Emil untied his line, picked up the oars, and paddled the short distance to his own deck. Balancing the scull, he climbed onto the deck. A few droplets of cold water seeped into his pants. It was jarring, but not unbearable. Maybe he should go for a swim. Maybe it would achieve what he’d hoped the exercise would do.
He stripped his clothing before he could change his mind, the boards of the deck icy beneath his bare feet. Bouncing on his heels, he rubbed his hands together in preparation. He shut off his brain. His doubts. And he leapt.
The water punched like a fist. It stole the breath from his lungs and replaced it with cold fire. His limbs convulsed as the shock sank deep, right down to the marrow. For one panicked moment, he couldn’t tell up from down. Then instinct took over, and he kicked hard toward the surface.
He broke through with a gasping, ragged breath, arms and legs thrashing. The burn lingered for a heartbeat, then faded into numbness. He blinked water from his eyes, aware only of the rhythm of his breath. The sound of water lapping against his ears. Time ceased to exist. He could’ve been out there ten seconds or ten years. He floated, hollowed out and blank, until a slow tingling in his fingers and toes brought him back. He turned and swam to the ladder.
Climbing out, he trembled violently. His skin was red and pimpled, water sheeting off him in rivers. He stumbled inside, his body aching but his mind strangely clear. Maybe Meany wasn’t mad after all. There was something almost holy in the plunge. A form of reckoning he hadn’t expected, but had desperately needed. He hurried to the bathroom, his mind full of purpose.
Letting Olive go was the worst mistake of his life.
And he knew what he had to do.
Harvey Gunn’s voice was a low snarl, his brogue thickened with fury. “What in hell do you mean you want a different favor? Can you believe this scunner?”
The latter was said to the silent man sitting in the chair before the fireplace. Hire Kobayashi, at last. He was dressed in a finely cut navy suit, his black hair slicked into place. His groomed, calm appearance was the complete opposite of Gunn, who had perhaps become even more disheveled since Emil had last seen him. The chance to understand how he fit into Gunn’s operations was almost enough to make Emil regret backing out of the job.
“I understand it’s unorthodox?—”
“It’s insulting,” Gunn interrupted, “to think I hand out favors like penny candy.”
“It’s not for me, it’s for the girl,” he said quickly, then corrected himself. “The woman, Olive Becket.”
Gunn rolled his eyes. “For fuck’s sake, you got her pregnant, didn’t you?”
“It’s not like that,” Emil snapped. “If I had, I wouldn’t need your help. I’d take care of her myself. But this isn’t just about her. It’s her family. They all need help.”
“This about the anthem? I sent out the word, like I said I would.”
“I believe you,” Emil said quickly. “But I’m afraid the current threat is the landlord. She’s leaning on them hard. Making a stink about raising the rent, threatening to kick them out if they step out of line. But that’s not just it—the place is a rat hole. It’s got cracked pipes, mold, you name it. At least six housing code violations in their flat alone, and that’s just what I saw on a single visit.”
“And why hasnae Mrs. Becket filed a complaint? Or moved her family out?”
Emil flicked a glance toward Kobayashi, who gazed back at him calmly. Looked like he’d have to reveal a bit more than he’d hoped about Olive. He hoped she’d forgive him. “Mrs. Becket is ill. She worries the door will be bolted behind her if she sets foot outside. So she hasn’t, not in a long time. It’s a strain on the family.”
“I see.” Gunn rose to his feet to pace back and forth with agitated movements. Emil took it as a sign to keep going.
“Miss Becket is worried the landlord’s wife will push for eviction if she discovers her role in the suffrage anthem. It would help enormously to remove, or at least hobble, the threat.”
“So what are you asking?”
“I figured with the property you’ve acquired lately, you’ve got contacts on the Public Housing Commission. I need someone to pay a visit. Look around. Lean a little on the landlord if they find what I think they will.”
Gunn eyed him for a long, cold moment. “You’re giving up your chance to work for me to run charity errands for a woman?”
“She’s more than that,” he replied roughly. “But yes. I am.”
“And what’s so special about her?”
Emil looked away, jaw clenched. He didn’t have the words, not really. Just the way she made him feel—like there was still some part of him worth saving.
“She’s the best person I’ve ever known. That’s reason enough.”
Gunn didn’t reply right away. He tapped his hand on his leg once, twice. Then, “I maybe know someone who could take a look.”
“Tomorrow.”
“Pushy, aren’t we?”
