Quartet – Conclusion

The Reunion

Ruby, Margo, Olivia, and Zan

 

Ruby decided to stay with Zan. “You go on ladies. You two have pressing issues at home. I’ve got sod all going on until after the New Year. I’ll look after our girl here for a few days—get her home and settled, get the fridge filled, feed her some fattening food. It’ll be brilliant.”

“I am so sorry, Zan,” Olivia said, “but if Family Services comes to visit me, to see how Matias and Mariella are doing, I must be there. They said they would call first and make an appointment, but that might happen at any time. You will be alright now, yes?”

“I will. I promise,” Zan said. “All I want is to get out of here. Margo, you go too. You’ve got a future daughter-in-law to impress. She must think you’re rude to just leave her like that.”

“Well, I explained it was urgent,” Margo said. “Ron and the boys have been doing a good job of showing her south Florida attractions, but if things are all sewed up here…”

Margo and Olivia took a taxi to Dulles. They embraced in the concourse, admitted relief that a crisis had been averted, promised to be better about staying in touch, and headed off in separate directions—one toward sunshine and palm trees, and the other to the windy city.

Ruby slept in the hospital recliner that night and roamed the halls when she couldn’t sleep, chatting up visitors and offering her brand of comfort to patients. In just one more day, the red tape was cleared, and in the afternoon Zan was discharged. They found Zan’s car and Ruby drove them home, Google maps and Zan guiding her.

They could hear the Three Musketeers’ impatient barking welcoming Zan home as they pulled into the driveway, and when Zan opened the front door, a white whirlwind of pure joy surrounded her, each dog trying to get petted. She sank down on the front stoop and let them nuzzle and whine and push each other to be closest to her. She wrapped her arms around them and calmed them with her words, “It’s okay, I know, yes, I know, I do. It’s okay, I love you, too,” tears running down her face.

Ruby watched, wiping a tear from her cheek, until the dogs were pacified enough to wander over and check her out. They were considerably less enthusiastic about her presence, but curious rather than wary, especially when Zan allowed herself to be pulled up and embraced by her friend.

“Gutted, they would ‘a been, wouldn’t they, if you hadn’t stuck around?”

Zan could only nod.

The dogs were nervous about the huge stuffed dog Ruby brought in, and it wasn’t until she put the thing into a spare bedroom and closed the door that they relaxed. Once that was done, they were all best buddies, enjoying Ruby’s willingness to throw a ball until they were worn out. The hallway went on forever, so they had plenty of room to run and knock each other about.

“If it weren’t for having to hoover every single day for the rest of my life,” Ruby said, “I’d fancy having a dog. One dog. They can be quite entertaining can’t they?”

“And they don’t care about your portfolio.”

“Ah, good one. Alan may be history, mightn’t he? Unless he’s got a plan he didn’t share with me.”

“How did you leave it?” Zan asked.

“I told him I’d be gone a few days to help out a friend. I think I’ve seen the back of him.”

They went grocery shopping and bought foods Zan had never allowed herself. Ruby wouldn’t even let her read the labels. “No counting calories. You’re recovering,” she said as she added salted caramel ice cream and frozen pizza to the cart.

~~~

They discovered a mutual fondness for reality TV. The Great Race was their favorite.

“Trevor called it trash,” Zan said, enthusiastically eating home-popped popcorn generously topped with melted butter. They were sunk into the sofa in the TV room.

“Fuck him,” Ruby said.

“No thanks. Speaking of husbands, did I hear Margo say you went to your ex’s for Christmas dinner?”

“Yeah, mad as a bad of ferrets, aren’t I? But it was okay. Not disastrous, anyway. Went different than I thought. Poor Walt—got ganged up on by the women—present and past wives, teen-aged daughter, and there’s a little one now who seemed to enjoy teasing her dad. Had to be his worst nightmare, but he took it well. Never was that much of a good sport when we were married, but then bad things happened to us, didn’t they? Sad things. No cure for losing a child—changes you forever. Changed us, didn’t it.”

Zan sat up and looked at Ruby. “If I didn’t tell you at the beach, and I probably didn’t, I’m so sorry about your … about the accident. I can’t even imagine how you survived it.”

“Long time ago, wasn’t it? But thanks. And, well, you lost one, too. Makes no mind that she was just a wee one.”

“I did it on purpose, though, Ruby. Never even saw her.”

“So what? She’s real now, isn’t she? Here you are, you get a second chance. You get to find out what having a daughter is like. And to be a grandmother. They say that’s heaven. Don’t be daft, girlie. Soak it up, for fuck’s sake.”

“Yeah, well, we’ll see.”

~~~

The next morning over breakfast, Ruby said, “You do know I’m not leaving here until you get in touch with her, don’t you? Either ring her up or send her a bloody email. This is too important. I’ve only got the one, Reggie, and I’ve made a shitload of mistakes with her, but still. Mother-daughter relationships are probably the most complicated of all relationships. But also the most rewarding. You can’t let this go.”

“So that’s why you stayed? To badger me into calling Anne?”

“You bet your knickers. And to play with these doggies. And to see to it that you eat real food. I saw all that green glop you stuffed down the disposal. Nothing ever edible there, I’m thinking.”

“Well, you might just be here a while, shiksa.”

On the twenty-ninth, Ruby went with Zan to her therapy appointment. In the waiting room Ruby read the latest Psychology Today magazine. She was silent on the drive back home and Zan gave her a questioning look. “Article about dealing with anxiety. Suggested learning to embrace uncertainty. Going to try that, I am.“

The next day Ruby sat in on the survivor’s support group, claiming that in her line of work as a financial planner with ‘a bunch of Neanderthals’, she knew more than she ever wanted to know about sexual harassment and coercion. “Testosterone is fucking lethal,” she offered. The leader of the group gave up on banning profanity.

That evening, over Stouffer’s lasagna, Zan said, “You never really liked me all that much, did you, Ruby?”

“I couldn’t get a read on you, love. Felt like you removed yourself from us. I believed you thought you were better somehow—what with your rich husband, your mansion, and your perfect figure. Just my projection, I think, and my envy.”

“Envy?”

“Seemed to have it all, didn’t you? I mean, I knew you had some work done, but that just ticked me off. It was like, ‘what, looking as old as us isn’t good enough for you’?” I was wrong.”

“Not really. I was proud of looking the best. I thought it was all I had, my looks. Empty insides, so at least I could do something about the outside. Not let it show any cracks.”

“If it’s any comfort, I’ve changed my mind. I’m glad you didn’t off yourself.”

“We’re bonding here, right?”

“Seems bloody so.”

~~~

 

On New Year’s Eve day Zan composed an email to her daughter. Ruby sat beside her and helped her with the wording. It took over an hour and a lot of discussion. “I don’t think ‘delighted’ sounds at all like me,” Zan complained.

“Well, how about just ‘happy’?” Ruby looked at Zan. “You’re gonna have to practice that smile of yours if you’re going to call yourself happy.”

“Up yours,” Zan said. “How about ‘sincerely pleased’?”

“How about ‘floored’? ‘Tickled pink’?”

It went on like that until they settled on a draft Zan could live with. A few glasses of wine, several snack breaks, lots of deletes, and they had a draft. Neither one of them were spelling experts, so spell-check had come in handy. When they finally finished, they sent it first to Olivia, then texted her so she’d read it right away.

Olivia’s text came back.

It strikes just the right note: Zan’s excitement at hearing from Anne as well as her regret that she had not been a part of her daughter’s life and her desire to meet her. No explaining or apologizing, just welcoming the contact. Very nicely done, you two. I only made a few punctuation corrections and one verb tense fix.

Zan pulled the corrected draft back up, copied and pasted it onto her email, and hit ‘send’. “Before I change my mind.”

That night They sat in front of the TV and watched the ball drop together and toasted the beginning of the new year with prosecco, baked brie, and truffles. “Maybe I’ll try one of those bloody dating sites,” Ruby said. “Think they have ‘em for gorgeous but barmy middle-aged ladies?”

“Just make sure you warn them about salty language in your profile.”

Ruby made reservations to fly back to Miami on the third of January. They picked up the mail on the way out the driveway and learned that Trevor had filed for divorce. The house was Zan’s. As Zan drove, Ruby read the proposal aloud and said, “He probably felt like a fucking wanker—leaving you like that. Which, if he did, it’s a good thing, because this here, it looks pretty generous to me.”

“Never knew Trevor to feel guilty—or anything else like empathy for anybody else,” Zan said. But she agreed to all his terms.

~~~

Early in February, Zan found a buyer. She sent emails to her friends.

If you want to come enjoy the multiple rooms and great view, you better make plans to be here within the next forty-five days. Because after the closing, I’m moving to a cabin in the country where I can have a garden and where the beasts can run to their heart’s content. Hugs, Zan

It was the first week of March by the time Ruby, Margo, and Olivia were able to coordinate a visit.

~~~

“It’s certainly huge,” Margo said, “Imposing, I’d say.”

“Bloody castle, isn’t it?” Ruby asked. “Never runs out of closets.”

“More like a prison,” Zan said.

They got into comfortable clothes—sweats and flannel—and gathered in the conversation pit. It featured a modern freestanding fireplace that Zan lit with a remote control device.

“Did anyone ever sit here?” Margo asked. “The furniture looks brand new.”

Zan was carrying a platter of food and shook her head. “My soon-to-be ex-husband read his journals down here in front of the fireplace, but you three are the only invited guests to use it. This would be a good party house. I hope the next owners like to entertain.”

“Maybe they’ll hire you to cater,” Ruby said. “Everything looks divine.”

“You just have to know where to shop,” Zan said.

They were snacking on bite-sized Maryland crab cakes, sipping frozen Margaritas, and making appreciative noises. As Zan brought the second blender-full down the five stone steps and set it on the glass-top table, she said, “Margo, I missed you telling the story about your older son’s Christmas visit with his fiancée. Jon, right? Did you like her? I think you were worried about her reaction to Ron’s coming out—”

“Well, blimey, she had nothing to react to, did she?” Ruby interrupted. “Came to their senses, they did. Decided, thanks to their youngest kid Bobby, to allow the adults some privacy. Nobody’s fucking business, was it?”

“I liked her, Jon’s fiancée.” Margo said, ignoring Ruby. “Patricia, her name was. Sweet girl.” She took a sip of the frozen drink and licked the pale green frost off her top lip. “Mm, brain freeze. Granted, the visit was interrupted because I took a day off to come see a friend in the hospital.” She looked at Zan, who smiled and bowed at the waist. “But we enjoyed their visit, Jon and hers. Talked a lot about the sumptuous wedding they were planning. It was over the top, and I was glad her parents were footing the bill. But, everyone got along. Even Bobby, my skeptic, seemed somewhat resigned, at least, to the fact that she might be his sister-in-law.”

“Well, good, then. Your fears were—”

“Wait, there’s more.” Margo said. She had taken a bite of food and held up one finger. “Mm, this is so good.” She swallowed. “They broke up. A week after they got back. Jon decided he didn’t want to work for her dad, and she was offended. Said if her dad wasn’t good enough for Jon, then neither was she.”

“Ain’t that a kick in the balls?” Ruby said.

“Was he upset?” Zan asked.

“Wrecked, he was,” interrupted Ruby. “Looked like a survivor of the zombie apocalypse. Bobby and I took him to a pub and listened to him cry in his beer. Speaking of, pour me a skosh more, would you?” She held out her glass to Zan.

Margo said, “It’s true, he was pretty shocked, and yes, Ruby and Bobby took him out to console him. I had clients that evening, and Ron had gone to North Carolina. Jon called, said he was coming home, crying even, told us what had happened, and I told Bobby he had to either stay home with his brother or include Jon in his evening with Ruby.”

“That’s what you do, isn’t it?” Ruby asked. “You listen to their sad stories. Commiserate with ‘em, these young lads. And then get ‘em plastered, ‘course. Bobby had to hold Jon’s head when he honked up his guts.”

“By that time I was home,” Margo said, “but no way I wanted anywhere near that—”

“Ruby,” Zan asked, “why were you and Bobby going out?” Then she turned back to Margo. “And why was Ron in North Carolina?”

“Oh, you didn’t know, did you?” Margo said. “I guess I didn’t want to call here after  … especially not with this. I told Olivia.”

“She did,” Olivia said.”

“So tell me now,” Zan said.

“He’s going to London, Bobby is—well, all over England, actually. Could be even farther.” She held up crossed fingers. “Hope not. He’s going to hike and cycle and take trains. Starting there, anyway, in the city, and he wanted some insider tips from his Aunt Ruby.”

“Don’t be shocked, girls, but I’ve arranged with my mum for Bobby to use my parents’ home as a base to travel from—they’re excited to have him, and my brother’s got two kids about Bobby’s age, so they’ll be a help, too.”

Olivia sat up. “Does this mean that you and your family are reconciling?”

“Don’t get too far ahead of yourself, pet. I’m opening the door is all. Trying, aren’t I? The accident will always be a sore spot, you know? Like a bad tooth you can’t keep your tongue off of. But I’m working on letting go. Embracing my anxiety. Anyway, Bobby and I didn’t get to chat much about the U.K. that night. We had to give over the evening to poor jilted Jon. I told him, looking closely at it, there was something off about that father-daughter relationship. If she was already picking her dad over Jon, it didn’t bode well for their future together. He was well shut of her.”

“And did that work?” Zan asked.

“A course not. Not yet anyway. He’s still knackered, but he can’t take it back, can he? And I don’t think he would if he could. From what he said about his fiancée’s dad, bloody hell. He sounded like a tyrant. Not battin’ with a full wicket, that one.”

Zan nodded to Margo. “And Ron? Why was he in North Carolina?”

Margo added, “Oh, he was gone because his dad had a heart attack, so he went to help his mother. He was gone four days. About all he can ever take. But his dad’s recovering nicely.”

Zan took the empty blender into the kitchen and Olivia followed with the plates, so Margo pulled Ruby up and they followed and perched on stools at the center island.

“And, you, Margo?” Olivia asked. She was placing the empty plates into the dishwasher. “Do you remain satisfied with your decision to stay with your husband?”

“For now,” Margo said. “We have an agreement. It’s one day at a time.”

“And you are comfortable not telling the boys?” Olivia asked.

“I’m … okay with it. Surprised myself. Of course, if they find out on their own—”

“She’ll cross that bloomin’ bridge when she comes to it.” Ruby added.

“So, Ruby,” Zan said, “Did the sailor ever come around?” She was smiling, waiting for Ruby to correct her. It was a natural smile, and looked good on her.

“Nice one, Zan, but no, Alan remains persona non grata. Not as gutted as I should’ve been. Probably tells me something. Lost the plot on that one, didn’t I? What a cock up it would’ve been. I’ve jolly well replaced him with a dog. Not told a soul yet.”

“What?” They said in unison.

“Older dog, older like me. Found her at the no-kill shelter. No one wanted her. We hit it off right away.”

“What’s her name?” Zan asked.

“Betty. We go for strolls. She’s a great listener. And she lives quite well with uncertainty.” She was smiling.

“Who’s taking care of her while you’re gone?” Zan wanted to know.

“Bobby is. Margot’s Bobby. He offered, and rather than board her … they’ve become great friends.”

~~~

They took a walk around the lake and waved to the neighbors. The dogs ran ahead, but one kept coming back to check that Zan was still there. “It’s okay, Aramis,” she said.

“You can really tell them apart, can’t you?” Margot said.

“Sure,” Zan answered. “They have totally different personalities.”

The women walked fast to stay warm, and Ruby was breathing hard. “This you do every day, do ya? Now that you’re better?”

“I do,” Zan said. “This little lake isn’t the Atlantic, but it’s the best thing about this place. It’s the only thing I’ll miss, actually.”

The friends all wanted to know about Zan’s recent visit from her daughter, but they waited to ask, not wanting to intrude. It was nearly sunset, and even though it was chilly, everyone sat on the deck, wrapped up in blankets, where they could watch the sun go down over the lake. The dogs were stretched out around them and one or another was close to where Zan was at all times. Her hand had drifted down and touched white fur, and the recipient’s tail thumped contentedly.

“If you don’t want to talk about it—” Margo said.

“No, no, I do. I’m glad Anne came—now I’m glad, anyway. I was pretty nervous after I sent my email—our email. Group effort.” She nodded to Ruby and Olivia. “And I didn’t hear from her for almost a week. But when I did, she wanted to come meet me right away. I told you all that. Well, I told Olivia and asked her to tell you.”

“She did, but we didn’t want to pry,” Margo said. “It was an emotional time for you, and…”

“And you’re afraid for me, right?” Zan asked. “You don’t have to be. I’m not fragile, Okay? Not any more.”

There were murmurs of assent.

Zan went on. “Actually, she’s … terrific.” She was stroking the dog, probably without even knowing it. “I was … worried because her original letter was so beautifully written, and her spelling and grammar were perfect. Her email, too. Ruby knows best—I’m not so good with all that stuff. Besides, she sounded so nice. Nothing bad has ever happened to her. I kept thinking, what if she saw me—saw into the ugliness.”

“You’re not—” Margo said.

“Hush, woman, let her talk.” Ruby said. She and Margo were sitting in the double lounge together sharing a blanket.

Zan went on, “She was great. She showed me pictures of her adoptive parents; I didn’t remember what they looked like at all. And of course she had photos of her boyfriend. He’s Jewish, and she was surprised to find out she’s half Jewish—surprised and happy. Had to call him and tell him. We’ve continued to email, and now they’ve set a date to get married. She wants me to come to the wedding—in Arizona—and meet the whole family. It’s in November.”

“Brilliant,” Ruby said.

“Sounds delightful,” Olivia said.

“Yeah? Well, it scares the crap out of me.” All those classy people. But, all in all, now that I’ve met her, I feel—glad I didn’t die.”

“Zan,” Margo said. “I hope you know how grateful we are that you’re still with us.”

“I do. I think I do, anyway. You guys, your friendship, it made such a difference. I guess I didn’t know—and to see how much you cared—” Zan’s voice thickened with unshed tears, and Olivia reached over and took her hand. Margo and Ruby held hands, too. Margo handed Ruby a tissue from her pocket. They all waited.

“I’m never going to be not broken inside” she said, taking a big breath. “There is ugliness in there. Put there by a member of my own family.” She paused and they waited in silence. “But these days, and probably for the rest of my life, I’m gonna fight it. I’m trying to channel the person I needed—the person I wish had been there to protect me when I was being … hurt. The mother I wish I’d had. In other words, you all. Do I sound like an inspirational poster for a survivor’s group?”

“You sound like the friend we wish we’d known better,” Margo said.

“Your daughter is lucky to have found you,” Olivia said.

“I think I’m the lucky one, but I’ll work on that attitude. Here, I have a recent photo.” Zan pulled her phone out of a pocket, scrolled through it, found what she was looking for, and passed it to Ruby first. It was a shot of two beautiful young people, arms around each other, a petite blonde with an impish grin and a compact, darker haired guy gazing at her and smiling as if he’d won the lottery. He had deep dimples.

“She’s a knockout—like you, Zan. And this bloke? He’s gorgeous, too,” Ruby said. “If I was younger …”

Margo nudged her with her elbow. “Ruby. Totally inappropriate.”

“You’re right. Talking rubbish, I am. Sorry, Zan. No more frozen drinks for me.”

“As if the frozen part is the problem,” Margo said. “How many did you have?” Ruby elbowed her back and passed the phone to Olivia, who said, “I saw it earlier. She’s lovely, and Ruby’s correct—she looks like her mother. And he is quite handsome.”

“Speaking of handsome,” Zan spoke up, “were you two aware that Olivia has a man in her life?”

“A bloke?” Ruby asked. “For real? A boyfriend? And this is the first I’m hearing it?”

“He is not my ‘boyfriend’,” Olivia said, blushing. “He is a friend. He is the officer who informed me of my sister’s arrest back in December. He was much help then. You will all be glad to know that last week I learned that I have been granted legal guardianship of Matias and Mariella.” She handed Zan the phone.

“Oh, Olivia, how great for you,” Margo said. “Bravo.”

“Have you chatted with your sister?” Ruby asked. “I know you were at sixes and sevens about how she would react.”

“I have, and she took the news better than I could have hoped. Izzy is contrite these days and says that what I am doing is for the best. I am unsure if she knows the gravity of my action, that she will have no legal standing in their lives, but I hope her good will lasts, for the children’s sake—and mine.”

“There’s sod all she can do about it,” Ruby said. “But wait, before we get too far off the beaten path, Let’s hear more about this new ‘friend’. What’s the skinny on him?”

“There is no ‘skinny’, girls. It is simply friendship. Because of Zeke’s kindness and his concern, he paid us a visit on the day we were decorating the tree, and I invited him to Christmas dinner. I did not think it the time to tel you in the hospital, but he came. He was there when …” She paused to look at Zan.

“I know. When you got my text about the dogs, right?”

“Yes.”

“And then what?” Ruby asked.

“Then, many neighbors came as well. And they all took to one another immediately. It was certainly festive, and he claimed he had never had such fun. He helped me with the phone calls I made, and he also drove me to the airport when I flew here to Maryland. Both times.”

“That’s some friend, Olivia,” Margo said.

“Yeah, I’m bloody well thinking you might be singing a different tune soon,” Ruby said.

Olivia smiled and raised one finger. “Speaking of singing, he has gone with me to a neighborhood karaoke place. He professes to like hearing me sing and has encouraged me to do so, even though he cannot understand what I am singing.”

“You’re singing in Spanish?” Ruby asked.

“I am. In my neighborhood there is a Cuban nightclub with karaoke night. I am singing Spanish ballads my abuela taught me. I decided, though, that I will sing in English next, and have been practicing some of our old eighties songs.”

“Are you serious about this man?” Margo asked.

“I am serious about everything, Margo, you know that. But I am having fun with Mr. Rivers—with Zeke. Both my niece and my nephew like him. That was necessary. And, he brings out the laughter in me—much as you three do. That is a good thing, is it not?”

“It definitely is,” Margo said.

“Fuckin’ A,” Ruby agreed.

About that time they caught a whiff of something cooking from a neighbor’s grill.

“Who’s hungry?” Zan asked.

The End