library services for children, Mrs. Keller is working. I suggest you set an appointment to speak to her outside her work hours.”
Mrs. Bower glares at him and leaves.
Janice glances up. “Thank you.”
The supervisor blinks in surprise, but nods and goes back to the children's desk.
Moving her sewing projects to the living room and the dining room, Janice makes quilts over the next few weeks. She is working on a backing when the doorbell rings.
Janice glances out the window at a crowd scene. She notes Mrs. Riley, the colonel's wife, and opens the door. “Happy Birthday!” The ladies yell.
“Give me a moment to clear the living room.” Janice heads back into the house to carefully stack the pieces of cloth in some sort of order. She puts them on the piano to leave space on the couches and dining room table. The women file into the kitchen and start taking out glasses and small plates. They move into the dining room and filter into the living room.
“A grand piano.” One of the mothers of younger children touches the finish with awe.
“A baby grand.” Janice answers.
“Do you give lessons?” Another woman asks.
“I don't play. I bought it for my son.” Janice shakes her head. “If you can find someone who does and wants to teach, they can use it for an hour or so in the afternoon.”
“That's so generous.” The mother of younger children says.
“Landon's no longer here to play it, but I promised him I would hang on to it as long as I had space.” Janice answers. “I don't think it does it any good just to sit there.”
Another woman frowns. “You live here by yourself? I thought there were regulations.”
“Technically, there are four of us. My husband is deployed overseas, my daughter is at military academy, and my son is not yet of age and may return at any time.” Janice shrugs. “They are just not here right now.”
Mrs. Riley steps into the conversation. “This is why we are here to help you celebrate a birthday when we thought you might be alone. We brought birthday cake and something to drown your sorrows.”
“Thank you.” Janice eats cake, but avoids eating anything else.
“So where is your husband?” Another woman from the wife's group asks.
“Deployed overseas.” Janice answers.
“But where overseas?” Her questioner frowns.
“I am not at liberty to discuss my husband's whereabouts.”
“Is that what Landon is doing as well?” Mrs. Bower, who arrived late, dives into the conversation.
“My husband tells me that Landon won both a prestigious scholarship and a contract to play classical music all over the country. He is a boy that makes this base proud. Too bad some of our other children are not as disciplined.” The colonel's wife faces down Mrs. Bower.
“Maybe some of us can't afford baby grand pianos.” Mrs. Bower curls her lips. “It makes me wonder where they got the money.”
“I work at the library. You know, where you accosted me the other day.” Janice answers.
Mrs. Riley interrupts. “It's time to wind this party down. In case her husband or children phone.”
The ladies clean up mostly by taking their dishes with them when they go. Janice is relieved to close the door behind them. She spreads out her sewing and goes back to work. The phone rings.
“Hello.”
“Janice, it's your father.” The gruff voice is recognizable.
“Hi, Dad.”
“I thought someone should remember your birthday. Mike's off in the Middle East.”
“I am not supposed to know that, Dad.”
“Military secrecy. Hardly worth the bother now the press puts pictures on the internet as everything is happening. What's this I see about a Landon Keller playing solos with the Arizona philharmonic?”
“He won a contract. He's playing all over the country, and then going to music school.”
“Never could make a man of him.”
Janice takes a deep breath and counts to ten.
“Do you suppose they would sell a ticket to a retired military man?”
“If you have the cash, yes.”
“Don't have anything else to spend my pension on now your mother has passed on.”
Janice bites the inside of her mouth to keep from speaking.
“Just phoned to wish you a happy birthday.” The phone goes dead. Janice hangs it up and goes to change for bed.
Janice reaches for a storybook the next morning.
“Mommy says you have a piano at your house.” A little girl eyes Janice as if she is deciding on her trustworthiness.
“I do.” Janice nods.
“Is it a nice piano?” The girl tilts her head to one side.
“My son likes it.” Janice answers.
“Can I come see it?”
“If your mother comes with you, you can come.”
The little girl gives Janice a timid smile and races off to her mother.
A knock on the door just as Janice closes the cupboard door after putting the clean dishes away brings Janice up right. She goes to look out the window, but it is the little girl and the woman who had admired her piano at the birthday celebration.
Janice opens the door and invites them into the house.
“Sorry about coming at the supper hour, but Cheryl has an early bedtime.”
“I am finished. Come into the living room.” Janice leads the way.
Cheryl reaches out her hand, but stops short of touching the instrument. Janice opens the key cover. “Sit down on the bench.”
“She might damage it.”
“After Landon, I doubt she is strong enough to knock it out of tune.” Janice shrugs.
Cheryl climbs up on the bench and very softly plinks the keys. The last note is out of place.
“Sorry.”
“That is what practice is for.” Janice tells Cheryl. “Even good players hit a wrong note sometimes.”
Cheryl gives her a half smile and goes back to plinking the keys. When she is finished, she slides off the bench. “Thank you. It's a very nice piano.”
“You are welcome.” Janice tells the child.
“Could I come back again?” Cheryl glances at her mother and then adds, “Please.”
“You could. Your mother and I would have to talk about when.” Janice nods.
“It's time to go home for now. Bedtime.” Cheryl's mother says.
Janice sees them to the door.
“May we speak again about lessons?” Cheryl's mother asks.
“The only obstacle is finding someone to teach her.” Janice answers.
“Thank you.”
Janice is forced by necessity to visit the commissary to buy groceries Saturday morning. She is half-way down the baking aisle when Mrs. Bower comes towards her. Janice ignores the woman as she picks up flour and baking powder.
“Mrs. Keller!”
“I'm busy.” Janice tells her and pushes her cart down the aisle. The woman dogs her footsteps.
“You are breaking regulations.”
Janice picks up a jar of jam and pushes her cart to the next aisle. She does not answer the woman's repeated attempts to speak to her and to accuse her of various misdeeds. Janice is about at the limit of her patience when she gets to the till. Janice starts unloading her cart. Mrs. Bower tries to get between Janice and the counter.
“You are going to listen to me.”
Janice takes a final deep breath.
“Captain Bower, what are you doing?” The sergeant in charge of the commissary comes over. “And why are you out of uniform?”
“Stay of this, sergeant. It's not your business.” Mrs. Bower suddenly takes the offensive.
“You are harassing one of my paying customers. This is my business.” The man answers. “Now get out of the way.”
“I will report this.”
“No, I will report this.” The sergeant reaches for a telephone attached to the check out. “This is Tony from the comm
issionaire. I have an out of control officer who is harassing my customer. Send an MP.”
Captain Bower glowers at the sergeant, but he pulls her aside. “Help this customer with her order.” He tells the clerk. “She has been delayed enough for one day.”
The colonel's office phones and Janice goes over there.
“Mrs. Keller.” The man who had spoken to Janice about the noise complaint approaches her.
“Yes.”
“The colonel would like your statement about what happened this morning with Captain Bower.” He escorts her to a desk.
“Do you want a statement or do you want to ask questions?”
“We can start with a statement and then I might have a few questions.”
Janice nods. “Mrs. Bower, or at least that is who she introduced herself as, has been coming to the spouse of soldier's meetings for a number of weeks. I stopped going after I refused to sign my son's enlistment papers because the wives insisted I was wrong to do so. Mrs. Bower showed up at the base library where I work to question me about the whereabouts of my son. My supervisor sent her away. This morning, when I went grocery shopping, she chased me down most of the aisles, questioning everything from my living accommodations to my children. Sergeant Trainor stopped her when she stood between me and the counter when I was attempting to check out. I did not know until then that she was military personnel.”
The man frowns. “Mrs. Keller, I have not met your husband. What does he do?”
“My husband is not attached to this base. He's overseas.”
The man pauses. “Excuse me a moment.” He gets up and leaves the room then returns with a file. He opens it and reads through the information. He whistles and then glances back at Janice.
“You are free to go.”
The ringing of the telephone interrupts Janice's sewing.
“Keller residence.” Janice glances at the clock which tells her it is