Acre Under a Green Sky

My banana split was a disgusting soup when I got back to the booth. Gladys had taken her place again in the booth across from Danny and my father. I sat down next to Gladys, and my father pushed my bowl across the table to me.

"I want you to eat every bite," he said.

And then he turned back to Gladys:

"Were you working Graduation Night?"

"Sure, sweetie. Wouldn't miss it for the world," she said with a pronounced finger tap to her cigarette over the ashtray.

"Did you happen to notice when Joe went out that night?"

"Are you kidding? There's no way I could know. He keeps his car out back, so he uses the back door mostly. I suppose if I happen to be in the kitchen picking up an order just at that moment, I might see him coming or going, but don't ask me about time when I'm working. We were up to our maracas that night."

"Would it make sense for him to eat out that night?"

"Damn well better, if he knows what's good for him. We were backed up four tables as it was. One table waited forty-five minutes for burgers. Thank God they liked their beers or I would have had another "walk-out" on my hands. I took home seventy-four bucks that night."

"Did you happen to notice Luka that night?"

"Who didn't!? That bastard –– oops! Pardon my French! –– he was all over the place that night. Ordinarily, I don't mind. I love Luka, but he was really getting on my nerves that night."

"Why?"

"He was constantly underfoot. Every time I turned around, he was there like a fool wanting to kiss me or dance with me; taking trays outta my hands and putting them down at any old table. Wanting to buy me a drink. That man was like a bad rug under my feet and I was always tripping over him. Poor, sweet baby. He didn't do it, you know."

"What makes you say that?"

"He loved Gwen and them kids more than his own life. Anyone could see that. The idea that he could . . . " Suddenly, those dimples disappeared, and Gladys touched her lips with her fingertips. Just as suddenly, she shot back with a fierce, "He didn't do it, that's all!" Then, Gladys stamped out her cigarette, and said, "Anything else?"

"I'm sorry, Gladys, but I have to . . . "

"That's okay. That's okay. What?"

"Does Joe come in every night?"

"Every night, yeah."

"And he stays till closing every night?"

"Like I say, I can't be standing guard at the back door all night; but yeah, he's mostly back in the office all night. Sometimes, he'll walk through the place if he's going to get change from across the street, and if we're busy, he'll go out back to his car and drive off someplace to eat, but mostly I see him in the office when I go back for supplies or if we have a question about a tab or something. Does that help you at all?"

Gladys was already on her feet and pulling her dupe pad from the pocket of her apron. Then, like swatting a fly, she retrieved the pencil from behind her ear.

"Now, what can I get you, sweetie?" she said.

"Nothing for me today. Thanks, Gladys."

Gladys started down the aisle between the booths; then suddenly turned back.

"Hey sweetie, you're not talking about his Monday nights, are you?"

"Yes. Monday night."

"Oh well, you should have said so. Yeah, he goes out every Monday night about 7:30 and comes back 10:30; 11:00, like that. But don't ask me where he goes. He doesn't say. Okay?"

"Yeah, okay. Fine. Thanks."

My father reached inside his jacket and pulled out a little black notebook. Every time he did that I imagined he was an FBI man pulling a revolver from his shoulder holster. The flip-top notebook had a worn black leather cover and a renewable pad. I wanted that notebook desperately, and today it sits on my desk. My father was scribbling a few notes, when I said, "Mom's sick all the time now."

"What?"

"She gets sick all the time now and we have to be with you."

"She pukes in the toilet," Danny added.

"She's okay," my father said, returning to his notes.

"You should do something."

"Your mother is having a hard time with all this Luka business. That's all. She'll be all right. Now, eat up! We're not leaving until you finish every bite of that crap!"