Chapter 14: The Small Room With Two Beds
The parking lot was cold after the ballroom. My shoes made a soft sound on the asphalt and the air smelled like rain and car exhaust. Richard kept his hand light on my shoulder while we walked, not pulling me, just there so I wouldn't get lost between the cars. His car was black and long and when he opened the back door for me I could see Vivian's car still parked two rows over, its lights off.
I sat in the back seat and held the cloth in my lap. I hadn't let go of it the whole night. He didn't ask me to sit in the front. He closed the door gently and got in the driver's side and we pulled out slow. The foundation tower got smaller in the side window and the golden light from inside turned into just one yellow square far away.
"You okay back there?" he asked, looking at me in the rearview.
I nodded. My throat was dry and I was tired in a way that made my eyes sting.
"We're not going to the big house," he said. "There's a small place I keep near the tower for late nights. It's quiet. You'll have your own bed."
He drove through downtown where the streets were empty except for a gas station with its lights on and a diner that was closing. I watched the streetlights pass over his hands on the wheel. At a red light he glanced back again.
"Almost there," he said.
The apartment building was plain brick, not fancy like the ballroom. He parked in a little lot on the side and came around to open my door. He carried my backpack that the lady at the gala had held for me. It wasn't heavy, just my change of clothes and mom's envelope inside. The hallway inside smelled like clean carpet and heat. He unlocked a door on the second floor and flipped a switch.
The room had two beds with white blankets and a small lamp between them that gave off warm light. There was a little kitchen with a fridge and a table with two chairs. It wasn't big but it was warm. The heater hummed under the window.
I stood just inside the door and didn't know where to put my things.
"You can put your bag on that bed," he said. "That one's yours."
I set my backpack on the bed by the window and sat on the edge. The mattress was soft. He knelt down so we were eye level, the same way he had in the ballroom, but here there was no one watching.
He held out his hand, open. In his palm was my cloth, folded neatly, and the little silver ring tucked inside it. I hadn't even realized he was still holding it from the parking lot.
"This stays with you," he said and placed it carefully back in my hands. "It's yours. I'm not keeping it."
My fingers closed around it without thinking. It was still warm from his hand. I held it to my chest.
"Thank you," I whispered.
He sat on the other bed across from me, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees. He didn't look tired like the guests had looked. He looked serious.
"Ellie, I want to tell you exactly what happens next so you don't have to wonder," he said. His voice was low and steady. "Tomorrow morning, quiet, no cameras. A social worker I trust will come here. She'll talk with you. There's a school liaison too, she'll make sure you have a place to go and no one moves you around fast. And we'll do a DNA test, just a cheek swab. It takes a day or two. That's just paperwork. It doesn't change what I know about your mom."
I looked down at the cloth and then back at him. The lamp made his hair look more silver than gray.
"Will you..." I started and had to swallow. "If the test says something else, will you still know me?"
He didn't answer right away. He breathed in and out slowly.
"I already know your mom told the truth," he said. "Caroline didn't lie about things like that. The test is for the court so they can't argue later. Whatever that paper says, I'm still here. I'm not going anywhere tomorrow or the day after. Do you understand?"
I nodded. My eyes got watery again but I didn't cry loud. I just held the cloth tighter.
"Okay," I said.
He stood and went to the little kitchen and poured a glass of water and brought it to me. He also pulled the blanket down on my bed and fluffed the pillow. He didn't try to buy me anything big or promise a new house. He just made the room ready.
"Bathroom's through there if you need it," he said, pointing. "I'll be on the other bed. Door stays unlocked but I'll stay on my side all night. If you need anything you just say my name."
I slipped off my shoes and crawled under the blanket with my clothes still on. I put the cloth with the ring right beside my pillow where I could feel it with my hand. The heater clicked and the warm light stayed on low.
He sat on his bed and took off his suit jacket and folded it over the chair. He didn't get under his blanket yet. He just watched to make sure I was comfortable.
"Goodnight, Ellie," he said softly.
May you like
"Goodnight," I whispered.
I listened to his breathing and the hum of the heater. For the first time since mom passed I wasn't sleeping on a couch or in a hallway. I kept my hand on the cloth and closed my eyes, and he was still there when I started to drift off.
