“Don’t drag her into this mess,” he said, looking down to his hands as if ashamed, and Sylvia hoped he was. “If you do see anyone,” he said, “be careful. Don’t try to approach them or reason with them. They want you to know they’re there, they want you to feel their presence, that’s all.” The front door opened and closed, and Sylvia checked the clock on the wall. School was out already. “But you shouldn’t have sold your car, Sylvia. How much did you get for it?”
“Eighteen hundred dollars,” she said.
Walter shook his head. “How are you going to get anywhere now? How are you going to get to the Rendezvous?”
“We’ll take the—”
“I’ll drive you,” he interrupted hastily, “of course.”
“No! We’ll take the ferry and walk like everyone else.” She was angry all over again. The fact that her selling her car was going to be of no consequence was infuriating. “You’ve done quite enough already.”
“Mom?” Judith called out, then she appeared at Walter’s study door. “You sold your car?”
Sylvia turned to Walter and glared.
“Why would you sell your car?”
“Because, sweetheart, I didn’t need it. I barely drove that clunkything anywhere,” Sylvia said, determined to shield her daughter from this, to protect her. If Judith knew the truth, she too would feel differently toward Walter.
“But Mom—” Judith looked from Sylvia to her father—“how am I supposed to go anywhere now?”
“You can walk, and I will too.” Sylvia tried not to look at Judith straight on for fear that she’d burst into tears. She looked so beautiful in her burgundy plaid skirt and bobby socks, her hair a little frizzy from her day at school. She’d likely be heading to the Jolly Roger soon; she and her friends often met there after school for malts and Frosties, and this week was especially busy with all those high school and college kids hanging around. She was a smart girl, excelled in her studies, and took pride in her schoolwork, but she was getting so distracted these days with all the attention she was getting from the boys. Sylvia hoped to God she’d go to college and stay long enough to finish. She didn’t ever want her to be in a situation like this, where her husband held all the cards.
“Jude, we want you to be careful this week,” Walter said. “There are a lot of people here from out of town, and we don’t want you going anywhere by yourself. Make sure you have a friend with you at all times, or one of us will accompany you.”
Judith rolled her eyes.
“Your father’s right,” Sylvia said. “No walking home alone.”
“Well, if you hadn’t sold your car, you could have driven me,” she said.
“Sweetheart, please,” Sylvia said, exhausted. “I’ll accompany you to the Rendezvous tomorrow night, then you won’t have to worry.”
“Mom,” Judith said, screwing up her face, “that’s so embarrassing.”
“I’ll keep my distance,” Sylvia said. “You won’t even know I’m there.”
Repulsed, Judith turned on her heel, her full skirt swishing around her, and marched off toward the stairs “You ruin everything,” she called out in her wake, then she went upstairs and slammed her bedroom door.
Sylvia took a deep breath. Her relationship with Walter was in tatters, and now Judith hated her. She stared at the money sitting on thedesk, realizing now how insignificant it was, given the calamity they faced. If they sold the house in a flash sale, by the time they paid off their debt, paid Teddy, paid the movers, they’d have very little left to live on. How could they possibly afford to keep the club running with no money to spare? Even if they could keep it afloat, would they even want to? Or would they be perpetuating a lie by running a fancy club while living in squalor? She couldn’t fathom leaving the island and leaving their life behind, but in some ways she couldn’t imagine staying either, if their circumstances were so drastically different. She would be forever ashamed, forced to endure a downgraded version of her former life. The better option was likely to sell the club and leave the island, start fresh somewhere new, but as soon as she considered this, her insides seemed to fold in on themselves. She couldn’t do it. She wouldn’t allow it. They might be losing their house and their prized possessions, but they had to save the club—that was the one thing that would keep them here. She had to fix this; she was determined. She didn’t know how yet, but she would.
