Chani
Recap: Yerucham tries to be friendly with Chani at the gala, and Effi abruptly leaves, causing Chani to speculate that perhaps he is jealous.
The next day, Chani was glad to have an excuse to escape the house to avoid Yerucham. Let him bond with Zahava and her father, not her.
Leah seemed especially glad to see her, even though they’d planned this afternoon in advance, and Chani wondered a bit at her particularly warm reception. It couldn’t just be due to the chocolate croissants and lattes she’d brought for her friend.
Leah had heard about the gala at Rebbetzin Dinnerstein’s house and wanted to know all about it—who was there, what transpired. Despite being confined to her apartment, all the local gossip filtered down to her through her landlady and the landlady’s sister, the nurse Suri Rokeach. “It sounds like you were with all the people who mean the most to you in the world,” Leah said. “I’m so flattered that you came to visit me when life has been so exciting!”
Her tone held a coyness Chani found puzzling. “I don’t know that it’s been all that exciting,” she said. “My family was there, and the Rebbetzin, of course.” She didn’t want to mention the odd encounter with Effi.
“I heard Yerucham Elman was there too!” Leah said. “I happen to know him too…does he know that we see each other?”
“I have no idea! I didn’t know you were acquainted.”
“Yes, I met him a long time ago. Tell me about him!”
“Uh—he’s just a cousin of sorts,” Chani said, mystified. “He once dated my sister, and I think she’d like to try again.”
Now Leah looked puzzled. “Your sister? I heard by way of Mrs. Wallis that he’s interested in you! I’m sorry—you must think I’m a terrible yenta. But Suri Rokeach, my landlady’s sister, is her doula and baby nurse, and she hears all the conversations. Since I’m so confined to my apartment, she entertains me with all the local news. And apparently Mrs. Wallis and her husband are friendly with Yerucham, and he expressed a lot of interest in you.”
“He’s—he’s just friendly now with my father,” Chani said. “They renewed their relationship even before I got to Toms River. I haven’t had much to do with him.”
“Well, he told Mrs. Wallis he’d seen you even before you came to Toms River.”
“Oh—I guess so,” Chani said, putting two and two together. “My sister and I ran into him in Deal one afternoon, but we didn’t even speak!”
“You must have left quite an impression!”
“I hope not! I’m really not at all interested in dating him! I don’t believe we have much in common. And even if I was interested, I wouldn’t take him away from my sister!”
Leah put a hand up to her forehead and expelled a long sigh of relief. “Oy! I had been led to think that maybe the two of you were an item! If the two of you were on the point of getting engaged, then I didn’t want to ruin your joy! But if it’s true that you really want nothing to do with him, then I can be more honest with you.”
Chani by now was bursting with curiosity. “Honest about what? What do you know about him?”
Leah sighed. “My husband and Yerucham met in yeshiva,” she began slowly. “When my husband started to make a lot of money, Yerucham suddenly became his best friend. He used to get Benjy to spend way beyond his means! My husband was a very generous guy, and Yerucham took advantage of it, even though after he married he had plenty of money of his own.
“He was a total fair-weather friend! When my husband began to have business problems, Yerucham didn’t come forward to help. I tried to ask him for help—I did it behind my husband’s back, because I didn’t want Benjy to be embarrassed—but he never responded. Eventually, when my husband realized just how deeply we were in debt, as you know it literally killed him.”
As Chani gasped, she continued, “My husband and Yerucham had invested in some properties in Florida, and Yerucham was managing the investment. I think those properties have become pretty valuable since then, but I can’t find the paperwork, and Yerucham has always ignored my pleas for help. I’ve been too weak to do much about it, and I’m sure it suits him just fine to let the properties appreciate without having to share the profits with me! But if I could sell them, or rent them, I’d be in much better shape financially! I’d be able to breathe!”
She gave a sad smile. “I guess I selfishly thought that if you and Yerucham were married, you’d be able to prevail upon him to do something about it, although I probably should have simply warned you away from him. But then I thought, ‘Who am I to ruin your shidduch, especially if a girl as fine as you might have a chance to influence him to change his ways?’”
“After hearing all this, there’s no way on earth I would date him!” Chani cried. “I’m not even sure Zahava should try for him! All of this is disgusting! You know, I never trusted him. I always felt there was something fake about him… Now I’m so glad I didn’t let Mrs. Rosner persuade me to date him! I never even understood why all of a sudden he decided I was the woman for him. He barely knows me!”
“I think I’m a bit to blame for that,” Leah said sheepishly. “When my husband and I were friendly with him, I sometimes spoke about you in conversations, as one of the good friends I hoped to stay in touch with. At the beginning Yerucham wasn’t married yet, so I suppose his ears were open to good prospects—all the more so because he knew you came from the same family as him. I told him you were so pretty and smart, and had amazing middos, so I guess he never forgot that.”
“But he dated my sister and left her for that rich girl,” Chani said.
“Yes. I’m not sure why he said no to your sister, except that Rinat’s family started to pursue him aggressively. They came from a rough element of Israeli society, even though they made a pile of money very fast, and Yerucham and Rinat were always fighting—even in front of us sometimes.
“I think after she died, he realized he should probably look for something more than a fortune. According to Mrs. Wallis, he got a bee in his bonnet about needing a girl with good yichus and middos. I suppose that’s how he fixed his mind on you.”
“Let him take Zahava,” Chani said. “Although I’m not sure they wouldn’t fight either. She can be pretty stubborn!”
Chani drove home from Westgate with plenty of food for thought. By the time she got home, thankfully, Yerucham had come and left. She took herself off to the den with her computer to put in some documentation for work, as Zahava and her father continued to go over the leftover details from the gala in the dining room. They discussed the best manner to deposit the checks the following day while Rikki, outside on the patio, chatted up a potential makeup client.
That evening, no one had to worry about making supper; the previous evening, they had brought home large pans of leftover charcuterie, hors d’oeuvres, salads and desserts from the gala. (“We’ll never finish all of this by ourselves!” Mrs. Berger had insisted.) As they finished up and began stacking the plates, Chani’s phone rang. “Who could be calling now?” Zahava griped.
“I’ll get it,” Chani said, rising from her seat. “Oh—it’s Mindy calling. Min, what’s up?”
“Another shidduch is being sewn up tonight!” Mindy crowed. “Lieba and Ezra Beyda! L’chaim is in an hour!”
To be continued.