The Mercedes rumbled as Nir downshifted. Angling the wheel left, he pulled into a long drive. He was late, as usual, and he could see the cars of his brother, Michael, and his sister, Shayna, already pulled off onto the grass in the front yard. His oldest brother, Aaron, was an importer in Perth, Australia, and his youngest sister, Ava, lived in Geneva, getting by however a young, very pretty divorcee got by in Switzerland.
I don’t know, and I don’t want to ask.
It had been 15 years since he had seen Aaron. The only time his brother had been home in the interim was when their safta on their mother’s side passed away. Unfortunately, Nir had been on assignment in Greece at the time and missed him. Ava would pop up every now and again at their parents’ house. She was shallow and flighty, and Nir did his best to not be available when she was around.
Nir parked next to Michael’s SUV and stepped out of the car, only to be mobbed by two boys and two girls, all under ten. “Dohd,” they all called out, wrapping him in their arms. Laughing, he made sure each one felt his arm on their back before he stepped back. Squatting down, he looked at them, and silence filled the air.
“Why do I feel like you’re expecting something from me?” he asked, suppressing a grin.
Menashe, his three-year-old nephew, said, “It’s Purim. You’re supposed to give us candy now.” The others giggled at his brashness.
“Candy? Nobody told me to bring candy.”
Menashe was crestfallen, but the others were used to Nir’s games, so their grins widened more in anticipation.
Reaching back into his car, Nir pulled out a bag filled with mini packages of M&M’S. Earlier in the day, he had stolen the candy from Liora’s desk, substituting it with a note that promised replacement. Holding the bag in front of Menashe, he said, “It’s a good thing I just happened to have this in my car.”
Menashe beamed as the other children cheered. Nir tore open the bag and gave each one just enough little packs of candy to make their parents unhappy. “Thank you, Dohd,” they each said, taking turns at giving him a hug before running off toward the side of the house.
“Always the hero.”
Nir looked up, knowing by the voice who he would see. Slowly moving down the front steps of the house was his oldest niece, Eliana. She was a younger version of her mother, Hannah, who, next to Nicole, was the most beautiful woman Nir had ever seen. How his brother had managed to snatch her up, he’d never know. Eliana stopped on the bottom step and waited for him to come to her.
Nir smiled as he walked her way. “I’d lift my shirt and show you my Superman leotard, but I think I forgot to put it on. So, in the end, it would probably just end up being awkward.”
Her ready smile spread across her face. “You are so weird. And a little gross.” He reached her and she wrapped her arms around him. “We’ve missed you, Dohd. I’m so glad you came.”
“You know us superheroes. Always out saving the world.”
She stepped back and looked at him. Her hand reached up and touched a scuff mark on his forehead that Yaron had given him while they were sparring. “I think that’s probably more true than you let on.”
This girl is going to break a lot of hearts before she finds the right one.
He stretched out his hand behind her ear and came back with a package of plain M&M’S. “You didn’t think I’d forget you.”
“Walla! You’re amazing,” she said with an eye roll, taking the package.
“Pardon me, habibti. I didn’t realize you were too old for candy.” As he said this, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a 200-shekel note he had rolled up for her earlier. He passed it to her on the sly and whispered, “Happy Purim. Take this and go have fun with your friends, but don’t tell your folks.”
His niece wrapped her arms around his neck one more time before depositing the bill and the candy into her pocket. Sliding her arm through his, she said, “Come on, everyone is inside, except for saba, who is out back with his fruit trees, of course.”
It was hard to believe that in less than six months, Eliana would begin her mandatory service in the IDF. Nir prayed that the conflicts in Gaza and up north would be done before that time arrived.
The front door opened to a wide room. His brother Michael sat on a couch talking with Shayna’s husband, Elias Rochman.
“Nir,” Michael said, lifting his bottle of Gold Star toward him. Despite the hugs of the children, Nir and his siblings hadn’t grown up with a lot of physical touch. That continued into adulthood.
Elias nodded and said, “How goes it?” A CPA who leaned politically to the left, Nir had always felt that Shayna could have done much better. By all accounts, Elias had the same low opinion of his guntoting brother-in-law.
“Doing okay,” Nir answered. Then, before Nir could stop himself, he asked, “Attend any marches lately?”
The forced smile on Elias’s face tightened even more. “No. Shoot anybody lately?”
“No. But the day’s not over.”
Nir felt a slap on his arm. He turned to see Eliana glaring at him. “It’s Purim. Don’t start things.”
“What?” Nir pleaded with an innocent look on his face.
She pulled his arm and led him into the kitchen. His mother was stirring a pot on the stove, while Shayna and Hannah were both cutting vegetables at the kitchen island.
“Hey, ima,” he said.
His mother turned. “Nir! So glad you came, even if you’re a little late.”
Both his sister and sister-in-law also greeted him warmly, although only Hannah put down her knife to come hug him.
“Good to see you, Nir,” she said. Then, touching the scuff on his forehead, she added, “You look like you’ve been busy.”
“Nah, just cut myself shaving,” he said with a wink. “Abba’s out back?”
“I’ll take you,” Eliana said, stepping toward the back door.
“Stop,” said Hannah. “Give your dohd some room. Here, grab a bowl and start collecting these vegetables.”
Nir’s niece gave him an exasperated look of apology, then began to fill the proffered bowl.
Opening the back door to his father’s small grove of orange trees always gave him a sense of déjà vu. He had done it so many times throughout his life, and, so often, when he did, he would see his father with his shears trimming and shaping what were his pride and joy.
“Hey, abba,” Nir called out.
Without turning, his father said, “Ah, Nir, good. Grab that basket by the steps and come here.”
Looking down, Nir spotted what his dad wanted. He carried it over.
“Now hold it there.” Climbing onto the second step of a small ladder, his dad began to examine the oranges. Every fourth or fifth one, he would gently twist off and set in the basket. “It was good of you to show up. Your ima is always happy when you do.”
There were several ways that Nir could interpret his father’s words, but he figured it was best just to assume the best option. Like Eliana had warned, “Don’t start things.” Instead, he said, “The trees are looking great.”
“No frost yet. Been a good year.” The man continued to selectively harvest his fruit. “The Grebers three doors down lost a son in Gaza. Didn’t know if you’d heard. Also, the Kantors’ daughter is home from her reserve duty with a back injury. Don’t know how it happened, but she’s moving very slowly.”
“That’s a tragedy.”
“What’s a tragedy is that we’re in this whole mess to begin with. Six months in, and we’re still fighting in Gaza. What’s the prime minister doing?”
“He’s doing all he can, abba. From all I can tell, he won’t stop until he finishes the job.”
Nir’s father backed down the two steps and leaned his elbow on the ladder. “That man better see it through or else he’ll be out. He may be out anyway if the leftists, like that one in my house, have anything to do with it. If there was ever a time that should bring us together, this is it. But already the sharks are back in the water. The other day at work, I had to walk away from the table where I was having lunch with some coworkers because one idiot started spouting off how the prime minister was getting our kids killed in Gaza. Should we just give up? What does he want us to do about the hostages? If you ask him, he’d say, ‘Negotiate.’ Seriously? Negotiate with the ones who took them to begin with? I left the table because if I had stayed, I would have popped the man, and then I’d be out of a job.”
Nir stayed silent, letting the man rant. He knew that if he agreed with him, it would extend the tirade indefinitely. And if he disagreed, it would be even worse. Then he’d be the target of his father’s ire instead of Elias inside.
After half a minute of silence, his father grunted and climbed back up the ladder. “Take those in and give them to your ima.”
Anxious to escape, Nir spun around and headed for the house. He was almost to the door when his father called out, “And how’s that Christian girlfriend of yours?”
Nir stopped in his tracks. Once again, Eliana’s words came back to him.
Don’t start things.
“She’s fine, abba. She’s doing fine.”
Hurrying up the steps, Nir walked back into the house, closing the door behind him.