She smiled and nodded. “I understand.”
I hadn’t thought much about that night in a long time, but I did now. “When we returned home, there was a letter waiting for me from Ernest Hemingway.”
Irene’s blue eyes grew wide, and she grabbed my arms. “What? You didn’t destroy it, did you? He’s only the most famous writer in America. You saved it, right?”
“I saved it,” I said, “though I shouldn’t have. If Mother or Father ever found it, I’d have a lot of explaining to do.”
She stood and pulled me off the bed. “Where is it? Can you show me?”
Laughing, I brought her into my room, and I took my box of correspondence off the desk. “I put it in here because Mother is less likely to look through my personal letters. She values privacy. If she found the letter tucked under my mattress or hidden in my bureau, she might be more suspicious.”
I handed the letter to Irene, and she opened it with enthusiasm. Her eyes grew wider still as she came to the end.
“Did he write to his friend at the Coliseum Ballroom about you?”
“I don’t know.”
“You didn’t inquire?” She lowered the letter and stared at me. “When Ernest Hemingway makes a point to write to you, you should at least follow up on his suggestion.”
“You just told me a minute ago that you realized the consequences of going to the Dingo Bar could have been worse. And that was in Paris! Can you imagine if I went to a speakeasy in Saint Paul?”
Her face fell, and she sighed. “I suppose. But, gee, that would be fun, wouldn’t it?”
“Irene.” I lowered my chin. “Don’t get any wild ideas.”
She grinned. “I won’t go sneaking out, if that’s what you mean. But it would be fun, don’t you think? It’s just a ballroom and dancing. There can’t be anything wrong with that.”
“The Coliseum has a reputation for being a speakeasy. And even if it didn’t, people would still frown upon Reverend Baldwin’s daughter at a ballroom.”
“That’s a shame.” She handed back the letter as the telephone rang downstairs.
I put the letter back in my correspondence box and buried it under a few other envelopes.
“Caroline,” Mother called up the stairs. “The telephone is for you.”
I left Irene to unpack and went down the stairs to the dining room where the telephone hung on the wall. Mother had left the receiver dangling, but I could hear her humming softly in the kitchen. I lifted it and said, “Hello, this is Caroline.”
“Hi, Carrie.” Lewis’s voice was clear on the other end. It was good to hear him again, especially after parting on such difficult terms yesterday.
“Hi, Lewis.” My pulse sped, and I cupped my hand around the mouthpiece so Mother wouldn’t hear. “Did you learn anything about Annie?”
“I guess we can cut to the chase.” He chuckled, but then his voice grew serious. “I went to the Green Lantern yesterday, and Annie and Lloyd did check in there on Saturday night.”
Even though I had suspected as much, hearing it made me feel kind of sick to my stomach. Annie was closer to me than ever before and I wanted answers, but I was almost afraid to get them. What if she told me something I didn’t want to hear? Yet, it was too late to worry about that now. “Do you know where they’re staying or for how long?”
“No, but I spoke to a few guys at the police station this morning and someone said they saw her last night at the Wabasha Street Caves. Rumor has it that she and Lloyd are making the rounds while they’re in town, connecting with some of their local cronies. I wouldn’t be surprised if they went to the Coliseum tonight.”
The mention of the ballroom that Irene and I were just discussing felt jarring, yet I knew what I needed to do. Despite telling Irene it was a bad idea to think about going to the ballroom, I had little choice. I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to talk to my mother, even if it meant risking my reputation and my father’s. “I want to talk to her, Lewis.”
“I’ll try to make that hap—”
“Tonight,” I said, quietly. “At the Coliseum.”
“Don’t be ridiculous.”
“I’m not. It might be my only opportunity, and I need to take it. If she leaves before I can speak to her, I could lose the chance forever.”
“There are too many risks.”
