Deborah raised a perfectly arched eyebrow. “Because you owe me!” She retorted. She reached up and touched the faint outlines of the angry red welts, the remnants of the wasp attack only the week before.
“I don’t think that you can hold that against me,” Steve argued seriously, “when it was Pete who threw stuff at the nest.”
“But it was your stuff that he threw!” She pointed out spiritedly. “And he wouldn’t have even been up there in the first place, if you hadn’t made him go!”
“It’s not like I forced him to go with me!” Steve said in exasperation, choosing to forget Pete’s near mutiny early in the hike.
“Well, fortunately for you, Pete’s stings have faded even faster than yours, so you are pretty much forgiven,” she pronounced, tapping his cheek lightly with her bouquet.
“Well, I am glad that I wasn’t the cause of you having to postpone the wedding. Heaven knows, marrying a guy covered in welts puts a little too much reality on the phrase ‘for better or worse’!” He told her heatedly.
“Oh, get over yourself, Steve!” Deborah said with a laugh at his attitude. “I love Pete, and I’d marry him today if he was laid up in a hospital bed, if it was my only option. But when you’ve put this much time and planning and money into something, you get a little out of sorts when the day gets unnecessarily sabotaged!”
Steve relaxed a little and grinned. “You’re right, of course,” he admitted. “Truce?”
“Truce,” she agreed.
Just then, Deborah’s two maids of honor, Jill and a college girlfriend named Terri, came out of Jill’s trailer, wearing tea length light blue sundresses. Wildflowers dotted their hair, and they also carried small wildflower bouquets.
Steve held out his arm. “It looks like everyone is here now. May I escort you to the Wedding Bells Express?”
Deborah smiled up at him, and took a deep breath. “Let’s do it!”
Steve walked her to one of the Park trucks, scrubbed to a sparkling white and strung with bells, bows and streamers to mark it’s elevated status. A special three step stair placed against the back, allowed him to hand her into the truck bed in a dignified manner, where she took a seat on one of the two long padded benches that ran along either side of the bed. Her mother sat across from her, with Lee Ann next to her, and the two men took seats on the opposite side from the women. Gracie crowded in next to her grandmother, and Fiona sat down contentedly next to Richard, her head in his lap.
Having finally gotten the wedding party settled in, Steve climbed into the cab next to Chuck, who was decked out similarly to Steve in black tux and tie with black tennis shoes. “Head ‘em up, move ‘em out!” He announced, waking Chuck, who had dozed off in the driver’s seat.
“Right,” Chuck said, sitting up and blinking his eyes, as if he was trying to remember why he was here. He stretched and switched on the ignition. “Here we go!”
They drove from the compound and made a loop around the campsite, where the campers lined up at their sites and beat on pans or clapped as Deborah and the wedding party waved happily from the truck. Then they sailed down the road to the park headquarters, where once again, the family and friends who could not make the climb were lined up to wave and cheer them on their way. Chuck paused at the far end of the parking lot and stuck his head out the window. “Y’all brace yourselves!” He reminded them. “This section gets kind of bumpy!”
Chuck eased the wheels over the sidewalk and onto the shallow-stepped path that also served as the access road to the Hanging Rock Trail. Even with Chuck’s warning, the passengers found it difficult to steady themselves as the truck lurched and rumbled down the slope. Thankfully though, they were soon cruising slowly up the wide gravel trail.
Between the growl of the engine and the gravel crunching under the wheels, conversation was a little difficult. At first, Robert Graham took a few moments to study his daughter, and allowed her obvious joy fill his own soul. He was so proud of the young woman she had grown into, and Pete was a man he would be proud to call his son.
His thoughts shifted to the set of parents who sat across from him. He felt a momentary sadness for Lee Ann and Richard. They never had the opportunity to see their own daughter married, and the birth of their granddaughter must have been a bittersweet and difficult time. Yet he was grateful that God had left them with Gracie, who was a true light in their lives as she grew.
Especially with a son like David! He was ashamed to feel how relieved he was that it was Pete and not David Bolton who was marrying his Deborah. As hard as it must have been to lose Sarah, how must Richard and Lee Ann feel to have a son whose behavior was sometimes embarrassing and often destructive? What a struggle it must be for them to love such a son!
Robert’s thoughts drifted back to the suspicious vehicle that he and Hester had seen in the parking lot earlier. He hoped that they had been wrong, yet he remained edgy and disquieted by the possibility that David might find it amusing to crash the wedding. The possibility nagged at him and undermined the peace he wanted to feel in these last few minutes with Deborah before she became a wife.
Lee Ann looked up at that moment and smiled questioningly at Robert. Caught in the act of staring, Robert forced a smile. “I’m glad that you and Richard are here to share the day with us,” he told her.
Lee Ann rested a hand on Gracie’s shoulder. “As grandparents of the flower girl, we couldn’t have been anywhere else,” she replied, smiling fondly at Gracie who, along with Deborah and Hester, was happily waving at the hikers and various well wishers who were still out on the trail.
“You know that we always loved Deborah too. There was a time when we had hoped that she and David would be, would have…” she sighed and her words trailed off, and then she began again. “Well, we would have been proud to call her our daughter,” she finished.
“Ah well, first loves are seldom last loves,” he commented in a neutral tone. “A lot of growing and changing occurs after high school.”
“Still,” Lee Ann persisted, “I was disappointed that they could not work out their differences.”
“How is David doing? It’s been a while since we’ve heard from him,” Robert said, trying not to recall too vividly the unpleasant scene at Christmas, when David had arrived so drunk at the Bolton’s party, that he’d tried to make a move on Kelly and then accused Steve of trying to steal Kelly away from him.
Lee Ann didn’t seem to want to remember that moment either. It had taken Pete, Robert, and Richard to stop David from physically attacking Steve in front of his parents and their remaining guests. Pete had actually taken a punch for Steve, by stepping between the two men when David had refused to back down!
“He’s done well enough,” Lee Ann replied vaguely. “He’s almost done with recruiting duty. He’ll be back at Camp Lejeune next month.”
“Glad to hear it,” Robert said, then he blurted “Hester and I saw a car like his in the parking lot earlier today.”
Lee Ann looked startled, and her cheeks reddened slightly. “It may have looked like his, but it wasn’t,” she assured him quietly. “After what happened at the Christmas party, I felt it would be better not to tell him that Deborah was getting married today.”
Robert felt his heart lighten considerably. “He doesn’t know then?” He repeated, unable to hide his relief.”
“No, Robert,” she said again in a slightly brittle tone, “he does not know that today is the day.”
“Yes he does, Grammy!” Gracie said suddenly, turning her head to look at her grandmother.
Lee Ann’s face paled. “He – does?” She managed to say, although she was clearly taken by surprise at Gracie’s words.
“Yeah,” Gracie confirmed. “Uncle David called us last week while you were out in the garden. I told him all about my dress and how Uncle Pete and Aunt Debbie were getting married on a mountaintop instead of inside a church!”
She turned and waved to another group of hikers who were whistling and clapping on the si
de of the trail.
Robert sat very still. He felt like he had just swallowed a boulder. He glanced over at his wife and daughter, who sat laughing and waving happily from the truck bed, oblivious to what Gracie had just confided to them.
“And, what did your Uncle David say about all your news?” He managed to ask the little girl weakly.
Gracie suddenly looked guilty. “He told me not to tell anybody, cause he had a secret gift and he wanted to surprise everyone.” She frowned a little. “I guess it’s okay that I told you – as long as Aunt Debbie and Daddy don’t know.”
His mouth was so dry suddenly that he could only nod at Gracie. Slowly he raised his eyes to look at Lee Ann. David’s mother sat with her hand resting against her throat. Her lips were parted fearfully and her eyes were wide, as if she were seeing all of the same disturbing possibilities that immediately flooded Robert’s imagination. In that moment, Robert knew that Lee Ann Bolton had known the truth about David for a very long time.
Ch 47
Mountaintop Experience
The sunset was an inspired work of art created by the Master. Royal purples, pinks and liquid gold swirled gloriously on the backdrop of Moore's Knob, yet it seemed to be merely a reflection of the radiant joy on Hanging Rock, as Past Robert Graham pronounced the sacred words that joined the couple as man and wife.
It had been a perfect wedding, Steve reflected, cheering and clapping wildly with the rest of the guests. From the moment when the Grahams and Mr. Bergen walked hand in hand with their children from the ‘Over the Top Lounge’, out onto Hanging Rock; to sharing Holy Communion with all the guests, including those celebrating in the T.V. Room back at Headquarters, until this moment when, kneeling on the massive rock in full sight of God and man, Pete and Deborah had pledged their lives to their God and to each other.
Hester, Jill and her college friend, Terri, had stood with Deborah. Steve, Chuck and Andre Bergen, Pete’s father, had stood beside him as the couple made their vows. About fifty guests had chosen to make the climb and be present for the ceremony, while about fifty more waited at Park Headquarters, watching the event on the huge plasma screen that Pete’s high school buddy from channel 9 had helped to arrange.
Gracie had been so proud to be a part of the ceremony. She had walked carefully out to the point, Fiona a silent and dignified red shadow by her side, tossing the fragrant magnolia blossoms along the path. She stopped and turned on the dime that Steve had set for her in the sand to face the crowd that stood in a haphazard semi circle around the promontory. The bridesmaids and groomsmen had followed her, while Miss Ellie, the elderly church organist from Pastor Graham’s church who had proven herself to be spryer at climbing up the steep segment of the trail than anyone would have guessed, played hymns quietly on the portable keyboard.
Once everyone was in their places, Miss Ellie struck up the wedding march, and the bride and groom, flanked by their parents, had marched out onto the promontory. Robert Graham had then shaken Pete’s hand, kissed his daughter on the forehead, and then slipped a minister’s stole around his shoulders to symbolize his role as both parent and pastor.
The ceremony itself had been relatively short. Pastor Graham admonished them on the sanctity of marriage, on their responsibilities to God and to each other, and finally, to any children that should follow. After completing the Communion service, they repeated the formal vows, and Pastor Graham pronounced them man and wife. Everyone cheered and clapped, and the photographer hurried forward to snap a few pictures before the incredible sunset faded from the sky.
A minute later, Miss Ellie struck up the recessional March, and the wedding party walked back to form a ragged line near the trailhead so that they could greet and thank their guests. Pastor Graham and Hester walked behind the newlyweds, Steve held out his arm for Terri, who smiled up at him shyly, and Jill grabbed Chuck’s arm possessively, taking no chances with Terri. Mr. Bergan good naturedly walked with Gracie and Fiona, bringing up the rear.
Steve helped Terri over some uneven ground, until at last they were clear of the ledges. He scanned the crowd that was converging on the little wedding party, eager to find Kelly in the press.
Suddenly Gracie cried out “Fiona! Fiona, come back here! Come back now!”
Steve grinned. Apparently, Fiona had reached the limit of her ability to behave. Steve caught a glimpse of a reddish brown body streaking along the tree line in the direction of the picnic rock. Steve grabbed Gracie’s hand before she could race off after her dog. “It’s all right, Gracie,” he soothed her. You go get in the reception line. I’ll go catch her and bring her back to you.”
Gracie stared off after her dog in aggravation and stamped her little foot. “And she was being so good!” She complained to her father.
“She was good!” Steve agreed. “At least she hung in there for the ceremony. Now go get in line and wait for me, okay?”
Steve caught up with the errant dog on less than five minutes. He turned back to the trailhead and realized that he was now bringing up the rear of the crowd of well wishers, who did not seem to be in any hurry to scramble back down the steep pathway. He scanned the crowd for Kelly, but she was still caught somewhere in the guests in front of him. He spotted Gracie standing in line with the adults, shaking hands and smiling as radiantly as if it were her own wedding day, and Steve felt his first pang as a father, for how fleeting time was! How grownup she looks, and how much she has changed in just the short time I have known her! He thought.
Ah, there was Kelly! He’d been looking too far back. She was actually among the first to go through the reception line. From his vantage point on the far side of the top of the promontory, he stood for a moment and admired the scene, wondering what sort of wedding Kelly would want to have. Steve didn’t really care. He was just looking forward to beginning a new life with her and Gracie. His only hope was that it would be very soon! He watched as Kelly hugged Deb and Pete, and moved past the reception line. Then Steve frowned. There was – someone – near the trees, watching her. The dark hair and heavily muscled arms were evident even under the suit coat he was wearing. An unreasonable dread seized his heart.
“Kelly!” He shouted.
But Kelly didn’t hear him over Miss Ellie’s postlude music that swelled into the advancing twilight. He tried to push through the throng of well wishers, but the ground was so rough and uneven, the safe paths were heavily blocked. The guests glared at him in annoyance unable to move even if they’d wanted to.
Frustrated and apprehensive, Steve backtracked with Fiona. He clambered up onto a ledge behind the main press of people, and then leapt across a deep gap in the rock, thankful for the black boot’s rubber soles. At the rocky gap Fiona panicked and refused to jump across after him. Steve felt her pull back on the leash, struggling against his impatient tug until she managed to squirm out of her collar. Steve was left holding the empty leash. He called to her but she whined and danced nervously on the far edge, refusing to follow.
“Fine,” Steve said distractedly. He dropped her leash and hurried around the edge of the crowd, trusting that Fiona would backtrack and find Gracie.
Steve raced up another higher ledge and searched the departing crowd frantically. Pete and Deb still stood in the line, shaking hands and chatting with the last of their guests, oblivious of the stranger who had been hovering on the edge of the crowd. Miss Ellie continued serenading the guests, now playing ‘An ode to Joy’. Kelly was gone.
At last he caught sight of her. She had wandered to the edge of the tree line, apparently waiting for Steve to return with Fiona. “No!” he whispered to himself. “Not there!” He scanned the trees behind her for the dark figure he had spotted before. He could have been wrong, he told himself. It might easily have been just another guest that he did not recognize…but as he watched, David Bolton stepped out of the trees. The last notes of ‘Ode to Joy’ echoed around Hanging Rock and faded into silence. Steve saw the fading sunlight glint on metal. David had a gun in his hand.<
br />
“Kelly! Behind you!”
Kelly caught the sound of Steve’s voice and turned just as a very muscular arm slipped around her waist. She gasped and looked up into David’s hard gray eyes. In a quick movement he pulled her under the protective shield of the trees. She felt the gun pressed against her ribs. “Stay quiet,” he ordered.
“Wh- what are you doing?” She stuttered, struggling to move out of the circle of his arm. It was of no use. She might as well be pushing against Hanging Rock.
“Getting rid of the interfering boyfriend – both of them, in fact. They’ve humiliated me long enough!” He hissed tersely. Gripping her arm tightly he pulled her along beside him as he moved through the trees.
“What 'boyfriends' are you talking about, David?" She asked in confusion. She protested in a choked voice, planting her feet and refusing to go deeper into the trees. "I've done nothing to you, why are you doing this?" She glanced desperately over her shoulder. “Didn’t anybody see what had just happened?” But no one had followed them, and the swelling melody of “Sunrise, Sunset” seemed to have muted her cry of fear and surprise when David had pulled her into the trees. No one had even looked her way.
David’s lip curled in a derisive sneer at her attempts to resist him. He jerked her arm so hard, Kelly thought it would pop out her the shoulder socket. She practically flew across the dirt and stumbled into his chest with a gasp of pain.
“You're here with Steve, aren't you?" He growled in disgust. "But I'm done with letting him get in my way. Trying to take Gracie is the last straw." He pushed her along in front of him with the muzzle of the gun, his hand still gripping her upper arm.
“Where did he go?” David seethed irritatedly. “He should be dead already - both of them should - except he’s inconveniently disappeared.”
“What do you mean by ‘both’?” Kelly asked again, bewildered.
“Steve,” he spat the name. “Your Steve and that Peter Bergan!” He said, as if she should fully understand his reasons without the need of an explanation. “Both of them! Always interfering! Steve is always trying to move in on my girls, and that Pete Bergan is no better! Always getting in between me and Steve, even when it was none of his business! But now – now he thinks he can have Deborah!” He snarled in disgust. He grabbed her wrist and dragged her deeper into the trees, trying to maneuver to a better vantage point.
Far Country Page 40