Special Delivery (18 page)

“Which you are not going to eat for breakfast.”

“No, no, of course not.”

“All right. I'll see what Allie wants to do.”

An hour and a half later, Ruby, Flora, Min, and Aunt Allie were dressed, their suitcases were packed, and Allie had taken several walks through the apartment, checking to see that she had left everything in order.

“I guess we're ready,” she said at last. “We can bring our things downstairs and leave them in the lobby while we're at the restaurant.”

And so Ruby bid a sad good-bye to the only Manhattan apartment she had ever known. As she walked out the door she said to herself, Someday I'm going to live in an apartment just like this. Except that it will be in a building full of famous people.

The Silver Spoon was exactly as Ruby had described it. It was indeed very large and full of both tables and booths. And near the cashier's counter by the door were three tall display cases in which cakes, pies, pastries, and even dishes of Jell-O cubes rotated slowly.

“Min?” said Ruby.

“No.”

“Darn. Well, if I can't have a dessert, then could Flora and I at least sit at our own table?”

“At your own table?”

“You know, and pretend we're here by ourselves.”

Min glanced at Aunt Allie. Then she looked around the restaurant. “I suppose it would be all right,” she said at last. “Does this mean you want to pay for yourselves, too?”

“Min!”

“Or better yet, treat all of us,” said Allie.

Ruby reluctantly opened her wallet and began to count her money.

“We're teasing, honey,” said Min gently. “Yes, you and Flora may sit at a separate table as long as Allie and I can see you. We don't want you far away. And we'll pay for breakfast.”

“Thank you! Oh, thank you, Min!” cried Ruby. “Come on, Flora.”

Min grabbed her arm. “Wait. The hostess will show you to a table.”

As Ruby followed the hostess to a booth by the windows, she decided that she had never in her life felt quite as grown-up as she did at that moment, especially when she realized that some of the other people in the restaurant were watching her. She whispered to Flora, “Those people are probably thinking, Look at those girls out for breakfast all by themselves. They must be real New Yorkers.”

Ruby was slightly disappointed when the hostess then showed Min and Aunt Allie to the very next booth, but she recovered quickly when a waitress arrived at their table and said, “What'll it be, girls?” and didn't even ask what they were doing there without grown-ups.

“This has been the best meal of the whole trip,” said Ruby with a satisfied sigh as the waitress cleared their table later. “Don't you feel grown-up, Flora? Don't you feel like you belong here in New York?”

“This has really been fun,” said Flora truthfully. She refrained from adding that she was now ready to go back to Camden Falls and King Comma and Daisy Dear and Olivia and Nikki and all her familiar things.

“But you're ready to go home, aren't you?” said Ruby. Flora nodded. “I knew it. Well, I'll be glad to get home, too, I guess. But New York is … magic. I wish I could keep it with me always.”

After Min and Aunt Allie had helped Ruby and Flora pay their bill and had shown them how to calculate a tip for the waitress, they stepped out into the cold air and sunshine and began the walk back to the apartment building. Halfway there, Ruby suddenly bent down and scooped a handful of grit from the sidewalk.

“Ruby! Ew! What are you doing?” yelped Flora.

“Taking this home.”

“That … dirt?”

“This isn't just any old dirt. This is a Manhattan souvenir. And it's the best kind.”

“Because it's free?” said Flora.

Ruby made a face at her. “No. Because it's a little bit of the Big Apple. I guess you could say it's a little
bite
of the Big Apple.”

“What are you going to do with it?”

“Put it in a jar. And keep it on my bookshelf, where I can look at it every day. Does anyone have a baggie?”

Miraculously, Min produced a baggie from her voluminous handbag. “I knew this would come in handy one day,” she said.

Ruby emptied the dirt into the baggie and wiped her hands on her jeans, and they made their way back to the apartment building, where they collected their suitcases. In no time, they had piled into Allie's car and were driv ing north on the West Side Highway, headed for the George Washington Bridge.

“Back to our home,” said Flora with a happy sigh.

“Back to reality,” said Ruby, who could feel her mood take a nosedive. Flora would be happy enough to return to school the next day, but Ruby didn't feel ready. Furthermore, the thought that she was on probation in the Children's Chorus flew back into her mind, unbidden and unwelcome. That thought was followed by another equally unwelcome one: Her solo in the Christmas concert had been taken away. And it had probably been given to Lacey. How was Ruby going to face her friend?

Soon, Allie's car was speeding along the Palisades Parkway. In the front seat, Min fell asleep. Next to Ruby, Flora fell asleep, too.

“Why don't you take a nap, honey?” called Allie.

But Ruby couldn't sleep. Suddenly, she was overtaken by her poisonous thoughts. Perhaps, she thought, she could arrange for some sort of accident to befall Lacey. What if Lacey broke her arm or twisted her ankle? Better yet, what if she lost her voice? But if Lacey couldn't sing the solo, then Ms. Angelo would just give it to someone else. Ruby would not be singing it. Ms. Angelo had made that clear. Ruby was going to have to work hard to revive her career.

She stared furiously out the window until the scenery began to blur, and eventually she fell asleep after all. When she awoke, it was to the sound of her sister saying, “Good old Main Street.”

Ruby opened her eyes. “We're back already?”

“Yes,” said Aunt Allie from the driver's seat. “And I'm going to drop you off at the Row Houses and then go on home. Mom, I'll call you later,” she said to Min as she turned onto Aiken Avenue.

“Okay. Rudy is going to drive me to the train station in a little while so I can retrieve my car.”

And just like that, Thanksgiving was over, the thrilling weekend was over, and New York seemed like a movie Ruby had watched a long, long time ago. She stuck her tongue out in the direction of Lacey's house as she lugged her suitcase up Min's front walk and Allie drove away.

Then Min unlocked the door and several things happened all at once. Daisy Dear came flying down the stairs from the second floor so fast that she stumbled on the fourth step and crash-landed at everyone's feet. King Comma trotted into the front hall and stretched himself against Ruby's legs. And from behind them a deep voice said, “Did you have a good trip?”

“Rudy!” cried Min. “What a nice surprise!” She gave Mr. Pennington a long hug.

“We had the
best
time!” exclaimed Flora.

“We went to Broadway,” said Ruby. “And I ate a chestnut.”

“We saw the windows at Lord and Taylor,” added Min.

“We ate at a French restaurant and a Chinese restaurant,” said Flora.

“Come have a cup of tea with me before we leave for the station,” said Min to Mr. Pennington, and hand-in-hand they walked toward the kitchen.

Flora dragged her suitcase upstairs.

Ruby was looking forlornly at her bag of dirt when she heard a timid knock at the door. She opened it and found Lacey standing on the stoop. “Hi,” said Lacey. “Can I come in?”

Ruby glowered at her. Then she slammed the door shut.

“Ruby Jane Northrop!”

Ruby froze. Min had returned to the hallway. She was reaching for her purse.

“Yeah?” said Ruby.

“Was that Lacey?”

“Yeah.”

“Open that door this minute, young lady.”

Ruby turned the doorknob. Lacey was crossing into the Malones' yard, one shaky hand rubbing her eyes.

“Lacey,” said Min gently. “Come back.” She ushered Lacey inside, then took her by one hand and Ruby by the other, led them into the living room, and sat them on the sofa.

“Ruby,” said Min, “that was one of the rudest things you have ever done, and I want you to apologize to Lacey right now.”

“Sorry,” said Ruby.

“You never, ever” (Min continued looking directly into Ruby's eyes) “
ever
slam a door in anyone's face for any reason. Do you understand me? It's humiliating and mean and petty.”

“Sorry,” said Ruby again.

“I'd like you to imagine how you would feel if someone slammed a door in your face.”

Ruby nodded. “Horrible,” she said. And added yet again, “Sorry.”

“All right. Now, I promised Mr. Pennington a cup of tea, and I expect that you two have some things to discuss. So I'm going to go back into the kitchen and I want you girls to stay here and talk things over. Civilly.”

Ruby nodded and Min left the room. “Lacey?” said Ruby. “I really am sorry. I guess I —” She paused, uncertain how to continue. “Ms. Angelo gave you my solo, didn't she?” she said at last.

Lacey nodded. “I knew you'd be mad.”

“Well, I am. But not at you. You aren't the one who skipped rehearsals and made a giant mistake during the concert. And anyway, you know you deserve the solo.”

“But Ms. Angelo offered it to you first. That must mean she thinks you're better.”

“Not necessarily. She tries to give everyone a chance. And I blew mine. But you're not going to. You'll do a great job, Lacey. Doing well at something,” said Ruby slowly, “comes partly from being really good at it and partly from working hard. That's what I learned this weekend.”

“You learned that in New York?” said Lacey suspiciously.

“Yup. We went to this play on Broadway —”

“On
Broadway
?”

Ruby nodded. “It was called
Spotlight
. And there was this character in it named Eva.” Ruby told Lacey about how Eva had fallen out of favor. “So, see, even though Eva was really talented, she couldn't get parts anymore, except for playing maids and old aunts and stuff. Which is what I mean about being good at what you do
and
having to work hard. And that's you, Lacey. You go to all the rehearsals and you practice at home. You work really hard … and you have a beautiful voice.”

“Thanks,” said Lacey quietly. “I
am
excited about singing the solo. I just didn't like getting it this way. And I didn't want you to be upset.”

“Well, I'll be sad not to be singing the solo at the concert,” admitted Ruby. “It's going to feel weird. But I do have a chance to start over and I'm going to take it seriously. I guess that's why Ms. Angelo put me on probation.”

“You're on pro
ba
tion?” squeaked Lacey. “Like a criminal?”

“I prefer to think of myself as an experiment,” said Ruby stiffly.

Lacey nodded. “Anyway, are we friends again?”

“Yeah.”

“Good.” Lacey relaxed. “So, did you get any souvenirs in New York?”

Ruby nodded. “I'll show you the best one,” she said, and went off to find her bag of dirt.

Flora liked Camden Falls during every season of the year. She liked her town when it put on its spring face and the dull, dreary days of February and March became green and pink and violet and azure, just as if, Flora thought, a giant had taken up his paints and brushes, colored in the town, and added leaves and flowers and freshness. She liked Camden Falls in summer, when school was out and she and her sister and friends planted vegetables and swam in the freezing water at the state park and wandered along Main Street, eating ice-cream cones and watching the tourists. She liked autumn, when the giant's palette changed and the trees burned orange and vermilion and gold and bronze, and pumpkins grinned from porches and Main Street got ready for Halloween night. But her favorite season in Camden Falls was winter. As soon as Thanksgiving was over, Main Street began to glow and glitter with the holiday decorations put up by Mr. Freedly and the owners of the stores and businesses in town. Wreaths appeared on doors. Menorahs appeared in windows. It was the season of lights and of darkness, Flora thought dramatically. The days were short and dim, but it barely mattered because the town twinkled and shone.

And now, miracle of miracles, it was December again, and had been for nearly two weeks. Min and Flora and Ruby had bought a tree, which they had decorated with help from Mr. Pennington, and then they had helped him decorate his tree. Flora's house smelled of pine and cinnamon and peppermint and chocolate. And it was filled with secrets. Ruby had hidden something under her bed, something she refused to discuss with anyone. Min had declared the guest bedroom — the one that, just a year earlier, had been occupied by Aunt Allie — absolutely off-limits to Flora and Ruby.