CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
The day Hilda informed Leni and me that her regular helper, Dauphine, would not be returning from Georgia, we were overjoyed. The room was now truly ours, and we were considered a permanent part of the staff. By then we had stayed on for almost seven months and we were about to ring in 1959.
Although no one could ever replace Jake, Leni and I had become very close. She was what I imagined a sister to be like. Sometimes we would disagree about insignificant things, but we were each other’s confidantes and protectors.
Leni taught me how to knit, so as Christmas approached, we spent our evenings making scarves of very fine wool for Alcide, Jessie, Evens, Quinton, and of course Hilda. Each scarf was wrapped in leftover silk wallpaper swatches Hilda had stored in a closet.
