Page 44 of In Just a Year
Esther rushed upstairs and Chawa intercepted her just as she stepped into the hall on the second floor. “Whatever is the matter,maidale? I thought Raphi was taking you home?”
“An old man named Nagy is downstairs,” Esther said out of breath, looking around the drawing room. “Can I dry his coat against the fire here? Where’s the apple strudel?”
With a deft flourish, Chawa immediately jumped into business-mode. “Who’s with him?”
“Raphi’s downstairs. Nagy has a paper with the exact symbol from Ben’s letter.”
“Ben’s what? Which—” but before Esther could still think of an explanation, she spotted Chawa’s knowing look.
Oh well, there was no return now. And she didn’t mean to keep it from Ben’s mother anyway. They were a match.
“I need to get the letter and copy it, Chawa. Ben needs it. Fave doesn’t have the answers to these hieroglyphs. Nor does Raphi. Whatever this Nagy has, it’s what Ben needs to come home.”
Within minutes, Chawa had arranged for a large silver tray with beautiful Hungarian china to be loaded with foamy milk, a steaming pot of coffee, and flaky apple strudel.
Esther did as Chawa had told her and set the plate of the flakey apple strudel in front of Nagy.
Again, Nagy ignored her. “Ah, what a nice coffee set with the Hungarian crown’s finest porcelain. How thoughtful, Klonimus.”
She bent down and took the sugar dish and the creamer off the tray. Leaning toward Raphi, she whispered, “Front left pocket. Ben needs this.”
Raphi’s eyes followed hers as only the eyes of a person with many siblings could. The Solomon siblings and Klonimus brothers shared the language of mischief. There wasn’t a practical joke they didn’t have in their arsenal.
Raphi blinked and nodded. “The coffee is still too hot, Mr. Nagy. Have the strudel first.”
“Have you noschlagoberst, whipped cream?” Nagy mixed Austrian German with English as he focused on cutting a piece of the flakey strudel with the tiny fork. Esther suppressed a grin; Chawa must have set the tiny appetizer forks on the tray to slow him down.
Nagy struggled with the apple strudel and finally set the fork aside. “I’m going to take this in my hand if you don’t mind.”
Raphi gestured grandly. “Enjoy.”
Nagy lifted the piece to his crusty lips and the dry saliva in the corners of his mouth fell off like the mold of a rotten tree. He took a big bite and chewed, smacking his hairy wrinkled cheeks like a hog munching on slop.
It was disgusting to watch, yet Esther couldn’t avert her gaze.
“Do you like it?” Raphi asked nonchalantly as he lifted the coffee pot lid. “Oh, this is still too hot.” He gave Esther another knowing look.
Then Nagi coughed.
He coughed some more.
Until he coughed so profusely that bits of the flakey film dough from the strudel flew all over the tray.
Esther crinkled her nose, but Raphi jumped to action. He stood and began to pat Nagy’s back.
By now, the old man’s head had turned dark red like an old wine stain on a white tablecloth after dinner. He was choking.
CHAPTER19
Nagy’s face turned an unhealthy shade of purple. Bits of half-chewed strudel were scattered over the coffee tray.
Raphi stood next to Nagy and patted his back. He winked at Esther.
“I’m so sorry.” Esther stepped in front of Nagy. She had to be quick. “It’s all my fault, the strudel was too fresh and flakey.”
Harugh!Nagy heaved.
Raphi continued patting Nagy’s back.
