Chapter Forty-Two

FORTY-TWO

JUNE 1926

Irving hadn’t been entirely honest when he told Augusta he was working for Zip Diamond. The truth was, no one worked for Zip anymore—not since his wife Mitzi had taken over. Zip Diamond’s health was going downhill fast, and in the wake of his steady decline, now his wife was giving the orders.

Of course, no one was allowed to know. The number one rule of working for Mitzi was that Zip’s illness was never to be revealed to anyone. That was why Mitzi hired Irving. He had no stake in the organization; he didn’t know anyone in her business. Irving Rivkin was a complete outsider, and because he had no interest in rising up through the ranks, Mitzi knew he would never squeal about Zip to any of his competitors.

On the day Irving went to the Glenmore Avenue brownstone to ask for a part-time job, Lois Diamond brought him into their living room. This time Mrs. Diamond shook Irving’s hand while Mr. Diamond stared at him blankly, as if he couldn’t remember who Irving was. Instead of his usual suit and tie, Zip was wearing a cardigan sweater. Something about the man’s changed appearance made Irving’s heart sink.

“What can we do for you?” Mitzi asked brightly. When Irving mentioned the possibility of part-time work, he was sure he could see the wheels in her head turning. “You know what, Irving?” she said. “You might just be the answer to all of my prayers.”

After that, it became Irving’s job to keep Zip company while Mitzi went out. Usually, their housekeeper stayed with Zip when no one from the family could be home, but even the loyal and long-suffering maid needed a few evenings off. That was when Irving could be of help.

Irving was incredulous. “You want to pay me to sit with him?”

“I need someone here to make sure that he doesn’t get confused and leave the house. I can’t have anyone he knows running into him on the street—Zip wouldn’t want people to see him like this. His father had the same disease—it progresses quickly, Irving. In another year, he may not even remember the names of our children.” Mrs. Diamond bit her lip, but she did not cry.

“In any event,” she continued, “you’re the perfect person to help. You don’t know anyone who works for Zip. No one will try to get information from you.”

“What would you like me to do with him?”

“Sit with him, chat, listen to the radio. Zip loves baseball, you know. You can always talk about that. Of course he’ll need more help in the future. But he doesn’t need any real nursing care yet. Your job will be to keep him occupied. If anyone comes to see him, tell them he’s busy. The most important thing is that no one can know.”

“I promise I won’t tell a soul.”

“Of course you won’t,” Mrs. Diamond said in a voice that bordered on menacing. “Because if you do, you’ll be very sorry.”

All that spring, several evenings per week, Irving reported to the house on Glenmore Avenue. Most of the time, he and Zip listened to the radio, talked about baseball, or played checkers. Sammy and Lois were usually out with friends and Mrs. Diamond was either on the telephone or taking meetings with “business associates” in other parts of Brooklyn. After five months of working for the Diamonds, Irving had saved enough money to purchase an engagement ring for Augusta.

A week before Augusta’s high school graduation, Irving knocked on the door of Solomon Stern’s prescription room. It was too early for Augusta or Bess to be working. With the two of them gone, Irving was planning to ask for permission to propose. Instead of finding Mr. Stern alone, however, he found Mitzi Diamond sitting with him.

“I’m with a customer,” said the druggist brusquely, pushing the door shut in Irving’s face. Meanwhile, Irving lingered nearby to see what information he could overhear: Lois hadn’t been feeling well lately. Dr. Birnbaum had prescribed some pills, but Mr. Stern was suggesting a different kind.

When he finally emerged from his consultation, Solomon Stern was in no mood for a private talk with Irving. “It’ll have to wait,” Mr. Stern said glumly.

An hour later, Mrs. Diamond returned, this time with Lois in tow. She deposited her daughter at the soda counter and demanded a banana split with whipped cream.

The Lois who sat at the counter that day was vastly changed from the haughty young woman Irving had been seeing at Zip’s house for months. When Irving looked at Lois now, he saw that her once-rounded face had grown thin. She wore a loose, unflattering dress, and her arms looked like sticks poking out on the sides.

Lois took two bites of the ice cream and let the rest melt to a puddle in its dish. Her mother grew increasingly livid with every minute that passed. “You need to eat, Lois!” she barked. And then, moments later, “Please, darling. I thought chocolate ice cream was your favorite.” But no matter what her mother said or did, Lois Diamond would not eat. It was clear that no matter how much influence Mrs. Diamond may have held over her husband, when it came to her daughter, her threats meant nothing. With Lois, it seemed that Mitzi Diamond had finally met her match.

The next day, Mrs. Diamond and Lois returned. This time Lois was wearing a fashionable summer dress—loose and drop-waisted, with a yellow sash. Aside from her too-thin cheeks and arms, she looked healthy enough to Irving.

As Lois browsed lipsticks at the makeup counter, Mrs. Diamond caught Irving’s attention. “I need a few minutes to speak with Sol,” she said. “But I want my daughter to see Esther, upstairs. Will you show her where to go? I’ll be along in a few minutes.”

“Of course, Mrs. Diamond.”

Irving welcomed the break, especially since he was gathering his courage to speak to Solomon Stern about Goldie again. A combination of nerves and bad timing had delayed this endeavor for too long, so that what should have been a straightforward conversation now seemed to require tremendous effort. Stepping out to show Lois the way upstairs gave Irving a much-appreciated excuse to delay speaking to the pharmacist.

Irving led Lois around the side of the building. He tried to engage her in polite conversation, but she pursed her lips and refused to answer. When Esther ushered them inside, the apartment smelled of apples and cinnamon, as if she had spent the morning baking.

“This is Lois Diamond,” said Irving. “Her mother will be up in a few minutes.”

Esther nodded as if she’d been expecting them. “Come into the kitchen, Lois,” she said. “My apple cake just came out of the oven.” And then, to Irving, she added, “Augusta will be home any minute. You can wait for her in the living room if you like.”

Though Irving left Esther and Lois alone, the walls in the apartment were so thin that their voices cut through them as if they were paper. As a result, Irving found himself listening to a conversation he did not want to hear.

“Your mother told me you would come,” said Esther. “She is worried because you refuse to eat.”

Lois did not sound moved by Esther’s explanation of her mother’s concerns. “I haven’t been hungry,” she snapped.

“Then why do you stare at my apple cake as if you would give your eye for a slice?”

“I was just looking at it, that’s all. It’s not a crime to look, is it?”

“No,” said Esther. “To look is no crime. But I would be happy to cut a piece for you.”

“I already told you, I’m not hungry!”

Esther’s voice grew low and soft. “Starving yourself will not change your dilemma. Babies are resilient, even in the womb.”

What is Esther talking about?

“I take it you’ve told no one, then?” Esther continued. “Not even the baby’s father?”

Before Irving could grasp the meaning of what he’d heard, Mitzi Diamond breezed straight through the unlocked door of the apartment. She’d been there so many times to see Esther that she hadn’t even bothered to knock. Irving jumped up from his seat and murmured a hasty goodbye. He did not want to be around when Mrs. Diamond learned of her daughter’s condition.

The pregnancy of Lois Diamond was a dangerous piece of information—even more dangerous, perhaps, than Zip’s debilitating illness. A prickle of worry nagged at Irving now, a gloomy feeling that this new knowledge was going to result in terrible trouble.

As he bolted out of the building, he almost slammed into Augusta, who was making her way down the sidewalk. Normally, he would have been thrilled to see her—he’d been waiting for her, after all. But now all he could think about was the Diamond family’s secrets. He told himself that keeping those secrets from Augusta was the only way to keep her safe.

Decades later, he would wonder whether those first secrets were the beginning of the end.