and then laughed,”That must sound stupid doesn’t it?”she asked and as she finished the sentence he came to her and kissed her passionately and she got her answer. It wasn’t stupid at all, he wanted the same thing. And she never could have been happier.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

With Vernon back in her life and Gabriel as well, Salomi was soon normal herself. She never left Dorothy’s side but did visit Abby and Vernon during the weekends to help Abby take care of the kids as she struggled through her pregnancy. She had gotten sick more during this pregnancy; they all feared that it would be fatal but Dr. Livingstone still did check ups on her and she was fine, but needed to slow down.

As with the suitcase, they all decided to use the money for good. They gave half of it as an anonymous donation for Titanic survivors that were still struggling. The rest Vernon put in the bank, they threw the empty suitcase into the Hudson and after that it felt that a huge weight was lifted from their shoulders. However a few months later, a war started overseas after the assassination of Franz Ferdinand and his wife. It was all the papers could talk about and everyone in America watched, as Europe became a huge battlefield. Thank God America was staying out of it…

After months of agonizing, Dorothy finally accepted David’s invitation to be in another film. With the money paid from her last film, she was able to fix up Maisy’s and hire more workers and performers. Now Ruth, Salomi and Gabriel had more help with the club. She felt that it was in good hands for the next month and a half of filming.

On July 30th, 1916 an ammunition supplies plant in Jersey City was attacked by the Germans. The attacks were so bad that the Statue of Liberty was damaged, windows in lower Manhattan were shattered and the Brooklyn Bridge shook. On January 11th, 1917 another plant was destroyed. Everyone in Manhattan watched as the plant burned to the ground. A few months after Salomi’s 17th birthday, America entered the Great War allying against the Germans. Days after the president made the decision, thousands of American men volunteered. Gabriel considered it but decided against it when an event occurred that was much more important to him than the war.

Gabriel turned the key into the lock of Dorothy’s apartment and walked in. He was going to surprise Salomi by taking her out to breakfast.”Hey Lomi? You decent?”he asked and then laughed as he walked toward the bedroom,”Well why should that matter?”he said and then he heard vomiting. He walked toward the bathroom and saw Salomi clutching the sink.”Baby? Whats wrong?”he asked as he ran to her.

“Don’t…”she said weakly,”You don’t want to be near me”she said to him as she sat on the floor. She closed her eyes and took deep breaths. Then she opened them and ran some water in the sink to clear it out,”I'm fine”

“I don’t think you are”Gabriel said as he came up to her and put his hand to her forehead.”You are a little warm there”

“Its not a cold if that’s what you are thinking. Its May. Its getting hot outside”

“You can still have a cold in May. Believe me, I have learned that the hard way”he said,”What you need to do is lay down. I will go stop by the store, get you some soup, bread and fresh water. You should be fine in no time”he said to her as he put her arms around her.

“I'm not hungry”she said

“Well if you are not hungry now, you are going to be. Looks like you threw up everything you ate yesterday”Gabriel said concerned.

Salomi sighed,”Gabe I don’t think its just a cold”

“Well what do you think it is? Did you eat something bad? Or something out of the ordinary the past few days? You have been working a lot at Maisy’s. Maybe you need to slow down-“

“I'm 17…not 70…I don’t need to slow down-“she interrupted angrily

“Lomi…I'm just trying to help-“

“I think you’ve done enough”she said and then sighed as she slowly sat down on the bed.”I have symptoms…the same symptoms…”she said

“Symptoms? Ok…the same symptoms of what?”he asked her

“Fatigue, sore breasts, not being hungry or wanting to eat the same food that I usually eat….morning sickness…”she said.But Gabriel just stood there, clueless.”Gabriel, I'm pregnant”

He stared at her wide eyed,”What?”

“I'm pregnant. We…are pregnant”she said to him.

“How do you know this?”

“Abby has been schooling me on symptoms. I have all of them. I'm not a virgin.”

“Does she know?”

“No…no one knows. Except us”she said to him and looked down. Tears came to her eyes,”I'm so sorry”

“Sorry?”he asked her as he knelt in front of her,”What is there to be sorry for?”

“You are young too. 20. You wanna live your life, you don’t want to be tied down to some teenager with a baby”

“Salomi. Ive always wanted to be tied down to you. I mean…I don’t feel tied down at all. Not in a bad way. Baby, we did this together and we are going to get through this together”he said as he got happier. He was now getting over the shock and seeing the reality of the situation. He was going to be a father. Salomi, the most beautiful girl in the world, was carrying his child.He hugged her close to him as tears of joy ran down his face,”Oh baby, I love you. I love you so much. Thank you”

“Thank you?”she asked

“You are giving me the best gift that anyone could ask for”he said as he kissed her stomach through her dress.”Wow, my baby is alive in there?”

“So it seems”Salomi said with a smile. She was so scared to tell him. She has been feeling sick for days now and she never had the courage. Now she didn’t know what the hell she was waiting for anyway.”I'm so glad that you aren't upset. I thought you would be”

“Why?”

“Because…you want to live your life. You want to be a performer, make lots of money. Now I'm having your child. The child is going to be eating up all the money you…we have. You have your whole life ahead of you-“

“Everyone's got their whole life ahead of them Salomi. Even you. Don’t think that this baby is going to ruin or stop my life from going the way I want it to. It may change a lot of things but it will be changes for the better. It will make our lives together so much more meaningful and brand new”he said and then kissed her long and hard. Then when they pulled apart he said,”Marry me”

“What?”

“Marry me. We are having a child together, we are in love. Marry me”

“No”she said

“Wait….what?”

“I don’t want to get married just because I'm having your child”

“Its not. Ive always wanted to marry you. Even before the baby-“

“Gabriel, I love you. I really do. But lets do one thing at a time-“

“But…that means you will be having a child out of wedlock…do you want to go through that?”

“I think giving birth to a child married or not will be just the same. Painful”she said and then stopped. What if she died giving birth like her mother had?

“What?”Gabriel asked her as he slowly saw her panic.”Are you ok? Baby you look pale”

“I don’t want to die”she said in a scared whisper.

“Salomi, what are you talking about? You are not going to…”then he realized her fear. He sighed and hugged her close to him,”Your mother had complications, yes, but that doesn’t mean that you will. We can see the same doctor as Abby. He has done wonders for her right?”he said to her as he stroked her hair

“I'm scared Gabriel. I'm really scared. I don’t know if I can do this”

“Yes you can baby. You know why? Because I'm here. Dorothy is here, Abby is here, Vernon is here. Everyone is here to help and make sure that you will be alright”

“I don’t know if I'm ready to tell them”

“Alright, we will tell everyone when you are ready. But we cant wait too long, they will start to notice”he said and smiled but she didn’t. He sighed, she was really scared about this. She sighed as she laid down on the bed and he laid next to her, holding her.

“You know what my worst fear is?”she asked him. He shook his head,”It used to be boats. I mean that’s probably my second worst but my ultimate….my number one… is death. I don’t want to-“

“Death is not an option for you. Not right now. Not anytime soon, don’t think about it. You will stress yourself out and it wont be good for either of you”he said. “You need to just relax. Be extra careful. Abby can be your midwife since she has 3 healthy children of her own. We can both take turns in learning how to take care of children by helping with hers. You may need to stop working at Maisy’s and just focus on graduating. No more sneaking whiskey for you alright?”he said to her and she nodded.

She yawned,”I'm scared Gabriel. I'm going to need your help and I'm going to need a lot of it”

“That’s what I'm here for baby. That’s what I'm here for. I'm never going to leave your side. Not for anything”he said

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

About a week later was when Salomi was ready to tell everyone the news. Dorothy, Abby, Vernon and Ruth were all happy for her but they all insisted that she and Gabriel get married. But she refused. She wanted to get married strictly based on love, not because a baby was on the way. They also were weary as well since she was so young. Vernon also had the same fear as Salomi had, what if the birth complications were hereditary? It could be possible and he made many appointments with Dr. Livingstone to keep track of Salomi’s condition. The baby was very healthy and the due date was set for January 20th, 1918. Which was a coincidence in itself since it was 5 days before Salomi’s 18th birthday and 10 days before Gabriel’s 21st.

The war got worse and more men signed up. The death toll was getting very vicious which led to more men signing up. Gabriel decided against it because he didn’t want to leave Salomi during this time. He also didn’t want to miss the birth of his first child. There were so many things that needed to be done. But some other people had different opinions.

Abby had just tucked in all three children when she heard the door open. She smiled and left the room and saw Vernon. He looked very tired. She then realized the time, he was always home before she tucked the children in. What was he doing? She walked up to him and gave him a hug. “What happened at the shop? Why are you home so late?”she asked as she ushered him into the kitchen and prepared some stew for him.

“Nothing really. As you know, Johnson left for the war last week so there's a spot that we all need to fill. We just realized how much of a good worker he is because we were all running around like a chicken with its head cut off”he said wearily

“Well you do cut chickens heads off for a living. It is a butchers shop after all”she said with a smile. She then looked at him and noticed a different expression, he wasn’t just tired. Something was wrong,”Vern, whats wrong?”

He looked at her and then said,”Abby, can you sit down?”he asked her. She nodded and sat down next to him. She was a little scared now, whatever it was, it was serious. “Ive been doing a lot of reading on this war and I'm glad that we aren't just standing by while other countries that have helped us before duke it out for their freedom. After this whole organized crime business, I want to actually do something good for our country. Abby, I want to volunteer. I want to help. I want to fight”he said as he took her hand

Abby stared at him blankly. She couldn’t comprehend what he just said. He wanted to fight? He wanted to leave her? She then hugged him close and started to cry. Not knowing what to say.

*__________________________*

Abby and Vernon argued for days about whether he should go to the war. Abby, of course, was against it. She almost lost him once due to the Titanic and she didn’t want to lose him again. She needed a father for her three children. She didn’t understand why America was in the war at all so why should he risk his life? Vernon felt it was his duty as a man to fight for not only freedom for America, but for other countries as well.

“Sampson enlisted today”Vernon said to her. Sampson was the owner of the butcher shop and Vernon’s boss.”He feels the same way as I”

“So you still feel like you should go?”she asked him.”Don’t you see that this is a good opportunity? You can take Sampson’s place and be in charge”

“I did think about that and I have been considered for the position but he gave it to his brother and son. They will be running the place since it is a family business”

Abby sighed,”Vernon you just cant go. You cant do this to me! Ive already lost you once, Im not going to lose you again!”

“You never lost me Abby. I will come back, I promise. I will fight as hard as I can. I will train hard so those filthy Germans wont ever lay a hand on me. Abby, please let me do this. Let me fight for us. For our children. It’s my duty as the man of this house”

Abby sat down and rubbed her temples in defeat. For the past few days, she has refused his chance to go. Its been making her sick to her stomach. But she felt like she was losing the battle against him. She didn’t want to be selfish; she just loved him and didn’t want to lose him. What was so wrong with that? But Vernon was very adamant and she knew that he probably would never forgive her if she didn’t. She was glad that he asked her. One of their neighbors enlisted and then told his family, so they had no choice but to let him go. She started to cry,”You will come back right? You promise?”

“Yes, I promise”he said to her as he knelt before her,”And when I come back we can have 3 more children to make up for lost time”he said and she laughed a little.”Baby I promise you I will come back. I have to do this, please”

She then nodded, hoping this wasn’t a decision that she would regret. They both cried together and then explained to Vernon Jr. and Vivian that Daddy was going to fight in the war and be brave and he will come back. The two children were 4 ½ and they really didn’t understand but they didn’t argue or cry. They were good children.

However, Salomi didn’t like the idea either. She didn’t understand the war and felt that Uncle Vernon would be shot and killed once he got off the ship. Vernon would have to take a ship overseas. What if it sank before it got there? The Germans have shot down a passenger ship, why wouldn’t they shoot him?

But Vernon enlisted, promising that he would be back and a few days later he was packed and ready to go to Britain to fight. They all waved him goodbye as Vernon boarded the ship bravely. He blew kisses to both Abby and Salomi and they kept on waving until his ship was out of sight. Both Abby and Salomi cried for days. This worried Gabriel because Abby had 3 children to take care of and Salomi needed to be stress free.

However, Abby found solace in speaking with her parents. No one really wired anymore. There was a new phone system and even though there was a lot of static and she couldn’t talk long, she would call her mother in California just to keep herself sane.

A month after Vernon left for the war, Dorothy caught the acting bug once more. David had another great script for her and she said yes on the spot. However, it was to be shot in California. Soon she packed up and she was sent on a train to California. Ruth and Gabriel were going to be in charge of the club as usual. Salomi was only allowed to work there during the day, but those days were numbered. Her belly was growing and she was getting more tired. She also missed Vernon and Dorothy and cried a lot. She was soon sent on bed rest, which she didn’t like at all. She felt as if life was passing her by as she laid there staring at her growing stomach.

Week after week Abby received letters from Vernon about how much he loved and missed her, he spared most of the details about the war and the gory details that he had seen. However, as the war got worse and worse, it was harder for letters to come through. They stopped coming once a week and it worried Abby and she just hoped that it was just extra precautions on Europe’s part and nothing fatal.

However, since Vernon left, Abby secluded herself from everyone. Salomi would come by every now and then but she was the only one she would really talk to. She would find herself staring at many pictures of her and Vernon, sometimes she couldn’t even stand to look at her own children, especially since Vernon Jr. was a split image of his father. One night she was staring out the window at nothing, just thinking and daydreaming of the day when Vernon would come home when there was a knock at her door. She thought about not answering it at all, she didn’t really want to see anyone. But then maybe it was Vernon? She slowly decided to get up and opened the door.”Yes?”she asked

There was a boy in uniform standing on the step. He seemed pretty nervous about something and barely looked at her,”Telegram for you ma’am. Im sorry”he said as he quickly shoved the letter in her hand and then ran off.

Abby stood there confused, what did he have to be sorry about? Maybe because it was late? She then looked at the telegram excitedly as she closed the door behind her and rushed to the couch and sat down. It must be a letter from Vernon, thank God. She hoped she didn’t have to wait this long for each of his letters. She didn’t really notice the black border as she tore the letter open. When she unfolded the paper, she realized that it wasn’t a letter from Vernon. She held her breath as she read the letter,”We regret to inform you that your husband, Vernon Alexander Greene was killed yesterday….” The rest of the letter was a blur to her as she started to sob. He promised! He promised he would come back to her! How could he do this!? How could they kill Vernon? Her Vernon. Now he was gone and never coming back. Never. She sobbed for hours just wanting to touch him, hold him, kiss him, to just smell his favorite aftershave…anything. But he was gone.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Vernon blinked his eyes a couple of times, not believing what he was seeing. “Abraham? Salomi?”he asked. The two of them stared at him sadly and then came over to hug him.”Wait….I don’t….I don’t understand…”he said and then laughed,”Ok this is a dream right? You both are coming to me in a dream to give me a message? What is it? Do I need to go home now? Because I aint arguing with you. Im ready to go back. Can you see the future? Is the war going to be over soon? Is this a message about Abby? She isn’t pregnant again is she? I mean I wouldn’t be upset about it but I want to be there when the baby is born. I don’t know how long Im gonna be here-“

Abraham put his hands on Vernon’s shoulders and the touch alone made him stop rambling. It felt so real. “Vernon this isn’t a dream. We’re sorry”

“About what?”

“You’re dead Vernon. You died in battle last night”Abraham said

Vernon stared at him and then backed away,”No….no Im not. Im not”he said as he kept shaking his head.

“I know, its going to be a shock at first but we will get you through this”Salomi said to him. She looked the same as when he last saw her before she died, just not pregnant, she was still beautiful. However, she was talking bullshit.

“No”he said, not wanting to believe it.”This is just a dream. I want to wake up now”he said to them. But they just stared at him sadly. He started to panic and he started to yell.”I WANT TO WAKE UP NOW! WAKE ME UP!”

“Vernon, stop it. Get a hold of yourself”Abraham said,”Im sorry”he said and then he turned him toward a mirror. Vernon gasped when he saw a bullet wound right in the middle of his forehead.”You were killed in battle by some goddamned German soldier. Shot you right in the head”

Vernon closed his eyes,”Make it go away”he said,”Make it go away please”

“It will. It will take some time though”Salomi piped in,”When Abraham first got here he looked like a walking slab of ice and smelled like saltwater for awhile but it cleared up, see?”

Vernon opened his eyes and looked at her,”This is no time to make jokes Salomi”he said to her angrily. She was still the same, making jokes whenever a situation seemed too tough for anyone to handle.

“Shes just trying to help Vernon”Abraham said to him.

He started to cry, everything finally setting in. “I failed. I failed her. I promised her. Abby…..oh God….”he said and then turned to face him,”I promised her that I would come back to her. I wanted to fight so I could do something good with my life for once. But all I did was end it, I left her alone. Oh God…what if she tries to kill herself again?”he said as he sobbed,”My children….my baby…”

Abraham and Salomi held him as he cried and Salomi spoke,”Its alright Vernon, you didn’t know. You couldn’t have known. If you did, you wouldn’t have went. But you died valiantly for your country, for your family’s freedom. All you can do now is watch over them, be their guardian angel. Be their guide”she said to him. She had said the same thing to Abraham when he died and now she had to tell the same thing to Vernon.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Im worried about her, I haven’t spoken to her in awhile and I want to see her”Salomi said stubbornly to Gabriel. She was supposed to be on bed rest but she had this strong urge to see Abby. She hasn’t seen her in two weeks and hasn’t heard from her either. Something was telling her to visit her.

“But you shouldn’t leave this apartment, let alone your bed”Gabriel said to her.

“It will only be for a couple of hours. I just want to see her and the children, then we can turn around and come back”Salomi said as she struggled to get out of bed, she looked at him helplessly,”Arent you going to help me?”

“I don’t think I should. You shouldn’t go”he said worriedly

“Fine, I can do it myself then”she said as she slowly got up.She then sighed, her stomach was so big that she couldn’t really see her feet. “I cant see my feet…I have to put some shoes on”

“That must be a sign, get back in bed”Gabriel said sternly

“Gabe….please”Salomi said in a small voice and a sigh, she didn’t have the strength to argue with him. He looked at her big brown pleading eyes and unfortunately gave in. He helped her get dressed and got her shoes on.

“Only for a couple of hours and then we are headed straight back do you hear me?”he said to her. She nodded. He took one of Dorothy’s cars and drove to Abby and Vernon’s place. He helped her out of the car and up the steps. She knocked on the door and waited for a little while. No one came to the door. She knocked again and Mrs. Andrews, who lived next door, answered the door.

“Oh hello Mrs. Andrews, are Abby and the children around?”Salomi asked

“My my my, you are coming along arent you?”Mrs. Andrews asked her with a small smile as she looked at Salomi’s stomach,”How far along are you?”she asked her

“6 months”Salomi said,”Is Abby here?”she asked her again

“Yes but um, I don’t think she wants visitors right now but let me check”she said and then closed the door. Salomi looked at Gabriel with a weird look, he just shrugged. Mrs. Andrews walked down the hall to Abby’s room and knocked,she heard a small voice and she said,”Sorry to bother you Abigail but Salomi and Gabriel are here. Are they an exception?”she asked her

Abby opened her door a crack,”No, tell them I don’t want to see anyone”she said and then closed the door. Mrs. Andrews sighed, she didn’t like seeing Abby like this, it seemed like she wasn’t getting any better. But she had to obey her wishes.

“She doesn’t want to see anyone right now Im afraid”she said sadly to Salomi.

“Well why not? Is she sick?”Salomi asked her, puzzled. Why wouldn’t she let her in?

Mrs. Andrews looked at her,”Well she has seemed to have secluded herself from the whole world since she heard the news. The children are upset but surprisingly they are doing better than she is”

“What news?”Salomi asked.

Mrs. Andrews looked at her with concern,”Salomi….you didn’t hear?”

“I don’t know what you are talking about”Salomi said impatiently

“About Vernon. He was your uncle correct?”she asked her. Salomi nodded. Tears filled her eyes and she hugged Salomi close to her,”Im sorry she didn’t tell you. Your uncle Vernon died in battle two weeks ago. She received a telegram and hasn’t been out of her room since. Im so sorry for your loss Salomi. If there is anything I can do-“

“No!”Salomi shouted as she started to cry. “No he cant! He cant be!”she said as she pulled away from her and Gabriel walked to her. She turned around and ran down the steps and went back to the car. Gabriel apologized and quickly followed her, hoping she wouldn’t fall or the stress wouldn’t hurt her or the baby. She got in the passenger seat and cried.

“Baby, Im so sorry”Gabriel said as he held her close to him. He knew how much he had meant to her and now he was gone.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abby opened the door a crack again as Mrs. Andrews prepared to leave,”I tucked them in and they are sleeping soundly. Did you need me to come by tomorrow then?”she asked her

Abby nodded,”Yes please, thank you Mrs. Andrews”she said to her and walked her out and locked the front door behind her. She then quickly turned out the lights as she went back to her room and shut the door. She laid down in bed and didn’t dare to even look at Vernon’s side of the bed, she would start crying again. But just thinking of him made her cry and just like every night for the past two weeks, she cried herself to sleep.

She stirred in the middle of the night and rolled over and opened her eyes and then sat up quickly. There he was, laying next to her, on his side of the bed. She gasped,”Vernie?”she finally dared to whisper.

“You still sleep so beautifully”he said to her

“What?….What…”

“Im not alive. Im…a messenger. An angel, or a guide as Salomi would say”

“Salomi?”

“Yes….I saw her…and Abraham…they have been helping me get through this”

“Im going crazy. No….wait…am I dead too? Please say yes”she said

“No, your not. Thank God and that’s why Im here. Baby, Im sorry. I didn’t know that it would turn out like this but please don’t wish the same thing upon yourself. Ever since I….”he said, not wanting to say it,”..ever since it happened I have worried about you trying to kill yourself again just like you tried to do five years ago when you thought I died on the Titanic. Please don’t, I need a mother for my children-“

“I want to go with you”she pleaded,”I cant even look at them, they remind me of you. Mrs. Andrews takes very good care of them. She cant have children, she could take-“

“No”Vernon said sternly,”Listen to me. You have a responsibility to our children, to yourself. Abby if you love me like you say you do, you will live on and take care of them. Please. Watch them grow up, teach them new things, do everything that I cant. Please don’t cop out”

“I talked to mother. She says I should move back to California. Bring the children. She is worried about me as well”

“I say do it. Its like a….starting over. The kids can see their grandparents. They can grow up near the water like you and I both did. You should consider it”he said to her

“I miss you so much”Abby said as she reached for him but of course couldn’t touch him. She started to cry,”Why?”

He started to cry too,”I don’t know. I miss you too baby, and I love you and always will. I just want you to be happy. I want you to live your life because it can be gone in a second. Please come out of this room, get that tan back that I fell in love with”

She laughed through her tears,”I don’t know if I can make it. I don’t think Im that strong”

“You are stronger than you think”he said to her as he got up from the bed,”Do what you need to do, what is right for the children and yourself. I’ll always be here. I love you Abby”

“Wait…just stay…stay the night?”she asked him.

But he started to fade away,”I love you Abby”

“I love you”she said and then he was gone. She laid back down and cried herself to sleep again as Vernon walked into the children’s bedroom and kissed all three of them on their cheeks.

“My babies…I love you. Please know that”he said to them and then faded away as they all suddenly smiled in their sleep, dreaming of their Daddy flying amongst the clouds.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Abby called her mother first thing in the morning and decided to move the children and herself back to California. She felt it was safer for all of them in case something happened. She still felt suicidal at times but Vernon’s visit put her mind at ease at least a little bit.

However, Salomi secluded herself as well. Gabriel worried about her all the time because he thought the stress would give the baby and Salomi complications. She didn’t eat, she didn’t sleep well. All she did was cry. It was like she was giving up. Vernon was like a father to her. She realized that he was the closest thing to a replacement for her father and now he was gone too. Was everyone going to leave her? She was always paranoid and never let Gabriel leave the apartment, afraid that something would happen to him. Gabriel just prayed that she would get through this, but would Vernon’s death break her?

*_________________________*

Ever since Vernon came to her, day by day, Abby started to get better. She started to not stay in her room all day, she started to clean and take care of the children herself and talked to people outside of the house. She was concerned about Salomi when Gabriel called her but all she could do was talk her through it. Mrs. Andrews suggested having a memorial service for Vernon before she left for California. Abby also set up arrangements to sell the house. She was putting a ‘For Sale’ sign on the lawn when Vernon’s attorney came by the house. There was a period where she didn’t answer her phone or his letters. She let him in and they sat down in the living room.

“We have been very anxious to get in touch with you. You haven’t been very easy to get a hold of”

“Yes I know, I apologize. I wasn’t ready to talk about what he was leaving us because it made him being gone so real”she said quietly,”Its been very difficult for me”

He nodded sympathetically,”And I'm very sorry ma’am. I came here so I can know your wishes on these matters. We usually just do a formal reading of the will but I figured that wouldn’t be appropriate right now”he said,”Basically all you need to know right now is that he left everything to you and your children”he said as he told her the huge dollar amount, she gasped,”He didn’t have any special requests. He trusted you and feels that you should use the money as you see fit. There are no special conditions, you can give your children all of it now and watch them run wild if you want to”he said with a small smile. She was starting to cheer up but was still in shock. “He also left a decent amount for his niece, Salomi Jane Squires”he said as he read her that amount.”He said for you to make sure that she gets it. There are no special conditions on that either. She can have it now or later, as long as you think its best”

Abby sat there stunned. Where did Vernon get that kind of money? With this and whatever she got from selling this house, she could probably buy a nicer one in California, right on the water, and still have plenty of it left over. She would still need to find work of course, but at least she didn’t have to bust her ass somewhere because they weren’t taken care of. They were more than just taken care of. Tears filled her eyes as she thought of how caring Vernon was, how much he loved them. “Thank you for coming by. I never would have answered your calls or letters…”she sighed,”I'm sorry. I just love him so much”

“And he loved you just as much I'm sure”he said to her,”I’ll keep in touch with you. I see that you are moving. Is there a set date?”

She shook her head,”No, whenever I find a decent buyer is when we will leave” They talked some more and she promised to keep in touch and when she waved him goodbye, she heard little Abby squealing. She walked into the room and saw Vernon Jr. and Vivian playing with her. She smiled, they looked so happy.

Vivian noticed her and asked,”Who was that man Mommy?”

“A friend of your fathers. We were talking about arrangements and what I should do since Daddy is in heaven now”she said as she picked little Abby out of the crib and held her as she sat down. She needed to tell them. “Now that Daddy is…”she stopped and tried to compose herself,”Now that things are different, I feel it is time for you all to meet your grandparents. My mother and father. They are anxious to meet you”

“Where are they?”Vivian asked her

“In California, which is a long way from here. Its where I grew up. The sun is always shining and there are lots of beaches and you can see the Pacific Ocean. Its very beautiful”she said to them,”Your father grew up there as well”

“Why are we leaving?”Vernon Jr. asked her

She decided to be honest,”Well I have been thinking about it for a long time and I had a dream about your father, he told me it was the right thing to do”

“I had a dream about him too”Vivian said with a huge smile on her face.”He gave me a kiss and he told me to behave and that he loved me very much. Is he an angel now?”

Abby stared at her 4 year old daughter in awe. She must have seen him the same night he had visited her.”Yes Vivian, he is”

“I had a dream too”Vernon Jr. said,”He said I'm the man of the house and I should take care of you, Mom”

Tears filled her eyes,”He said that?”she asked him and he nodded. Then little Abby murmured with a huge smile on her face, like she had a story to tell about seeing her father as well but couldn’t get the words out,”Did you see Daddy too Abby?”she asked her as she tickled the baby and she squealed with laughter.

Vivian laughed,”She's always laughing now”

“Yes she does”Abby said as she pulled her three children close to her. Little Abby was like a little ray of sunshine, the last gift that Vernon could physically give her. “Now all of you remember that Mommy loves you. Daddy loves you too and hes an angel now and whatever he says, we should do, because he knows best. I'm selling the house and once someone buys it we will move to California”

“Is your mom and dad nice too?”Vernon Jr. asked her

“Yes they are very nice and they love you too. My dad is very quiet but my mother is just like me”

“Is Daddy coming to California with us?”Vivian asked her

Abby nodded as she felt a slight breeze from the cool September air come through the window. It was him, she knew it. “Yes, he will always be with us. Wherever we go”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

A few days later, Abby held a memorial service for Vernon at the nearby grave site. Friends, neighbors and co-workers of his were in attendance. Salomi had actually come out of the house for it and she was the only one who sobbed all the way through, which made everyone worry about her. She seemed pale and she still wasn’t eating even after stern arguments with Gabriel, its like she didn’t care anymore. Abby held onto Salomi’s hand as Gabriel held her. She didn’t cry much anymore, Vernon came to her in a lot of dreams and it was like he was just an invisible being but always around. Like he never left. Of course she would never say that out loud, she didn’t want anyone to think she was crazy.

Days after that she finally found a buyer with a good price and once the paperwork was done, the family started to pack. She considered taking Salomi with her but didn’t know if the 4 day train ride would be good for her. She barely came outside anyway, but she did come to the train station to see them off.

“Everyone's leaving me”Salomi said in a small,sad voice as she hugged Abby,which startled her a little. She sounded like she was 5 years old again when she didn’t want to be left alone in a dark room because she was afraid of monsters.

“You can visit anytime. Once you have the baby of course, it would do you some good. Its going to get very cold here soon, you don’t miss that California sunshine?”

Salomi shook her head,”No…there's only memories. I cant, I'm not ready”

Abby nodded, she understood. “Well if you change your mind, just call or write me alright? Please take care of yourself huney I'm worried about you. Gabriel is too” Salomi only nodded as the conductor shouted,”ALL ABOARD”. Salomi kissed the children and they all said their goodbyes and got on the train. Salomi waved to them until she couldn’t see them anymore. Abby did the same. She then sat back and watched as New York faded into the distance. New York was just a chapter in her life that just ended and now she will start over and start anew in California with her family.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi was quiet on the way back to the apartment. Gabriel didn’t know if she was still upset over Vernon, upset about Abby and the children leaving or just plain sick. He laid her down and she didn’t say a word to him. He asked her if she was hungry but of course she refused. He sighed,”I’ll be out in the living room, if you need me”he said to her and turned to leave.

“Do you think I should go to California too?”Salomi asked him

He turned to her,”Just because Abby’s going?”

“No….”she said as she rubbed her stomach,”Ive been thinking about…now that Vernon is….”she sighed as she struggled to try to find the words. He sat down next to her and stroked her arm,”I feel like I have no family left. But when Abby said she was going back to California so her children could be with her grandparents, I started to wonder about mine. They are still alive and they live in the same place…”

“You want to meet your mother’s parents?”he asked her,”Why? I thought that you hated them for abandoning your mother”

“Oh I do…but I feel like I should show them you know? Show them that even though their daughter died, her husband raised me just fine and now I'm having a child of my own. I want to prove them wrong”

“Well maybe we should save all this pride for after the pregnancy”Gabriel said to her

“No, I want to do it before the baby’s born”

“Why? No…Salomi you cant. It’s a 4 day trip. You are already stressed enough and you aren't taking care of yourself. Why would it be a good idea to trek across the US?”

“Once its born we really wont have the time to make any trips. Look, once this baby is born, I wont have the freedom I used to have. I wont be able to just jump on a train whenever I feel like it. I have been thinking about this for awhile now. Please Gabriel, please?”

“We’ll have to check with Dr. Livingstone. He’ll say no, of course, because you haven’t been eating-“

“Fine we’ll set up an appointment with him and I’ll start taking care of myself. Then can we go?”

Gabriel looked at her dark brown and pleading eyes. He didn’t understand this sudden decision but he knew that it was very important to her. He sighed and then hugged her close,”Yes, we’ll go”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Surprisingly, Salomi kept her promise. She ate well, she even slept well most of the time and never argued with Gabriel over little things, she didn’t even defy him by leaving the bed. She was actually on bed rest. Once Dr. Livingstone checked her out, he said that she was healthy and advised them that if they were going to make a trip, do it now before she gets any closer to her due date. Salomi paid for the train tickets with the money that Vernon left her and soon they were making their way to California. She smiled at him as she held his hand. Gabriel had a huge smile on his face too.”What are you so happy for?”

“Well you seem to be very happy about this. And I'm excited, Ive never been to California. Are the streets really paved with gold?”he asked her and winked

“I wish. If it were, we wouldn’t have had a reason to ever leave California 5 years ago”Salomi said and then held his hand tighter,”Is it crazy to say that I'm scared?”

He shook his head,”No…this has been a long time coming. Even though you dislike them very much, I know that you are curious about them. I know you wanted to see them in person one day, just…well not so soon…”he said and laughed.”You aren't crazy. Your scared of their reaction, well…me too”he said. He hoped they wouldn’t be rude to her.

Salomi slept most of the way and soon they were in California. They took a cab to the closest motel and stayed the night there. The next day, Gabriel asked her if she wanted to see her grandparents. She decided to wait until the next day and they took a cab all the way there. Their house was on the top of a hill, it looked to be like an old plantation with high, steep steps leading to a large green door.She took a deep breath and then knocked on the door.

A maid answered the door and Salomi said,”Are Mr. and Mrs. Lincoln around?”

The woman nodded and as she did so another woman walked up to the door and gasped. Salomi sucked in a deep breath, it was her grandmother. There she was in the flesh and she looked very shocked to see her.

“It cant be. Salomi’s dead”she said as she closed her eyes

“I'm Little Salomi, her daughter, your granddaughter”she said to her

Her grandmother waved the maid away and asked,”How…how did you find us?”

“Abraham kept your address. We used to drive past this street when I was little. He never had the courage to speak to you”

She seemed to cringe when she heard his name,”Where’s your father?”

Gabriel frowned, it was so sad that she knew nothing about what was going on in her granddaughters life. He hoped that it would change now.

“He died. On the Titanic. He’s with mother now”Salomi said

“I'm sorry to hear it. You’re an orphan. Where are you staying?”

“A friend of my fathers took me in and has been taking care of me. We live in New York City. Her name is Dorothy Gibson. Shes a film star”she said, she then turned to Gabriel,”May I also introduce you to Gabriel Brewster. He’s the father of my child”

“Your….pregnant?”she asked her in shock

“Yes-“

“You cant be no more than 16-“

“17 and a half actually. 18 in January. I understand if you don’t remember, I haven’t gotten a birthday card since I was 5”Salomi said bitterly

“Are you married to this boy?”she asked, still in shock

Gabriel closed his eyes, he didn’t want her to say it but she did,”No. We’ll marry when he proposes and when I actually say yes. He proposed when we found out we were pregnant but I wanted to marry out of love, not convenience”

Her grandmother cleared her throat,”I'm sorry that my husband isn’t here. He is at work-“

“Oh its fine”Salomi said, she had a feeling that she didn’t want to stay any longer and this would be the first and last time she would see her in person. Her father was right, she was a very cold, judging and intimidating woman. No wonder her mother ran away. She was looking at her with disdain since she was the offspring of a man that she despised.”I just wanted to come by to say that I'm doing fine. Vernon Greene, a friend of my fathers past away recently and he was like a second father to me. I sat back and thought about it and I thought to myself..I have no one left, no family, no blood relative. But then I thought of you and…your husband”she said, she couldn’t call them her grandparents or grandmother and grandfather, they certainly didn’t earn the title.”So I come here, by train, 4 day trip mind you, to meet you, to see what you are all about. And I don’t like it. I don’t like it at all”

“Salomi maybe we should get going. I don’t want you to stress-“Gabriel tried to pipe in

“No I have to say this”Salomi said,”I see what you are all about and you are all about closed doors. You haven’t even opened up your home to me and the man that I love. You never accepted my father who loved your daughter more than anyone and you abandoned my mother because she fell in love with a man that wasn’t rich, one you didn’t approve. You know, she died in a cold cabin giving birth to me because the midwife didn’t have the proper instruments to give a proper birth because my parents were so poor. Whose fault is that?”she asked her.

“Are you saying its mine?”she asked her with a look of horror on her face

“It was a rhetorical question but now that you mention it….”but Salomi stopped herself

“Well I'm sorry to have disappointed you. Why….why don’t you two come in?”

“No we’re fine. I really don’t like to be put in awkward situations or in places that I'm not wanted and I'm sure you don’t want to be obligated to serve cookies and tea to the daughter of Abraham Squires”she said as she took Gabriel’s hand. “My child’s due date is January 20th of next year and I'm going to be there for my baby. And you know what? Even in death, my mother and father will even be there for the baby because I feel them, all around me, all the time. Watching me, taking care of me. I'm going to show this child how real parents are supposed to treat their children. I also know now that my family is right here”she said as she squeezed Gabriel’s hand. “And I'm just fine with that”she said proudly. She gave her a card and some flowers, she felt stupid because she felt that they didn’t deserve it but she didn’t want to just carry it around and she couldn’t return it,”These are for you”she said as she gave them to her and she took them with shaking hands,”Our address is on the card as well, but as I said before, don’t feel like you need to be obligated to write me. I'm used to it anyway. Have a nice day Mrs. Lincoln”

She could only nod as she struggled to make her way down the stairs as Gabriel helped her. As they did so a car pulled up and a man with silver hair got out of the car. He came up to the staircase and stared in horror at Salomi,”You look just like her”he said with a smile. An actual genuine smile. Which was something that Salomi didn’t expect. Maybe she just had an evil grandmother.

“She does, doesn’t she?”the woman said bitterly,”Shes her daughter….Abraham’s daughter”she also added

“Abraham?”he asked with a frown. Then he looked at Salomi with the same disdain as his wife. Salomi sighed, no she was wrong, they both were evil and still hated Abraham to this day and they will continue hating him by also hating her.

Salomi looked at him with the same disdain,”Have a nice day. It was so nice to finally have met you”she said sarcastically as they walked to the cab that was waiting for them. Salomi made sure to have the cab driver stay just in case the visit didn’t go so well, which it didn’t. They both got in and left the property and didn’t look back.

Gabriel sighed,”Baby I'm sorry. We traveled all this way for nothing”he said as he grabbed her hand.

Salomi shook her head and smiled through her tears,”No don’t be. Its very sad but I got exactly what I wanted”she nodded,”Yes I got exactly what I wanted”

*_________________________*

Salomi tried her best to not let visiting her “grandparents” upset her, but it did. She cried for hours about how stupid she was to even think that they would accept her, she cried for what her father and mother had to go through and just feeling ashamed from the looks on their faces. As always Gabriel held her and let her cry in his arms. Soon her sobs turned into sniffles,”Gabriel?”she asked

“Yes?”

“I'm sorry”

“You shouldn’t be apologizing to me-“

“No…I…when Abby left I thought that maybe I needed to come back here too. To come back to my roots. I was aching, yearning for some type of blood relative to love me. I was upset…but all along my family has been right here”she said as she poked him in the nose as she sat up slowly to face him.”I owe you a big apology. I sought after some two old strangers who never thought of having anything to do with me when all you wanted, all you have been doing-“

“You don’t have to apologize for that”Gabriel said to her and kissed her.”I have had those thoughts too. My parents are gone and now my grandmother with them. I have no kin left either. But I don’t mind because this..”he said as he put a hand on her stomach,”Is going to be blood. This will be the very thing to join us together”

“We have always been joined together. Ever since you stole my croissant on the Titanic”she said with a laugh,”The first time we met”

“No I think you are mistaken my dear”he said,”The first time we met was in London, at that nut vendor, I couldn’t afford them and there you were standing in your elegant dress, you saved me from starvation and tossed me a few pennies”

Salomi smiled,”Yes that was it. But then you thanked me by stealing from me!”

“But we never left each others side since”he said,”And I never will”

“I’ll never leave you either”she said and she kissed him passionately,”Can you make love to me?”she asked him after a very heated kissing session.

Gabriel sighed,he wanted her just as badly as she wanted him.”No we cant. Remember what Dr. Livingstone said, these next few months are going to be very crucial. We have to be very careful”he said to her. She sighed as he kissed her on her forehead,knowing he was right.”When do you want to go back to New York?”

“How about tomorrow?”she asked him,”There's nothing left for me here”she said,”But did you want to go to town? My father used to take me there. When we first started getting rich off the organized crime business, he always took me to the candy store and the café next to it. Can I take you out to dinner, Gabriel Brewster?”

Gabriel laughed,”I would be honored, Salomi Jane”he said. They then got ready and then took a cab into town. They ate dinner at the café and for old times sake, Gabriel bought her a bag of her favorite candy. Tears came to her eyes as she looked at it.

“They have the same old bags”she said, remembering how her father started to indulge her when he could. They walked around and explored and then turned themselves in for the night.

They woke up later the next morning than expected and they rushed to get ready and packed. She packed up her last bag and then stopped and stared out the window.

“You ready?”Gabriel asked her, then noticed her staring out the window with a blank expression on her face,”Salomi? Are you ok?”

She snapped out of her reverie and then looked at him,”Before we go to the station can we make a stop first?”

He nodded,”Where to?”

She smiled,”It’s a surprise. You’ll like it”she said. They packed up their bags, checked out and paid for their stay and called a cab. She whispered where she wanted to go and wouldn’t tell Gabriel anything on the way there. He was begging her for clues like a little kid. But soon he was quiet as he looked out the window, they pulled up and she asked the driver to give them a few minutes,she turned to Gabriel with a smile,”It was selfish for me to drag you all the way out here and not let you see the Pacific Ocean”she said as they walked onto the beach. A few people were enjoying the sunshine, some were in the water.

“My God,this is beautiful”he said as he held her hand and walked along the sand.

“My father used to take me to this very beach. We would make trips every other weekend during the summers”she said as she breathed in the scent of the fresh air mixed with saltwater.She closed her eyes and saw her holding hands with her father as he ran with her along the beach.She opened her eyes and saw Gabriel looking at her,”What?”

“You just look so beautiful out here in this California sunshine”he said to her with a smile

She smiled and nodded her head towards the water,”Why thank you but there's better things to look at. You can look at me all you want when we leave”

“You are all I want to look at”he said to her and then got on one knee. He heard her gasp and he said,”Now let me just say what I have to say”he said to her,”Remember yesterday when you said that we have always been joined together? All I want is to be joined together as a husband and wife could be joined. I'm not doing this for the baby. I'm doing this for us. I'm doing this because I love you. We both have lost people we have loved, we both have had bad times, times when we both thought that we couldn’t pull through, but we got through. If all I had were you and your love and nothing else, that would be enough for me to last for a whole other lifetime. I want to see myself having many children with you, then watching them have their children and their children…I want to grow old with you. So please Salomi Jane Squires, please do me the honor of someday becoming my wife. We can do it before the baby is born or after, it doesn’t matter, whenever its right for us. Salomi, will you marry me?”

Salomi stared at him with tears in her eyes. It touched her to know that if her love were all he had in this life, it would be enough until the end of time. She felt the exact same way. She nodded her head and then said,”Yes Gabriel. I will. I will, I will, I will, I will!”she said excitedly as she kissed him passionately. Then to her surprise, he pulled a box out of his pocket and opened it to reveal a diamond ring. “Oh my, Gabriel, when did you get that?”she asked him

“I bought it after you refused me the first time. I have been carrying it ever since, waiting for the perfect time and this is the most perfect time, don’t you think?”he asked her. She nodded as he put the ring on her finger. He then stood up and hugged her close and kissed her. “I love you Salomi”

“I love you too”she said as she cried tears of joy as she stared out at the water over his shoulder. It was a very emotionally draining two days here, but she knows with Gabriel, she will be alright. “I love you, I love you, I love you…”she repeated

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The train ride back was long, but the two young lovebirds didn’t care, they talked while holding each other or slept while holding each other. Soon the 4 day trip was over and they were back in New York City. Salomi couldn’t be happier as she saw the many buildings. She was home. She was so happy that she stood up while the train was still pulling into the station.

“Careful Lomi, don’t fall”Gabriel said as they both gathered the bags but she didn’t listen. She just wanted to get off this train. She was very tired but excited, she wanted to tell everyone she knew that she was soon to be Mrs. Gabriel Brewster and he was also going to be the father of her child. She couldn’t wait to see Tina and rub it in her face, the two never got along after she tried to put the moves on Gabriel when they were on the down and outs. She picked up her bag and walked toward the exit.

“No I'm fine, thank you”she said to the man standing at the door.

“Lomi, slow down”Gabriel called after her. What has gotten into her? He picked up another bag and left a tip for their breakfast. Then he heard a scream and he saw the man standing at the door jump off the train it seemed. He ran toward the exit to see what the commotion was. Then he gasped, there was Salomi, lying on the ground,”LOMI!”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel waited impatiently in the waiting room of the hospital. He called everyone he knew, Ruth, Dorothy, Abby and even Dr. Livingstone. They were all either praying for Salomi or on their way. He rocked back and forth in his chair, praying to God that his fiancé was alright. That the baby was alright.

“Mr. Brewster?”someone asked and he looked up to see a doctor.

“Is she ok?”he asked him as he got up

“Sit down..please”he said to him and Gabriel sunk back into his chair. He sighed and put his head in his hands, it was bad news, he was sure of it. Why would he have to sit down for good news? “Your fiancé suffered quite a fall, she lost her footing and fell right onto her stomach. We calculated that she is almost 6 months along now, is that correct?”he asked him. Gabriel only nodded. “She is in a lot of pain but she will pull through. However, everything all depends on the baby. If the baby is fine, she will be fine but if the baby goes through complications, she will as well. We are going to keep her here for a few days just to watch their progress. If everything seems normal, she will be out of here on Monday”

“Can I see her?”he asked him

“Yes, but shes sleeping. Don’t disturb her, she needs all the rest that she can get”he said to him and led him to the room where Salomi was. He ran inside and sat by her side, she looked peaceful, but he could imagine how much pain she went through. All she could do was scream and then she passed out before they could get her to the hospital.

“Please be alright. Please be alright”Gabriel repeated over and over as he kissed her forehead and stroked her face, he then put his head to her stomach and listened. There was nothing. He sighed as he sat back, all he could do was pray and watch her sleep.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi stirred and she saw two men talking in a white room and she saw Gabriel’s back facing her as he looked out a window. Where was she? “Gabriel?”she said barely above a whisper. He turned to her and then ran to her side. “Where am I?”

“Your in the hospital. In New York. You fell off the train yesterday…right on your stomach”he said and then stopped, he shouldn’t tell her all of this now. It hurt him so much and she obviously couldn’t remember.

Salomi sighed and started to cry,”I just thought it was all a bad dream”

Gabriel pulled her close,”But your ok. That’s what matters, your ok”

“What about the baby?”she asked

Gabriel glanced at the doctors. They were standing outside of the room now, talking doctor language that he couldn’t understand. “That’s why you are here, they are going to run a few tests. Its up in the air now…either the baby wasn’t hurt or was and…”

“And….and what?”she asked

“If the baby is fine, they will let you go home in two days. If the baby has complications, it may complicate your health as well”he said. He didn’t want to tell her this because any complication was a scare to them both since many complications caused her mothers death and almost hers as well.

“I'm going to die. We are both going to die”Salomi said as she started to cry. Gabriel held her close to her.

“No your not, don’t think like that. No your not. Look, you are talking and everything is normal. How are you feeling?”he asked her

“I don’t know”Salomi said as the two doctors came back into the room.

“We have gotten the paperwork from Dr. Livingstone, which will be useful since he has been keeping an eye on the baby’s progress. We are going to run some tests and if everything is the same, then we will let you go after you have properly rested”

“What if its not the same?”Salomi asked

“To be honest, we aren't sure, it all depends on the severity of the situation. But lets not think about that, stress will not help. That’s the last thing either of you need right now”he said and then looked at Gabriel,”We are going to have to ask you to leave while we do these tests”

“That’s fine”Gabriel said. Salomi looked at him with pleading eyes, the ones he hated because he couldn’t ever not say no to them, he always gives in to them. “I have to. You’ll be fine. I’ll be right outside”he said as he gave her a kiss and then left the room. The doctors closed the door behind him and Gabriel sat down and waited. That’s all he could do, was wait…

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“It was horrible”Salomi said as she cried,”I don’t want to ever do tests like those again”she said as she cried in Gabriel’s arms. The tests were very complicated and some of them hurt.

“But its over now Lomi, alright? Those tests are going to help us know if our baby is alright”he said to her,”Now eat your soup. You still need to take care of yourself”

“I don’t want their soup. I want your soup. You make better soup than this place. I want to go home”Salomi whined. She was getting very irritable.

“I promise that when we get home, I will make you my famous tomato soup. But for now, you have to eat this”he said as he held the spoon to her mouth. He had to force her to take the syrupy medication that the doctors prescribed which Salomi said tasted like ‘cat urine’. Salomi gave in and opened her mouth and took a few spoonfuls and then laid back and digested it.

She sighed,”She did this”

“What?”Gabriel asked her

“She did this to me. She’s really that evil”

“Who? What are you talking about?”

“My….her….Mabel Lincoln, my supposed grandmother”

“What did she do?”

“She put some type of hex on me. Some sort of spell. Isn't it a coincidence that when we leave from visiting her that this happens to me? She was disgusted that I was having a child out of wedlock, let alone being the fact that I'm Abraham’s daughter. Its all her fault-“

“Salomi. Stop it. Do you know how crazy that sounds?”

“Well then why Gabriel? Why? Does God hate me or something? I just want to be a part of a family and I want to have a family of my own and start a new life with you. Is that so hard? I just want to be married to you and have your child. Whats so wrong with that?”

“There's nothing wrong with that-“

“Then explain this! Our baby could be dying and-“

“Don’t think like that Salomi, don’t give up on our child, not yet. The baby needs us to be strong now more than ever. Your grandmother didn’t leave a hex on you, we aren't going to be thinking about her anymore alright? Just calm down”he said to her and as he said that, the doctor came in. They both looked at him as Gabriel stood up,”Do you have the results Dr.?”

“Yes I do-“

“Please just tell me straight out. I don’t want to hear your doctor mumbo jumbo. Is my baby alright and can I go home on Monday?”Salomi asked him

The doctor sighed,”Well, yes, we don’t see any major changes so we will be sending you all home on Monday morning. But if there are any changes, don’t hesitate to bring her back. I don’t care if its just a cough or a stomachache, she needs to be on close surveillance. Permanent bed rest, do not move unless you need to use the washroom. Anything can happen and the next few days, weeks and months are crucial”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi and Gabriel followed the doctors orders. Gabriel returned to work at the club and he and Ruth took turns taking care of her and watching her progress. Dorothy called as much as she could and she was almost done filming and would be back as soon as she could. Abby called with remedies and Dr. Livingstone made weekly visits to check on the both of them.

Gabriel came back to the apartment late one night and Ruth met him at the door,”How is she?”

“She's doing fine. She's fast asleep. How was tonight?”she asked him

“There was a fight, it seems that new ballerina has been dating a lot of the same guys. The two met and punches followed”he said as he took off his jacket. Ruth just shook her head, he kissed her on her cheek,”Thanks, the driver is waiting for you outside. Call when you reach your place so I know you got home safe”he said to her

Ruth nodded and gave him a hug. Gabriel has grown up a lot in the past few months and he grew up into a very responsible and handsome man. Salomi was very lucky to have him. They said their good nights and she left. He walked into the bedroom slowly and laid down next to Salomi and held her close. He closed his eyes and soon was fast asleep. A few hours later, he was awoken by Salomi moaning. He sat up quickly,”Lomi? Whats wrong?”he asked her

She was dripping in sweat. She could barely speak,”I'm…hoping…its indigestion”she said. But Gabriel got up and picked up a bag that they had packed for emergencies like this.He helped her get up and she screamed in pain,then he gasped when he saw that the bed sheets were soaked in blood.

*________________________*

Gabriel found himself pacing as he awaited the news once again. Seeing all that blood on the bed sheets scared him enough and he drove through New York City at lightning speed as Salomi screamed in pain. It was almost 7am and he has been waiting for a little over five hours for an answer. Any answer. 8am….9am…10am…a nurse offered him some coffee, he refused and asked about Salomi’s condition but she had no idea…11am…noon…1pm…Ruth came by and waited with Gabriel, neither of them saying anything, she offered him coffee, he finally took it…2pm…3pm…4pm…Ruth had to close up shop and promised to come back once she could figure out scheduling for the club,he asked another random nurse how Salomi was, she didn’t know…5pm…6pm…7pm…Gabriel finally took a nap but it didn’t last long when he heard a baby cry, however the baby belonged to someone else…8pm…9pm…10pm… Gabriel was going crazy as he sat there alone, Ruth couldn’t leave the club, he was sure, he made himself another cup of coffee…11pm…12am…1am…Gabriel was staring at the wall, he thought he was seeing spots when a man approached him.

“Mr. Brewster?”he asked him

“Yes, is she alright?”he asked as he got up, feeling a sense of deja vu.

“Salomi Jane Squires…”he read slowly,”That’s your wife?”

“She will be,shes my fiancé, how is she?”he asked him

“Mr. Brewster, please sit down, can I get you anything?”he asked him

“No, I just need to know how she is please”

“I'm Dr. Neelson and I have been operating on your fiancé and your child”he said and paused, how was he going to word this? This was what he hated most about his job.

“Just spill it, just tell me, don’t tell me the doctor mumbo jumbo”he said, repeating Salomi’s impatient remark from a few weeks before.

“Alright…your fiancé had complications with the birth, her water broke in the middle of the night and she went into labor. However, since she went into labor 2 ½ months early, the baby went through a premature labor. Your fiancé went through a very tough delivery, there were times when she couldn’t make it, couldn’t do it but she survived through it. However, due to the complications from weeks before from the fall and internal complications that developed after, your child was delivered stillborn”he explained

“So the baby is here? Already?”Gabriel asked in disbelief, he wasn’t expecting to have his baby already! “Wait…whats stillborn?”

Dr. Neelson sighed,”Stillborn means….that the baby was able to be delivered but it wasn’t breathing when he was delivered. We tried our best to revive him but I'm sorry Mr. Brewster but your child didn’t make it. We believed that he died when your wife started to go through labor”he said as he put his arm on Gabriel’s shoulder. ”I'm so sorry Mr. Brewster, is there anything that I can do?”

Gabriel sat back and just stared at the wall in shock, he could see the spots again. His baby was dead. Gone. He never got to know him. “Just let me be”he said quietly. Dr. Neelson nodded and respected his wishes and got up. He told a couple of nurses to keep an eye on him just in case he went crazy or needed anything. But Gabriel didn’t, all he could do was cry. Cry for the young life that never got to start, cry for his mother because she went through so much pain and for himself because no matter how he looked at it, there was nothing he could have done to make it any different and that made him feel like the most helpless man in the world.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi slept for days, but she was breathing, she was getting better every day but slowly. For the first few days, she would wake and tell Gabriel and whoever else was in the room that she loved them and would fall back asleep. But one day it came all together, she knew where she was and it had to deal with her baby.

“Hey you”Gabriel said as he stroked her hair. He knew that she was only going to be awake for a couple of minutes but that was enough for him. It helped to take his mind off of his child.

“Hey…”she said to him,”How’s the baby?”she asked him

He stared at her in shock. No one had told her of course, because she was never coherent enough to understand the news. What was he supposed to tell her? “Well how are you? You were in a lot of pain”

“I'm fine, I’ll be better if I know about the baby”she said and then she rested her hand on her stomach and looked and realized that it wasn’t as big as she last remembered it. She could see her feet! “Wait….where…..where….where is…”

“Now Salomi just calm down-“Gabriel said as he looked around and tried to see if anyone was free. This was the moment he had been dreading.

“I wanna hold it. Wait….is it a girl? Ive always wanted a girl, a little me. Or is it a boy? Like you wanted?”she asked him. She then started coughing and laid back. Saying those few sentences wore her out.

“You need your rest baby-“

“Gabriel where is my baby! Our baby! Tell them I want our baby!”she shouted. Then the doctor came into the room. “There you are! Bring my baby now, I'm ready to go home!”

“Now Ms. Squires you need to calm down. You don’t need anymore stress”he said to her

“I wont calm down until I have my baby!-“

“Well that’s not going to work Ms. Squires because we wont tell you anything about the baby unless you calm down”he said to her sternly

Salomi sat there fuming. She looked at Gabriel like she wanted him to defend her but he stroked her hair lovingly as he always did,”Just listen to him Lomi. Please”he said quietly. He could barely look at her. She just sat there quietly.

He began to talk and she barely listened, looking toward the door for a nurse or whoever was assisting the baby. But then she heard the word ‘stillborn’. She heard that word before.”Wait…what?”

“Due to the complications from the fall and complications that developed after, your baby was stillborn. I'm sorry Ms. Squires…”

Salomi sat there in shock as Gabriel started to cry. She knew what it meant now, she remembered. Her baby was dead. Gone. A little being that she had been carrying around for 6 months had just disappeared. She knew this was going to happen, she knew that it would have come down to it being her or the baby. Now she really wished it would have been her. She was sick and tired of losing people she loved. She sat there in silence for a long time. The doctor soon left and Gabriel cried in her arms as she held him. She couldn’t cry, couldn’t speak. Silence was golden. Silence was her friend.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Is she still not speaking to anyone?”Dorothy asked as she walked up to Gabriel and hugged him. When she heard the news about the baby, she left the set and the movie as soon as she could. Its been a week now since Salomi found out about the death of her child. She hasn’t spoken since. Dorothy and David got on the first train that they could get on to New York. “How are you?”she asked as she looked at him,”Are you alright?”she asked him. He was sure going through a lot, he lost his first child and it seems that his fiancé has given up.

“I'm….breathing Dorothy. I mean, that’s good right?”he asked her

“Of course it is. Its better than….than anything else. That’s the best way to be”she assured him, not sure if she liked that answer. “Is it alright? Can I see her?”she asked him

“Yes”he said as he led her into the room. David waited by the door.

Dorothy walked up to the bed. Salomi was just staring at the wall. She was awake but it looked like she was sleeping with her eyes open. She barely moved. Gabriel hoped that maybe seeing Dorothy’s face would bring her out of her silence.”Hey baby. Its me”she said to her. She then walked up and hugged her. Salomi didn’t return the favor. “I know, I know. It took me a week to get here but finishing the movie was harder than I thought and then it took 4 days for us to get back”she explained but Salomi didn’t say a word. Gabriel and David left the room as Dorothy pulled a chair up next to her bed and held her hand, she saw her engagement ring and smiled,”My…that’s some diamond you got there….and that’s some man you got there, standing outside. Now baby, I know that you….it’s a shame what happened and don’t think it was your fault at all…don’t blame anyone….don’t even try to even think about any reasonable explanation about why….because we will never know. But we do know, especially you, know that the man that gave you this ring is dying because you have given up. This is a symbol that he wants to spend the rest of his life with you but….we don’t even know if you’ll last another week. You don’t eat, speak, move…we are just happy that you are breathing. Now you don’t have to speak to me…or to anyone for that matter until you are ready. But please give us a sign and especially Gabriel….to let him know that you will not leave either”she said and then started to cry,”Salomi I'm so sorry. I wish I could have been here for you…. but I'm not going to blame myself…I'm worried about you baby. I'm so sorry that this happened….I'm so sorry…but please Salomi, say something, do something, anything”she pleaded to her

But Salomi only stared ahead. Shes heard many speeches like this before. Ruth came in here everyday with new reasons why acting like this was wrong but understandable. She wasn’t acting though, she really felt like she couldn’t feel a thing. She was officially numb and just tired. She just sat there as Dorothy cried and then left the room and she just sat there as Gabriel cried as he sat by her side, like every other night, until he cried himself to sleep. Once he was asleep, she closed her eyes.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy never liked hospitals, the last year of her mother’s life was spent in a hospital just like this in New Jersey. Salomi was sleeping and David had just left for California, she and Gabriel were sitting in the hospital room, just watching her.”Ok, we need to get out of here. You especially Gabriel. We need to eat something besides hospital food and we need some fresh air.What do you say?”

Gabriel only shook his head,”Its fine, you go. I mean she could wake up and if she doesn’t see me…I wanna be here when she wakes”

Dorothy nodded sadly,she knew he would say as much.She kissed him on his forehead and walked out as Ruth was coming in.”Is she awake?”Ruth asked her

“No…Gabriel is in there…I was going to get something to eat…talk some sense into him?”she asked her

Ruth nodded,”I’ll try but…you can take a horse to the water but you cant make the horse drink it” Dorothy sighed,she was right. Salomi will only speak if she feels the need to and Gabriel wont leave her side until he feels the need to, no matter what they say to them.

Dorothy went to a small deli across the street from the hospital, she kind of lost her appetite as she walked over. She only ordered a coffee and sat down at a small table near the window. She was lost in thought as she stirred the milk in her coffee and watched the many New Yorkers walking by. She didn’t notice a man staring at her and then approaching her table. She then looked up and smiled, she recognized the man but didn’t know his name.

“Dorothy Gibson?”he asked her,”Its great to run into you”he said to her

She shook his hand as she tried to figure out who he was.”I'm sorry…you are?”she asked him

He laughed in surprise, everyone knew who he was. But he noticed that something had to be on her mind if all she did was stare out the window for ten minutes while her coffee got cold. “Julian Brulatour….most call me Jules”he said

Dorothy smiled and then let out an embarrassed laugh. Of course! Jules was a huge movie tycoon, he was co founder of Universal Pictures, the adviser and producer of Éclair Studios and he even backed David with many of his films, including her film, ‘Saved from the Titanic’. She has seen him on many of her sets and has been introduced to him several times but they never actually exchanged more than a hello and nice to meet you. “Of course I'm so sorry Jules. I don’t know where my mind is these days”

“Its alright. It was a very surprising but humbling moment for me”he said to her,”Now that we got that out of the way, can I join you?”he asked her

“Sure go ahead”she said as she gestured to the empty seat in front of her.”So what brings you to New York?”she asked him

“Meetings, meetings…oh and more meetings”he said with a laugh,”I'm leaving tomorrow for California. I'm backing the next Chaplin film, very excited, its gonna be the bee’s knees”

“The bees what?”Dorothy asked with a laugh

Jules laughed,”Sorry, this young actress that I just finished working with, I don’t know if you have heard of her, Clara Bow…well she seems to be very promising, very beautiful…anyway, she has all this slang..don’t know where she learned it but…back to your question, ‘the bees knees’ means fantastic basically”he said and laughed

“Oh alright”Dorothy said and laughed,”Wow I guess I'm getting too old now huh?”she asked. She was almost 30 and she used to know all the slang.

“Oh your not old at all. I think Clara just makes it up but everyone catches on to it, she's quite the trendsetter”he said,”But you just finished a film with David correct?”

She nodded,”Yes I did. Its in post production now”she said as she put the mug to her mouth and drank the coffee

“I cant wait to see it”Jules said and then all of a sudden Dorothy spit out her coffee. He laughed in surprise,”Do you not want me to see it?”he asked

“No…my coffee is about 15 minutes old and very cold”she said,”I'm sorry that was very childish and rude”

“No it was funny actually”he said,”Let me get you another coffee and a sandwich”he said as he stood up and before she could object he was already at the counter. Soon he was back with a new coffee for her and sandwiches for the both of them. She apologized profusely for the coffee incident and soon their conversation went back to normal.”So, you just finished a film with David and now you are home…I don’t mean to pry but I watched you…seems like you were very deep in thought…”

Dorothy nodded sadly and he saw it. Something happened and that’s what distracted her. Again she left her coffee alone and didn’t take a bite of her sandwich, must be serious. “I came back because…a friend of mine…shes in the hospital…”

“I'm sorry to hear that”Jules said as he took her hand,”Is she alright?”

Dorothy sighed as tears filled her eyes, she looked out the window and quickly blinked them away, she then shrugged and then shook her head no. “No…shes not. I'm worried about her…shes been through a lot…and Ive been so busy…”

“Your not blaming yourself are you?”he asked her, not letting go of her hand,”That’s not going to help at all”

She looked at him and then nodded,”Your right but I cant help but think…”she then stopped herself. It wasn’t going to help, she left the hospital to clear her head and to get something to eat. She could think of every bad thought imaginable when she got back to the hospital. She sipped on her coffee and then picked up her sandwich and took a few bites.”I got back from California early this morning and I went straight to the hospital, I haven’t even been back to my apartment. I haven’t even unpacked. Ive been by her side…”

“That’s good”he said and decided to change the subject, it was all fresh and pained her too much,”So what are you going to do now? I mean this recent film is over, are you jumping into another one?”

“No. I mean scripts are being sent to me but Ive always been picky. David said that hes in the middle of writing another one…however the timing right now? I should take a break”

Jules frowned,”You aren't going back to London are you? I mean I'm sure you were wonderful doing Shakespeare but when you said that you weren’t going to do films ever again…I was saddened. I'm glad your back. Your really very talented”

Dorothy smiled in surprise. She almost forgot about the year she spent in London, doing ‘Hamlet’ with Lucas and putting up with him, then leaving on the Titanic…and where her life was now. “Why thank you. I didn’t know you were such a fan”

Jules blushed, which was very cute. “You can say that. Ive always wanted to tell you that but we never really got to speak to each other”he said to her,”I'm sure you had a good time there though right? Ive never been to London”

“Its very different and doing live theatre is very different from being behind a camera, yes”she said with a nod. She described her life in London and how hard but fascinating doing Shakespeare was.

“So…tell me…were you and that Lucas fellow…”

“Oh no. Everyone thought so”Dorothy said with a laugh,she hasn’t seen him since he left her after they docked in New York five years ago.”He was not my type”she said with a look on her face which made him laugh

“So what is your type?”he asked her and then stopped.”I'm sorry that was inappropriate”

“No its not…I don’t know what my type is actually”she said. She hasn’t been in love with anyone since Abraham. They quickly dropped the subject of love and talked about any and everything, they had been sitting there for hours when a man took a picture of them.She sighed, great.

“That’s a sign that we need to get out of here”Jules said,”Did you need a ride to your place?”he asked her,”You mentioned that you haven’t been home”She smiled at him and nodded.They got into his very expensive looking car and soon she was home, he bringing the bags in for her. She gave him a tour of the apartment and soon they were talking again over a glass of wine. It was refreshing, it was better than beating herself up at the hospital. He was very funny, so funny that she spit her wine out all over him when she laughed.He laughed,”I don’t know who told you otherwise but spitting is quite rude”

“I'm sorry”she said as she rushed to clean it up.Thankful that he wore such a nice dark suit. He smelled good too and she then looked at him, and he was very handsome too. Their faces were inches apart and just like in her romantic films, something took over and he pulled her to him in a passionate kiss

*___________________________*

“Ohmygod…Jules,we have to stop”Dorothy said as she rolled off of him and laid next to him in her bed. That one passionate kiss led to so much more and before she knew it, it was almost nightfall. They had been making love all day almost. She didn’t know if something was wrong with her but he brought out so many desires that she didn’t know that she had, or at least suppressed since Abraham. But he moved on, he was with his first love again and she needed to move on too and find love of her own. But this was going way too fast…right?

Jules chuckled as he sat up a little bit,”Oh now you want to stop? I think a mere ten minutes ago you were telling me the opposite”

She lightly swatted him,”Heat of the moment..that’s all”

“Is it?”he asked as he pulled a cigarette and some matches out of the pocket of his pants,”Smoke?”he asked her,she nodded and he gave that one to her and lit it and then lit one for himself. They laid there and smoked and listened to the lively sounds of New York outside the window. It was cold out now and Thanksgiving was right around the corner, so was Christmas.”What are you thinking?”he asked her

“Nothing”she said with a shrug

“No one ever stops thinking. What are you thinking about? You seem a little stressed and tense all of a sudden”he asked her,”Did I hurt you?”he asked suddenly concerned

“No you didn’t…it was great”she said as she put the cigarette out and turned to him,”It was more than great”she said with a smile

“You were greater”he said as he stroked her face

“What does this mean?”she asked him,”You mentioned that you were leaving tomorrow morning”she said and once she said it, she was saddened. Great, another man leaving her. The way of the world.

Jules sighed,”I don’t know. I cant say no but Im afraid to say yes for obvious reasons”he said. During one of their long talks, he explained about the recent seperation from his wife, which she wanted to keep silent so she wouldn’t risk being ‘embarrassed’. He didn’t know how long he could keep quiet but he promised her. He never broke his promises. Which was a great attribute.

“Yes..to what?”she asked him

Jules chuckled,”You make me just want to whisk you away from all this. Take you to Paris…an island somewhere. Just away from all your troubles”he smiled at her,”I have to say that I have become quite attached to you in the past few hours and it scares the hell out of me”

She nodded,”Me too” They sat there in silence. Then he broke it again.

“Well be honest, if you just see me as an attractive man with a lot of money, then we can just let it be. That’s all my wife thought of me as”he said to her

“Well you are an attractive man no doubt…and you do have a lot of money”she said. He sighed. “But…I think we connect and…I feel attached as well. Something told me to get out of the hospital so I can feel normal. And I do and you helped me. You saved me from slowly going crazy in there. I want you to whisk me away, one day, when its right”she said honestly.

Jules smiled and kissed her and then took her hand,”I should only be in California for a few days. Just pre production stuff, the usual. When I have time I will call you and I’ll come back as soon as I can” She nodded as tears filled her eyes,”Whats wrong?”he asked her

“I honestly don’t know”she said as she wiped her tears.”Im so scared,I don’t know where this will go. What if we get caught?”

He wiped her tears,”We are merely business partners in the public eye. My wife doesn’t care about me, she doesn’t watch me like a hawk. I just check in on her every now and then out of courtesy. Im scared too but I have a good feeling about you”

“I have a good feeling about you too”she said,”You don’t have to rush back here you know. I don’t want you making yourself sick. I mean California is 3000 miles away, that’s a 4 day trip-“

“Your worth it Dorothy”he said to her and she gave him a kiss. Which again led to much more. She wanted to relish in being ‘normal’ as long as she could.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The two fell asleep in her bed and she made him an early breakfast the next morning and then made love again after. They bathed and then he finally got ready to leave…to leave her.”Why the long face?”he asked her

“Your leaving me that’s all”she said

“And I said I would call you when I am for sure about when Im coming back”he said to her,”I promise”she nodded

“Can I come with you? To the train station?”she asked him. She would love to go back to California. It was a fun place when you weren’t working on your own films. But she couldn’t possibly leave now, not in the condition Salomi was in now. She had to be careful, she was too delicate and any other sudden change in her life could break her.

“Of course”he said and then he kissed her long and hard.She looked at him,confused when he pulled away,”I cant kiss you as passionately…actually at all once we walk out that door…”

“Then don’t’she said and then quickly shut up,”Sorry”

“Its alright. I wish I didn’t have to”he finally composed himself and then they took a cab to the train station. She tried her best not to cry and he tried his best to not make love to her right there on the dock. They hugged each other, like business partners, then he boarded the train.”Til we see each other Ms. Gibson”

“Until we do”she said politely and faked a smile, but was crying inside.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy then went back to the apartment and cried her eyes out as she unpacked the bags that she never had a chance to the night before. Jules left his cigarette case and she found herself just staring at it. She sighed and wiped her eyes and then decided to make some food for Gabriel, Salomi and Ruth if she was there. She headed to the hospital and wondered if anyone was worried about why she wasn’t there. But when she got there, everything was the same as if she left only to get coffee. Salomi was asleep and Gabriel was still sitting in the same spot. Like he never moved.”Gabriel? I brought some food”she said as she walked in

“No thanks”he said,”You got those from the deli?”he asked her

She sighed,he still thought it was yesterday, like she had just left…and never bumped into Jules. So much happened in 24 hours. Now she felt that she went back in time, like she was moving backwards.”No I went back home and made these. Homemade sandwiches. I made your favorite actually”she said as she held it out to him. But he didn’t look at her, only at Salomi.”You need to eat Gabriel”

“Im fine really”he said, only staring ahead. It was like he was becoming like Salomi but at least he was speaking

But Dorothy couldn’t take that chance. Something took over her and she stood in front of Gabriel, blinding his sight of Salomi. She practically shoved the sandwich in his face,”Eat. Now.”she said sternly

This took Gabriel aback and it seemed to snap him out of his reverie that he was in. He stared at her with wide eyes and shook his head a little as if he just woke up. He slowly took the sandwich from her and started to eat it.”Thank you”

“Your welcome”she said as she sat next to him. She was still full from the breakfast she made for Jules. She sat there and then as he ate Gabriel started crying,”Gabriel-“

He put the sandwich down and got up and started pacing right in front of her.”I cant take it anymore Dorothy! I don’t know how much more I can take! What if she never speaks to me again? What if she hates me? What if she never wakes up? Can you die of a broken heart? I never should have let her go to California. She never would have fallen off that train and we wouldn’t be here right now. I need to get away from here but I cant, she may wake up and panic. I lost my baby….I cant lose another….Dorothy what am I gonna do!?”he asked her as his pace started to slow down with each question. He then stopped and broke down crying. She got up and held him close to her. Shushing him and telling him it was alright.

“You need to get some fresh air. Sleep in that bed of yours instead of a wooden chair. I’ll stay with her. Just a few hours will do you good. I know this”she said

“Im scared to leave her. Im afraid that I will regret it”he said

“You wont. Go back home. I’ll call you if anything changes”she said,”Do this before you go crazy”

He nodded slowly, he picked up the sandwich and put it in his pocket and put on his jacket and cap. He was still crying as he did so,”You promise that you’ll call me the second she wakes up? If she asks for me? Anything?”

“Yes I will”Dorothy assured him,”Go and rest please”she said as she ushered him out the door and gave him another hug.

As she did so, Salomi slowly opened her eyes. She heard him crying, it must be because of her. She cant do anything right can she? A tear rolled down her face and that alone took a lot of strength and she fell back asleep.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

As cold as it was, Gabriel decided to walk home. He needed an overdose of fresh air. The trip was depressing however, seeing the many expensive cars fly by,families decorating for Thanksgiving, people shopping. The holidays were going to be especially hard this year. He finally reached the apartment and sighed with small relief. He hasn’t been here since Salomi woke up that fateful night. He couldn’t bear to look at their bed yet. The blood was gone and there were new sheets but the memory was still there. He walked into Dorothy’s room and took out a bottle of whiskey that she would hide from Salomi, she used to sneak some in the earlier stages of her pregnancy. He took a few gulps and quickly put it away and burped. He laughed a little and noticed a small cigarette case. It was silver and very expensive. He took one out and lit it. He coughed at first and thought he would feel sick. Hes smoked a cigarette once with Adam in Germany while they were performing but its been years since then. He inspected the case and saw the initials ‘JB’ on the back. Who was that? He then shrugged, that was none of his business. He walked out of the room and soon forgot about it. He smoked the whole cigarette and threw it out a window. Then he staggered into the bedroom Salomi and him shared and once his head hit the pillow, he was out like a light.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel slept for a long time but Dorothy didn’t find that unusual at all. She knew that he needed it desperately. The past week and a half hasn’t been easy for him. He would probably need a whole 24 hours worth of sleep to help get him back on track. He came back later, still looking pale but much better than before.”I didn’t mean to sleep that long. Sorry”

“Your forgiven Gabriel”Dorothy said as she gave him a hug. He basically had a 5 hour nap which was better than nothing.”You need to do this more often.For her sake. When she wakes up she needs a strong and healthy man to help her through this”she said to him.

Gabriel was soon better after that. He went home to sleep more and always rushed back to see if Salomi’s condition changed. It still didn’t and that would depress him but all he could do was pray. He never left her side unless he left to get some rest and then he soon went back to performing at Maisy’s and coming straight back to the hospital. Ruth, Dorothy and some nurses that he befriended would stay with Salomi and would always call if there were any changes. There weren’t any.

Thanksgiving was depressing but not as depressing as they thought it would be. In a perfect world, they thought that Salomi would be better by then. However it was close to a month since the death of the baby and there was nothing more that the hospital could do for her. Either she would grow out of it with familiar surroundings or the death of her child would have damaged her forever. They brought Salomi home a few days before and soon the big day came. Dorothy and Ruth made a big feast while Gabriel tried his best to assist. Jules was invited as well but just as a business prospect. When Ruth and Gabriel asked who he was, she explained he was a potential financial advisor for a film she may be in. But whenever she described him her eyes would light up, she would blush and smile widely. Hmmm…

Gabriel was finishing up making Salomi’s plate. He was going to take it into the bedroom when she slowly walked out in her nightgown. They all looked at her with shock and Gabriel ran to her. “Baby are you ok?”he asked her. But she said nothing,”Are you hungry? If you wait just a tight second it will be ready..”he said but as he explained it, she walked slowly to the table and sat down. Gabriel rushed with her plate and was soon seated next to her.

“This would be a perfect time to pray”Ruth said with a huge smile. Salomi walking out of the room, let alone sitting down and eating with them was a miracle in itself. They all held hands and Gabriel took Salomi’s hand in his and squeezed it lovingly. She lightly squeezed back. They continued to have light dinner conversation and Salomi still didn’t say a word and only ate less than half of what Gabriel made for her but that was better than nothing. Salomi turned herself in early for the night and laid down. Gabriel laid next to her and tears of joy welled up.

“Thank you for spending Thanksgiving with us. It meant a lot. We all love you and we want you to be alright”he said as he held her close. She still didn’t say anything and that was ok. He finally had a feeling that she was getting somewhere. That maybe everything would be normal again.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Im so glad that you got to see Salomi in the flesh. She used to be such a lively girl. I hope that girl comes back”Dorothy explained to Jules as they walked into his 5th Avenue apartment. Ruth went out with friends, Gabriel was with Salomi. So that gave her free time with Jules.

“I hope so too. Shes a beautiful girl. Hard to believe that shes only 17, she looks like a very mature woman”Jules said as he hung up their coats and informed one of the maids to bring some light snacks and some wine into the dining hall. “From what you told me, she took a big step today. It’s a miracle”

Dorothy nodded enthusiastically,”It’s a sign of better things to come for her, don’t you think?”she asked him

“I think so. She’ll be smart mouthing you as she used to and then you would wish that she would be quiet”Jules said and winked at her.”That also could be a sign meaning many good things are coming”

“Meaning?”

“Oh,like…say…for us….”he said to her. After he left for California, they kept in touch through random letters and they would talk for a few minutes almost every night.

“Arent we just fine?”she asked him,”I mean besides the fact that we have to hide, which isn’t our fault. We are good”she said as the maid set down a tray of tiny desserts and wine. She picked up her glass of wine and they toasted. She took a sip and then almost spit out her wine when she saw something floating in it, a ring!?

Jules laughed,”I thought I told you that the whole spitting thing is rude?”he said teasingly as she fished the ring out of the wine glass with wide eyes,”Now don’t get excited. Its not an engagement ring, believe me, if it were it would be much bigger but this ring stands for something else”

“What does it stand for?”Dorothy asked as she dried the ring off

“Its more than a feeling of attachment with you Dorothy. Im in love with you”he said to her

Dorothy gasped,”I love you too. Oh God, do I love you”she said as she pulled him in for a kiss.

When they both came back up for air he said,”Whenever you look at this ring, I want you to remember tonight”

“I wont need a ring. I’ll have pleasant memories. But this is quite a reminder, a bonus”

“Only the best for my Dorothy, my love”he said to her. They proceeded to kiss once more and soon the desserts and wine were forgotten. He took her upstairs to his master bedroom and ultimately showed his love for her, over and over and over.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy and Jules’ affair got more serious and heated by the day. It became harder for them to hide it and act normal in public. Especially with Christmas just days away, Jules still showered Dorothy with expensive gifts here and there. She wondered what he would give her for Christmas?

Salomi’s condition was slowly but surely getting better. She still didn’t speak but she would nod or shake her head in response to anything instead of doing nothing at all. She even walked around more, a few days before Christmas, she actually bathed and dressed herself and Gabriel caught herself humming and smiling as she looked at herself in a mirror. It was like the old Lomi was dying to come out.

Christmas morning came and just like last year, Salomi was the first to wake. You could see in her eyes that she was excited but she couldn’t quite express it yet, verbally anyway. She woke both Gabriel and Dorothy and they opened presents together. Salomi loved everything. Dorothy got her many dresses and perfumes and even bought her a bicycle since she used to comment on how much she wanted one. Gabriel got her some new shoes and jewelry, which included a diamond necklace, tiara and bracelet. She hugged both of them and was happy. They watched the Christmas parade and then Dorothy and Gabriel prepared to leave to go to Maisy’s for their special Christmas show.

“See you there Gabriel”Dorothy said as she left early to see Jules and then head to the club.

“Bye Dorothy”Gabriel said as he shaved. He noticed Salomi sitting on the bed, looking at him, like she wanted something.”You alright?”he asked her. She didn’t say anything. He continued to shave and looked at her every now and then. He continued to ask if she was alright when he got dressed and was ready to leave.He kissed her on her cheek,”I’ll be back. I love you”he said to her. Not wanting to leave.

He slowly walked out the door and then he heard her say,”Don’t go..” He turned around and gasped. She had tears in her eyes and she was reaching out to him,”I love you, don’t go”she said

*______________________________*

Gabriel gasped as Salomi reached out to him and said,”I love you. Don’t go”

He ran to her and hugged her close to him as he cried tears of joy and she cried as well. He then kissed her and pulled away as he stroked her face,”My God. This is the best gift that you have given to me Lomi”he said,”You spoke. To me. Your speaking”he said

Salomi half smiled but then she sighed and then said again,”Don’t go”

Gabriel sighed,”Believe me I don’t want to go now. Believe me, every night I just wanted to stay with you but…I have to. For us”he said. Not going was out of the question, he was 2 weeks behind in pay from the club and buying Salomi the expensive gifts were going to cost him in the long run. He had to make up for it.”Come with me?”he asked her,”Its been so long since you have been back and working there too. You can wait for me in my dressing room and once I'm done we can come straight here. How does that sound?”he asked her

Salomi nodded,”That’s…fine”she said slowly. She went for a long time without speaking and it felt like she had to learn all over again. She was surprised that Gabriel was so happy. She dressed in one of the new dresses that Dorothy bought for her and she did her hair and makeup and then they walked toward Maisy’s. Once they got there, Gabriel’s dressing room was filled with everyone who missed her. Salomi spoke little but when she did everyone was surprised, happy and impressed. It was all a shock that they were all fawning over her. She didn’t know what to expect, she thought everyone would be upset that she put them through so much trouble, that she was so stupid to trip and fall off that train, to take a long trip like that at all. But no one mentioned it but they were probably thinking it. But all in all, she was very happy, she missed being at the club and helping out Dorothy and Ruth. The new performers that Dorothy had just hired were great and the club was making even more money.

“Oh huney, I'm so glad you are here”Dorothy said as she hugged Salomi close to her. Gabriel ran up to her with tears in her eyes and she feared and expected the worst but she spoke to him. She was speaking to everyone. The old Lomi was back! “I love you so much. Don’t you ever forget that”

“I love you too”Salomi said softly and Dorothy almost started crying.

“I have to get back”Dorothy said,”I’ll see you in the morning?”she asked her. Salomi nodded and like everyone else, Dorothy went back to work with a huge smile on her face and like she was walking on air. She went straight to a table and sat down.

“Wow, what's gotten into you?”Jules asked her. It was his first time at the club and he was enjoying every minute of it.

“Salomi spoke. She's speaking. It happened when I was on my way to see you. Gabriel was just about to leave when she said that she loved him and didn’t want him to leave her. So he brought her here. She's in his dressing room now. She said she loved me”she said as tears welled in her eyes

“Of course she does. Does that surprise you?”Jules said half teasing her, but he knew how much those three words meant her, especially when it came to Salomi saying them

“Well for a second there, I thought that there may be a chance that she would never say those words again. Say anything again”

“Well now that nightmare is over”he said as he hugged her, he wanted to kiss her but couldn’t. “Order me your finest champagne, we are gonna make a toast.”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Thanks everyone, but now we gotta get going”Gabriel said to everyone that was still in the dressing room. He was done with his two performances and he noticed that all the excitement made Salomi tired and maybe even a little scared. Maybe because she hasn’t had much interaction with anyone in the past 2 months. Everyone obeyed his wishes and they all said their goodbyes to them and left them alone. He helped Salomi with her coat and he asked her,”Are you alright?”

“Yes, I'm fine”Salomi said,”Just…overwhelmed that’s all”

Gabriel nodded,”I know. But everyone is very happy to see you. Everyone has been worried about you”

“Really?”

“Of course…why wouldn’t they be?”he asked her

Salomi just shook her head and then said,”Never mind”and reached her hand out to him,”Lets go home”

Gabriel smiled as he took her hand. Those words struck home as well. He has wanted her to say that for so long. “Yeah…lets go home”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Within days, Salomi was back to normal. The apartment was much livelier once she became her old self again. She wasn’t as dependent on Gabriel and was soon working at Maisy’s and roaming the city during the day like she used to. She decided to get a Christmas gift for herself, she wanted a new style but didn’t know quite what she was looking for. She went to a boutique called Axelle’s, which was a store where she and Dorothy frequented as well as other rich and famous women. She looked through the racks and saw that either she already had what she liked or it was something that she wouldn’t be caught dead wearing. She sighed.

“Nice shoes”she heard someone comment and Salomi looked up to see a girl with short bobbed hair.

“Thanks”she said to her and then smiled, she had on the same ones,”You too”

“Why thank you”she said with a smile,”I love them. They’re the cat's pajamas wouldn’t you say?”

Salomi looked at her like she was speaking another language,”What?”

“They’re the cat's pajamas. Fantastic.”she explained

“Oh yes. Fantastic. The cat's pajamas. Of course. They are really comfortable. Got them for Christmas”

The girl smiled.”Mine were a Christmas gift too….of sorts. I stole mine”she said and then laughed out loud. Salomi just stared at her and then laughed a little. “So what are you looking for?”

“I honestly don’t know. I have most of these dresses already and some are just…”

“Baloney?”the girl added

“I was going to say awful…wait..”she laughed,”What does baloney mean?”

“Nonsense. Stupid.”the girl said with a laugh and then stared at her with wide eyes,”Where have you been?”

Salomi wanted to say secluded in a hospital after she was stupid enough to kill her own baby, but that wouldn’t be a good first impression. “I've been busy. I never get to go out”

“That’s too bad”she said as she picked up a red dress,”What about this?”

“It's…the cat's pajamas”Salomi said with a smile,”I also have the same one”

The girl smiled,”Well it seems that I found myself a twin sister”she said to her,”We have the same shoes and now we are going to have the same dress”she said as she took it off the rack. She walked toward a woman who worked there and she actually bought the dress. “You getting anything?”

Salomi shook her head,”I guess not”she said as she walked out with her,”I just have this feeling that I need to change something about myself. A new style, a new look”

“Oh!”the girl said excitedly,”I know exactly what you mean! I had that exact feeling last week and that’s when I did this!”she said as she pointed to her hair. “My hair was almost all the way down to my bottom and then boom! I cut it all off. Its so Jake right now, all the girls are doing it. Like that actress, Clara Bow”she said to her as they walked down the street,then she gasped,”You should do it! Get a bob!”

“A bob?”Salomi asked,”You mean…cut my hair?”

“Why not? It will look great on you I can see it now and if you don’t like it, it will always grow back. Show off that gorgeous neck of yours, easy access for the fellas”she said with a wink. She stopped her and then pointed across the street,”In fact that’s where I got it done”she said as she pointed to a salon. “You gonna do it or not?”

Salomi looked at the store and saw two girls leave with bob cuts but they were blond. Very blond in fact. Almost white but it looked good. “Ok let's do it”

The two girls ran across the street and the girl introduced her to someone,”Hello Marie. Got you a new customer. She wants a bob”

Marie nodded,”Great choice. Everyone is doing it. You ready?”she asked her as she nodded her head to her empty chair. Salomi nodded. Soon Marie got to work on her hair and Salomi winced when she could hear the scissors slicing away at her long dark hair.

“She ain't gonna cut your head off sweetheart”the girl said to her as she laughed

Soon Marie was done and she turned Salomi around to face the mirror. Salomi gasped as she looked at herself. She looked totally different! This was exactly what she wanted, she didn’t even look like herself.

“Oh! That is so Jake! Marie, you are a genius!”the girl said to her as she hugged Marie

“Yes thank you”Salomi said to her. She paid Marie and then they left the salon.

“Didn’t I tell you? Wasn’t I right?”the girl asked her,”You look like the cat's pajamas….”then she stopped

“What?”

“I just realized that I convinced a girl to get her first bob… and I don’t even know her name! How rude of me! I'm Darla”she said

Salomi laughed, she just realized as well,”I'm Salomi. Nice to finally meet you Darla”

“Hmmm…interesting name…Salomi…beautiful”Darla said,”So…what do you want to do now?”

“I'm starved, lets eat”Salomi said. Darla smiled and put her arm through hers and they went to the closest restaurant.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“She's probably out shopping. You know how she is”Gabriel said to Dorothy. They were leaving for Maisy’s in 10 minutes and Salomi had been out all day. She didn’t even call. It was cold out too. Where was she? Dorothy was getting worried.

Gabriel sighed. He was sick of worrying about Salomi. She was her old self again and she was fine now, he didn’t need to worry about her anymore. “If she isn’t back by the time we leave, she’ll be there. She's never late”

Just then the door seemed to burst open and with it came two very giggly girls with short hair, red lips and red cheeks from the cold. Dorothy gasped, she didn’t recognize her at first.”Salomi? What did you do to your hair?”

“I cut it!”Salomi said excitedly,”I wanted something new you know? I wanted to look different, have a new style then I met Darla and she has the same shoes and now the same dress as I do. Shes like my twin! Anyway, she advises me to get a bob. It’s the bees knees!”she said excitedly,”You like?”

Dorothy half smiled,”It looks kind of boyish don’t you think?”

“Yes but that’s the beauty of it”Darla commented excitedly,”I'm Darla”she said as she hugged Dorothy tightly,”I am such a big fan of yours too. I love you! You are so….Jake!”she said and she and Salomi laughed

Gabriel gave Salomi a kiss,”I like it. You look beautiful”

“Oh so this is your big cheese huh?”Darla asked Salomi and she nodded,”You are cute. Darla”

“Nice to meet you Darla. Gabriel”he said

“I know I'm running late and I'm sorry but I told Darla about Maisy’s and she just had to come. I'm bringing her along”Salomi said,”We’re gonna get dressed”she said as she held the bedroom door open for Darla and she went in.

“We should be twins tonight!”Darla said as she went into the bathroom

“Well…just don’t be late”Dorothy said. This was a big surprise to her, only last week was she not saying a word and now it was just as Jules predicted. She was talking way too much and speaking in a language she didn’t understand. Must be that Clara Bow phenomenon.

“I wont Dorothy, don’t worry”Salomi said to her. She looked at Gabriel. “Do you mind waiting for us?”

“No I don’t mind”he said

“Good. Thank you”she said as she kissed him quickly

“Oh…and what does ‘big cheese’ mean?”he asked her

Salomi laughed,”It means you’re an important person silly”she said and then closed the door behind her. They heard Darla say something and then Salomi laughed out loud.

Gabriel looked at Dorothy.”This is good Dorothy. Salomi needs a girlfriend her age. She and Ruth butt heads a lot, she needs a friend to make her laugh. Hey anything that keeps her happy these days is good for her”

Dorothy nodded.”Yes it is. Well I'm going to get going. Don’t let those two make you run behind”

“They won't”Gabriel said. Dorothy nodded and then left. Gabriel sat on the couch and waited and turned on their new radio as he waited for them.

Minutes later, Salomi poked her head out between the frame and the door. He noticed that she had a lot of makeup on and more ruby red lipstick.”Ready?”she asked

Gabriel smiled,”You look beautiful. Yes I am”

Salomi opened the door wider and said,”Ta da!” She and Darla were both wearing the same red dress, the same shoes, they both had their black bobs cut and styled to perfection and they both had the ruby red lipstick and little black feathers in their hair.

Gabriel laughed,”You do look like twins!”he said,”You both look beautiful”

“Why thank you Cheese”Darla said to him and Salomi laughed.”You are going to look quite handsome next to us”she said as they got their coats on. She slipped an arm through Gabriel's and Salomi did the same. He smiled, he had the ‘twins’ on each arm. “Let's scat”she said to them

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi and Darla were the talk of the club. A lot of people didn’t even recognize Salomi with her new ‘bob’ and kept asking who the ‘cute twins’ were. Darla had a great time, she loved all the acts and cheered loudly whenever Gabriel performed. Darla was pretty wild but very fun and Salomi loved her already. Someone else was watching Gabriel as well and they were very impressed.

“Did you want to go backstage?”Salomi asked Darla

“Of course!”Darla said as she jumped up. Salomi introduced her to all the performers and then she knocked on Gabriel’s door.”You were great! How did you learn to do that?”Darla asked him as she walked in.

“Thank you”Gabriel said and then kissed Salomi,”I used to be in a circus troupe”

“Oh yes, Salomi did tell me about that”Darla said as she took something out of her purse. It was a long stick of some sort and she put a cigarette in it and lit it. “Smoke?”she asked them

“Sure”Salomi said as she walked over and tried it. She inhaled and then coughed.

“Careful!”Darla said with a laugh,”You can't inhale on the first try, you gotta get used to it”she said. Then there was a knock at the door. Gabriel opened it and it was Ruth with some guy.

“He wanted to see you”Ruth said.

Gabriel nodded,”Gabriel Brewster”he said as he held out his hand and introduced himself

“Nice work up there Gabriel. I'm Leon Errol. I wanted to speak to you about your act. See, I used to own a vaudeville troupe back in Australia, my home country. I like your work. Can we speak privately?”he asked him

“Sure”Gabriel said.”Ladies? I'm going to need my-“

“Oh take all the time you need”Salomi said with a smile. She had a feeling that something good could come out of this. “Come on Darla”

“Oh Mr. Errol? This is my fiancé, Salomi and her friend, Darla”Gabriel said introducing them.

“Your fiancé is very lovely”Leon said as he kissed Salomi’s hand,”But her friend is lovelier”he said as he kissed Darla’s hand. Salomi smiled widely at Darla. Darla blushed and giggled and the two girls left.

“Seems Mr. Errol is very taken by you”Salomi said to her

*___________________________*

“Now take all the time you need to think about it. I know that I probably put you between a rock and a hard place with my proposal. This is a great place to work and get your start. Ms. Gibson is very talented herself and has found great talent, but I think you have the most out of all of them and that’s why I want you to join me. So do think about it, but not too long. If your gonna say no, I need to know at least by the first week of the new year. Any questions, just call me”Leon Errol said to Gabriel as he gave him his card, “Are you performing anymore tonight?”

“I have one more. I'm like the intermission”Gabriel said. Leon nodded

“I’ll be watching you then”Leon said with a smile,”Please think about it”

“Oh I will”Gabriel said as he shook Leon’s hand and then Leon left.”Believe me I will”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Here's the whiskey. There's more boxes in the back here if you need more”Salomi said to one of the bartenders and then went to help someone. She served them their drink of choice and he gave her a huge tip and winked at her.”Hmm ring a ding ding”she said in a sing song voice to herself as she put the tip in her bra

Ruth saw this and walked up to her,”You have a lot of makeup on”

“Hello Ruth how are you today?”Salomi said to her, ignoring her comment

“I'm not trying to be rude Lomi. I just want you to know that you are a naturally beautiful girl and all that makeup isn’t necessary”Ruth said,”I do like the cut though. But aren't you going to miss that long hair of yours?”

“Nope”Salomi said simply,”This is exactly what I needed. I needed a change. To look totally different from the old Lomi”

“Why are you trying to change?”Ruth asked her

“Because the new year is in two days. I wanted to start it new and fresh, that’s all”

Ruth sighed,it was just as she predicted. She read about it from her new boyfriends psychology books. “Salomi, cutting your hair and putting on pounds of makeup and finding new friends is not going to help. Don’t use that to run away from your problems. You can't simply change your look overnight and expect that your whole life will change along with it. It was God’s will Lomi, and I know that’s hard to understand but all you have to do is accept it-“

“I don’t know what the hell you are talking about”Salomi interrupted her quickly. Then a few men came up to the bar,”Why don’t you serve them while I look after the performers?”she asked her and rushed off. She rolled her eyes. God! Why did Ruth always think that she knew everything about everything? Like she knew what was best for her? She walked backstage and gave 5, 10 and 15 minute warnings to the appropriate acts and then stopped by Gabriel’s dressing room. He was sitting at his desk looking at some card. She took a penny out of her bra and cleared her throat. He looked up at her and smiled and she tossed the penny toward him,”Penny for your thoughts?” she asked as she walked in and sat on his lap

“Mr. Errol gave me quite a proposition….but that means a lot of change that I don’t know if I'm ready for…”Gabriel said

“What kind of proposition?”Salomi asked and then gasped,”He's not asking you to fight in the war or something is he?”

“Oh no no no”Gabriel said with a smile,”It's not that serious”

“Oh well what is it then?”

“Leon was in charge of a vaudeville group back in Australia. Now he has moved here and has made quite a name for himself. His old partner was Bert Williams. Can you believe that? And he also works with the Ziegfeld Follies! I mean those are two great names as far as onstage entertainment. He wants me to join him, to take him under his wing and perform with him”

“Well do it!”Salomi said excitedly. Gabriel mentioned from time to time about what Bert Williams was doing and how talented he was. She also heard he and Dorothy sing the Follies praises. This could make him the star that he always wanted to be.”What is there to think about?”

“Well…Dorothy”Gabriel said,”She has done so much for me. She hired me here when I had not even a penny to my name. She's taken care of the both of us and lets us stay in her fancy apartment. She even lets me be in charge. She has total faith and trust in me and I feel that if I do this. I feel like I'm leaving her behind..like I've been taking advantage..”

“So you’ve been taking advantage of Dorothy all this time?”

“No I haven’t!-“

“Then don’t feel like that then. It's not true. Don’t feel like you owe something to Dorothy. She would want you to do this. I mean you can't be here forever, she knows that. And if it means that much to you, not leaving her I mean, then maybe you can help us out here and perform with Mr. Errol. Best of both worlds. But baby don’t pass this up. This is the exact change that you need”

“I didn’t know that I needed a change”

“Don’t we all? The new year is in 2 days. We all need to start anew”she said as the audience applauded. “Oh I'm now giving you your 15 minute warning”she said to him

“Thanks baby”he said as he gave her a kiss,”So if I do decide to do this…will you support me?”

“100% I mean that’s what fiancé's do right?”she asked and then kissed him again

“I love you Lomi”

“I love you too”she said to him

“Where's Darla? This is the first time all night that I haven’t seen her by your side”Gabriel asked

“You know what? I don’t know. I mean she's probably out in the audience cheering as loud as she possibly can”Salomi said as they both walked out the dressing room. As they did, someone spilled a whole glass of wine and it got all over the floor. “Shit”she said,”No drinking backstage!”she shouted at the culprit and then went to the nearest closet to find a mop. She opened the nearest closet door and found Leon Errol making out with Darla in the closet!

“Ohmygod!”Darla laughed, embarrassed that they were caught for a second but then didn’t care. Leon blushed a little or was it just Darla’s lipstick that was all over his face?

“Uh…I just need a mop and bucket”Salomi said as she picked it up,”Sorry”she said and closed the door. Wow.

“What's wrong? Looks like you just saw a ghost?”Gabriel asked her

“I didn’t see a ghost”Salomi said as she started mopping up the mess. She had to do it fast, the performers were rushing on and offstage and if anyone fell, that would be more money coming out of their pockets. She looked around and then whispered,”I found Darla and she was making out with Mr. Errol in the closet!”

Gabriel laughed out loud,”Are you serious?”he asked her and she shushed him and he lowered his voice,”I mean I could tell he was taken by her but I didn’t know that he would act on it so fast!”

“Oh he's taking something alright”Salomi commented and they both laughed. She finished mopping and then said,”Let me put this in another closet so as to not disturb the closet lovers”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“We did pretty good tonight”Salomi said as she calculated the numbers and started putting the money away,”But will it make up for not being open on New Years Eve? Are you sure you want to do that?”she asked Dorothy

Dorothy shrugged,”It seems I have to. The performers are tired. They do this every night. They were all upset that they had to work Christmas Eve and Day. So I promised them that they would have New Years Eve off. I empathize. There were many holidays when I had to perform for people who were enjoying the holiday by watching me. It's like a slap in the face of sorts. Anyhow, that gives you more time to spend with Gabriel. You can both ring in the New Year like normal engaged couples do. Unless you bring that loud Darla along with you everywhere”

Salomi rolled her eyes playfully,”She's not just loud Dorothy. She's just…very full of life. She's fun. Spontaneous. I like her”

Dorothy smiled,”Where is she?”she asked her

“I don’t know. Probably waiting out there for me. I need to get her home”Salomi said as she got up and helped Dorothy put everything away. She got on her coat and kissed Dorothy on the cheek,”I’ll see you at home, I won't wait up”

“I hope not”Dorothy said and smiled. She had a weird feeling about this Darla girl but she was going to try her best not to worry about it

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Maybe she was tired and left early?”Gabriel said to Salomi as they waited outside the club. They looked all over for Darla and she was nowhere to be found.

“Well she would have told me. I'm worried, I mean what if she got hurt or something? I don’t want to be responsible for anyone getting hurt again. What if she got lost?”

“Maybe we should check the closet again? Maybe she's out with Leon. I mean I hope their romance didn’t start and end in a janitors closet”Gabriel said with a smile. However, Salomi didn’t find it funny. She was worried about her new ‘twin’.”Let's just go. Maybe she's waiting back at our place?”

“You are saying maybe a little too much”Salomi said as they headed home. They got to the apartment and Doroty wasn’t home either and Darla wasn’t waiting for them there. She sighed.

“She's young too. Her mother and father probably set a curfew and she had to rush back. Let's just get some sleep ok?”Gabriel said to her. Salomi accepted defeat and nodded, it took her a long time to go to sleep.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi did the grocery shopping for Dorothy the next day since she had another important meeting with Jules. She picked up the bags and headed back to the apartment when there was a loud honking noise, she turned and saw a car heading right toward her! She screamed and dropped one of the bags as the car came to a stop right in front of her, almost running her over. She then heard a familiar laugh and saw that the driver was Darla. “What the hell is the matter with you!?”she shouted at her,”You could have killed me!”

“Oh boo hoo”Darla said in a baby voice as she stuck her head out the window. “I wasn’t going to kill you Lomi, you know I love you”

“Well now I dropped half my groceries because of you”Salomi said to her as she looked at all the fruits and vegetables that now laid on the sidewalk

“Ok well let's just go back and get some more. I’ll buy. I'm sorry. I just wanted to surprise you”Darla said as she unlocked the passenger door. “Get in. I’ll take you back to the market”

Salomi sighed and then got in. She couldn’t be mad at Darla. She was trying to make up for it. She got in and noticed that she was wearing the dress from last night, “Where were you last night? You had me worried. I couldn’t find you anywhere”

“Oh that’s sweet”Darla said as she sped down the street back towards the market,”I was with Leon. He's my new snugglepup. This is his car you know. He had some meeting with an important client so he let me have the car for a day!”

“I didn’t know that you knew how to drive”Salomi said to her. So fast too.

“Oh an old snugglepup of mine taught me”Darla said with a smile,”I can teach you if you wanna”she said to her but then smiled,”Oh, I think he loves me. I think I love him too”

“Already?”Salomi asked her with wide eyes

“Well maybe not love…but lust. It was great. And we didn’t even get too intimate just enough to satisfy the both of us”Darla said with a huge smile. Salomi didn’t know quite what it meant but she smiled

“Well I'm happy for you two. If things go according to plan, Gabriel and Leon may be partners”

“Oh that would be so Jake! Our snugglepups will be best pals and so will we. We can go on doubles every night!”Darla said,”What are you doing for New Years? Is the club open?”

“No actually we have the night off”

“Good you can bring Cheese and we can go to the Rainbow Room. Leon invited me, there's going to be a big party. It's going to be the cat's pajamas”Darla said to her

“The Rainbow Room? Really? I have nothing to wear to the Rainbow Room”Salomi said. It was a very classy and upscale club. Film stars and the rich debutantes frequented there all the time. Who knew who they would run into!

“Well then that means we would have to go to Axelle’s wont we?”Darla said as they arrived at the market. “But after we get your precious fruits and vegetables”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

After another “meeting” with Jules, he and Dorothy stopped by the apartment and she ran into Gabriel. He said that he needed to speak with her about something very important. They both sat down and he told her all about the proposition that Leon Errol approached Gabriel with.”If you really need me at Maisy’s, then I won't do it. But I just thought that I would tell you what he offered”

Dorothy smiled,”Now you know I couldn’t ask you to do that. Especially since you obviously want to do it so badly. Don’t feel like you have to owe me anything. This would be good for you and Lomi. Once you start working with Leon, that means more money and you can move yourself and Lomi into that apartment that you were looking at. Now don’t think that I expected you two to stick around forever. You are grown now and should do whatever you please. I think this is a good opportunity. Working with the Follies would be great for you, it can take you to even better places”

Gabriel nodded. By the end of their conversation, he decided to do it and offered to at least help out at Maisy’s whenever he had time off. He immediately got on the phone with Leon and he was pleased.”Well that settles it then, on Monday we will sign the contracts and start rehearsing. I won't let you down Gabriel and I know you won't let me down. I'm taking you and your gal to celebrate at the Rainbow Room tomorrow night for New Years Eve to celebrate. How does that sound?”Leon asked him

Gabriel smiled and nodded,”Sounds great. Looking forward to it”he said. They soon hung up and he smiled widely. The new year looked very promising already.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“If you can afford it, then why wont you get it!? Please Lomi, stop being so cheap!”Darla said to her as Salomi tried on a blue sparkly dress with fringe, it also came with a matching feather boa, gloves and sparkly band with a blue feather. It was the last one and it fit Salomi perfectly which Darla said was a sign, but it was really expensive. The only way she could pay for it was to use the money that Uncle Vernon gave her from his will. She hasn’t touched the money yet and said she was only going to use it for emergencies.

“Well it's savings. I'm saving it for an emergency”

“This is an emergency! You have a closet full of clothes but none are suitable for the Room! Lomi you can't possibly show up in a dress you wore last week to the market! We can be twins again and wow the crowd like we did last night. You know you loved the attention”Darla said to her. Darla picked out the same outfit but in red. She loved red. “Please? I cant believe Im begging because I hate begging but I feel like I have to. Please?”

Salomi sighed and smiled,”Ok. Fine, I’ll get the dresses for us”she said to Darla and she squealed with delight and she laughed. Yes the dresses were expensive but she could afford it. Abby had told her that she could do whatever she wanted with it, it was her money after all and Vernon had no special terms on it. Buying two dresses wouldn’t hurt.

Upstairs in the men's department, Gabriel and Leon were doing the exact same thing. Looking for appropriate “penguin costumes” for the party. Leon laughed,”I cant believe that you want an all white tuxedo. No one wears those”

“The salesman did say that it’s the hottest thing in Paris right now. It hasn’t made its way here yet but I’ll make sure that process speeds up a little bit”Gabriel said as he twirled around in the mirror. The all white tuxedo also came with a white hat and cane. He did a little dance and Leon laughed. He had a regular black tuxedo with a black hat and cane. He started to do his comic trademark, which was an unsteady, wobbly walk. Gabriel laughed. “See? These are so fun, we have to get them. Besides you know our dates are going to look just alike as they always do. We might as well too”he said as Leon stood next to him. Leon was lanky and taller than Gabriel.

“Fine”Leon said with a laugh,”Let's get them”he said and then proceeded to hit Gabriel on the ass with the cane. “If you make me look like an ass in the Room I will be beating your ass with this cane, you hear me?”he said as they went to the register and bought the outfits

“Believe me, we wont look like asses”Gabriel said as Darla and Salomi came upstairs to meet them,”Oh done already? I thought we would have to order lunch”

“No we found the perfect outfits and they were hand selected by the Countess herself”Darla said. The Countess was a woman from Russia who was related to the late Romanov family dynasty. She had great fashion sense and was the top seller in the store. All the women asked for her advice since she knew what was in.

“I cant wait for you to see us”Salomi said,”We are gonna look stunning!”she said to Gabriel

“Alright enough excitement”Leon said as he and Gabriel got their bags,”Let's eat”

*____________________________*

“This new style is going to need some getting used to”Dorothy said as she tried on the dress that Jules had bought for her just for the party. They were headed to the Rainbow Room since Jules had an invitation. He went to the party every year he's been in New York City.

“It’s the hottest thing right now. It's called flapper or something of that sort”Jules said,”You look exotic”he said to her

“I look…different”Dorothy said,she was used to dresses that hugged her curves or fit comfortably but still showed her shape. This new flapper style didn’t hug any curves at all and showed off a lot of leg however.

“Now don’t complain all the way there. Don’t make that rotten face all night”Jules said

“I am not making a rotten face!”Dorothy said as she swatted him. He kissed her in return. They soon left the house and Jules decided to get a driver for them and they chatted, kissed and drank champagne, both very anxious for what the new year would bring. However, all of the kissing had to stop when they showed up at the Rainbow Room, they were strictly friends, business partners. Jules introduced her to a lot of film stars and Broadway actors and fellow friends of the business that were behind the scenes. Dorothy was having a great time and was being introduced to a photographer when Jules laughed and tapped her on her shoulder.

“Excuse me, I don’t mean to be rude William”Jules said to the photographer. He then looked at Dorothy,”Look, the twins are here”he said as he pointed to the wooden dance floor filled with people dancing to the jazz band.

Dorothy looked amongst the crowd, not knowing what he meant and then she saw and gasped,”Lomi?”she said

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Oh I'm so excited! I’ll remember this moment forever and ever”Darla said excitedly as they rode the elevator to the top floor of the building, where the Rainbow Room was. They all just smiled at her excitement, Salomi was very excited too but she decided to keep the excitement in. She felt that not only were they going to have the greatest time, but also Gabriel could probably meet other stage actors and start making a name for himself. Leon definitely had some pull. Salomi saw this as a great business opportunity for Gabriel so she didn’t want to embarrass him or herself but still have a good time. They all gasped, well except for Leon, when they saw the grand ballroom that was the Rainbow Room. Many colors, lots of people, a big dance floor with a great jazz band, lots of smokers, drinks and food, talking and lots of laughter. It was beautiful.

“Wow”Salomi said as they gave their coats to the designated coat man. They also got a lot of stares because people knew who Leon was, but didn’t know who his new friends were. Since she and Darla looked alike, they got a lot of attention.

“Oh we have to dance to this song! Perfect timing!”Darla said excitedly as the jazz band started up another upbeat tune. She pulled Leon and Salomi onto the dance floor and Salomi pulled Gabriel along with her. Darla started doing a new step that Salomi never saw. Salomi realized that she hasn’t been out dancing in a long time, she either wasn’t old enough or too busy with the pregnancy.”It's called the Charleston”Darla shouted over the band,”Its easy, do it”she commanded her. Salomi quickly caught on and they did it together. Leon did his wobbly walk and Gabriel imitated him. They all laughed. They danced to a couple more upbeat songs and then Darla gasped and grabbed Salomi and turned her around,”Look who’s here! I didn’t know she was coming!”she said excitedly as she pointed to Dorothy across the room, who was looking at them. Dorothy smiled and waved and Salomi waved back.”Let's go say hello”she said as she pulled Salomi with her and ran to Dorothy and gave her a hug.

“Oh!”Dorothy surprised at Darla’s very tight and eager hug.”How did you all get here?”she asked and then hugged Salomi

“Leon”Darla said with a blush,”Ain't he a cutie?”

“Yes he is”Dorothy said

“You look wonderful. So Jake”Darla said to her,”You almost look like us, we could almost be triplets”

“Did you buy that for yourself?”Salomi asked her with surprise

“Oh no uh…”she said and then stopped, she couldn’t tell them that Jules bought it for her,”It was a present for myself…yes I did buy it”she said. “Just wanted something new. You two look beautiful…are those dresses from Axelles?”

Darla nodded,”Yes the Countess herself picked it out for us”she said as Gabriel came over and gave Dorothy a hug and shook Jules’ hand. “I practically had to beg Salomi to buy them but she finally gave in”

“She bought both outfits?”Dorothy asked her in surprise. Where did Salomi get the money? She looked at Salomi but she and Gabriel were whispering and giggling about something and wasn’t paying attention to the conversation

“Yes, aren't you glad she did? I know I am”Darla said

“Well you both look glamorous, you all have a great time”Dorothy said when she saw someone she knew. She gave Salomi and Gabriel kisses on the cheek and then she and Jules walked away. Jules laughed,”What?”

“That Darla is going to be a handful”

“Not for me”

“Maybe, maybe not”Jules said

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The party was fun for the first hour they were there, they ate a lot of food and they snuck drinks here and there when they felt Dorothy wasn’t looking and danced the night away. Then it turned into a ‘Gabriel meet and greet’ of sorts. He was introduced to a lot of Broadway actors that Leon knew and worked with and a lot of them were looking forward to seeing him onstage soon. He couldn’t wait either, he looked very happy, like a kid in a candy store. But it soon got boring for Darla and Salomi, they chatted and danced with each other but soon they were tired of that.

“I never would have thought that the Rainbow Room could be so boring”Darla said

“Well its good for Gabriel, hes meeting a lot of people. I knew this would be a big business opportunity for him”Salomi said

“Are you afraid of what may happen in the future?”Darla asked randomly

“What do you mean?”

“Well once Gabriel really gets into the biz and all, he would be attending parties like these all the time. He’ll never be home”

“Well if he does, he’ll bring me along, I mean I am his fiancé”she said as she held up her ring finger

Darla smiled a little but then said,”I cant believe you want to get married already. Your so young. Your younger than me”she said, she was 20. “Are you sure you want to wear a handcuff for the rest of your life? Don’t you want to explore your options?”

“Handcuff?”Salomi asked and then she got it,”No Darla, this is nowhere near being a handcuff. This is a ring showing that he wants to spend the rest of his life with me and I want to do that. I don’t need to explore options, he's it for me”

Darla sighed,”I know, I'm sorry Salomi. I never should have brought it up. But you should think about these things. But I don’t want to spoil the night for us”she said and then laughed,”I don’t mind handcuffs either, they are very kinky”she said and winked and then looked at the clock,”Another hour til midnight, I don’t know how much more I can take of this”

“You want to dance?”Salomi asked her. She shook her head

“No, I’ll be right back”Darla said and then rushed off. Salomi shrugged and then sipped on her champagne.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Are you serious? You really want me to model for you?”Dorothy asked William Whitfield, the photographer/painter who she had been talking to all night. He was a big fan of hers and wanted her to model for him for some paintings and photographs.

“Yes, we can have a session sometime next week. If you don’t like what I do or think that modeling really isn’t for you then I can have one painting out of it and you would at least had some experience”William replied.”You are very photogenic, I mean you couldn’t be acting in front of a camera if you weren’t”

“He does have a point, I think you should at least try it. It can be something to do while you find your next script”Jules said to her,”Unless you do nude photos?”he asked William and winked

“Oh your so bad”Dorothy said as they all laughed

“Actually I have done some nude photos, but that was the models choice. A lot of the actresses I paint and photograph don’t go that route”

“Who else have you painted? I mean actress wise”Dorothy asked him

“Well I just got a deal with the young trendsetter herself, Clara Bow. But I wont be doing anything with her for awhile until her schedule clears but I got her”William said as Jules nodded his approval,”Virginia Taylor, Josephine Baker, Sarah Barrymore, some of the Follies that are on Broadway now, they started off as models. That’s some of my clientele”

Dorothy nodded,”Well why not? Now that I have talked with you I am curious to at least see what you can do, especially with me”she said to him

“Great! You know I've been after you for some time now. You are very talented”William said to her,”Here's my card. I have a studio here in New York, California and Palm Beach. We’ll talk more”

“Thank you, I really look forward to it”Dorothy said to him. They talked a little bit more and then William made his rounds and then Jules gave her some champagne and they did a small toast.

“I have a feeling this can be very good for you. People love you and will buy your photographs. You can even sell them in your gallery”Jules said. Dorothy nodded, she barely had time to paint anymore since the club was taking up a lot of her time and the fact that she got back into the business and did two films. She has been selling other artists’ paintings.

“I don’t think people would love me that much. I mean there are some rich and famous people that you get sick of hearing and seeing all the time”Dorothy said

“And you think anyone thinks that way about you? Oh come off it Dorothy, when you announced your supposed retirement from films and left to go to London, it felt like the whole world ended. It was chaotic”Jules said to her,”Your wonderful Dorothy”he said, trying to hold back the urge to kiss her.

“Thank you Jules”Dorothy said,she then nodded,”I think your right, this could be great for me”she said, also wanting to kiss him but kept her cool.

“Dance with me”Jules said to her

“Dance with you? But wouldn’t that give us away?”she asked quietly

“No, we are just friends. If we dance as friends and be very polite no one will notice, come on”he said as he held her hand gently and pulled her out on the floor,”So don’t pinch my bottom Dorothy, I know how you can be”he whispered to her and she laughed as she put her hand in his and put the other on his shoulder. They made sure to keep enough distance and not be too close to each other. They talked while they danced instead of kissing and holding each other like many of the other couples were doing. But they did exchange a few ‘I love you’s’ just because it felt so right.

Dorothy glanced around the room and then saw Salomi standing alone, watching others dance. Gabriel was talking to a big group of people and Darla seemed to have disappeared. She frowned, this new prospect for Gabriel will be great for him but how will Salomi take it?

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy wasn’t the only one getting great prospects out of the party. Gabriel was having a great time and making many friends. He was soon the center of attention and he was the ‘newcomer’ that everyone was curious about. He laughed along with Leon and the group that he was introduced to and he glanced around and saw Salomi standing alone, he didn’t really think anything of it until he saw her face,”Excuse me”he said as he excused himself and went over to her.He put his arms around her and kissed her cheek,”Im sorry to keep you waiting. Where's Darla?”

“It's alright. She disappeared, I guess to the powder room, she’ll be right back”Salomi said to him,”You having a good time?”

“Great time, everyone is very curious about what I can do. Leon is selling our idea and everyone's loving it. Hope we can live up to his description”

“I'm sure you will. I can tell you two are going to be great together”Salomi said

“Thank you”Gabriel said to her with a smile, however he noticed the sparkle in her eye that she had when they first arrived had faded,”Are you alright?”he asked her

“Don’t worry about me Gabriel, Im fine-“

“Well you don’t seem so happy, I'm boring you arent I? Your bored. In the Rainbow Room too, how about that?”he said,”Im sorry”he said,”They can wait, I want to dance with you, Im sorry for being so neglectful”

“It's fine Gabriel really. I knew that this was also business for you-“

“Dance with me”Gabriel said as he took her hand.”Let me make it up to you”he said as he started to lead her onto the dance floor

“You have all of next year to do that”she said with a smile but before they got onto the dance floor, Darla and Leon were standing right in front of them

“We are out of here!”Darla said excitedly, which took Gabriel and Salomi by surprise. An hour and a half ago, she didn’t want to leave.

“We are? But the party isn’t over. It will be midnight in about 45 minutes”Gabriel said as he looked at his pocket watch,”What's the rush?”

“Darla found a better place to ring in the new year”Leon said,”I was against it from the start but I'm kind of tired of selling myself, and you, to other actors. I think they get the point that we are going to be the next big thing and besides…”he said and then whispered,”This other place is invite only…got a lot of hooch..and is way more entertaining”

“So you two are coming with us right? I mean I wanna ring in the new year with you. It will be a party we wont ever forget. We will remember it forever and ever”Darla said excitedly. It sounded like another Rainbow Room

Gabriel and Salomi looked at each other and nodded, it couldn’t hurt and if they didn’t like it, they could always get a taxi back here. “What's it called?”

“The Chapel”Darla said and then she and Leon laughed. Gabriel and Salomi smiled, obviously confused as to how a chapel would be any fun. But they would soon find out…

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“How about you and I get out of here?”Jules asked Dorothy. They both had a lot of champagne and it just started to hit him.

“Now? But…it isn’t midnight…”Dorothy asked him

“I know but I just realized when we do the whole countdown thing and the band plays and everyone cheers and screams and kisses each other when its officially January 1st, I wont be able to kiss you and hold you like I want to. Now call me selfish, but I want you all to myself. I don’t want some other man kissing you happy new year”Jules said to her

“Your drunk”Dorothy said with a laugh

“No, Im just inebriated. Theres a difference”Jules said,”So lets go back to my place and really celebrate”he said to her,”Please?”

“Oh no, you arent going to beg me are you?”Dorothy asked him. She was really having a great time here. However, she really did want to be with him. 1917 would end perfectly if she and Jules could act like they were in love with each other, which they were. She smiled,”Fine, but only because you begged”

“Only because I begged?”Jules asked her as he walked with her quickly out of the club and they put on their coats as they left. “No, only because you know exactly how we are going to ring in the new year, just like we ring in almost every morning”he said to her as he started kissing on her neck as the elevator doors closed. Not really thinking or caring if anyone saw. Champagne and inhibitions didn’t go together. Jules pinched her butt as they got into his car and she laughed and noticed Salomi and Gabriel getting into the backseat of Leon’s car. They must have had the same idea. For a second, she was worried and wanted to ask them where they were going and what time they would be back home, but she knew she wouldn’t be home later either. They were grown now and could do whatever they pleased.

“Happy New Year”she said quietly, as if they could hear her and then got into Jules car and headed back to his apartment.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“This doesn’t look like a chapel”Salomi said as they walked down an alley and Darla laughed. They approached a door that was painted green and she knocked three times.

A peephole opened and she then said,”The Lord is my shepherd” The peephole immediately closed and then the door opened. “Thank you”she said as they all followed her. Salomi gasped as they walked into a big club with a dance floor and bar, there was a singer onstage who was drinking more than singing as a band played behind her and dancers with torches danced around her. Salomi and Gabriel looked at each other and smiled, this was much better. “Welcome to ‘the chapel’, lets get some drinks. They’re only a dollar a bottle”Darla said as they headed toward the bar. Ringing in the New Year in this speakeasy was going to memorable.

*________________________*

There was a lot of traffic in New York City and by the time Dorothy and Jules got back to his apartment, they could hear many people already counting down. The two of them didn’t pay anyone any mind as they kissed and walked at the same time, he was already taking her clothes off as he somehow unlocked his door. Their jackets, gloves and one of Dorothy’s shoes laid in the foyer as he picked her up and carried her upstairs as they kissed each other passionately, they both had at least 2 more glasses of champagne on the way over so if they were just inebriated when they left the Rainbow Room, they were drunk now. He kicked the door to his bedroom open and as he laid her down on the bed they could hear,”3…2…1….HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!”

In those three seconds, they were practically naked already,”Happy New Year baby”Jules said to her as he pulled off her satin panties.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“5…4…3…2…1…HAPPY NEW YEAR!”the crowd at ‘The Chapel’ yelled as streamers, balloons and more illegal bottles of liquor were popped open. Salomi grabbed Gabriel towards her and gave him a big kiss, he didn’t hesitate in returning the favor. Leon was doing the same with Darla, but his hands were in other places. “I love you baby”Salomi shouted to Gabriel

“I think you said that you loved me so I love you too!”Gabriel said with a laugh. They had only been there for 30 minutes but they all had 2 bottles of…some type of liquor, they couldn’t remember the name. “I think Im a little drunk”he said to her

Salomi nodded,”Me too!”she said as Darla hugged her and gave her a big kiss on the mouth. Salomi didn’t think anything of it, Darla stopped shocking her days ago. She just went with the flow now.

“Happy New Year Lomi. I love you so much!”Darla said to her,”You’re the bestest friend I have ever had”she said as she hugged her close and the two almost fell over. Gabriel and Leon hugged as well and watched the two girls and laughed

“Such lightweights these women are, but they are much better that way”Leon said and they laughed,”Ok Im starting to get claustrophobic”he said and then pointed to a balcony above the stage,”Lets go up there”he said,”We can breathe and drink” As they followed Leon, Gabriel made sure to hold Salomi close to him, a lot of men were staring at her and he felt overly overprotective, as they made their way upstairs, Darla said hello to many people, she must come here a lot. Upstairs certainly wasn’t packed, there were fewer tables and some rooms with closed doors. There was also a small bar but all the action was downstairs. Well…you would think. They bought two more bottles and sat down at a table. Gabriel and Salomi shared one and they both took big swigs and kissed,forgetting that anyone was in the room, well for a few seconds. Something caught Gabriel’s eye and he pulled away from Salomi,”What are you doing?”he asked with wide eyes.

Darla was sniffing a white substance, cocaine, off of a small coaster like surface. She passed it to Leon and he did a little but not much,”Im doing what everyone else is doing Cheese”she said, calling Gabriel by her new nickname for him. She picked it up carefully and set it down in front of Salomi and Gabriel,”Do it. Its instant…success”she said and she and Leon burst into laughter. “Go on, it wont kill ya. But they’re like cigarettes”she said as she held up the cigarette in the long holder that she was smoking,”Don’t inhale too much until you get used to it”

Gabriel stared at the cocaine and immediately had a flashback. He and Adam were in Germany celebrating after another performance and they were headed to France, some German teens threw a huge party and there was lots of whiskey and cocaine. Neither of them heard of it but they tried it and the next day he woke up, not remembering a thing, naked next to a girl he didn’t know. He had officially lost his virginity. It was wild but he wasn’t sure if he wanted to try again. He snapped out of his flashback just in time to see Salomi trying it. She sniffed it and then covered her face and laughed, sniffled and coughed. “Lomi? Are you alright?”

“Shes fine, normal reaction for her first time. You chicken, Cheese? Go on try it”Darla said

Gabriel leaned over and put his finger up to his left nostril and sniffed the rest of the cocaine with his right. He shook his head and blinked a little bit but he was soon fine and in minutes he was feeling…great. “You’re a pro. You done this before?”Leon asked him

Gabriel nodded,”Only one time, back in Germany. I wouldn’t say Im a pro”he said. But he did remember sniffing a lot and his nose bleeding a lot afterwards.

“You never told me that”Salomi said to him with a smile, she wasn’t upset, she actually didn’t know what she was feeling but she never knew he tried it before.”I think its great. No big deal…its like nose candy”

“Nose candy! Oh perfect! That’s so Jake”Darla said,”I made a new fan for my friend Coke and I don’t mean the soda pop”

Salomi laughed but after that everything seemed a blur. She remembered drinking the rest of the bottle with Gabriel, she may have even sniffed a little more cocaine, she remembered being in the bathroom with Darla every now and then and all of a sudden Gabriel was helping her into their apartment,”Wait…whats going on?”

“We’re home now”Gabriel said to her, his high from the cocaine was gone but he was pretty drunk but he was basically coherent

“What about the chapel?”

“Darla got bored again. She fell asleep on the bar after you two went to the bathroom and vomited. Leon’s taking her home now”Gabriel said as he laughed at the thought. Tonight was certainly wild. He led her into the bedroom,”Oh Im beat”he said, as he looked at his pocket watch,”5 am?”

Salomi took off her dress and stripped down to her bra and laced panties, she then turned around and faced Gabriel, but his back was turned to her,she cleared her throat.

Gabriel turned to her and smiled, damn she looked beautiful. Its been two months since she lost the baby but looking at her now, you never would have even guessed that she was ever pregnant. Her breasts were slightly fuller but she was always blessed in that department. They haven’t slept together since the doctor told them not to, he was afraid that he would break her somehow after the rough pregnancy that she went through, she lost a lot of blood. She still had that sexy small waist and more hips. “Damn your beautiful Lomi”

“You too”she said as she walked up to him,”We have to start this new year fresh and new. We arent going to go to bed another night without making love to each other are we?”

Gabriel shook his head,”I always wanted to make love to you, I was just being careful”

“Well lets not be careful anymore”Salomi said as she laid down on the bed,”Make love to me? Please?”

Before she could even beg again, he was on top of her with his pants down. He slowly entered her and then she stopped him,”What? Whats wrong?”

“I don’t want to have children”she said as she looked at him with a very serious but very drunk look. But he knew that she meant business and he was going to take her seriously, he knew she meant it. He nodded, hoping that was only a temporary wish and then slowly but surely started to make love to her but in minutes it turned very intense, animalistic even. Soon she was biting him and digging her nails into his back as they tried many different positions. They went for hours and the sun had already risen and many other people were starting their day as their night was just ending. By 10 am, they both were fast asleep in each others arms.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

1918 was indeed a prosperous year. Dorothy and Jules continued to have their affair but were very careful and no one suspected. She modeled for William and soon the paintings and photos of herself were selling fast. Soon her face was even on stamps and she made a lot of money doing it. She also enjoyed it and decided to pursue this instead of films. She never found a script that she liked anyway. Jules supported her through everything.

Darla and Salomi became closer than close after the new year. They were seen everyday together, shopping, riding their bicycles. Darla even taught Salomi how to drive…fast. They frequented many parties with Leon and Gabriel and they always went to ‘the chapel’ and partied the night away. For once, Salomi felt like she was happy with her life and that the new year brought her a whole new one. She rarely thought about the death of Uncle Vernie and her baby. It was like they never existed, but she didn’t want them to.

Gabriel and Leon became the next big thing indeed. They were soon performing along side the likes of Bert Williams and they appeared on Broadway with the likes of Ziegfeld and his Follies. Gabriel Brewster was a household name and he and Leon were making a lot of money at it. Gabriel saved up and even bought an apartment for him and Salomi. They were holding off on getting married but they were still engaged and he felt that once their lives settled down a little, they could get married since they already had their place. It was in the same building as Dorothy’s apartment, just a few floors up. However, one would have suspected that they were moving to California the way that Salomi and Dorothy cried and held each other.

By the summer of 1918, the war overseas became worse. America was not only an ally and munitions supplier but they were deeply involved with the war like other countries. Thousands of lives were lost but it seemed so far away. America wasn’t a battlefield at all so many Americans thought that it was just distant news. The economy was very prosperous and like everyone else, Gabriel invested in many stocks, bringing in more money. However, as quickly as he made the money, Salomi spent it. She started spending a lot of the money that Vernon had given her. At first, she spent a lot of it on clothes and shoes for both her and Darla. She surprised Gabriel one day by buying him a car but then she started paying Darla to get her cocaine and illegal liquor. Gabriel hadn’t touched the cocaine since new years but it seemed that Salomi was very much keeping up on it.

“Sandwich sir?”Ola, the young woman from Ireland that Gabriel hired as a housekeeper, asked him as he walked into the apartment after a late night of performing. Leon tried to convince him to go to another party, but he was just too tired tonight. He wanted to spend some quality time with Salomi anyway. Now it wasn’t rare that they would go a whole week and only seeing each other a handful of times.

“No thank you Ola. Im turning in for the night”he said to her and went straight upstairs. He walked into the bedroom and saw that the bathroom light was on,”Huney Im home”he said as he walked toward the bathroom and stood in the doorway. His happy mood faltered though at what he saw. Salomi was sniffing cocaine. She looked up and smiled at him. “Where did you get that?”

“Darla”she said. She took his hands in hers and kissed them and then kissed his cheek and hugged him close,”I missed you. How was it?”

“Same as any other night. Sold out”he said cockily and then laughed. He was still very humble even after all of the fame, unlike Leon who had cocky spurts often. He looked at her, she was still very beautiful…but she had powder on her nose,”When did you start doing that?”he asked her, getting serious again. “We haven’t done it since New Years”

“You haven’t done it since New Years”Salomi said with a shrug.”I try it…every now and then…”

“How much is every now and then?”Gabriel asked her,”I never knew this, why didn’t you tell me?”

“Its not that often Gabriel. I thought it would be fine, I mean you tried it before”

“Yes and I did it on two occasions. Can I say the same for you?”

“No its been a little more than that”

“How much more?”he asked her

“4”she lied. She couldn’t even count how many times she did it but she didn’t want him to be mad at her. She couldn’t risk it, she never saw him and she sometimes got paranoid. “Darla doesn’t give me much and she gives it to me at a cheap price”

“Can you not do it anymore? I mean it is illegal, I don’t care how good it feels. You don’t know what it can do to you”he said to her

Salomi nodded,”Fine I wont”she said.”Are you mad at me?”

“No Im not. Why do you always think I am?”he asked her

“I don’t know…I just have to…check”she said as she smiled lazily. The cocaine was starting to get to her. She wiped the hair out of her face and he noticed something.

“Wheres your engagement ring?”he asked her

“Oh, here”she said as she pulled out the small silver necklace that he had given to her for her 18th birthday months before. The ring was hanging around her neck. “I almost lost it one night when Darla and I went to ‘the chapel’. I put it on the necklace so that I wont lose it. Its closer to my heart anyway”she said with a smile.She gave him a kiss,”You still want to marry me?”

“Yes of course. I want to spend the rest of my life with you”he said to her as he held her,”Which reminds me, I wanted to talk to you about that. We have been engaged for a year now, don’t you want to start planning?”

Salomi shook her head,”I still don’t feel its right yet. We barely see each other. Lets wait until you and Leon sign your contracts again. You two are very busy right now and your talking about touring? Lets wait until life is more stable”she said as she walked into the bedroom

Gabriel sighed, he didn’t like that answer but she was probably right. Weddings were hard to plan especially when your life was so busy. “Besides we’re young, we have our whole life ahead of us”she said as she took off her robe, revealing a short satin and lace nightgown and laid on the bed

He smiled and walked over to the bed and stripped down and laid beside her. As he did so, he recognized the look in her eye, she wanted him and now. He immediately started to kiss on her neck as his hands roamed her body. She didn’t even have to ask anymore, he always knew and she loved him so much for it. They did a lot of ‘petting’ lately, which was much more common. Couples weren’t having intercourse as much and were doing the whole ‘petting’ phenomenon. And that’s just what they did. Their hands roamed each other’s bodies but nothing ever penetrated…until they couldn’t take it anymore and soon they were doing their animalistic lovemaking again. They always did that for hours, enduring a lot of sweat, tears, scratches on each others backs and many loud moans and then they were soon asleep like little children.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

After making love to Gabriel the night before, Salomi was convinced that maybe Gabriel was right. Cocaine was illegal for a reason, even though Darla and Leon thought differently. They thought that all the prohibitionists were ‘stuffy assholes’ and making harmless substances such as liquor and cocaine illegal showed that none of them wanted to move forward but instead stay old fashioned. There was so much economic prosperity and they were just seen as people who were slowing that down. Both Darla and Leon were also involved in a local rum row on Long Island. This rum row helped to import illegal liquor to local speakeasy’s in New York and the two made a fortune, they were a great team. Darla was infatuated with Leon and when she wasn’t with Salomi, she was with Leon either doing something illegal or ‘petting’ him. Salomi decided to not buy cocaine from Darla anymore and settled on alcohol. Darla was appalled when Salomi said this.

“Wait…so Gabriel hasn’t done it with you since new years?”Darla asked her

“No, he explained to me that the first time he had done it in Germany, he suffered a lot of nose bleeds and lost his virginity to some girl while he was on Coke. He doesn’t remember a thing and he doesn’t like that feeling, he doesn’t want me to go through that. I mean its illegal for a reason Dar, I worry about you. I always worry when you pick it up for me. I sometimes think those prohibitionists are watching all of us and I don’t want them to catch you”

“That’s what they want you to think! They want all of us to fear them. Nothing is going to happen to me Salomi. Im very careful and thank you for worrying, its sweet really but I’ll be fine. However, Sal, you’re my richest customer, Im gonna lose a lot of profit if you don’t buy anymore”

“Oh God Dar, please don’t make me feel guilty-“

“Then be careful when you use it. Don’t do it in the house anymore. What he wont know wont hurt him”

“I cant Dar. I don’t like lying to him and I didn’t like the look on his face when he caught me. You’ll find other customers, Leon knows many rich people. You’ll replace me soon enough”Salomi promised her. The two argued for awhile and Darla left her apartment in a huff, leaving Salomi feeling angry and guilty at the same time. This was the first time the two of them had argued since they had met and she didn’t like that it was over cocaine.

Later that night, Gabriel came home after a long rehearsal with Leon, Ziegfeld and the Follies. They were working on their Thanksgiving extravaganza and were currently casting for the Christmas and New Year show. They were very busy now. She was in low spirits and they drank some brandy as he tried to console her. “She thinks we are like the stuffy assholes now. She’ll get over it. Your friendship isn’t going to end because of cocaine. If so, it was never a friendship”he told her

“I know, but its crazy. I miss her already”Salomi said with a laugh. “What if she never speaks to me again? She looked really hurt. Im her moneymaker and she feels shes not going to get a profit anymore”

“Leon knows many people. Clara Bow is in town and I hear she needs that shit like sugar. She’ll replace you”

“That’s what I told her!”Salomi explained as she finished off the brandy. She was pretty inebriated now and soon the subject was forgotten when Gabriel had that look in his eye, they had gone a few nights without making love since he was so busy or she was out with Darla. They made love through the night and they woke up early the next afternoon and did it again. “Oh God Gabriel, I love you so much”she said as he massaged her breasts with one hand and fingered her with the other. She was just about to cum when their bedroom door burst open and the two of them jumped away from each other and covered themselves up with a blanket. It was Darla and Leon and they were both drunk. Why? It was almost 4pm! “What the hell is wrong with you two! We were busy!”she exclaimed.

“Its over! Its all over finally!”Darla said excitedly as she jumped onto the bed, not caring or probably not knowing that the two were naked.

“What is?!”Salomi asked her. She was still upset with her from the night before and she was sure as hell upset with her now. She was so close to being so satisfied.

“The war! Its over! The troops are coming home! Its been a long 4 years but its finally over!”Darla said excitedly

*________________________*

The argument that Salomi and Darla had was soon forgotten and the four of them celebrated by popping open an illegal bottle of champagne, they even invited Ola in to celebrate and she did but blushed the whole time knowing that she let Darla and Leon in on Salomi and Gabriel. She apologized and they just laughed. “We are going to party tonight. Anyone up for the chapel?”Darla asked them

“Of course, after our rehearsal”Leon said to her.

“You should come Ola”Darla said excitedly as she jumped off the bed and went over to where Ola was sitting. “I bet you your two bosses over here would love to party with you”she said as she sat in her lap. This surprised Ola very much and she jumped up out of the chair quickly almost causing Darla to fall. They laughed.

“Oh I'm so sorry Miss Darla”Ola said to her

“Its alright sugar. A no would have been fine”Darla said to her and made a little face at Salomi and Gabriel,”But you two aren't that stuffed up. Ola never gets to go out”

“Actually she does”Gabriel defended,”She goes to that Irish pub every now and then right Ola?”he asked her and she nodded.”I mean if you want to come, we won't mind right?”he asked as she looked at Salomi. Salomi nodded with a small smile, both of them still naked under the sheets.

“I'm fine really. I’ll probably go to the pub but I do have so much work to do”Ola said in her thick Irish accent,”Thank you sir, ma’am”

“Hey its Gabriel and Salomi, we aren't old you know”Gabriel said. Ola nodded and left.

“She's too uptight, where is she from? Scotland? She's got a very thick accent”Darla said as she stood by the door frame and watched Ola go downstairs.

“Ireland, there's a difference. Her mother died when she was young and her father left to fight in the war. He was MIA for awhile and she stayed with a family friend. He abused her a lot and she ran away and came here. We hadn’t entered the war yet and she was just looking for some peace”Gabriel explained,”She's very good and loyal. I wonder if she’ll go back and try to find her father? Wouldn’t that be great if they were reunited?”he asked as he turned to Salomi. The two of them got along quite well. But Salomi just shrugged, she was quiet all of a sudden.

“Sounds like something from a novel”Leon said. They talked awhile more and then Darla and Leon left.

Gabriel looked at Salomi and blushed,”Sorry”

“For what?”she asked quietly

“That we celebrated the end of the war, naked with others in the room”he said with a laugh. It was all very funny to him,”We’ll need to lock our doors from now on huh?”he asked her. She only nodded,”What's wrong?”he asked her. He thought that she would be happy that the war was over.

Salomi shook her head and then tears filled her eyes,”I just wish that Uncle Vernie was alive to see this”she said to him and started to cry. She never understood why there was a war in the first place, no one ever wins. But it all started in an instant and it was over in an instant as well but it seemed to take so long between those two. It was all so useless and senseless and it hurt her that Uncle Vernie wasn’t alive to see it.

Gabriel held her close to him as she cried in his arms. She never spoke of Uncle Vernie since his death and since the death of the baby. Both happened too soon. “Me too baby. Vernon was a good man, he saved my life and yours”he said, remembering the incident with Morietti 4 years ago. “But I bet he's very happy, it's over now only a few years after the US came into it so he didn’t die in vain, we obviously helped. He's up there celebrating, I know it. He's probably opening a heavenly bottle of champagne. Jesus is probably turning all their water into wine at this very moment”

Salomi laughed a little,”I didn’t know that angels could party like us”

“Oh they are just like us, just cleaner…no sins on their record and they wear white and have the wings and halos”he said. He held her for awhile and then they continued to ‘pet’ each other. When they were done with that, they dressed in their robes and went downstairs as Ola made them dinner. They loved her Irish meals and they both devoured the bread bowls and the stew inside it. “Are you going to return to Ireland now that the war is over?”he asked her

Ola looked at him with tears in her eyes,”I've been thinking about it, but I don’t know. My father has been MIA for 3 years now. Maybe I should just move on…”

“But you don’t want to be here wondering for the rest of your life do you?”Salomi spoke up,”Remember my Uncle Vernie? I know he will never come back but if he was MIA right now I would be fighting along with my aunt Abby to find him. I think you should do the same”

Ola nodded,”I know, I'm just scared. I don’t want to run into him again”she said, the ‘him’ she was referring to was the family friend that abused her,”I also don’t want to travel that far if….for nothing…”she said

They both nodded,”But you miss Ireland…you tell me about it all the time, the food is great and its legal to drink over there…sounds great to me”Gabriel said

Ola laughed,”The beer is amazing”she said.They sat there in silence as they ate and she finally said,”Yes…once I get some money together. I’ll go”she said nervously but knowing it was the right thing to do.

“I can give you the money now, we can get you on a boat tomorrow”Gabriel said to her and both Salomi and Ola looked at Gabriel with surprise,”It's fine. I can afford it”

Ola laughed and smiled,”Thank you sir…Gabriel. But I would like to contact some people to let them know I'm coming”

“That’s fine. Just let me know”he said to her. Ola thanked him profusely and soon went to her room. They could hear tears of joy through the thin doors. Salomi grabbed Gabriel’s hand and kissed it. He was so caring and thoughtful, she was a lucky woman.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Gabriel and Leon’s rehearsal was canceled due to the good news of the end of the war and all of New York City was celebrating the end of it. The four of them went to the chapel and partied the night away. Darla again got upset at Salomi for not even trying some coke but Salomi was very firm about not trying it because Gabriel asked her not to. Instead she got very drunk, the end of the war was a happy event for her but knowing that her Uncle Vernie died as a soldier for the war just depressed her. She basically drank a whole bottle of hooch to herself. Gabriel had to carry her out of the chapel into the car and into their apartment.

Others had a low key celebration.

“To the USA”Jules said as he toasted Dorothy

“To the USA”Dorothy said to him as they toasted and then drank the champagne

“I wonder what this is going to mean for us? I mean France, Britain and Germany have a lot of cleaning up to do but we don’t. Our troops will be home and then what?”

“Well you always talk about how the economy is booming and all the stocks that you have bought. Life will be normal again and we can just move on with our lives and not have to dabble in other countries affairs. I'm glad this war is over, we now need to focus on not having a…world war part two”

Jules laughed,”World War part two?”he asked her,”I don’t think any of us would be stupid enough to be a part of something like that”he said,”All countries, including us, no matter how prosperous we are getting, lost a lot of money. War is expensive. No I don’t think that will happen. I think we finally achieved world peace”he said as they toasted again. They talked, made love and then her phone rang. “Let it ring”Jules said as he snuggled next to her in her bed.

“No…it's so late, something must be wrong”Dorothy said as she got up and answered it,”Hello?”

“Dorothy? It's me, Ruth”

“Ruth what's wrong? Why are you calling me so late?”

“I'm sorry but Dorothy, the club has been broken into. I'm getting ready to leave now”Ruth said

“Ohmygod”Dorothy said as tears came to her eyes, she just renovated the club again and now it had been broken into, who knew what type of damage was done or if money was stolen.”I'm on my way Ruth”she said to her and hung up the phone. She ran back into the bedroom and dressed as she cried

“Baby what's wrong?”Jules asked her

“The club, someone has broken into it. Shit, Jules, we just renovated the place! Its probably damaged…all of that for nothing”she said

“I’ll come with you”he said to her

“No…..just stay here, I can handle it”Dorothy said as she put her shoes on

“No I'm going with you”he said

“No you cant!”she snapped at him and then stopped,”Sorry…but what would they think if they see me arriving with you at this time of night? What on earth could we be doing besides what we have been doing…which is a secret”

“We were playing cards”Jules said, trying to cheer her up but he knew she was right. Their relationship was very much still a secret even though they have been seeing each other for a year now. They were always very careful. He gave her a kiss,”I’ll be here waiting. I’ll cook for you. You’ll be exhausted when you get back, I'm sure. Drive safely”he said to her.

She nodded and picked up her coat and left the apartment. She put the coat on and realized it was Jules’. She was going to go back upstairs, but she didn’t have time. She took his car keys out of his pocket and got into his car. She was hysterical on the way over to the club. The streets were still crowded due to the many late parties celebrating the end of the war. It was hard to look at the many people in the streets so happy when her baby, her club, something she had worked so hard for, could have been destroyed. What if they took everything? Money, wine…they had to hide it before the police got there. They didn’t serve the illegal liquor but wine was close enough. They didn’t want them to be suspicious. She started to cry as she drove, and she yelled impatiently at the slow traffic. Everything seemed a blur and she was still a little inebriated from all the champagne that she had.”Please God, I know I don’t pray much but let everything be ok”she said as she closed her eyes for a quick second as she prayed. She opened them and saw something run out in front of Jules’ car. She screamed and slammed on the brakes but unfortunately she hit whatever it was at full force. She was going really fast. She came screeching to a stop and she panicked as she sat there. What did she hit? What the hell just happened?! She turned off the car and got out and walked around to the front of it, afraid of what she would find. She hoped that it was a cat or dog or something.

But she gasped when she saw that she had hit someone. An actual person. A human being. She looked around and no one was around. She was on the only quiet back street in New York at the moment. She wanted to ask someone for help but there was no one around. She started to cry as she knelt down and tried to revive the person. It was a man. However, she wasn’t a doctor, she felt for a pulse and there was none. He was dead. She just killed someone. She had killed this man. How could she be so stupid!? She cried as she held the unknown man in her arms, his blood all over her. What was she going to do now? The club needed her but this dead man needed her more. She couldn’t just leave him. She panicked and cried as she looked around,”HELP!”she screamed helplessly.

So much for a low key celebration.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy found help when an old woman heard her screaming from an apartment that sat in front of the incident. She even knew the man and told her that he lived down the hall from her. She called Ruth and told her to please take care of the club and told her that an emergency came up that she needed to take care of. The older woman happily called the police for Dorothy since she was so hysterical. As they waited the old woman told her that the man had a wife and kids, making her feel worse. In all the excitement she forgot to call Jules and didn’t even think about the fact that she had hit and killed this supposed ‘nice man who wouldn’t hurt anyone’ with his car. The police and an ambulance arrived and Dorothy was very cooperative but hysterical. The old woman also spoke with them about what she had seen. The police took her downtown and she told them the truth. She had a little to drink and she was in a rush since she had gotten a call about her club getting broken into, she was so upset and didn’t see the man until she had hit him with the car. She even confessed that it wasn’t her car, that it was a friends. She didn’t know if she would be going to jail or not, but she decided to be totally honest. Maybe she would get off easier that way.

However, all the police knew who she was and in between questioning a lot of them asked for autographs and pictures. She refused on pictures but she did write autographs even though she thought it absurd. She got one phone call and she called Jules.

“Uh…hello?”he asked uncertainly, he was unsure that he should have answered her phone. What if it was Ruth? What would she think? He thought about hanging up when he heard her voice,”Dorothy? You sound horrible are you alright?”

“No I'm not…I'm at the police station. I only get one phone call”she said

“Well what are they going to do about the club? What happened?”he asked her and then he stopped,”Wait…you get one call? They have you in custody? What? They think you did it or something?”he asked

“No Jules….just listen to me”she said, she was already sick of telling the story. “On the way to the club, I hit someone….they’re dead. I killed a man”she said and she started to cry

Jules gasped,”Ohmygod baby I'm sorry. They know that you didn’t mean to do it right? I’ll get the best lawyers in New York to represent you. Are they going to make you stay in prison tonight? What are they going to do?”

“They reduced bail to $200”she said, knowing that was a lot of money. “I can go if that is paid. I'm not technically guilty of anything if it was an accident”she said as she cried

“Ok I’ll be there soon”he said,”I’ll bail you out”he said to her and was about to hang up

“Wait…Jules, your gonna have to drive my car”she said. She was going to dread telling him this.

“Your car? What are you talking about?”he asked her,”Wait, wheres my jacket?”

“Jules listen to me. I left the apartment in such a rush that I took your jacket instead of mine. I wasn’t thinking and went ahead and drove your car”

“WHAT!?”he screamed, making her jump. She's never heard him yell before.

“Jules I'm sorry! I didn’t mean for this to happen it was an accident”

“I’ll be there as soon as I can”he said and hung up. Dorothy was relieved as she hung up, she knew that Jules would bail her out but she cried. She wondered if this was the last favor he would ever do for her?

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Jules bailed Dorothy out and he was calm by the time he arrived. He was still very much upset about the fact that his car was considered a murder weapon now but he knew that in one night Dorothy had been through too much. So as always, he was supportive. Ruth hadn’t called about the club yet so she was probably still dealing with it. Jules took her straight home and fed her the cold breakfast that he was making while he was waiting for her to come back. She wouldn’t eat but he gave her a lot of brandy and she soon fell asleep. In the morning he called the best lawyers in town and explained the case to them. Dorothy had just woken up when there was a knock at the door. “Let me get it”she said. It wouldn’t look good if Jules answered the door in his underwear.

It was Ruth. Dorothy gave her a hug,”Are you alright?”she asked her,”What happened?”

“I'm alright but are you?”Ruth asked her,”You look like shit”

“Thanks”she said,”So how much are the damages Ruth? Can we afford it?”

“It wasn’t as bad as we thought it would be. It seemed that some partiers on the street got out of control. Maisy’s wasn’t the only business that was attacked. The restaurant across the street, the barbershop and the small convenience store all had the same thing happen. Only the windows were broken. Some alcohol was missing but not much, they didn’t touch a thing. It seemed to be very spontaneous. They threw bricks through the window, realized it was a club and searched for alcohol and stole a few bottles. So we came out very lucky”Ruth said,”We only have to replace the windows and they are doing that as we speak we have the money to pay for it thank God. Nothing to worry about”

“Oh thank God. Your heaven sent Ruth you know that? I don’t know what I would do without you”Dorothy said to her

Ruth gave a small smile,”Thank you Dorothy….but are you alright? What was the emergency? Is it Lomi? Is she alright?”she asked her

“No it's not Lomi. I'm guessing she's fine. I need to call her though….”she said but she didn’t want to explain the situation anymore.”It's nothing I don’t want to talk about it”

“I bet you don’t”

“I beg your pardon?”Dorothy asked her. Ruth said that remark with a very snotty tone. Ruth sighed and gave her the mornings newspaper. Dorothy’s scandal was all over the paper, but it didn’t speak about the fact that she had hit and killed a man. But the fact that she was driving Jules’ car. Everyone knew that he was married and if they didn’t they knew now. Everyone knew now. The headline said, “ACTRESS DOROTHY GIBSON IS BRULATOUR’S MISTRESS!” It later explained that Dorothy was ‘joyriding’ in Jules’ car, drunk and out of control. There were even ‘eyewitnesses’ who confessed to seeing the two together. The paper was waiting for a reply from Jules’ wife. Great, now what would she say? What would she do?

“I'm sorry that having an affair with Julian Brulatour is more important than saving your own club! If I wasn’t there, then what would have happened?”Ruth asked her.”Never thought you would use me Dorothy”

“Its not like that Ruth-“Dorothy tried to explain but the only answer was the slam of the front door

*_____________________________*

“Is she alright?”Ola asked Gabriel as she placed a bowl of soup and a cup of coffee and water on a tray for Salomi. Gabriel thanked her and picked it up as well as the morning’s paper

“She’ll be fine. She doesn’t know her drinking limits”Gabriel said with a smile as he started to walk out of the room with the tray,”Oh and make sure to let me know about your trip”he said to her

She nodded,”I will, do you need anything else?”

“No thank you”he said and left the room and carried the tray upstairs. He chuckled a little bit as he looked at Salomi sleeping peacefully but sprawled out on the bed. Her makeup was smeared and her mouth hung open, but she was still so beautiful to him. He set the tray on the small bedside table and looked at the paper and gasped when he saw what was on the cover,”What?! Holy shit!”

“Huh uh…what?”Salomi asked as she opened her eyes. The smell of Ola’s hangover soup had woken her but Gabriel’s swearing made her actually try to sit up and look like a normal human being, she felt like shit!

“I cant believe this”Gabriel said as he read something that was in the paper

“Cant believe what? What happened?”Salomi asked

Gabriel looked at her, noticing that she was awake.”Oh Im sorry for waking you like that baby”he said

“Its fine, the soup smell did”she said,”But whats going on?”she asked and then she sat there and listened.”Whats all that noise?”

“Oh there are going to be parades all week”he said as he looked out the window,”The first boat of troops just docked earlier this morning. There will be more to come”he said

“Oh”Salomi said sadly, wishing that Uncle Vernie would have had a chance to get on that boat,”Whats in the paper?”she asked as she slowly took a spoonful of soup and sipped it, it was still a little hot.

Gabriel sighed,”Um….nothing”he said, how could he tell her? Was she ready for news like this. “How are you feeling?”he asked her

“I have a headache but Im ok”she said,”But it isn’t nothing…the thing in the paper, or you wouldn’t have reacted like that”she said, pressing him,”What? Is it something about the war?”

“No….look Salomi, you arent feeling well…we’ll talk about it later, you need to eat”

“Gabriel just tell me!”she said

Gabriel sighed and handed her the paper,”I just don’t think your ready for this kind of news”he said as he got off the bed and paced around the room. He heard a gasp from Salomi as she read the paper in silence.

The headline said,”ACTRESS DOROTHY GIBSON IS BRULATOUR’S MISTRESS!” There was a picture of her driving Julian’s car last night and she didn’t look too good either, the article explained that she was driving drunk and out of control. The article also explained that Julian was married….this was ridiculous!

“You don’t believe all this do you?”she asked him as she threw the paper to the side,”Its bullshit”

“Is it? I mean that Julian guy is always around her-“

“Hes an advisor and he has backed many of her films-“

“Which shes very much done with! Why does he need to stick around?”

“I don’t know, they’re friends. I mean he did introduce her to that photographer. Maybe hes her manager”Salomi said. She had bought a photo of Dorothy and they hung it up in their living quarters

“I bet he is”Gabriel said

“Hey stop it”Salomi said to him,”You know how papers talk about the rich and famous these days. A lot of the things they say are twisted and contorted. I mean you know Dorothy just as well as I Gabriel, she wouldn’t do a thing like that”

“Theres a picture Salomi, you see the picture don’t you?!”

“I do see the picture and I know that something isn’t right. She doesn’t look too good and I don’t think its because it claims shes drunk. You know Dorothy, if she caught any of us driving out of control and drunk, she would kill us. She had a fit when Darla taught me how to drive, this isn’t like her”

“Shes seeing a married man. I mean what happened, why would she do something like that?”

“Maybe she didn’t know?”

“Bullshit Lomi. Everyone knows who Julian’s wife is. You know about Greta Brulatour don’t you?”

“I mean Ive heard the name…”

“Do you know what she does? Shes a jeweler and very rich in fact, I bought your engagement ring from one of her stores. Shes a powerful businesswoman. Wait til she reads this! Wait til she says something, then what?”

“I have to call her”Salomi said as she set the bowl on the tray and put it on the bedside table and reached for the phone,”The only way to really know anything is to ask Dorothy herself, shes probably miserable. This is bad press for her, this may ruin her career Gabriel…have some….class”she said. She was upset that Gabriel was believing this bullshit. Salomi knew Dorothy, better than Gabriel, better than Julian. Something obviously wasn’t right. She called Dorothy’s apartment and there was no answer. She put the phone on the receiver,”No answer”

“Shes probably out with him”Gabriel said

“Shut up”Salomi said to him and then picked up the phone again

“Hello?”Ruth asked

“Ruth, its me. Lomi”

“Oh hello Salomi, where were you last night? Out partying with the wild and crazy kid?”

“As a matter of fact I was..and I had a great time”Salomi said,”But Im calling about Dorothy-“

“You’ve seen the paper?”

“Yes…Im guessing you have too?”

“Oh yes and I went over there to confront her about it too. I mean I cant believe this, I had to talk to the police and endure all the hard work while she was running around with Julian!”

“The police…wait, why did you have to talk to the police?”Salomi asked and Gabriel stood next to her. If the police were in it then it must be serious.

“Oh you didn’t hear? Of course not since I was the only one dealing with the club and no one seems to care about it!”Ruth said as she was slowly starting to freak out, she could hear a male voice in the background and she sighed and took a deep breath,”Maisy’s was broken into last night”

“What!? Why didn’t anyone call me?”

“Its fine Salomi, I took care of EVERYTHING. As usual, either Dorothy is always out with Julian on some ‘business meeting’ or you are out with Gabriel attending parties and partying with the wild and crazy kid, I took care of everything as always”

Salomi frowned, when did Ruth become so bitter? “Well what happened to the club Ruth? Are there any damages?”

“Just broken windows and 4 stolen bottles of wine”Ruth said.”I was up early this morning calling any window repair man in New York City while Dorothy was doing God knows what. The windows have just been repaired and I even made a few calls so we wouldn’t be behind money wise due to those stolen bottles. I just literally finished all of that, so Im kind of sick and tired”

“Well I mean, did you see her? I mean you know Dorothy, she isn’t like that”

“She used to not be, but Salomi you arent around much either so you haven’t seen whats been going on. A lot of times Dorothy leaves the club with me in charge! You know how I hate to be in charge!”Ruth said and Salomi nodded, she knew all too well when Dorothy filmed the Titanic film, Ruth went nuts. “Always having to see Julian about business, bullshit! They’ve been fucking!”she said and then the male voice said something,”Sorry”she said,”I cant believe this. I mean Salomi, the club is supposedly her baby. She put all her blood, sweat and tears into it but she didn’t even show up when I called her to tell her that the club had been broken into! She calls me and tells me there is an ‘emergency’ and I ended up taking care of everything. Then I see the paper! She was riding around in Julian’s car while I was cleaning up her mess! I go to the apartment this morning and she looked like shit. Like she had been drinking a lot and I know Julian was there, even though he was hiding in her bedroom. I could smell his cologne”Ruth sighed,”I do all this work Salomi and frankly I feel like shes been using me, she doesn’t even say thank you anymore….”

Salomi sighed as she listened to this, Ruth’s story was very justified but she didn’t know that all of this was happening. Why didn’t Dorothy tell her? What has gotten into the level headed and practical Dorothy? “Im sorry Ruth….really I didn’t know you felt like this and I didn’t know any of this was happening”

“Of course not, your too busy partying and cutting your hair like a boy and wearing clown makeup”Ruth said harshly

“That’s enough Ruth”Salomi said firmly back and Gabriel gave her a what-did-she-say? look.”Ok I know that you are upset with Dorothy but you don’t have to take it out on me. That’s very childish don’t you think? Im very much worried about her now and shes not answering her telephone. I know Dorothy, Ruth. Theres something else to all of this. There has to be an explanation, what did she say when you saw her this morning?”

“I asked her what the emergency was and she didn’t want to talk about it. Then I showed her the paper and what was worse is that she looked guilty as sin. Her bloodshot eyes gave it away. Look Salomi Im sorry, but this could ruin Dorothy’s career and if it does, it could ruin mine. Working at the club pays for my schooling”she explained to her,”Its all I have.Now that this scandal is out, theres a chance that no one would want to support the mistress, as they call her. That means business will slow down which means we wont get paid! You see? This could have lasting consequences and repercussions”

“Yes but if its true”Salomi said,”I don’t know Ruth, something is missing. Theres something else. Im going to go and see her. I need to hear everything straight from the horses mouth”

“You do that”Ruth said,”I’ll see you later”she said and then hung up.

“So? What did she say?”Gabriel asked her

“Its more complicated than it seems”Salomi said with a shake of her head

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Dorothy sighed as her phone rang yet again. Her phone has been ringing constantly and she was sick of hearing it, she unplugged it and Jules looked at her.

“That’s not a smart idea. Im waiting on a lawyer to call me back, he wont be able to reach us or represent you in court if the phone isn’t working”Jules said to her sternly

“What does it matter? Im a whore now!”she said as she pointed at the paper,”All I am is your mistress!”

“You know that you are more than that to me”Jules said to her,”But our secret is out, maybe we were stupid to think that we could keep something like this forever. Now we just have to deal”

“No I have to deal. Not we, you didn’t do anything. Im the bad guy! You know what a mistress is? How they are looked at? Now Im going to be known as some femme fatale that was after a married man. No matter what or how the circumstances are between you and Greta, you are both still very much married and it stinks because you don’t love each other but no one knows that!”she said as she sank down into a chair,”This could ruin me. No one would want me in their films, no one would dare to have a photo of a mistress hanging up in their living rooms…the club…no one will come to my club! Its all I have!”

“Dorothy please calm down”Jules said to her as he knelt in front of her,”You know that almost every man in Hollywood has mistresses. The rich and famous. Hell, I bet the King of England has a London gal that he can have it off with-“

“But they are all secrets. The wives may suspect but they accept it or they are total secrets that never get out. Greta didn’t know! She’ll hate me! She’ll design a whole jewelry collection called ‘Kill Dorothy’”

Jules laughed,”Dorothy please you cant be serious-“

“I am. Now Im upset that your laughing at me because obviously your not!”

“Dorothy this happens all the time-“

“That doesn’t make it right! If I were in Greta’s shoes I would hate me too. Divorce her Jules. Save my name, my reputation”she asked him. Jules sighed and shook his head, he wasn’t saying no but he was saying it wasn’t that easy. Then there was an urgent knock at the door.”Don’t answer it”she said when he got up.

“It may be a lawyer. You did unplug the phone”he said as he plugged it back in and looked through the peephole.He smiled and opened the door. It wasn’t a lawyer, but they could probably help.”Hello Salomi”he said to her as Dorothy unplugged the phone again

Salomi looked at him, shocked..he answered the door. It must be true. “Hi”she said quietly. She saw Dorothy standing in the kitchen, looking tired, pale and distraught. She went over to her and hugged her.”Its ok Dorothy. I saw the paper but I know you. Its all wrong right? Please explain it to me”

Dorothy sighed and sat her down and told her everything. How she and Julian met, their secret and why they kept it and everything that happened the night before. Salomi was very understanding which was a breath of fresh air, it seemed that no one did, not even Ruth which was a surprise. Jules plugged the phone back in and soon they received a call from a lawyer. They sat down and talked about the court charges and what would happen. Salomi sat there and held her hand. Dorothy helped her through so much, it was now her turn to be the grown up now. She needed her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

The next day, more boats filled with soldiers arrived and there were more parades. But it seemed that the end of the war was old news compared to the ‘Dorothy Gibson scandal’. Not only was the story about her being Jules’ mistress sent out the day before, but the day after it was all about her hitting a man. So now she was a mistress and a murderer. Dorothy was distraught. Many thought that she was a disgrace and she even closed the club down for a few nights, she just couldn’t deal and who would go anyway? That pissed Ruth off even more. She needed that money! What was worse was that not only was she going to court over hitting a man, whose name was James Mills. Julian was going to court too. Greta was suing him for divorce. It was a huge mess and her lawyer advised her to open the club. Court was expensive.

However, to her surprise, the night that she opened the club, it was a packed house. She seemed to be more popular now. Everyone wanted to see the scandalous Dorothy up close and personal. She lost two performers due to the scandal since they couldn’t ‘support a person who would do such things’, but she was getting offers from many other performers wanting to take their place. It was astonishing. Ruth still worked but was happier, they were making more money than ever! If she was bitter, she never spoke about it. It seemed like the scandal made Dorothy more famous. Her paintings and photos were selling fast too and William called her and asked if she had time to pose for newer pictures. That had to be placed on hold, the court cases were much more important. But still Dorothy was weary, what happened to Dorothy Gibson- film star? Now it was just Dorothy Gibson- trouble making murderer/mistress and it seemed people liked her even more for that.

Word got out about Greta and Julian’s separation and the reason behind it but Greta wasn’t leaving without a fight. She was suing Julian and wanted half of everything, which was absurd since they had been separated for the past few years. Julian spent most of his days in court, either testifying for Dorothy or testifying against Greta’s wishes to take basically everything from him.

Thanksgiving, Christmas and the New Year went by and the ‘James Mills’ case was getting even more complicated. He did have a wife and three children but it turns out, the night that he was killed, he was seeing one of his mistresses. He had many. He was also drunk out of his mind, the alcohol content found in his body was too much to even fathom for one person. Mrs. Mills hated her husband and actually thanked Dorothy since he wouldn’t let her divorce him, he hit her and the children. So she wasn’t pressing charges. But all in all, she did kill a man and had alcohol in her system but not much. By the end of that summer, Dorothy had to pay a huge fine, her license was revoked and was on house arrest. Which was a huge sigh of relief. She didn’t want to go to prison.

Julian and Greta’s divorce was finalized by that fall. Greta ended up getting half of everything Julian had, which was a low blow. But he was finally free. His lawyers suggested that he and Dorothy legitimize their relationship and he proposed. Their wedding was to be in April of the following year. Soon Thanksgiving and Christmas came around yet again and this time the two could enjoy it. The same time the year before, the scandal was just heating up. Now they were old news, Clara Bow was the trouble making actress, but still the hottest trendsetter and an unknown jazz singer had a hit song called “Trouble” and it was a favorite among everyone. Trouble was the new trend indeed.

Things seemed like it would get better now. But only there was more trouble to come. Darla has been having suspicions of Leon cheating on her and she wasn’t happy about it, even though their rum rows were making them rich. Salomi broke down and agreed to buy coke from Darla again and hiding it from Gabriel. Gabriel was getting anxious about he and Salomi’s wedding, but it seemed like she was never ready and he and Leon were only getting busier and busier. Would there be more trouble on the way?

*_________________________*

Salomi officially graduated from high school a few weeks before Christmas. She was very happy that she didn’t have to devote so much time to a tutor. She felt free. She would have graduated earlier but with the deaths of her child and Uncle Vernie, there was no way she could concentrate. Again, she,Gabriel,Leon and Darla celebrated by going to the chapel. Ruth insisted that she attend college since she had ‘promising math skills’. But she refused. She was content with her life now. She could imagine herself settling down with Gabriel, Darla would do the same with Leon and they would all grow old together and see the world as they did so. She was happy.

In other news, Ola finally got word from friends and she was going to stay with them as she searched for her father. The three shared a tearful goodbye as they waved her off, not knowing then that would be the last time they would see her. Salomi and Gabriel did their own cooking and cleaning, which wasn’t much since they were barely home. Salomi made an effort to help Ruth out more, even though the ‘Dorothy Gibson scandal’ was over, people still couldn’t get enough, now that the word was out that she and Jules were getting married. A few weeks after Ola left, she wired Gabriel and Salomi that she did find her father. He was paralyzed from the waist down and was supposedly tortured by German soldiers but he was very much alive. She was going to stay in Ireland and take care of him. Gabriel insisted that they find another housekeeper, he could afford it now anyway since he and Leon were doing so well. That’s where they found Heidi. A blond haired, blue eyed and also chest heavy girl from Holland. Her English was kind of bad but not too bad to the point where you couldn’t understand her.

Dorothy moved out of her apartment and moved in with Jules. Now that the cases were closed against them and the secret was out, they felt free and could do whatever they pleased. They planned for a small and secluded wedding ceremony on Long Island and were going to Europe for their honeymoon. At first it was one week, then two, who knew when they would come back.

Everything seemed like it was coming up roses for everyone. But ‘Trouble’ was still the theme it seemed. It was still a hit song on the radios. The newest scandal was the ‘Roxy Hart scandal’. A wannabe actress from Chicago who shot and killed a man because she claimed that he broke into her apartment. As the story unfolds, the truth was that the man she shot was someone she had been sleeping around with, although she was married. She shot him while they were having an argument in her apartment. It was all the papers could talk about and now she was famous- for getting in trouble. It was the trend these days. Even in prison, she somehow kept her peroxide blond bob clean and it was all the rage. Many girls went out and got the same dye job. Even Darla.

“Ahhhhhh!”Salomi screamed when she opened the door and saw Darla with a new peroxide blond bob. “Ohmygod! Your Roxy Hart! When did you do this?”

“Today, just now actually. It kinda burns. Let me in. Its cold”Darla said as she pushed her way in as Heidi made her way down the stairs to see what the commotion was.

“Alright miss?”Heidi asked

Salomi laughed,”Oh yes Im fine. But look at Darla. She has a new look”she said to her. Heidi smiled and nodded her head and left to go into the kitchen as she and Darla made their way up to her bedroom,”What made you do it?”

“Sal, it’s the cats meow right now. Everyone’s doing it”Darla said.”I look better as a blond”she said as she looked at herself in the mirror.

“But we wont be twins anymore if you’re a blond”Salomi said as she faked a pout,”What will I do?”

“Go Roxy! You should do it. Gabriel’s a blonde. We can be a whole blonde gang”

“No Im fine with the way my hair is, thank you”Salomi said,”But it does look good on you. I will say that”

“Clothes miss”Heidi said as she walked in with clean laundry.

“Thank you”Salomi said as Heidi started to fold and hang up the laundry. She looked at Darla and saw the expression on her face,”Whats wrong?”

“Tell her to leave”

“Who? Heidi?”Salomi whispered

“Yes. I have to tell you something”Darla said

“Heidi? Im sorry will you excuse us? We need to be alone. Don’t worry, I’ll finish up”Salomi said to her as she ushered her out the door and closed it behind her. “What was that all about? Whats wrong now?”

“I don’t trust her”Darla said

“Heidi? She hasn’t even spoken a correct sentence in English to you. What has she done so that you cant trust her?”Salomi asked her

“Shes….she just cant be trusted. Shes rotten. She has big breasts, you know that? I always see them too which means that Gabriel must see them on a regular basis. You should give her a uniform”

Salomi rolled her eyes,”Darla. Your overreacting. Gabriel is perfectly fine with my breasts. He doesn’t need to look at Heidi’s and hers are big, I do agree, but its not what you think”

“How do you know? Men cant be trusted you know. How often is he in the house alone with her?”

“Not often, Im always here when he is around. Hes not around often, you should know”Salomi said, speaking of Leon

“I know. That’s why I know hes cheating on me. I know hes been seeing someone else”

“How do you know? Have you seen him?”

“No…I have my suspicions. I know he is. Hes always out partying late at night. Always has a meeting, a rehearsal, a ball that he has to attend. Why does he have to go to all of them but not Gabriel?”

“Because Gabriel isn’t a party animal like he is. You know that, that’s always been his reputation even before he met you. Isnt that what turned you onto him?”

“That’s besides the point. I wouldn’t trust Heidi around Leon with her breasts flapping in the wind like the grand ole flag-“

“Darla, stop. Maybe it’s the fact that you don’t trust Leon. You two obviously need to have a sit down-“

“Oh that’s smart”Darla scoffed,” ‘Oh hello Leon, how was your day? Oh by the way, are you courting someone else?’”she mocked a fake conversation.”Yes that would go over well”

“Well the only way to find out is if you ask-“

“Your so naïve Salomi. He wont admit to it. Why would he?”

“Because Leon is a gentleman and he should be honest with you”

“Well men arent always honest-“

“Women arent always honest!”

“That’s besides the point. I cant ask him. The only way Im going to find out is to follow him or plan something. You have to help me”

“I don’t have to do anything”Salomi said with a sigh as she laid on her bed. The room was silent then and she looked at Darla and her expression was serious.”You cant be serious”

“Yes I am. Gabriel’s around him all the time, you can simply ask what Leon is up to. What his schedule is, where the party is. We can go there, incognito and catch him in the act”

“Darla, you cant possibly think that you can be incognito with that blond bob of yours. Its like the sun, you can see it shining down the street”Salomi said

“Im serious Salomi. This isn’t fun and games”Darla said. “Its been plaguing me for weeks, I have to know”

“There has to be a better way to find out”Salomi said,”Darla, you have trust issues, which is normal, it seems that everyone has someone on the side these days. But not everyone is like that. You just need to talk to him. One on one. Have dinner or something”

Darla scoffed again,”‘Oh huney, heres your favorite meatloaf…with a side of potatoes. Oh by the way, have you been petting someone else?’ “she said, mocking another conversation.

“Well how else are you going to do it? Im not going to help you. This could get you in trouble you know. It could get me in trouble and possibly get Gabriel in trouble with Leon. You do realize that without Leon, Gabriel and I wouldn’t be living here, we would still be living with Dorothy. I owe him everything. Leon isn’t only just a partner but hes a great friend”Salomi said

“Oh so you wont help me because you don’t want to lose your precious luxurious apartment and your big breasted housekeeper from Switzerland!?”Darla exclaimed, getting very upset and loud

“Shhh!”Salomi said,”Shes from Holland by the way and you know it isn’t about that. Sneaking around will get us into trouble! How would you feel if he suspected the same thing about you?”

“Hes the one sneaking around not me! I would never sneak around…and if I did I wouldn’t give him any reason to suspect”Darla said

“That sounds a little hypocritical don’t you think?”Salomi asked her

“You make me sick! Just because you and Gabriel have the perfect relationship, doesn’t mean you can judge me!”

“Darla Im not judging you. Im just telling you that theres another way-“Salomi tried to explain but Darla was already out the door. “Darla come back!”she shouted after her, but she didn’t turn around and she slammed the door behind her. Salomi realized that Darla left her pocket book and picked it up and ran outside. But by then, Darla’s car was speeding down the street and no one could stop her. Very upset, Salomi walked back inside and slammed the door behind her. “How dare she walk out on me like that” she said to herself as she walked back into the bedroom and threw Darla’s purse on the chair in front of her vanity.”The peroxide must have gotten to her head-“she said and then stopped when she saw something familiar had fallen out of Darla’s purse. Coke. It was a pretty big bag. Darla seemed to be doing it more herself than selling it but it didn’t matter since her rum row with Leon was going so well, not to mention Leon and Gabriel’s shows. She stared at the substance, her hands were shaking since she was so upset and in a swift motion she opened the bag scooped up a pile with her fingernail and snorted it. She shook her head, blinked and took a few deep breaths. Its been a year since she told Darla that she wouldn’t touch it..and there she was. It wasn’t that bad, its not like she was addicted. She was upset. She scooped another small portion with her fingernail and snorted it in her other nostril and then swallowed the last portion. She closed the bag back up and put it back in Darla’s purse.

“I never should have touched it. Shit”she said. All of a sudden she was paranoid, nervous, she couldn’t keep still. “I cant keep still. I need to calm down”she said to herself. She went to the liquor cabinet and poured herself some gin. The New York Times raved that gin was the national drink nowadays. She drank it quickly and paced around the room and finally turned on the new radio that she and Gabriel purchased. “Trouble” was playing.

“I got trouble, trouble trouble. Always knocking at my door. Yes Im a whole lot of trouble baby. Like a kid in a candy store. Im nothing but trouble baby. Yes since the day that I was born”Salomi sang along as she whirled around the room. She was excited all of a sudden, she wanted to go out. But Darla probably hated her now. She wanted Gabriel to come back home, she hated being alone like this. She drank some more gin and placed the glass down on her vanity. She looked at her bed and it seemed as if it were calling her, she walked toward the bed and stumbled.

“Alright miss?”Heidi said urgently. She came out of nowhere and helped Salomi up.

Salomi struggled to get up and unfortunately her eyes locked on Heidi’s breasts. They were big. She didn’t notice them before. They were probably bigger than hers and that was saying something since Darla always teased about how big hers were. Has Gabriel looked at them? Really? She looked at Heidi with disdain and snatched her arm away from her,”Im alright!”she said harshly. Heidi jumped back. “Go do something with yourself. Go fix me some bread, I need to soak up this booze”she snapped and Heidi immediately left the room. And immediately Salomi felt terrible. She didn’t have to yell at her like that. She laid down on her bed and before Heidi could finish preparing the food. Salomi passed out.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

Salomi opened her eyes to find Gabriel laying next to her, stroking her hair, humming a song she didn’t know. She jumped back a little bit and he laughed,”Well good morning sleepy head”

“What time is it?”she asked

“A little past midnight”he said. “Heidi said that you were out for a long time”

“Oh?”

“You got into that gin didn’t you?”Gabriel asked her as he got up

“Yes I did”

“So what did Darla say now to upset you?”

“What? How did you know?”

“Heidi told me. She said that you two were arguing and then Darla left. Then you drank, asked her to make some food and when she was done you were passed out. Now what did I tell you about drowning your sorrows with alcohol?”

“Im sorry Gabe. I really didn’t mean it”Salomi said

“Its fine. Whenever you two fight, it upsets you. What was it about?”he asked her.

Salomi couldn’t tell him. If he knew that Darla suspected Leon of being unfaithful, that could ruin their act, it may be awkward. “I don’t remember”she said as she shook her head

“It probably wasn’t important then. You were probably arguing about whether the carpet is white or beige. I think its beige”he said as he kissed her on the head and he called for Heidi,”Can you bring that tray back up please? The princess has awoken”he told her. He turned to her,”How bad is your hangover”

“Pretty bad”Salomi said. Her head and stomach hurt and she was so tired but she was antsy, she couldn’t stay still. She knew the Coke had a large part of it. She felt really bad now. A year ago, she promised that she wouldn’t touch the stuff again. She wanted to tell him but she didn’t need another argument today. It was only one time anyway. Innocent. She looked and saw that the pocketbook was gone. “Where is it?”she asked

“Where is what?”Gabriel asked as Heidi brought in some bread and water

“Darla’s pocketbook, she left it here”

“I don’t think so sweetheart”Gabriel said,”I didn’t see one when I came in here”

“Darla come”Heidi piped in. They both looked at her. “She come for bag. She kiss miss on the head. She left”she explained. She left the part out that Darla called her a whore and buttoned up her blouse for her before she walked out. She didn’t understand what it meant at first but now she knew.

“She kissed you on the head? How sweet”Gabriel said.”It must have been nothing since she has forgotten about it”he said to Salomi.”Thank you Heidi”he said to her with a smile. Heidi nodded and walked out. Salomi started to eat the bread and put more butter on it. She was starving. “Well now that you are awake and ok…I have some news for you”

“Good news I hope?”Salomi asked

“Yes good news”Gabriel said,”Leon and I are taking our act on the road. Its official. We start rehearsing next week. And guess what else? We will be spending the first two weeks on Long Island performing and guess who invited us to one of his infamous parties?”

“President Hoover?”Salomi asked, with her mouth full

“Close enough. Jay Gatsby. You know, the mysterious millionaire with ‘the best social events in the East’”he said quoting an article in the paper. “He wants to hold a party at his mansion, in our honor”

“That’s great”Salomi said.

“I want you to come Salomi-“

“I know I will come, I mean its Gatsby. I wouldn’t miss a party of his for anything!”

“No I want you to tour with me. Your done with school. I want to tour the whole east coast with you. I don’t want you to leave my side. We can travel together just like we always dreamed. We can make up on all the lost time. Leon will probably bring Darla along as well. It will be the four of us. Like its always been.It’ll be like the four Musketeers. And when we are busy, you two can keep yourselves busy.It will be one of the best vacations we have ever been on.”he said,”I mean we haven’t left the whole state of New York since…”then he stopped. That was a wrong thing to say. The last time they left was 2 ½ years ago when they went to California, met Salomi’s evil grandparents and then she lost the baby when she fell off the train. He sighed. She had a blank look on her face,”Im sorry”he said as he kissed her.”This will be much better than that. I promise. It will be like a pre honeymoon before we even get married”he said as he massaged the hand with the engagement ring on it. He noticed it was quite small.”Will you come?”he finally asked her.

Salomi nodded. This was what she dreamed. Traveling with the three of them, there was nothing she wanted more. And if Leon brought Darla, that would certainly make her suspicions go away. He would definitely keep her by his side.

*_______________________________*

“Wow sweetheart, you are going to come back arent you?”Dorothy asked Salomi as she walked into Salomi and Gabriel’s apartment. She hadn’t seen it since they first moved in and it was very glamorous. Gabriel was making a nice chunk of change. She was commenting about the huge pile of luggage that was sitting in the foyer. Gabriel, Leon, Salomi and Darla were leaving for Long Island later that night and for the next 2 ½ months they were going to be touring the east coast. She was glad that Gabriel was taking Salomi with him. He had expressed his worry over Salomi. While he was busy working, Salomi was busy partying with Darla. She hadn’t mentioned the engagement or any wedding plans since the baby died. He was upset that Dorothy and Jules were tying the knot before them, its been 3 years almost. Dorothy assured him that taking Salomi on tour with him will get her back on track. She needed to leave the temptations of the city and the more time she spent with him instead of partying with Darla, it would all fall together. However, she wasn’t happy that Darla was going as well. But Leon had said,”If Darla aint coming, then you’ll have to do it solo” But Gabriel wasn’t complaining. Dorothy was the only one that was however. She just didn’t trust Darla that much, she was too wild.

So when Salomi invited Dorothy over for tea to catch up before they left, Dorothy decided that this would be the perfect time to talk some sense into her, just to help out Gabriel.

Salomi giggled,”Yes we are. Im just packing a lot just in case. I know its going to be freezing around here, Vermont, all those places. But then again we may even go to Florida as well. Its getting warm there already”she said as she ushered Dorothy into the library. Heidi was setting the table for them,”You remember Heidi don’t you?”she asked Dorothy quickly. Ever since Darla expressed her distrust, Salomi couldn’t get it out of her head. She acted a little awkward around her. Even though Heidi covered up her breasts now, but Salomi didn’t notice. They were still big.

“Yes its good to see you again Heidi”Dorothy said to her. Heidi smiled and curtsied.”Oh you don’t have to do that”she said and blushed.

“Tea soon”Heidi said and rushed out

“Shes sweet”Dorothy said as she and Salomi sat down,”Ola was sweet too. I don’t know which one I like better”

“I liked Ola better”Salomi said, then sighed, great she said it out loud.

“Why so?”

“Oh….we were closer. I could talk to her. Heidi can barely speak our language”

“Then teach her. That would be a great way to bond.”Salomi just shrugged as Heidi came back in with some pastries and tea.”Thank you”Dorothy said politely

“Thank you Heidi”Salomi said quietly as Heidi poured them their tea and then shuffled out. She put a lot of sugar in her tea and chewed on a pastry, she chewed silently as Dorothy carefully made the tea to her liking. She then had an idea,”Why don’t we have some gin? You know to get the celebrations going”she said with a smile,”Your getting married in 2 weeks and Gabriel and Leon are doing their first vaudeville tour. We all are finally moving on with our lives”

Dorothy smiled,”Thanks but no thanks. I’d rather celebrate with tea thank you”she said. Gabriel said that Salomi drank a lot. Some nights he would come home to find her passed out on the bed, one time she didn’t reach the bed and she was on the floor. “Gabriel tells me that gin is your best friend”

Salomi shrugged,”Gin is the drink of New York”

“Sure it is”Dorothy said

“What? What has Gabriel said?”Salomi asked. “Hes been telling on me hasn’t he?”

“No he hasn’t. I merely asked how you were one time and he mentioned that you were sleeping like a baby since you had too much gin”Dorothy lied.”We are all too old to be telling on each other arent we?”she asked her with a smile

Salomi sighed and then nodded,”Yes”she said,”So how are the wedding plans coming?”she asked her. She felt bad. She was the maid of honor and hadn’t had time to help out at all. All she did was help pick out colors. Blue and beige were the colors.

“They came”she said,”Everything's basically taken care of. Your dress fits now yes?”she asked her.Salomi nodded. Her breasts didn’t agree with the original dress.

“Im having it sent to Long Island a few days before the wedding. Im afraid to pack it with everything”Salomi said. Fortunately, the day before they were to leave Long Island and set off for New Jersey, Dorothy and Jules’ wedding was going to take place. Gatsby was even going to host the reception at his house no less since he was a big fan of Gabriel and Leon’s act and also a fan of Dorothy’s work.

Dorothy smiled, she felt like a little girl again,”Now all I have to do is wait”she said,”Quite frankly I just want to get it over with so we can spend our lives together” Salomi nodded. “And spend it right too”she said. She was still getting over the whole ‘mistress’ situation. Greta was still meddling with Julian’s nerves, always asking for something and if he refused, she would threaten to call her lawyers. She was a bitch that wanted everything he worked for for revenge. “So,what about you?”Dorothy asked her,”When am I walking you down the aisle?”

Salomi made a small smile. When she was little and when she first fell in love with Gabriel, she talked about her wedding to him and how she wanted Dorothy to give her away since her father couldn’t. That touched Dorothy so much that she cried. She agreed and now here they were. “We are still trying to decide. Im waiting til the moment is right”

“And when will that be? You have been engaged for almost 3 years-“

“Hey, he told me that we could be engaged for as long as we wanted to. He wasn’t going to rush me”Salomi said. Dorothy gave her a look. A look that she hated. “Oh come off it Dorothy, Im young, we both are. Anyway, Gabriel is so busy-“

“You can still plan a wedding and go on with your life. Your life or his doesn’t have to stop so you can start a life together. I bet you all the money I have that Gabriel will give up that stage to plan a wedding for the both of you”

“Your that sure huh?”

Dorothy nodded. Gabriel also told her so. “But will you?”

“Will I what?”

“Give up all the late night partying to settle down with Gabriel?”Dorothy asked her.”Salomi, Gabriel…hes a great man, yes, hes a man now. Hes been taking care of you since you were 12, almost 10 years. Hes a good man- hes good looking, devoted and in love with you. Any woman out there would love to be in your position right now”

Salomi sighed,”I know. I see them”she said. She sometimes got jealous of the female fans that Gabriel had but he was good at warding them off. Again something else that Darla mentioned that she couldn’t get her mind off of. “I just don’t want to rush Dorothy I don’t wanna be like you that’s all”

“Like me?”

“Well I mean, you two basically had to get married. You said so yourself. You had to marry him or rumors would keep flying. Your marrying Jules to protect your reputation-“

“That’s enough”Dorothy said sternly,”That’s not all. It was suggested that we do. And besides we thought about it, what was there to lose? What was there to wait for? I loved him before that happened and I loved him more after because he stood by me. Im not marrying Jules just because I didn’t want to be a mistress anymore. Im marrying him because Im in love with him, hes in love with me and we want to spend the rest of our lives together, have a family. Don’t you want that?”

“Yes I want to spend the rest of my life with him but not yet-“

“Don’t you want to be the mother of his children?”

Salomi tensed up,”Ive tried. We tried remember? Im not doing that again”

Dorothy sighed,”I know. But…it was an accident sweetheart you know that right? The baby was perfectly healthy before you….”

“Before I what? Killed it?”

“No! No Salomi! That’s nonsense! Do you think that? You think that’s the way I see it? No, it was an accident like I said before. It wasn’t planned”

“It’s a curse”Salomi said,”My grandmother cursed me”

Dorothy sighed,Gabriel had told her this story before,”No its just a coincidence”

“No its not”Salomi said,”Father told me that my mother sometimes caught my grandmother doing weird things, you know, witchcraft. Spells, speaking in tongues and all that”

“It was probably some Indian ritual. Your grandmother was full blooded”

“Native American”Salomi corrected her,”And no it wasn’t. My mother was sure of it. Before my mother ran off with my father, she went crazy, speaking in tongues and saying that they would regret it, if it’s the last thing that she did. She said that. ‘If it’s the last thing I do, you’ll regret this!’. She said that to them”

“She was obviously angry Lomi. Her daughter was running away-“

“It doesn’t matter. I think she tried to kill me and my mother. She got away with part of it but I still survived. She never wrote, she never cared and that fateful trip there? She didn’t give a shit. And then I-“she stopped,”No….Im not having kids. And Im not going through with this wedding until I feel comfortable, do you understand!?”she yelled. She then got up and went and poured herself some gin and gulped it down.

Dorothy stared at Salomi in shock. Gabriel was right but he didn’t see the whole picture. Whenever Salomi was upset she turned to alchol, she barely drank her tea but she gulped down the gin quite quickly. She had to stop this before its too late, her own father turned to whiskey everytime he was upset or bored before he left. She didn’t want Salomi to turn into that,”I suggest you put the alcohol down”she said as she got up and walked toward her and snatched the glass away from her,”You know I didn’t mean anything by it, stop being so hysterical. I suggest that you get rid of this mess”she said as she put the gin and glass back in the cabinet,”Its turning you into a nutcase”

Salomi stared at her angrily,”You arent my mother Dorothy, you never were! And you never will be! Stop treating me like a child!”she shouted at her.

Dorothy stepped back in shock. She could feel tears forming in her eyes. She composed herself quickly,”Well if that’s the way you want it”she said as she walked over and got her coat and purse,”I’ll see myself out. See you in 2 weeks”she said sternly and stomped out of the library and slammed the door. Salomi felt a tear roll down her cheek. Why did she say that? She didn’t mean it.

“Im sorry. I didn’t mean it”Salomi said to herself as she took the glass and gin out of the cabinet and poured herself another glass. Heidi came back into the room with more pastries and stopped in her tracks.

“Ms. Gibson?”she asked

“She’s gone”Salomi said,”You can clean up now. I’ll be in my room”she said as she took the bottle of gin and her glass and went to the bedroom and locked the door behind her.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Salomi better be ready”Gabriel commented as Leon drove him and Darla toward Gabriel and Salomi’s apartment. “I hope she wont take as much time getting ready as you did. Its after midnight now we are going to miss our train”

Darla laughed,”Oh you’ll be fine Gabriel. I bet Salomi is sitting by the door waiting for your grand entrance”she said. Leon parked the car and they walked into the apartment and they were met with many bags,”See what did I tell you? She's all ready aint she?”she said,”My goodness, so much luggage”

“Salomi’s a packrat. She's probably in the bedroom”Gabriel said as he ran up the steps,”Salomi? We are here now. You have 10 minutes, we are going to be late-“he said and then stopped when he saw Salomi passed out on the bed. A bottle of gin and a glass was beside her. He sighed.

Darla giggled,”She started the party already!”she said as she ran over to Salomi and jumped on the bed before Gabriel could stop her. Salomi stirred and looked at Darla confusingly,”Get up. Cheese says we have ten minutes to leave or we will leave you”she said.

“Huh?”Salomi asked. Nothing made sense and her vision was blurry

“Oh huney, you smell like gin”Darla said as she got up and sprayed some perfume on her. Salomi sneezed,”Sorry but its for your own good. Lets go, we are off to Long Island, the island of the strong and rich”

Gabriel sat next to her and helped Salomi sit up, not only was she disoriented but she was a little sloppy. She was wearing the same clothes that he left her in when he left earlier that day but now there was a stain and parts were soaked with sweat. He hoped that was enough to sweat all the alcohol out of her system. “Come on babe. You don’t even have time to change. The cab will be here any minute to take us to the train station”

“Train station?”Salomi asked

“Yes, we are going to Long Island. Our train leaves in less than 30 minutes baby, please we cant miss it and its too late for a refund”he said to her urgently

However, Salomi snatched her hand away,”What do you mean the train!? What do you mean?”she asked angrily

“Well how else are we gonna get there doll? Fly?”Darla asked with a laugh

“Gabriel! How could you! Why the hell would you buy train tickets!”Salomi continued, ignoring Darla.

“Because I’d rather not drive two hours when the train can get us there in 45 minutes-“

“DID YOU EVEN STOP TO THINK ABOUT ME!? I DON’T WANT TO GET ON THE TRAIN GABRIEL, IT'S OUT OF THE QUESTION!”she yelled

“You!? Salomi what the hell are you yelling about!?”he asked her angrily. He didn’t need this right now. He was tired. He just wanted to get to the hotel on Long Island and get some rest before their rehearsal tomorrow morning. That’s all he wanted to do was just get there and get rest. But Salomi wasn’t making it easier. She was acting like a drunk nutcase and he didn’t know why.

“REMEMBER THE LAST TIME I GOT ON A FUCKING TRAIN GABRIEL!? DO YOU!? OR HAVE YOU BEEN TOO BUSY TO REMEMBER!?”Salomi yelled at him

Gabriel stopped. He hadn’t thought of that. But he did mention to Salomi several times that they were going to catch a train and she didn’t have a problem with it. Now it was a problem for obvious reasons. “Baby I just didn’t want to drive for two hours and I didn’t want to stop at a service station every 30 minutes-“

“I WOULD RATHER DRIVE TWO HOURS THAN HAVE THE RISK OF KILLING MYSELF AGAIN! GOD GABRIEL! I THOUGHT YOU CARED ABOUT ME! HOW COULD YOU POSSIBLY THINK THAT GETTING ON A TRAIN WAS A GOOD IDEA WHEN OUR BABY DIED FROM IT!”she shouted at him. She was standing on the bed now, looking down at him, like she was levitating above him. All she needed was a hat and broomstick.

Darla gasped when Salomi said this. Salomi never mentioned that she and Gabriel had a child. “Lets go”Leon said and pulled her out of the room and closed the door behind them.

“Maybe we should-“

“No…just let Gabriel deal with it. Its too personal”Leon said. Gabriel told Leon all about what happened to the baby. He knew everything and how much it still hurt the both of them.

“Should I?”Heidi asked as she walked up to them. Darla glared at her and she immediately looked down.

“No, they just need to be alone”Leon said

“Coffee? Tea?”she asked

“Sure thing, thank you”Leon said,”Darla?”

“I’d rather not”Darla said as she touched her blond bob and walked downstairs with them and went straight into the bathroom.

“Salomi listen to me”Gabriel said as tears fell down his face. How could he have been so stupid? Why would Salomi want to get on a train again after what happened? He walked up to the bed and wrapped his arms around her trembling legs as she stood on the mattress. “I didn’t mean it, I wasn’t thinking. I forgot alright? I forgot. That’s what we have been doing this whole time, forgetting. We tried to forget that we were ever pregnant, that it ever happened, that we ever got on a train but we cant baby. Im sorry Salomi…Im so sorry. I thought it was fine, I thought I was doing right by you”he said

Salomi sank to her knees and held Gabriel close to her. She smelled like gin. He knew she probably drank all of it. Didn’t Dorothy come over and put some words of wisdom into her head? “I cant get on that train Gabriel. I just cant”she sobbed. He rocked her back and forth as she sobbed, holding her like a child.

“Look. Listen”Gabriel said as he held her chin in his hands and forced her to look at him,”Im sorry Salomi. You know I love you. We wont get on that train, not if your like this. I’ll drive us to Long Island, we’ll fit as much luggage as we can into the car and the rest we can send with Darla and Leon on the train. Theres no point in wasting 4 tickets. They’ll get there before we do and by the time we get to the hotel, all the checking in will be taken care of and we can go straight to sleep. We have a busy day tomorrow with rehearsals and all. Is that alright with you? We’ll take the car. I’ll drive”he said. Salomi nodded and hugged him. “Now why don’t you take a quick bath”he said as he ran some water for her.

Heidi packed the car with as much luggage it could hold, which was more than he expected. He sent the few remaining bags with Leon and Darla,they caught the train just in time. Salomi was more relaxed after her bath and Heidi gave her some soup and bread. They got in the car and she apologized the whole way and told him about the fight she had with Dorothy. It was a little past 3 am when they arrived at the hotel. The two of them went straight to sleep.

*________________________________*

I got trouble, trouble, trouble
Always knockin’ at my door
Yes Im a whole lotta trouble baby
Like a kid in a candy store
Well Im nothin’ but trouble baby
Now since the day that I was born

Well Im as good as it ever gets
Give you something you wont forget
If you wanna spell trouble babe
We’ll send out an S.O.S., yes
This baby’s got something
Something you just cant ignore
And yeah it sure is likely babe
You’ll keep on coming back for more

Ive got a wicked taste for trouble
And Im never, never satisfied
Yeah Im a whole lotta trouble baby
And my evil ways cant hide
Oh my my
Well I been itchin’ for some trouble babe
Every single day that Im alive

Come on baby
Come on darling
Come on suga

Now listen
Cant you see the way I move?
Cant you read it in my hips?
Theres lots that’s goin’ on
In my pocket full of tricks
Got some secrets up my sleeve
If you know just what I mean
Got places you’ve never been
I’ll take you out of your skin

Well Im trouble, trouble, trouble baby
Always knockin’ at my door
Yeah Im a whole lotta trouble babe
Oooh, since the day that I was born
Oh yeah

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Hmm?”Salomi asked as she heard a voice within the dream world that she currently was residing. She could feel herself slip away, she saw the light and then she saw his face and smiled,”Hi”she whispered

“You slept good yes?”Gabriel asked as he leaned in and gave her a good morning kiss. He hoped she did because he knew that he did, surprisingly so. She nodded,”Good, well, Leon and I want to have breakfast with the two most gorgeous women in the hotel, do you mind?”he asked her

Salomi frowned,”Who?”she asked him

Gabriel laughed,”Oh wake up Lomi, you of course. And Darla. Get dressed, they are serving breakfast now in the dining hall. We don’t have much time”he said to her. They both got ready and met Leon and Darla in the dining hall, or at least just Darla. She was sitting at their table, looking around for someone,”Morning Darla, where's Lee?”he asked her

“That’s what I was wondering”she said quietly and then gave Salomi a look. Salomi also gave her a look, a I-don’t-want-to-deal-with-trouble-this-early-in-the-morning look. “How did ya sleep sweetheart?”she asked her as she patted the chair on the opposite side of her

“It was fine. The mattresses here feel like heaven. I slept quite well”Salomi said. Gabriel nodded in agreement.

“When did you two get in? Are you both alright?”she asked

“A little after 3, but that’s due to stopping at some service stations. I got 5 hours of sleep in at least”Gabriel commented

“I think we got two”Darla said with a wicked smile,”The bed was marvelous, especially the man in it”she added when Leon sat down next to her. “Where have you been?”

“The little boys room of course like I said”he said to her with a clueless smile,”And how are you two this morning, you seem well rested”

They both nodded,”Yes we are, we were talking about how soft the beds were” Gabriel said as a waiter asked them what he and Salomi wanted to drink. Salomi asked for tea and so did Gabriel. Once their food arrived, there were two separate conversations going on at the table.

“So…are you really alright?”Darla asked her as she played with her oatmeal

“Really Darla Im fine. Drunk outburst and all that, you know”Salomi said as she ate her eggs. She was starving.

“But you didn’t tell me that you and Gabriel had a-“

“Because its something that I would much rather not talk about”Salomi interrupted her. She and Gabriel talked about maybe seeing a counselor or something. It seemed like a good idea this morning, but she didn’t know if she was ready to open that up to anyone. Every time the thought hit her head, she needed a drink. Which was also something they both discussed, he didn’t want her to drink her sorrows away or to drink at all for that matter. She promised that she wouldn’t but she already felt that promise to be empty. She quickly changed the subject,”Now our two fellas are going to be rehearsing all day. What shall we do?”she asked her

“Oh I was talking to the maitre’ d about the fun happenings around here and there are many attractions close by. Theres even a jazz club downstairs. We should go there tonight if those two don’t have anything planned”Darla said

Salomi nodded,”Sounds great. But what can we do before the sun sets. You know jazz don’t start until after 9 o clock”she said with a smile.

“Why don’t we watch their rehearsal?”Darla asked as she nodded her head to the two men. “We can get a sneak peek, a world premiere”

Salomi shook her head,”Oh we can do that at anytime. We need to explore. We should take pictures too. One from every different state we go to. How about the beach? Long Island has lovely beaches”

“Sal, its not even April yet, the waters are freezing”Darla said with a laugh,”Come on, why not?”she also asked

“You just said, the waters are freezing”Salomi said as she started to eat the huge sausage on her plate.

“No, why not see their rehearsal?”Darla asked

Salomi sighed,”Because I know why, it isn’t for a good reason. You just want to spy. Darla, I already told you, Im not going to help you do this. Lay off will ya? After the tour? Why don’t you spy on him after the tour is over? When hes never around, when hes not making as much money. Any sign of scandal could ruin them. Lets just enjoy ourselves”

Darla looked at her with dark eyes, she then sighed and ate her oatmeal. Not saying anything. Salomi sighed, great the silent treatment and it wasn’t even 9 am.

“Well you two are awfully quiet”Leon said when he and Gabriel took a break from their business conversation

“We are trying to figure out what to do today”Salomi said

“Have no fear”Leon said,”Well at least one hopes. I already found the perfect place for you two. You’ll have lots of fun”

“Where?”Salomi asked with wide eyes. Darla just sat there silently, eating her oatmeal.

“Horses”he said as he handed them a pamphlet. “I bought you both full day tickets to the Wantaugh Ranch. Its about a 15 minute drive from here. They will give you riding lessons, theres also a lake nearby, you can picnic, ride, swim. Inside, the ranch has a library, bar, the works. You two will be professional cowgirls when your done. I also made dinner reservations at the restaurant on the ranch and we will meet you there to eat later on tonight after our rehearsal. 7:00”

Salomi smiled,”Oh how wonderful!”she said excitedly,”I have always wanted to ride”

“That’s great Lee, thanks”Gabriel said,”I was starting to worry because I don’t know what there is to do around here.I didn’t want you two to be bored”

“Oh stick with me”Leon said,”I know lotsa people, they know where all the great spots are. And that’s just the beginning”he said and gave Darla a kiss on the cheek, she smiled. Still saying nothing. The two men prepared to leave and a car picked them up and took them to rehearsal.

“See? Great, we have something to do that will take up our whole day”Salomi said to Darla with a smile,”I still think your crazy to think that Leon is fooling around”

“This just furthers my suspicion Sal. You just don’t understand”

“How?”

“He went through the trouble to send us away, so we wouldn’t even think about watching their rehearsal, and if we did, which I did, he would have a backup plan. A ranch that would keep us busy all day that’s 15 minutes driving distance? He can do whatever or whomever he wants in that amount of time without me knowing because I will be riding some stupid horse”Darla said

Salomi shook her head,”I have nothing to say to you. Does that mean your not going?”

“Oh of course I am. I’ll spend all his money too. Once I spend too much, he’ll think twice about sending us off, besides it will be much cheaper to watch their rehearsals”she said as they went to their rooms to change.

And when Darla said she would spend Leon’s money, she meant it. She put everything on his tab. They had three separate riding lessons that he already paid for. The first was in a small and closed fenced area for beginners training, the second was in a field and the third was a course through the woods all the way to the lake and back. Darla also bought plenty of paraphernalia from the ranch, stickers, shirts, she even bought them both riding outfits and gear. They ordered a huge lunch as well.

“I do not want to be around when Leon sees the bill”Salomi said as they sat at the dinner table waiting for both Gabriel and Leon,”I cant believe that you bought so much! The only thing that you didn’t buy was a horse!”

“I was thinking about that, you think I should?”she asked her wickedly. Before Salomi could answer, Leon and Gabriel came over and they dropped it. They talked about the rehearsal and whom they would be working with. Leon mentioned that they had 10 ‘beautiful’ chorus girls. Darla didn’t like that at all and shot Salomi an evil I-knew-it glance.

“Goodness Darla, you are eating like a horse”Leon replied jokingly,”In the most beautiful way possible” She ordered a steak and potatoes, a glass of champagne and dessert.

“Its just my special way of saying thanks”Darla replied sweetly

“Well then that makes me worry about you”Gabriel said to Salomi who only had a light salad, a side of bread and champagne.”Are you alright?”

“Oh Im fine, Darla and I had a big lunch earlier today, didn’t we?”she asked her, glaring at her,”Im still stuffed”she said. Darla coughed a little and went back to eating. Leon and Gabriel split the bill but then the maitre’ d came back with yet another bill.

“Whats this?”Leon asked

“Oh the bill for the days activities, the lessons and all the goodies these two bought. They had a great time didn’t you ladies?”he asked them. Many others saw the many bags the two carried and thought that they were millionaires and asked him who they were, he didn’t know.

Darla smiled,”Yes we did”she said. This was the moment she had been waiting for.

Leon opened the bill and stared at it for awhile. Darla grinned. “Is there a problem sir?”the maitre’ d asked

Leon laughed,”No…its just these two have very expensive taste, but its nothing that I cant take care of”he said,”I accept all charges”he said to him and the maitre’ d walked away

“Im sorry Leon, we just got a little carried away, if you wanted to return anything-“

“Oh no”Leon said,”Don’t think of it, its out of the question. We both brought you here so we can spoil you because we wont be around due to rehearsals. We want you both to have fun”he said,”So spend, spend, spend, I don’t care because this tour is going to make us rich!”he said and Gabriel laughed,”Lets get a glass of champagne, we need to make a toast”he said. The maitre’ d poured them all glasses and they raised theirs,”To the tour, pretty women”he said looking at Darla and Salomi,”And to seeing the East Coast”he said

“Cheers”they all said as they clicked glasses. Darla was the only one that wasn’t in a cheerful mood.

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

When Leon said that he would keep them busy, he did. After the ranch, they returned to the hotel and had a few drinks. The next morning, they awoke for breakfast again, Leon had bought them tickets to the fair, which was another all day affair. The day after that, a film festival. They spent the next day on the beach and the boardwalk, but never got close to the water. The next day, shopping, which is another all day affair. Then the fellas had the day off so they went to see Babe Ruth play with his baseball team, the Yankees. The day after was another one of Jay Gatsby’s parties. It was later that night and it took all day to get glammed up for it.

“Ahhhh! It burns, oh it burns”Darla said as she waved her arms around and hopped up and down. She put a lot of peroxide in her fading blond bob. It needed to be in top shape for one of Gatsby’s parties.

“I say, you should be a brunette”Salomi said to her,”Its less painful”

“Im alright”Darla said as she winced

“Suit yourself”Salomi said as she put on some hose and a silk teddy underneath,”Thank you for this gorgeous dress by the way”she said to her as she held up the green sparkly dress with lots of fringe,”You didn’t have to, you know. Gabriel was disappointed that he couldn’t buy me a dress for our first Gatsby party”

“Well since dear ole Leon is so rich now and is going to be so much richer later… it shouldn’t be a problem should it?”Darla replied

“I really think you should lay off with all these expenses”Salomi said,”Its useless, you don’t even need or want most of the things you bought”

“I know, but it just feels so good”Darla said. Her head stopped burning now and she started to style her hair.”I will feel even better when I catch him in the act”

“Then what happens after Dar?”Salomi asked her,”You’re gonna leave him right?”

“Leave him? No way, hes going to be rich. I’ll just teach him a lesson, give him an offer he wont refuse. He wont leave me. He cant”

Salomi frowned,”But Darla, you….if you find him cheating on you, you should leave. You don’t deserve a man that cheats no matter how much money he has or if its Leon or not”

“Says the girl with the perfect relationship and the ring on her finger”Darla said cynically. Salomi decided to keep quiet. She didn’t want to get upset. She kept on getting dressed. Darla closed the bathroom door behind her and locked it,she turned on the faucet,”Leon is gonna be sorry that he ever thought about cheating on me. He’ll be sorry. Salomi will see and then she will be sorry for not believing in me. She’ll see”

*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*

“Wow so this is the famous Gatsby mansion”Gabriel said as they walked inside. However, they were quickly ushered outside in the backyard. There was a huge tent and that’s where many tables were situated around a dance floor and a huge jazz band. “What does Gatsby look like?”he asked

“I don’t know”Leon said,”But I bet if he walked in, we would be able to guess as much”he said as they sat down at a table. Two other gorgeous women were at their table as well, which didn’t ease Darla’s spirits at all. They introduced themselves, they both were dancers on Broadway and one was an understudy to one of the Follies. So Gabriel and Leon had met her once before. The four of them talked about the tour and everything dealing with Broadway. Salomi listened intently,always wanting to learn about Gabriel’s craft like a dutiful future wife should be. However Darla gave the women evil glances. Has Leon ever been with these women at all? Lately?

“He’s a bootlegger you know”said the Follie understudy,”I even heard that he killed a man once. The man found out that he was second cousin to the devil. Oh Leon darling can you pour some more champagne into that there crystal glass?”she asked him

“That’s ridiculous”Darla said to her. She was staring at her evilly not only because her story, her dress and her whole entire self was stupid, but she called Leon darling and he was actually pouring champagne for her. “You don’t actually believe that do you?”

“Well what else could he be? A lot of people,such as myself, have never seen him. They are brought by guests. Lucille here has seen him once”she said nodding to her friend.

Lucille nodded,”Its true. He bought me this dress because at the last party I tore mine. He asked me for my name and address and here it is”she said with a smile,”$265. You have to adore a man like that. He doesn’t want any trouble with ANYbody”

*____________________________*