where I unlatched the lock reluctantly. The hinges creaked, revealing Mr. Garrison in the hallway outside. He was a large man, in both stature and girth; it was easy to see why Daniel feared him so. His stern face was all but covered by a gray, unkempt beard. Only ruddy, pockmarked cheeks and dark, unkind eyes shone through. His breath smelled of gin, piney and sour, signaling that he’d come up from the saloon on the floor below. The strict reign of Prohibition hadn’t yet ended, but most police looked the other way in this part of town.
“Good evening, Mr. Garrison,” I said as sweetly as I could.
He inched closer, wedging his large, steel-toed boot in the doorway. “Save the formalities,” he said. “Where’s my money?”
“Please—let me apologize, sir,” I began in a faltering voice. “I know I’ve been late on rent. It’s been a very hard month for us, and I—”
“You told that story last week,” he said without emotion. He pushed past me and made his way into the kitchen, where he helped himself to the small loaf of bread I’d just pulled from the oven. My dinner. He opened the icebox and frowned when he didn’t find a crock of butter. “I’ll ask you once more,” he continued, his cheeks stuffed. His eyes narrowed. “Where’s my money?”
I clutched the bracelet as my gaze darted past him to the wall, with its scuffed baseboards and peeling paint. What can I tell him now? What can I do?
He let out a deep, throaty laugh. “Just as I thought,” he said. “A thieving liar.”
“Mr. Garrison, I—”
His eyes fixed on me possessively; he moved closer until I could smell the rancidness of his breath and feel the bristle of his beard on my face. He grasped my wrist tightly, just as the bracelet slinked beneath the cuff of my sleeve, hidden from his view. “I thought it might come to this,” he said, his fat, rough hand fumbling with my sweater until he pushed it aside and clutched the bodice of my dress. His index finger tugged at a button. “Fortunately for you, I happen to be a generous man, and I’ll allow you to pay me in a different way.”
I took a step back, just as I heard footsteps on the stairs. “Mama?”
“Daniel, go back to bed, love,” I said as calmly as I could. “I’ll be right there.”
“Mama,” he said again, beginning to cry.
“Oh, honey,” I called out, praying my voice didn’t reveal the terror I felt. “Everything’s all right. I promise. Please go back to bed.”
I could not let him see this, or worse, let Mr. Garrison hurt him.
“Mama, I’m scared,” he said, his voice muffled through his teddy bear.
Mr. Garrison cleared his throat and straightened his overcoat. “Well, if you can’t shut him up,” he shouted, regarding Daniel with a sinister grin, “then I’ll have to come back. But make no mistake about it, I will be back.” I didn’t like the way he looked at Daniel, as if he were a pet, a nuisance. He turned his gaze back to me, staring at me as if I were a fine flatiron steak sizzling in a skillet. “And I’ll get me my payment.”
I nodded meekly as he walked out the door. “Yes, Mr. Garrison.” I fumbled with the latch as his footsteps pounded down the hall. Before I turned around to face Daniel, I took a deep, reassuring breath and wiped a stray tear from my cheek.
“Oh, Daniel,” I said, running to the top of the stairs, cradling him in my arms. “Are you frightened, honey? Don’t be frightened. Mama’s here. There’s nothing to worry about.”
“But the man,” he sniffled, “he’s a bad man. He hurt Mama?”
“No, honey,” I said. “Mama wouldn’t let that happen.”
I reached down to my wrist and unfastened the bracelet, letting it fall into the protective space of my palm.
Daniel looked up at me in confusion, and I studied his big, innocent eyes, wishing things were different for him, for us. “Mama loves her bracelet, dear one. I just want to keep it safe.”
He considered the idea for a moment. “So you don’t lose it?”
“That’s right.” I stood up and took his hand. “Will you help Mama put it in the secret place?”
Daniel nodded, and we walked to the tiny cupboard below the stairs. He had discovered the space, no bigger than a hatbox, one morning while playing, and we’d decided the special compartment would be our secret from the world. Daniel kept