The Cries of the Butterfly - A LOVE STORY (17 page)

What happened next no one knew—at least not the two girls awaiting their friend’s return. Suddenly there was screaming and they could tell it was Rose. Automatically they leapt to their feet and rushed to the house.

Rose was stark naked and a young man was stabbing her all over. Blood was spraying around as if a fountain had suddenly gone wild. The knife in the man’s hand went up and down, in and out, thrashing away into the hapless flesh of the girl. In one corner of the room stood Dorrie, watching with round, mesmerized eyes.

Ann and Mary were shocked into paralysis. They couldn’t even manage to scream, their shrieks curdled in their throats. They saw their friend’s resistance sap and she fell on the gray floor in a heap. And then Dorrie seemed to snap out of her trance. She yelled at the man, pointing in the direction of Ann and Mary. The man spun around, knife in the air.

Instinct kicked at the girls; with a half-shout of terror they turned around. And they fled—the inn, and then the city.

.

T
hey managed to hitch with a trucker, a cheery big fellow who said his name was Herlan, who further said they reminded him of his own daughters he was leaving behind in Miami.

“I won’t be seeing them again for two months,” he said wistfully. Then he asked the girls about themselves. It was clear he was surprised—they had no belongings besides the clothes on their frames and although Ann and Mary desperately tried to behave normal, it was a hell of a job trying to check the shock and the shivers.

They noticed Herlan watch them out of the corner of his eyes and he was clearly concerned. But mercifully, he did not push. He made small talk, as if trying his best to relax the young ladies from whatever it was that tormented them.

They traveled all night, at a leisure pace. He had said the two reminded him of his own daughters. He was true to his word. Early next morning he stopped at Savannah in Georgia, his first major halt. Could he be of anymore help to the girls? No, they said, and a very big thank you, sir, you have been so very kind. We don’t know what we’d have done without you. They could see he wanted to ask questions, but again he held his oar. There was almost a look of anguish on his face as they bid him goodbye. And then they saw him shrug, and he dipped his hand in his right trouser pocket.

He counted six fifty dollar bills. The girls were in tears. They didn’t want to accept it, this was just too overwhelming. But the big man, with a big belly, a bald head and a gentle face, took Ann’s hand, placed the bills in it and closed her fingers over it. Then he turned around quickly and jumped back into the truck.

A week later, Ann found a job, cleaning dishes in one eatery on Tybee Island, aka Savannah Beach, a small barrier island, about eighteen miles east of Savannah. It paid enough for her and Mary to eat three meals a day and stay in a one-room shack. With the money Mr. Herlan (they never knew his full name) had given them, they bought themselves some used clothes and other items of daily need. They were, though, constantly haunted by images of Rose, continually ripped by guilt that they had done nothing for their dear friend, only ran away like a couple of wretched cowards. They tried not to think about it—tried hard to block it out of their minds. It was pointless to dwell on something they could do nothing more about.

A year passed and Mary still hadn’t found any work. She felt like a worthless heel. True, Ann was her best friend (indeed her only friend), but it was demeaning to live off someone who worked her butt off all day and half the night, while all she could manage was to loaf the city and report a blank at the end of every day. That Ann never complained, that indeed she was always very supportive of her, made it worse.

“Don’t worry about it, kid,” Ann would say, fondly ruffling Mary’s jet black hair. “Who knows, tomorrow it might be you with a great job and me with nothing. Keep the faith. As long as I have you and you have me, nothing else matters, understand?”

And Mary would smile sadly and she would hug her dearest friend and even shed a little tear.

“What would I do without you, Annie?”

“Do not say it. What would
I
do without you?” Ann would retort. “You know you aren’t just my best friend and sister, you are my lifeline. Without you I could never survive.”

And Mary would be mock dismissive. “Ah, come on now, you are such a mush.” But she was so happy to hear such words.

And one day, Ann bought Mary a gold-plated necklace with a heart-shaped pendant that said ‘Mary’. She had saved for this all year and today she was the happiest person in the world as she hung the necklace around Mary’s neck.

“Wow!” Mary cried spontaneously. Then she paused. “Oh, no, no...I can’t. No way!”

“Oh, yes, yes, you can.” Ann insisted.

“Whyyyyy?!!!”

Ann took Mary’s hands in hers. “Because you are my friend, because today is Friendship Day, and because I love you more than anything on this planet...so very dearly.”

Mary broke down and wept. The two girls hugged fiercely and cried on each other’s shoulders.

“I wanted to get you a bracelet too, but next time now,” Ann said. She had fallen short. The chain-pendant had cost too much.

Mary began to say something, but Ann shhhed her up.

“Do not say it. No need. For, one day you’ll get a great job and you’ll be able to reciprocate a hundred times over. And then I’ll have no hesitation in accepting whatever you give me.”

“I wonder if that day will ever come,” Mary said dejectedly, suppressing a sob.

“Oh yes it will, it will, trust me, kiddo. Just keep the faith. I can see in you qualities that you can’t see in yourself. You are headed for the big-time, girl, and I’ll be the most jealous person on this goddamn planet when that happens.” And they laughed.

The next week, Ann quit her job. She had applied for and got work as a waitress in a mid-range restaurant on Savannah Beach. And Mary finally found work, filling in for Ann. She breathed for the first time in a year.

For the next two and a half years life was stable for the girls. Ann graduated to being a barmaid in Hotel Savannah Beach, Tybee Island’s plushest five-star hotel. The pay was fair, the service conditions good and she and Mary even moved to a small rented apartment. Mary had again slunk into Ann’s old job as a waitress. Thankfully for them, their bosses had conveniently overlooked that they were both underaged for their jobs.

And then one fine day the girls suddenly realized they were eighteen. Grown-ups! Adults! They felt so liberated, they decided to celebrate the phenomenon. The first treat they gave themselves was a tattoo. On Ann’s suggestion they got themselves inked with butterflies; both chose the same butterfly—an exquisite mix of red, yellow and blue, with a dash of dazzling-green, both chose the right cheek of their buttocks—a very private place...a secret that only they would know. It was a remarkable display of inseparable sisterhood.

For Ann, the butterfly stood for everything that was good and positive in life. Freedom, abandon, exhilaration, liveliness, and boundless beauty. They couldn’t have got themselves etched with a better mascot.

After the tattoos, it was time to let go that evening. Just the two of them, in their little pad, giving in to indulgence for the first time in their lives. Champagne and caviar and a lot of great seafood. They got drunk and felt rich. For a day, they were princesses. For a day, they were butterflies: carefree and sparkling with the joys of life.

Then one evening, a week later, after closing time (it was early morning actually), Ann was summoned by Mr. Martin Stuckmayer, manager in charge of foods and drinks at the Savannah Beach Hotel.

From the moment she stepped into his room, she knew something wasn’t right.

She was right. Mr. Stuckmayer told her in a soft, tired voice that she was being fired. That Richard Zahn, who worked the bar with her, had accused her of constant unsolicited sexual advances. That Mr. Zahn, an honorably married man with four children, could take it no more.

At first, Ann was stunned. Then tears streaming down her face, she began pleading. How could anyone utter such lies? And how did the management believe the man so easily when the truth was that it was Zahn who had been making these advances all along. That she hadn’t protested was because she had hoped it would go away—that the guy would eventually get the message and back off. That she didn’t want to upset the cart if she could help it. That she wanted to keep the job so badly, she was ready to put up a little for it.

Thirty minutes later she exited Stuckmayer’s office, her face white, her shoulders humped, her feet dragging along the floor.

The word had quietly been passed around that this girl was not to be employed,

And as Ann sat at home, Mary now supported her. It was as Ann had once said:
Who knows one day it might be you with a great job and me with nothing.
She had never believed it then that it would come to pass.

A few days on, Mary suddenly quit her job.

“I’ve found a great position in upscale Savannah,” she said excitedly.

“Really? What sort of a job?”

“In a five-star hotel...as a waitress. A customer was very impressed with my work. As it turns out, he’s the manager of this place,” Mary said. “I think we should leave this wretched island and move to the city proper. What say?”

Ann’s face brightened. She had all along wanted to move, now that a job on Savannah Beach wasn’t possible. But she hadn’t wanted to disturb Mary’s stability.

“Well, that’s a swell idea. When do we like move?”

“Like yesterday,” Mary smiled.

“Oh, yesterday is too far off,” Ann laughed. Then she added, “Perhaps I can get work as a barmaid in your hotel?” she wondered hopefully.

“Perhaps. After all, you’re the princess of highballs and cocktails,” Mary chuckled, and Ann could see she was very excited about this new job.
She deserves all the happiness she can get.

Ann did not get the job. Nor anywhere else. It was as if the tap had completely dried up.

Two months passed. Finally she found an opening as a baby-sitter, with a rich Hispanic couple whose husband could not speak any English. They paid a pittance and were constantly nagging. Ann often felt like wringing their throats and putting an end to everyone’s misery.

By now, Mary was really pulling in the cash—up to ten times her salary.
Tips,
she said, but Ann was uncertain. Alright, she was a decent server, but no one tipped that lavishly. Ann wanted to talk to her about it, woman to woman, but couldn’t bring herself to.
I don’t want to hurt her feelings in any way.
And what if she
really
thought I was jealous of her? There was no way Ann was going to jeopardize their friendship in the slightest. Mary’s friendship meant everything to her. She would take her word...blindly if necessary.

That year on Friendship Day, it was Mary’s turn. She got Ann a two karat diamond pendant, on a platinum chain. And there was more—a platinum bracelet, that said, ‘To Ann...from your best friend Mary.’

Ann was speechless. By the incredible generosity of course. But more by...and again her mind was saturated with uncertainties.

“What’s wrong...you don’t like it?” Mary asked. “Like you told me once that one day it would be my turn. Well...”

Ann recovered quickly. She shook her head. “I’m just so overwhelmed. I don’t really know...”

“Now you shhh up, okay?” And she laughed. “So you like it, hu?”

“Like it? You are crazy, Mary, why did you have to splash so much on...”

“Shhh. Shhh, shhh!” The girls embraced. “This is to our friendship…to our
sister-ship
.” Mary raised an imaginary toast.

“Now
I
am in your debt,” Ann said shaking her head. Despite her misgivings, she
was
overwhelmed by her dear friend’s gesture. That night, in bed, she prayed Mary wasn’t doing what Ann thought she might be. But no,
Mary can be anything, but she could never be a thief. We aren’t those type of girls.
And with that faith in her heart, Ann slept well.

One evening, a month later, Mary came home late. Ann was in bed, but not asleep. Mary was covering her face with a handkerchief, as if she did not want it to be seen. She darted straight to the washroom and Ann got up and quietly followed her. Something was wrong, Ann could tell, feeling a knot of fear form in her belly. She saw Mary then, in the mirror, as Mary raised her head.

Mary’s face was slashed in three places and Ann shrieked in horror.

“What happened...who did this to you?!”

But Mary said nothing, instead dashed past her into the room, as if desperate to avoid her friend. Ann noticed that Mary’s left hand was turned into a fist. And then she saw it, poking out of the fist...a wad of currency. A blinding flash of illumination and Ann knew.
Oh my God...oh, Jesus, no!
Losing all composure, she jumped on Mary and grabbed her shoulders.

“What! What the hell have you being doing?!” she screamed, shaking Mary...shaking her furiously. “God, no...nooooo...!” she wailed.

Mary could not look Ann in the eyes. The currency clenched tight in her fist, she looked away, her face a vacant mask. And Ann kept holding her, as if holding on to dear life.

.