Chapter 5 - THE SHOWROOM DOOR
Eleanor stared down at the sticky, lint-covered peppermint in the child's small hand.
Her mouth worked silently.
Her skin looked grey under the warm yellow chandelier light.
"Take it," Leo urged, tilting his head. "It tastes like tooth-soap, but it works."
Eleanor didn't touch it.
She couldn't.
Her hand remained glued to her trembling handbag.
Yacita placed a quiet hand on Leo's shoulder, guiding him gently back to her side.
"Keep your candy, Leo," she said softly. "The lady doesn't like mint."
"Oh," Leo said. He pulled his hand back, unbuttoned his canvas backpack, and tossed the candy inside.
It landed with a soft thud against his picture book.
Yacita turned to face the main glass doors of the boutique.
Outside, the New York traffic moved in a blurred stream of yellow taxis and wet grey asphalt.
A crowd of pedestrians shuffled past, huddled inside dark wool coats, their heads bent against the cold wind.
"Matteo," Yacita said softly.
"Yes, Doña Yacita?"
Yacita looked at Eleanor Vance one last time.
She didn't look at her with hatred.
She didn't look at her with triumph.
Her eyes held only the cold, distant neutrality of an appraiser looking at an imitation stone.
"Por favor, acompañen a esta señora a la salida," Yacita said.
Her Spanish was clear, low, and smooth as silk.
"Please escort this lady to the exit."
Eleanor gasped, her chest swelling under her heavy fur coat.
"You're kicking me out?" she yelled, her voice echoing off the glass cases and marble walls.
"You're throwing me out onto Fifth Avenue like a dog?"
"I am a customer!"
Matteo stepped forward smoothly, his body naturally blocking Eleanor's view of Yacita.
He extended one arm toward the tall, glass double doors at the front of the store.
His white-gloved hand pointed directly toward the street.
"This way, Mrs. Vance," Matteo said, his voice dropping into a register that offered zero room for argument.
"Do not make me call security to assist with your coat."
"My coat?" Eleanor shrieked, clutching the brown mink tightly around her neck. "This coat costs more than your annual salary!"
"And yet," Matteo murmured, taking one firm step toward her, "it offers very little protection against the cold outside."
Two large security guards in dark suits stepped out from behind the velvet curtains near the entrance.
They didn't touch her.
They simply stood on either side of the wide marble aisle, their hands folded neatly in front of their belts.
Their shadows stretched long across the floor, crossing right over Eleanor's polished leather shoes.
Eleanor looked from the guards to Matteo, then past him to Yacita.
Yacita had already turned her back.
May you like
She was kneeling down on the polished floor beside her son.
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