Finding Bluefield (27 page)

“Come on, Barbara. Didn’t I bring Rebecca with me?”

“I’ll give you some credit for that. She’s made the ride more interesting.”

Paul leaned forward and put his arms around Rebecca.

“You’re not done explaining,” Rebecca said.

“I just wanted to get to know you and for you to get to know me before we got families involved. Is that too much to ask? I was going to tell you.”

“See how cute he is? I told you, that’s why I fell for him. So did my parents.”

“Paul met your parents?” Barbara asked.

“They were up at school for a visit,” Paul said. “It wasn’t a plan.”

“My father wasn’t crazy about Paul not being Jewish. But he was so charming that my dad couldn’t help liking him.”

“Can we talk about something else?” Paul said.

“I’m glad you came a long,” Barbara said to Rebecca. “Maybe you’ll be able to help him understand.”

“Understand what?” Rebecca said. “This is the most mysterious family ever. By a long shot.”

“Tell me about my Aunt Carol-Ann,” Paul said.

“Is this a real aunt?” Rebecca said.

“She’s Nicky’s sister.”

“Why did they stop talking?” Paul said.

“We’ll give Mom a chance to fill in those details.”

“Their fight and our moving all came at the same time, around the time I was born.”

“That does seem like more than a coincidence. But you waited this long, you can wait till we see Mom. If she doesn’t tell you, I will. But she knows more than I do. Anyway, we’ll be there in a few hours. Just remember, everything she did was to protect you. Everything.”

“Protect me from what?”

Paul drove after dinner and Rebecca took the backseat where she stretched out and rested in case Paul wanted her to drive. By the time they crossed the Maryland border into Virginia, Rebecca was asleep.

“Did you really think Nicky and I would scare Rebecca away?” Barbara asked Paul. “She doesn’t look like she scares that easy.”

“It’s fun to be in college and have no past. You meet everyone with a clean slate.”

“I can understand that. I really do,” Barbara said. “But you shouldn’t wipe out your past. This is all Nicky’s fault, all the secrets. We’re going to have to put an end to that.”

“I want to know about my father, why we moved and why Mom stopped talking to her sister right after I was born,” Paul said. “Someday, there won’t be anyone to tell me.”

“I have a few questions of my own for your mother.”

*

The moon was directly overhead when Paul pulled the Jeep off the highway and onto Route 457 West.

“Pull over here,” Barbara said. She put her hand on Paul’s arm when she saw the Entering Bluefield sign ahead. Paul slowed and stopped on the dirt shoulder. Rebecca stirred in the back. “Do you want me to drive?”

Barbara got out of the car and stretched. She never thought she’d see this place again. She knelt and grabbed a handful of dirt and let it sift between her fingers. Paul knelt beside her and did the same.

“She always said it was in her veins,” Paul said.

“Are we there?” Rebecca opened her door and got out.

“Almost.” Barbara drove from that point, hoping to remember her way around. Twenty years later and she was still alive, and not only alive but returning to Bluefield with Paul, a full-grown man. She and Nicky had stayed together and were still in love. Who could have figured? It felt good to have made it that long.

Barbara gazed around as they neared town. Route 143 looked like thousands of other roads around the country, but it didn’t look anything like she remembered. “Damn, this place has changed,” Barbara said to Paul.

“You didn’t think it would?”

“I didn’t think it could.”

“I wonder what Mom thinks,” Paul said.

“We didn’t get you a room, Rebecca. Nicky got Paul his own room. We could get you your own room, but that might be silly since you were in Paul’s bed this morning when I called.”

“I’d rather stay with Paul,” she said.

“And your parents?” Barbara asked.

“They should definitely get their own room.”

“I like this one,” Barbara said. “But I don’t want to get in trouble with your parents, who I never met. Do they know you’re sleeping with Paul?”

“You won’t get into trouble,” Rebecca said.

“I hope you two have discussed birth control,” Barbara said.

“Please, Barbara?” Paul said.

“I know it’s awkward, and I understand that at school you can do what you want, and do, but I’m about to give you both a key to a motel room, so I have a responsibility. After all, I’m a doctor and your mom and a woman.”

Barbara parked next to Nicky’s Bel Air.

“That’s Mom’s car,” Paul said to Rebecca.

“Cool car.” Rebecca yawned.

“I just realized that Nicky has no idea Rebecca’s with us. This is going to be quite the surprise.”

“Yeah! I get to be a surprise,” Rebecca said as she got out of the Jeep.

“Well, you’re not the biggest surprise of the weekend,” Paul said.

“What is?” Rebecca said.

“I’m still waiting for that,” Paul said. “Let’s go see Mom.”

Barbara stepped in front of Paul and Rebecca. “Here we go.”

1982

Nicky stirred each time she heard a car stop, a door open, voices in the parking lot. When she finally heard Paul’s and Barbara’s voices, she stood, shook herself awake, ran her hands through her hair, smoothed out her clothes, and went to open the door for her family. As she opened the door, she was enveloped in Barbara’s arms and lips. Barbara let go and stepped back, and Paul leaned in to give her a kiss. That’s when Nicky saw the young woman with them.

“More people?” Nicky said.

“This is Rebecca,” Barbara said. Everyone looked at Paul. “Paul’s friend. She came along for the ride.”

“Hello, Ms. Stewart,” Rebecca said, extending her hand.

“Call me Nicky.” She gave Rebecca a hug. “That’s a long trip to come along for.”

“I love road trips.”

She turned to Barbara. “You knew about this?”

“Yes and no. I’ll fill you in later.”

“Come in,” Nicky said, pushing the door open. “I hope everyone’s hungry, because I picked up some food. A lot of food. Southern food. The real thing.”

“I thought you cooked the real thing,” Paul said.

“I do.” Nicky took Rebecca’s arm and led her in. “Have you had real Southern food?”

“Can’t say I’ve had much. I’m a Jewish girl from Boston. But I’m looking forward to trying some.”

“Good.”

“Did you drive all the way here for the food, Mom?” Paul said.

“I’m not sure I know why I drove down here. But we still have to eat. And my friends at the Bluefield Diner made all this for you.”

“I’m starved,” Rebecca said.

“I like her,” Nicky said.

“I got ribs from Bub’s Barbecue. I don’t usually eat red meat anymore, but it’s been twenty years since I had a rib from Bub’s, and they are the best ribs you will ever eat.”

Barbara shut the door behind them. “They’re vegetarian.”

“Really?” Nicky said to Paul. “How long?”

“Not long.”

“And you?” she asked Rebecca.

“A few years.”

“I got lots of other choices. But you have to try the Bub’s sauce and his cole slaw. Even by itself.”

“I’m having a rib,” Paul said. “I mean I grew up hearing about these legendary ribs and I’m not passing them up.”

“You drove all the way to Richmond?” Barbara said.

“There’s a Bub’s in Bluefield now. Right on Main Street.”

“The only other time I had Bub’s was right before you were born,” Barbara said to Paul. “Nicky drove two hours to Richmond to get them. They gave her gas and she thought she was going into labor.”

Nicky made a plate and handed it to Rebecca. “You only have to eat what you like.”

“Everything smells so good,” Rebecca said.

Paul raised his beer. “To Bluefield,” he said, touching Nicky’s bottle with his.

“To happiness,” Barbara said.

“To ribs,” Nicky said. She took a drink. “To coming home.”

“How come you never told me about your sister, Mom?” Paul asked.

“Interesting time you picked to introduce me to your girlfriend,” Nicky said.

“Rebecca knows. In fact, she already knows as much as I do, which is sort of odd on its own.”

“You know the joke about the guy who’s running for mayor and his opponent accuses him of having a sister who’s a prostitute,” Nicky said, slicing the blackberry pie. “Only he doesn’t have a sister. His problem? How does one go about proving they don’t have a sister?”

“You’re losing me, Mom.”

“I’m stalling,” Nicky said.

“I’m ready,” Paul said.

“You told Rebecca about us?” Nicky asked Paul.

“By us you mean you and Barbara?”

“She knows,” Barbara said.

“Come on, Mom,” Paul said. “I’ve waited long enough. And it’s only gotten stranger.”

Barbara sat next to Nicky. She put her arm around Nicky’s shoulder and pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. “Nicky,” Barbara said, “Paul and Rebecca met at a planning meeting for next summer’s twentieth anniversary celebration of King’s march on Washington.”

“Really?” Nicky said to Paul.

“Really.”

“That’s cool.” Nicky sat up. “Did Paul tell you that I went to the march?” Nicky asked Rebecca.

“No.” She turned to Paul. “You know I’m trying to interview people who went to the original march.”

“I thought you had enough people.”

“Lame.” Rebecca turned to Nicky. “Will you let me interview you? I mean not now, but later.”

“Sure. And, Paul, you’re going to want to interview someone too.”

“No, I’m not doing that project.”

“But you are going to want to interview someone.”

“Great, more mysteries. Who else do I know that went besides you?”

“Well, you’ll have to find him first.”

“What do you mean?”

“I can’t believe you never did the math,” Barbara said. “Nicky talks about the march all the time.”

“Does this family ever just say something without making it a riddle?” Rebecca said.

Paul was quiet for a moment. “Okay, I’ve done the math. Now give me the details.”

“I got pregnant at the march.”

“With me?”

“Your father, David Levin, came up to me at the Smithsonian where I went to get out of the sun.” Nicky looked around the room. Rebecca had her arm around Paul. Barbara was holding his hand. They were all staring at her. She continued. “He taught high school history in San Francisco. He was twenty-six, about five feet ten inches tall, had curly black hair, great skin, beautiful olive, California tan, very cute. He was Jewish. You have his hands and his legs. Definitely his legs. He came out to the march by himself to see history and so he could go back and tell his students what it was like to be history and not just read about it. I told him I was using birth control. Which, by the way, I hope you are both using.”

“I covered that, Nicky. Go on.”

“Not much more. Though I doubt he included me in the stories he told his students.”

“I don’t know,” Rebecca said. “Sounds like you were the best part of his march.”

“So I have a father.”

“I hate to be the one to break it to you, Paul,” Rebecca said, “but you always had a father.”

“I always had a sperm donor. An anonymous sperm donor. He didn’t exist, didn’t have a name. He wasn’t real except in that he deserted me. Wasn’t interested in me. Didn’t care what happened to me.”

“I always told you he didn’t know about you.”

“I never believed you. I figured you were protecting me.”

“I was, but I always told you the truth.”

“Like about who my father was.”

“I never lied. I just left things out. But I never lied.”

Paul began to pace around the room. “So that’s it? That’s the big secret about my biological father that you’ve been keeping from me all these years?”

“You sound disappointed,” Barbara said.

“I made up better stories than that,” Paul said.

“That you did,” Barbara said with a laugh.

“What do you mean?” Rebecca said.

“My only option was to make up stories about what happened to my father.”

“How was that your only option?” Rebecca said.

“I needed to have a father since they wouldn’t tell me anything about him. I had to make stuff up.”

“That’s so sad.” Rebecca stroked Paul’s hair.

“Yeah, he always made up sad stories,” Barbara said. “It seemed to get him a lot of sympathy.”