“What are you doing?” she asked.
“We are bringing this tractor to your grandpa. Want a ride?”
“Sure!”
“Climb on up behind me,” he said helping her. Charles smiled and waved to Margaret as they rode to the porch. She smiled and waved back.
Margaret said, “I haven’t seen Persuasion in a long time.” She reached out to pet her forehead. Persuasion nodded as if she understood.
Charles said, “Mom doesn’t ride much anymore and I haven’t had much time to ride this summer. I think she’s enjoying being out of the pasture.” He reached forward to pat the old mare’s mane.
Margaret smiled, “Seeing her brings back memories. Enjoy your ride Caroline.” They followed Carson in the tractor and stopped at the barn. Al came out and helped Caroline down from the horse.
Caroline said, “That was fun riding on the horse.” Charles dismounted the horse and tied her reins to the wooden fence.
Al walked over to where Carson had parked the tractor. Carson had the keys in his hand and handed them to Al. “Well Al, she’s all yours now. Walter picked a red-hot number for the farm. Ed is there now picking her up.”
Al laughed. “Thank you Carson. I’ve spent the better part of the morning dealing with our old one after the market vendor left. This girl sure will come in handy.”
Caroline and Charles were standing in back of the tractor talking. “I’m glad you’re still here,” Charles said.
“Me too.” They stood and talked while Al and Carson looked over the tractor.
Then, the men disappeared into Al’s barn to look over the old tractor.
Carson said, “I can have Ed come and look it over if you want, Al. He’s the best mechanic I know when dealing with farm machinery.”
“Well, that would be nice Carson. You can do that but Jeremy came out and looked it over. He said there wasn’t any use in bothering with it anymore. He thought it would just keep nickel-and-diming us. So, I am happy to see this one show up. I figured I’d have to go and look for a new one myself real soon.”
“Well, now you don’t have to do that.”
“You could have just kept this one in your barn Carson, in case you have trouble with one of your other tractors.”
“I don’t have the room and besides…” He nodded in the kid’s direction. “Charles wanted to come see Caroline.”
Caroline was looking at the ground before she brushed her hair from her face. “I read sections of the book from Mr. Jones’ library last night,” she said smiling.
Charles smiled and looked at her trying to get her to look at him. “Go on, what do you think about it? It’s good isn’t it?”
“Yes, it’s very good.” Then, she looked away in the direction of the men talking in the barn.
“So, I guess I won’t see you again until this Tuesday,” Charles said grinning.
Caroline slowly nodded. They looked at each other. Caroline’s eyes were drawn to his neck and up to his mouth… Suddenly he grabbed her hand and pulled her to the barn where Carson and Al were standing.
“What in the world…” she said under her breath as they were walking faster now. Carson looked up from the tractor as Charles approached them.
“May Caroline and I walk up to the house to see Margaret?” Charles asked.
“Sure, if it’s okay with Al.”
“It’s okay with me.”
So they started walking toward the house. Caroline was talking with her hands. In one of their brief pauses her hand found his and they walked holding hands along the gravel driveway. He squeezed her hand as they walked. They walked by a row of outbuildings. The buildings were old and in slight disrepair. It looked like Al had started working on them. Some were open with equipment in them.
Charles was talking to her about Carson’s farm and the things they had talked about that morning on the drive to the Farm and Supply Store. Suddenly she pulled him closer to her and stopped walking.
He turned to her. “Is everything all right? Why did you stop?” He stepped closer and kissed her right on the lips. She slightly pulled back and smiled.
He grabbed her hand. Then he took off running to the back of an outbuilding. When they were in back he drew her to him, got close to her mouth and paused. Then, their lips met and they kissed. When he pulled back she kept her eyes closed for a moment. When she opened them he smiled at her and said, “That’s kind of how I imagined it.” He kissed her again on her cheek. Then, he put his arms around her and pulled her close to him. They stayed that way for a minute. Then, with his arm around her shoulder they walked to the house.
Margaret was outside. She asked them if they wanted a snack. They followed her inside and sat at the kitchen table. She fixed them peach tea and oatmeal raisin cookies. Margaret sat with them and talked about the tractor.
They heard the front door open and Caroline’s mom said, “I’m here.”
Margaret said, “We’re in the kitchen.”
Joyce appeared in the doorway. Caroline got up and went to give her a hug.
Her mom said, “I missed you Caroline.
“Hi Charles. How are you?”
“Fine, Mrs. Saunders. How are you?”
“I’m doing great now that I’m with my girl.” She gave Caroline a squeeze.
“Good to see you again Charles. You’re still as handsome as you were the last time I saw you. How is your mom? I hope I will see her at the picnic.”
“My mom is doing fine. She’s going to be at the picnic on Tuesday.”
“Sit down and have some peach tea and cookies,” Margaret said.
“Where is Dad?” Joyce asked.
“He is down at the barn. Mr. Jones and your dad are looking at a tractor.”
“Did Dad get a new tractor?”
“Carson gave it to him today,” Margaret said.
“Charles rode Persuasion over,” Caroline added. Charles smiled at her. “Right, I got to ride on her too.”
“Let’s go to the barn,” Joyce said.
“Well, okay let’s go then.” Margaret stood up.
They left the kitchen and walked to the barn. Joyce strolled over to Persuasion and talked to her while patting her mane and her forehead. Then she walked over to the tractor and whistled. She looked it over and gave it thumbs up approval. Then Al and Carson came out of the barn to see what was going on. Al smiled and walked over to Joyce. They hugged. As Al was telling her about the tractor she climbed on and turned the ignition starting it up. “I’m going to take it for a joy ride.” She drove it down the driveway.
“Some kids never grow up,” Al said.
“She takes after her dad.” Margaret reminded him. Carson joined them and they stood around talking a while longer.
Carson said, “Charles, are you ready to get back to the farm? Nana is waiting on us.”
Charles nodded. He told Caroline that he would see her on Tuesday. She gave him a hug. Joyce came back around riding up the driveway. She parked it and told Carson that she was excited for her dad. Al, Margaret and Joyce thanked him, all at the same time.
Carson said, “We wanted it to go to a good home. Hope it helps around here. It’s a good tractor.”
After everyone said goodbye, Carson mounted Persuasion and then helped Charles up. They rode back to the farmhouse. Charles was thinking the whole time about what he was going to do when they got back. Once they reached the barn they took care of Persuasion and put the saddle and tack away. Charles opened the pasture gate and walked her back to where they had found her. He walked back, secured the gate behind himself and then went to find Carson. He found him in the barn looking over the supplies. Carson finished what he was doing. They decided it was time to go back to the farmhouse. As Carson drove they discussed their plans for the rest of the day.
Bev was outside in the yard when they pulled up to the garage. “Margaret called and said you were on your way back. Are you hungry for lunch?” They said they were. They followed her to the kitchen. As they w
alked they told her about the tractor. Charles mentioned he rode Persuasion over to Margaret and Al’s.
Bev said, “Molly used to ride Persuasion all the time. She hardly rides her any more. I’m glad you chose to ride her over there. It was good for her to stretch her legs and get some exercise.”
Carson and Charles washed before they ate leftovers. After Charles finished he went upstairs to get his things. When he came downstairs Carson was waiting for him. They walked together to the office. Charles fed the frog crickets he found in Nana’s garden. When he was finished he let the frog out to play with Airabelle.
Charles said as he walked to the chair to begin reading, “We need to name the frog, any suggestions?” Airabelle laughed. “What is so funny?” Charles asked.
“He already has a name.”
“No one told me.”
“It’s Esmond,” Carson commented.
Charles turned and looked at him. “How did you know that?”
“Airabelle.”
“Airabelle!” Charles exclaimed. He looked at Airabelle. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You were reading when I found out.”
“And you couldn’t interrupt me to tell me when you found out?”
“No.”
“What else did you find out from Esmond that you didn’t tell me?”
“Well now, let me see, he doesn’t have a family. He lives near the pond on the farm…”
Charles just shook his head and looked at the frog. “You don’t look like an Esmond…” Charles said under his breath.
He opened the book and put on his glasses. Once he was comfortable, he searched through the titles of interviews until he found one that looked interesting. Charles began reading and quickly became engrossed with Imogene’s unusual circumstances. According to Phil, when her story began there was no evidence that Imogene’s immediate family were currently registered as Sojourners, or were actively Sojourning, at the time the hearing involving her was brought before the Sojourners’ Council. She stated in her interview with him that a close friend of her family had, unbeknownst to her, petitioned the Council. This friend stated to the Council that he was certain beyond a reasonable doubt that she came from a Sojourners’ lineage. He contended she was entitled to be reinstated as a Sojourner. He provided proof to the Council she was an academically gifted individual and surmised that she was very responsible.
As a long-time friend and business partner of her grandfather, he kept in touch with the family after her grandparent’s death and had become fond of her through the years. As she became an adult he took notice of her successes and admired her business savvy. Her shrewd decisions made her family’s textile company very lucrative and propelled them ahead of the competition. He decided she was a suitable heir to his own personal estate since he did not have any heirs. After that decision had been made, he decided to take it upon himself to write to the Sojourners’ Council on her behalf. He requested permission to search the Sojourner Property Records. He wanted to know if he could verify if she was heir to any Sojourner’s inheritance or property. They granted him permission to conduct a search with the Records and Deeds Committee. He discovered that her family did indeed own Hub property, but that she didn’t have a registered inheritance on file.
He then followed regulations and requested a hearing with the Sojourners’ Council. He requested permission to become a legal mentor for her and to have her Sojourner rights reinstated. At the conclusion of the hearing the Sojourners’ Council denied her rights as a Sojourner and would not grant him permission to mentor her. Soon after the hearing he learned they had begun legal steps to confiscate her family’s Hub property.
The man refused to give up and was determined to fight for what he believed in. He sought the council of a brilliant advocate who fought tirelessly for the friend’s legal right to mentor her, and for her right as a Sojourner to be reinstated as well as her ancestry line to be recognized as Sojourners. If he were to prevail it would mean she would inherit her family’s property. It took three years before permission was finally granted and she began her training.
Phil learned of her story through rumors that a Non-Sojourner was granted permission to actively begin Sojourning. He tracked her down and requested an interview. She agreed to talk with him. He felt that the story of her mentor’s perseverance and how he had her reinstated through the Sojourners’ Council to become a Sojourner was newsworthy. It was a rare occurrence that permission would be granted for a Sojourner to be mentored by another Sojourner who was not of their lineage.
In her case the reason they were able to prevail and permission was eventually granted was because her family had Hub property. Consideration was also given since her mentor’s Sojourner lineage would come to an end after his death, and he chose her as his sole inheritor. He wanted to pass on his entire estate to someone he knew and trusted. Upon his death she learned the truth about him. He himself had been an heir to a massive family fortune in industry.
In a twist of fate, Imogene’s family became jealous and despised her after they learned of her inheritance. They tried to isolate her and make her life miserable within her own family’s business. Her siblings accused her of being a gold digger and turned their backs on her. In a board meeting they tried to gain enough votes to force her out. She persevered as a Sojourner and as a businesswoman. Her life turned out to be a success story. At the time of the interview she was considered one of the most powerful women in the world.
Charles closed the journal. He stared at the Passageway. At that moment he felt he was ready to begin the biggest adventure of his life. He thought about it and tried to decide where he would want to go. He looked over at Carson. He was still researching.
Esmond was hopping around the floor. Airabelle was talking to him as they walked. Charles was curious how Airabelle and Esmond understood each other. So many things were a mystery to him. He thought about Caroline. He wondered what she was doing…
CHAPTER 7
Dolores began packing. As she packed she thought back on her friendship with Ruthie. They’d been friends most of their lives. They became friends the minute they laid eyes on one another. From that minute on they did everything together. Ruthie had never let her down. Dolores was glad Ruthie was going with her tomorrow to the lake house. She hated traveling to that small town.
She thought about it momentarily, and wondered why she had even suggested they buy a lake house in the first place. Then she remembered. It was to save their marriage. She wondered why she bothered. She had hoped that they would be going there together, to spend time alone as a family. That never happened. It was a disaster from the moment she brought it up.
**********
Joseph had been resistant in the beginning. He was working around the clock and was hesitant to take time off from the family’s law firm to go looking for another property. Since he passed the bar examination and accepted working with his father at the law firm, there had been long periods of time when Dolores and Sterling didn’t see much of him over the months. Because he spent so little time at home with the family, Joseph knew he was at the end of his rope with Dolores. His back was up against the wall. She had made that very clear. He figured he didn’t have a choice, so he agreed to look for a lake house. It was part of his façade to change. He had pleaded with her to give him a little more time in order to regain peace and trust within their home. By that time he didn’t care if she left him and took the snot-nosed kid with her, but his parents had warned him against a divorce. His father told him that at all cost he should stay the course and keep their marriage together. For the life of him, Joseph couldn’t understand that logic. He figured he’d understand why later in life.
The first meetings his parents had had with Dolores were complete disasters. From the moment he had introduced Dolores to his parents, Joseph remembered the look on their faces. Joseph smiled to himself at that glorious memory. That event endeared her to him more than anything else. The thought that the
y instantly hated her was beyond any euphoric moment he’d ever experienced up to that point in his life. She clearly was not good enough, and to him that was pure revenge. Dolores was too naive to understand that she was a pawn in his malicious dysfunctional family.
Maureen played the role at first of being the good mother. She played her part well and should have won an award for her supporting role. Joseph knew that his mother couldn’t keep up appearances of being understanding of Dolores’ “mistakes”. Dolores came from “new” money and that drove his self-righteous and snobbish parents absolutely mad. Dolores was simply out of her league. She had no idea the other ladies were all laughing at her behind her back. Joseph liked the drama since it took some of the pressure off of him. Since Dolores seemed oblivious of their contempt, he didn’t think it mattered. His mother had played the part so well. He’d almost left Dolores, thinking his parents would eventually end up liking her. The joke had actually been on him.
That’s when the bomb dropped. It was an atomic explosion that rocked the gossip wenches’ world in the upper class of society. It was the kind of scandal that would be embarrassing to any of the ladies in his mother’s social circle. Their joke had been found out by one of the new, “Richies” or “Witchies,” as they called them. Somehow this know-it-all wench had learned that Joseph’s mother had been gossiping all along about Dolores.
The “Witchie” was a close personal friend of Dolores’ mom. She managed to keep a straight poker face and learned more than she should have given her status. From there, the woman paid Dolores’ mom a visit immediately following the dramatic reveal.
Joseph laughed at the look on his mother’s face when Dolores’ mom fought back. The impolite war was on. Dolores’ mom stood up to his mother and publicly let her have it. It could only have been better if she had thrown a pie in Maureen’s face. That’s when he realized his parents still hated Dolores and her parents. At that moment he knew there was no one else in the world for him, but her.
The Xidoran Prophecy Page 14