Caroline was surprised to see two cars parked beside her mother’s. One was George Durrow’s minivan; she had never seen the other before. Mr. Durrow was sitting on the front porch in one of her mother’s oversized rocking chairs. Sitting beside him in an identical rocker was an older man, thin, bald and wearing a pair of large, dark sunglasses. They were drinking lemonade from tall glasses.
“It’s Caroline? Right?” Durrow asked as Caroline mounted the porch steps. He had changed clothes. He was now wearing dress pants and a sweater, with a paisley tie peaking above the collar.
“Yes, it is,” she said. “You’re Mr. Durrow. Right?”
“Call me George.”
“All right,” she said. “George, then.”
“And I’m Spartacus,” the other man said, grinning.
“Spartacus?” Caroline repeated. She reached out to shake the man’s hand, but he offered none in return. She reached a little closer, thinking that perhaps he was older and less mobile than he appeared. Nothing.
“You’re trying to shake my hand,” the man said, smirking. “Aren’t you?”
“Excuse me?” Caroline said.
“I’m blind,” he said, seeming to hone in on her voice. “I’m sorry. I thought you knew.”
“Oh God, I’m sorry,” Caroline said. “I had no idea.”
“Nor should you,” he said, extending his hand in her general direction.
“It’s nice to meet you,” she said. “You are?”
“I told you. I am Spartacus.” When Caroline failed to respond, he added, “For real.”
“Spartacus? Like from the movie?”
“That’s his name,” George Durrow said. “I didn’t believe it either when he first told me.”
“I don’t believe it. Show me your driver’s license.”
Spartacus laughed.
“Oh, I’m sorry,” Caroline said.
“I think it’s rude that the state won’t let me drive just because I can’t see, but that’s my lot in life. A least until Google gets those self-driving cars on the road. Did you know that in Iowa, a blind man can get a gun permit? Now that’s a progressive state. But ask your mother. The name is real.”
“I’m really sorry,” Caroline said.
“Don’t worry about it,” Spartacus said. “You’re certainly not the first to question me. I was supposed to be an Edwin, but when I was born blind, my parents decided to go with Spartacus. They thought I needed all the help I could get. And they were hippies, so it wasn’t much of a stretch.”
Caroline smiled.
“I love it,” George said. “Hippies or not, it was smart of them.”
“And your last name?” Caroline said. “Dare I ask?”
“Bloom,” Spartacus said. “Doesn’t quite match the first, but there was no changing that.”
“Your parents sound like a couple of interesting characters,” Caroline said.
“They were,” Spartacus said. “They’re not with us anymore.”
“I’m sorry. I’m saying all the wrong things today.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Spartacus said. “I miss them dearly, but there’s nothing to be sorry about. Even Kirk Douglas will die someday.”
“Kirk Douglas?” Caroline asked.
“The actor who played Spartacus.”
“Right,” Caroline said, relieved that this banter had turned her mood around. She was surprised, too. Small talk was not her forte, yet she felt at ease with these two men, even with all of her gaffs. She pulled up a chair. “So you’re here for the same reason as George?” she asked.
“I hope not!” Spartacus said. “Is there something you want to tell me, George?”
George laughed uncomfortably. “Penelope’s a fine lady,” George said. “But I wouldn’t dream of stealing her.”
“Stealing?” Caroline said.
“You didn’t know that your mother was dating?” Spartacus asked.
“No, I knew she was dating,” Caroline said. “I just didn’t know—”
“That her boyfriend was blind?”
“No,” Caroline said. “That his name was Spartacus.” Another smile.
“That’s your mother. She loves the shock value. When we first started dating, she’d have me meet her friends at lunch on some outdoor patio so my sunglasses didn’t look so out of the ordinary. And she’d make sure that we arrived before her friends, so they wouldn’t see my cane or see me walking in on her arm. Then she’d just wait until one of them was brave enough to ask if I was blind.”
“And you went along with it?” Caroline asked.
“Sure,” Spartacus said. “I have to admit that it made for an interesting sociological experiment.”
“Sounds cruel to me,” George said.
“Sounds like my mother to me,” Caroline said.
“I can’t deny that it had Penelope written all over it,” Spartacus said. “She enjoyed screwing with people so much that I started to wonder if it was the only reason she agreed to date me.”
“That’s Mom,” Caroline said.
“Good thing I love her.” Spartacus Bloom loved her mother. This made Caroline surprisingly happy. It also made her wonder how much she was missing out on. “By the way,” she said, “have you seen my daughter?”
“She got here an hour ago,” George said.
“Really? She must’ve run. She was over by the high school when I last saw her.”
“No,” George said, “She came with … I can’t remember their names.”
“She wasn’t walking?”
“No, she was in that SUV over there,” George said, pointing to the Lexus. “A family. Husband, wife, two kids.”
“Really?” Caroline said.
“The fella had bandages on his hands.”
“The Labontes?” Caroline asked. “Emily and Randy Labonte?”
“Yup, that’s them.”
“They’re here now?” Caroline felt a weight descend upon her chest.
“Yeah, they’ve been here almost as long as I have,” George said. “It was nice of Polly to invite me, by the way. That’s quite a girl you have.”
“Oh, you’re here for dinner, too?”
“Yeah,” Mr. Durrow said. “I hope you don’t mind.”
“She invited me, too,” Spartacus said. “Penelope told me to stay away tonight. She said she wanted dinner with her girls. But then Polly called and told me to come right over, so here I am. Hope it’s all right.”
“Of course it is,” Caroline said. “The more the merrier. Right?”
And why should she mind? This promised to be a great evening. Her mother’s blind boyfriend, a parrot-grieving client, her high school nemesis, her nemesis’s possibly adulterous husband and their daughter. Plus a son Caroline had yet to meet. A perfect combination for a dinner party.
As if reading her thoughts, Spartacus said, “Agnes is here, too.”
“Agnes?” Caroline asked.
“My home health aide,” Spartacus said. “She drove me here, and Polly invited her to stay. It’s going to be one hell of a dinner party.”
That was exactly what Caroline was afraid of.