The Winnowing by Jo Schaffer

Author:Jo Schaffer [Schaffer, Jo]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: classism, United States, The Great Depression, historical fiction
ISBN: 9781948671507
Publisher: Month9Books, LLC
Published: 2019-02-26T08:00:00+00:00

Stanley adjusted his bowtie in the bathroom mirror. He’d nicked the monkey suit from a row of them in the bowels of the Municipal Auditorium. He hoped that some poor server wouldn’t get in trouble for losing the suit. But, from the looks of it, they were the spares.

In either case, he had no choice. Since Hazel told him about Artie, the back of his neck tingled, that curious sensation he got when something bad was about to happen. And the fact he had not seen his friend for a few days, with Teeth missing and everything else going on, worried him.

He still couldn’t help feeling a twinge of jealousy when he thought of her dancing with that idiot Gabriel. She was so beautiful in her gown, and he hated that Gabriel would be ogling her body, which Stanley had so recently held tight to his own. Hazel was not just another hot tomato, and any mug who looked at her that way needed a poke in the nose.

But mostly he was worried for her. She had been so nervous about tonight, and it was hard to know what would happen with Arthur on a possible rampage. Everyone would probably be watching, including Legion and the VP himself, to see if she was still in line. Stanley needed to watch Hazel without anyone noticing him, something a bit harder to do now that he was semi-famous.

Sighing, he gripped on to the sink, and his stomach rolled. Stanley closed his eyes, and pictures of the Rocky Mountains from the Civilian Conservation Corps brochure illuminated in his thoughts. Everything there looked so peaceful and uncomplicated. Just hard work, three squares, and beautiful hikes. No need to worry about any of this.

No. He would not run. He would not leave Hazel. He would never be able to live with himself … or without her.

Stanley stood up, adjusted his coat, and gave himself a smile. “You handsome devil. Go get ‘em, killer.”

He left the bathroom and found his way through the maze of tunnels to the server station. Grabbing a tray of waters, he went through the door and into the main auditorium. Stanley couldn’t believe his eyes. The whole place looked like a cross between an Egyptian temple, a throne room, and an elegant ball, at least, as far as he imagined them. Everyone was dressed to the nines, and the debutantes wore long, colorful gowns that must have cost a fortune. Even though he knew there were okay swells out there, he felt like punching the whole room. The money spent on this event could have fed the entire neighborhood of Dogtown for a month, at least.

He took a deep breath and forced himself to focus and observe. Stanley zeroed in on the Veiled Prophet himself, draped in an outfit that looked vaguely like a bishop’s robe: white, purple, and lined with gold. His face was covered in lace so that no one could see. Hazel hadn’t been able to find the identity of the VP, but he doubted she would be able to.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.