Sold on a Monday

When Lily tells Ellis that Calvin is not with the Millstones, he drives to Hoboken to find him.

Once there, Ellis trails Sylvia and Ruby to Ruby’s school, but does not see Calvin. Ellis approaches Ruby during her recess. She asks if he is there to take pictures, offering that she saw him leave food boxes and other things on their porch, because she recognized his car’s engine.

Ruby tells Ellis, “I don’t got—have—a brother” (203), but then admits that Calvin did go with her to California, then to Hoboken, but he is now with Geraldine. Geraldine came to get Calvin since he needed her most. Ruby never saw her mother; it would have been too hard. Her mother told Ruby in a letter that she could only afford to look after one of them.

Once back in the newsroom, Ellis calls Geraldine, who denies taking Calvin. So, Ellis now believes Lily: either the couple gave Calvin away or something happened to Calvin when Ruby was not around. When Ellis sees Dutch’s clips, he notices that Ruby looks exactly like the Millstone’s deceased daughter, Victoria.

When Ellis calls Lily, he learns that Samuel is sick.