Look but Don't Choke

Chapter 18

            I followed her through the tall walnut doors at the front of their mansion and nearly fell over when I got an eyeful of the decadent furnishings inside. The walls were covered with a deep cream geometric patterned wallpaper and the floor underfoot was some sort of brilliant dark tile that shined like a jewel under a crystal chandelier. In the center of the foyer was a winding marble staircase with an elaborately carved wooden railing.

             "Hurry up!" Mrs. Delgatto said as she stomped her way up the stairs.

             I followed behind quiet but observant of my surroundings. There'd been no sign of Delgatto all day and I was starting to wonder if this whole endeavor would be for nothing. I followed my employer down an imposing hallway on the second floor and into the impressive master bedroom.

             She opened a door to an adjacent room and we walked into a massive walk-in closet bigger than my living room. The closet was full of clothes more suited to a younger woman but to be honest, it worked for her. Her warm brown skin made it difficult to tell but she was probably in her early forties. Still, her beauty seemed to be preserved in the golden age of her own woman-ness and not even a fine line here or there could diminish it.

           "Sit the bags down over there," she said. I obeyed, setting the bags on top of a rectangular drawer that sat in the middle of the closet. "Take the clothes out. Might as well put them away while you're here."

              "Yes, ma'am." I unloaded bags that boasted of designer labels and pulled out an assortment of clothes, shoes, and jewelry to rival an empress. "This is a lot of stuff."

              "I have lots of money. Here give me that box of shoes." I gave it to her and watched as she carefully unpacked a pair of gold stilettos and placed them on a cleared space on the built-in shelf next to near identical copies of the same shoe. "Are you married," she said mostly to herself as she admired her collection.

               "No."

                "It has its pros and cons—no, no hang those over there with the other dresses."

                  "Yes, ma'am."

                 "You know the best part about being married?"

                  "Having someone to grow old with?" I said.

                 "The money—marry rich by the way," she turned back to look at me in my grungy casual wear and messy hair. "Well do as best you can, I guess. And you're young so you think everything's about love and passion, but trust me passion dies and all you have left is a temperamental thug, and his very full bank account."

                "So you didn't love Mr. Delgatto then?" I said as I hang an A-shaped dress on a rack.

                "Hmm. When we first got married it was because I was doing my brother a favor. 'Marry my friend', he said. 'It's good for the business'," she shrugged. "Over time I guess there was a certain fondness, I've got five kids to prove it."

               "Five kids! I can't even imagine."

                "You think that's impressive, my husband has eleven!" her laugh wasn't bitter or crass but easy-going as she fingered a fine gold pendant that sat on an elaborate vanity.

                "Oh I...don't know what to say."

                "It's okay. As long as he comes home to me," she said.