The Scavenger's Daughters (Tales of the Scavenger's Daughters, Book One) (27 page)

“Ivy, have you finished outside?” She had put Ivy in charge of cleaning up all the collections of trash from their front yard. She was supposed to sort it by type and then Linnea was going to load Ye Ye’s bike cart and take the collection to exchange it for yuan.

“Yes, Linnea. We’ve got everything bagged or boxed. Maggi and Peony have peeled all the bottle labels, too. It’s ready to go. Stop worrying so much. And quit being so bossy.”

Linnea went to the alcove, put the broom up, and retrieved the bucket. She handed it to Ivy. “Here, go fill this up. I’ll mop. I’m trying to finish by the time Jet gets here.”

Ivy disappeared outside to go to the pump.

Linnea pushed the damp tendrils of hair off her face and stood tall, stretching the kinks out of her tight shoulders as she waited for her sister to get the water ready. At the sink, Lily stood, carefully washing their morning dishes, a new chore she had taken over in Nai Nai’s absence. Even without sight, the girl had thus far never dropped a single dish and they found that she did a much better job at it than the others. Linnea knew Lily still wanted to finish quickly so she could get back to practicing on her violin. So far the girl had self-taught herself quite a bit, much to their Ye Ye’s astonishment. And these days he had taken to giving her lessons, albeit only oral directions thus far. He still stubbornly refused to play the instrument.

Linnea looked over at Maggi and smiled at the way she had the baby nestled against her chest, feeding her a bottle. In Calli’s absence, Maggi had proved invaluable in helping with the baby. Jasmine knelt beside them, playing with the baby’s fingers as she quietly stared into her eyes. Linnea was glad to see a small smile playing across her lips, a rare occurrence since Ye Ye had been gone.

“Jasmine, you’ve been so good with Poppy lately. Thank you so much for helping me care for the baby. You are such a big girl now.”

Jasmine looked up at Linnea and gave her a shy smile.

Maggi snorted. “Helping you? Look who’s feeding her, Linnea!”

Linnea knew that was true, but though Ye Ye’s absence had been hard on all of them, little Jasmine had been absolutely lost without him. Every night she lay in his spot on the bed and clutched his pillow, inhaling the lingering scent of his shaving lotion as she fought back tears. Linnea could only imagine that the few weeks had felt like forever to the five-year-old girl.

Maggi looked up. “Is Jet coming over tonight?”

With Nai Nai’s permission, Jet had been a frequent visitor to the house during Ye Ye’s hospital stay and Linnea couldn’t have been happier. Part of her was afraid to start something again that might not be able to work, but with all the chaos of her life at the moment, letting him near again just felt right. More than right—it made her almost sickeningly cheerful.

In the evenings when he finished at work he came straight over, lending a hand with dinner and sometimes even bringing treats. Linnea tried to discourage him from spoiling the girls, but most nights he pulled something from his pockets that was sure to bring peals of giggles from her sisters. He even let the girls take turns playing games on his cell phone, something they all fought over. At night they all sat outside and looked at the stars as he took Ye Ye’s place and told them stories. And on the lucky nights, they’d even been able to steal a few private moments alone—moments that still left her blushing if she thought on it too much.

Linnea felt like her sisters were as much as or even more in love with him than she was—a sentiment she hadn’t allowed herself to completely embrace yet out of her fear of rejection. She still couldn’t imagine why he continued to come around them, a family so different from his own. She also didn’t trust herself to get too deep into the relationship yet, as Ye Ye didn’t know they were seeing each other again. But with Nai Nai’s stamp of approval, she was hopeful it would all work out.

“He’s coming, but only to pick me up.” Linnea sighed. She was so very nervous. Tonight was the night she’d finally meet his parents. Jet had insisted, and no amount of pleading could get her out of it.

Maggi, Peony, and Lily all moaned their disappointment. They loved Jet and looked forward to his card games, teasing, and just the diversion from their usual routine that he gave them.

Ivy returned just in time to hear Linnea. She put her hands on her hips.

“And I’m stuck watching everyone again, I suppose?” she demanded.

Linnea shook her head, laughing. “No, Ivy, how about I stay and you take my place and go meet his terrifying parents?”

Ivy laughed and set the bucket down. “In that case, have fun, Linnea.”

Linnea stuck her mop in the water, then wrung it out and began sweeping it in wide arcs across the floor.

“Hmph. Fun? I don’t think so. They’re going to take one look at me and think I’m nothing but a simple peasant from the wrong side of town.”
And they’d be right,
she thought to herself.

As she finished cleaning the floor she tried to avoid thinking about the upcoming inquisition—or dinner, as Jet called it. Now Linnea felt nauseated as she thought about the rest of the evening and how she’d probably have to see pity in the eyes of Jet’s parents as she described their life. As she set pans of hot water on the stove to prepare for a bath, she lost herself in a make-believe story of a pampered little rich girl—a fairy tale she’d love to use as her own if she only had the guts to do it.

Linnea took a deep breath as she tried to calm the butterflies wreaking havoc in her stomach. They were on their way to Jet’s family home and she felt faint from anxiety. It was only a short drive into Wuxi, where they lived, and Linnea wished it was much farther to give her time to settle herself.

Jet stopped to wait for a traffic light. He turned to her and smiled, showing the dimple in his right cheek. “Don’t worry, Linnea. They aren’t monsters—they aren’t going to eat you for dinner or anything.”

Sure they aren’t,
she thought. But they might try to hire her to do their laundry.

“I know, Jet. I’m just nervous. I just know they aren’t going to like me.” She picked at an invisible thread on her sweater. She had taken extra time in the shower, despite the freezing air, and Lily had braided her hair so that it would lie over one shoulder. She’d borrowed one tiny squirt of Nai Nai’s perfume and hoped the scent of wildflowers wasn’t too strong. As for clothing, she didn’t have much to choose from but Jet said he liked the way the midnight blue sweater set off her dark hair. Lily had given Linnea her
special gift for the night, tucking a small fabric yellow lily into her hair. She said Linnea felt stiff and formal and she hoped the flower would soften her up. It would have to do—she wasn’t trying to prove anything after all. Or was she?

“Of course they’ll like you. Don’t be ridiculous. Anyway,
I
like you and that’s all that counts.”

Giving a clue that his statement needed no response, he turned up the radio and drummed his fingers on the steering wheel to the beat as he guided the car over the bridge and into the turning lane. Linnea looked over at him and shook her head. She wanted to pinch him for being so blasted relaxed. She still couldn’t figure out why Jet liked her, so how was she supposed to believe his parents would follow suit? She tried to imagine what they’d think when they saw her, or found out she wasn’t a student, or discovered her past. Linnea suddenly felt ill again and wiped the sheen of perspiration from over her eyebrows.

“Dao le.”
Jet declared their arrival as he turned into the parking deck of a large apartment building.

Linnea looked around, confused. There weren’t any houses around—only high-rises and parking lots. This was a part of town she wasn’t used to, that was for sure.

“This? I thought you lived in a house?”

He laughed. “No, we call it our house but it’s really considered an apartment. My parents bought it when I was born. They said they wanted a modern, new place to raise their son. You know—golden child and all that?”

Linnea rolled her eyes at him. His coddling was a joke between them by now, and really she knew he hated that he was the only child and expected to continue the family name. Speaking of it with humor was his way of coping with the constant pressure. Sometimes when he was really giving himself a pity party, she reminded him that there were many orphans or other kids from poor families who would trade places with him in a heartbeat.

Jet let a rare moment of pride slip. “We—along with hundreds of other families—were one of the first ones to buy from this property development
when Wuxi offered a discount to Beitang residents. Just wait till you see what my mom has done with it. It’s amazing.”

That sure didn’t make Linnea feel any better. She was walking into a setting she had no idea how to adapt to. She flipped her visor down and looked in the mirror one more time as Jet exited the car and came around to open her door. She grimaced at her reflection. Without the luxury of makeup or extravagant hair accessories, she just looked plain. But it was too late to do anything about it now. She flipped the visor back up and took a deep breath.
Time to enter the lion’s den,
she thought as she tried to still the trembling in her hands. She climbed out and looked at the fancy building in front of her. She looked down once more at her cheap sweater and worn jeans. She suddenly wished for her simple home on the wrong side of town.

L
innea straightened to her full height as they approached the door to the building. She reached up and smoothed her hair one more time, hoping the stubborn tendrils would stay in place for once. Outside, a young man about her age and dressed much nicer than she, in pressed pants and a white tailored shirt, stood at attention. When they came close enough, he opened the door and held it for them. Jet nodded at the boy as he guided her through, but the boy didn’t respond other than giving a curt nod without making eye contact.

“That’s Max,” he said as they walked by.

Linnea thought Max was a strange name but more curious was the fact that he looked to be the exact age and build as Jet. Didn’t Jet think it weird to pass a doorman who looked like him every day?

Jet stopped in front of the elevators and pushed the button. He turned to Linnea and grinned. “Don’t be nervous.”

She didn’t respond. Instead she concentrated on breathing while she hoped the elevator would suddenly stop on another floor, to give her more time to prepare. She looked in the mirrored doors and examined the foyer behind her. Every surface shined and the furniture in it alone probably cost more than her Ye Ye made in a year. Possibly two.

The elevator door opened and she followed Jet in. He pushed the number seven button and reached for her hand. Linnea cringed as she heard the
sound of her own heartbeat pounding in her ears. She glanced over at Jet but he didn’t look like he heard it.

The doors opened and they stepped out. In the hallway was only one ornate door with a huge brass knocker on it. Linnea looked around.

“Where’re the doors to the other apartments?” she asked, confused.

Jet laughed. “There aren’t any other apartments on this floor. Just ours.”

“You own the entire floor?” Linnea shook her head from side to side slowly.