Tough Love in Kansas City: The Big Day, part 1
Jordy's fingers danced across the keys of the 1926 Baldwin concert grand piano. The newly restored piano filled the room with standards from the Gold Age of Kansas City Jazz.
"I can't believe Jordy plays jazz piano," Tyler said.
"I know," replied Jesse. "He is full of hidden talents. Do you know the story of that piano and this room?"
"No?"
"Well, according to Uncle Will, this was all the work of his great grandmother, Bonnie Roberts Marshal. Bonnie had been a bit wild in her twenties and settled down to become a respectable KC denizen only after Jeffrey Marshal asked her to marry him. Jeffrey was apparently also quite the party boy, but the deal was that to get the blessing of Jeffrey's and Bonnie's parents, the couple had to give up their `wild life.' So for love, and to unite the fortunes of two of Kansas City's real estate empires, they said goodbye to the speakeasies and jazz clubs of the 1920s."
"By 1934 the Depression was hitting the city hard and Jeffrey was head of Marshal and Son's Property, what would eventually become Marshal Family Trust. This floor, the 12th floor, of the Marshal Building had never been finished because no one was renting office space after the Black Tuesday. One day Jeffrey was grousing that all the fun had left the city since the market crashed and grouched `I would give my left testical for a decent night of fun like the good old days.' Of course, Bonnie was not about to sacrifice one of her favorite play things, so she took the initiative."
"She asked William if she could have the 12th floor. When he asked what she wanted it for, she told him to protect the family jewels. He gave her the floor and she used money from her personal fortune to create this ballroom. There is no way this place could be done affordably today, but it was the 30s and good labor was cheap. This was Bonnie's personal WPA project."
"She had a guard posted on the 12th floor, so Jeffery couldn't sneak up here to see what she was up to. The workers were told that if any of them let it slip what was going on up here, the entire crew would be fired and replaced. In the 30s, that was like stamping top secret on a government document."
"The result of Bonnie's work was a Streamline Moderne style ballroom on top of the Marshal Building. That piano, Bonnie found in a bankruptcy sale and fell in love with it. It took a crew of ten men nine hours to safely lift it up the outside of the building, and then they had to take out the double doors to the terrace to get it inside. To keep Jeffrey from seeing the piano being moved in, she convinced him to take her to the Chicago World's Fair. Family legend is that my great grandfather, William Marshal Sr., was a souvenir they brought home from the Fair."
"The first event held here was Jeffrey's 40th birthday party. It was quite the social event. The cream of Kansas City was here."
"It was also a bit scandalous," said Uncle William as he joined the boys. "The Pendergast political machine controlled Kansas City during the 1930s. Tom Pendergast was part Democratic party boss and part mob boss. During his day Kansas City was a wide-open town and jazz became associated with gambling and prostitution. In fact, 12th Street, where many of the jazz clubs were located, has a poem written about it referring to it as a Carnival of Vice.' Another writer said you could find all of Kansas City society from tailcoats to tarts' on 12th. Well some of the `proper ladies' of Kansas City didn't like to be reminded that their husbands and sons were regularly seen on 12th Street by attending a party featuring jazz and plenty of liquor.
"But Bonnie didn't care, and no one wanted to turn down an invitation to attend one of her parties out of fear they might be struck from the A-list."
"Initially when Jody and I looked at returning this space to its former glory, we decided that piano was too expensive and too risky to spend money trying to restore. So we had planned to have it busted up and removed. I could tell that Jordy was a bit heartbroken about destroying it, but he knew it was the smart thing to do. Then one evening I was going through the Marshal archives looking for photos to give the architect and contractor to help in the restoration. I was shocked to find a picture of Count Basie sitting at this piano. On the back there was a note in Bonnie's hand that read, `The Count played for my beloved Jeffrey on his 40th birthday."
"Well, there was no way that Jordy was not going to have that piano at his wedding party. I found a restorer who agreed to work on it here. We kept it covered with drop clothes and tools so, if Jordy came up here, he wouldn't know what was going on. I think Bonnie would have been proud."
"A week ago, I showed him his wedding present and told him why I had to have it restored."
"What did he say Uncle William," asked Jesse.
"After the tears stopped, I got my own trip down 12th Street," William said, winked and walked away. Jesse and Tyler both smiled. And, Jordy continued to make love with the keyboard.
Jennifer and Ryan flew in the Sunday before the wedding and were delighted they were staying with Jesse and Ryan rather than at a hotel. And Jennifer was over the top when she was shown the passage through to William and Jordy's apartment. The Marshal clan took the week before the wedding off from any meetings or projects and focused on the wedding and the family reunion.
Jesse and Tyler took Jennifer and Ryan to Worlds of Fun Amusement Park one day and had a fantastic bonding experience. When Jesse found that both Tyler and Ryan were scared of rollercoasters the relentless teasing began. Jesse and Jennifer made sure to search out every coaster in the park. Tyler and Ryan finally got their revenge however when Tyler noticed that Jesse and Jennifer always found a reason to avoid spinning rides. So after lunch featuring typical amusement park food, Tyler and Ryan led their lovers to the Zulu, a twisting, tilting, spinning wheel of revenge. The two plotters couldn't stop laughing when immediately after getting off the Zulu Jesse ran to a trash can and returned his lunch of hotdogs, nachos, and soda and a green gilled Jennifer had to find a bench to sit and recover. A truce was called on the ride challenge and they enjoyed the rest of the day.
Back at the apartment, Tyler and Ryan found a movie to watch while Jesse and Jennifer had a brother and sister talk. "So Jesse," started Jennifer, "why did you never tell me you were gay?"
"Well, I knew Mom and Dad are homophobes, and while I never doubted you would be on my side, I didn't want to put you in the middle. I wasn't planning to come out until I was out from under their control, but...well, Tommy Wilkins happened, and I got outed."
"Yeah, I heard about that. Funny thing is I've seen Tommy with a boy friend' and his mother doesn't seem to be as upset with him being gay as was first reported. I asked dad about that and his only reply was, That she told your mom she would have Jesse arrested if you weren't sent away.' I got the feeling he thought mom, not Mrs. Wilkins, was the one pushing to send you away."
"Whatever, the things he told me and did to me makes him no better than mom. But, Uncle Will did say mom is the reason he was never allowed to see us when we were young. I know you and dad still speak, but I am done with both him and mom. As far as I am concerned Tyler, Uncle Will, Jordy, and you are my only family....well I guess you will be adding Ryan to the family."
"I hope you like him," Jennifer said.
"Absolutely, he is fun, smart, and you two were made for each other. Just looking at you two together there is no doubt you are in love."
"Hey bro, I see the same in you and Tyler. So, when are you going to ask him to marry you, or is he going to ask you?"
"We've talked about it," Jesse said, "and feel we need to wait until I graduate in a year and get a full-time job."
"Wait, I thought you had a job with the Trust?"
"Actually, I am just an intern, and it is up to Uncle Will to offer me a job and then I will have to decide to take it."
"Oh bullshit, I have seen how proud Uncle Will is of you. You will definitely have a job at the Trust and my money is on you eventually running it. And, don't pretend you would even think of turning down a job when Uncle Will offers it. You and Tyler couldn't stop talking about this project you were given. Face it, you've found your career path, your lover, and from what I saw in the studio, your passion."
Jesse, smiled, "I think you're right. So sis, I know you have found your love, have you also found your career path and passion?"
"I think so, I have been accepted at the University of Missouri to study law and Ryan has been accepted into the medical school. As for passion, I think it will be keeping the Marshal family line going. Ryan and I were figuring that we would be in debt up to our eyeballs and wouldn't even get to think about a family until our mid-30s, but then I got a check last month from the Marshal Family Trust. Do you know what that is about?"
"Uncle Will told me that we get control of our disbursement from the trust when we turn 27, complete 4 years of military service, or graduate from college. So when you graduated, your trust money stopped going to mom and dad and started going to you. When I was kicked out, Uncle Will took control of my trust disbursements. Shit, Losing our trust money I bet put a serious squeeze on mom and dad's cash flow."
"That explains mom's decision...."
"What decision, sis?"
"I can't tell you, Dad I'm sure will tell you when he gets here tomorrow."
"I'm not talking to that asshole."
"Jesse........"
"Jesse, last chance to change your mind," said Uncle Will as he was getting ready to pick up Monty at the airport.
"I told you, I don't want anything to do with him. As far as I am concerned you can buy him a plane ticket on the next flight back to Georgia."
"Jesse Marshal, enough," Uncle Will said suddenly, letting his irritation with the pouting boy flash. "I am not going to force you and your father to hug and make nice, but you will be civil to each other over the next three days. Tonight, we will have a Marshal family dinner and on Saturday Jordy and I are getting married. I will not have you using this weekend as a forum for you to express your anger with my brother and your father. Are we clear?"
"Yes Uncle William, I'm sorry."
"I understand you are hurt," William said in a softer tone. "Why don't you and Tyler take Jennifer and Ryan out and show them the Mulberry Street property, and tell them what the plans are for the project. They are recent college graduates and might give you some useful insight. I need to talk with your father this afternoon and I think it might be best if just Jordy, I and your father are here."
"Jesse's mood improved at the idea of showing Jennifer and Ryan the Mulberry project, and it would be an opportunity to brag about his lover to his sister and her fiance."
After checking Monty into the Weston Hotel at the Crown Center, William brought him to the apartment to meet Jordy. Jordy had just finished putting a couple of pans with what would be bourbon glazed bread pudding in the fridge. William convinced Jordy that he had too much on his plate to cook dinner for seven people. So they agreed to order food from Joe's Kansas City Bar-B-Que and set up a buffet on the 12th floor terrace. However, Jordy insisted that he would be making the dessert and William would be sure the ballroom's bar was stocked for a pre-wedding party. It was becoming clear that Jordy intended the ballroom would not sit unused for another 50 years.
William introduced his brother to his husband-to-be, and Jordy in his usual gregarious manner brushed past Monty's offered handshake and gave him a big welcome-back-into-the-fold hug. While others of the family might be reluctant to embrace Monty, Jordy wasn't going to hold a grudge, unless Monty hurt William again--then Jordy would be unrestrained in exacting revenge for any pain caused to William.
"Jordy," William said, "are you in a place where you can join us for a conversation?"
"Sure babe, whatever you want."
William opened the fridge and grabbed a six-pack of Free State Copperhead Pale Ale and a bottle opener; then led the way to the library. Jordy took note that this was a two beer meeting. Once settled around the table, William popped the caps off of three beers and distributed them. The men drank in silence and finished their first bottle. William popped the caps off the last three beers and as he was distributing them said, "So Monty, what the fuck is going on?"
"Danielle and I are getting a divorce. I moved out two months ago." The matter-of-fact tone with which Monty answered William's question made it clear that Danielle was dead to him. He didn't even care enough to hate her. "The realization that her lifestyle would be cramped when we, well when she, lost control of the kids trust disbursements. She kept going on about how unfair it was that mom and dad left a faggot, sorry, in control of the family money. Then she would go on about how I needed to stand up to you and demand more say in the operations, or more precisely the distributions, of the Trust.'
"After a week of her constant yammering, I told her to shut the fuck up.' She slapped me and said, Don't ever tell me to shut up again.' I don't know where it came from, but I just laughed in her face and said, "Is that all you got bitch? You'd better take your best shot now because tomorrow that will be a violation of a restraining order. She slapped me three more times and all I could do was laugh. It was like those monks who would whip themselves to purge themselves of the grip of sin. Every slap revealed to me a level of pain and hurt I had caused you, or Jesse, or Jennifer. I was stripped emotionally bare when I walked out the front door."
"I found a cheap motel and just cried until I had no more tears. The next morning, I saw a divorce attorney and explained I wanted out and what had happened. He filed for a restraining order and also said he would do some investigation. When he called back a couple of days later he said that Danielle had been cheating on me for over a year. He wanted to know if I wanted to stick it to her, and I told him I would get back to him after I had time to think. So, I walked across the street from my motel and parked my ass on a bar stool and started drinking thinking. Six hours later and a couple thousand dollars poorer, apparently I bought a lot of drinks for people that night, I stumbled back to my room and passed out. When I finally woke up the next day I was a sad drunken ass, but I also knew what I wanted."
"So the next day, I went to meet with my attorney. I told him I wasn't interested in revenge or vindication; all I wanted was out. I told him that Danielle could have all of our joint assets, provided I be given 24 hours to clear any personal items from the house and she would relinquish any claim to my funds from the Marshal Family Trust."
"Danielle refused to give up any claim to the Trust disbursements, so I started to dial the Trust. When she asked what I was doing, I said, `Calling my brother William to tell him what is going on." She and her attorney quickly asked for a chance to conference and when they came back agreed to my offer. I am sure she explained that you could, and would, drop my disbursement to twenty dollars if they didn't agree. In the end getting a whole house, its contents, and all the money left in our bank accounts, beat half of twenty dollars for the foreseeable future."
"As she was leaving the lawyer's office she threw an envelope at me and said fuck you and your family Trust. And most of all fuck your f...., well you know, brother. The envelope had the invitation to yours and Jordy's wedding. It had come a month earlier, but she hadn't shown it to me. So, I decided to find out if you could forgive your prodigal brother and if I could beg my son's forgiveness."
Jordy stood up and said, "I think we need some more beer." He walked out of the room; leaving William and Monty to sit in silence. When he returned, he popped the caps and gave William and Monty each a bottle. William took a long swig as if he were trying to buy time to think what to do or say. Monty was holding his beer with both hands and looking down, so he didn't see Jordy mouth to William, "Be a good brother."
Finally, William said, "Tomorrow Monty, you will go and see Matt Harris in property. He will find you an apartment in one of the Marshal Trust buildings. Then you will go and see Maggy, she will give you two prepaid credit cards with $2,500 on each of them. She will also give you $500 in cash. That should cover you until Jordy and I get back from our honeymoon in Europe. Where are all of you personal possessions?"
"They are in a storage locker in Atlanta," responded Monty.
"Maggy will also contact a storage company to have them shipped to your new apartment. Do you have a car?"
"Well sort of, I kept Grandfather's 1950 Buick Super convertible."
"Nice car, but hardly practical for driving around in the city. I'll tell Maggy to get you a company rental and have the Buick shipped and stored. Do you need anything else?"
"No, thank you William, you are being more than generous," Monty said.
Jordy mouthed, "Phone."
"Oh, I almost forgot," William added with a nod to Jordy, "I will have Maggy set up an appointment with the Tech guys to trade your phone and get you a Marshal Trust Ipad."
"Why, my phone is fine."
"That may be true, but three months ago the security people decided that all Marshal family members and key Trust employees would start carrying company phones for personal and business security and privacy. Since you will be living in Kansas City, security will want you in their system. I am sure Jennifer and probably Ryan will be trading phones as well when they move to Columbia (Columbia is home to the University of Missouri)."
"I see."
"Jordy and I will be traveling for three weeks," William said as he began to end the meeting. "During that time I want you to take a serious look at what you want to do going forward. Frankly, I don't know if you and I could work together, but we will have to talk. Also, there is Jesse, I am not brokering any reconciliation, but you should decide if you want that and ....well...well, that's your problem."
"Finally Monty, if you need anything while we are gone, you can talk to Maggy. If she can't take care of the problem, she will know how to contact us. She and the head of security will be the only two people who will have our itinerary."
"What," piped up Jordy, "We're not giving it to Jesse and Tyler?"
"Not on your life babe. Who knows what prankish terror those two would unleash if they know where we are and what we are doing. It is bad enough that you agreed to let them give us a bachelor party tomorrow. What in the hell were your thinking?
A moment of levity lifted the mood of the room just as the two Marshal kids and their loves walk through the passage and into the library. The room again turned somber. Jennifer gave her dad a hug, Jesse just stood there staring at Monty. Finally, William said, "I think you know everyone except Tyler. Tyler Davidson is a property associate at the Trust, our next door neighbor, and ...
"My lover," Jesse broke in. "Tyler is my gay boyfriend, D-A-D-D-Y." Tyler's face suddenly filled with hurt.
Jesse Marshal, what the hell...," William started but couldn't finish before Jesse bolted and an awkward silence fell over the room. Too late did Jesse see the dart intend to sting his father had hit his lover instead.
Finally, Tyler extended his hand and said, "It is good to finally meet you sir, but I should go and check on Jesse." Jordy who was now standing beside Tyler said, "Why don't you let me talk to him, I think he is too ashamed to face you right now." Tyler nodded.
Jordy found Tyler in the art studio pacing and berating himself for his outburst. "Shit why did I do that to Tyler? Why did I put him in the middle? Why did I...."
"Use him as a weapon to hurt your father?" Jordy said.
"Yes, why did I do that to him," said Jesse and fell sobbing into Jordy's arms. Not saying anything, Jordy just held him and rubbed his back. While comforting Jesse, he noticed a painting on the easel. It was a nude of Tyler, but it wasn't erotic or even sexual. It was innocent and captured the artist's pure affection for his subject and lover.
"Jesse, Tyler knows you love him. You were made for each other and your relationship is so strong." Jordy gently pushed Jesse away so they could look at each other. "And Jesse, Tyler is stronger than you know. You don't have to protect him, especially you don't have to protect him from yourself. He knows you're angry about how your father treated you and your uncle, and now you fear he will do the same to Tyler."
"You were caught off guard with your father being suddenly in the same room with you and your love. You reacted badly, because you know that no matter how badly you want to cut yourself off from your father, you can't. You and Monty will alway be bound together just like William and Monty will always be bound together. No matter how much distance or how high the walls are between you, each will hold a part of the other in his grasp. You and your father will eventually have the conversation that neither of you wants to have."
"Why?" asked Jesse as he wiped a tear from his eye. "Why do I have to talk to that bastard? Why can't I just cut the cancer out of my life?"
"Because you have questions you need to ask, and he has answers he needs to give."
Jesse looked at his painting of Tyler and said, "Jordy how do I take back what I said and how I acted? How do I convince Tyler that I love him and I am proud of our relationships? How do I apologize for cheapening the most important thing in my life by using it to hurt my father?"
From the studio doorway a voice said, "You already have...... I came to tell Jordy the food is here and heard what you said.... I know you love me. I know I am the center of your world just as you are the center of mine." Tyler had walked across the studio as he spoke and now he was close enough to Jesse to grab him into an emotion cleansing embrace.
Jordy smiled and said, "I am going to be sure the food is set up and everything is ready for dinner. I"ll see the two of you in 60 minutes up stairs."
"I don't think...." started Jesse before Jordy cut him off.
"Jesse, you are not hiding down here this evening. You are going to suck it up and be upstairs to properly introduce your boyfriend to your father. You and Tyler will sit at the same table with your father, and your uncle, and your sister, and her fiance, and your incredibly charming and insightful uncle-to-be. Remember, we are Mashals, and dammit we are family."
Just before leaving the room Jordy winked and said, "I am serious, 60, no 59, minutes. So if you have to get in some "I'm sorry sex before dinner, you'd better get you little bunny tails in gear."
Jesse and Tyler laugh.... looked at each other....then ran to the master and locked the door.
Next Chapter--Tough Love in Kansas City: The Big Day, part 2
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