Lauryn linked her arm around Brant’s, sighing with relief. “Good. We’ll be back in a little while,” she said to Penny.
“I’ll keep an eye out for the grannies,” Penny assured them. “In case they need anythin’.” Jeffrey remained silent, glaring past Penny toward his grandmother’s bedroom.
Once outside the house Lauryn exclaimed, “Whew! I was worried there for a minute. Thought you two were goin’ to go at each other’s throats.”
“We were,” Brant admitted.
They began walking leisurely along the street, passing white picket fences as they went. The summer had brought bounteous beauty to Memphis. All the lawns were plush, the flowerbeds bursting with color. The air was light that day, the sun brilliant.
“She knows more than she’s told Jeffrey,” Brant said, finally. “Or Jeffrey knows more than he’s telling us. He’s awfully protective of her.”
“She is his grandmother. But….I think you’re right,” Lauryn agreed. She hadn’t planned to tell him that she felt Jeffrey was hiding something. But she had felt it, and was glad to know he had as well. “What, exactly, do you think we’re not bein’ told?”
Brant shrugged. “I can’t say. It’s just a feeling I have.”
“Imagine it,” Lauryn exclaimed quietly. “All these years…Carissa’s been alive and leading a perfectly normal life. All this time Penny has been my cousin! It’s just so strange to soak up.”
“Would you do anything, Lauryn?” Brant asked suddenly. Lauryn looked up to him, puzzled by his question. He gazed straight ahead, a thoughtful pucker wrinkling his brow.
“What do you mean,” she asked.
“Would you do anything to keep…to try and….” He shook his head and shrugged his shoulders as if trying to dismiss his thoughts. “Never mind.”
“What?” Lauryn prodded. “Tell me. Would I do anythin’ to what?”
Brant inhaled deeply and glanced at her smiling. “She made it sound so desperate. Like she would’ve dropped dead if she couldn’t make him love her.”
“Oh,” Lauryn breathed, realizing to what he referred. Carissa had asked her and Penny both if they could imagine feeling so desperate to make a man love them that they would resort to any means necessary. “You mean would I….would I ever consider….”
“Would a regular girl…any girl I grew up with or know now, for instance…I wonder what pushes a girl to be that frantic. So desperate that she would…”
“She was in love with him,” Lauryn answered simply.
“But….” Brant seemed unconvinced. “I mean, I can see how a man…we have so much less self-control, in general. So directed by physical….” He shook his head again. “I guess I’m just comparing her to my sisters.” He paused and smiled down at Lauryn. “Or to you.” Chuckling he added, “You’d never be so desperate as to do anything like she did to try and catch man. You’re too good and honest….and smart.”
“I’m smart enough to know that you can’t force someone to love you. They do or they don’t. And if they don’t….your dreams are shattered anyway. So why make so many lives miserable?” Secretly, Lauryn could somewhat understand how a woman could be so in love with a man that she would do almost anything to have him. Still, she kept the information quietly to herself and looked up to him to find him staring thoughtfully ahead. “What are you thinkin’?”
“I think I’d at least consider it.”
“What?” Lauryn exclaimed, aghast.
“I think I would.” He glanced at her. Lauryn’s mouth gaped open, shocked at Brant’s revelation. “I mean, say you want to marry this girl and her father won’t hear of it. But, even these days, most families prefer a shotgun wedding to scandal and fatherless children. And knowing that…maybe I’d truly consider seducing the girl and getting her father to demand that I marry her.”
“You would not!” Lauryn corrected him. She knew Brant would never do such a thing. Didn’t she? “You wouldn’t do that!”
“I said I might consider it, Lauryn,” he reminded her. “I think anyone would consider it. It’s just a matter of how strong you really are.”
“Well, I like to think that I’m stronger than Carissa was. It was her own sister’s husband she coveted. Remember?”
“You’re right there,” Brant relented. “What she did was much worse because of who she hurt.”
“Is that what you told her in there?” Lauryn asked. “Carissa. When you whispered to her. Is that what you told her? That you could understand her desperation?”
“Pretty much,” Brant chuckled. He winked mischievously at Lauryn and she smiled, charmed with the impish side of his nature.
“Lauryn! Brant!”
Lauryn and Brant turned to see Penny hurrying after them.
“She wants to talk to y’all! Right now! Granny says she has somethin’ to say,” Penny panted, short of breath from her sprint.
“I went to Connemara that day,” Carissa admitted quietly. As Lauryn and Brant sat at the foot of her bed, Nana sat next to her, encouragingly holding her hand. “The battle was…it was horrid. I was frightened. My time was so close…the baby was so near to bein’ born, and I was entirely destitute. Laura had been givin’ me money…” The old woman paused, her lower lip trembling, tears sliding down her cheeks. “After all I had done…she still helped me.” She paused and dabbed at her eyes with a handkerchief, then continued. “I needed more money…since I had lost all hope of Daddy ever takin’ me in again. So, I went to Connemara. I waited until Laura came out to help a wounded soldier into the house, and then I called to her. She came to me, told me that she loved me no matter what I had done and that she wanted to see my baby born in safety. But I knew Daddy wouldn’t have it. So, she gave me all the money she had…kissed my cheek and….and then I saw Ginny Bean and….and…”
“You never saw her again,” Jeffrey stated, ending the story rather abruptly. Penny glared at him, obviously irritated with his interference.
“She was lost that day. I’ve missed her every moment since,” Carissa sniffled. “I’ve missed everyone since that day. I never returned to Connemara. I left…went north for a time and met my darling husband. But, eventually we came back south and…and here I end up.”
Lauryn’s disappointment was so great that she thought she might scream. It seemed the one hope of finally finding Laura was for not.
“That’s all you remember, Ma’am?” Brant urged. Carissa smiled at him for a moment and then looked away. She nodded and dabbed at her tears.
Brant sighted heavily. “May I ask just one more thing, Mrs. McGovern?
“Gran is completely worn out and I think…” Jeffrey began. But Carissa held up her hand to signal that Brant should continue.
“How…how did you come by that little tea set? The one you gave to Penny? And do you know what ever happened to the piece…the cup that’s missing from it?” Brant’s question was gentle, but very forthright. Lauryn felt the hair on the back of her neck prickle as an expression of surprise crossed Carissa’s face for a moment.
“The little white set with the lavender flowers?” Carissa asked, in a near whisper.
“Yes,” Brant urged.
“I….I…” Carissa glanced at Jeffrey for a moment and Lauryn wondered why. For Jeffrey’s eyes narrowed as he nodded to his Grandmother. “I…I…took it from Connemara that day. That last day I was there. It had been left in the cellar…in a little basket. And when I saw it…I took it. I wanted something to remember my family by. To remember who I really was.”
“Why were you in the cellar?” Brant asked.
“It’s where Laura and I spoke…that last time. In the cellar. Just like when we were little girls and used to play tea party with our dolls. It was cool in the cellar on hot days and….” Carissa explained.
“She needs her rest now,” Jeffrey demanded, taking hold of Lauryn’s arm and tugging at her. “Thank you for your help, Gran.”
“The cup, Mrs. McGovern,” Brant prodde
d. “What happened to the cup that’s missing from the tea set?”
Carissa closed her eyes and laid her head back against her pillows. “It’s lost. Just like Laura,” came her answer.
“We’ll let you rest now, dearest,” Lauryn’s Nana whispered, kissing Carissa’s forehead tenderly.
“Thank you, Aunt Carissa,” Lauryn said. Carissa opened her eyes. A single tear trickled down her wrinkled cheek as she smiled sadly at her sister’s granddaughter.
Once everyone left the bedroom it was Nana that spoke first. “Well, I’m afraid you children are right back where you started,” she said to Brant and Lauryn.
Sighing heavily, Brant announced, “Well, I, for one, am going right back to where I started. I’m not waiting for the morning train back to Franklin. There’s a train in an hour and I plan to be on it. Any other takers?” Lauryn could see the frustration in Brant’s eyes. Now that their hopes of ending the mystery had been upset, he was ready to move on. Or rather, go back.
“I can’t leave ‘Rissy so soon. Now that I’ve found her again…I just don’t want to leave. Penny has agreed to stay on with me here for a few days,” Nana told them. “But I’m certain Lauryn wants to go back with you.”
“She can’t go back alone with him,” Jeffrey interjected. Lauryn noted the way he looked from Nana to her and Brant, and back again. He was obviously befuddled at what appropriate measures he should take. “I intended stayin’ on, as well. But, Mrs. Kensington…you’re not truly considerin’ lettin’ Brant escort Lauryn home…alone. Are you?”
Brant took an angry step toward Jeffrey, obviously intent on another confrontation. But it was Nana who intervened this time. Shaking her head to discourage Brant from any rash action, she turned to Jeffrey herself and said, “Jeffrey…there is no one on this earth more capable of seein’ Lauryn home safely than Brant.”
“I’ve no doubt he can see her home,” Jeffrey grumbled. “But what about seein’ her virtue home with her?”
Before Lauryn or Brant could act in defense, the air rang with the sound of a swift slap delivered to Jeffrey’s face by Nana’s small hand. “Don’t you ever disrespect Lauryn again, boy. Or me or Brant, for that matter. I won’t have it! You’re my nephew now and I have a mind to treat you a little less like a neighbor and more like family. I expect the same from you.” Nana turned to Brant then, whose eyebrows were still raised in surprise. “You see Lauryn home for me, Brant.”
“Yes, Ma’am,” Brant promised, grinning delightedly.
“Oh, Lauryn!” Penny exclaimed, hugging her friend. “I know y’all expected more. All of us did. But let’s just be glad we know what we know. All right?”
“Of course,” Lauryn told her, kissing her cheek affectionately. “When y’all get back…we’ll have lots of talk and laughter again. Promise me?”
“Promise,” Penny agreed, returning Lauryn’s kiss.
“Let your mother know that I’m fine, sweet pea,” Nana said as she hugged Lauryn. “And I’ll be home in a few days. She’ll be in a complete tizzy over the house with all that’s goin’ on. Y’all help her, you hear?”
“I will,” Lauryn promised. Then Nana took hold of Brant’s shirt, tugging at it until he bent and kissed her cheek.
“And you get Lauryn home safely,” Nana told him. Lauryn watched as her Nana then whispered into Brant’s ear, “Virtue and all.”
Brant chuckled. “I’ll try.”
“You’ll do,” Nana stated, winking at him.
Brant did offer a hand to Jeffrey, who shook it politely. Penny, however, hugged Brant, kissing him sweetly on the cheek. Then she, too, put her lips to his ear and whispered, yet loudly enough for Lauryn to hear, “I think it wouldn’t hurt if you tainted Lauryn’s virtue just a tich on the way home.”
Lauryn felt herself blush when Brant chuckled and winked at her. “Thank you for the advice, Miss McGovern.” He turned to Lauryn. “Let’s go then. I’ll get your bag.”
While Brant went toward the front of the house to retrieve the small bag Lauryn had brought in anticipation of a longer visit, Jeffrey spoke. “I know you understand, Lauryn,” he said. Lauryn looked at him, still a bit miffed at his uncooperative behavior.
“Understand your desire to make things easy on your Gran? Yes,” she admitted. “Understand your completely vile behavior toward Brant? No.”
Jeffrey sighed and nodded. “Jealousy does rear its ugly head from time to time, Lauryn,” he told her. “Even in Tennessee.” He reached out and took her hand, raising it to his lips and kissing the back of softly. “I knew you first, remember.” Lauryn blushed, flattered by the compliment yet somehow doubtful of its sincerity.
It seemed strange to Lauryn—she and Brant leaving everyone else behind. Especially her Nana and especially when it seemed that she and Brant had been the most hopeful about the trip. And now they sat, side by side, on the train home, as far from settling things as when they arrived.
It was very dark outside, so the scenery wasn’t a venue of entertainment. Still, Brant was quiet as they traveled on. The only indication to Lauryn that he was even awake, in fact, was his eyes being open and the way his thumb would caress her fingers now and again as he held her hand.
“Whatever are you thinkin’ about, Brant? The silence is deafenin’ in here,” Lauryn whispered at last. Many of the travelers were sleeping as the passenger car lanterns were now dimmed. Lauryn could not find one fragment of her body that wished for unconsciousness.
“What am I always thinking about?” Brant mumbled.
Lauryn sighed with discouragment and squeezed his arm reassuringly. “I know. It seems there will never be anythin’ else to life until…”
“What happened to that teacup?” he growled suddenly. “It sticks in my mind like a parasite!” He shook his head with frustration. “And she didn’t tell us everything. I still think she knows more.”
“She’s very old, Brant,” Lauryn reminded him. “So much more even than Nana. Maybe…maybe she doesn’t remember. Or maybe…maybe it isn’t important…the cup.”
“Or maybe we should just give up and go on with life, Lauryn.” He smiled, if somewhat defeatedly, and said, “Maybe I should be spending more time tainting your virtue and less time chasing ghosts.”
“Oh, don’t play the rounder to me, Brant Masterson,” Lauryn giggled, thrilled by his flirting. “I know there’s no safer place on earth for me than with you.”
Brant chuckled and kissed the top of her head. “Oh, is that so?”
“Yes. Of course,” Lauryn sighed, laying her head against his shoulder.
“Well…I suppose there’s no better way to keep a demon lover righteous, than to profess a sure knowledge…however innocent that knowledge might be…of his devotion to chivalry, now is there.”
“A demon lover,” Lauryn whispered, smiling. “I like that.”
“Which?” Brant asked, the intonation in his voice dropping to a deep, seductively rich level, “The demon part or the lover part?”
Lauryn looked up into his yes to see them smoldering with mischief and desire. “Both…together,” she admitted in a whisper.
“You’re asking for trouble, sugar,” Brant mumbled, as the corner of his mouth twitched slightly.
“I hope so,” Lauryn breathed a moment before he kissed her.
“The Trills, just down the road, have put their house and property for sale,” Georgia explained as Lauryn and Brant sat in Sean and Mindy’s parlor with her. “It’s a good price…and you know Nana has always admired the place.” Georgia’s lower lip quivered slightly and her eyes filled with moisture. She inhaled a breath of resolve and continued. “And…and it’s close to Connemara, at least. I feel I need to telephone Nana, first…before deciding. But Sean thinks it’s a wise investment and…well, we do need a place to live. I think it’s important to Patrick to stay near his friends and….and….” Georgia looked to Brant then. “What do you think, Brant dear?”
Lauryn
felt nauseated. Each time she thought of permanently abandoning Connemara, her stomach churned and her heart felt as if it had been pierced my a hundred tiny needles.
Brant took Lauryn’s hand in his own, squeezing it encouragingly as he answered, “It sounds like a good choice. If Sean thinks it’s a good choice…then I’m sure it is. I…I would like to know, Mrs. Kensington…though I understand that it’s not my place to ask….” Brant paused, seeming uncertain if he should continue with his intended questions. Lauryn looked up to him, interested in what he had to say.
“Go on, Brant,” Georgia urged him.
“Well,” Brant began. “What is your agreement with the Historical Society as far as your…well, I guess…rights to visit the grounds—tend to the cemetery or take anything you would want for sentimental value?”
Georgia smiled at Brant, understandingly. Reaching out, she placed a hand caressively to his cheek for a moment. “We take everythin’ in the house with us, darlin’. They would like for us to loan them some family portraits and furniture pieces to add to the authenticity of the period and family lineage. But, at any time we wish it, our things will be returned to us. As far as the grounds…the historical society will maintain the cemetery and grounds, but we will always be allowed to return whenever we want. In fact, Mr. DuMonde, has promised that a key to Connemara’s front door will always remain in the possession of a member of our family.”
Brant nodded and Lauryn’s very soul loved him even more for his concern over Connemara’s changing hands. She knew he was thinking as she did…the nagging possibility was in his mind that they might never find Laura now. They’re hopes were becoming fewer and fewer, and he wanted to know if Connemara would always be accessible, just in case hope in finding her was renewed one day.
Lauryn had agonized over the Captain’s fate as well. Because of her failure, the Captain was doomed to roam Connemara alone, and she was sickened at the thought. Since returning from Memphis, three days prior, Lauryn had sensed Brant’s growing discouragement. Her own defeated emotions were growing, and she knew his were as well.
The Fragrance of Her Name Page 38