needed reminder after an emotional trial. There was Samuel to think of. And Ruby and Calvin.
And Clayton.
“You’re right,” Lily decided. “It wouldn’t make sense to keep her.”
Chapter 29
On the drive home, Ellis should have been paying attention. But Lily Palmer dominated his thoughts. Their kiss replayed over and over like a nickelodeon picture on a loop—regardless of her cooler send-off. Whereas Geraldine received an earnest hug, Ellis got an appreciative handshake. A reassertion of where they stood. It was a hard pill to swallow, as he could still feel the softness of her hair and skin, her lips. And that was nothing to say of the strength and beauty he saw in her while she cared for her son.
No surprise, then, that it took him a hefty chunk of the ride to notice Geraldine’s reserve. She’d trained her eyes on the evening sky past the windshield. Her hands were clasped on her lap.
“You were pretty amazing back there,” he said, breaking the quiet.
“Well…there wasn’t much to it, really.”
“I think the Palmers would disagree. Doc Summers too, I’d bet.”
“Just doin’ what she showed me. She’s a fine teacher.”
“I’m sure. Though it’s obvious you’re a natural for this kind of work too.”
A bath and ice chips alone weren’t the revelation. It was her balance of confidence and care, her ability to incite trust in folks grappling with their greatest fears.
“I suppose,” she said. “Course, choices are often clearer when it’s not about your own kin.”
Once the words were out, they clung to the air. The dual message, seemingly unintended, turned her away.
Ellis was mining for a response when he heard her murmur, “I wonder sometimes if they’ll forget who I am…”
A crushing thought. There was no need to identify they.
“God, no, Geraldine. They couldn’t. They won’t.”
She didn’t answer, and he realized that nothing said in this moment would change a damn thing. Hence, silence reigned for the remainder of the drive, with Ellis at the wheel and Geraldine facing her window. If not for discreet swipes of her eyes, no one would guess she was crying.
By the time they reached Dearborn, Ellis couldn’t deny the truth: Geraldine Dillard wanted her kids back. More than practical reasons, though, kept her from demanding such a thing. It was shame. He saw that now, more than ever, after Lily’s story in the kitchen. In different ways, both mothers believed that losing their children was the atonement they deserved.
And both of them were wrong.
He decided right then to have another meeting with Alfred. A bold one. The man would hear Ellis out, the whole account, and consider the options. If he wanted to keep the issue out of the courts and papers, he’d start by disclosing Calvin’s real whereabouts and the facts behind Ruby’s letter.
Sometimes we have to make sacrifices for the ones we love. Alfred’s comment floated back. The potential extent of those sacrifices haunted Ellis now, and long into the night.
In the morning, at the paper, Ellis had to shelve the notion. He’d arrived early to make up for yesterday’s absence, as well as for leeway. After the news meeting, he would jet out for a surprise visit to the bank. Until then, hunkered down at his desk, doing his best to stave off thoughts of Lily, he’d type more trite details about the city proposal to rename a local library.
No Pulitzer Prize here. But unless he wanted a daily spot in a breadline, producing something was better than nothing.
“Mr. Reed, a word.” Mr. Walker’s voice carried easily over the morning quiet.
Ellis steeled himself for another chiding. On his way to the city desk, he gladly paused to let a copy boy speed by, then trudged up to the editor.
“Got an interesting call this morning.” Mr. Walker let the remark hang there, as if baiting a reader to turn the page. “Came from the president of Century Alliance Bank, a gentleman named Alfred Millstone.”
Ellis aimed for stoic. “Oh yeah?”
“Said you’d approached him about a profile piece. Highlighting the redeeming traits of bankers today and some such crud.” Mr. Walker leaned back in his chair, fingers steepled across his middle. “He wants me to kill it. Asked that you not contact his family again.”
His family. Not just Alfred. Clearly the couple had compared notes. Had they talked to Ruby too?
“What’d you tell him?”
“That it wouldn’t be a problem, since I wasn’t aware of any profile assignment to begin with.”
Dandy. The chances that Alfred’s secretary, much less the bank guard, would let Ellis through the door