Chapter 7

Laura was bubbly on the way home. "That was so much fun. Jock said I was a natural. I found everything in the test-data that he knew about and even something he had over-looked!"

I knew that - what Jock had actually said to me was even more effusive 'Keep her! Get her through college and employ her! She is brilliant!'

I managed a lame "That's good. I thought it was your thing." In reality, I was more interested in the other purpose of today's visit - so I asked, as casually as I could, "So, what do you make of Joyce?"

"Oh, she is an absolute honey!" Laura beamed. "After ten minutes I felt like I've known her all my life. If only I'd had a friend like that earlier!!" I smiled broadly, but said nothing. "Do you know, she managed to get me an emergency appointment with the obstetrician she and Lisa have been seeing, and she will take me there herself on Monday?"

"Yes," I replied. "She told me. That's really good because I can't be there Monday - I have a whole-day meeting that ends with a dinner."

"I know," Laura said. "Joyce looked up your appointment calendar. But she is taking me home to see Lisa and the kids, so I am all set." She sounded so happy, and when I snuck a look at her, there was a serene calmness on her face. My heart ached. I had to force myself to concentrate on the traffic.

Thursday night we went out for dinner at Abe and Leah's place. They are a delightful couple and always great hosts - on this occasion they went out of their way to make Laura feel welcome and at ease. Abe, always direct but unfailingly kind, made it clear to Laura that he knew of her pregnancy - it was getting rather obvious anyway. When we had arrived in their park-view apartment and were seated in Abe's gorgeous study with four or five other guests for a pre-dinner drink, he elegantly handled the subject by saying: "It's not so much your age Laura, but the precious cargo you are carrying that made me assume you want something non-alcoholic."

Laura smiled warmly and agreed. Since I never drink either, she didn't feel left out.

One of the other guests - a retired school principal that I have only met once before, picked up on Abe's comment. "You're pretty young to choose to become a mother," she said.

There was nothing exactly condemning in her statement and the tone wasn't hostile, yet I found it disturbingly personal for someone you do not know at all. But Laura didn't flinch. In a calm voice she replied "I didn't choose to become pregnant, but once that had happened, I had no intention of letting my baby suffer. So it is perhaps better to say that I have chosen to embrace the fact that I will soon become a mother."

That opened a fairly robust discussion on what is still perhaps America's most contentious social/moral issue that carried on well into dinner. Most of Abe and Leah's friends are liberal Jews - I count myself honored to be included in their circle as I have frequently been the only non-Jew at their parties. So the Pro Choice stance was in the majority. Interestingly, but not surprisingly, Abe sided with Laura. His harrowing start to life got drawn in too. "I was one of the few lucky ones - I survived the unspeakable evil, and I cannot remember any of it." he said. He had stumbled out of a liberated concentration camp in early 1945 with an 'uncle' - a man who had been engaged to his father's sister. All of Abe's relatives had perished, only he and the 'uncle' survived and made it to the USA through the 'uncle's' family connections. To Abe, life was as sacrosanct as it was to Laura. As a young lawyer, he had worked tirelessly to fight the death penalty pro bono, and he had never been Pro Choice.

Leah - despite her and Abe's infertility that had caused them much grief - took the opposite view and firmly supported a woman's right to choose, but like me saw it as something not to be encouraged - "I will always support choosing life when possible, but the choice should be there. I think Laura is very courageous."

Once more I worried that Laura would be hurt or offended when the outspoken former principal brought sex education into the discussion - equating lack of proper sex education with the prevalence of teenage pregnancies. While not saying it in so many words, it was clear from her argument that she assumed Laura's pregnancy was an 'accident' that could have been prevented. Again, I was impressed with Laura's maturity and calm. "I agree with you entirely that good sex education is a must," she said. "It just wouldn't have made any difference in my case - I don't think my rapist would have acted any differently with better Sex Ed. Besides, he wasn't even a teenager."

The content of that statement in itself was shocking to the guests; the level voice it was delivered in only enhanced the effect. Leah, ever the competent hostess steered the discussion in a new direction and for a while Laura could relax, but through a twist she again became the center of attention in a discussion of, of all things, fashion. Laura wore a new dress I had bought her and some of the jewelry I had retrieved on Tuesday - she looked very pretty indeed. Abe, Leah and their guests obviously thought so too; they praised her for her style and the antique jewelry was mentioned. "Yes, I am very fond of those pieces. They belonged to my great-grandmother," Laura said.

"I think it is touching that you hang on to them and use them," one of the guests commented. "It shows real dedication to your heritage."

Ever honest and open, Laura - perhaps unwisely - felt a need to spill the beans. "Actually, I had to part with them. It broke my heart, but I had to."

"Part with them?" the guest asked.

"My parents forced me out on the streets, so I had to pawn them to feed myself - and my baby," Laura said.

"That's shocking, my child," Leah interjected. "But you have them again now?"

"Yes, George got them back for me," Laura said. "I have so much to be grateful to George for."

I was deeply moved by that but wondered what the impact of Laura's confession would be. I didn't have to wait long. "You are very candid Laura," the retired principal said. "So I am sure you don't mind me asking how you got to know George."

I am pretty sure Laura did mind. This time the question sounded openly hostile and I am also pretty certain that what she really wanted to ask was 'what is the nature of your relationship?' or something like that. It was time to get her to shut up. Before Laura could say anything, I cut in. "Laura and I met by chance. She approached me for help with her immediate needs, and we got to know each other. For now she is staying with me and going to school nearby. I have also employed her part time in at my company. My leading analyst tells me she is brilliant at it and easily holds her own. If only she was old enough to get a security clearance, we would make a fortune from her!"

The businessmen present laughed at that. Laura looked stunned. Perhaps I was laying it on a bit thick, but it was more or less the truth. Obviously she couldn't be allowed to work on classified data yet, but once she could, the sky was the limit.

Abe was next. "George and I are working on getting Laura's parents to resume their natural duties. Until then she is safe with George. All relevant authorities have been informed and have agreed with the arrangements." Noble of him. All he'd done was to OK my letters. I had told him about Debbie and Lorraine's visit - and there was still no answer from Laura's parents. But this small license with the truth certainly helped shield Laura.

Leah closed the discussion by saying "There'll be coffee and tea in the living room," and ensured that Laura and I sat down with someone else.

We didn't stay long after that. "It is a school day tomorrow and Laura needs her sleep," I said as we rose to polite murmurs of agreement.

Abe and Leah both saw us out. "I am sorry about Rachel," Leah said, opening her arms to Laura. "She can be a bit rough at times. I hope you don't feel hurt."

"That's OK," Laura said - happily melting in to Leah's embrace. "I guess we are going to hear a lot like that. I guess I will get used to it."

"Well, I don't think it is fair Laura," Abe said. "But remember that Leah and I will be there for you."

He got a peck on the cheek for that and we left.

"That wasn't too bad, was it?" I asked when we got in the car to drive home.

"Not at all - Abe and Leah are lovely!" Laura exclaimed. "As are Mother M and Sister Joanna and Ramone and Debbie and Jock and Joyce. It's kind of strange..." She trailed off.

"What is?" I prompted.

"Well, I have made some pretty unusual friends," she mused. "At least from what I was used to in my all-white, all-straight, all-middle class, all-evangelical life."

I smiled. "Well, I'm not evangelical, but I'm white and straight and middle class."

"But you are anything but usual George!" she said. "You are the most unusual of the lot and I love you."

Perhaps she said it before she had thought about how it would sound and she instantly fell silent, blushing profusely.

"I am glad to hear that sweetheart," I said quietly. "I love you too."

We of course both knew that the word 'love' has a lot of meanings. But neither of us was sure what the exact meaning was now - for ourselves or the other, and for the rest of the drive home we remained silent.

We had a quiet weekend. Laura had a fair amount of homework, and she was still working on catching up with her new class. But Sunday we went to an art gallery and had lunch there, and in the afternoon we went to Vespers again. I have never been a regular Church goer, but I certainly didn't mind and Laura wanted to - and there was no reluctance in her singing this time. We didn't stop and talk to Mother Marianna, but we got a blazing smile.