Violetta Craft's Arc

Chapter 34 of 65

Saturday came slow. Violetta had agreed to two hours, no more. Jordie would come at ten. He would sit with Elowen in the front room. Violetta would work in the office down the hall with the door open a crack so she could hear. Her mother had made the rules on the phone the night before. Paul had backed them up. Violetta had said yes because Elowen was four months old and had not seen her father in almost a month, and that was not something Violetta was willing to own alone. He knocked at ten exactly. Violetta opened the door with Elowen against her shoulder. Jordie looked thinner. He held a paper bag with a stuffed rabbit sticking out the top. He said hi. She said the couch was clear and the bottles were in the fridge. She did not say his name. She passed Elowen into his arms and stepped back. Elowen fussed once, then settled. Jordie's face broke a little. Violetta turned before he could speak and walked down the hall to the office. She closed the door to a two-inch gap. The purple silk-wool blend was pinned to the dress form in the corner. She sat at the machine and picked up where she had stopped Thursday. She fed the side seam under the needle and let the pedal hum. From the front room she heard Jordie talking low to the baby, telling her about the rabbit, telling her he was sorry he had been gone. Violetta's hands slipped on the fabric. She stopped, breathed, started again. Her mother passed the doorway with a laundry basket and gave her a small nod. Paul was in the kitchen washing bottles. The house was full on purpose. At eleven forty-five Elowen started to cry the hungry cry. Jordie called down the hall, careful, not loud. Violetta came out. He held the baby out to her without a word. Violetta took Elowen and sat in the kitchen chair to feed her. Jordie stood by the counter with his hands in his pockets. He said thank you. He said he knew this was hers to allow. He said he would take whatever she gave. Violetta looked at Elowen's small hand on the bottle and said, "Two hours, every other Saturday. Here. Not alone. If you miss one, we're done for a month." He nodded. He did not argue. He picked up his keys and left at noon. Violetta put Elowen down for her nap and went back to the office. The seam she had started was straight. She pinned the next one. Her mother stood in the doorway and asked if she was okay. Violetta said she had gotten forty minutes of real work done and the visit had not broken her. Then she turned back to the machine. The dress had a shape now. Eight months was still eight months. She had held her line, and she had bought herself the afternoon.