It's Just Lola (43 page)

Amelia spoke quickly, “We heard you
’
ve done wonders for Papa.  We
’
re
very
grateful.  Can we pay our respects?”

“
He’s
still
very weak
,
not
yet well enough for visitors.
”

“But he
will
recover, won’t he?” asked Amelia, her eyes full of genuine concern. 

“I hope so,” said Lola truthfully.  “Pray for hi
s full recovery
.”  She blinked away tears as she excused herself to return to her patient.

Lola began to talk to her father to keep herself awake.  Secure in the knowledge that he wasn
’
t really aware of his surroundings, even when he was conscious
.
S
he talked about everything
—
adding thoughts and emotions that she would never reveal to anyone. 
I
t helped her clear away the cobwebs of her own thinking.
 
Somewhere in the ensuing days Enrique gradually became part of the
disjointed
conversation.  Lola held his hand and listened to him ramble through
his
early years of marriage.

“Something about the imminent presence of death makes one want to share; maybe it
’
s a form of confession,” he said one afternoon.
 
“Lola, come back
to the plantation
.
  Jacoba
can’t hurt you
now.
”

“
How did you know—
” 

“Just because a person’s eyes are closed, it doesn’t mean he can’t hear.  I know I drifted and heard bits and pieces, but I don’t need any more details.  It was an unfortunate story of greed—mixed, I must admit, with
my own
self-deception.
I am grateful for the decisions you made that gave the story the best possible outcome.  Won’t you come back?”

“I
’
m sorry, Father.  I can
’
t raise my children here.  The
price is too high
.”

“You
’
ll have every comfort money can buy.”

“But none of the comforts that money can
’
t buy.  Don’t you see, Father?  If I stay
here,
I
’
ll always live with the envy of my sisters.  They
think
I
’
m taking what
’
s rightfully theirs.  You may have forgiven me, but they haven’t.  
More important,
Estela will never be able to escape her illegitimate birth. 
She
’
ll be indelibly branded, and
I
’
ll never be able to escape
my sisters’
sharp tongues.
”

“Do you care what they think of you?”

“
No, but I care about Estela’s opinion of herself.  James put my children on his passport
and gave them
his name.  They believe they are his children. 
I have friends now who
’
re willing to share what little they have with me.  They accept
us
unconditionally
, and they expect nothing in return.  They have
no knowledge of my b
irth
right or my inheritance from James.
 
In the name of friendship, t
hey made it possible for me to come immediately
when you needed me
.
”

“And I’ll be forever grateful.”

“
Papa, a
s much as I
’
d love to ride the fields with you as long as you can sit a horse, and tend your needs after that, it wouldn
’
t be the right thing for my children.
”
 
T
ears filled her eyes.  “I’m happy we had this time together, and I’m happy you
’
re getting stronger every day.
  Now I think it
’
s time for me to get back to my children.
”

Enrique looked at his daughter with an expression she could not identify.  “
You’ll find a package
in
the library
,
behind the older medical books.  Bring it here.” 

Lola
brought the package.  Following
her father’s instructions, she opened it.
 
“What a lovely pillow
.
  Do you want me to mend the stitching that has come loose?” 

Her father’s laughter left him weak for a few minutes.  “Here,” he
smoothed
the bed
ding
next to him.  “Remove the stuffing.”  Lola carefully
pulled out the cotton
, unwilling to tear the remaining stitching.  The jewels that came out of the pillow made her gasp.

“I
’
ve never seen anything so beautiful
.
”

“They belonged to my mother.  When my father died, she sent them as a gift
for
your mother
.  My eternal regret is that they arrived too late.”  There was a long pause.
 
“There was a magnificent emerald necklace that I gave to Maria on her wedding day.  I told her it wasn
’
t part of the dowry, but belonged to her.  My only condition was that I never see her wear it.”  Enrique’s voice broke.  “So much like her mother it broke my heart to see her.”
  He pushed the jewels to
ward
Lola. 
“
T
ake what you like.  Take them all if it pleases you.”

“Thank you, Father,” she whispered
,
cho
o
s
ing
a
small
sapphire ring.  “I
’
ll always treasure this.”

“That
’
s not enough.  Take something for each of
your
daughters
to think kindly of a grandfather they
’
ll never know.”

His words made her heart ache
as she
chose a delicate bracelet of brilliant stones surrounded by gold.  “When they
’
re old enough to appreciate the gift, I
’ll
have the stones reset as earrings.”

“No, take something of real value for them.”

“Father, small gifts have real value.  Who knows what life has in store for them?  I don’t want the gift to have enough monetary value to tempt them to sell the jewels if things get difficult—or to tempt those around them.”

“Very well.  I bow to your wisdom.  Now help me pick out a piece for each of your other sisters.”  They spent a pleasant hour talking about the sisters as they made up reasons to choose one piece over the other.  At last there was an envelope with a short note and a single piece of jewelry each for Victoria, Amelia, Ernestina, and Juana.  He scooped the remaining jewels into another envelope.

“Take these to
Enriqueta
and her daughter, Blanca.
 
She has no reason to love me,
ye
t she saved my life by giving your address to Juan and telling him to beg you to come.”  Lola couldn
’
t speak
as she accepted
t
he envelope.
 
“Now go while I still have the strength to let you leave.”

L
ola re-read the letter from Enriqueta.  She knew Enriqueta’s advice was sound, but it still bothered her.

Dear Lola,

Juan says Father is much improved.  Carmen sits
with
Father much of the day, and they no longer fear for him at night.  Forgive me for ever criticizing you when you wanted to work with the doctor.  Your skills saved Father’s life.

Father suggested that you contact Juana and ask her husband to help you access the resources left by
Atkins
.  He believes Carlos is familiar with how stocks work.  They are living in Lima now, and I enclose the address. 

Dearest Sister, you have no idea how many tears I shed for you when you told me that the bosun found no trace of your husband on his recent trip to San Francisco.  I am sure your hopes were high that
Wulf
would come back with him.  It must have been so hard for you—especially after all the difficulty you have had in your life. 

I am happy that at least
Atkins
left you with some resources.  I am sure
Juana
she will help you—after all, she is your sister.

With all my love,

Enriqueta

Lola hated asking Juana for help.  It would hurt her pride to admit to Juana that
Wulf
had disappeared, but she had been hurt in worse places than her pride.  Lola took a deep breath, got out a fresh sheet of paper, and began to compose a note to Juana.

A week later Lola surreptitiously wip
ed
her palms as she got out of a hired carriage in front of Juana’s house.  “This is ridiculous,” she
muttered
to herself
.  “Just because I
don’t know
what to do with those fancy papers doesn
’
t mean I
’
m stupid or ignorant.  So stand tall, Lola; look her straight in the eye and tell her what happened.”  Lola gave a nervous laugh
.
  Juana was one of the few people
short enough
that she
could
look
her
straight in the eye.  Lola lifted the brass knocker.

“Lola,
you’re as lovely as ever.
  Come in and tell me all about your English gentleman.  You have two children?  How old are they?” 

“I have four children
now;
you
’
re a bit behind with your news
.
” Lola
forced a smile
.

“Yes, I suppose so
.
I thought that
once we moved to Lima
I’d see more of the family, but
it’s been one thing after another. 
So w
hat brings you to Lima?  Is your English gentleman travelling on business?”

“My English gentleman had a fatal accident more than two years ago.”  Lola told Juana about
Atkins
’ accident and the stock certificates
she had inherited
.  “I was hoping Carlos would be able to help me sell some stocks.  We can go to the bank together, and he can tell me which ones to sell and how to do it, perhaps?”

“I’m sure
Charlie
would be happy to help you, Lola.”  Juana’s emphasis was on the English form of her husband’s name.  “You say your husband died more than two years ago.  How have you lived all that time without the money?”

“James’ employer gave me the salary remaining on his contract, which kept us for some time.
”
 
Briefly,
Lola
told Juana her story
. 
“
Once I remarried
,
I had no need of money.” 

“It
’s
hard to believe you have four children
.
”  Juana looked aside, but not before Lola caught a glimpse
of
the emotion
o
n
her face.  Lola felt a rush of sympathy for her sister.  Poor Juana had been trying to have more children and, according to the whispers of Victoria and Amelia, her frequent illnesses were difficult pregnancies ending in miscarriages or stillbirths.  “How old are you now?  You can’t be more than twenty
.
”

“Twenty-four,” said Lola quietly. 

“If your husband is providing well, why do you need money now?”

“He went ashore their last day in
San Francisco
and
n
o one knows what happened to him.”  Lola took out her handkerchief and dabbed at the tears that filled her eyes and trickled down her cheeks.  “He was probably mugged and his body dumped somewhere.” 
Lola sipped her coffee
; the hot liquid was familiar and soothing.

Juana
picked up her cup. 
“You
’
re quite the adventurous soul, aren’t you?  You
’
re the youngest of us all and have had almost as many husbands as the rest of us put together—ending with a common sailor.” 

Hot anger replaced Lola’s tears
.  “I
’
ve been widowed twice—probably three times. 
That’s
not what I call an adventure.  And
Wulf
was
not
a common sailor.  He was an officer in the merchant marines.  He was a navigator, a
skilled and valued
profession that is in high demand.”  Lola clamped her jaws shut.  She had to calm her anger.  She was here to ask Juana for help, not to argue with her.  Suddenly the coffee smelled like unwashed socks. 

“I’m sorry.  I spoke without thinking.”

Lola nodded and
tried to
smile.
 
“Tell me about your children, Juana.  How is little Isabel?”  As Lola suspected, Juana could not resist talking about her beautiful and gifted children.  They shared amusing anecdotes and soon it was time for Charlie to come home for the noon meal.  Once he was apprised of Lola’s problem, Charlie agreed that she was wise not to trust such a task to a stranger and suggested they meet at the bank the following morning.

When Lola walked into the bank
,
Señor Fernandez hurried out of his office to assist her.  She explained she was waiting for her brother-in-law and was immediately ushered into the manager’s office and served coffee as she waited.  When Charlie arrive
d
, he, too, was served coffee before they open
ed
the safety deposit box. 

Lola watched as Charlie went through the papers taking notes.  She could tell he was impressed by some of the stocks and puzzled by others.  He had a thoughtful expression on his face when he finished.  He suggested they go to a nearby hotel for coffee.   He bought a copy of the
Wall Street Journal
as they walked through the lobby.

“Your husband was a very wise man,” he said when they had given the waiter their order.  “He
’
s been investing in stocks for years and accumulated quite a large holding.  Do you have any idea how much those certificates are worth?”

Lola laughed.  “Judging by the way Señor Fernandez dotes on me, I imagine it
’
s quite a bit.  He offered to manage them, but I declined.”

Charlie smiled.  “A wise choice, I
’
m sure.”  He opened the newspaper and showed Lola how to read the stock quotes.  Then he read a few of the names he had in his notes. 

Lola
looked up the stocks and multiplied by the number of shares he said she owned. 
The result took her breath away. 
“I could live for years on that much money
.
”

“Yes, and then it would be gone.  What would you do then?”  He went on to
ask if
she
had
checked the balance
of her cash account
recently
.
  She
admitted she had not.

Charlie explained that the dividends were probably not enough for her to live on, and she would have to tap into her capital at some point, but the stocks were becoming more and more valuable.  The longer she held them, the more they would bring when sold.  Lola nodded.  The bank manager had told her the same thing.

Finally Charlie offered to be her financial manager.  If she transfe
r
red the stocks to his name, he would give her the money she needed for
normal expenses
.  He would sell the less profitable stocks to supplement the dividends.  Of course he would keep her informed of any transactions he made.  Lola hesitated. 

“Why don’t we pick one for me to sell now? I can live on that for a time.  I don’t want to bother you with being my guardian.  I have a good head for numbers and I can supplement the money by dressmaking.”

“It’s not that easy.  This newspaper is about a week old.  In order to make sure you
’
re getting a fair price, you
must
have access to a ticker tape that gives prices much faster.  You have to work through a stockbroker and I
’
d be uneasy letting you do this on your own.  Women are often cheated in business.”

“Let me think about it.”  Lola asked for the newspaper and Charlie’s notes.  She studied them carefully that night.  She picked a couple of her holdings that she would try to sell.

The next morning Lola took a carriage to downtown Lima and found a stockbroker’s office.  She asked to see the manager and was soon sitting in his office.

“My husband left me a few stocks, and I
’
d like to sell some.  I understand that you have a ticker tape and can give me a more up to date quote than I can find in the
Wall Street Journal.
”  She did not want him to think she was totally ignorant. 

Coffee appeared at her elbow and the manager politely explained how he would be pleased to take control of her stocks and send her a fixed amount each month. 
When
Lola protested that she wanted to decide which stocks to sell and when to sell them
, h
e assured her that
it would not be possible for her to
make an informed decision
—only a professional who watched the market constantly could do that
.  She then mentioned one of the stocks she was thinking of selling.  The manager’s eyes sparkled and, if possible, he got even more unctuous.  He got the latest quote, made some calculations, and gave her a price—less their commission, of course.  Lola asked about the rate of commission
.
  She
did the math in her head,
thanked him for his time and
left
.
 
He
had evidently included a generous gift for himself. 

Lola realized she had little choice.  She had a better chance of being treated fairly by her sister’s husband than a total stranger.  Maybe the code of honor could work in her favor for a change. 

Although Juana never said anything, Lola knew she didn’t fit in Juana’s social circles.  She understood.  The two had nothing in common except their parentage.   Lola had been a small child when Juana married and left the plantation. 
Lola received regular letters from Juana with Charlie’s report and some cash for expenses. 
That and a
part
-
time job as a dressmaker in a department store provided enough income
for
the necessities
and occasional treats. 

Life fell into a routine.  The worst times were when the men came home and she was reminded of the fact that her man was not coming home.  The house had settled down to four families and an occasional couple.  The
two
other men had stayed on the coast crawler, so Lola frequently had the company of Maggie when the other men were home, and the other women were often free when the bosun was ashore.  Between the different schedules and the absence of
Wulf
, the house lost its atmosphere of boisterous good humor, but it remained safe
and
comfortable.  Lola had lived in better circumstances, but she had also lived in worse.

None of the men were home when the war ended, and Lola joined the women in their private celebration.  She was happy for her friends that the seas now held only the dangers posed by the forces of nature. 
T
hose dangers were quite enough to give a sailor’s wife nightmares.

Not long
after the armistice agreement was signed, Lola was sitting in her bedroom sewing while Nellie napped when she heard pounding on the front door and a familiar voice boomed, “Look alive in there and open the door
.
  I brought a present
.
”  Lola smiled as she pictured the bosun standing at the door with a big jug of wine in one hand and a bottle of something stronger in the other.