Family Blessings (Cisco Family)

by Fern Michaels

  Father Stanley rocked back and forth on his haunches. “I can patch you all up. I’ve had a lot of experience with the football team, so that’s no problem. This way you can avoid having everyone in town know what asses the three of you are. You now know everyone’s secrets. You now know who broke their promises. You now know you’re all human beings with faults and warts. The blame game is over, boy and girls. This is the last time you will ever resort to these tactics. Do you hear and understand me?” He listened to the garbled response that sounded like yes to him.

  “In addition, I am going to arrange for some counseling for all three of you. It’s long overdue. Do you agree to that, too?” Again it sounded like a yes. Father Drupieski ran with his new power. “All right then. Get up, and let’s head to the rectory, where I will patch you up. You will sleep at the rectory tonight. Don’t even think about saying no. Tomorrow, I am going to drive each one of you home, and I’m going to wait while you talk to your respective spouses. Don’t think about objecting. If you want to be treated like an adult, then act like one.”

  Sam groaned as he tried to get up. He couldn’t ever remember being so sore, so battered. When he saw Sara’s outstretched hand he turned away. “I don’t need your help.”

  “I know, Sam.” She didn’t take her hand away. Her brother looked into her eyes. He reached for her hand, then was on his feet. They both reached down for Hannah’s hands.

  “Sonia loves you, Sam. She loves you more than Hannah and I love you. That’s a wonderful thing. She’s probably too good for you.”

  “Yes, she is,” Sam said, limping to the kitchen doorway, where Father Stanley waited for them.

  Outside, in the dark night, Joel and Zack looked at one another in awe. “Let’s sit in the car and talk about this,” Zack said. “Father Stanley said to give him an hour after the kitchen lights go out, then we’re supposed to go to the rectory. I don’t know if that’s a good idea or not. I also don’t think he should be the one to explain our situations to our wives. That’s something we have to do. There is one bright light here, though.”

  “Yeah, and that would be…what?”

  “We’ll have matching shiners. Hannah is two for two. She broke my nose, and she broke Sam’s nose. They are powerful, I have to admit.”

  “Shut up, Zack. I hate you or did you forget?” Joel grumbled.

  Chapter Eleven

  AT TEN O’CLOCK FATHER DRUPIESKI CLOSED HIS oversize first-aid kit with a loud snap. “I expect the three of you will be a little stiff and sore for a few days, but you’ll live. I want to say right now that I do not have one iota, do you hear me, one iota of sympathy for any of you. Now I want you to wait right here till I check with my housekeeper to be sure your rooms are ready. Say some prayers while I’m gone. On second thought, say a lot of prayers while I’m gone.”

  The moment the door closed, Sara had her jacket on, as did Hanny. “C’mon, Sam, Father Stanley is up to something. That honest face of his gave him away. I bet you a dollar he’s got Zack and Joel hiding out in the bushes and went to get them. Move, move! Don’t you understand English? Keep quiet when we get outside, too.” Sara’s voice was so authoritative, both Sam and Hannah obeyed instinctively.

  A high wind was rocketing through the parish parking lot as the Trips made their way to their respective vehicles by sliding quietly among the shadows.

  Sara pointed to the far side of the rectory, where two figures huddled against the front door. “See! It’s that old forgive-and-forget thing Father is so good at. We’re going to wait them out even if we freeze out here. Now, remember, keep your voices down,” Sara ordered.

  “I think it’s snowing,” Hannah said, holding her face up to feel the tiny flakes. “Hmmm, that feels good.”

  “Sam, Hannah and I are going to New Jersey now.”

  Sam gingerly worked his jaw several times before he spoke. “Why?”

  “Because. Just me and Sara, Sam.”

  “Why?” Sam asked again.

  “Because you already made the cut. Sonia is at the Inn, Sam. You need to go to her and talk. She’s waiting for you. The next time you go to see Mom you can take Sonia and your new baby with you. Right now, Hanny and I need to go there; you don’t. It’s that simple. And, Sam, I’m sorry for all the grief I’ve given you growing up. Hannah and I were over-bearing. It was always two against one. There’s a lot of stuff we have to make right in our own lives. You, little brother, are way ahead of us, and that’s a really good thing. I just want you to know, we’ll always be there for you. Always. But not like before when…when we controlled your life. Oh, Sam, I am so very sorry,” Sara said, throwing her arms around her brother. Hannah blubbered against his chest, too.

  Stunned, Sam wrapped his arms around his sisters. He held them close. “I’ll be there for you, too. Say hi to Mom for me, okay? You sure Sonia wants to see me?”

  “More than anything in the world, Sam. Just let me give you some advice this one last time, okay, Sam? I’ll never offer it again unless you ask. Let Sonia talk. She has a lot to say. That’s one dynamite wife you have. Don’t let her get away. Pride is a terrible thing. That’s all I have to say.”

  “Sara speaks for me, too, Sam. Oh, look, there they go! Wait till they leave the lot before you turn the car on. Good luck, Sam.”

  A lump the size of a golf ball settled in Sam’s throat. “When…when are you coming back? What do you want me to say if anyone asks where you went?”

  “No more secrets, no more promises, no more don’t-tells. It’s up to you.”

  Sam shuffled his feet. “Will you call me when you get there, so I know everything is all right?”

  “If you want us to, we will. Don’t feel you have to say that. I know old habits die hard, but from here on in it’s going to be a learning process for all of us.”

  “I’m sorry about Zack and Joel. I know that doesn’t make you feel any better, but I am sorry.”

  Hannah rubbed at her eyes. “Go get Sonia, Sam, she’s waiting for you.”

  Sam moved off. He felt strange, almost light-headed, as he watched his sisters settle themselves in the car. He felt relief, sadness, love, and joy. He felt so free he could have taken flight if he had had wings instead of arms. He wanted to sing, to dance, to shout at the top of his lungs. He looked around the dark parking lot. He could do all of those things if he wanted to.

  On the second floor of the rectory, Father Drupieski watched from his bedroom window. When he saw the young man down below start to dance and sing to some unheard music, his closed fist shot into the air. “Good for you, Sam!”

  The priest crawled into bed, then got back out. He must be in a dither to forget his nightly prayers. How old his bones were, how creaky, how painful.

  His prayers finished, he got back into bed. He would sleep now. He knew Sam was going to be all right. Hannah and Sara were on their way to the only place that could give them the comfort and solace they needed at the moment. The boys, that was how he thought of Zack and Joel, would be all right, too. Embarrassed but all right. It seemed to him everyone had learned a hard lesson on this special Thanksgiving Day. As he blessed his pillow and himself one more time, he allowed himself a small wish. He wished for a dog. Someone to keep him company. Someone to listen to his ramblings. Someone to keep his feet warm in bed. He was trying to remember how many times he’d made the same wish, but he fell asleep. It never occurred to him that all he had to do was to voice his wish aloud, and he would be surrounded by a houseful of dogs. But Father Stanley Drupieski never, ever asked anything for himself, only for others.

  Sonia walked over to the door the moment she heard the light knock. She opened it and had to fight with herself not to rush into her husband’s arms. “Hello, Sam.” She eyed his battered face but made no other comment.

  “Can I come in, Sonia?”

  “Why? It’s late, Sam. I was just getting ready for bed.”

  “Why? Because I need to talk to you, that’s why. I have things I need to say. I im
agine you have things you want to say to me. I want to tell you how much I love you. I want to tell you how much I missed you. I want to tell you I’m happy about the baby. Stuff like that.”

  “Very well. Come in. I’ll listen to what you have to say. I will not make any promises, Sam. Do you still want to come in?”

  “Yes. Yes, I do.”

  “All right.” Sonia held the door open and motioned Sam to one of the dark green chairs sitting next to the table. She sat down in the chair opposite her husband and folded her arms.

  “I’m really sorry, Sonia. I thought…damn, I thought all kinds of things. Having children so soon wasn’t in my life plan. We both agreed to wait a while. I took your getting pregnant as a betrayal on your part. That was so wrong of me. But it was wrong of you to lie to me and run off, too. If it takes me the rest of my life, I’ll make it up to you. I want this baby, Sonia. I want to be a father. In some crazy way I was trying to avoid being a father because of my own father. I have stuff in my head that’s been locked away from the time my mother died. I’m taking it out, a little at a time, and looking at it. Sara, Hannah, and I all agreed with Father Stanley that we need some counseling. I’ve got a bead on it, but I’m going anyway. It was never you, Sonia. It was me.”

  “Then I can get a job and earn a paycheck?”

  Sam blinked. “If that’s what you want, it’s fine with me. By March of next year, Sara will have the company’s day-care center up and running. She’s about to start interviewing for a director. You more than qualify, Sonia, but, of course, the decision is up to you.”

  “Then why did you give me so many arguments before I left when I said I wanted to work.”

  Sam swiped at his curls. “I thought you wanted to stay home.”

  “No, Sam. You wanted me to stay home. Because your mother stayed home and didn’t work. My parents sacrificed a lot to send me here to college. I want to work so I can repay them some of the money. I tried telling you that, but you ignored me.”

  Sam nodded. “I did do that, didn’t I? I’m sorry, Sonia. You’re right, I was trying to recapture a time in my life when I was totally happy. Mom was always home when we came in from school. She always baked and ironed and did all those things that I wanted you to do. I guess I was pretty stupid. I suppose there’s a lot of other stuff I didn’t hear, too.”

  “Yes, Sam, a lot of stuff as you say. The big thing was…is, you didn’t trust me, and now you want me to trust you. You’re saying words, Sam. How do I know you mean them? A baby is going to change our lives. I have no intention of being a stay-at-home mom. I can do it on my own. I can return home. I have other options.”

  “I know you do, Sonia. Can’t you see your way clear to giving me a chance? I don’t want to lose you because of my stupidity.”

  Sonia allowed a small smile to tug at the corners of her mouth. “Are you telling me you are smart now?”

  Sam grinned. “A little smarter. Guess what, Sonia, I met up with Billy Rutherford. I met his wife, and she’s about due to have a baby. You’d like her. They’re moving back here to the valley. They could become good friends and be part of our new life. Will you at least think about all this?”

  “I’ll think about it, Sam. No promises, though.”

  “Okay. When…when do you think you’ll…you know, make up your mind?”

  “Close your eyes, Sam.” Sam closed his eyes.

  “Open your eyes, Sam.” Sam opened his eyes.

  “I swear, every time I look at you, you get prettier. I heard what a tiger you were last night at the Barb Wire. I didn’t know you were such a wild woman. That’s a compliment,” he added hastily.

  Sonia nodded, accepting the compliment. “I’ve decided. I’ll give you another chance.”

  Sam picked up his tiny wife and swung her off the floor before he planted a kiss on her lips that made Sonia swoon with pleasure. He set her down, looked deeply into her eyes, and said, “This has to wait. I have to go and see Zack and Joel. I owe my sisters that much. You want to come along?”

  “Oh, yes. Yes indeedy. I, too, would like to give those two oafs a piece of my mind. I thought so much more of them. I would never have believed they would betray their wives like that, but I saw the women with my own eyes. They looked so…so guilty.”

  “Oafs is it?” Sam grinned. “Let’s get their side of it. Sara said they were trying to explain, but my sisters wouldn’t listen.”

  Sonia sniffed. “I can’t even begin to imagine how they could defend having affairs. For professional men, doctors no less, how could they do such a thing?”

  “I don’t know, but we’re going to find out right now. Dress warm, honey, it’s cold outside. Sonia, do you have any idea how much I love you?”

  “Yes, Sam, because I love you just as much.”

  Five minutes later they were on their way to Zack Kelly’s house.

  With few cars on the road at that late hour, Sam felt confident enough to hold the steering wheel in his left hand while he held his wife’s hand with the other. From time to time, he squeezed it. Both of them were smiling in the darkness. “Do you think it will be a boy or a girl?”

  Sonia laughed. “I don’t know. It doesn’t matter as long as the baby is healthy.”

  “Yeah, yeah, that’s how I feel.”

  “Looks to me like Zack is still up. Guess he can’t sleep,” Sam said, turning into his brother-in-law’s driveway. “That’s Joel’s car. Misery does love company. Now look, Sonia, if this little visit turns physical, I don’t want you to get involved. Understood?”

  “Understood, Sam.”

  Together, they walked up to the front door and rang the bell. A battered Zack glared at them in the open doorway. “What the hell do you want now, Sam? Did you come here to gloat or to take a shot at me, too?”

  “I don’t know yet, Zack. There’s three sides to everything. Your side, my sister’s side, and the truth, which lies somewhere in the middle. I’m here to hear what you and Joel have to say.”

  “Why bother, Sam? You already made up your mind to believe your sisters,” Zack snarled, his face grimacing in pain.

  An equally battered Joel popped around the corner. “What?” he bellowed. “Are you here to beat us to a pulp, too?”

  “No. Listen, it’s cold out here. Can we come in?”

  “Well sure, Sam. Joel and I have just been sitting here waiting for you to show up.” His sarcasm was not lost on Sam, who ushered Sonia into the warm house ahead of him.

  Sam and Sonia sat on one sofa, Joel and Zack on the opposite sofa. A huge fire burned in the fireplace. They all glared at one another.

  “Talk,” Sam said, menace ringing in his voice.

  The two doctors babbled as one as Sam stared at both his brothers-in-law in stupefied amazement.

  When they finally wound down, Sam said, “Let me get this straight. This is all about you two buying a boat you are going to pick up in Miami the first week in January. You are both taking a year’s leave to sail. However, you neglected to tell your wives because you felt guilty after you did it. How’m I doing so far?” Neither doctor answered him.

  “So, the two women you were having dinner with yesterday evening were delivering your certificates for all the courses you’ve taken over the past few months. The gift boxes were captain’s hats, compliments of the dealer you bought the boat from. The women, Marylee and Corinne, were your boating instructors. That’s it!”

  “Every last bit of it.”

  “And you two did not have affairs with those women is what you’re telling me.”

  Disgust washed over both doctor’s faces. “Sam, take a look at these papers. It says right at the top how many hours are required for each course. When in the hell would we have had time to have affairs? There aren’t enough hours in the day for something like that. On top of that, I take my wedding vows seriously,” Zack said.

  “We were going to tell Sara and Hannah this weekend, but things got out of hand. We’re guilty of being stupid, but that�
��s all we’re guilty of. Now, go home and leave us to our misery,” Joel said.

  “This is pretty impressive,” Sam said as he held up the thick sheaf of certificates that said both Joel and Zack were advanced enough to take a boat out onto the water and live to return to port. “What are you going to do now?”

  “Hide out until we can go out in public without scaring people,” Zack snapped. “After that, I plan to try and explain to Hannah. If she chooses not to listen, I’m leaving with Joel the first week in January. It’s my dream, Sam. Something I’ve wanted all my life, and I’m not giving it up.”

  Sam propped his elbows on his knees. “And you shouldn’t have to give it up. Want some advice?”

  “No!” both doctors shouted in unison.

  “I’m going to give it to you anyway. Now listen up.” As he talked, he was drawing a road map. “At best they have an hour to an hour and a half start. Sara obeys the speed limit, and they like to stop every fifty miles or so for bathroom breaks. I bet you anything you could get there before they do if you leave right now.”

  Joel had his jacket on before Sam stopped speaking. Zack zipped up his own jacket, throwing one of Hanny’s mufflers around his neck.

  “Lock up, Sam,” Zack shouted over his shoulder.

  “This is so bizarre,” Sonia said. “Another example of what happens when married couples don’t communicate.” It was said coolly and pointedly.

  Sam nodded. “Point taken.”

  “Let’s go home, Sam.”

  “Sonia, those are the sweetest-sounding words I’ve ever heard in my life.”

  Joel looked down at the oversize watch on his wrist. “It’s a quarter to four, Zack, and I’m so cold I think my blood froze in my veins an hour ago. Either we missed them, or they aren’t going to come here till morning. The flip side of that is old Sam might have snookered us. I saw a twenty-four-hour diner back there on Route 27. Let’s get some coffee and try to warm up.”

  “I’m not going anywhere until my wife gets here. You can go if you want to. I’m positive Sam didn’t snooker us. Bear in mind we probably broke about twenty speed laws getting here. Like Sam said, Sara obeys the speed limit. Oh, oh, I see headlights. Duck behind that big stone over there, Joel.”