He didn’t like to take personal calls at work unless it was an emergency, he’d explained to her, because it was like cheating his employer, siphoning off time he was being paid to work. In such matters, he was absolutely scrupulous, which only made her respect and love him more. After all, if a man wouldn’t cheat his employer out of two minutes’ time, what were the chances he would cheat on his wife? Or lie to her?

“Yaakov?”

“Something happened?”

“No, everything is fine. I’m sorry to call you at work. I just … I need to know what evening this week you are going to Meir.”

“Why is this so important it couldn’t wait for the evening?”

There was a pause as she took in the uncharacteristic harshness in his tone.

“I’m sorry, but it can’t wait,” she answered unapologetically. “I am arranging to meet my friend Shoshana, and she is very busy.”

Unlike me, he thought with a touch of bitterness. But this was his wife, his Leah-le, he quickly reminded himself before his frustration could seep into his answer. He exhaled. “I arranged to see him on Wednesday.”

“Oh,” she sighed. “Well, never mind, then.”

“No, wait, what—?”

“Never mind. I’m sorry I bothered you.”

“We’ll talk this evening. Goodbye, Leah-le.”

She sat with the cell phone in her hand, tears falling softly down her cheeks. I’m trapped, she thought with a sense of near panic. Trapped.

And then it came to her. Shaindele.

She had been so careful not to take the girl’s time for granted. She never asked her to babysit or pick the children up from school. But this one time, perhaps she wouldn’t mind. Lately, though, the girl had taken to coming home later and later each evening. Remembering her own teen years, she didn’t like to interrogate her. After all, she wasn’t a normal American teenager. She was a Bais Yaakov girl, held to the strictest possible standards of behavior. Besides, she’d heard Yaakov asking her about it, and he seemed to find her answers satisfactory. Something about studying for exams, was it? A strangely typical teenage cover story, she thought skeptically. But if, in the unlikely scenario Shaindele was lying and was actually off living it up somewhere, why would she want to be the one to blow the whistle? More power to her! Soon enough, she’d be living a staid, middle-aged life as a teacher, having a child every year, and working like a dog.

She was shocked at herself. Where are these negative thoughts coming from? She was suddenly frightened. She really must talk to Shoshana, and she needed to do it now, she told herself urgently, before things got so bad there would be no turning back.

To her surprise, Shaindele was strangely evasive. But she didn’t say no, just maybe.