Hope in the Valley by Mitali Perkins
Author:Mitali Perkins
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
TWENTY-FIVE
SHE HAS TO LOOK UP at me because sheâs about the same height as my sisters in bare feet. Well, at least sheâs taken off her shoes; everybody in the living room still has theirs on.
Baba walks out of the small bathroom by the garage door. âI see youâve met Pandita, my youngest.â My? Why not âourâ?
Indy comes into the kitchen carrying empty plates. âOh, hello. Good thing I put more pakoras in the oven.â
âLooks like they were a hit,â Baba says. âIndira, this is Dr. Shefali Som. Shef, this is my middle daughter.â
âMyâ again. And why is he calling her âShefâ? Heâs given her a nickname already?
âMay I?â asks The Intruderâmy nickname for her. Sheâs pointing to a pakora that Indyâs sliding off a cookie sheet.
My sister puts it on a napkin and hands it to her. âOf course. I hope you like it. I used our grandmotherâs recipe.â
The Intruder chews and swallows. Then: âIt tastes something like our pakora in Calcutta, but ⦠did you fiddle with the recipe?â
Indyâs eyes widen. âWell, I added someââ
The Intruder interrupts to finish the sentence. âThings that make these taste very American. Iâm sorry, but I canât tell you how to fix it. âShefâ is definitely a misnomer of a nickname. Iâm no good at cooking, only excellent at eating.â
Our unwanted guest throws back her curly-haired head and laughs loudly at her own joke. When Baba joins in, though, I almost fall over. I canât remember the last time he laughed like this. I look at Indy; her eyes are wide.
âIâm certain these American guests wonât know the difference,â The Intruder is saying. âShall we go into the meeting, Anand? It sounds as if theyâve already started.â
They leave the kitchen. I turn to Indy. âStill happy about this?â I ask.
She shrugs. âNot about the cooking critique, but Baba seems to like her, and thatâs what matters.â
Indy hands me a plate and a stack of napkins, and I follow her into the room. People reach for pakoras immediately.
âIâm pleased to introduce Dr. Shefali Som,â Baba is saying. âDr. Som is an economics professor at Jadavpur University in Calcutta and has just completed a year doing research on land use in the Soviet Union. Sheâs very interested in your plans for the Johnson property.â
âI am indeed,â says The Intruder. âWould it be permissible to stay and listen?â
âOf course,â says the man whoâd been leading the meeting. âIâm James Flemming, by the way. Executive Director of the Santa Clara County chapter of Golden State Dwellings.â
âDo you live in Sunny Creek?â asks The Intruder.
âI live in East Meadow, about five miles away,â answers Mr. Flemming. âA lot of Black people canât afford to buy or rent in Sunny Creek because housing is so expensive.â
Iâm a little surprised that Iâm not surprised. Iâve known my whole life that East Meadow is a mostly Black town. As Shar likes to point out, most Sunny Creek residents are white, unless you count the apartment building on the far edge of town where Leo and his parents live.
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