Once Found: The Pocket Watch Chronicles (16 page)

Ever since Elsie had made the decision to make love to Gabe, she became intensely aware of time and just how little she had. One minute he was making love to her in the early morning light on Monday, the next they were leaving Ash Wednesday Mass to go to her appointment with Dr. Rose. And the next, it was Thursday morning on the train to New Jersey.

She was nervous. Although he had assured her that another incident like the one with Nick wouldn’t occur, she couldn’t help but worry.

“Tell me about your home, your family.”

“I’ve already told you about my family.”

“Tell me again. Tell me more.”

“Home. Well, my parents moved into their house in Hamilton, New Jersey the year after they were married. They wanted a large family, and they started right away. I was born during their first year there.”

“Is it a big house? A little house?”

“Little. It is a classic Cape Cod.”

“What’s that?”

“Well, it’s a kind of house that was commonly built in a place called Cape Cod. It is sort of a cute, little, box house. Typically, Cape Cods have a kitchen, dining room, living room, one bedroom and a bathroom on the main level, and two bedrooms and a bathroom upstairs. It’s kind of perfect for a little family.”

“And they filled it up?”

“Not right away. I think my mother must have had some trouble, maybe a miscarriage or even two. I’m not certain, and it isn’t the kind of thing she would ever talk about, but my brother Joseph didn’t come along until I was four. After that, there was a new Soldani every two years. First Nick, then Anthony—we call him Tony—and finally, Luke.”

“When was Angie born?”

Gabe smiled. “When mom was expecting Luke, it was pretty obvious she wanted a girl. She started redecorating one of the bedrooms as a nursery, which was kind of funny because Tony was only a year and a half, still very much a baby. And the bedroom he and Nick shared was essentially a nursery. She redecorated anyway and while it wasn’t pink, the nursery had a definite feminine flair. But another Soldani brother was born.”

“Was she very disappointed?”

“No, but she still wanted a little girl. Don’t get me wrong—she loves her sons with everything in her, and she never would have said anything, but I was getting old enough to notice things.”

“Like what?”

“Like when she’d be shopping in a department store and stop to admire little dresses or gaze wistfully down the doll aisle of the toy store while her five boys only had eyes for cars and action figures. But after Luke, she didn’t get pregnant again for years. Then it happened, and on Christmas Eve five years after Luke was born, Angela Rose graced the world. I was fifteen at the time, and just like everyone else in the family, she wrapped me around her little finger from the first moment I saw her.”

“Wrapped you around her finger?”

He laughed. “It means we adored her and would move heaven and earth to make her happy.”

“Except wear princess crowns.”

“Well, yeah. On our heads at least.” He grinned. “Actually, she is a surprisingly sweet girl considering how we spoiled her, but Mom always said you can’t actually spoil a child with love.”

“I wouldn’t think so. How old is Angela now?”

“She is eighteen and a senior in high school.”

Elsie sort of knew what that meant because she had a basic understanding of modern schooling.

“So the house did fill up.”

“Yup. After Nick, my dad finished the basement, making a rec room where their rowdy sons could play.”

Elsie wasn’t sure what a
basement
or a
rec room
was, but she was getting better at reading context clues. It was obviously a place to play.

“After Tony was born, they built an addition on the back of the house, making a master bedroom with a bathroom upstairs and enlarging the kitchen and dining room into a great room downstairs. The downstairs bedroom became the guest room.”

“Did you have a lot of guests?”

He laughed. “Hardly any. Overnight guests, anyway. We have a lot of extended family, but most of them live within an hour’s drive. Before we had a guest room, on the rare occasion that we did have overnight visitors, my brothers and I got to sleep in sleeping bags on the floor of the rec room. We liked doing that.”

It sounded much like the way people working in the castle slept every night, on a pallet on the floor of the great hall.

“When Mom became pregnant with Luke, she wanted a nursery, so she moved Joey and I into the downstairs bedroom and put Tony and Nick in our bedroom.”

“No more guest bedroom?”

“Nope, but like I said, it didn’t matter.”

“Tell me about your parents.”

“My dad is an electrician, and my mom took care of our home and family.”

“Isn’t that normally what a wife and mother does?”

He frowned at her. “Some mothers do, but most have other jobs too, like your mother.”

He told her more about his family and what growing up with them was like. He talked about going to Catholic schools and big Italian family parties and being a kid in the suburbs.

Before long, the train rolled into Hamilton Station.

She looked around. This was definitely not the city. “How do we get to your house?”

“Someone’s going to pick us up.” He glanced at his watch. “It won’t be Luke or Angela. School isn’t over.”

“Is Luke still in school?”

“Sadly, yes.” Gabe’s eyes twinkled with mirth. “But now he’s a teacher…in our old high school. Angela hates it. She gets away with nothing.”

“
Gabe
,” someone called as they walked out of the station.

Gabe grinned. “It’s Joe. Hey, Joey,” he yelled to a man leaning against a rather beat-up car.

It only took a moment for Elsie to register Joey’s clothes. “He’s a priest?”

“Didn’t I mention that?”

“No,” she hissed.

“Well, he’s a priest. Come on, I’ll introduce you.”

When they got to the car, Gabe hugged his brother. “It’s good to see you, Joe. I’ve missed you the last few times I’ve been home.”

“It’s good to see you too.”

“Elizabeth, this is my brother Joe.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Father.”

“It’s okay to just call me Joe. By your stunned expression, I figure Gabe thought this would be a fun surprise.”

“Springing my priest-brother on people is always fun.”

Joe just looked at her and rolled his eyes with a
what-can-you-do
expression.

Gabe ruffled Joe’s hair, which was thick and bushy. “I bet Mom
loves
this.”

“How do you get away with long curls and a beard and I get:
Joseph when are you gonna get a haircut
? Just wait. I came straight here before stopping at the house. She’ll say it as soon as she sees me.”

“First, my long hair is cute, and yours is…well…not. It’s so bushy you could make a topiary out of it.”

“Thanks.”

“You asked.”

“And what’s the other reason?”

“I would have thought you’d have learned this by now. I’m just a doctor who saves children’s lives. You, little brother, are a
priest
. Appearances must be maintained.”

Joe laughed. “Get in the car.”

The drive to the Soldani house only took a few minutes. Since arriving in the twenty-first century, Elsie had only experienced New York City—loud, crowded, bustling New York City. She had seen suburban areas on the television, but they paled in comparison to this pleasant reality. The street where they lived looked much more like a village than a city, and she instantly fell in love. The
little
house Gabe had described was huge by medieval standards—and even compared to his apartment—but tiny compared to the Sinclairs’ penthouse.

Gabe’s mom was in the kitchen. She was a shorter woman than Elizabeth, with dark hair and dark eyes, which Elsie was sure never missed anything. She hugged both of her sons, but just as Joe predicted, she said, “Joseph, when are you gonna get a haircut?” She flicked her hand lightly against the side of his head. “
Brutto
.”

“Mom, I’m a grown man and a priest, for the love of God. I can let my hair grow if I want to.”

“But you don’t want to. Trust me on this. It’s not a good look for you.”

Gabe looked like he was trying desperately not to laugh, but he failed. His mother flicked his head in the same way. “Don’t be rude to your brother.”

She turned her attention to Elsie. “Elizabeth, I know you don’t remember me, but I’m Gabriel’s mother.”

“It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Soldani.” Elsie offered her hand.

“We don’t shake hands,” she said bluntly, opening her arms for a hug.

There was something so warm and motherly about it that Elsie didn’t want to let go. When she did, Mrs. Soldani smiled and patted her cheek, then became all business. “Gabe, you can take Elizabeth’s things up to Angela’s room.”

“Mom, I just thought we’d—”

“If the next words out of your mouth are going to be ‘sleep in my old room,’ don’t even bother. Joseph is spending the night, so the two of you will be in the guest room and Nick can sleep on one of the extra beds in Luke’s room.”

“Mom, I’m a grown man and a doctor.”

“And not married to her.”

Gabe looked to Joe for support.

Joe barked a laugh. “You must be joking. First, I’m a grown man and a priest, and she tells me when to cut my hair, so I’m not sure why this would surprise you. Second, I’m a priest, and I’m duty bound to agree with her.”

A joyful laugh built deep within Elsie and came bubbling forth. Times might have changed, but evidently not that much. “Gabe, this is not a battle you can win, my love. Show me where Angela’s room is.”

When Luke and Angie got home from school, Angie immediately latched onto Elizabeth. She asked a never-ending stream of questions, finally declaring, “You can’t remember anything but Gabe. I think that is soooo romantic.”

“Angie,
sta ‘zitta
.”

“I’m just being friendly.”

“Friendly? Before she has one question answered, you ask two more. Give the girl a chance to breathe.”

Angie huffed and then brightened immediately. “Hey, I need to go to the store. You wanna come with me?”

Elsie smiled. “I’d love to.”

“Be sure to fasten your seatbelt, Elizabeth,” warned Luke.

“Shut up. I’m a good driver.”

“Tell that to the mirror you knocked off when you hit the recycling bin,” said Joe.

“That was over a year ago when I was just learning, and Dad kept saying I was too close to the middle of the road.”

Gabe shook his head. “Stop it, guys. She’s a good driver.”

“Thank you, Gabe. At least I have one nice brother.” She wrinkled up her nose and stuck out her tongue at Joe and Luke.

“You’re welcome.” Gabe winked at Elsie. “But do fasten your seatbelt, sweetheart.”

Angie frowned. “
Gabe
.”

“What? It’s the law.”

“Stop teasing your sister,” said their mother, who took a set of keys from her purse and gave them to Angie. “You can take the minivan and pick Nick up on your way back. His train gets in at 5:30. Don’t be late. We are having dinner at six, right after your dad gets home.”

“Okay, Mom.”

Angie drove Elsie to a place she called
the mall
. It wasn’t tall, like buildings in New York, but it covered a huge area and was surrounded by a
parking lot
. Inside were many stores of varying sizes.

“I just wanted to go to the card store to get Gabe a birthday card. I made his gift.”

“What is a birthday card?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot you don’t remember some things. It’s a card that…it’s easier to show you than tell you.”

When they reached the card store, Elsie understood. There were cards for every imaginable occasion, expressing a variety of sentiments.

“The guys always get jokey cards, like
Happy Birthday to the World’s Okayest Brother
. But I like nice cards. Do you have a card for him? The boyfriend birthday cards are there.” She pointed to another rack.

Elsie nodded and went to look at them. She figured out
Happy Birthday
because it was on nearly every card. That was about the limit of her reading skills, and she didn’t want to ask Angie to read them to her. Having Gabe’s sister help pick out a
boyfriend
card for Elsie to give him didn’t feel right. But as Elsie looked, she found some beautiful cards that only had Happy Birthday on the front and were blank inside. She could manage to write a few words. The picture on one was a bird in a nest. She smiled to herself. Only she knew what it meant, but that was the card she bought.