DADDY’S HEART HAS A disease. That’s how Mother explained it to the girls, and that’s how the doctors at the hospital had explained it to Mother. Daddy was a very sick man, and there was nothing anyone could do for him to make him better, other than keep him comfortable and in bed. Until.
After Mother got all that out, she laid her head on the back of the sofa and wept.
That was the gist of it.
But it made sense to no one.
“He’s so young,” said Elizabeth, wiping away her own tears. “I don’t understand.”
“He’s going to die?” asked Frankie, squeezing Joan’s fingers. That couldn’t be right. There must be some kind of medicine that could help. And then she wondered if the doctors at the hospital had seen those flyers and had heard the rumors about Daddy. They wouldn’t decide not to help him if they could, would they?
Mother moaned into her hands, and Elizabeth stroked her arm to soothe her. “Frankie, please,” said Elizabeth, giving her a look.
“Everybody’s going to die sometime,” said Grandma Engel. “Hermann’s alive right now, and I don’t care what those doctors say, they don’t know a plum thing more than any of us do about it. When it’s your time, it’s your time.”
“Can we see him?” asked Joan.
Mother blew her nose into a handkerchief. “In a few days,” she said. “You all can see him in a few days.”
“That will be the best medicine for him,” said Grandma Engel, nodding.
“What about the restaurant?” said Frankie. “The grand opening is supposed to be tonight.”
Mother got to her feet. “As far as I’m concerned, the restaurant is closed.” Then, without saying another word about it, she made her way across the room, pausing once. “It’s just as well. If last night was telling, there wouldn’t be anybody to show up tonight anyway.” She went on down the hall to her room to lie down.
“This is all Mr. Price’s fault,” said Frankie. “And Mr. Stannum’s.”
“Mr. Price from the Chamber of Commerce?” said Grandma Engel. “And Mr. Stannum from the restaurant? What do they have to do with anything?”
Then Frankie explained about how she followed Mr. Stannum to the pharmacy and saw what she saw. And about the boycott german businesses flyers that the Price boys were handing out.
Elizabeth wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand. “If you’re talking about whose fault this is,” she went on, “you might want to look in the mirror.”
“What do you mean?” said Frankie, dropping Joan’s hand and getting to her feet.
“I mean, Daddy was out looking for you when this happened,” accused Elizabeth.
“Elizabeth!” said Joan. “That’s not fair.”
Grandma Engel stomped her foot on the floor. “Stop it now! Just stop! What happened to your father was nobody’s fault. Didn’t you hear what your mother said? He is sick. Now, I don’t want to hear any more of this kind of talk, do you understand?”
Elizabeth, Joan, and Frankie nodded.
“Let me hear you,” said Grandma Engel.
“We understand,” the girls said at the same time.
“Good,” said Grandma Engel, standing up. “Now, let’s get some breakfast going. We’ll all feel a little brighter with full stomachs. Elizabeth, why don’t you help me?”
When Elizabeth and Grandma Engel were gone, Frankie whispered to Joan, “What Elizabeth said. Do you think she’s right?”
“Of course not,” said Joan.
“But Daddy wouldn’t have been out there at the square looking for me, if I hadn’t . . .” The thought sickened her.
“I’m certain that had nothing to do with it,” said Joan.
Frankie nodded, succumbing to tears. “He must have been so worried and upset.” But there was more to Frankie’s grief. She also felt terribly guilty for having wondered if Daddy was really a spy for the Germans. That he could have been. She no longer believed that to be true, of course, though she still couldn’t explain the piece of paper that Mr. Stannum had found. But thinking that she’d doubted Daddy, even for a short time, well . . . how was she any different from Mr. Stannum or anybody else who was swayed by those rumors?
Joan shook her head. “Aunt Dottie told me that their father was sick a lot while they were growing up. So maybe Daddy has the same kind of heart problem. Frankie, nobody is to blame.”
“Maybe not for his heart,” said Frankie. But there was plenty of blame to go around for everything else.