The Maid’s Day Off

Anna with her short straight hair and square awkward body was really no one’s friend. Still Lynnette had lunch with her often because they sat near each other in their eleven o’clock history class and Anna had a witty, if caustic, way of discussing the professor and his viewpoints. It amused Lynn, and yet she felt sorry for Anna, even though she was wealthy and invariably received the top A on all the tests. The strangeness of her character, her plainness, was just enough to keep her alone.

That is why Lynn was so surprised when Anna invited her for Easter vacation. Of course she didn’t want to go, but she couldn’t think of a quick excuse and left the invitation hanging with a feeble “maybe.” On the way back to the dormitory, she tried to think of something to tell Anna that wouldn’t hurt her feelings. At the same time, she tried to bring to the surface her unconscious reason for not wanting to go.

“Its just a feeling I have, she explained to her roommate who was deeply absorbed in combing her own hair. “I’d just rather not go, but I can’t say that to Anna.”

“I’d go,” Mary said. “They live on a regular estate. I bet they’ve even got servants.”

At dinner, her fiancé David agreed, “You’re so cautious Lynn, you’ll never have any fun. Go just for a couple of days. I’ll meet you at the station Saturday and take you home for Easter Sunday. It will be good for you.”

It was almost a surprise almost to find herself there—sitting silently in the car watching the country go by while Anna read a book.

She hadn’t expected such a big place. It was beautiful because it was so big, but grotesque as well. It was old and overgrown. The shrubs were half bare of leaves from pruning. Winter seemed to be clinging to the place. The signs of spring were sent. Still it was spring and it was beautiful.

Anna let them in with a key.

“Isn’t anyone home?” Lynn asked.

“Thursday is the maid’s day out. Mother?” She called. “We are here.”

“Anna dear, is that you? And your little friend?” The voice seemed to come from a high recess and had a kind of hollow ring.

“Anna.”

“Yes, it’s me, mother, and Lynn Peterson.”

A woman appeared at the head of the stairs and began to toil her way down manipulating an elaborate, heavy robe to keep from stumbling over it. She kissed Anna warmly and took Lynne’s hand.

“I’m Anna’s Mother, of course, Mrs. Devon, call me Glady’s. I’m delighted you came. I’ve begged Anna all year to bring some of her nice young friends home for a visit.”

“Daddy wrote, Anna. There’s a letter in your room. Margaret will be home soon and we’ll have a nice supper.” She led them into a large living room. Anna excused herself to get her letter. Mrs. Devon and Anna sat down.

“You must tell me all about yourself, Lynn dear. “You are very pretty, I’ll bet you have a lot of boy friends.”

“One, David,” she answered moving slowly back into her chair. “We’re engaged.”

“Oh that’s so nice. Young love is a beautiful thing. I suppose you know that Anna’s Daddy and I are separated. Its quite temporary and he comes at Easter and sometimes at Christmas. He’s a professor and it falls so that Easter is convenient.

“I’d love to offer you some nice refreshments, but it’s the maid’s day out. Margaret likes Thursdays because her friend has Thursdays off and they go down to Santa Cruz or to the City and have all kinds of fun.” She fingered her sleeve and sighed.

She was sitting opposite Lynn on a sofa with her hostess gown spread out around her, and she looked rather delicate to Lynn, almost buried in her gown.

“Well,” she said smiling, waiting for Lynn to speak.

“Its lovely here,” Lynn said.

“Oh it isn’t kept up properly, you can’t do it without help. Since we’ve been maintaining two homes, even though my husband is fairly well off, I can’t afford more than a part-time gardener. Actually all he does is mow the lawn. But, you know, before Mr. Devon and I separated it was gorgeous here, especially in spring. We had a gardener and a helper then, and they kept things just right.

“Well I guess everyone has money problems,” Lynn said smiling. “And I like the wild feeling of the shrubs.”

“Its alright in nice weather.” She looked off for a moment thinking. Then turned suddenly back with a new smile. “Well we are so glad to have you. I’ve asked Anna so often to bring her friends for vacation. It gets too quiet here.”

Anna came back into the room with her letter. “So father’s coming!”

“Yes, tomorrow.”

“Well, how nice of him to bother,” she said just slightly sarcastically.

“He can’t always get away—–,“ The mother’s voice trailed off.

Anna’s expression was gloomy and she kept silent. Lynn sensed that she was trying to avoid an alignment.

“Well I wonder what Margaret and her friend are doing today. Margaret is our maid. They’re probably in the city, maybe at the zoo,” Mrs. Devon said brightly.

“I’m sure Lynn doesn’t care what Margaret is doing, Mother. I’ll show her our room.”

“Oh, yes of course. Then come again down and we’ll play some canasta.”

Anna’s room was well decorated and neat.

“I really shouldn’t have dragged you here Lynn. You’re going to be bored to death. Poor mother, I’m also sorry you didn’t have a room of your own, but father uses the guest room and the rest of the extra rooms are closed up.”

“I really don’t mind,” Lynn said. “It’s so nice here. There’s lots of room.” Anna’s sense of humor seemed to have disappeared.

Lynn looked in the mirror and patted her hair. “What is your father like?”

“He’s like me I guess. I look like him. He’ll expect me to play a game of tennis whether its raining or not. He’ll also bring some expensive, useless present for me—nothing for her. He’ll ignore all of mother’s efforts to be nice. She turned around. It’s not that I don’t like him, but I resent his absence. He could see me much more often. He has a great apartment in S.F. and I could even live with him, except that I’d interfere with his social life.

“Well is there anything you’d like to do?” she asked.

“I’d be glad to play cards with your mother,” Lynn said.

Anna sighed, “I hope you’ll understand about mother. She leaned on him so absolutely that she had no life of her own. Now she’s lonely. She spends her time living my life and Margaret’s days off—and hoping he’ll come back.”

As they entered the room, Mrs. Devon was putting down a wine glass. “Oh, good. Anna will you get the cards?” She watched Anna as she left.

“She and her father were very close, always doing things together. It’s been very hard for her. Carl’s new life is very involved. He really hasn’t enough time for her.” She poured a very small amount of wine into her glass and sipped it. “You see, he has so many friends.” She put her glass down and winced as if her own words had hurt her.

They played cards until Margaret returned and produced supper.

He did look like Anna, or she like him. He wasn’t handsome yet had a kind of style that made him seem very dashing.

He arrived in an expensive sports car and brought Anna a tiny portable television set, which he set up and put in operating condition almost before he said hello.

Then his attentions were turned to Lynn so long that the three women were all embarrassed. Finally, he turned to Anna. “Time for a little tennis before lunch. Run and get the rackets. I’ve been practicing up. We could make it doubles with Lynn here.

“I don’t play.”

“Can’t have that—I’ll have to teach you before you go.” He winked at her, then he and Anna left.”

Mrs. Devon, in another heavy dressing gown turned off the T.V. set. “At least he never forgets to bring her something. Its very cute. I suppose she could use it at school. Well, Lynn, dear, would you like to play gin? I’m not very good at it, but…”

“I’d enjoy playing,” Lynn said. It seemed like the least she could do for this lonely unhappy woman.

“I’m certainly glad that you and Anna are friends,” Mrs. Devon said. “You’re such a nice girl, and she needs friends so badly.”

Lynn sighed to think that she was much less than a real friend to Anna.

“Well didn’t I say I’d beat her. Two out of three,” Mr. Devon came in again immediately dominating the room.

Lynn heard it from Anna’s room where she had retreated after the cards grew hopelessly stale.

“Then she beat you once did she?” said Mrs. Devon.

“She’s a great player. We ought to teach her friend.”

“Excuse me.” Anna said and hurried up the stairs.

Her face was highly colored when she came in and she turned quickly from Lynn and faced the windows. Finally after a long silence she said angrily, “He’s going to ask her for a divorce. He wants to marry someone else.” She continued to look at the window.

Lynn groped for something to say. “Well it may be better really. You can probably visit him more then. And she’ll be free. Maybe she’ll marry again. She’s very sweet and pretty.”

“It will kill my mother. She is practically an alcoholic as it is. You see, she never believed in it all, the separation. She’s always hoped he’d come back. Every Christmas and Easter she’s hoped that.”

Anna was crying now, in a stiff-boyish way.

“I’m sorry,” Lynn said. She looked at the homely girl standing in front of the window with her shoulders shaking. There was no one there Lynn knew, none of the witty girl she had lunch with. And she felt caught in the embarrassment of a stranger’s suffering.

The whole visit she thought was like being the sole observer of a slow, solemn play.

The next day, Mrs. Devon seemed to wear a mask of a smile and she made continual, futile attempts at graciousness. Then it was time to go. Mr. Devon and Anna would drive her to the train. She was anxious to leave. Yet wished that somehow she could help.

She packed quickly and checked the room for belongings. “I’ve been thinking,” she said to Anna. “After school is out in June, if you don’t mind not having a maid and all that, maybe you’d be able to come and spend a weekend with me.”

“Thank you,” Anna said, “Maybe I will.”

But Lynn felt sure she wouldn’t. Somehow she had failed. Anna was more alone than ever.

Downstairs Anna’s mother embraced Lynn, her breath heavy with wine. She was nearly in tears. “Thank you so much for coming, Lynn my dear. It’s a great comfort to me to know that Anna has such dear friends.”

The sun had come out by the time they reached the station. “I hope things work out for you,” Lynn said. “Anyway, I’ll see you in class Monday, and for lunch.”

“Maybe,” Anna answered. “He thinks mother should let Margaret go and get an apartment. She won’t have anything to think about then. No one to be with her. Maybe I’ll quit school.”

“I hope not,” Lynn couldn’t say more for her train was loading.

As she sped closer to San Jose where she would find David her feeling gradually changed, as if she were shaking off a darkness. The day became sunny and she began to think of her happy home, her parents, and boisterous brothers and sisters. It was as if a great relief came over her.

David kissed her hello and bustled her lovingly to the car. “Have fun?” he asked.

“It was an estate,” she said. “And they had a maid.” But she thought, “And they were so

desperately unhappy.” It seemed as if some of the clouds returned and she moved closer to David and said nothing more.