Promises Not Kept

48

             "Oh, Debbie you didn't have to." Leah was pleasantly surprised to open the door and find her neighbor with a plate covered in foil.

"Nonsense, it's Joey's birthday!" The plain but caring woman beamed.

"Come in for tea," Leah welcomed her inside. "I'll put this in the fridge. I can't thank you enough, I hadn't enough time to make something. I was going to have Charlie watch her so I could pop down to the bakery." She peeked under the foil to find a lovely little cake. It wasn't anything like the beautifully decorated cakes that Frances used to make at Arrow House. They had to make do with what little they had during the Depression.

Leah had the extra money Polly sent every so often kept in a locked jewelry box underneath the floorboards. No one trusted the banks anymore, especially in the United States. But she seldom tucked into the savings anymore now that she had a secure income. She could pay for rent and everything her children needed. They certainly weren't living like they used to in Warwickshire but that was okay. They didn't need luxury if it cost them their safety.

Leah put the kettle on and rummaged around in her drawers for any candles she might have for the cake.

"Honestly, Leah, I don't know how you do it." Debbie sighed. "Being on your own with two kids and another on the way?"

She smiled and uncovered a few candles leftover from Charlie's birthday as well as matches. "They're good kids, they hardly give me any trouble, luckily." It had been quite some time since the incident at Charlie's school. He hadn't gotten into any more fights and generally held his tongue. He spent more time outside playing than he did with his family. But Leah figured that he would much rather play with his friends.

"Maybe it's the British in them." Her neighbor rolled her eyes. "Max's got a mouth like a fucking sailor. I've no idea where he gets it from." She muttered into her teacup.

Leah laughed and shook her head, not commenting. She checked the clock on the wall and made note that the kids should be running through the door at any second. She made sure the cake was properly hidden in the refrigerator before going to sit down at the table with Debbie.

"Have you heard from him?"

Leah had been pretty open with her newfound friends, the women who lived in the same apartment building as she did. Ones with children all around the same age as Johanna and Charlie. They all played together in the street and Leah was so glad to see them socializing more often than they did in Warwickshire. She felt that Charlie was gaining more confidence and Johanna was growing into her bubbly self. But it was good to have a few confidants to talk to about her troubles back in England. Although she didn't get into the hairy details of it all, she admitted her husband was still in London and she wasn't sure when they'd return to him. If at all.

"No, I haven't heard from his aunt either." Leah glanced down at the teacup clasped in her hands. "It's been seven months now, I thought..." She bit her lip. "I assumed he would've found us by now but maybe he's listened to Polly. Maybe he'll give us the space we need."

Debbie's brow furrowed in sympathy. "You must miss him, all the same."

She swallowed. "Of course, I do. I think there would be something wrong with me if I didn't miss him, he's my husband. But I don't miss the things he put us through. There are times I just don't understand him and I don't know if I ever will."

"I wish I could offer you some translator to get through to him." Debbie smiled and touched her friend's hand for reassurance. "Men are so difficult to read sometimes."