She was afraid to guess.
“You need a shower. And sleep. And my protection.”
The tears came again, but this time from relief. “Yes,” she said weakly. “A shower. Sleep. And you.”
He leaned in and kissed her lightly on the brow. “I’ll see you in the morning, Marion. A brand-new day. You get to live that adventure you wondered about. Not many people are brave enough to try that, you know. Don’t worry. If you falter, I’ll be right there behind you.”
forty-threeSASSY
Work was improving by the day for Sassy. Her first attempt to speak with a couple about selling their house had somehow turned into both a sale and a purchase, and she watched in awe as the reverse domino effect took place. The work that had initially appeared as a tangled mess in her mind was quickly shaping up into straight lines that she could easily navigate. Tom observed, giving her encouragement and more cases to follow up on, but mostly he let her do her thing.
“Your dad was right. You’re a natural.”
She grinned. “You might be right.”
On her walk home from the bus one day, she saw two men sleeping in an alley, and what had once frightened her now made her sad. They wore old fatigues, and she couldn’t help thinking of Daniel. From him, she had learned that these men were not bad people. Just lost. From Marion, she had learned that she had the ability to help them somehow.
The next morning, she stopped in at Eaton’s and bought a half dozen blankets, which she handed out to shivering men she passed. They stared at her in amazement then asked if she had any money to spare. The day after that, she went to Jack’s Variety Store and pulled together bags of things she thought the men might need. Food, toothbrushes, soap. Wool caps andhand-knitted mittens. When she told Esther what she was doing, she and Jack loaded Sassy up with bags of food. She had to phone Tom to come and drive her, because she couldn’t carry it all.
“But there’s so many of them,” she said as he drove. “I’ll never be able to make a dent. I want to do more.”
He eyed her. “You have a good heart, Sass, but keep in mind what Marion told you. Some of those men should still be in the hospital, medicated. I know how much you care, but keep a safe distance. You never know.”
That night, she rode the elevator upstairs then stepped into the hallway. Mr. Snoop’s door clicked open, then closed, and Sassy had a thought. She rapped her knuckle against his door.
“Hello?”
There was no response, but she thought she could hear him breathing on the other side of the door.
“You don’t have to come out, but I want you to know that if you need anything, you can ask anyone on this floor for help. We’re all good people.”
Still no sound from the other side, but she hadn’t expected any. She slid a Jersey Milk bar under his door before walking on, and that brought a smile to her lips. But down the hall, when she reached Marion’s apartment, she hesitated, missing her friend. What a strange situation they were in. Marion was in Vietnam, where no one had ever imagined her being. No one had any real illusions that Marion might find Joey, despite that being the spark that had set all this in motion, but Marion had gone anyway. She was doing all she could to help. Marion, like her father, was a hero.
Sassy turned her key and opened her door, still thinking of her friend. She smiled at Chester, meandering toward her with his tail up like a flagpole. She’d agreed to keep the cat as long as Marion needed, and honestly, Chester was a good roommate. He helped keep the loneliness at bay. And when he purred, contentment rolling deep within him, it was impossible not to feel comforted. Out of habit, she turned on the television then went to the kitchen to make dinner for both her and Chester. While he ate, she carried her plate to the dining table and was about to bite into the sandwich when an awful thought struck her.
What was she doing for anyone beside herself? Sure, she’d helped outa dozen or so men with blankets and food, but Marion had flown halfway across the world, using her skills to save lives. Daniel was helping in his own way, supporting and protecting Marion. Davey had pulled together a fundraiser for the Red Cross, and Tom had made a huge donation.
Chester jumped onto the couch and pressed his sweet face to hers. Even the cat was helping in his own way. He sat beside her and returned her gaze.
“What can I do?” she asked. He promptly lifted his back leg over his head so he could clean himself. She rolled her eyes. “That’s no help, Chester.”
It was cold outside, but she wrapped a blanket around her body and stepped onto her balcony. The streets had been mostly cleared of snow after the latest blizzard, and the road below shimmered under the streetlamps. A man and woman shuffled past the building, wrapped in coats and hats and boots, scarves hiding their faces. A couple of cars swished past, and Sassy lifted her gaze to take in the city. Miles and miles and miles of streets and buildings, thousands and thousands of people. Over in that direction was her father’s big, red-stone house. She smiled, remembering all the nooks and crannies where she and Joey had played hide-and-seek. She remembered her father’s closet, where she’d feared the entire world had forgotten her until Joey found her. She thought about the expansive lawn where they’d run in the summer, and the little hut the two of them had built together in the trees. With a flicker of memory, she recalled carrying books to the little hideout and finding peace in the quiet.
And a seed of an idea began to grow.
When she got to work the next morning, Sassy began making notes. She had a few things she wanted to check and confirm, but the more she read, the more confident she felt. What she needed now was to get the advice of an expert.
Tom’s door was open, his back to her as he went through his filing cabinet.
“Hey,” she said.
“Hey yourself,” he said, turning to face her.
He was wearing a white dress shirt and navy trousers, his black shoes spit polished, which told her that he had a meeting later. His hair was a little less perfect these days, and she thought he might be growing it longer on purpose. She liked it that way.
“Where’s Betty?”
“She wasn’t feeling well, so I told her to stay home and get better.”
