Chapter 14 | Not Much of a Ring
Nancy should’ve been here by now. Hector’s killing time walking the perimeter of the circus, looking in, looking out, digging the ring out of his pocket and making sure it's still there before putting it back. Not much of a ring, he's afraid, but it took him months to save up for. He's chewing on a cotton candy now, unaware it's all over his face. A baby's crying, having let go of a cluster of balloons that are making their way up and away, back to heaven. “How’m I gonna find her?” Back at school, she told him she and her kid brother would be here, but she didn't say where or when, and Hector didn't ask. He just figured he'd find her somehow, the way he always did. It only just now dawned on him that the world doesn’t always work that way.
Across town and behind schedule, Nancy’s daddy’s on the phone arguing with a man about his overdue bill. Nancy’s standing outside the door, listening impatiently, knowing not to knock or barge in. When he's not busy taking Nancy and Frank Jr to all the fun places, Nancy’s daddy drives his Cadillac from town to town, selling musical instruments to schools and orchestras and even the Army band. But it's been hard times lately, and some of the customers are taking too long to pay. Big bands are expensive, and the kids are into something new and electric. You can see it in the posters plastered everywhere, bright and colorful, announcing acts with crazy names playing at clubs that used to only be known for good people steering clear of them. The hair’s grown long, the kids and the clothes have gone wild. Hard for the old folks to understand. The youngsters don't listen to them any more, well, except for maybe Nancy. Nancy’s a good girl, daddy's girl. She looks funny to Frank in her skirts and boots, but she’s daddy's girl through and through. Nothing and no one will ever come between them, at least not for now. The old kings may have fallen, but Frank’s still the king of his household.
Seems like forever he's been on the phone. Nancy's gotten good at figuring out when the calls are drawing to a close. This one's showing no signs of abating, having transitioned to friendlier topics of family, church, and music. She's ignoring Frank Jr tugging at her sleeve. “Sissy, c’mere, I wanna show you sumpin’.” But Junior's persistent, and Nancy finally gives in, annoyed. “What?”
Junior pulls her along, down the upstairs hall. He's excited about his discovery, but not so excited that he spills the secret. They walk fast down the stairs and out to the backyard, where he leads her to what he found. “Gross, Frankie! Why you want to show me that for?” He's poking the turtle with a stick. Its shell is partly cracked, and it looks like it's been perched on this wall for a few days. Nancy doesn't get little boys’ fascination with dead things, yet she can't help but look at the poor creature, ill equipped to make an escape even at its best. “Kinda cool,” he says. “What do you think happened to him?”
“A bird, maybe. He coulda just got tired.”
“Or a tiger!” the boy cried, excitedly.
“Ain't no tigers round here, silly.”
“Could've escaped from the circus.”
“Yeah, could’ve, I suppose,” she lied.
“What's this about a circus?” Frank called from just outside the sliding glass door. He starts to make his way over to the kids.
“Daddy!” Frankie yelled, running to hug his father. “Can we go now? Can we go?”
Nancy runs up to hug them both. “Daddy, you take forever sometimes! Can we go?”
“I'm sorry, sweetheart, all done now. Go grab Mother, let's get outta here!”
“Oh boy!” Frank Jr cries, forgetting all about the dead turtle. “Circus! Circus! Circus!” He's tugging on his daddy's hand and Nancy’s sleeve. He's almost too big, but Frank wraps an arm around the boy’s waist and hoists him up, spinning him around. “Faster, daddy, faster!”
Frank spins the boy till he's about to fall down, dizzy. He plops Junior onto the grass and ruffles the boy’s hair. “Last one in’s a rotten egg!” he calls, racing for the sliding glass door. He opens it for the kids, Frank Jr in first, then Nancy hot on his heels. “Go get Mother,” he reminds her. Nancy plants a kiss on her daddy's cheek, then runs off to go find Mother.
