“Monday?” he cried. It was only Friday night—or rather, early Saturday morning. The clock on the wall read half past one.

“Sorry, Romeo. Next time, get nabbed on a weekday.”

They said he could make a phone call, and dully he searched his mind. There was no phone at Aunt Lizzie’s, and anyway, Effie probably wasn’t there. It would do no good to call home. Clara was his only choice. He asked for a phone directory, and the officer at the front desk slapped it down in front of him, a slim volume. He flipped through it, expecting nothing, but—a bit of luck, finally—found “Strauss, A.,” with a New Hampshire Avenue address. He connected to the number and waited, and waited, until Clara’s voice came through. He could tell she’d been sleeping.

“Clara,” he said. “It’s Henry.”

She paused for a long time. “Henry,” she said, drawing his name out. “Henry, Henry, Henry. Have I heard a story about you.”

“Is Effie there?”

“No, dear, I haven’t seen her. I suppose she’s left you?”

“Oh,” he started, but his voice broke, and he began to cry. The officers looked at him with real pity. “Clara,” he said, “I’ve been arrested. I’m at the jail.”

“My God, what did you do?”

He explained what had happened, turning his back to the officers. He said nothing about Alma, but he guessed he didn’t need to.

She laughed. “Oh, Henry. You are in a pickle, aren’t you?”

“I don’t know what to do,” he said, and when she didn’t respond to this, he tried again: “What am I supposed to do?”

“How should I know, dear?”

She wasn’t going to help him. And why should she? But he had to try. “I mean, can you … is there any way you could bail me out?”

“Oh, Henry.” She sighed loudly into the receiver. “Dear, sweet Henry. I’m afraid money is a sensitive issue at the moment.”

“You mean you can’t…?”

“Listen,” she said, “I’m going home tomorrow. But if I see Effie, I’ll tell her what’s happened. If I don’t, I’ll leave a note for her. That’s all I can do.” She sighed again, and clucked her tongue. “Poor Henry. I feel terrible for you, I do. You and I are a lot alike, you know. We want everything.”