Greater Than Rubies, a Novella inspired by the Jewel Trilogy (21 page)

He leaned forward and rested his forehead against the chair. He intended to pray, but no words came. Instead, he closed his eyes and just tried to stop the onrush of maddening thoughts – tried to still his racing mind.

How could he fix this? What could he do? He couldn’t go back in time. The man who raped her was already dead. There was no closure there. He couldn’t change that situation. How to fix this?

Powerless. Helpless. Impotent.

After an endless time of being unable to even talk to God, he shakily stood to his feet. Feeling like he was suffocating, he loosened his tie and unbuttoned the top button of his shirt. He paced to his window that overlooked Boston’s business district. All the power and influence that money could buy lay at his fingertips, and everything he’d worked for and accumulated for so long, laying one brick atop another day after day, was the wall that separated him from his happiness. His wealth and her past conspired to keep Robin from wanting to be with him.

A swift knock on his door interrupted his thoughts simultaneously with the sound of his intercom buzzing. Impatient, resentful at the intrusion, he turned around as Barry Anderson and Abram Rabinovich entered his office.

He rubbed his eyes with one hand then pinched the bridge of his nose. “Not now,” he said.

“Ah, but we have an appointment,” Abram said, smiling around his bearded face. “We are meeting for lunch to discuss building a new playground at the low income daycare.”

“Just build it. Build whatever you want,” he said, turning back to look out the window. Through gritted teeth he murmured, “Send me the bill.”

“Hey. What’s wrong?” Barry asked, setting his briefcase on the chair in front of Tony’s desk. “What happened?”

Tony shoved his hands into his pockets. “My beloved fiancée has just called off our wedding a mere two weeks before the happy day,” he said, strangling around the words.

“What?” Abram put a hand on Tony’s shoulder. “Did something happen?”

Tony gave a harsh laugh. “Yeah, I’m worth a fortune. And I’m a man. Apparently, those two things are working against me.”

Barry slapped a hand on his other shoulder almost knocking Tony off balance and squeezed. They stayed like that for a while and Barry asked, “How do you feel about it?”

Tony reached up and squeezed the bridge of his nose, shutting his eyes tight. With a deep breath, he said, “I feel like a failure. A complete failure.”

Barry said, “Let’s talk it out, brother. Listen, it’s possible she did you a favor. Better to know now than when it’s too late, right?” Tony whipped his head around and glared at Barry. But the giant did not even flinch. “Come on, Tony. Don’t look at me like you have no idea what I’m talking about. You’re my best friend, so you never bring it up, but you know.”

Abram put his arm all the way over Tony’s shoulder, subtly yet not so subtly knocking Barry’s hand off. “My friend, I know you’re a prayerful person and Robin has been the center of your prayer life for many months, now. If the Holy Spirit is commanding you and directing you to make her your wife, who are you to ignore those commands?”

“I’m not the one ignoring anything. She came to me. She said she couldn’t be Mrs. Viscolli. She said she couldn’t interact with the people in my circles, that they’d see through to her background and she’d never measure up.”

Abram nodded. “She likely has a point. Imagine how intimidating all this is to her. You’re asking her to sacrifice everything she knows – her entire life. She has to change everything from her address to her name. Marriage is supposed to mirror our relationship with Christ.” He led Tony across the large expanse of the room to the couch and guided him to sit down. “When I became a believer, I was disowned by my family. My father can barely even look at me, and to this day, I have a sister who refuses to acknowledge that I exist. And I lost everything. Everything. But, for Christ, I gave it all up.”

Abram stopped speaking and just stared passively into Tony’s eyes, as if waiting for Tony to say something, except Tony had no idea what to say. He didn’t want to be rude and ask his mentor, “What’s your point?” So he just nodded.

Abram shook his head, knowing that Tony had missed the point. “Tony, what is God calling you to sacrifice?”

Tony considered that. His default was to try to figure out what he should do, not what he should let go. What had he sacrificed? Had he sacrificed anything since he had met Robin? What was he willing to sacrifice to show her that he knew they belonged together? In the middle of his thoughts, his intercom buzzed. “Mr. Viscolli, Miss Maxine Bartlett is on the phone for you. You said to interrupt if she called today.”

He cleared his throat before answering. “
Si. Grazie
.” He pushed off of the couch and crossed over to his desk. “Maxi. Hello.”

“Tony,” she said in a rush, “I’m so sorry to bother you. I just met with the contractor at my new place, and I was hoping I could come by and show you what he showed me. I want to make sure it’s all on the up and up.”

His mind rejected the idea of helping Maxine, but he had committed to her that he would help her in any way. She obviously did not know Robin’s plans that morning, or she surely would not have even called him. Perhaps he could glean some insight into Robin’s change of heart if he had a chance to talk with Maxine. “Please, come by,” he said.

Tony buttoned his top button and straightened his tie. He held out his hand to Abram. “My brother, thank you. Your wisdom is a blessing to me.”

“Call me if you need me.”

Tony took a deep breath and released it. “Maybe ask Sofia – if she felt it was appropriate – for her to intervene on my behalf?”

“I will be happy to ask.” Abram assured.

“Thank you.”

He hugged Barry. “Thank you for your honesty.”

Barry picked up his briefcase. “You know where to find me if you want to talk more. I’ll be praying for you, brother.”

AXINE
juggled a rolled up set of plans and a notebook as she entered Tony’s office. He met her at the door and gestured at the conference table “I know you’re busy. Are you sure you don’t mind me barging in like this?” She placed the paperwork on top of the table and turned and looked him in the face. Red rimmed eyes stared at the door behind her. “Wait. What’s wrong?”

Tony took a step backward. “I – ”

The look of panic gave away more than his lack of warmth and lack of greeting combined. “No. Something’s wrong. What’s wrong?”

Tony rubbed the back of his neck. “Robin –” His voice hitched.

“Robin what?” Nervous, panicked butterflies leapt to life in her stomach.

“She broke off the engagement this morning.”

Shocked, Maxine felt her mouth drop open. She felt her spine straighten and she asked, “What did she say?”

Tony’s face hardened so that his eyes conveyed absolutely no emotion. It surprised her when she looked at him in that moment. She barely recognized him. He raised an eyebrow. “She tried to play it off that it’s about the money –” he said, but Maxine interrupted him.

“Actually, that’s been a big deal for her this entire time. She’s seriously struggling with it.”

For a moment, his mask slipped and she could see the pain in his eyes before he snapped it back into place. “Right,” he said, clearing his throat, “and she’s scared about our wedding night.”

“Your wedding night?”

His cheeks tinged pink and he rocked on his heels. “Sex,” he said in a low voice.

Memories assaulted her, making her involuntarily flinch and back up a step. She ended up with her back against the wall. Tony stepped forward, hand up, as if to help her, but she put up her own hand. “No, don’t touch me,” she said, putting a hand on her heart. “Just give me a second.”

“Maxi,” Tony said, stepping a little closer to her than she could stand. The desolation in his voice, the unshed tears in his eyes, almost made her want to hug him and comfort him. “Help me to help her.”

“I don’t know if you can,” she said, emotions swirling, requiring pencil and paper or paint for their release. She struggled with what – with how much – to say. “I don’t know if he was the first, but as far as I know, he was the last. And, she fought him every single time. She never made it easy for him, and he’d punch her or hurt her until she was subdued and he could –” She put her hands on her cheeks. “– for months and months. Our mom knew and hated Robin for it. She’d hit her, scream at her, threaten to sell her to the highest bidder. It was hell. We lived in hell.” She sighed. “I don’t know how you can help her.”

Tony cleared his throat and closed his eyes. A single tear escaped and slid down his cheek and he took an angry swipe at it and cleared his throat again. “Okay. Thank you,” he whispered. He took a step back and opened his eyes. “Can we talk about this another time?” he asked, gesturing at his conference table.

“Oh, what, this? Yeah, sure. I’ll go. I’m so sorry, Tony.” Mind whirling, she gathered her purse from under a notebook.

“Grazie.”

She turned to leave, but turned back. He was already headed back toward his desk. “Tony?” He paused but did not turn. She could see his shoulders shaking with the emotion he contained. “I love you. You are an amazing man and I’m thankful you’re in our lives. But, I love her more.”

Tony’s shoulders suddenly slumped. Maxine went on, “I can’t see her get hurt. I’ll back whatever play she feels like she needs to make. If that means things have to change between you and me right now, then I understand.”

His nod was very brief, but she saw it. She turned and left the office, desperate to go find her sister.

OBIN
sat on the front row of the small chapel affiliated with her church. She’d gone in here because she didn’t want to walk into the main building and encounter anyone she knew. This chapel was a one-room structure used for small weddings and small funerals. She had come to pray, but she didn’t know what to say, so she just poured her heart out to God with sobs while her mind swirled with thoughts of Tony, the love he’d shown her, the patience and understanding he’d given her. She thought of the joy in his eyes whenever he’d give her some stupidly expensive gift. Her heart ached at the thought of not being with him anymore.