LIFE GOES ON... and on... (Part 171h)

LIFE GOES ON… and on… (Part 171h)

After we’d eaten Elle asked me to ‘“entertain” the kids as she wanted to go over some things having to do with school that Paula had brought with her. They stayed at the kitchen table while I went in to the den with the kids. Homework for the older two had been completed so they wanted to play a game… but without Kaye. Thankfully, she was still enamored with the coloring books she’d gotten for her birthday so that freed me to take them on in a game called Mirror Mania that they’d mastered. For every game I’d won they’d beaten me at least twice. It was a challenge that I enjoyed. When 8pm arrived it was time for them to get ready for bed what with the next day being a school day plus I wanted to watch the Ed Sullivan show on TV. It was also the signal that it was time for Paula to leave.

I was a bit curious as to just what it was that Paula wanted Elle’s help with but no so curious as to not seeing the TV show through to it’s completion. At that time I asked and Elle explained that the upcoming week was the first one where Paula had to create lesson plans for the upcoming week. Teachers are supposed to have them available so that if substitute teachers have to come in they have an idea of what it is they are supposed to teach. When Elle had finished up her multi week stint Paula came in to the class with a whole week’s worth of lessons already laid out for her. So, Elle being the nice person that she was and having knowledge of the class make-up agreed to work with Paula. After having that explained to me I got around to asking about the brown bag she’d brought with her and had, for a while, ended up on the end of the kitchen counter. Me, asking about that didn’t make Elle very happy and tried to side step it by asking about the first part of the Sullivan show that she’d missed. I didn’t want to upset her so recapped it for her but finished up by, again, asking about the brown bag. We’d been together long enough for her to know I was like a dog with a bone when I wanted an answer. I remember her laying back on the sofa with a ‘resigned’ look on her face. It was obvious I was going to get an answer but it was going to cost me.

When Paula started unpacking her things at Elle’s mother’s house and putting them in the dresser drawers she found a pile of Elle’s stained heavy ribbed cotton Spanky Pants and a a couple of “ratty” (Elle’s word) sanitary pants that Elle had left there for ‘emergencies’. As soon as Elle mentioned the Spanky Pants I knew where she was going with it. I’d been with her on a couple of occasions where having them there had somewhat ‘rescued’ her from certain embarrassment. But, in her describing having to face Paula and to try and explain was just as embarrassing. She said she didn’t try to talk her way around it but explained her incontinence to her. I had to ask what her reaction was. That made her smile a bit as she said Paula had no idea what incontinence was. Elle didn’t want to go into it any further except to say that she felt she’d impressed upon Paula how important it was to make it a secret between the two of them. When she told me that I couldn’t help but think of the widening circle of people who were aware of Elle’s problem. But I also couldn’t think of any case of that knowledge being in any way used against her. I also thought the ‘secret’ was safe because Elle had gone out of her way to mentor Paula and I told her so.

Life was pretty much back to normal as far as the banking floor operations were concerned in the following week. That is until a private firm messenger delivered a package to Bert, the president. I didn’t see it arrive and if it weren’t for Joanie I wouldn’t have even had an idea about it. The messenger had come to her desk asking for Bert. When she said she could take the package up to him he said he had to get his signature to prove he’d delivered it. It was an unusual experience for her so she asked me about it a little later on. I can’t say I immediately realized that the package contained the final report of the combined State and Federal audit examination that was done just before the ‘busy period’. But, when I did I began to be concerned about the contents especially when it came to what CeeCee (the lady in charge of the State portion of it) had written about the branch. That thought also triggered in my mind the question of why she’d left so abruptly on her last day at the bank.

An indication that there were some things in the report a bit out of the ordinary was in seeing the Chairman of Board show up that afternoon. In poor health, he’d only been coming to the monthly Board meetings. When I saw him disappear into the elevator I quickly made my way to and up the back stairs. I actually did have some things for Lena, the president’s secretary, that needed his signature. It was my hope to be by her desk when the Chairman got there. I thought I might get a hint of the seriousness of the situation from Lena. She was bending over at the waist retrieving something from the bottom drawer of a file cabinet as I approached. Even though she was older (approaching 40) she was definitely a ‘fashion maven’ in what she wore and short skirts were definitely a part of her. I’m telling the truth when I say that the last thing on my mind at that moment was seeing Lena’s panties. It lasted for more than 5 seconds… white with even a bit of the crotch showing. When she stood up it wasn’t because she’d seen or heard me. It was because the Chairman had walked up to her desk. She didn’t even know I was there.

It was as she was ushering him into Bert’s office that she finally saw me. I made sure that I had the papers out in front of me when she turned around to see me. I started talking as soon as she turned which got her to focus on them and not that I’d come up behind her. I explained what they were and where I needed his signature before casually asking why the Chairman was there. I remember her shrugging her shoulders and making a face, wrinkling her brow, to indicate she didn’t know. She only said one thing… “It must be serious.” After that all I could do was wait… and worry.

One thing seeing Lena’s panties did was to remind me to call Lynda at the stock brokerage. She’d been up to her eyeballs with work on Friday and I’d wanted to find out more on Ruthe. I called before the stock market opened which gave her a chance to bring me up to date on the situation with Ruthe and her ex-husband as well as when she’d be returning to work. Lynda said that physically she could come back at any time but she didn’t want to be out in public with the damage to her face still visible. Her guess was it would be the last week of the month. Eddie, the ex, was still in jail. What I found interesting was that it wasn’t so much for what he’d just done to Ruthe but the fact that by doing it he’d broken his probation from a previous incident.

Nothing was shared with me about the report for the rest of the week. The postponed meeting of the four county banks as regards to branching activities had been rescheduled for the last day of the month and at the same place. In hearing it my thoughts went to trying to figure out if there was a way to visit Lynda’s house and to see some more of her husband’s pictures of her. She’d told me that if I’d come back she’d share them and that thought was very much active in my mind.

To be continued…