All These Things I've Done (17 page)

Win was already in FS II when I got there. He didn’t mention that he’d called me twice or that I’d met his dad, if indeed Charles Delacroix had deigned to speak to him about me. He didn’t mention anything about my absence, except to say, ‘I had to present on our teeth without you.’

‘How’d that go?’ I asked.

‘Good,’ he said. ‘We got an A minus.’

Coming from Dr Lau, that really was a good grade. She was tough. ‘Not bad,’ I said.

‘Anya,’ Win started to say, but then Dr Lau began class. I wasn’t in the mood for more pointless small talk with Win anyway.

I was granted a one-month excuse from Advanced Fencing, which I appreciated. I lacked the stamina for even pretend bouts. The administration granted Scarlet a one-month excuse so that she could keep me company. Further proof of how contrite the school was.

Scarlet used the extra time to prepare for her upcoming
Macbeth
audition. ‘You’re reading all the lines with me. Why don’t you try out, too?’ Scarlet asked. ‘You could be Lady Macduff or Hecate or . . .’

The truth was, I didn’t really have a good reason not to except that I was tired and I didn’t exactly feel like putting myself out there after my picture had been plastered all over the news for a week.

‘You can’t just stop everything because of what happened,’ Scarlet said. ‘You have to keep moving forward. And you still have to apply to college next year one way or the other. Your extracurricular activities are definitely somewhat lacklustre, Annie.’

‘What? Being the daughter of a celebrated criminal doesn’t count as an extracurricular activity?’

‘No,’ Scarlet said. ‘A case could be made for poisoning your ex-boyfriend, however.’

But she was right. Of course she was right. If he’d been alive, Daddy would have said the same thing. Not the extracurricular part. I mean, the part about moving forward.

‘Have it your way,’ I said.

Scarlet tossed me an ancient paper book of
Macbeth.

We read lines until the period was over and then we went to lunch, where Win was waiting for us at our usual table.

Scarlet told me to sit, that she had promised Imogen she would get both our lunches. ‘Oh, come on,’ I said. ‘I’m not that weak.’

‘Sit,’ she ordered. ‘Make sure she sits, Win.’

‘I’m not a dog!’ I protested.

‘Will do,’ he said.

‘She sure is bossy,’ I commented.

Win shook his head. ‘I must admit,’ he began, and then he paused. I sincerely hoped he wasn’t going to bring up his father or some other subject I wasn’t keen on discussing. Maybe he sensed my discomfort. ‘I must admit,’ he repeated, ‘I underestimated your friend. Scarlet seems like this silly girl when you meet her, but she’s got a lot more grit than that.’

I nodded. ‘The best thing about Scarlet is how loyal she is.’

‘That is important,’ he agreed.

Even though Win would never be my boyfriend, I realized that I did want him for my friend. And if we were going to be friends, it was rude of me not to acknowledge the part he’d played in my release from Liberty. Even if we weren’t going to be friends, it was rude. ‘I should have thanked you before,’ I said. ‘For talking to your dad, I mean.’

‘Is that meant to be you thanking me now?’ Win asked.

‘Yes,’ I said. ‘Thank you.’

‘No problem,’ Win said. He started unpacking his lunch from his bag. (I guess he didn’t want to eat the school option.) His meal consisted of various vegetables, including a roasted sweet potato and a long white one that resembled a carrot.

‘What’s that one?’

‘A parsnip. My mother’s trying to grow them in Central Park.’

‘Sounds dangerous,’ I said.

‘You want to try it?’

‘No, it’s your lunch.’

‘Come on,’ he said. ‘It’s sweet.’

I shook my head. My stomach was still wonky and I didn’t want to throw up all over the table. (Though maybe not such a bad idea, as it would have decisively settled the idea of Win and me as a couple . . . I don’t think a person can feel romantically attracted to you after you’ve vomited on him.) Win shrugged. He took two oranges out of his bag.

‘Oranges!’ I said. ‘We haven’t had those here since I was a kid. Where did you get them?’

‘Mom’s trying to grow those, too. She got a licence to start a grove on the roof of our town house. It’s not producing anything yet. These are samples from Florida. Here, take one.’

‘No thank you.’ I didn’t want to owe him any more than I already did.

‘Suit yourself,’ he said.

‘I really am grateful for what you did.’

‘Don’t mention it,’ Win said.

‘But I have to mention it,’ I insisted. ‘It wouldn’t be right not to because now I owe you.’

‘You don’t like owing people, do you?’ he asked.

I admitted that, all things considered, I would rather not be in anyone’s debt.

‘Well, here’s the thing. I didn’t have to do anything except ask my father. And trust me, Anya, there are plenty of drawbacks to being my father’s son and relatively few perks. While you could certainly say that there are’ – he paused – ‘things my father owes me, that’s not the reason he helped you anyway. He intervened because he agreed with me that your situation was unjust.’

‘But—’

‘But we’re even, Anya. You don’t owe me anything. Though I did end up doing the lion’s share of the work on the project for FS II.’

‘Sorry about that.’

At that moment, Scarlet returned with lunch. She slammed the trays on the table. ‘Ugh, lasagne again!’ she called. ‘And no Gable Arsley to pour it over!’ Neither Win nor I laughed, though I did smile a little. ‘Hmm, maybe it’s still too soon for Gable Arsley jokes.’

In my room that night, I noticed that Win had put one of the oranges in the zipper section of my backpack. I set the orange on my desk. Even with the peel on, it made my whole bedroom smell sweet. Though I knew it probably wasn’t a good idea, I decided to call Win. I told my self that if Charles Delacroix answered, I’d hang up. Luckily, Win answered.

‘You left something in my bag,’ I said.

‘Yeah, I was wondering what happened to that orange,’ Win said. ‘I guess you may as well have it then.’

‘Oh, I’m not going to eat it,’ I told him. ‘I’m never going to eat it. What I love is the scent. Oranges remind me of Christmas. My dad used to have a business associate who sent him a crate of oranges every Christmas from Mexico. None of us ever ate them.’ I was rambling, and this was embarrassing, not to mention expensive. ‘I should go.’

Win asked, ‘You want to know the real reason I tried to help you?’

‘I’m not sure.’

‘Well, you probably already know it but maybe it needs to be on the record,’ Win said. ‘It’s because I’d like to get to know you better. That was gonna be hard to do with you locked up at Liberty.’

‘Oh . . .’ I felt myself blushing. ‘I really should go. I shouldn’t even have called you. See you at school.’ And then I hung up the phone.

In the morning, Jacks came to the house to get Leo for his first day at work. Leo was still getting dressed so I went to talk to Jacks in the living room.

‘If anything happens to him . . .’ I said.

‘I know, little cousin, I know. Don’t you worry about Leo.’

I asked Jacks what kinds of things they were planning to have Leo do there.

‘Cleaning. Getting lunch for the men. Nothing that intense,’ Jacks assured me. ‘You made quite an impression on the old man, by the way.’

‘You mean Uncle Yuri?’

‘He said he’d marry you. If you weren’t related. And if he were fifty years younger. Et cetera. Et cetera.’

‘That’s a lot of very important
if
s, Jacks.’

‘What I mean is, he was impressed with you,’ Jacks said. ‘As am I.’

I told him that I had to get to school.

I walked down the hallway. I knocked on my brother’s door, and he told me to come in. ‘Annie, I’m late! Help me pick a tie.’

‘Let me see,’ I said.

Leo held up a solid-pink tie and then a violet floral-patterned one.

‘Maybe no tie? I don’t think it’s going to be that kind of job.’

Leo nodded and set the ties on the bed.

‘You can call me at school if anything goes wrong. I’ll come get you,’ I reminded him.

‘I don’t need my baby sister coming to get me!’

‘Don’t be mad, Leo. I didn’t mean anything by it,’ I said. ‘I just wanted to remind you that if anyone asks you to do anything that you’re uncomfortable with, you don’t have to do it. There will always be other jobs.’

‘I’m late!’ Leo grabbed his messenger bag from the floor. He kissed me on the head and on both my cheeks. ‘See you tonight. I love you, Annie!’

‘Leo,’ I called. ‘One of your shoes is untied!’ He didn’t hear me. At least, he didn’t turn around. I resisted the urge to run after him.

That night, Leo brought flowers (yellow roses) for Nana and a pizza for the rest of us. When he came through the door, he seemed taller than he had that morning, and I noticed that both his shoes were tied, too. I couldn’t help but wonder if I’d been wrong about the job at the Pool.

‘How was it?’ I asked after we’d all sat down to dinner.

‘It was fine,’ he said, and in a style uncharacteristic of my brother, he left it at that.

Thursday, Scarlet and I auditioned for
Macbeth.
Auditions were held in Mr Beery’s office. Everyone had to go in one at a time. You were supposed to tell Mr Beery what part you’d like to play, then read a bit of it.

Scarlet wanted to play Lady Macbeth, of course. ‘Unless Mr Beery’s up for gender-blind casting, but I doubt it. I’d make a good Macbeth, don’t you think?’

‘You should tell him that,’ I suggested. ‘But you’d probably have to cut your hair.’

‘I’d do it!’ Scarlet said. ‘For Macbeth, I’d do it!’

Scarlet went in first, and I went in after she came out.

I read a bit of Lady Macduff. Her part wasn’t that big. Her main scene is her talking to her kid and then she gets murdered a scene or two later and it’s supposed to be very sad. She gets to scream ‘Murder!’ when the murderers show up, which seemed fun and like a satisfying sort of thing to do. I’d rather have been a witch but Scarlet thought Lady Macduff was the better part for me. (‘She’ll definitely have the better costume,’ Scarlet had insisted.)

‘Not bad,’ Mr Beery said when I was done. ‘Though I’m disappointed you’re not reading for Lady Macbeth, too.’

I shrugged. ‘I relate more to Lady Macduff.’

‘Just read a little,’ Mr Beery insisted.

‘I would rather not,’ I replied.

‘Come on, Anya. It wouldn’t be disloyal to your friend to try reading a bit of it for me. I believe your background could unearth exciting things for the part.’

I shook my head. ‘I have absolutely no interest in playing Lady Macbeth, Mr Beery. And your statement that my “background” would “unearth exciting things” is offensive. I assume you’re saying this because I’ve known murderers. But the truth is, I’ve been in situations almost exactly like Lady Macduff’s, not like Lady Macbeth’s. I don’t relate to Lady Macbeth’s ambitions or anything about her. I have no ambition, Mr Beery, except to get through high school. And, if you offered me the role of Lady Macbeth, I would turn it down. I’m not saying this as some sort of reverse psychology either. The only reason I’m going out for this play in the first place is because I said I would keep my friend company.’

‘Ms Barber doesn’t have your spark, Anya. She doesn’t have your fire!’ Mr Beery objected.

‘I think you’re mistaken about Scarlet, Mr Beery.’ I had known people like him my whole life. People willing to embellish me (for better or worse) because of my family history. In a way, Mr Beery wasn’t that far from Mrs Cobrawick.

‘Very well, Ms Balanchine,’ Mr Beery said. ‘List will be up tomorrow.’

When I left, Scarlet was waiting for me in the hallway.

‘You were in there a long time,’ she said.

‘Was I?’ I replied.

‘How’d it go?’ she asked.

I shrugged. ‘OK, I guess.’

‘Well, he spent a lot of time with you,’ Scarlet said, ‘and that’s always a good sign.’

The next day, the cast list was posted on the door of the school theatre. Scarlet got Lady Macbeth like she wanted. Though I wouldn’t have been surprised to have been passed over entirely, I was cast as Hecate.

‘Who’s Hecate again?’ I asked Scarlet.

‘Chief witch,’ she replied. ‘It’s a good part!’

I hadn’t read for that role but this turn of events suited me just fine.

We were still going over the cast list when Win came up to congratulate us.

‘Chief witch,’ he said to me. ‘That’s the most important of all the witches.’

‘So I’ve been told,’ I said.

‘You’ve got to keep those other witches in line,’ he said.

‘I think I’m up to it.’ I’d been keeping witches (and a lot worse) in line my whole life.

And that was my week. No one was arrested. No one died. I was chief witch. If none of my problems had disappeared or improved, none had gotten markedly more severe either. All things considered, not bad.

Friday night was Scarlet’s sixteenth birthday so I got my cousin Fats to give us the back room at his speakeasy. On account of my legal problems and the state of Gable’s health, we decided to keep the guest list small – a few of Scarlet’s drama friends, Natty, and that would be that. I wasn’t planning to serve coffee or chocolate or anything, but I still wasn’t sure if we should invite Win or not. As this wasn’t a surprise party, I discussed the matter with Scarlet. (Incidentally, I don’t believe in surprise parties. I don’t like to be surprised and I’m not sure that anyone does.) So, back to Win. ‘He knows what your family does, Annie,’ Scarlet said. ‘It’s not this big secret. I say we definitely invite him.’

I hadn’t told Scarlet about my conversation with Win’s father. In point of fact, I hadn’t mentioned it to anyone. It was too embarrassing, I suppose. ‘You ask him if you want,’ I told Scarlet.

Scarlet considered this, then shook her head no. ‘I’ve already made enough of a fool of myself around that boy, thank you very much. You do it.’

‘Fine,’ I said. ‘Do you mind if I ask Leo, too?’

‘Of course not!’ Scarlet said. ‘Why would I mind? I love your brother.’

In a way, that was sort of the problem. It had become increasingly apparent to me that Leo liked my best friend as more than a friend, and I didn’t want him to end up with a broken heart. Scarlet flirted with everyone but I was worried that Leo might not understand that.