Rising Above

by Genevieve Fortin

  She stopped in her tracks when she reached the staircase, surprised to see Ana Bloom in the lobby, crouching down to pet Miller. She ignored her and went directly to the bassinet where Thomas was cooing patiently. “Are you hungry, beautiful boy?” she asked softly as she picked him up. She grabbed a burp cloth and a pillow she kept on a shelf under the reception desk and sat in the rocking armchair they left in the back corner of the lobby for this very purpose. She managed to get into a comfortable position, for she was used to juggling baby and feeding equipment. When Thomas took the bottle, she risked a look at the woman in the lobby.

  She’d straightened from her crouching position and she was looking in their direction, smiling timidly at Thomas. “How old is he?”

  “Six months,” she answered shortly. Ana nodded. Melodie looked away before she could ask another question and tried to focus on Thomas. She didn’t really want to start a conversation with her. She shook her head and took a deep breath, resigned. She had to try, didn’t she? If only to make her grandmother proud. “His name is Thomas.”

  “He’s really cute,” Ana replied with a smile that communicated some warmth. Then again, babies had that effect on almost everyone.

  “Thanks. I hear you’re going on a walk with Miller and my grandmother?”

  “I am, yes,” Ana confirmed.

  An awkward silence followed and Melodie wondered what was taking her grandmother so long. Miller’s name inspired a thought and she decided to fill the uncomfortable silence with it. “She named him for Arthur Miller, you know, but we could pretend he was named after Henry Miller if you prefer.”

  Ana looked at her with puzzlement. “Why would I prefer that?”

  “You know, Anais Nin and Henry Miller. The famous writers. There’s a movie about them. No? Probably not your kind of literature, huh? A little too kinky?”

  “I do understand the reference. I’m familiar with their writing, but I don’t get it. I have nothing in common with Anais Nin, and as I’ve told you before, I prefer Ana.”

  “Never mind. It was just a thought,” Melodie said with a sigh. Talking to her was like trying to have a conversation with a cloistered nun. “I’m surprised you know their writing, though. I wouldn’t have pegged you as a fan.”

  “I didn’t say I’m a fan. I simply said I know their work.”

  “Right. That makes more sense.”

  “Why is that?”

  “Well, imagining you reading Delta of Venus would have been as shocking as that lock of hair standing straight up on your head right now. It would have been just as out of character.”

  Ana ran her hand through her hair but the said lock remained rebellious. That auburn mane was truly a wonder. So thick, wavy, and apparently untameable. Melodie figured it would fall to the woman’s chin if it was straight and properly combed, but she enjoyed the way it stood out in every direction instead. “I’ve fought with my hair all my life,” Ana explained with a bashful laugh. “I don’t think I’ll ever manage to conquer it.”

  “Don’t you dare,” Melodie protested.

  “Excuse me?”

  “Don’t you dare try to change your hair. I like it that way. It’s the only thing about you that’s not so…” She let her voice trail off, realizing she was about to say too much. Again. Would she ever learn to think before she spoke?

  “The only thing about me that’s not so what?”

  Of course she would push. She couldn’t simply let it be, could she? “I don’t know the best word for it. Rigid, maybe?”

  Ana’s features hardened and she swallowed. She zipped her North Face parka and declared in an incisive tone, “Well, on that beautiful compliment, I think I’ll go wait for your grandmother outside. Enjoy the rest of your day, Melodie.”

  She opened her mouth to say something, to apologize at least, but the door closed behind Ana before she could think of something. She would never be able to make nice with such a frustrating woman, she concluded. Her grandmother would have to accept it.

  As if on cue, Yvonne walked into the lobby wearing a warm jacket and holding Miller’s leash. “She’s not here yet? Good. I thought I’d kept her waiting.”

  “You have. She was here, but now she’s waiting for you outside.”

  Yvonne squinted at her with admonishment. “What have you done now?”

  “Nothing, I swear. I simply said I liked her hair.” She knew her coy grin told another story and she expected to be scolded, but Yvonne simply shook her head as she clipped the leash to Miller’s collar and joined their guest outside.

  “I do like her hair, though,” she said gently to Thomas, who kept sucking milk out of the bottle, blissfully unaware of his mother’s latest faux pas.

  Chapter Seven

  As soon as they got to the beach and away from the road, Yvonne unclipped the leash and let Miller run free, throwing a blue rubber ball that he brought back as quickly as his overweight body allowed him. Ana smiled, amused by the dog’s clumsy enthusiasm. The Saint-Laurent was as agitated as it had been at her arrival the day before, strong winds forcing the waves to break into foaming white crests. The sound of the wind and the waves was overwhelming, and she wondered how she would manage to have a conversation with Yvonne.

  “So tell me, Ana, what it is you wanted to pick my brain about,” Yvonne said loudly. She was obviously used to adjusting the volume of her voice around the fierce waters.

  “Well,” she said, matching Yvonne’s volume, “I’m here to research the consequences of the storm surge of 2010, the measures that were taken to keep people from rebuilding close to the river and plans to help more people relocate in the future. I need to talk to as many people as I can to understand the situation. I was hoping you would give me an interview and perhaps you would know other people I should talk to.”

  “I see. That’s certainly an issue that concerns all of us here. And you picked the right time, that’s for sure. Everyone is worried about the high tides coming with the solstice next weekend and the complete absence of ice on the sea. We’re all scared it will happen again.”

  “I’m afraid it will happen again, Yvonne. It’s just a matter of time. Maybe not this year if the winds and the atmospheric pressure decide to cooperate, but it will definitely happen again. The most alarming part is that the next time it happens, it will probably be worse than it was in 2010. And the next time after that will be even worse.” She noticed Yvonne slowed her pace and squeezed the blue ball in her hand. “I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m sorry. I’m so passionate about this that I tend to alarm people. That’s not my intention. I don’t think alarming people is the best way to get them to act. Then again, it’s hard to inform people about climate change and rising sea levels without alarming them.”

  “Oh no, don’t worry,” Yvonne reassured her. “I’ve heard all about the sea levels rising. What is it? Three millimeters a year?”

  “At least, yes. But most scientists agree it will actually be much more than that if we don’t stop using fossil fuels. Some say sea levels could be up to eight feet higher by 2100.”

  “Wow. Okay, I didn’t know it could be that much, but I knew it was happening. I don’t stop to think about it every day, but every time I do, I realize we have to do something about it. I even bought a piece of land on top of the hill over there,” she said as she pointed south and away from the river. “You can’t see it from here, but from there you do have a splendid view of the sea. My plan was to move the inn there. But it costs a lot of money to relocate a building like the White Sheep Inn, and although there are plans to help people relocate, we’re not there yet. Besides, I worry about losing some of my customers. They come here for the sea, you know? Will admiring it from a distance be enough for them? I don’t know.”

  “That’s an understandable concern.” Ana focused on Yvonne’s hand as she was still holding the ball despite a frantic Miller running back and forth in front of her. She saw tremors in the older woman’s hand, tremors that hadn’t been there before. �
�Would you like me to throw the ball for you?”

  “Would you, please?”

  Yvonne handed the ball and Ana threw it as far as she could. Miller started running after it but stopped to sniff at the ground halfway to where the ball actually fell, used to his owner’s throwing distance. He turned to them, puzzled, then turned around again and ran when he finally spotted the ball. Yvonne laughed. “I think he’s in for a lot more exercise than he’d bargained for with you throwing it. If we did this every day, maybe he’d lose that extra weight the vet has been scolding me about for two years.”

  “I’d be happy to go on these walks with both of you while I’m here.” Miller came back with the ball. He was panting, his tongue hanging. “But next time we’ll bring water for him.” She threw the ball again, but this time much closer to give him a break.

  “That would be very nice of you, thank you. These damn tremors will only get worse with time,” she said as she attempted to massage them away with her other hand. Ana didn’t ask because she didn’t want to intrude, but she didn’t need to as Yvonne continued. “Parkinson’s. That’s why I started to train Melodie. I wanted to work with her as long as I could before the disease progresses too much. The inn will be hers when I can’t do it anymore.” She took a deep breath. Ana offered a timid smile. She didn’t know what to say. “But enough about that. I’m still able to go out and enjoy walks for now. That’s what matters, right?”

  “Of course. And I’ll throw the ball for Miller. We’ll become great friends in the next few weeks, you’ll see.”

  “I don’t doubt it. And to answer your question, yes, I will give you an interview. We can do it during our walks. And I’ll call people for you. I know a few people on the town council and if they can’t help you, they’ll know who can.”

  “Thank you so much, Yvonne.”

  “You’re welcome. I’m glad you’re interested in our community’s fate. You’re a scientist, I assume? Maybe you’ll bring us solutions we haven’t thought of yet.”

  “I’m an engineering geologist, yes, but I’m afraid you might not like my solution that much.”

  “Why?”

  “Well, apart from stopping the use of fossil fuels as quickly as possible to limit damages, my solution is for governments, business owners, and citizens to get together and come up with a solid plan to relocate every home and every business farther from the river as soon as possible. The power of the oceans in general and of the Saint-Laurent River right here in Sainte-Luce-Sur-Mer is something we need to respect. The best thing for us to do is to get out of the way.”

  She closed her eyes and sighed deeply. “That’s very sensible. It’s not what many of us want to hear, so be prepared for some serious debates, but I for one agree with you. But do me a favor, will you?”

  Ana turned to Yvonne, who looked at her with a mischievous grin. “Don’t call the Saint-Laurent a river anymore. I know you don’t have another word for fleuve in English, but river simply doesn’t work. It doesn’t do it justice,” she explained as she stopped walking and turned toward the water to take a deep breath of wet, salty air. “Call it the sea. That’s what we all call it here. La mer.”

  “That I can do,” Ana granted with a smile. She turned to the Saint-Laurent and nodded as the wind hit her face. Sea was a much better word for its magnitude.

  Chapter Eight

  Melodie and Thomas stayed in the only room located on the first floor of the inn. It was the largest of the guest rooms but it didn’t have a view of the sea. It was right next to the kitchen and directly above the basement laundry room, so unpleasant ambient sounds were guaranteed. For these reasons, her grandmother had explained, they only let guests stay in that room when they didn’t have any other vacancy and even then they warned them about the possible disturbance and offered it at a lower rate.

  Melodie enjoyed her temporary living arrangements. Staying at the White Sheep Inn was strangely akin to coming back home. The only house she’d truly called home before was her grandparents’ tiny saltbox house, which had been located less than a hundred feet west of the inn, right on the beach. She’d lived in several apartments in town with her parents, and then alone with her father, but the only place that had ever felt like a proper home was that blue house on the beach. Unfortunately it had been destroyed by the 2010 storm surge, and her grandparents had bought a duplex in the village. It had been a difficult transition, but at least they still had the inn.

  She’d placed Thomas’s crib next to her full-size bed and still had enough floor space to put down foam mat tiles for Thomas to play safely with his toys. She’d started with a four foot by four-foot area covered with checkered blue and green foam tiles, but now that Thomas was starting to crawl, she’d added a few more tiles. “Do you want the giraffe?” she asked him as she sat at one end of the cushy mat, wiggling the giraffe teether in her hand. That giraffe was his favorite thing in the world and she used it as bait to get him to move forward. So far he’d only managed to crawl backward, which was hilarious but sometimes frustrating for him. The time she spent on this foam mat playing with him was her favorite time of the day. He always made her laugh and impressed her almost on a daily basis with new skills. “Come on, baby, I know you want it.”

  She heard a knock on the door: two quick strikes, then a pause before one last, softer knock. “Come in, Mammie.”

  Yvonne entered and immediately picked up Thomas for a kiss. “Are you having fun playing with maman?” She kept making funny faces at him as she said to Melodie, “I set up the Tremblays in room three. They’re staying for two nights so we’ll have three breakfasts to serve tomorrow and the day after.”

  “Easy breezy.”

  “Speaking of breakfast, Ana really loved your eggs Benedict. You’re really amazing in the kitchen. You’ll earn us a new culinary reputation if you continue.”

  “Great. I’m glad I finally did something that woman likes.”

  Yvonne put Thomas back down on the mat and sat on the foot of the bed to watch them play. Melodie’s heart sank. Not so long ago, her grandmother would have been happy to sit on the floor and play with them, but her body forced her to be more cautious now. “You should give her a chance, dear. She’s very smart you know. And kind.”

  Melodie scoffed. “I don’t doubt she’s smart. Everything about her screams nerd. But kind, really? She seems so cold-hearted to me.”

  “You’re wrong. While we were walking, she saw I was struggling with tremors in my hand and she offered to throw the ball for Miller.”

  “Oh Mammie, are you okay now?” Melodie asked as she automatically focused on her grandmother’s right hand.

  “Yes, don’t worry. I took my medication and rested a little bit,” Yvonne explained as she waved her hand dismissively. “You’re missing the point.”

  “Well, youpidoo. She threw a ball. Give her the Nobel Peace Prize, why don’t you?”

  “You’re not being fair, Melodie. She has a good heart. I’m old enough to sense these things. You should trust me. She’s here to study ways to help people relocate away from the sea. You know, with the sea levels rising and all. She obviously cares about people.”

  “What? Are you kidding? She wants us to move away from the beach?” Melodie felt heat come up her body to the tips of her ears. The pressure and anger rose inside her much faster than any damn sea level could.

  “Well, not only us, of course. She says the best thing we can do is get out of the way.”

  “That’s ridiculous,” she hissed. “We’ve always lived by the water. Who does that American bitch think she is, coming here to tell us we have to move away? She doesn’t know this place. She doesn’t know anything about us and she thinks she can impress us with her stupid relocation plans? Well, it’s not going to happen. Mark my word. You can’t let her put those ideas in your head, Mammie. Please tell me you won’t,” she argued, brandishing her index finger and the giraffe teether she was still holding at the same time.

  “Calm down. She
’s not here to make us do anything. She’s just here to study.”

  “That’s how the stupidest plans and laws always begin. With damn studies.”

  “Shh, please let it go. Look!”

  Melodie followed her grandmother’s gaze to Thomas and Ana Bloom and her ridiculous ideas immediately left her mind. Thomas was crawling toward her. He folded one leg on his side and pushed forward with his bare foot. Then he did the same with the other leg. “That’s it, my love. You’re doing it! Come and get the giraffe.” Thomas kept crawling with the biggest smile on his face. He stopped short and reached as far as he could with his tiny arm. Melodie rewarded him by handing him the giraffe at last. She picked him up and held him tightly as he started chewing on the toy. “You did it, Thomas. Maman is so proud of you.”

  “Bravo, Thomas.”

  Melodie turned her attention back to her grandmother and saw tears of joy in the woman’s eyes. She felt her own eyes well up with tears of pride. “I’m glad you were here for this big step.”

  “Me too,” Yvonne replied as she squeezed the hand Melodie offered her. “Next he’ll get on his hands and knees. That’s when real trouble begins, you know.”

  “So I’ve heard,” Melodie acknowledged as both women laughed together. She couldn’t help but wonder how many big steps her grandmother would still be here to witness, and a different kind of tears soon mixed with her pride and laughter. Yvonne was the rock in their strange little family. She couldn’t imagine not having her around. Thinking of her grandmother’s strength brought to mind her father’s weaknesses and she realized she hadn’t shared the latest news yet. “Dad’s been out of work for a while. He owes two months’ rent. I told Kevin I would talk to you about it.”

  Yvonne sighed and dropped her shoulders, discouraged. “All right. Let me think about this for a day or two. I’ll come up with something. If Kevin asks, just tell him we’ll pay what he owes.”