Sophie's Heart (10 page)

When the kids came home from school, Sophie was at the table working on a grocery list. There was also a note for Rita from her father. While Craig and Tory were eating, Rita read her note.

Rita,

Sophie and I have talked over her doing the shopping, but she doesn’t drive. Is there something you can work out? Maybe you could do your homework while she’s in the store, or work together and be done in less time. Please talk it over with her and work it out. Let me know if I can help.

Dad

Rita looked up to see that Sophie was still working on a grocery list. She sat down at the table and thought for a moment. She didn’t mind doing the shopping, but it would be nice to have some help.

“Dad says you’re going to do the shopping.”

“He wishes me to.”

“And we need things, right?”

“Yes.”

“I wouldn’t mind taking you or going in with you, but right now I have some homework. I need the computer, so I can’t do it in the van. I’ll get it done as fast as I can and then take you. Will that be enough time for you to finish the list?”

“Yes, Rita, thank you. I will have it done.”

“All right. I’ll be back down in a little while.”

Craig left the kitchen just after Rita, and only Tory was left with Sophie.

“What did you do today, Sophie?”

“I cleaned upstairs.”

“Do you get tired of cleaning all day?”

“No. Do you get tired of school all day?”

“Yes.”

The two grinned at each other.

“Crystal was out sick today. I hate it when she’s not there.”

“Do you sit near to each other?”

“No, we talk too much,” Tory admitted with a smile.

“It was like that for me with Katya. We could talk all day.”

“Katya. That’s a weird name.”

Sophie couldn’t help but smile. “Not in Czechoslovakia.”

“I guess not. What is your last name, Sophie?”

“Velikonja.”

“Vel-a-what?”

Sophie laughed. “We will just stay with Sophie, all right?”

“All right.”

Tory reached for another cookie, but put it back down when the phone rang. She answered it and Sophie heard her say, “Oh, hi, Grandma….I’m fine….No, dad’s not here. Rita and Craig are here, and Sophie….Sophie. She works for us now. She got the bathroom real clean. She and Rita are going to Woodman’s in a little while, and I’m going to go, too. If I don’t, I’ll have to stay with Craig and he’s crabby….What’s that?…Oh, I don’t know how we met her, but she’s from Czechoslovakia!…No, she lives right here in the apartment over the garage and then comes.…What?…Oh, all right. I’ll tell Dad you called. ’Bye.”

Sophie had tried not to listen, but it was hard since she was right there at the table. She was not a nosy person, but when Tory came to get her books from the table, Sophie gently asked, “Is everything all right, Tory?”

“I think so. Grandma called, but then she was in a big hurry to get off. Maybe she had cookies in the oven.”

“Maybe,” Sophie agreed.

“I’m going to watch TV.”

“All right.”

Tory left, but Sophie did not go back to her list. There had been a change in the tone of the conversation after Tory had mentioned her name. Sophie wondered whose mother it was: Mr. Riley’s or the late Mrs. Riley’s. Either way, Sophie could not quite shake a sudden feeling of unease.

Eight

W
oodman’s was the largest grocery store Sophie had ever seen. Sophie thought Rita might stay in the van, but she had been only too happy to go in with her, and Sophie found herself very thankful for this kindness. The produce department alone was enough to overwhelm her. Bins of potatoes lined one wall, and in the center was table after table of vegetables. There were even displays of fresh flowers along the end. She was also thankful that Tory stayed with her as she pushed the cart through the store.

Rita might not have been so willing to remain at Sophie’s side if she had thought a little longer about being seen with the new housekeeper. The nearly 17-year-old would never have admitted it, but she was a little embarrassed over some of the looks Sophie was receiving. Her clothing was not strange, just foreign-looking. Her skirt was dark blue and her blouse was simple to the point of being ugly. She wore thick-soled, black lace-up shoes and white bobby socks. That, along with the exotic look of her eyes and thick hair that she wore in a very plain bun, caused Rita to struggle with her emotions.

However, she had seen such a look of vulnerability on the older woman’s face as they had come into the produce section that she wouldn’t have left her for anything. Tory was a big help. She chattered along in her “Tory” fashion, and Rita watched as Sophie relaxed after just a few aisles. She made a mental note never to bring Sophie grocery shopping on the weekend.

“Okay, let’s see. What else do we need?” Rita did not take the list from Sophie’s hand, even though she had offered it twice. Instead, she stood next to Sophie to read it.

“I think we have everything in this aisle. Oh, wait a minute. We need vegetable dip.”

“I have that,” Sophie said with pleasure, pointing into the basket.

Rita smiled at her in approval, and they moved on. By the time they finished and arrived home, Sophie felt completely worn out, and dinner was not even ready. It was closing in on 5:00, and she had told Mr. Riley dinner would be ready at 5:30.

With a speed born of desperation, Sophie threw the meal together. This was the first night Mr. Riley was scheduled to sit down with his family, and Sophie was certain that if the meal was not right, she would either lose her job or cast herself in a poor light.

She need not have worried. Alec didn’t come in until just after 5:30 and, although simple, the meal was delicious and plentiful. It was no more or no less than Alec was coming to expect of his new housekeeper. Rita had told Sophie that the family wanted to eat in the kitchen, so Sophie prepared herself a plate and quietly left for her apartment as the family was sitting down to dinner. None of them noticed her departure. They were so wrapped up in having dinner together for the first time in ages that all they could concentrate on was each other.

“Grandma called today,” Tory told her dad.

“My mom?” Alec wished to know.

“No, Grandma Frazier. I told her about Sophie. We didn’t talk very long. I think she might have had cookies in the oven.”

Had Tory been a little older, she might have noticed the sudden hesitation in Alec’s movements as he buttered a roll. He certainly had no desire to keep Sophie a secret, but it wasn’t the best news to hear that Tory had told Vanessa’s mother about Sophie. He wouldn’t have been at all surprised if he received a phone call later that night.

“I’ve been invited to spend the night at Rick’s house tomorrow,” Craig then announced.

“Will you go home with him from school?”

“Yeah.”

“All right,” Alec agreed. “Let Sophie know that you won’t be here.”

“Why?” Craig scowled at his father.

“Craig, do you really not understand why Sophie is here?”

“To clean the house.”

Alec sighed to himself, but did not break eye contact. After a moment Craig’s eyes dropped. “She’s here to take care of us, too.”

“That’s right. I wish you wouldn’t fight this, and I also wish I understood why you’re so against it.”

“I don’t know. I just think we were doing fine before.”

“Now you’re lying to yourself,” Alec said, not unkindly. “We haven’t had a meal like this in six months. If I never have frozen pizza or frozen chicken again, it will be way too soon. And that’s not even mentioning the house. Housework was never your mother’s strong point, so I can honestly say it’s never looked quite like this.”

“How can you say that!” Craig burst out and came to his feet. Alec had not been watching Craig’s face and was unprepared for this reaction. The words were true, but Alec regretted them for Craig’s sake.

“Sit down, Craig.”

“No! How can you sit there and say you prefer Sophie to Mom?”

“I didn’t say that, Craig. Now sit down.” He held his boy’s eyes with his own until he was obeyed. “Listen to me, Craig.” Alec’s voice was kind. “I loved your mother and always will, but we can also be honest. If it had been me who had died, I would expect your mother to remember me the way I was and not walk around wearing rose-colored glasses.”

“What do you mean?”

“It wouldn’t mean that she thought any less of me by admitting that at times my memory is horrible, or that I’m completely out of it when there’s a football game on or when I have the newspaper in my hand.”

All three children smiled now because these things had long been a family joke, but there were also tears pooling in everyone’s eyes, including Alec’s. The pain from their mother’s death was still so fresh.

“I would love to have your mother back,” Alec whispered, “but that’s not going to happen. So I’m trying to be thankful that your Aunt Janet sent Sophie to us. She’s just been here a few days, and already I see improvements in every room in the house. Your sister has done a great job, but it was too much for her.”

Alec could not go on then. He had fought getting someone in to help them for so long, and in the process had completely burdened his oldest daughter. Indeed, the battle was still so fresh that the smoke had not cleared. It was for this reason that Alec felt too emotional to speak.

The kids did not know how much he had dreaded Sophie’s arrival after agreeing to hire her, or how surprised he had been that Tory had wanted her to stay in the first place. All doubts had been put to rest when he had come home that afternoon and heard Sophie tell him she was eating their food. Suddenly, he knew it was going to work. With someone this honest and this hardworking, it had to. The evidence was before him, and Sophie was proving to be worth her weight in gold.

Sophie, sitting alone at her kitchen table, would have enjoyed hearing Mr. Riley’s thoughts. Not knowing if this was to be her permanent home was very unsettling. If she could have been certain she was going to stay, she would not have been so worried about one hastily prepared meal. And if she could have known this was going to be a permanent arrangement, she would have begun saving and shopping for secondhand furniture. She was never cold at night, but was often stiff in the morning. The memory of the cot made Sophie wish she had packed it up and sent it with the boxes. Thinking of the boxes made her long for her books; the only one she had with her was her Bible.

I wanted to move from Chicago, Father. Please help me be pleased with this new place. I’m like one of your children in Egypt. First I complain about the work there, and then You move me and I complain about the living conditions. Help me to trust and not grumble.

Sophie rose then and washed the plate she had used. She didn’t place it in her own cupboard, but laid it on the table to bring downstairs in the morning. She didn’t know if she was expected to return to do dishes, but decided against it. They would probably be waiting for her in the morning.