LITMIR.BIZ

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tough for him and he worked damned hard to advance. He was a tough kid. I guess that’s where I get my resilience. He made it in a hostile world and he owes nobody any favors, except perhaps that kindly priest. To me he is a study in personal character.”

      “My grandfather was like that. He was orphaned at the age of nine. There were eight other kids in the family. His father was killed by a train one night as he was coming home from work in the Pennsylvania anthracite mines. He’d been drinking with a few friends. He couldn’t hear the train. Did you know that if the wind is blowing the wrong way, you can’t hear a train coming up behind you? My great-uncle told me that. They brought his body home in two pieces. His wife died a year later from what they called blood poisoning. She cooked for the miners and sewed for their wives after her husband died, and one day she cut herself while preparing something or other. She developed an infection that eventually spread through her body and killed her. The older girls in the family went to work as servants of local families while the older boys went to work in the mines. Only one, the youngest, who was seven years old when his mother died, was not able to work. He stayed with one of the sisters. My grandfather worked on what they called the “breaker”. His job was to break pieces of shale off the hard coal. Shale has a lot of sulfur in it and it had to be removed so it would not accumulate in the chimneys of the steel mills and other industries that burned anthracite or when they converted the coal to coke, I don’t really know. When he didn’t work fast enough, the supervisors would throw small stones at his back as he sat on the breaker. Nine years old, Gina! Yet, I never heard him complain about the life he led. He worked all his life, enjoyed life to the full, and held down two jobs during the Depression to keep his family alive. When he died, poor of course, my aunt found an envelope in his dresser with some money in it. On the envelope in his scrawled handwriting was ‘For my funeral’. He used to say that every man should be able to at least pay for his own funeral rather than burden his family. Until the day he died he sent every grandchild and great-grandchild one dollar on their birthday. I was working and making good money and he would still send me a dollar on my birthday. It was the most precious dollar I had ever received. He had character, real character.”

      “Well, Charlie, it looks like we come from pretty solid stock. Your grandfather and my uncle would probably have hit it off pretty well even if your grandfather was Irish!” Gina laughed.

      “No doubt about it,” replied Charlie, “but I’m more interested in how you and I hit it off, Gina. I mean if you want us to just be close friends or you are not interested in a relationship, I understand. But I have to raise the question. I at least want to be on the same sheet of music as you are.”

      “Charlie Mullins, how corporate! Same sheet of music!” Charlie turned crimson, “Of course we are, as you say ‘on the same sheet of music’! And, I must say you blush handsomely!” Charlie turned even redder. “I hope this works Charlie because I really do want it to. I want our relationship to be much, much more than just a friendship.” Gina leaned close to him and gave him a long, tender kiss on the mouth. When she pulled away, Charlie could only stare into her eyes. He was speechless for the first time in his life.

      “I’m going to have to tell my uncle about this, Charlie. He knows about you and knows I care for you, but I want him to know how really important you are to me.”

      “Fine, Gina. We have time. I don’t know how much more we have to learn about each other because I’m sure it’s a lot and I’m equally sure that nothing I could learn would change my mind about you. I respect your need to talk to your uncle. I talk to my parents about you too, at their gravesite, but obviously I don’t get much feedback!”

      Gina smiled tenderly, “That’s nice Charlie. It’s nice that you continue to honor your parents in memory. They must have been wonderful people.”

      “Well, Gina, where do we go from here? I hadn’t really planned this conversation, it just kind of happened.”

      “Kind of happened, Charlie? I was hoping that this jazz cellar and the romantic environment might draw you out a bit. I confess that I was curious about how you really felt. When you showed up with your shirt buttoned up to one button shy of the collar I thought ‘Gina, you gotta make this guy relax’”

      “What a schemer! You set me up, Gina,” Charlie laughed.

      “A woman’s wiles, Charlie Mullins. You men think you are the only ones who make plans? I have a life too Charlie and I want to know where it’s going.”

      “You know now, pretty lady?”

      “Yep, and once I talk to my uncle I am going to put the pedal to the metal, mister. You’re going to have to meet him, you know.”

      “Is that so terrible?” Charlie asked. “How bad can he be if he is your uncle?”

      “Well, like I said, he is protective and might even be just a bit jealous.”

      “I suppose all fathers are like that with their daughters.” Charlie replied.

      “Charlie, you’ve made me very happy tonight – happier than I thought I might ever be. This thing of ours will grow Charlie. We are going to be happy, I just know it!”

      “Like I said, Gina, I will never do anything to hurt you. Maybe I will disappoint you on occasion, but I will never hurt you.”

      Charlie looked around and the jazz cellar had practically emptied. The musicians were packing up to head off to some after-hours jam session with their friends and the waiters were standing around waiting for the last patrons to leave so they could clear the tables. One of them was courteous (or perhaps foolish) enough to ask Charlie if he and the “missus” would like one more round. He was obviously hoping neither would want another drink. Charlie thanked him and asked for the check. The waiter appeared relieved and rushed back with the requisite leather folder with the bill inside. Charlie paid and he and Gina climbed the stairs to flag down a taxi.

      The night air was cool and Gina said, “Why don’t we walk a couple of blocks before we get a cab, Charlie? It’s a beautiful evening.”

      They walked holding hands for about 3 blocks until a cab appeared and Charlie flagged it down. He gave the driver the address of the trattoria. “Come back up tomorrow, Charlie, will you? We can take a walk in the park and celebrate this evening. I’ll talk to my uncle in the morning and then we can set a date for you to meet him. OK?”

      “Oh yeah!” Charlie exclaimed, “You can bet I’ll be back. I don’t even want to go back to Shoreville!”

      “One day you won’t Charlie,” Gina said softly, “one day you won’t. I promise you.”

      When they got to the trattoria, Johnny the waiter was holding what seemed to be his constant vigil. Gina kissed Charlie passionately and melted into him.” Charlie thought he was going to explode. They pulled apart slowly. “Gina, tomorrow can’t come soon enough. Call me when you finish talking to your uncle and I’ll be up here in a flash. Your bodyguard is on duty again, I see.”

      “Oh yeah, Johnny. He’s a dear. Be careful driving home, Charlie and I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ll call.”

      Charlie got out of the cab and waved to Johnny. Johnny nodded back and watched to make sure Charlie got into the parking garage safely and then watched the cab pull away.

       XI

      After eight-o-clock Mass on Sunday Gina drove over to her uncle’s house. She pressed the control device to open the gate to the property, pulled into the long driveway and drove around to the back of the house. She entered through the back door into the kitchen. Her Uncle Carlo was sitting at the kitchen table sipping an espresso. She walked over and kissed him on the cheek. “Hey, Uncle Carlo, how was your week?”

      “Same as always, Gina, it was calm, thanks. How ‘bout yours?”

      “Actually pretty busy, Uncle Carlo. Charlie and I went out a couple of times and again last night. I want to talk to you about us.”

      “Eh,

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