An original chapter for Rebirth.
Author's Note: Small lemon ahead.
1923 – 1925
An Informative Chapter
The morning after the incident at Our Lady of the Heart Catholic School was a pleasant one for Eliza and Rayne. Rayne slept-in while her mother called the school to let them know that Rayne would not be attending classes that day due to "not feeling well". Eliza also called her workplace to let them know she wouldn't be in that day to care for her "sick" daughter. Rayne woke up to the sounds of her mother making breakfast, and she was later delighted to see that her mother had made her favorite: blueberry pancakes with maple syrup and butter. "What do you want to do today, Raynee?" Eliza asked as she sipped her coffee and watched her daughter dig into her pancakes.
Rayne looked up from her morning feast and wiped her mouth with a napkin before responding.
"Can we go to the park? See the zoo?"
Eliza smiled and nodded. "Of course, we can, honey. But first, we need to stop by Western Union. I want to send a telegram to Arthur. Would you mind if he joined us at Central Park later today, Rayne?"
"Nope!" squeaked a happy Rayne, who then shoveled a big syrup drenched piece of pancake into her mouth. This caused her mother to laugh. Eliza and Rayne had a pleasant and leisurely day. They first visited Western Union after breakfast to send off the telegram to Arthur. The telegram read like this:
"Arthur Lansing,
If you want to, join Rayne and I at Central Park after you get off work today. You can meet us at the Bethesda Fountain. If you don't want to, we will understand. We can meet up another day. We can hash out the details together on Monday.
Eliza Malloye"
With the telegram sent off, Eliza and Rayne next visited Theresa in the Garment District. The two sisters and Rayne did some shopping and browsing at nearby boutiques, visited the Central Park Zoo, and ate out for lunch. Mother and daughter returned home to Inwood to rest for a few hours before heading off to Central Park to wait for Arthur. Arthur did not disappoint as usual, and he arrived at the Bethesda Fountain in Central Park carrying his folded-up coveralls under one arm and holding Eliza's telegram in the opposite hand. He waved the telegram as he approached Eliza and Rayne.
Grinning at Arthur's gesticulation, Eliza hooked her arm through his and together with Rayne they headed off for the Ramble. Rayne skipped on ahead of her mother and Arthur down the Ramble, which was at that time of year a tunnel of new green leaves and blossoming flowers. Beautiful as this scenery was, a burdensome secret weighed on Eliza's mind. Yearning to tell Arthur the truth, Eliza had Arthur sit down with her at one of the benches they came across, telling Rayne to stay around within sight of her mother. Eliza couldn't say anything at first, her anxiety and fear sealing her lips.
Arthur could see how anxious Eliza was, and he asked what was troubling her. Eliza bit her lip, and she finally blurted out, "I have a confession to make, Arthur."
"What is it?" Arthur furrowed his brow in concern, fearing the worst.
No going back now.
"Arthur...," Eliza repeated his name again before taking a deep breath, "I am not a widow. I have never been married."
Arthur blinked. "What?"
Fearful of rejection but determined to tell the truth, Eliza continued.
"Nine years ago, I was... attacked by a man while walking home from a dance one night. My attacker has never been caught. He is Rayne's father..."
Arthur's mouth opened slightly in disbelief. Eliza couldn't help herself. She had opened the floodgates and she felt compelled to reveal one more secret to Arthur.
"I was sent to a mental hospital after the attack. But I recovered and Rayne is a little angel, and...," Eliza waved her hands dramatically in front of her. "And that's it."
Arthur's mouth was still open, and he looked away from Eliza as he tried to process everything she had just told him. Eliza's body tensed up in anticipation of Arthur standing up and walking off and out of her and Rayne's lives. Rayne, who was wearing the red butterfly cloche hat Arthur had given her for Christmas last year, was standing on tiptoes looking over a railing at the ducks floating on a pond. She was too far away to hear what her mother had just said. After what felt like an eternity, Arthur finally spoke.
"My God, Lizzie, I am so sorry that happened to you." Eliza relaxed, and she let out a sigh of relief. "How old were you when this happened?"
"Eighteen. I graduated from high school that year."
"I take it Rayne doesn't know?"
Eliza shook her head.
"Rayne thinks her father died in a construction accident before she was born." She held up her hand with the fake wedding band. "My sister bought me this ring from a thrift shop when I was pregnant and living with her and her husband. It's costume jewelry. People would give me a hard time if I didn't wear it and knew Rayne was my daughter."
"Do you think that you will ever tell her the truth?"
Eliza shrugged.
"I don't know. Maybe when she's old enough, but I don't want to traumatize her with the knowledge of how she came to be and that her real father's a rapist..."
Arthur looked at Rayne as she continued observing the ducks. He then looked back at Eliza.
"I think Rayne will manage just fine if you do tell her the truth someday. She's your daughter, and I have a feeling that she's going to grow up to be as tough as you. Have faith, Eliza."
"Oh, Arthur..." Eliza murmured, tears in her eyes. It was then, with no prompting from Arthur, Eliza leaned her head forward towards his. Arthur leaned forward too, and they kissed. It was their first; Arthur and Eliza had been dating for about seven months by then.
Eliza had never kissed a man romantically before, and it was a new and sweet experience for her, whereas Arthur had a little more experience from past relationships. Just as soon as it had happened, the kiss was over. Eliza and Arthur parted from each other's faces to gaze into one another's eyes. They didn't say anything, but their expressions said everything for them. Arthur and Eliza leaned their heads forward again and touched foreheads, and they held each other's hands.
It was then that Eliza officially knew that Arthur was the one for her. "Momma, Arthur, aren't we going anywhere else today?" The couple looked up and saw Rayne looking earnestly at them. She had grown bored with watching the ducks. She looked so cute in her outfit and hat.
"Sure, honey." Eliza said as she and Arthur rose from their bench. "Let's keep going down the Ramble. We still got plenty of daylight left."
"Ok," Rayne nodded and proceeded to skip down the path again as her mother and Arthur followed behind her still holding hands. The couple would kiss again for the second time that evening after Arthur escorted Eliza and Rayne back to their apartment, and the couple reached another relationship milestone by saying "I love you" to each other for the first time. Arthur and Eliza made plans to meet up together the next day with Rayne in tow. Mother and daughter had a wonderful Decoration Day Weekend together with Arthur and just themselves. The incident with Greta Stouffer and Agnes Fuller was long forgotten by the time the last week of school started.
Greta and Agnes left Rayne alone during the last days of school, and they seemed less inclined to pick on their peers after last week's incident with Rayne. In fact, Rayne's peers and underclassman started looking up to her for putting their bullies in their place. Summer vacation started off on a high note for Rayne. About a day or two after her last day of school, Rayne and her mother attended Uncle Tommy's high school graduation in Longhouse Bend. The last of James and Sarah's brood had completed high school.
With his high school days over, Thomas was at a crossroads that a lot of young people like him come to when they reach the threshold of adulthood. An animal lover since he was little, Thomas entertained the idea of going to veterinary school. Problem was, he didn't have the money to pay for tuition, let alone know which college he wanted to go to. Charles, upon hearing of his little brother's plight, recommended to Thomas that he could work alongside him as a bricklayer in the city to save up money for college. Not only that, but Thomas could live with Charles, Ruth, and their young children, twins George and Ada, at their Bronx bungalow.
But Thomas would not be living with his brother and his family rent free. A small portion of Thomas's salary would be given to Charles to supplement his income (raising twins can be quite expensive). Thomas didn't mind paying his older brother rent; he needed to learn the value of money and how to budget anyway if he wanted to live on his own in the future. It was hard for James and Sarah to see their youngest child fly the nest, but they knew it was for the best, and it was time for Thomas to go out on his own and forge his own path in life. Besides, with all her children now out of the house, Sarah could now focus completely on caring for her aging parents and brother, the latter who still retained a childlike mind and innocence well into his fifty-first year in 1923.
Tommy worked hard alongside his brother at construction sites laying down bricks and mixing mortar, and he dutifully paid rent at the end of every month. It wasn't all work and no play for Thomas though. He would go out to speakeasies with Charles and their coworkers, see movies or vaudeville performances, or visit Coney Island, local Bronx parks or Central Park with Charles's family and their older sisters' families, or simply hang out at the house chatting with his brother and Ruth, or play with his young nephew and niece. Not only that but being a young man on the cusp of his twenties, Tommy was interested in meeting girls his age. During breaks at work, Thomas partook in people-watching, his eyes always following attractive young women.
One such woman caught his eye during the summer of 1924 who was pretty and slim with golden-blonde hair. She became a regular sight at Thomas and Charles's worksite near the end of May, and Tommy was quick to memorize what times the young lady would be out walking. Working up the nerve to make his acquaintance with the lady, Thomas walked up to her one hot day at lunchtime when she was buying food from a street vendor. "Excuse me, ma'am?" he said as he approached the object of his affections.
"Would you like some company? I noticed you were alone and thought you like to have somebody with you if you want." The young lady considered this stranger's request for a moment before smiling warmly and accepting his company. Thomas returned to work after lunch beaming, and he was more than happy to tell Charlie and their workmates about his time with the lady. Her name was Joy Irving; she was from Hoboken, New Jersey, and was one year younger than Thomas, her date of birth being January 17, 1906.
Joy was attending normal school in New York to become a schoolteacher; she lived on campus in a dormitory and worked as a part-time waitress at a coffeehouse to pay for tuition. Joy and Thomas started meeting up during their lunchbreaks, and it was not long until they had their first date together at the coffeehouse where Joy worked at in Manhattan on her day off. Ms. Irving later revealed that she was a talented pianist to her beau when he first met her parents in Hoboken by playing the piano after dinner in late August. Joy's piano playing earned her many points with Thomas's parents, grandparents, and uncle when she first met them at their house in Longhouse Bend. James and Sarah had a feeling that Joy would make a good wife for their Tommy if they were meant to be together, and James and Sarah hoped and prayed that the relationship between their youngest and his New Jersian sweetheart would last.
The presence of a potential new daughter-in-law brought with it the excitement of the Baker-Malloye Family growing bigger. Jimmy and Mary had helped to grow the family further with the births of two more children in the Decembers of 1923 and 1924. They welcomed a second daughter, Betty Frances Malloye, on December 10, 1923, and finally a son five days before Betty's first birthday the following year on December 5, 1924. Being the oldest son and named after his own father, Jimmy named his bouncing baby boy after both himself and James Sr, christening the baby as James Malloye III and nicknaming him "Jay" to tell him apart from his father and grandfather. Just like their older sister Pauline, both Betty and James III were born at their parents' home rather than at a hospital like all their cousins had been.
Welcoming two new grandchildren right in time for Christmas one year apart added a new level of joy to James I and Sarah's holiday cheer. New Year's Eve 1924 would give the Baker-Malloye's something else to be happy about and look forward to. On the last night of 1924, the whole family was gathered at the Baker-Malloye Farmhouse to celebrate the coming year of 1925 at midnight. About an hour after dinner, while the family was relaxing around the house, Arthur came into the parlor with his hands behind his back to address Eliza, who was sitting on a couch next to Rayne. "Miss Eliza Malloye," Arthur began, "with the new year approaching, I have an important question to ask you."
Arthur paused to get down on one knee and reveal what he had hidden behind his back – a small box. With everyone gasping in excitement and an amazed Eliza covering her mouth with her hands, Arthur finished his proposal. "Will you be my wife?" Tears twinkling in her eyes, Eliza nodded.
"Yes. Yes!"
The house shook with the applause and cheers of the family as Arthur and Eliza embraced and kissed. Rayne hopped off from the couch to hug her mother and Arthur, her soon-to-be-stepfather, and the newly engaged couple brought Rayne into their embrace. A teary-eyed and overjoyed Eliza removed her fake wedding band and replaced it with the ring Arthur gave her. The ring was made of gold with a diamond in the middle; it was far more beautiful than the simple unadorned band Eliza had been wearing all this time. Arthur and Eliza shared another kiss to ring in 1925 at midnight while everyone else wished one another a Happy New Year.
Arthur and Eliza were married the following summer on June 20, 1925. The wedding was held at Staten Island in the Roman Catholic church where Arthur and his family had been attending for generations. It was a traditional Catholic ceremony, and the pews were packed with the bride and groom's relatives. Theresa was her little sister's matron-of-honor, one of Arthur's older brothers was his best man, Rayne and her cousins Cathy and Ada served as flower girls, and one of Arthur's nephews served as the ring-bearer. The wedding was beautiful and went off without a hitch.
Pride soared in the hearts of the Baker-Malloye's as they watched Eliza recite her wedding vows and become Arthur's wife. She had come a long way from the trauma she had suffered from eleven years ago, and her family could not have been prouder of Eliza for everything she had accomplished. Not only that, but the family was overjoyed that Rayne would finally have a father figure in her life and know what it was like to live in a two-parent household. However, what Rayne was most excited about her mother and stepfather's marriage was becoming a big sister. When Arthur and Eliza were asked how many kids they were thinking of having together during the reception, a nearly ten year old Rayne piped up and answered for them.
"Two! I want a little sister first then a little brother."
Arthur and Eliza looked at each other with surprised looks on their faces as their families laughed or gushed over how cute Rayne was. Arthur was the first to speak up after his stepdaughter vocalized her wish. "Well, okay then. Two kids." He turned to look at his wife. "Are you okay with two kids, Lizzie?"
Eliza smiled at her husband. "Of course, I am, Arthur. But you know, if we do have a girl and boy, we will need another son to make it even: two girls and two boys. What do you think, Rayne?"
Rayne nodded. "Okay. One little sister and two little brothers. That's fine."
"Well, that settles that then." Eliza said after turning her attention back to the person who had asked the question about children. "We plan on having three children."
As much as Eliza was looking forward to her future with Arthur, there was one that she was worried about. Consummating her marriage. Eliza's fear over this led to her convincing Arthur to postpone their wedding night until their honeymoon in the Catskill Mountains. Having intercourse again was one more post-rape hump that Eliza had yet to cross. But she was married to Arthur, a kind and caring man, and Eliza knew deep down in her heart that everything would be all right. "Have faith" Arthur had said to her about later telling Rayne about her real father two years ago in 1923, and Eliza vowed to have faith in herself to see through the consummation of her marriage.
Thankfully, Arthur moving into her and Rayne's apartment the week after the wedding distracted Eliza from her anxiety. Sharing a bed with Arthur soothed Eliza somewhat, but she still felt anxious as their honeymoon approached. Rayne was dropped off at her Aunt Theresa's place when the date finally arrived, and she had waved good-bye to her mother and stepfather as they departed for the Catskills. The newlyweds finally consummated their marriage the night they arrived at their rented lakeside cabin in the Catskill Mountains. It was a big milestone for both Arthur and Eliza, especially for the latter.
Arthur, as expected, was gentle and patient with his nervous wife. Eliza could feel the tension leave her body as she let Arthur touch and kiss her. Eliza's hands clenched on the sheets in response to her defensive reflex to cover her intimate areas from Arthur, but she soon found a better use for them – holding onto her husband's back and sides. Her defensiveness gave way to pleasure as Arthur worked his magic on his wife: kissing Eliza on the lips and down her neck and chest, fondling and sucking on her breasts, and touching what lied between her legs. Stupefied with pleasure by the time it came for Arthur to enter her, Eliza could feel her thighs twitch and she instinctively tried to close them, but she couldn't since Arthur was kneeling between her legs.
Arthur soothed Eliza with a loving gaze and caressed her cheek with his fingertips. This made Eliza relax, and she allowed Arthur to enter her. Tears welled up in Eliza's eyes as Arthur made love to her, but those tears came not from pain or fear but from elation, happiness, and pure enjoyment over what she was experiencing. The last thread of the knot in her stomach finally unraveled when Eliza felt rapture with Arthur at the climax of their marital consummation. She buried her head into Arthur's chest as they settled in the aftermath weeping with joy.
Eliza had finally crossed over that hump. She felt as if the last claw from the past that was embedded in her soul had slipped out, finally freeing Eliza from that horrible time in the fall of 1914. Better still, Eliza fell even more in love with Arthur, and she became less reserved around him and more affectionate, which pleased Arthur greatly. The newlyweds spent their honeymoon happily boating on the lake, walking through the woods and on mountain trails, and interacting with the other honeymooners and vacationers by day, and enjoying each other carnally by night. Eliza found herself cradling her belly one night after having sex with Arthur, imagining their first child growing inside her womb.
Would their firstborn be male or female? Would they have Arthur's black hair or Eliza's red? Would they be brown-eyed like their father, or blue-eyed like their mother? It would be amazing if Arthur and Eliza's firstborn inherited green-eyes like Rayne did from their great-great-great-grandmother, Grandma Ellen's own grandmother. Whatever their children would look like, Eliza and Arthur could not wait to have them; they were certainly on the right path to making their first kid!
Arthur and Eliza returned to New York glowing and happy, their honeymoon phase still going strong. Together with Rayne, the Lansing's settled in together as a traditional family unit in Inwood. With a man in the house, Eliza quit her job to become a housewife, and she relished having more time to spend with Rayne. Another step the couple took together was to petition the NY adoption courts to have Rayne's last name legally changed from Malloye to Lansing. Rayne would not just be Arthur's stepdaughter; she would be his adopted daughter.
The adoption process was going to take time due to typical legal red tape, but at least the ball was rolling. Independence Day 1925 came before any approval for Rayne's adoption came through, but that was fine. The whole Baker-Malloye family gathered at the farm to celebrate America's one-hundredth and forty-ninth birthday together. Rayne spent the day playing with her cousins around their grandparents' property. The games the children played were tag, hide-and-seek, and cornhole.
Rayne was the undisputed queen of tag and cornhole; none of her cousins could run as fast or throw as far as she could. But when it came to hide-and-seek, the master of that game was Rayne's cousin/godbrother Benjamin. He had an uncanny knack for locating his cousins and little sister no matter how well they were hidden whether they concealed themselves in an empty rain barrel or in the barn hayloft. There was only one incident that disrupted the children's fun and games that day. The incident involved Pauline, the oldest daughter of Rayne's Uncle Jimmy and Aunt Mary, and one of the stray cats who had made their home in the Baker-Malloye's barn.
Three year old Pauline was hiding in the barn with her five year old twin cousins George and Ada when she spotted the cat resting beside a pillar; it was a rough-looking creature with dirty black fur and eyes that were a different color each: its right eye was electric blue and the left one was white from blindness, and there was scarring around the cat's left eye too. Being a curious three year old, Pauline left her hiding place to pet the kitty, who tensed up as the little girl approached it. Oblivious to the warning signs that the cat was displaying, besides its fearsome, unkempt appearance – raised fur and low, angry hissing – Pauline reached out to pet the cat, only for it to slash at her palm with its claws while hissing loudly. The cat scampered off when Pauline started wailing in pain; the cat had scratched her hand hard enough to break the skin and draw blood.
Pauline's crying, and her cousins' shrieking from witnessing the attack, brought Jimmy, Charlie, and their Uncle Chalmer running to the barn. Jimmy carried his whimpering eldest daughter out of the barn with Charles following him holding the hands of his twin son and daughter – both fathers were consoling their distressed children. Mary handed Betty and Baby Jay off to Theresa and Ellen to rush over and check on her wounded child along with Sarah, Ruth, and Eliza. Rayne, Benny, and Cathy walked up out of curiosity. Mary and the women gasped softly and consoled Pauline as she showed her mother her wounded hand.
Rayne saw the blood on her young cousin's hand and a familiar thirst crept up her throat. Pauline's blood was bright red and seeping softly from the torn flesh on her palm. To Rayne, the blood's color was especially vibrant and delectable, and she licked her lips. Best of all, it would be fresh and warm. In a trance, Rayne, whose eyes were now as red as her cousin's blood, walked slowly towards her unsuspecting prey.
But before Rayne could grab Pauline's hand to taste the blood from her wound, Mary took her from Jimmy's arms and walked towards the house. Pauline being carried to the house snapped Rayne out of her trance. Thankfully, nobody was any the wiser to what Rayne was going to do or that her eyes had changed color. The adults were engaged in a conversation about the cat that had scratched Pauline. Her father wanted to find the wretched feline and shoot it, but the women told Jimmy not to, saying that the cat did not deserve to be killed for protecting itself even though it had hurt Pauline.
Rayne followed her Aunt Mary inside the house and up to the upstairs bathroom where Mary was treating Pauline's wound. The blood had been washed away with soapy water, and Mary was dabbing her firstborn's hand dry with a tissue. Rayne watched how Mary then wrapped her daughter's hand with bandages. Watching the rhythmic wrapping of the white bandages over little Pauline's hands was soothing to Rayne, whose earlier thirst was smoldering. "There you go." Mary said after wrapping Pauline's hand, applying the finishing touch with two kisses – one on Pauline's hand and one on her forehead.
"You're all better now, sweetie. Stay away from stray kitty-cats from now on, okay?"
Pauline nodded quietly, happy that her boo-boo had been treated and was now feeling better. Mary then noticed her husband's oldest niece standing in the bathroom doorway.
"Oh, hello, Rayne! I didn't see you there. Did you come to check on Pauline?"
Rayne nodded but didn't say anything. Mary turned her attention back to her daughter to help her off the closed toilet lid where she had been sitting. Mary then looked back at Rayne and said, "Why don't you take Pauline back outside while I clean up in here? Be safe you two."
"Okay." Rayne replied simply before taking her cousin's uninjured hand into hers to escort her downstairs and back outside. Pauline held her wounded hand up to her chest, and Rayne thought of the covered wound beneath the bandages, resisting the temptation to grab Pauline's hand, unwrap the bandages, and drink the blood. But Rayne's bloodlust was subdued by the cheers the adults made when they saw Pauline emerge from the house looking better. Pushing aside her bizarre urges, Rayne resumed playing with her cousins, and all was well again. At sunset, the children ran around the yard with sparklers, and they gathered with the adults at nightfall to watch the fireworks go off in the sky (little Betty and Jay were taken inside by Mary and Ellen when they started crying from the noise).
Jimmy and Charles had made enough progress of their own to be able to enjoy fireworks again seven years after the Great War had ended, and both men stayed outside to watch the night sky light up in a rainbow of colors. It was a beautiful night, one of those nights that would take its place in the collage of childhood memories that anyone would look back on fondly. The day after the Fourth, the family gathered in front of the house for a family portrait. Annie's nephew, who had driven her up, took the photograph with Harold's Kodak camera. The black and white photograph that was developed from that shot would later be framed and hung up in the Baker-Malloye's parlor.
The Baker-Malloye's would gather again just one week later on the eleventh of July to celebrate Rayne's tenth birthday. If only they knew that the night of Rayne's birthday would spell the end of their halcyon existence and mark the beginning of the young girl's unforeseen destiny...