CHAPTER 20
I was no longer the silly girl who always did what her parents told her.
I kept waiting for the moment when I would regret what I had done with Frankie, but that moment never came. I just kept going over and over in my head how beautiful and perfect and gentle he had been the whole time, asking me if I was doing okay, and telling me we could stop. Of course, that was the last thing either one of us wanted to do, but I appreciated the gesture none-the-less.
A tiny sliver of light shone through the heavy curtains. Morning was fast approaching, but I was more than content to stay exactly where I was, wrapped in Frankie’s strong arms, the sweet smell of him enveloping me tighter than the blankets ever could. I didn’t dare move. The last thing I wanted was to wake him, and I hoped this moment would never end. Thankfully, Frankie was a deep sleeper and his quiet, soothing snores lulled me back to my own sleep for a while longer.
I didn’t think that anything could possibly be as perfect as waking up in Frankie’s arms, but watching how giddy and happy he was, was even more satisfying. He strutted around with this big, goofy smile plastered on his face, like he couldn’t not smile if he tried.
After he paced the room a couple more times, trying to burn off extra energy, he sat back down on the bed.
“I am so sorry it took me this long to figure everything out,” he said. “I wish I had never talked to the Boss that night.”
“Don’t worry,” I said, putting my hands on his face.
He pulled one of my hands to my lips. “Your father has a lot of clout in this town and the Boss figured messing around with you could be dangerous for business.” He paused for a moment, and let out a humorless chuckle. “I guess he was right.”
I dropped my hands down, looking at them. “I’m sorry Frankie. I feel like this is all my fault.”
“Sadie, don’t worry. It’s not like you did anything. You can’t help who your family is.”
“You don’t understand. I think… I think my father is working for both sides. I think he might be working for the Boss too.” I looked into his eyes. “Annie and me, we just wanted to have a little fun for once in our lives,” I said, suddenly remembering what our ‘fun’ had really caused. “And now Annie’s gone, and the Boss’ business is gone, and we… I… ruined everything.”
Frankie stood with his mouth open for a moment, obviously processing the shock of my father being crooked. Finally, he shook his head. “No Sadie, it wasn’t you. The City and the cops were already closing in on us a while ago, long before I ever glanced your way. None of this is your fault. And none of it is Annie’s either. She was just an innocent bystander, gunned down by crazed law enforcement. None of this was you, even if your father had a hand in it.” He looked me straight in the eye and said again, “none of this was you.”
I blinked back tears, trying to meet his gaze. He believed what he said, or perhaps was just desperate to believe it. It would take me a lot longer to forgive myself than it took for Frankie to forgive me, but I tried to smile anyway. “Thanks,” I whispered.
“And hey, it’s not like the business is totally ruined. We’ve got joints all over the place. The heat has started to die down back home,” he said, more hopeful than he had in days. “We get to start over in a new place where no one even knows who you are. You don’t have to be the Mayor’s daughter if you’re not living in his city.”
My heart beat a little faster. But what else could I possibly be? And then it dawned on me. I could be whoever I wanted to be. Maybe I didn’t have to be the snooty, upper-class, perfect-at-every-minute daughter anymore! My eyes grew wide. “I can just leave and go somewhere where nobody even knows who I am. Where the name McKay is just any old name!”
Frankie was nodding vigorously. “And nobody would care. Besides, it wouldn’t be anybody’s business.”
I crawled to my knees. “We would make a life together!”
Frankie smiled wide. “We sure would. For now, we’d have to live at my old apartment—it’s all I got—but I swear Sadie, we’ll get a proper house as soon as we can swing it.”
“A house? Really?” I threw my arms around Frankie, hardly able to believe he already had it all planned out.
He laughed, nodding. “A place of our own. We’ll have everything you could ever want. You should see the shops they have in Chicago. If you think all this is something…” he said, gesturing to all the new clothes around the room, “…you’ll faint when you see what they’ve got back home.”
“Could we have a big yard? I’d love to show my mother what a read yard should look like.”
He grinned. “Why not? As long as it has a big ol’ porch for us to sit and cool off at night, I’m game. Heck, maybe we could find something that looks over the lake. Course, those houses would be pretty big, but nothin’s too good for my girl.”
I couldn’t tell if he was kidding or not, but I didn’t even care. I didn’t need a big house or a fancy neighborhood. I’d had that all my life and look where that had gotten me.
“I don’t need anything fancy Frankie, I just need you.”
He smiled and pulled me closer. Across the room I noticed a suit draped over the chair, the same suit he’d worn that first night I snuck out. It seemed like it had happened a million years ago.
“Frankie, what about your old life… the Boss? I couldn’t stand it, always wondering if something like the night at Diamonds could happen again…”
Frankie was shaking his head. “I’ll break away from the Boss and the rest of the guys and it’ll just be us, I promise. I can’t wait for you to see it Sadie. Chicago is such a beautiful place, and it’s got so much energy. There’s stuff going on all night long back home.”
“I’ll be the happiest girl Chicago ever saw. The only thing is…” I said, sinking back down to sit, “…what about my sister?”
Frankie snuggled up close. “I know Sadie, but this will be for the best. If you go back home now, imagine the scandal for your family. Your sister might even get hurt in the process. If you stay ‘missing,’ then your family will find a way to save face.”
“But if I turn myself in, maybe…”
He put a finger up to my lips. “Then the reporters would have a field day with you. And with your father. Your mother and sister would be humiliated. The whole family could be run out of town. It’s just lucky that the Boss got nabbed too. I don’t know what he’d do to them.”
My stomach tightened at the thought that something could have happened to my family. And I certainly wasn’t helping matters. Maybe, if they could just hold out the story that their precious daughter was missing, perhaps even kidnapped, then the entire city would have sympathy for them. My father would be reelected easily with that kind of support, if he was man enough to stay in town. More importantly, my sister and mother could continue to live a comfortable life. I didn’t want to think of the alternative. All my life, all my father had ever done was charm people. What other sort of occupations were there for someone like that? I couldn’t do that to Mother and Emily. But I also couldn’t just let Emily think I was gone forever, without a trace.
After some time passed, maybe we could meet somewhere again.
I turned to Frankie who was rubbing my back gently, letting me think through my options. “Okay. But I have to at least talk to my sister. Let her know I’m all right.”
He must have seen the pleading in my eyes. “I know you want some closure,” he said gently. “But it’s just too risky.”
“But I can’t just let her think I’m dead!” I yelled. “I’m the person closest to her in the whole world.”
“I know it’s bad,” he said, “but the heat will still be swarming all over your parent’s house.”
Tears sprung to my eyes. “Frankie, I can’t do that to them. To my sister!” I pleaded.
He wrapped his arms tightly around my shoulders. “It’s okay Sadie, it’ll be okay. Maybe when we get to where we’re going, and we know we’re safe… maybe then you can send a l
etter. Let them know everything is okay.”
“But…” It was hard enough to comprehend leaving this town, the only home I’d ever known, but to do it allowing my family to think the worst? How would I feel if someone I loved went missing? What if it were my sister who I thought was kidnapped… or worse?
“Shhh…” Frankie said, stroking my hair. “It will be okay, I promise.”
But he couldn’t really promise that. My parents and sister would be sick with worry for weeks until Frankie and I were sure no one had followed us or suspected what we’d been up to.
I couldn’t do that to them. Maybe if it were just my parents, but I would never be able to leave without at least letting Emily know I was alive, even if she might never see me again. The poor girl had been through enough. After all, she had grown up in the same prison-like home I had. She had to deal with the scrutiny from the press just as much as me, perhaps even more since she was the baby of the family. The darling girl who’d been born just after my father had already taken office fourteen years ago. She was probably scared out of her mind this very second, the stress of so many people watching her, asking questions that she didn’t have the answers to, following her around, no doubt giving her no relief except when she was holed up in the house. I couldn’t leave her, on top of all that, to think I might be dead when I was perfectly fine. It was too cruel.
The second Frankie walked out of that motel room that afternoon to gather supplies and research our options for getting out of town, I snuck out too, wearing some of my stylish new clothes, pen and paper ready in my new black handbag.
I had to make sure I wouldn’t attract too much attention. Given the fact I was trying not to be seen, I was extremely glad Frankie had bought me a few hats in the latest fashion as well. The one I wore drooped jauntily over one eye, perfect for remaining incognito. Sure, I’d likely turn a few heads, but I was positive no one would guess my true identity dressed like this.
I put on extra rouge and lipstick, just in case, and with the charcoal lining my eyes, I truly did look like a different person. Perhaps even a better person.
I figured now was as good a time as any to try out a new walk too. Striding as confidently as I could muster, I made my way toward home.
It was a long walk, especially in the new shoes.
As I went, the houses grew bigger and the lawns more manicured, until eventually I made it to one of the biggest houses in town. My old house.
There were a few folks loitering on the street several yards from the front door. I’d hoped I’d be able to sneak in that way, but it would be out of the question.
As I stood staring at the house, wondering what my next plan of attack should be, one of the men in the group glanced up in my direction. I quickly turned and started walking down the sidewalk, away from my house, sneaking around the corner at the end of the block, hiding behind the bushes of the Jensen’s house.
I stayed there for a moment, catching my breath. Removing my hat, I peered around the thick hedge. Down at the end of the street, the man gazed in my general direction but did not see me spying. Finally, after several heart-wrenching moments, he turned back toward the group waiting outside my family’s home. My lungs emptied in one relieved whoosh.
I continued up the street parallel to my old one, put my hat back on, and tried to force a plan to come together. Emily’s window was at the back of the house, the same as mine, but what would I do if her window wasn’t open? The trouble was that I doubted my father would allow any open windows anymore, not after my ‘kidnapping’—or more importantly, in case any mobsters were still hanging around—and he’d make sure they were all locked as well.
I closed my eyes and hoped beyond hope that I would be wrong.
I crept through the back gate which I’d walked through hundreds of times before, and my heart sank. Every window was shut tight. I leaned against the fence, my shoulders slumping, and t ried to will myself not to cry.
Think Sadie, think! There has got to be a way to get a message to Emily.
But nothing came to me. In frustration, I kicked one of the rocks in my mother’s new flower garden. Really, it was just a rock garden with a few spindly bushes sparsely planted here and there. I’d never seen a flowerbed full of stupid, ugly rocks before, but my mother insisted it was the newest thing, all the rage over in Europe. I thought it looked plain hideous. But it was there, in the blandness of that rock garden that the idea came to me.
I quickly scribbled a note to my sister.
Emily,
You must be so confused right now, but please don’t worry about me. I am safe and beginning to find my true happiness. You must concentrate on your singing now, more than ever, and use it to someday get away from this place.
I know in my heart that all your dreams will come true.
All my love,
Sadie
I wanted to tell her everything that had gone on, but didn’t want to risk the time it would take to write it all out, not to mention the very good possibility that someone else could find the note besides Emily. If it was Edith, our maid, I could probably trust her to quietly give it to Emily, she’d always disagreed with my father over most everything. But if my father was to come and open the window, Emily would never see and he’d never let her know I was safe. It would be far too risky in his mind to allow the possibility of Emily saying something to the wrong person, or it getting leaked to the papers. Then what sort of sympathy would he have with the people? No, a man whose daughter would rather run off with some gangster than spend another minute in his house was not exactly the sort of thing the voting public adored.
But there was no other way.
I crept up to my sister’s window as quietly as I could, surprised at how much easier this all seemed a few days ago. Of course, a few days ago I’d had no idea what I stood to lose.
I kissed the note for luck and reached up, placing the folded paper on the outer windowsill, carefully placing the fist-sized rock I’d stolen from my mother’s garden on top to keep it from blowing away.
“Please don’t let it rain,” I whispered into the air, and crept back out of my yard as quietly as I’d crept in.
I avoided the front of the house with all the snoops and took an alternate route back to the hotel, sweeping in a wide arc around my old neighborhood. After the almost run in with that reporter back there, I could not be too careful. But I had to hurry too, if Frankie knew I’d left the motel room, he’d have a heart attack right there on the spot.
I quickly checked the watch he bought on his little spending spree and realized that I’d already been gone more than an hour, and by the time I made it back, it would be closer to ninety minutes.
Please, please let Frankie be taking a long time to organize our escape plan, I thought as I scurried along as fast as I could in the new shoes.
Finally, I reached the motel. I flooded with relief when there were no lights on in our room, but I had to waste more precious time, forced to ask the motel manager to come and open the door for me. I didn’t remember him, but he apparently remembered me from the night we’d checked in. I didn’t like the way he smirked when he recognized me, but at least I was able to get back in the room before Frankie arrived back.
As it turned out, I hadn’t a moment to spare. Just as I’d gotten my hat off and was in the midst of pulling off my gloves, Frankie burst through the door.
His excited expression quickly turned to a frown. “Have you gone out somewhere?” he asked, panic flashing through his eyes as he looked at my gloves, halfway off my hands.
“Uh…” I stammered. I quickly pulled the glove back on. “No. No, of course not,” I said, smiling, though I was shaking inside at the lie. “I saw you coming and thought maybe we could go someplace nice for supper. I’m getting a bit stir crazy all cooped up in this little room,” I said, shrugging.
The relief flooded his face and I had to admit I felt a little thrill that my lie had actually worked.
“Sadie,” he said, gently, “we can’t go out. Who knows who might see us? You’re practically a celebrity in this town. We could never get away with it.”
I put on a big pout for good measure. “I know we shouldn’t, but I just thought with the new clothes and an extra touch of makeup, people might not recognize me.”
He chuckled, coming close and pulling me into him. “Well, I must say you do look beautiful, but even with the clothes and the makeup there’s no way people wouldn’t recognize you. You’ve been plastered all over the papers for days.”
He shook his head, still chuckling, and hugged me close.
My stomach churned. I truly thought my disguise was good, that people wouldn’t recognize me. But what if someone had?
I didn’t have much time to think about it though as Frankie pulled out of the hug. “And don’t you worry about being cooped up in here any longer. I’ve got our tickets out of here.” He pulled an envelope out of his jacket pocket and handed it to me. “Two tickets to Chicago, leaving on the early train.”
My smile widened as I tore into the envelope, studying the first class tickets on the Soo Line. I jumped and flung my arms around him, finally feeling like everything might be okay after all. And now that I’d gotten a message to Emily, at least I hoped it would reach her, I was really free to go.