—Okay, Emmett, said Billy, sounding a little unsure of the idea.
—Why don’t you come with me, said Woolly to Billy. I wanted to show you something anyway!
Emmett watched as Billy and Woolly climbed the stairs. Only when they had disappeared down the hall did he turn to face Duchess.
Emmett could see that Duchess had something to say. He had all the telltale signs: his weight on the balls of his feet, his hands ready to gesture, his expression eager and earnest. But he wasn’t simply getting ready to speak. He was going to launch himself heart and soul into another explanation.
So before he could say a word, Emmett grabbed him by the collar and drew back his fist.
Woolly
It was quite true that in Woolly’s experience, when somebody said they wanted to speak to someone else in private, it could be difficult to know what to do with yourself. But when Emmett asked to speak to Duchess, Woolly knew exactly what to do. In fact, he had been thinking about it ever since 7:42.
—Why don’t you come with me, he said to Billy. I wanted to show you something anyway!
Leading Billy upstairs, Woolly took him to the bedroom that was and wasn’t his.
—Come in, come in, he said.
When Billy stepped inside, Woolly closed the door—leaving it a few inches ajar so that they wouldn’t be able to hear what Emmett had to say to Duchess, but they would be able to hear when Emmett was ready to call them back.
—Whose room is this?
—Once upon a time it was mine, said Woolly with a smile. But I gave it up so that the baby can be closer to my sister.
—And now you have the room by the back staircase.
—Which is much more sensible, said Woolly, what with all my comings and goings.
—I like the blue, Billy said. It’s like the color of Emmett’s car.
—That’s just what I thought!
Once they had appreciated the hue of the blue, Woolly turned his attention to the covered pile in the middle of the room. Throwing back the tarp, he located the box he was looking for, opened the top, set aside the tennis trophy, and took out the cigar box.
—Here we go, he said.
Then since the bed was covered with Woolly’s belongings, he and Billy sat on the floor.
—Is that a collection? Billy asked.
—It is, said Woolly. Though not like your silver dollars, or your bottle caps back in Nebraska. Because it’s not a collection of different versions of the same thing. It’s a collection of the same version of different things.
Opening the lid, Woolly tilted the box toward Billy.
—See? These are the sorts of things that one rarely uses, but that one should set safely aside so that one knows exactly where to find them when they’re suddenly in need. For instance, this is where I keep my father’s shirt studs and cuff links should I suddenly have to wear a tuxedo. And those are some French francs, should I happen to go to France. And that’s the biggest piece of sea glass that I have ever found. But here . . .
Gently pushing aside his father’s old wallet, Woolly removed a wristwatch from the bottom of the box and handed it to Billy.
—The dial is black, said Billy in surprise.
Woolly nodded.
—And the numbers are white. The very opposite of what you’d expect. It’s called an officer’s watch. They made them this way so that when an officer needed to look at the time on the field of battle, enemy snipers wouldn’t be able to aim for the white of his dial.
—Was it your father’s?
—No, said Woolly with a shake of the head. It was my grandfather’s. He wore it in France during the First World War. But then he gave it to my mother’s brother, Wallace. And then Uncle Wallace gave it to me as a Christmas present when I was younger than you. He’s the Wallace that I was named after.
—Your name is Wallace, Woolly?
—Oh yes. Very much so.
—Is that why they call you Woolly? So that people won’t get you and your uncle confused when you’re together?
—No, said Woolly. Uncle Wallace died years ago. In a war, just like my father. Only, it wasn’t in one of the world wars. It was in the Spanish Civil War.
—Why did your uncle fight in the Spanish Civil War?
Quickly wiping away a tear, Woolly shook his head.
—I’m not sure, Billy. My sister says that he had done so many things that were expected of him, he wanted to do one thing that no one expected at all.
They both looked at the watch, which Billy was holding gently in his hand.
—You see, said Woolly, it has a second hand too. Only, instead of it being a big second hand going around the big dial like the one on your watch, it’s a tiny little second hand going around its own little dial. Seconds are very important to keep track of in wars, I should think.